Double Trouble

Today, the first day of the 2009 New York State High School Wrestling Championships provided a number of exciting matches--but that's no different than any other year.

One match, in the 96-pound weight class, provided something that may not have ever played out in the history of high school wrestling across the United States, to say nothing of New York. Kings Park Juniors Max and Mike Soria are twins participating in that weight class and after winning their respective first round matches, they were poised to face each other in the quarterfinals.



In seeding the tournament, two wrestlers from the same Section--and certainly two wrestlers from the same High School--should never have to wrestle each other so early in the competition. With a max of three wrestlers allowed per weight class per Section, there is no excuse for having these studs square off in the second round; by rule the earliest they should be able to meet is the semis.

I'm sure the state's response to this would be some bureaucratic blather about how seeding has to be blind.

Come on. THEY'RE TWINS WRESTLING IN THE SAME WEIGHT AT THE STATE TOURNAMENT. For two brothers to make the States is a huge deal. To do it in the same weight class is practically unheard of. Add to the fact that they're twins truly makes this a unique event. If there's ever been a time to bend the rules and regulations, this would have been the occasion.

The NYS High School Athletic Association really swung and missed here. Unfortunately, according to Chris Mascaro's blog at Newsday, here's how their uneventful quarterfinal match played out:

Max Soria of Kings Park injury defaulted before his 96-pound quarterfinal against his twin brother Mike, citing a toe injury. Max is expected to wrestle in the wrestlebacks later today. It is pretty clear Max decided to forfeit to his brother, rather than wrestle him. A forfeit would knock him out of the tournament, so he called it an injury default to at least stay in the wrestlebacks. Quite a sacrifice.

It's a shame that two wrestlers work so hard all season only to see things end up this way. This potential problem was clearly identified early on, and the powers that be should have shown more flexibility. Here's hoping that Mike makes it to the finals and Max wrestles back for third.

Update: Mikes in the finals and Max has won his wrestlebacks, so at a minimum both wrestlers have earned all-state status.

Here's Gregg Sarra's Newsday piece on the duo (link)

Video from Flowrestling.com

CJ Grad Javon Ringer in SI

Javon giving it to Alter

This week, Sports Illustrated did a nice job covering Heisman hopeful, Michigan State Running Back, Notre Dame-killer and Dayton Chaminade-Julienne alumni Javon Ringer in a piece in the magazine. I couldn't find the article online, so pick up the latest issue (the one with Manny on the cover) for details.

Ringer's been a workhorse for the Spartans, and his propensity to carry the football 35-40 times a game has some questioning whether he can keep it up over the grind of the Big 10 schedule. I, for one, am hoping he does, despite his 201 yard, 2-TD gem of a game against the Fighting Irish.

While I was a wrestling coach at CJ, I had the opportunity to meet Javon in the weight room, and he was a nice kid and had a great head on his shoulders for a 17-year-old that had the Big 10 knocking down his door. (Even if there was some controversy about where he'd end up)


Graduation Night with my Guys

Speaking of nice kids at CJ, Javon's story gives me a great opportunity to brag on a couple of my wrestlers that done good. This summer, I had the opportunity to attend graduations at Brown University and The Ohio State University to see Joe Walton and Tim Schirmer graduate from those respective institutions of higher learning.

Joe graduated with a degree in psychology from Brown, and is currently working towards his doctorate in psychology in Chicago.


Me and Walton, looking very Ivy League

Timmy graduated from tOSU with like 7 degrees in business and Hindi Literature. He's at law school in Columbus now, which I can forgive him for.


Me and Timmy, it was like 300 degrees and we're hung over

As I search for what's next, I cant help but think of how rewarding the opportunity to coach wrestling while I was stationed in Dayton. These guys clearly earned their degrees and worked their asses off to succeed, and I'm thrilled they let me come along for the ride!

