BlackknightGATA

I heard Storm may have severely injured his shoulder and also possible head injury due to motocross accident recently... If it's true, I hope for a speedy recovery. Have not seen him at any events. I agree w/ marshiebaby on the feel test being part of the equation- BUT you have to have a system before you even attempt to rank... I also agree on the members of the list and wouldn't bump anyone off BUT would add a few; Townsend being one of them. He moved forward dramatically this last year and should do well again next year... Although I don't know how his record would score with the system used... Maybe the top 20 in the region?

EVERYONE CAN AGREE ON THAT!!!

Well then you can be annoyed at someone else cause I'm not the guy that thinks he can single handily change anything... I'm not going to challenge the remainder of your Response because you are way off base with me and my comment... AND I agree with your comments But I don't agree with how they were directed at me... We are on the same side of the issue(s). BUT as a point of fact I contacted Eastern worlds Jack Roller and he said In 21 years they had never cancelled a tournament... Next year they intend to advertise earlier and pick a better time... But they are coming back... The written word is a imperfect form of communication. I know it is easy to mis-read or read into a message without the benefit of voice inflection and context... You sir have read into my statement and saw what you WANTED to see verses what IS there... your REBUKE is unwarranted. I AM DISAPPOINTED THAT THE EVENTS WERE CANCELLED BECAUSE I WANTED TO WATCH WRESTLING... That's the message I was sending... Nothing more nothing less No disrespected implied or stated No left handed dig at TN wrestling (or direct dig) No suggestions on how to improve or ideas for that matter...

5th post season event in E TN cancelled this year... All for the same reason- low turn out/interest... Its like a wrestling famine! The promoters said 87 kids total signed up...

I have read this announcement and looked at the web page and found no reference to "grade" restrictions- Question- age is the only qualifier? IE 14 yo 9th grade. The AAU tournaments I've seen have both age and grade requirements. Thanks

By "lakeway" you mean between the lakes? I am not excluding anyone intentionally but the kids I have seen and know for a fact never stopped wrestling following Folkstyle state (there is no off season;)) are as follows; Townsend, Collins, Hux, Clausen, Angel, all the Hills brothers, both the English brothers, Broyles (Mo East), Talley (Mo West), several COCKE county kids And numerous middle school kids from Jefferson and Hamlin county's. Spangler and Begley also competed at FS/GR state and did well. All above are participating in FS/GR and most competed at the ironman and FS/GR state last weekend. Several are also training with some college teams as time allows. I have not seen Williams (mo east) post season. He was invited but did not accept my invitation- he may be training on his own or elsewhere with another group I hope that he is.

Good stuff... We will get some kids together and bring them down...

JCHS, Morristown East and West are wrestling FS/GR... And it does improve Folk style performance despite those who nay say... Hammer Wrestling.

I think your right on all counts...

Agree here. The plan worked to their advantage team wise... Who is the comment "JoshSpanglerFan80" directed at? Never mind:)

Dead on in his last showing against Palmer- he pinned Him a ranked wrestler- no one else has Pinned this kid all year, he won the GIT, he knocked off the number one region seed and state ranked 170 at region- all flukes? I don't think so. No one has mentioned in the first match against Palmer- Virgil was on the verge of a major at about the 530 mark when he got caught. On the second facing points awarded on both sides and NOT awarded on both sides ended up going the distance with Palmer on top points wise at the end. Third match was no question about it BUT the pin was marginalized as Palmer getting caught verses Virgil adjusting his style correcting previous errors and then applying it to his strategy... Spangler- may have been sick- and I truely think most that dramatically cut weight loose strength and stamina and it costs them more than they gain by going down- Storm is a good example- perhaps Spangler is as well... The match was a battle. It was worth the price of admission and I assure you at any point either wrestler could have pinned the other. SPANGLER is a force to be reckoned with and dangerous tired or not as is Virgil. I think if the finals match had went past 30 seconds VIRGIL would have won- I have seen him wrestle for a long time I know what he is capable of and I know he consistently busts his tail. So I was very surprised. But it was well played by Dean and he is the region champ.

It looks like a pin. But atleast the ref was consistent. English had Spangler in what appeared to be no doubt pin positions atleast three times but none were called. I'm disappointed the dean match didn't go longer. Would have been interesting to see it go the distance. It was like a Tyson fight I remember- after weeks of buildup- it was over before the popcorn was popped;)... I was ready to see a battle royal and got 30 seconds of fury instead... A pin is a pin is a pin;)

Illness could have been the issue- sluggish is the right word. Don't understand what the comment reference the photo means- the picture is a solid no doubt in anyone's mind PIN. But that's not Deans pin.

Could not have said it better. I hope they counseled both. It was a huge moment for "learning". Two of the regions best wrestlers instead of being remembered/defined by/for there hard work and accomplishments- tarnished by the side show. But they are KIDS. Without passion life is mundane. Can't deny their passion. I saw several coaches that understand "learning opportunities". One kid three head gear And before he could take three steps his coach had him by the singlet going for a chat. We have all been there and I personally understand as I am sure anyone who has competed and lost understands. That's one of the many lessons of wrestling. That lesson can't be learned if you didn't really really really want to win bad... No this sport does not produce high dollar contracts or fame- but it teaches like no other sport.

