Football coaches Vs Wrestling.

[grappler-of-old 44]

BIG question.

Why do Kentucky football coaches give wrestling a bad name?

Other states (Ohio for example) do not do this as often.  I know that there are some coaches that support wrestling but that is in the minority.

I know the argument, Weight loss, Weight room etc, Etc.  But other states seem to not use this argument as often. 

i guess the real question is this.  Why are Kentucky football coaches so illiterate when it comes to wrestling and the benefits, compared to other state's football coaches.

[oldwrestler81 6]

In Northern Kentucky it's called the Hauk Syndrome (big name coach who hated wrestling) wh infected all of his disciples.  That's one reason why when Nothern Ky football teams cross the river to play Cincinnati teams they tend to just get the living xxx beat out of them

[grappler-of-old 44]

Yes and Conner has one of the Hauk disciples now as their head coach.  We see how Conner wrestling is doing now along with their football program.

I would also point out that the big Three football dynasties don't have wrestling.  Cov. Cath., Highlands, and Beechwood.  Why is this?  They don't have any Hauk protege's

[oldwrestler81 6]

Ryle has a Hauk protoge

[grappler-of-old 44]

As I have stated there are exceptions to the rule.  But I find on average not only in Nky but in Lou, Lex, Southern and western Ky.  Football coaches have the same attitude toward wrestling whereas in other states this is just not as popular.

[newfan13 4]

It could be because many of the football players are bigger kids, and this being Kentucky, they play basketball instead of wrestling??  That's why when Ohio teams travel south of their border, they get the xxxx kicked out of them??  May just be a states preference of sports.  If wrestling were a spring sport would it be different?  I don't have the answers, just putting some more questions out there.

[grappler-of-old 44]

Are there any football coaches out there that have had this conversation with other coaches.

why is it that they view wrestling in a negative manner when many football stars in both the NFL and college ranks have spoken highly of wrestling?

[Savage 5]

  I guess Madison Central has become one of the lucky ones. Our new Varsity football coach came from eastern Kentucky and saw the success that Johnson Central has had with their football team and wrestling teams working together and has brought that philosophy with him to MC. He has 'strongly suggested' to All of his players that they need to wrestle and even incorporated some mat time into their summer conditioning.

    Obviously this being the first year, we will see if it pays off for both the football team and the wrestling team. With the football team not having a very successful first season under the new coach and the wrestling program only being in its' third season of existence- hopefully we will start see the fruits of this plan in the next few seasons!

[paris 0]

The lack of greatness at Conner has nothing to do with football and wrestling coaches not supporting each others sport.  It is the lack of having greatness surrounding students from the admin to the teachers to the coaches to the facility. My kids classroom was in a trailer...a flipping trailer! Standards is the answer..

[Charger Coach 14]

Last year, our football coach was hesitant to have his kids wrestle.  I had 1 football player on the roster.  That kid went from being a part-time starter on the varsity last year to the team's leading tackler this year.  Needless to say, things have changed.  The football coach came to one of our practices, liked what he saw and asked me to come down to the locker room for a football weight lifting and talk to the kids to encourage them to wrestle.  He also encouraged the kids to wrestle.  In fact, he made a deal with the football players where he is paying for the singlets out of the football account for the 1st 20 football players who signed up to wrestle.  I had 10 football players come out yesterday and I'm expecting about 5 or 6 more today.  That puts our roster total up to 50 wrestlers now.  I used some internet articles I found to emphasize the point of how wrestling helps football players become better.  There were quotes from college and pro football coaches on the subject and also a huge list of current and former NFL players who were state champion high school wrestlers.  It definitely helped my case.

[Savage 5]

Last year, our football coach was hesitant to have his kids wrestle.  I had 1 football player on the roster.  That kid went from being a part-time starter on the varsity last year to the team's leading tackler this year.  Needless to say, things have changed.  The football coach came to one of our practices, liked what he saw and asked me to come down to the locker room for a football weight lifting and talk to the kids to encourage them to wrestle.  He also encouraged the kids to wrestle.  In fact, he made a deal with the football players where he is paying for the singlets out of the football account for the 1st 20 football players who signed up to wrestle.  I had 10 football players come out yesterday and I'm expecting about 5 or 6 more today.  That puts our roster total up to 50 wrestlers now.  I used some internet articles I found to emphasize the point of how wrestling helps football players become better.  There were quotes from college and pro football coaches on the subject and also a huge list of current and former NFL players who were state champion high school wrestlers.  It definitely helped my case.

