blueandgold

He wasn't a senior, but Brayden Littell only competed in the state tournament once as a junior and won it. He later didn't compete his senior year due to injury.

Drop your top rated matches here... I have a few on a five-star scale with a criteria that factors story, competitiveness, talent, ranking, and stage. I've got a few to share. Five Star Matches (Greatest of All Time) Blake Maurer vs. Alex Dolly 2/22/03 Indianapolis, IN - IHSAA Individual State Finals, 171 lb. championship Paul Petrov vs. Brenden Campbell 2/18/2012 Indianapolis, IN - IHSAA Individual State Finals, 120 lb. championship Cody LeCount vs. Tommy Forte 1/12/2014 Decatur, IN - Bellmont Main Event Final: Perry Meridian vs. Mishawaka, 145 lb. match Chad Red vs. Nick Lee 2/20/2016 Indianapolis, IN - IHSAA State Finals, 132 lb. championship Robert Samuels vs. Rickie Clark 2/18/2017 Indianapolis, IN - IHSAA State Finals, 285 lb. third place match Brody Baumann vs. Robert Major 2/20/2021 Indianapolis, IN - IHSAA State Finals, 160 lb. championship 4.75 Star Matches (Near-Perfect) Deondre Wilson vs. Brandon James 2/15/2014 New Castle, IN - IHSAA Semi-State Championships, 132 lb. championship Logan Boe vs. Jonathan Kervin 2/15/2020 Evansville, IN - IHSAA Semi-State Championships, 152 lb. semifinal 4.5 Star Matches (Instant Classic) Deondre Wilson vs. Brandon James 2/22/2014 Indianapolis, IN - IHSAA State Finals, 132 lb. championship D.J. Brookbank vs. Zach Melloh 2/14/2016 New Castle, IN - IHSAA Semi-State Championships, 132 lb. quarterfinal Brendan Black vs. Kris Rumph 12/3/2016 Saint John, IN - Lake Central Harvest Classic, 138 lb. championship Jordan Slivka vs. Donnell Washington 2/16/2019 Indianapolis, IN - IHSAA State Finals, 160 lb. championship Joseph Walker vs. Macartney Parkinson 2/21/2020 Indianapolis, IN - IHSAA State Finals, 182 lb. first round Jacob Johnson vs. Nate Johnson 1/29/2022 Mooresville, IN - IHSAA Sectional Championships, 285 lb. championship There are so many more I'm missing, but I'm having a brain fart and can't think right now. Drop yours here.

Not mad, brother. You stated unfortunate facts, but facts nonetheless

RPW was never going to work for exactly why I stated above. Cards and champions in wrestling won’t attract anyone besides people who are already wrestling fans because of the lack of perceived violence. So, you have to appeal another way.