Not disagreeing with anything you've said quoting for context- It was a bad call in the 170's bracket- a solid take down agreed. The "pin" was a roll through- roll across what ever but it was not a legit pin- would have loved to see the match go the distance but other oppotunities for this match-up are possible since both are going to state. English v Spangler- was a lopsided match. Seemed Spangler ran out of gas in second and third. Don't know anything about his conditioning it program but anecdotally have seen kids that cut too much weight get into trouble with rapid weight loss. Could have been a factor. Begley v Broyles- not a thing wrong with being competitive and taking it to your opponent. But this matchup has transitioned from being competitive to being something ugly. Two sides to every story. We all know what we saw... the other side is not widely known. Throwing rocks and then hiding your hands does not make you an innocent Victem.

100% eye to eye. Agree completely.

First- I agree as a whole the current crop of athletes have less work eithic than previous generations and more distractions. I wouldn't use a sweeping generalization and say every kid in region one is working hard everyday. Every kid in every other region isn't working hard either. But I don't think you imply that they are. They are working smarter and they are more organized. I get it. But there are those that are working hard in this region and they will make thier bones and lead by example. This is not supposition it is fact. I witness it personally. It's our job to pass the work eithic on to them. agreed? Second- Dumb comments are water across a ducks back and shoudnt result in additional dumb comments that marginalizes this region (no matter how inflamatory) The kids deserve respect because a) they are kids because they are participating in the greatest sport on the planet and without thier particpation this sport would die c) this is region is appalachia; "some" are literally doing it with NO support, No money and No understanding from parents and peers as to "why" . This is not Gwinnett county Georgia (ARCHER) or Alabaster, Alabama (THOMPSON). Doesn't mean they can't succeed just some have more obstacles than others. Third- I agree 100%... production, results and success are the currency by which respect is EARNED. If not everyone would have it. We are the underdogs and frankly that's how I like for others to view us. It provides the element of surpise. It keeps you hungry for success. And makes the victories that much more sweet.

I don't know about other regions- but region 1 AAA was scheduled for two days and it was cut to one. Wrestling starts 0900 Saturday with no wrestling Friday.

I get your point about more to life than wrestling- but for some wrestling is thier life. They (the kids) have sat on the sidelines watching the bigger stronger kids practice and play football, they have been regulated to left Field season after season due to thier hand eye coordination being below par and decided that wrestling is thier thing... Part of the beauty of wrestling is that it provides a stage for those kids that aren't the fastest strongest or biggest to compete and excell. It is the common mans sport. Without it these kids would be marginalized... As much as I need the schools to help me manage my kids thier "paternal" instincts are wrong here- the restriction on AAU AND USAW competition stymies the development of competitive wrestlers and I believe anyone that can afford to pull kids from middle school wrestling AND has the goal of helping thier wrestlers reach thier full potential will do a so... We have all seen the parents that live through their kids and scream like lunatics at their children... I think they are the exception. I for one have used every single opportunity wrestling provides to lead and council my wrestlers and develope them into solid young men with sound problem solving skills- as I am sure anyone on this blog has done.

That's funny... It is very lively... Should be a great tournament Saturday... What we got to do is direct this energy into war gaming how to beat the other regions inside the next decade. How to create a team/teams of Tyler Johnson's year after year after year...

If your talking about Bryson HUX yes it does show that he has been working. Still a work in progress but it shows. In reference to the opportunities- that's big of you to offer and might I suggest finding a way to publicize directly to the wrestlers and parents. Until I found this forum I had no idea about the group here that was traveling. Our efforts were independent endeavors. Point is people dont know and they need to know cause they are missing opportunities. War game the getting the message out to as wide an region one audience as possible... Carson Newman loosing wrestling was a huge setback to region one. They brought allot to the table and created a vacuum when they dropped it. How lucky is Tyler to have an AA wrestler in hisar room in his weight class? Steele sharpens Steele... If he don't make AA then ill always think he should have.

You may have seen them and just not known who they were... But there is a core group that works in the off season- is there really an off season? I don't think so. A season of less competition but its always a work day around my house. It is sad that economics plays A role in success on the mat but it does. There was a discussion earlier in the thread about middle school programs verses AAU CLUBS and trading 12-15 matches a year for 60+. The authors point was its a no brainer to pick he 60 tough matches to produce a better wrestler- I add- if you have the money. If you don't have the money then you depend on the schools. Further, if you don't travel in the off season and seek out competition then you can't compete... And that also takes money. It's a simple undeniable fact. Tyler Johnson is and was a stud. He put in the work and was a gifted athlete. But he still suffered the same handicap that any wrestler suffers that was not the product of an AAU or USAW feeder program-less experience. He was able to overcome and compensate for it. What would he have been if he had the benefit of 4 extra years in an AAU program (before middle school) under a good coach with a strong mat room? People I talk to believe he will be an all American before he's done. I agree. But the absence of a feeder program was an obstacle he had to overcome.

Don't presume that no one on that team is working in the off season. You may not be aware of the work but that doesn't mean it's not happening. Your dead on- post season work is the basis for in season success. And every school should be promoting it but if they don't- then it is their coaches and parents that have to have the forethought to make it happen... Two weeks from now is the beginning of the 2014-15 season... I see some surprises coming out of Jefferson county in the next few years.