WoodJC82

I also moved to Indiana and  questioned the wrestling format, especially no wrestle backs.  It doesn't make sense.    But as mentioned in earlier,  the IHSAA is very adamant against wrestlebacks and will not change or adapt.    But, Ill go into detail as the IHSAA reasoning for this.
 
The IHSAA runs wants to stay true in all sports to their sectional, regional, semi-state state format.   This format is more or less more conducive to basketball and football.    One of the results is there are a lot of basketball, football and baseball teams that get bad draws and lose early in the tournament due to a more competitive area with more ranked teams.   But these teams do not have a consolation opportunity or bracket to compensate for their earlier loss.    And the IHSAA's most important objective is that the one best still wins the championship irrelevant of any bad draws to reach that point.     So the IHSAA board who is made up of mostly ADs who were former Football, Basketball and baseball coaches feel that just as in other sports, the wrestler should not have the opportunity to compete in  a consolation/or wrestleback format just like the team sports and this format ultimately decides the true champion.
 
Note,  many Indiana wrestling fans love the drama of the Friday night matches and call it a "Ticket round" where the results have heavy rewards and consequences being if you win you place, you lose you go home.    Im my opinion this format is a disgrace and attacks the integrity of the sport.   You compile a one class event where mathematically, Indiana is the most difficult state tournament to qualify and you have a great opportunity to showcase the states best talent,  but the IHSAA wants to shorten the event and get  the kids out.   Its silly,  and actually if they had another session and had wrestle backs, the IHSAA could charge more money.
 
Ive done some research and have compiled a list below of states that do not have wrestlebacks for their state tournament.
 
List of states without wrestle backs.
1. Indiana
 
 

Belmont is losing seven seniors, don't think they will be regional favorites next year.

Belmont is losing seven seniors, don't think they will be regional favorites next year.

Are the sessions just separated? Is the plan for fans the same as last year?

Looks like a couple Jay County wrestlers were moved to the incorrect weight classes. (Reiley/Wood)

A couple radio stations will be doing broadcast.
 
WPGW in Portland will be broadcasting all Jay County duals with score updates of others when available.
http://www.wpgwradio.com/
 
WZBD in Berne - Decatur will be broadcasting Bellmont duals as well as Adams Central when possible. 
http://www.wzbd.com/
 
 

I think this would be fine and possibly favorable when considering college wrestling and the elite HS wrestlers who are basically training and competing year round anyway.  However, this may really hurt our sport with the high school base we sadly still struggle to grow. Consider the varsity wrestler who enjoys the sport, does reasonably well, but also enjoys being a 3 sport athlete. They may never make the podium at state but they are happy enough with the winter season and then running track, playing baseball, rugby or something else in the spring. With this change they will now have to choose between wrestling and what they normally do in the spring. Some may choose wrestling, but many will not. To many winter in Indiana is a great time to spend indoors enjoying this sport but spring means outdoor sports. Again, I fully realize our top wrestlers (and many of those with ambitions of being on top) already wrestle in the spring. But I imagine most rosters, aside from the Brownsburgs, Mater Deis, etc, are comprised of over 50% of kids who have other spring plans. 

I wanted to update Team Rankings today and send out information for voters for Sunday's big vote, but all I've done all day is update results in the database!
 
Cathedral
Mater Dei
Perry Meridian
Penn
Franklin
 
Just to name a few!
 
If you want to be accurately seeded for Team State, you need to input your results. Come on, people, we can do better!

Jay County's Annual Elementary Event is on November 14th.
2021 - Duals on the Border Invite.docx

Join us live on WZBD 92.7 FM in the Decatur area for the first show of season three of High School Wrestling Weekly, the only radio talk show devoted to just high school wrestling in the world! (We think)
 
Our guest for the first week will be Paul Baker, three-time medalist and 1988 State Champion from Bellmont who has recently joined the coaching ranks for new Bellmont head coach Tim Myers. 
 
We have moved our show to Sunday evenings and we are still holding the show at the Double Eagle Clubhouse Grille in Decatur, starting at 7 p.m.
 
You can watch the show live, listen live on your radio, or stream it using TuneIn Radio or go to wzbd.com to listen live online. Of course you can always catch the show later on the week on the IndianaMat podcast page. 
 
Celebrate the official start of the season with us!

It'll always be Conseco!
 

Flyer attached for girls only event opportunity.
2021 Halloween Havoc - Girls Event.docx

I remember this story from when it happened.  Kid apparently mouthed off and got dinged for unsportsmanlike, then flexed to the other team after he won.  Got dinged a second time and was DQ'd.  Family fought it and it was overturned.  Now a second judge reversed the decision.  Not sure how I feel about it, but I think I'm leaning towards siding with the second judge.  Unsportsmanlike is a judgement call.  If the decision to reinstate the kid was upheld, then to me, it opens a can of worms for others that think they were "wrongly" DQ'd for something.  Bottom line, don't mouth off to the ref or flex to the other teams bench and you won't have to worry about being DQ'd.  I would also not apply this same logic to those that celebrate when winning a state title.

