snowwhite

Only ways to REDUCE the fact that some bad refs decide the outcome of the match - have wrestlers all wear gray singlets and no team logos, teams do not sit together, wrestlers are introduced to the match from the locker rooms, etc, etc. NOT realistic. The wrestling was, for the most part, excellent. The refs were just not up to the skill of the wrestlers - a shame for the boys. Everytime the crowd cheered for a particular wrestler, the ref took it out on the next wrestler from the same team. No timing equipment was not acceptable - with such a beautiful campus, couldn't this equipment be borrowed from a school close by? New school, new basketball scoreboards - but they were not used! Totally unprofessional.

To BayouBear: Tid Bits - REVISED!!!! 1. It's perfectly fine "entertainment" to promise to show up to a tournament and then not show - or even call the night before to let the tournament organizer know. I believe most wrestlers and supporters were also just a little "bothered" with this - then I find out some of these same teams went elsewhere. The issue is not "seek elswhere" but have coaches attend when they say they will, right? 2. It's perfectly fine "entertainment" to mess up the wrestlebacks, and then say "seek entertainment elsewhere", right? Nice argument! How about focus on the issue: WERE the wrestlebacks messed up or not? 3. I attend for the wrestling, of course, but heck, the Headline Post was "tid bits", so I thought I'd comment. Food WAS better than the wrestback organization, BTW. 4. No comment? WHAT? You try to take me out because I said the food was good, but are afraid to comment about this subject. When will the Cleveland area have a girls wrestling team? No comment here is just like countin' the lights on the ceiling, pal! PIN! 5. If I understand you correctly, it WAS good sportsmanship for the COACH to continue to tell his wrestler to continue this beating. Glad neither wrestler got injured over this awful spectacle. We agree to disagree. I still will root for every other kid versus Aguilar. 6. Finally! We agree to agree! 7. Yup, you're right pal, I know nothing about wrestling. 8.Again, you missed the point entirely - did YOU want to send the tapes of this "coaching" to the administrators of Tullahoma, or did you want ME to? Isn't it interesting that the coach IMMEDIATELY posted a back-handed apology to this message board? Afraid to lose his job? Maybe this post will help modify his "techniques". Heck, maybe he had a bad night, maybe he IS a good guy - but he was way, way out of line at that single match. I've had many REALLY tough coaches in my life, but this fella needs to take a long look in the mirror tonight. I was never "fortunate" have a maniac like that as a coach, and Tullahoma DESERVES better! 8A. OK, OK. So you say it is "entertainment" to have a FATHER yell this? You ENCOURAGE this with a macho flip by saying: "I'll hear a lot worse". Yes, like in the Roman times when they ACTUALLY yelled this as they slaughtered the Christians? What happened to the rules of wrestling . . . and proper sportsmanship? 9. Funny, this team showed up, wrestled hard, came in 2nd or 3rd, didn't yell "tear his head off", didn't showboat their skills, the coach seemed very professional, and were well-mannered the entire day. According to your personal code of ethics, they shouldn't be invited back!

Tid bits from the stands: 1. I understand that the weather was a little cold, but why did it take two or three hours to get the tournement started? Shame on the coaches of the teams that did not show! 2. I heard from other folks in the crowd the wrestlebacks for 3rd was messed up - heck there weren't enough athletes in each bracket to mess up! 3. Food was actually pretty good - even saw a mom with a baked potato. 4. The girls wrestling was really good - fans were cheering and these girls were obviously enthusiastic about the sport - good for them. I support a separate sport for them. Not sure I like the girl/boy concept, but I really enjoed watching the match w/ the ND kid. Very Exciting! 5.The wrestler from Bradley (Agulair?) that had 23 takedowns in the finals was a show-off. Now I am rooting for ANY kid to beat him. Better yet, catch him and pin him! It was like watching pro athletes celebrating in the end zone. The coach was totally responsible for this excess. The "let go and take down again" concept to this extreme is crappy sportsmanship. 6. Watch out for runner-up in 160 (Henry?). He's a freshman and is an awesome wrestler now, and will be a state winner - maybe So, Jr AND Sr. 7. 215 final was a disappointment. Ooltewah wrestler should have beat the "all show (arms) and no go (technique)" kid from WV. 8. The coach from Tullahoma in the 189 final was a complete embarassment to the sport and should be fired or forced to resign! He was awful to his athlete. In this period of keeping coaches accountable for their actions, I'd love to show the administrators of the Tullahoma High School a tape of his "coaching". Did anyone see the wrestler's FATHER yelling "tear his head off" during this match - equally outrageous. Is there something in the water in Tullahoma? 9. Finally, the team from Birminghamn was great! They really had an outstanding program.