160AAA

[cbg]

On ‎10‎/‎6‎/‎2017 at 6:04 PM, KingGreene said:

It definitely matters for the guy who has to wrestle that state champ. Getting to wrestle in the finals at the big stage with everyone watching and finishing 2nd is much better than finishing 3rd at the end of the day where very few people are still around to watch. Brackets absolutely matter. Everyone ultimately WANTS to win, but it can't happen for everyone. So if you can't have 1st, you want the next best thing and a lot of times the bracket helps decide that.

For instance, last season Chase Diehl ended up on the same side of the bracket as Sells (the eventual champ) and Gregory (who put Chase in the consolations, and then lost to Chase for 3rd). The person who came through the other side of the bracket was Adkins (who Chase had beaten twice) defeating Garrett in the semis who Chase had also beaten. So yeah, it would have been nice to be on that other side with guys we had already beaten. Not that we would have definitely been able to win those matches again. But if we were able to come through that side and get our shot against Sells and then be able to say he was a state FINALIST as a sophomore in a class full of seniors instead of a 3rd place finisher. That slight change of words makes a world of difference to guys who can't win state every single year. 1st place isn't the only place that matters. 

So it'll be interesting to see how this plays out and which two end up in the semis together to find out which one will not be able to make the finals and have to settle for third at best! 

We will just have to disagree about 2nd and 3rd place.  If you want a 2nd place medal you may want to climb onto the roof of the COW PALACE as I personally witnessed a young man deposit his 2nd place medal on top of the roof.

 

I have also seen the State Runner-up team trophy used  to hold open the bathroom stall door at one school.  Some schools and wrestlers just have higher expectations than others.  Anything less than a state title is unacceptable.  

 

I am not personally endorsing these attitudes and instances but you must admire the fighting spirt of the individual that gave his 2nd place medal a toss and the coach that allowed the 2nd place team trophy to be used as a door stop.  While the rituals may be a bit extreme I must admit that I feel these individuals will be successful in the big game of life because they are fighters and never accept anything but the very best.

 

Edited October 9, 2017 by cbg