Suggestions for the TSSAA

[reftn]

A-AA will never agree to go back to just one single individual championship. The split will allow wrestling to grow statewide. Anyone who thinks that Hixson,Pigeon Forge, Alcoa and Greenville want to go back is short sighted. You will continue to see a rise in participation at the smaller schools. That grows the sport on the high school level.

 

Can the state improve the state tournament ? The TSSAA can not operate without some kind of support from its members. Want some changes? The member schools must do more than complain on a social network. Principals and administrators statewide continue to give approval to work done by the TSSAA.

I wonder how many of GA's A, AA, AAA wrestlers go on to wrestle on the next level?  Its a serious question versus their AAAA, AAAAA, AAAAA?  ( I understand they have six divisions).  I would almost think those large schools would siphon off the talent from the smaller schools.  I honestly don't know, maybe someone with insight might answer.

[reftn]

The split was done by the DI schools.

 

Sorry.

 

The DII schools would love to be all one tournament.  This occured because of football, not wrestling.

 

This has been posted hundreds of times.  It will not change until those on the TSSAS Board change.

The Board of Control is appointed by the governor?

[hoosierdad]

The Board of Control is appointed by the governor?

 

reftn, since you know so much about the TSSAA Board, how may people are on the Board and how many are DII?

[csemary]

The split was done by the DI schools.

 

Sorry.

 

The DII schools would love to be all one tournament.  This occured because of football, not wrestling.

 

This has been posted hundreds of times.  It will not change until those on the TSSAS Board change.

If I remember correctly the DII schools asked for the split because they didn't want or like the quota rule. We currently have private schools in DI that follow the quota rule. So it is an option for any private school to rejoin the DI schools if they so choose. 

[reftn]

reftn, since you know so much about the TSSAA Board, how may people are on the Board and how many are DII?

I don't know anything about the board of control.  I was only asking a question.  I have no idea how they get there, I assume some body or executive appoints them.  Do you know?

 

There are D2 board members and D1 board members? 

 

I didn't know that.

[reftn]

If I remember correctly the DII schools asked for the split because they didn't want or like the quota rule. We currently have private schools in DI that follow the quota rule. So it is an option for any private school to rejoin the DI schools if they so choose. 

Yeah it seems I remember that.

 

The purpose of the quota was to weight private schools populations up by a multiplier of some number?  Something like that?

 

I cant imagine the stronger D2 schools wanting to compete in anything except the largest division so the multiplier would be a moot point?

 

Or is it that if you compete in a larger division in one sport, you must enter all sport teams in the same division?

[csemary]

Yeah it seems I remember that.

 

The purpose of the quota was to weight private schools populations up by a multiplier of some number?  Something like that?

 

I cant imagine the stronger D2 schools wanting to compete in anything except the largest division so the multiplier would be a moot point?

 

Or is it that if you compete in a larger division in one sport, you must enter all sport teams in the same division?

I would agree that the stronger D2 teams would want to be in the largest division but it all comes down to $.  The private schools like McCallie, Baylor, MBA  and the others don't want restrictions on how much financial aid they are allowed to give so they CHOOSE to be in D2. Whereas you have smaller private schools willing to follow quota rules and choosing to play in D1.  So really D2 schools have and option on which division they want to play in.

[hoosierdad]

You are wrong.  The DII did not want the split.  If so, do you believe McCallie, Baylor, Father Ryan, MBA would have said no?  They would still be in the same regions with many of the D1 regions.  This was all because of football.  The private schools want to be with everybody.  DII did not ask for the split.  Be honest!  DI schools have a quota they must follow and all that attend public school get financial aid because they do not pay for the full price of education.  It goes both ways. Plus, you can move from one district to another so a public school student does not have to attend the school they are zoned for. 

 

This is because of football.  Nothing else.

[cbg]

The split took place when Gary Rankin was coaching football at Riverdale and lost to Brentwood Academy with one his best teams.  Almost immediately the principal and director of schools in Rutherford County ask for a split of all financial aid giving schools.  The split had little if anything to do with wrestling and everything to do with football.