Thank you, we are also adding a 2020 MS State Champion and another 2020 medalist from our middle school team as they become freshman this year.
 
Thrine is a good one, would have loved to be on site to watch that one with Clark.

Thank you

Come watch former WWE star  "The Boogeyman" in action Sunday May 16th at 2:00pm in the Bubp Building at the Jay County Fairgrounds as the DCCW puts on a show for the Jay County Wrestling Club.

Come watch former WWE star  "The Boogeyman" in action Sunday May 16th at 2:00pm in the Bubp Building at the Jay County Fairgrounds as the DCCW puts on a show for the Jay County Wrestling Club.

I think it's funny that it keeps being said that Ft. Wayne needs to be strengthened or balanced.  People don't care about making Ft. Wayne stronger.  Indy schools are hammering each other in January and February and they want to avoid each other until state.  There is a rumor that there is a movement in Indy, not sure if it's coaches or AD's or both, for this "restructuring" because some of their better kids are losing early.  
 
Restructure because it fits geography, time, etc.  You don't restructure because you don't like the outcome you're getting.  Us small schools have been told to work harder if we want to be like the big dogs.  So, if the rumor is true, then I would say you just need to work harder.

Niccum and Palmer were both Delta I believe.

Coming up with a good schedule to meet all the needs of my wrestlers has been a struggle.  We have a gap of ability difference within our team.  I have been thinking about hosting a 16 team Individual tournament that would allow each wrestler to have potentially 5 matches.  We would allow JV's wrestlers in spots that did not have 16 spots taken.  Example one team had a forfeit at 160 but team 2 had 2 160's we would plug the jv in the 160 spot with the forfeit.  Each weight class would have 4 seeded pools seed 1,16, 8, and 9 would be pool 1. Seeds 2, 15, 7, and 10 would be pool 2.  Seeds 3, 6, 11 and 14 would be pool 3.  Then seeds 4, 13, 12 and 5 would be pool 4.  All pools would wrestle each other once giving each wrestler 3 matches.  All of the the wrestlers that finished 1st would go to the 1st place bracket and wrestle 2 matches winners would wrestle winners losers wrestle losers.  I think this would help meet all wrestlers needs and still give everyone the same mat time. Would any schools be interested in a tournament like this. Only Awards to individuals no Team Award given.  Would love to hear feedback

two years in a row,  the scholar causes  the class wrestling debate to go viral on Indianamat.   You're welcome. 

What a great tournament! Very proud of our middle school runner up finish.
 
1. Center Grove
2. Jay County
3. Brownsburg
4. Hamilton SE
5. Portage
6. Perry Meridian
7. Avon
8. Franklin Central
9. Delta
10. Carmel
11. Franklin
12. Penn
13. Noblesville
14. Martinsville
15. Edgewood
16. Bloomington South.

Congrats to all teams that participated in yesterday's event.  It was very successful and was well ran.
With that being said obviously congrats go to the Champions Center Grove and the runner up Jay County and 3rd place finisher Brownsburg as well.
I want to recognize another team for what I feel sometimes gets over looked and goes without mentioning too often.  At the end of the day the voice on the microphone announced that we would ask all teams to do their part in cleaning up their area.  While myself and a couple other ISWA directors, board members and the president were collecting our equipment someone commented to the Perry Meridian team and coaches that we appreciated them cleaning up their area.  They advised us they had already cleaned up their area and were cleaning up another area on their way out the door.
Then after that was completed 2 kids from that team came to the ISWA President and myself and very politely & respectfully asked if there was anything else they could do to help us and thanked us for the day.
Keep in mind these are MS kids showing the maturity and grace of what we would expect from most if not all of our HS age kids.
 
Now this is where I should and would normally make a joke at the expense of @lewdwar but in this case I feel its best to just keep it classy and say thank you and you are doing a great job mentoring and leading those kids and it definitely is showing !!!! 
 
Respectfully,
Jason Miller ISWA Kids Director

No referee-backs either!

What a great tournament! Very proud of our middle school runner up finish.
 
1. Center Grove
2. Jay County
3. Brownsburg
4. Hamilton SE
5. Portage
6. Perry Meridian
7. Avon
8. Franklin Central
9. Delta
10. Carmel
11. Franklin
12. Penn
13. Noblesville
14. Martinsville
15. Edgewood
16. Bloomington South.