Growth in Wrestling in Kentucky

[ThirdRound 32]

The sport is growing in Kentucky.....If it's NOT broke then don't fix it.....The 32 man bracket is perfect for this state and its current growth....For those of you with hopes of changing it like other states just leave it alone.  You obviously want to stir the pot because we are not like Ohio or not like Indiana.....Guess what, We are Kentucky and it is working just fine right now.   Enjoy what we have now and allow the coaches to continue the growth through their youth programs and community.  Thanks to all the coaches out there that promote this sport and have made Kentucky on the levels of the bigger states....Transfers from other states have only helped make our best even better and competitive with the best in the nation.....Transfers happen all over the country everyday in bigger states...it happens...people move and some come HOME....Glad to have you all back HOME....You are Kentucky boys and something to be proud of !   We could field 2 or 3 full teams of studs that could compete with anyone and it just keeps getting better here in this state....LEAVE IT ALONE and enjoy !

[kdsmith27 14]

Just My opinion, but i feel that off season wrestling and teams extending there wrestling season has helped to grow wrestling in KY. It's giving more opportunity for kids to try it.

[CCMS_SC 59]

Just My opinion, but i feel that off season wrestling and teams extending there wrestling season has helped to grow wrestling in KY. It's giving more opportunity for kids to try it.

Ding Ding Ding, we have a winner!  Excellent opinion Coach Smith, and in my opinion it's more than an opinion.  It's fact!

[bigedcoach 27]

Ok Ill give my 2 cents worth on this debate since

= I have been involved in Kentucky Wrestling since 1983

= Lived through a state tournament that has seen the following brackets

    1 16 man pull through

    2 A Semi State then 8 man bracket

    3 A regular region then 16 man bracket

    4 The current format of Region then 32 man bracket

= Been a wrestler, coach and referee

= One of the orginal middle school coaches before 2000

 

I believe growth has come from many angles (ie more and better coaches, a larger bracket, and middle school wrestling)

 

Back in the late 80's and early 90's, wrestling was becoming in danger of losing its KHSAA sponsorship, due to things like title 9, programs that couldnt qualify for the state tournament because they were in such a loaded region and semi state that kids, coaches and adminstrations just gave up. And there was a growing concern that wrestling was taking away from football because of massive weight cutting (ie Top football coaches like Bob Redman, Owen Hauck, Joe Jaggers, and thier loyal followers) Also the disappearance of the 3 sport athlete and the social status of being an athlete started to effect the sport.

 

I remember the debate and first year of the 32man bracket, ( I was not a fan especially the first day there was just a lot of bad wrestling and even a couple byes in the first round) But you saw something that lead to growth. Programs that only had 1 or 2 qualifers started to have 5-6 then all of a sudden 10- 11 to where it felt like they had a whole team there. Schools from the outer regions of the state started to bring back or add their programs because it was worth it for them because instead of only having 1 or 2 kids to travel to Louisville or Frankfort, they had 7-10

 

Middle school wrestling became very important to growth because it got kids hooked earlier in age so it became something more fun to do. Middle school wrestling has been around for a long time. When I first coached it It was the Oldhams, Woodford, Crosby (the team I coached) Campbell, Hopkinsville, Union and a few other schools or clubs. Our schedule would wrestle teams from southern Indiana and tournaments at different places like Woodford, Floyd Central and Hopkinsville. Finally after a long give and take with the addition of many programs there was a state tournament and the explosion of middle school and elementary programs was on. Wrestling has become more of a way of life in many more famlies and areas of the state. Wrestling was able to then compete with up and coming sports like soccer lacrosse, winter training for baseball and football.

 

More and better coaches has been a big help also, you see more alumi coming back and contributing to the sport. (heck for a while , Larue County was the offical training HS for referees) But most importanly the new generation of coaches have been able to carry on and improve on ideas from the older generations of coaches like Chris McCoy has done a great job of promoting the sport after taking over for Phil Coomes. This younger bread of coaches in KY also seem to have more college wrestling experiance and more time personaly on the mat.

 

Now here are a couple of points that havent really been mentioned but are very important

First the addition of small college programs at Cumberland, Campbellsville and Lindsey Wilson have added interest and a new fan base. If schools like NKU, Pikeville and Bellermine could add programs it would be huge for this state. And if UK or UL or even EKU or WKU added the sport then it would progress by light years. College programs add the opportunity for higher levels of training, adds more coaches to the state and gives more opportunity for kids to wrestle past high school where back in my day the closest program was Miami of Ohio , Carson Newman or Mt St Joes.