A couple black eyes for the sport

I've already wrote about my feelings on the Great Swedish Bronze Rejection, which I can justify. Unfortunately, when my sport is supposed to be in its quadrennial spotlight, we've had some tough stories break this week:

Some sick stuff up in Connecticut

I hate bullies--hence my problem with Col. Voldemort--and this is a classic case of a DB asserting his power over a person in a weaker position...although I do think that Col. V was probably on the receiving end of this type of stuff in high school.

(And by the way, Officer O'B--is there a statute of limitations on this crime? Can a cop be the arresting officer of a perp that committed a crime against them--is that unethical?)

Some bad choices in Nebraska

These guys were plain stupid. Whatever they did is normally their own business. However, being student athletes, there is no excuse--they should have known better than to receive money for this, thus putting their scholarships on the line and screwing their teammates.

Review: The Streak (ESPN Original Documentary)

Tivo Alert: For anyone who missed the Brandon show, it will air again Monday, May 5th from 2-4 pm on ESPN2 (check local listings).

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In watching the ESPN original documentary, The Streak, covering the '07-'08 Brandon High School Eagles wrestling team, I was immediately struck by their leader, Russ Cozart, who sets a terrific tone for the entire program, both on and off the mat.

Prior to watching the documentary, all I knew about Cozart was what I read on message boards-- mostly negative stuff about his son, Rocky--but this program showed me all one needs to know about message boards.

The character and class that Cozart showed throughout the program give every indication that he's a first-class man on top of being an outstanding high school coach. This stands in direct contrast with former Hoover High School coach/community demagogue Rush Propst of MTV's Two-a-Days fame. On the spectrum of high school coaches featured in reality television, Propst strikes viewers as a raging egomaniac that was quick to blame his athletes while Cozart chooses to instill class and character into his boys.

Watching footage of Cozart's son Joey as a freshman in the 2007 Florida AA State Finals, and the coolness under pressure he exhibited while head and arming a two-time reigning state champ to win his own title in the waning seconds of a match indicates that Russ' composure is in the genes.
In that vein, one critique I've read the most regards the number of headlocks Brandon throws throughout the doc. Some argue that it's a Greco influence fostered by Cozart while others view it as indicative of the quality of high school wrestling in the state of Florida. Either way, I figured this nugget warranted mentioning.

There were a couple of intriguing story lines. Clearly, family is the major theme of the documentary. You have boys whose fathers were part of the streak's early days. You have younger brothers attempting to aspire to the lofty achievements of their older siblings. One of the most touching threads followed a Green Beret Lt. Col. Roger Jones and his son, Ty. As a vet, it was interesting to watch a heroic leader who's reached the highest levels of an incredibly tough career path instill a work ethic and courage in his son. Raising kids, apparently, is much different from training soldiers. Jones the elder was also a Virginia High School State Champ, and it's awesome to see former wrestlers excel in Special Forces positions.

I was also impressed with the caliber of student Brandon has produced in recent years. A couple of the alumni (the elder Grajales and Timothy brothers) returned to visit the program from UPenn and Cozart's had the ability to place many of his athletes in strong programs both academically and athletically.

Spoiler Alert: The 34-year old streak ends during the course of the documentary at an astounding 459 (!).

The most real moment of the documentary comes as the team sat in the locker room after falling to South Dade. You talk about all-to-real moments, those tears the boys shed after losing the streak were those that only a high school wrestler could fully comprehend and respect. No other sport asks so much of its athletes.

The total body, mind and soul immersion required by even average athletes is so demanding that you truly have experience it to totally understand it. Think of how sadistic and insane it is for a growing high school boy to have to diet! Again, the lessons learned in that room are the reason why so many wrestlers end up succeeding in later endeavors (see Jones, Lt. Col. Roger).

Interesting Note: The production company of BHS Alum Mark Consuelos (Mr. Kelly Ripa) was the driving force behind this documentary. Man, that guy is cool.

Other Reviews/Discussions:
The Mat.com
ESPN

Tivo Alert: For anyone who missed the Brandon show, it will air again Monday, May 5th from 2-4 pm on ESPN2 (check local listings).