Popularity of the sport

[LeeConnell]

Then look at some of the highchool coaches, How many of the coaches want

a kid to just do one sport? So most kids are brainwashed that its football or

nothing, its basketball or nothing, its baseball or nothing, its soccor or nothing.

How many football coaches said at the end of the season, I want you guys to wrestle to be better football players? Did any say guys I want you to do track

to give you better running skills? Did any say play soccor it help your game?

 

 

 

 

Michael Morelan

Morelanmn,

I agree with just about all of your points... Except I disagree that high school coaches are responsible for these type of actions. When I was at McCallie I played football and wrestled. Every year Coach Ralph Potter (McCallie's head football coach) encouraged the lineman and linebackers to wrestle because he told them it would help them with quickness and mental toughness for football. Also I was a defensive back and my position coach, Coach Kenny Sholl, told me my junior year that running track in the spring would help me improve my overall footwork (speed, agility, etc.). And it did. And at the same time my dad (Gordon Connell) and Coach Mike Newman never encouraged anyone to just wrestle. They did tell me and my teammates that wrestling year round would improve our skills immensely which is very true. But then they left it up to us to decide. There are many kids (usually the best wrestlers) who realize that "just wrestling" and not competing in any other high school sports IS what is RIGHT for for them (i.e. Jordan Leen, Kyle James, Spencer Manley, the Simpsons, and the Dunnings etc.). But then again there are those who realize that it IS NOT RIGHT for them. This is how I was in high school. My Sophomore year I "just wrestled" for all three seasons. After that school year was over with I was so burned out from wrestling that it wasn't even fun for me anymore. The next fall I played football again and it helped me a lot in preparaton for wrestling season in a different way. By the time that wrestling season rolled around I had a great desire to get back on the mat. There are many other wrestlers from around the state that are multi-sport athletes Ryan Scott, the Marable brothers, from my graduating class: Chase Mctorry, Jes Greenwood, Blake Goodman, Jack Silberman. The list goes on. While I played more than one sport I still considered wrestling to be my main sport. This is true for some, not necessarily everyone.

 

Anyways I personally feel that the reason wrestling isn't more popular is because yes it is true that "anyone can wrestle, and it is made fair with weight classes etc." but realistically it is not a sport for everyone. You have to be mentally and physically tough, you have to be able to accept personal defeat in front of a giant crowd and be humble in response to a great personal acheivement in front of a giant crowd. So why isn't it more popular among competitors? Because there are only a select few out there who can handle everything that goes along with taking it to the mat. It all comes down to the individuals. It is not what the coaches or spectators or CoachT'ers do or say. It is how the individual athlete responds to what everyone else is saying or doing.

[texas23]

Lee,

 

excellent post.

[takedown3]

To get an idea of this sports popularity just look at coacht. There have been more posts on the football site this week then wrestling, and football season is over! Basketball has 5 times the number of posts. Why do people get more passionate over these things? I mean there is only one hot topic on the board and it hasn't been posted on since yesterday.

It is the quality of the posts not the quantity that counts. If you want quantity, go down to "Open Discussion" and post something like "I'd love to see gays in the military" or "I love the French", you'll get tons of posts!

 

To appreciate wrestling you have to be the connoisseur of the sports world. Normally to post on the wrestling board, CoachT requires an IQ test. I'm not sure how you passed.

[ranger215]

i have played sports all my life, and i have never found a sport more exhillerating, tougher or require more skill than wrestling. people can say all they want about how hard it is to hit a 90mph fastball, but they should try cutting 15lbs in three days and still wrestling. to top that off you must go on without any energy or stamina or strength. thats where you divide the men from the boys. guys we are the cream of the crop, there is no one like us. good luck to each of you this season and in to future. go trojans!

