If reporting the facts, that we got our tails whooped, is pointing fingers, I believe that I am. What would I do differently? Remember … you asked!
The coaches of the team need to make a serious commitment. On the Monday following our return from State I would have a list of prospective team members in for a chat and workout and determine (perhaps through wrestle offs) those wrestlers that were equally committed. Then I would have a workout every night until the meet. Does this take some serious time and effort from coaches and wrestlers alike? Yes … commitment always does.
I know all the coaches on the team and some I know fairly well. I know that they wouldn’t shy away from the level of commitment that I’ve outlined. And I know most of the wrestlers. I know that wrestlers would like some “time off” following the State tourney. But those dedicating themselves to providing the best team, we had to offer, would have to make sacrifices.
A possibility is … that the absence of the East Kansas club during Folkstyle season had some bearing. Perhaps it even had some bearing on how some performed at the regional and state tourneys. In the past, it was common during the last few weeks of the high school season, to see wrestlers from several schools, at an East Kansas practice. “Steel sharpens Steel” is more than a catch phrase. Every matroom has battles. But when the best of each matroom come together, good things do happen. Granted, the East Kansas club lost “their coach” but someone needs to step up during the Folkstyle season.
And to Dean Wormer, you are fairly new to the Kansas Wrestling chat page, at least as a poster. So, I can’t quite figure out if your perhaps being a bit sarcastic in your questions. I’ve done several reports on the Metro and attended all but one of them. I have stated what I believe to be the facts and have stated my opinion on what we’ve done well and what we’ve done poor at. Some appreciate that level of honesty. I am sure that “all” do not agree.
If the Metro Classic is about showcasing “the BEST senior wrestlers in the Kansas City Metro area,” then it was clear to me that the best lived in Missouri this year. In the past, Kansas has “showcased” some great teams.
While I am not always the most graceful person in the world, I do try to avoid stomping on toes. But at times, it becomes difficult to walk without doing just that.
I am not Midas but I am a patriotic Kansan. It doesn’t matter to me if it is the Pancake race in Liberal, Andy Roddick in tennis, or the Metro Classic; I want to see fellow Kansan’s’ do well.
I guess, before I get plum carried away, I will end with this. Let’s not give our teams excuses for why they failed; let’s give them the encouragement, motivation, and the commitment that it takes to perform well.