I posted this on the InterMat board, and figured I'd post here as well. Another revised concept of association wrestling in the United States. Original post: If the United States and other nations in the Americas (North, Central, and South) introduced an association wrestling system the way we see with association football (soccer), how plausible is it that it could find success to some degree? I've been active in the sport of wrestling for over ten years now as a competitor, coach, and fan, and I've recently become a big association football fan, and I wonder if how well it would work if we borrowed their system for wrestling. In the United States, it seems we try to build cards like boxing, mixed martial arts, or professional wrestling when in reality it's hard to promote a freestyle match in the same vein as the aforementioned sports due to lack of perceived violence. From RPW to the recent Flo cards, the promotion and events are fine, but they don't click. So, what's next? Well, association wrestling. When people hear "professional wrestling", the term immediately makes one think of WWE, AEW, NWA, etc., so the first step is stepping out of the shadow of sports entertainment. Second, what would it look like in the USA? Here's a quick write-up I made borrowing some elements from Premier League, La Liga, NBA, NFL, and the current NCAA wrestling system. The Name The League of American Wrestling Premier Division (Legal); American Premier League (Informal) Country United States of America Confederation Union of American Wrestling Associations (UAWA) Number of Teams 24 Level on Pyramid 1 Relegation to National Wrestling Championship of the United States (Legal); League II (Informal) Competition Format Each club wrestles a 20-match regular season schedule including six matches from a double round robin against the three other teams in their region. The top two teams from each region will qualify for the final stage bracket to determine a league champion. The top four teams based on record (total dual meet points used for tiebreaker) entering the final stage will automatically toggle the top four seeds and receive a bye, while the remaining teams will do battle in the Round of 16. Teams are ranked by record and dual meet points. Individual weight class champions are determined prior to the beginning of the final stage of the team tournament. The top 12 wrestlers from each weight (based on record and total points) will compete in a round robin of four pools, the winners from each of the four pools are then paired in a bracket to determine the individual champion. The top four wrestlers who make the final stage of the individual tournament will be named to the Iron League (compare to NBA All-Star or NFL Pro Bowl) while champions and runner-ups will also be named to the All-America first and second team (compare to All-NBA or NFL All-Pro). Weight Classes 126 lbs. 134 lbs. 142 lbs. 150 lbs. 155 lbs. 165 lbs. 175 lbs. 190 lbs. 225 lbs. 285 lbs. Rules and Scoring Two 4-minute periods + one 2-minute sudden-victory period (if necessary), followed by a two one-minute shot clocks to determine a winner (if necessary) Par terre optional only after a wrestler scores Takedown (three points of contact) = 2 Points Exposure = 2 Points Feet to Back = 4 Points Grand Amplitude Throw = 5 Points Reversal = 1 Point Passivity = 1 Point (2nd Warning), 2 Points (3rd Warning), Disqualification (4th Warning) No points awarded for push-outs Takedown can still be scored out of bounds as long as contact was previously established on the mat A match ends by technical fall when a wrestler is ahead by 15 points minimum Win Conditions and Point Totals Fall = 3 Points Technical Superiority = 2 Points Decision = 1 Point Disqualification = 1 Point A wrestler will receive 0 points for a loss and will be deducted 0.5 points for a disqualification. Teams (23 United States + 1 Canada) Arlington WC (Arlington, Texas) Atlanta WC (Atlanta, Georgia) Atlantic City WC (Atlantic City, New Jersey) Austin WC (Austin, Texas) Boston WC (Boston, Massachusetts) Carolina United WC (Charlotte, North Carolina) Cheyenne WC (Cheyenne, Wyoming) Chicago WC (Chicago, Illinois) Colorado Springs WC (Colorado Springs, Colorado) Detroit WC (Auburn Hills, Michigan) Indianapolis WC (Indianapolis, Indiana) Iowa City WC (Iowa City, Iowa) Las Vegas WC (Las Vegas, Nevada) Lincoln WC (Lincoln, Nebraska) Los Angeles WC (Los Angeles, California) New York WC (New York, New York) Orlando WC (Orlando, Florida) Philadelphia WC (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) Portland WC (Portland, Oregon) Richmond WC (Richmond, Virginia) Sioux Falls WC (Sioux Falls, South Dakota) Tulsa WC (Tulsa, Oklahoma) Twin Cities WC (Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota) Vancouver WC (Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada) Teams by Region East Atlantic City Boston New York Philadelphia Midwest Chicago Detroit Indianapolis Twin Cities Mountain West Cheyenne Iowa City Lincoln Sioux Falls Southeast Atlanta Carolina United Orlando Richmond Southwest Arlington Austin Colorado Springs Tulsa West Las Vegas Los Angeles Portland Vancouver Postseason Individual Group Stage (Pool A, Pool B, Pool C, Pool D; winner from each pool advances to final stage) Final Stage (4-Man Knockout, all final stage qualifiers named to Iron League and begin American Super Cup, champion and runner-up named to All-America team) Team Top two teams from each region advance to final stage (12-man knockout, 4 byes for top seeds) Top four teams based on record and total dual points earn 1-4 seeds, remaining eight teams battle in qualifying round Final eight teams begin Schultz Cup, top four teams receive banners, champions and runners-up receive hardware

It’s WrestleMania season. Make it a Triple Threat elimination match.

