Interesting conversation on this thread. My opening post was not negative and was not intended as a "calling out". Those listed had fantastic freshman seasons and deserved every accolade they earned. The new HS division was added as an opportunity for more competition within classes and was a success in its first year. By estimate, over 150 new wrestlers were added versus last years 16U division. The primary rationale for keeping the 14U division open to HS wrestlers was to allow JV and non qualifying HS kids to compete in the state series. Certainly, the current rule states that all 14U wrestlers are included, regardless of their HS accomplishments.
As Coach Jobe stated earlier, to get a clearer picture of the success of the new rule, it would help to know how many HS state placers that were 14U eligible chose to wrestle HS.
Nothing negative toward those that chose 14U, just an analysis of how the rule change worked.