 

Now finally my last point and many may not aggree with this. Weight management has become better. Because of changes in the rules, weight cutting has become de-emphasized. When I wrestled we had kids lose up to 30 to 40 pounds over a wrestling season to race to a lower weight class to alomost unhealthy levels. Football coaches became disenchanted with the sport and believed in the myth that wrestling was stunting the growth of football players. Long gone are the days where Friday night all the saunas and steam rooms were filled with wrestlers wearing plastic and a wardrobe of old sweats, then getting to a 2 hour track meet during weigh ins. Kids now wrestle closer to their natural weight. More emphasis on conditioning than missed meals. Try to recriut for a sport where a high school kid might have to miss some meals. Wrestling has become more healthy. I know some of the old hard core people will always say weight cutting was an important part of the sport but now we have become smarter in our ways and rules. We have a different breed of kid today and to tell them that they have to loose weight so they can participate has chased kids away. Football coaches are coming back on board to the sport of wrestling because of conditioning and changes in weight management. So there are more athletes that are trying the sport with their coach's blessing.

 

The most exciting part of wrestling in Ky is now where we can go from here. 

[Mpire 76]

Wow an interesting post with lots of insight and good points , not sure about the weight cutting and KYs decent plan ,it's not healthy or as safe as other states and it keep kids down longer , and on NKY there are no small schools in college with wrestling and it has grown so I don't think the colleges have anything to do with it in that part of the state .

[bigedcoach 27]

Southern Ohio has helped the Nky area a ton because its easy to just go across the river for great comp, we used to do that in Jefferson Co until we became better as an area than them. I even remember when the Northern Ky school would come over to New Albany. Kinda sad to see a decline in Southern Indiana wrestling especially New Albany. Mpire  I know you agree with me that good competition will always mean growth.

[Mpire 76]

Yes I agree it will force kids to improve and learn which in turn will spread that knowledge skill technique to other Ky kids ,

Still like to see some

Of the top schools hit the super big tournys or at least one hint hint ".Schools hitting those bigger tournys or travelling out of state , "Not just across the river " will enhance the sport throughout the state , not sure of travelling rules , funds or what goes with it just of the fact it will help , and from my experience with kids it really gives them something to remember the farther the go TE more exiting it gets for them , If I were a coach and could pull it off I would take my kids on at least one long distance trip for a tourny they would be the talk of the tourny and it could draw teams from there back to Ky , networking , on all

Levels itight even open up the eyes of college coaches far away to some ky kids ,

Didn't mean to stray just think travelling is good for kids " no smart comments needed " seriously kids like seeing new sights new styles and a trip would give a team something to talk about back at school raising interest increasing numbers .

There are

Lots of things that can be done to help growth , more tournys in state and regions , like the Rumble and the Dragon which I have not seen .

Boost things up liven them up , of I ran the state tournament the finals would be like they are but kida would walk out through fog , lights and flashpods , people would comment and make silly remarks in other states while their kida would watch our finals and their hearts wouldn sink thinking how Boring their own states finals are , like some have said this is Ky not any other state do what is best or funnest for here ,

So many years I have heard the main problem with growing wrestling as a sport is its boredom , no cheerleaders no bands no pomp but it's twice as hard , not really fair to our and all the kids who wrestle , I would blow it up huge music lights and yes call it a sideshow or whatever , every kid in the state would be wanting to wrestle and make it to state , and of course I would have about a four foot tall eagle trophy with about a six foot wingspan for champs lol no just team

Champs , rings are cool though .

I know I drifted and none of this will ever happen , but I am a strange person actually shy but a showman at heart I know it would make wrestling in Ky huge .

[IWIN 49]

Mpire, wish you could have seen and been a part of the atmosphere when the State Tournament was held in Frankfort. Smaller arena, but we filled it out. The crowd was amped before and during the finals. While the workers were setting up for the finals, the music was blaring, the crowd was hitting around beach balls, toilet paper was flying, people were dancing, it was nuts. The face offs would give you chills. Then the main event started. The contestants would report to the mat, the lights would dim all the way down, the spotlight came on, it was awesome man. The crowd seemed like they were right on top of you. Gettin chills just thinking about it.

[Mpire 76]

Kind of

My point imagine that all jacked up with fog lights flashpods whatever in a bigger arena , it would be spectacular , I know the feel you are trying to convey , Iron Man is crowded like that without the pomp , I like the beach balls youth kids painted up crasy atmosphere , I'm getting a Mohawk purple and gold and painting an X surrounded by an 0 with an x through it on my chest I mean shirt to old and fat for that .

Hope everyone has fun hitting me with beach balls , I read some got a kick out of it last year I'm bringing my pocket knife to popem

And two heavy duty squirt guns one full of purple and one full of gold Kool aid , and every one gets a drink hahahahahahahha