That is AWESOME!!

[Charger Coach 14]

Here are some of the articles I used in case anyone is interested.  I even used a brief article on JJ Jude from the Courier-Journal

http://www.courier-journal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2010310210103

http://www.sectiononewrestling.com/documents/nfl_players_wrestled.html

http://www.hammondwrestling.com/nflwrestlers.shtml

http://www.eteamz.com/buckhornwrestling/news/index.cfm?id=3292737&cat=0

[dogwood 2]

  I guess Madison Central has become one of the lucky ones. Our new Varsity football coach came from eastern Kentucky and saw the success that Johnson Central has had with their football team and wrestling teams working together and has brought that philosophy with him to MC. He has 'strongly suggested' to All of his players that they need to wrestle and even incorporated some mat time into their summer conditioning.

    Obviously this being the first year, we will see if it pays off for both the football team and the wrestling team. With the football team not having a very successful first season under the new coach and the wrestling program only being in its' third season of existence- hopefully we will start see the fruits of this plan in the next few seasons!

I am glad that Bert Brown has finally seen the light.  We worked on him a long time to change his attitude towards wrestling.

[Josh_Claywell 52]

I would also point out that the big Three football dynasties don't have wrestling.  Cov. Cath., Highlands, and Beechwood.  Why is this?  They don't have any Hauk protege's

Covington Catholic -- someone correct me wrong -- is a boys' only school, much like Trinity and St. Xavier. Not sure why they don't have wrestling.

For the others you mentioned, it could be a Title 9 issue.

[CoachM 1]

Covington Catholic -- someone correct me wrong -- is a boys' only school, much like Trinity and St. Xavier. Not sure why they don't have wrestling.

For the others you mentioned, it could be a Title 9 issue.

Highlands doesn't do it because it would compete with their off season football training.  They have a number of athletes that could be state placers with little wrestling experience just because of the level of dedication they put towards sports, and the athleticism that spews from Ft. Thomas.

Beechwood is too small of a school - They don't have many of the varsity sports offered because they don't have enough kids interested to fill rosters. 

Not sure why Cov Cath doesn't have a team...

[grappler-of-old 44]

Are you telling me this because you know this 1st hand or are you making a guess?

Also: are telling me that none of their football players are basketball players at Highlands?

I am sure many play basketball, therefore this is not a valid excuse.

[NKYFan 2]

A father of a Highlands football player told me he wished Highlands had a wrestling program but he knows it will never happen at Highlands.  When asked why he said there's more chance of serious injury in wrestling than in basketball. 

[grappler-of-old 44]

As a person who use to be in the Athletic training field I know that comment to be untrue.

Take a look at this article.

http://abcnews.go.com/Health/PainManagement/story?id=6198970&page=1

After reading the intro.  click the other pages for the top 11 sports with injuries.

[cw 0]

Please take the time, and go to youtube, watch the video.      football5.wmv

[CoachJ 0]

Just a quick story that happened to me this weekend.  Although only a part of the story relates to the topic I thought it would fit on this thread.

I am a Chicago Bears fan and had tickets to the Monday night game against the Vikings.  Last Friday I flew to Madison, WI to meet my brother (Viking Fan) and drive to Minnesota.  On the way I had a connecting flight in Cincinnati.  As I boarded the plane to Madison I saw that the person I would be sitting next too was Bret Bielema, the University of Wisconsin head football coach.  We had a nice little conversation during which I made it a point to ask if he liked his recruits to wrestle.  His answer went something like this (not an exact quote): I am indifferent when it comes to some of the positions like wide receiver but I really like when my linemen wrestle.  My one concern is the extreme weight cutting that some kids do.  Then he said wrestling was his first love.  I told him many states now have a weight loss program that prevents some of the excessive cutting and he seemed pleased by this.