[ranger215]

boys, wrestling is not just a phisical sport, its also mental. as Lee Connel says, its walking out in front of a huge crowd (with only a singlet on) , its taking a pin like a man and trying to hold back the tears, its standing proud in school for the new black eye you got that weekend, its starving yourself all day to make weight, its guarding your post weigh in meal (usually an old bowl of soup) with your life, its the rush you get when you get a slam(and dont get called for it), its dry shaving when you forget to the morning prior to the match, and most of all its toughing out putting bleach on a big ole fat ring-worm. yes wrestlers are a total different breed. and anyone that thinks different, is just completely ignorant.

[dragonwrestler]

The Football Coach at my school forbids any of his starting football players to wrestle.

[eddie haskell]

Take a poll to see how many football players try to wrestle and get stomped. A lot of them (not all) THINK they can come out and dominate on the mats but they can't because they don't have the endurance, technique and tactics necessary to compete.

OK- so you are saying that not all football players are good wrestlers- DUH!!!! Guess what not all wrestlers would make good football players either. Just like every sport, each one has it's own skill set. No two sports are alike. You can't say one sports players are less athletic than another's without defining athleticism. And I'm sure there are more definitions of an athlete than there are people on this board. So just stick to the topic of why it isn't popular, and not just try to boost your own egos saying that most people can't do it because it is so tough.

[eddie haskell]

boys, wrestling is not just a phisical sport, its also mental. as Lee Connel says, its walking out in front of a huge crowd (with only a singlet on) ,

How many wrestlers actually wrestle in fornt of a huge crowd? The only huge crowd I have ever seen is at state.

[gopher15]

Well it appears this one sparked at least a little debate. I appreciate Eddie being the voice of dissension on this board. Apparently he is the only person on here who isn't a big fan of wrestling. I guess maybe if I had posted this on the football board I would have gotten a l lot more reasons why it isn't popular.

[eddie haskell]

Well it appears this one sparked at least a little debate. I appreciate Eddie being the voice of dissension on this board. Apparently he is the only person on here who isn't a big fan of wrestling. I guess maybe if I had posted this on the football board I would have gotten a l lot more reasons why it isn't popular.

Gophy you are a MO-ron. If you can't tell that Ilke wrestling then you can't read. I obviously like wrestling, I just thought this threead was about what was not to like about it not how "tough of a sport" it is. Lots of sports are tough, I don't see why everybody is being so defensive about wrestling, I mean it only lasts 6 minutes!!

[3rdchance]

Gophy you are a MO-ron. If you can't tell that Ilke wrestling then you can't read. I obviously like wrestling, I just thought this threead was about what was not to like about it not how "tough of a sport" it is. Lots of sports are tough, I don't see why everybody is being so defensive about wrestling, I mean it only lasts 6 minutes!!

You also posted:

 

"It seems pretty obvious that people don't like wrestling because it makes no sense. In basketball when the ball goes through the net you score, in wrestling you can see one guy do something and another guy do seemingly the same thing and it is scored differently. most people have no idea what the scoring means. Plus there are very few exciting matches. Most meets are one boring match after another with maybe one or two that are even close. Of course this is just my opinion"

 

Edward,

 

Based on a few of your posts YOU have indicated wrestling's lack of popularity is due to:

 

1. It makes no sense because scoring is hard to understand

2. Few exciting matches

 

Just as athleticism lies in the eye of the evaluator, so does understanding and excitement. Others like myself have a differing opinion and no need to get upset or sarcastic young man.

[eddie haskell]

You also posted:

 

"It seems pretty obvious that people don't like wrestling because it makes no sense. In basketball when the ball goes through the net you score, in wrestling you can see one guy do something and another guy do seemingly the same thing and it is scored differently. most people have no idea what the scoring means. Plus there are very few exciting matches. Most meets are one boring match after another with maybe one or two that are even close. Of course this is just my opinion"

 

Edward,

 

Based on a few of your posts YOU have indicated wrestling's lack of popularity is due to:

 

1. It makes no sense because scoring is hard to understand

2. Few exciting matches

 

Just as athleticism lies in the eye of the evaluator, so does understanding and excitement. Others like myself have a differing opinion and no need to get upset or sarcastic young man.

Make a point!!!! What does giving the problems wrestling have to do with me not liking the sport?