It's a family decision, IMO. Others will have their opinions either way but it all comes down to the wrestler's decision. In Jake's case, he made the decision himself. He shadowed at MC and it's an hour up to Chicago from Lowell so his school days for 4yrs have been: up at 5:15am (up at 4:45am on morning practice days) and back home at 8pm at night, every night. I assumed and totally expected him to say "thanks but no thanks" after his shadow day. I made him go through a typical day of getting up early and coming home late, etc. so he would know what it was going to be like for 4yrs. I figured after the shadow day it would be put to bed. The first thing that came out of his mouth when I picked him up was "that's where I am going, that's my school". There was absolutely no pulling or tugging from me or my wife, he made that decision on his own and we love the decision he made. It's not for everyone but it was best for him. We love our friends in Indiana and we spent all of his formative years in wrestling in Indiana and we wrestled a lot in Illinois and all across the country. As for the actual wrestling part of it? Jake would have been fine if he stayed in IN or went elsewhere because of the nature of our sport, it's all about national tournaments and who you are competing against and defeating/staying close with. Jake's coach at MC is a 4x AA and an NCAA D1 National Champion. He coached at Overtime for 11yrs, he coached Andrew Howe, Alex Tsirtsis, Angel Escobedo, etc. and is probably one of the best technicians in the country. With that said, Bobby Howard at Lowell is also a great technician and Jake would have succeeded under him as well plus Jake has always been an RWA kid, working with Tsirtsis, Hawkins, and the gang for years. There are so many people involved in the success of a wrestler, it's just not black/white on any decision to attend a school. One of the many aspects that I loved about IL was the culture for wrestling and the dual team series. We are going to Dual Team State this weekend and after coaching 3 straight undefeated middle school teams at Lowell, the team aspect of our sport really appealed to me personally and for Jake. Being ranked nationally at #12 is a thrill and I wish there was some way for IN to bring back the dual team series in the IHSAA. Finally, I would be remiss if I didn't include my wife in this conversation. She is a South Side of Chicago girl, grown up and raised in IL. MC was very important from the faith-side of it (we are catholic), it's a big deal for her son to go to a school like MC and it may mean nothing to most people but it meant a lot to her and her family...but she still left the decision up to Jake. She was like me, she never thought he'd be able to keep a strict regimented schedule of getting up so early every day and getting home late, etc.
I could go on but it's safe to say that we love our friends/wrestlers in Indiana and we also love the decision Jake made by going to MC. I hope this answers your question.