The rest of the conversation is not important to this post so I won't go in to detail other than to say he is a nice guy and made for a pleasureable flight on top of a great, but cold, football game.

[CoachM 1]

Are you telling me this because you know this 1st hand or are you making a guess?

Also: are telling me that none of their football players are basketball players at Highlands?

I am sure many play basketball, therefore this is not a valid excuse.

Sorry for the late reply, but now that the high school season is in full swing, I forget other boards exist.

I have offered the athletic director at Highlands on many occasions to start a program.  I used to volunteer at the school and became friends with him.  I even went as far to tell him that I would do it unpaid, if the school would cover the start up costs. (mats, fees, busses, singlets, ect.)

I can say that their football team takes first priority there, and with the AD being the football coach, it's going to happen. 

Yes, some of the football players play basketball, including the quarterback, but that's less than ten kids, that I'd be willing to bet, (this is speculation) are still doing some sort of weight program. 

Highlands may get a team as region 6 expands... and when they do, within 5-6 years, I bet, would be able to compete with Campbell Co. and Ryle for the powerhouse in region, as long as they got a youth / middle school program started at the same time.

[kdsmith27 14]

I send this to my football coach every year.

The Benefits of Wrestling

By Jack Fisher

Editor of Texas Wrestling Magazine

Talking with football coaches, I find they labor under the myth that wrestling is an off-season sport that detracts from their program and does not support the goals of football. What are the goals of football? Strength, speed, endurance, quickness, coordination, balance and weight gain are the most sought after outcomes for young athletes in football. I will concede that wrestling does not support the goal of weight gain but encourages its athletes to maintain or cut weight. Football and wrestling are both maligned by the public for the methods often used by their athletes to achieve their weight goals. More has been said about the ill effects of weight gain products than the methods wrestlers use to lose weight. Now with the rule that a high school athlete cannot lose more than 10% of their body weight from the certification weight at the beginning of the season, less controversy surrounds weight loss efforts as it has achieved a more natural process. Having 275 as the limit for heavy weight wrestlers, it excludes offensive linemen tipping the scales at more than 305 pounds. Football coaches need not fear that their behemoth linemen will shrink in size, as they would be disqualified the minute they step on the scales. The sleek, speedy, muscular, linebackers and defensive backs, however, will find wrestling the most enduring off-season sport.

Ounce of ounce, you will not find a stronger athlete than a superior wrestler. Many an unskilled and inexperienced wrestler has achieved victory through strength alone. Those who achieve greatness, however, are skilled, experienced, and strong. Wrestling coaches of winning programs incorporate weight lifting and strength building as a part of their training, some even having weight rooms, free weights and weight machines of their own. Even wrestlers that do not follow a regimen of weight lifting on their own will acquire strength on the mat by the resistance they meet in their opponents. The sport demands that you overpower your opponent, hence the need for strength.

Speed is an indirect outcome of wrestling. It is achieved by the strength and conditioning requirements for a wrestler in training. Just as in track (which by the way is a sport that does not overlap in seasons with wrestling), the great sprinters do much weight training with the lower body, an effective wrestler will work the upper and lower body equally. There is great demand put on the lower body of a wrestler as he pushes against his foe while in the neutral position, or in having to lift his opponent off the mat while bringing him down to the mat under control. As a part of conditioning, some coaches require running distances and sprints to get the body in shape, just as a track coach would do for his runners to build speed and endurance.

I once overheard an outstanding wrestler (state champion at 145 and two-time state placer) who also was an all-district standout in football his junior and senior year at linebacker, comment at the end of football season, “its wrestling season now and time to get in shape!” Those who wrestle and play football will tell you that four quarters of football does not put near the demand on you physically that three, two-minute periods of wrestling will. That is why there is a 45-minute mandatory wait period before a wrestler can get on the mat for the next match. The demand for action at all times is emphasized further by the fact that a referee will caution wrestlers for stalling if they are not actively trying to take down their opponent from the neutral position, pin their opponent if on top, or working to escape if on the bottom. You cannot build a lead in wrestling and coast to the end comfortably. Time outs are allowed for injuries only, not to catch your breath. It is no wonder that a wrestler lies exhausted on the mat at the end of a grueling match. And, then there is overtime and double overtime.