[Tronado]

Agreed 100%

Agreed 100% the TSSAA just got an influx of cash, that was the buzz they claimed to have heard that was printed in Chattanooga's paper. You have three wrestling mats, 6 individuals all weighing the same weight fighting to be called a state champion in an individual sport. D1 screaming that D2 can come in an recruit( their kids) they have put time and effort in to making good wrestlers, and D1A/AA they needed their on division to grow the sport. When the top programs in that division field more wrestlers than a lot of D1AAA schools. What should happen is D2 go the way of the prep school circuit, D1AAA have their own tournament, D1AA their own tournament and lets make a new class for D1A. I say this because a lot of teams that you would consider to be D1A have enrollment numbers far fewer than the separation from AAA to AA. It would be fair and closer to the reasoning given for the separation in the first place.

   Going off last years results you now have 14 new state champions from a division that  produced one last year. 84 state medalists up from 10 last year. So from a participation stand point it all makes sense, and it will help small programs grow. Lookout Valley had a young man in the finals in D1A/AA, I think they have about 400 students...including the middle school(including the middle school)! How fair is it for him to compete against those big AA schools with 950 to 1000 students. It was fair enough for Dusty Griffith and Tim Voiles to win a state championship while they attended Lookout Valley, no separation needed and both friends of mine. You have young men that have trained their whole life to be a good wrestler, be a placer, be a state champ. We let money and perceived recruiting separate the wrestlers, now we have let enrollment numbers separate us yet once more. Our nation has grown accustomed to lowering standards in the classroom, so now if you have a good student in a public school you sign them up for advanced classes. Instead of encouraging your under achievers to perform better, we make new rules to make it easier for them to succeed. Your right Mary, y go back to having to compare yourself against all when you can determine the opponents you have to compete against. We have football teams with 2-8 records going to the playoffs(playoffs), had a heck of season. In the old days 6-4 and you were still 2 games back of going to the playoffs. Our society props up under achievers, I like looking thru the old record books, past champions. It reminds me of a day long past when as kids we thought everything was fair an just, and if you worked as hard as they had, you too may someday be called state champ. heck, now you cant even look up the past. While the numbers increased this weekend, was it fair to send a better wrestler home with out a medal just because he attends a bigger school. I'll tell you what it creates, animosity. I've always felt wrestling as a sport was the great equalizer, no matter how big or small there was a weight class a kid could fit into to compete against kids his size. Look at it now, this is not the TSSAA's fault, nor the coaches fault. Its our fault, as a society always looking for the reason for our failures, who can we blame for us not winning or being as successful as we think we should be. I love wrestling, my sport was football but wrestling is life. No teammate to cover your faults, and everyone wanting to knock you down. Y couldn't we just leave this one sport to stand alone as it deserved. 

Edited February 18, 2014 by Tronado

[TeamTN]

I wonder how many of GA's A, AA, AAA wrestlers go on to wrestle on the next level?  Its a serious question versus their AAAA, AAAAA, AAAAA?  ( I understand they have six divisions).  I would almost think those large schools would siphon off the talent from the smaller schools.  I honestly don't know, maybe someone with insight might answer.

Dont think you can base the level of wrestling success on how many wrestlers from small or large schools go on to wrestle on the "next" level.  Thanks to idiotic college AD's, there simply are not enough opportunities for wrestlers to compete on the "next" level.  I do know this, wrestlers from Jefferson, GA are well prepared and possess the skills to compete with anyone and compete on the "next" level.  Its a matter of opportunity and personal goals.

 

I remember before the split of public and private, the uproar from wrestling coaches upset with wrestlers from other states winning Tennessee State Championships.  Their outcry was heard by the TSSAA along with those who coach football who were also voicing their objection to "all-star" teams winning state football championships. 

 

Recruiting takes place on all levels and divisions, whether people want to admit it or not.  Some programs, simply attract athletes/parents to want to be a part of their program because they offer a better product than the schools their children currently go to or will go to. It seems in this day and age, parents and athletes expect to be recruited on the pre-college level and some actually shop their kids around.  

[silverpie]

Yeah it seems I remember that.

 

The purpose of the quota was to weight private schools populations up by a multiplier of some number?  Something like that?

 

I cant imagine the stronger D2 schools wanting to compete in anything except the largest division so the multiplier would be a moot point?

 

Or is it that if you compete in a larger division in one sport, you must enter all sport teams in the same division?

 

The quota rule essentially said that you could only have something like 8 students in the major sports and 8 in the minor sports who were paying anything less than full freight. (Major was defined as FB/BkB/BB/SB/Track.) Then the change was to the current structure of D1 (no financial aid whatsoever) and D2 (allowed up to the same proportion as among the full student population--i. e. if you have 20% of the whole school on financial aid, 20% of your athletes can be). In all cases, the aid could not be more than the amount determined as need-based.