To "up til now"

[wingman10]

Excellent post

[EChason]

Excellant post Brian! You have stated what I have always thought. I've seen some of the quite actions that Gab has taken with his kids over the last few years and you are so right - His first priority is these kids. Everyone can speculate about this or that when he does something, but I know the bottom line will always be his wrestlers.

 

Keep up the good work at Sunset. You had a really good crew this first year and I'm expecting to see great things from your program.

 

Miss Ellie

[dad45]

Brian thank you . You and your family has done so much for Overton and the wrestling program . It's always good to see you and Tim at the matches ,all the boys respect you. Thank you again for being a positive influence in Colt's time at Overton . Gabe is a friend to me and coach to my son. Coaches like him are what the young men need in there lives now . He did nothing wrong .

 

 

Lloyd Kittrell , Colt's dad

[fiscon]

QUOTE(dad45 @ Feb 19 2007 - 07:37 PM) 826379853[/snapback]Brian thank you . You and your family has done so much for Overton and the wrestling program . It's always good to see you and Tim at the matches ,all the boys respect you. Thank you again for being a positive influence in Colt's time at Overton . Gabe is a friend to me and coach to my son. Coaches like him are what the young men need in there lives now . He did nothing wrong .

Lloyd Kittrell , Colt's dad

 

 

Brian,

 

Thanks to your family for all that you have done for my family and wrestling in Tennessee. My relationship with God is stronger because of the example your family has been to me.

 

I have asked Coacht to take off that post by uptilnow. It is disappointing to see the amount of slandering, baiting, name calling, and bashing that has gone on this board this year. I hope that coacht does something to clean it up.

 

Thanks again

Brad Fiscus

[CoachGabe]

First I would like to introduce myself. My name is Jim Gabriel, I am the Head Coach of Heritage Middle School, I help Coach Berry at Independence High School and more importantly I am Ralph’s brother. I very seldom get on CoachT and it is even more seldom that I respond to any of the posts that are out there.

 

I happen to read “up til now’s” post and my initial reaction was to respond but thought better of it because of what I would say, especially to someone who won’t identify themselves.

 

Brian’s post sums up Ralph very well from one of his wrestlers’ perspectives but from another coach, a brother and a best friend, Ralph is all of this and more. He is the most unselfish person I know who often times goes without so others can have. Like in the wrestling room he takes the hand that is dealt to him and does the best he can, he never complains, he never blames anyone, he just keeps on doing.

 

Ralph is the reason I got into coaching and other volunteer activities. I used to tell him when I die other than the standard good husband, good father, etc. on my tombstone it would say something like ‘saved his company money’. On his, it would say ‘positively touch the lives of many, many, many people’. I wanted to be like him.

 

In the post by “up til now” he mentions the little man, a personal attack that has nothing to do with wrestling or anything else for that matter. To me the measure of a man is not in his stature but in his accomplishments, successes that make him stronger, defeats that he learns from, lives that he has touched and the contributions he has made. With all that said Ralph is the biggest man I know

 

Love ya bro and don’t let idle chat get you down just keep doing what you are doing

 

Jim Gabriel

[DAKEKO]

I JUST WANTED TO ASK A QUESTION ABOUT OVERTONS PROGRAM AND IF ANYONE KNOWS THE ANSWER PLEASE FEEL FREE TO ANSWER UP.

JUST CURIOUS, WHY DONT SOME OF THE WRESTLERS AT OVERTON SHAKE HANDS WITH THE COACHES AFTER EACH WEIGHT CLASS HAS WRESTLED? THEY ARENT THE ONLY SCHOOL THAT DOESNT SHAKE HANDS , BUT WE ARE ON THE TOPIC OF COACH GABRIEL SO I THOUGHT I WOULD ASK

[tnmat]

QUOTE(DAKEKO @ Feb 19 2007 - 11:10 PM) 826380413[/snapback]I JUST WANTED TO ASK A QUESTION ABOUT OVERTONS PROGRAM AND IF ANYONE KNOWS THE ANSWER PLEASE FEEL FREE TO ANSWER UP.

JUST CURIOUS, WHY DONT SOME OF THE WRESTLERS AT OVERTON SHAKE HANDS WITH THE COACHES AFTER EACH WEIGHT CLASS HAS WRESTLED? THEY ARENT THE ONLY SCHOOL THAT DOESNT SHAKE HANDS , BUT WE ARE ON THE TOPIC OF COACH GABRIEL SO I THOUGHT I WOULD ASK

 

 

Dakeko,

 

When I entered Overton as a freshman, we wrestled a team during the season and at State Duals whose coaches would not shake our hands. There were other actions that these coaches would perform which were less than sportsmanlike, but the concern came about that their actions might provoke some of our wrestlers. Unfortunately, Coach Gabriel was forced to make a decision, and the wisest he could think of at the time was to forego shaking hands in order to avoid any controversy. I understand that not shaking hands can sometimes come off as poor sportsmanship, but the lack of sportsmanship by others forced Coach Gabriel to make a choice, however difficult it might have been at the time.

 

To everyone else,

 

Thank you for all of your words of encouragement. I am glad that we have had an opportunity to recognize Coach Gabriel, along with so many other coaches and programs that face such great adversity. As I look through all of your responses and remarks, I notice that the original post which sparked this fire has dwindled, leaving only the positive, uplifting, encouraging posts that you have submitted. We have successfully turned an example of malevolent invidiousness into an opportunity to share our admiration to the great people who have served this sport so diligently. I am privileged to have been a part of the most inspiring and beneficial sport in existence: wrestling.

 

Thank you,

Brian