I’ve got a few! Regardless of whether these guys were champions or not, I’m more interested in the style clashes. Dream Matches 106 - Brennan Cernus vs. Cody Phillips 113 - Alex Cottey vs. Leroy Vega 126 - Logan Frazier vs. Kyle Ayersman 126 - Tylin Thrine vs. Brenden Campbell 132 - Chad Red vs. Angel Escobedo 132 - Zeke Seltzer vs. Nick Lee 138 - Jesse Mendez vs. Jason Tsirtsis 138 - Blake Boarman vs. Brandon James 145 - Brayton Lee vs. Cody LeCount 160 - Andrew Howe vs. David Palmer 160 - Sammy Goin vs. Drew Hughes 170 - Graham Calhoun vs. Tyler Willis 182 - De’Alcapon Veazy vs. Blake Rypel 195 - Silas Allred vs. Nate Moore 220 - Mason Parris vs. Gelen Robinson 285 - Shawn Streck vs. Chico Adams 285 - Dorian Keys vs. Robert Samuels 285 - Leighton Jones vs. Norman Oglesby

Was bored and figured I’d make an unbeatable squad that I believe would be ranked #1 in the country. 106: Leroy Vega (Portage) / Jason Terry (Cathedral) 113: Stevan Micic (Hanover Central) 120: Lance Ellis (Cathedral) 126: Angel Escobedo (Griffith) 132: Chad Red (New Palestine) 138: Jesse Mendez (Crown Point) 145: Alex Tsirtsis (Griffith) 152: Jason Tsirtsis (Crown Point) 160: Andrew Howe (Hanover Central) 170: Blake Maurer (Mater Dei) 182: Blake Rypel (Cathedral) 195: Mitch Sliga (Fishers) 220: Mason Parris (Lawrenceburg) 285: Shawn Streck (Merrillville)

Stevan Micic is the current GOAT based on individual accolades as he’s the only Olympian among the guys you listed. 184-5 in HS, 2013 Cadet World Team Member, 4-2-3 in college, 2020 Olympian, 2022 World Bronze Medalist. Even with no NCAA title, he’s the only one to see major success at the senior international level which I believe adds more weight. Mason would be second as he has a state, NCAA, and Junior world championship.

I’m proud to be an Indiana heavyweight. Watching those guys win at Division I, II, AND III let me know I came from the best heavyweight state in the land. And if we want to get technical, Gable is also ours by birthright and years spent here (up to eighth grade). Congratulations to Mason, Shawn, and Jack. Happy to say I’ve competed or scrapped with all three.

Who cares if more kids are getting a trophy? The best kids will still get theirs regardless. You just have other kids getting one as well because they work hard just as much as us from big schools, but only few will reach the top, if any sometimes. How are small school kids getting their own tournament hurting anyone up top? The crappy arguments everyone makes are, “It would ruin the best state tournament in the country.” Shut up with that. You all are so concerned about living vicariously through kids and wanting the sole spotlight to be on them that you can’t imagine another kid getting his or her fair share of the light when BOTH get a trophy. It is not such a bad thing for others to succeed to the same level as you do, and when you have no reason for why they shouldn’t be allowed to beyond “our cool state tournament will be ruined,” you really just look lame.

Wrestlebacks ain’t helping small school kids. It makes it worse for them actually because all of the big school kids who lost to other big school kids are beating those small school kids most of the time. You’d see less parity on the podium for sure.

He got pinned in a defensive fall by Rader while up 3-0. I think he was about to turn him and they just called it.

Fair point.

I’m surprised no one hasn’t said Austin Bethel yet. Four-time state qualifier who beat both Brayton and Joe Lee and immediately was an All-American as a true freshman at Wabash.