Quickness is often a trait acquired on the mat by experience. A wrestling coach can drill his team on moves over and over again, but until the match experience requires reaction to the moves of your opponent, the wrestler does not learn the value of quick reactions. The takedown, escape, and reversal are moves based on quickness. Though some thought is required in analyzing your opponent and consciously working your opponent, the truly great wrestlers will instinctively and quickly react to situations to gain the advantage. Quickness is a by-product of endurance also, as the quicker wrestler late in the third period of a close match usually prevails.

Coordination and balance are interrelated in that a wrestler measures his opponent, using a series of motions with hands, arms, and feet to lift, trip, drag, push, or pull his opponent to the mat under control. The wrestler uses his momentum and his opponent’s momentum to set up takedowns. Riding your opponent requires great skill in positioning and balance. The great wrestlers keep their opponents off balance at all times with a series of coordinated moves. A two-time state placer in wrestling at 215 attributed his success in football as a two-time all-district defensive lineman to wrestling teaching him how to maintain balance and use his opponent’s momentum to his advantage. He might have been a three-time state place or champion and three-time all-district or all-state defensive lineman, had he not had his knee blown out in football his junior year.

Wrestling is the only off-season sport that supports all facets of a football program. Even weight gain is achieved after wrestling season ends. Most wrestlers will tell you that as soon as wrestling season is over, most of them balloon up to weights well above where they started the season.

There are other benefits that wrestling has over football as a sport, which should be analyzed as well. The injuries in wrestling are less debilitating than in football. It is unheard of to have a wrestler go through knee surgery or shoulder surgery or any surgery as a result of injuries sustained in wrestling. The most frequent cause for matches to stop for injuries in wrestling is for blood time due to bloody noses, scratches or scabs being knocked off.

Though football is a team sport and emphasizes team work for success, a valuable lesson for any athlete to learn, wrestling combines the advantage of team work as a dual team member, while allowing a wrestler to rise to victory based upon his own merits or handle defeat with no one to blame but himself. There is a combination of teamwork and individual acclaim in wrestling. If team unity is lacking or the team as a whole is weak or even non-existent, a wrestler can experience a successful season and even be a state champion as was the case for a young man several years ago from the small town of Pilot Point, Texas.

Great football players would make good wrestlers just based on athletic ability, but great wrestlers would make outstanding football players. Football should become the off-season sport for wrestlers

[Unicorn Warrior 0]

From experience I can honestly say that the best players on my highschool football team were wrestlers. They were both physically and mentally tougher. Not only does wrestling help out with athletic abilities, but I believe that it builds a confidence that participants in most other team sports do not get. Its just the attitude and how a wrestler carries himself. On my team you could easily tell who was a wrestler and who wasnt by their attitude and the way that they played. It was men amongst boys.

[wingman1983 0]

Patriots’ Stephen Neal retires

Posted by Michael David Smith on March 2, 2011, 6:15 PM EST

Mike Wright, Stephen Neal

Patriots guard Stephen Neal is calling it quits.

Mike Reiss of ESPNBoston.com reports that Neal, the Patriots’ starting right guard, was listed as reserve/retired on the NFL’s official transaction wire today. That means the 34-year-old has officially filed the paperwork to leave the league.

Neal contemplated retirement a year ago before signing a two-year deal to return to New England. But he missed half the season with a shoulder injury and has now apparently decided he doesn’t want to play anymore.

So what’s next for Neal? It could be professional mixed martial arts. A year ago Neal said he was considering giving the UFC a try after he retired from the NFL, and Neal certainly has the athletic pedigree to do it. In addition to playing in the NFL, Neal was the NCAA heavyweight wrestling champion, and he beat Brock Lesnar, who’s now the UFC’s biggest star, in the NCAA final.

Neal did not play football in college, but the Patriots liked the athleticism he showed on the wrestling mat and thought he had potential, so they signed him in 2001. He played in 86 games in 10 NFL seasons, starting 81.