How To Grow Wrestling FAST

[Lefty142 15]

Would love to hear what the board thinks of this. Let 2 guys go per weight, per school to postseason. All we've seen since 1972 is programs dying and numbers dropping. This would change a LOT and I think most of it would be for the better. Increase the number of qualifiers to 64 (so non wrestling people get it, like basketball), and allow one point scorer. Redraw rounds that have teammates facing each other. Lets grow, not shrink. Insane? Plausible? 

[TexRef 12]

I would like to see the other divisions (JUCO, NAIA, D3, & D2) Champions or maybe even top 3 per weight added to the D1 brackets. 

I am not sure if it will grow wrestling, but it would be good watching. 

Edited September 24 by TexRef

[scribe 1,654]

Eliminate weightclasses. Try to put ball through opponents basket. Have cheerleaders. Put in the ESPN. 

[IronChef 566]

15 hours ago, Lefty142 said:

All we've seen since 1972 is programs dying and numbers dropping.

This is false. There are well over 200 more wrestling programs now than 20 years ago.

[MDogg 181]

Step one: get rid of the singlet

[Lurker 709]

16 hours ago, Lefty142 said:

Would love to hear what the board thinks of this. Let 2 guys go per weight, per school to postseason. All we've seen since 1972 is programs dying and numbers dropping. This would change a LOT and I think most of it would be for the better. Increase the number of qualifiers to 64 (so non wrestling people get it, like basketball), and allow one point scorer. Redraw rounds that have teammates facing each other. Lets grow, not shrink. Insane? Plausible? 

In my opinion this would be counter productive, as the “haves” would increase the gap over the “have nots” by virtue of they would get even more of the top recruits, knowing they don’t have to be the starter to wrestle in the post season. 

[ScarletKnight 63]

On 9/24/2019 at 9:30 PM, IronChef said:

This is false. There are well over 200 more wrestling programs now than 20 years ago.

76 D1 schools, 62 D2 schools and 97 D3 now.  That's 235 total.   And if D1 goes down and D3 goes up, that's a loss in scholarship opportunities. 

What are you so please about, more community / 2-year schools with wrestling?   Are you counting the rise in women's programs as part of the good news? 

[hammerlockthree 1,552]

On 9/23/2019 at 6:51 PM, Lefty142 said:

Would love to hear what the board thinks of this. Let 2 guys go per weight, per school to postseason. All we've seen since 1972 is programs dying and numbers dropping. This would change a LOT and I think most of it would be for the better. Increase the number of qualifiers to 64 (so non wrestling people get it, like basketball), and allow one point scorer. Redraw rounds that have teammates facing each other. Lets grow, not shrink. Insane? Plausible? 

I don't see the hook for non wrestling people.

Football is popular because it is easy to understand, violent, a great excuse to drink, and has been marketed to the point where people think being a fan is a virtue. 

Wrestling needs some sort of hook to make it more pedestrian. Unfortunately discipline isn't selling, we need another hook. 

[cjc007 504]

I don't see the hook for non wrestling people.
Football is popular because it is easy to understand, violent, a great excuse to drink, and has been marketed to the point where people think being a fan is a virtue. 
Wrestling needs some sort of hook to make it more pedestrian. Unfortunately discipline isn't selling, we need another hook. 

Dual meets between rival schools will bring in the casual fan/ alumni.

At least they could follow their team.

Sent from my moto z3 using Tapatalk

[hammerlockthree 1,552]

5 minutes ago, cjc007 said:

Dual meets between rival schools will bring in the casual fan/ alumni.

At least they could follow their team.

Sent from my moto z3 using Tapatalk
 

yeah sorry i forgot the obvious....cael threw the brick on it.

Edited September 26 by hammerlockthree

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On 9/24/2019 at 11:17 AM, MDogg said:

Step one: get rid of the singlet

Agreed. It would look ridiculous for wrestlers to be running up and down the court dribbling a ball. 

[Dr. Novak 147]

MMA teams - men & women.  Used cage market is extensive so start up costs would be negligible.  Auditions for rings girls + announcers would be made public.

[Gantry 1,360]

14 hours ago, hammerlockthree said:

Football is popular because it is easy to understand, violent, a great excuse to drink, and has been marketed to the point where people think being a fan is a virtue. 

Wrestling needs some sort of hook to make it more pedestrian. Unfortunately discipline isn't selling, we need another hook. 

I don't think football is easy to understand, we just grew up with it and it all seems natural/obvious now.  Had a friend from New Zealand live here for awhile and she gave up after a couple games because of how confusing all the rules were.  Also a big reason why it's struggling to get traction outside of the US, if you didn't grow up here a lot of it is weird and nonsensical.   Totally agree with the rest of your points though...

Edited September 26 by Gantry

[hammerlockthree 1,552]

24 minutes ago, Gantry said:

I don't think football is easy to understand, we just grew up with it and it all seems natural/obvious now.  Had a friend from New Zealand live here for awhile and she gave up after a couple games because of how confusing all the rules were.  Also a big reason why it's struggling to get traction outside of the US, if you didn't grow up here a lot of it is weird and nonsensical.   Totally agree with the rest of your points though...

Its rules are definitely arbitrary, so it is difficult from that perspective, but the core concept, get the ball over there and stop when someone tackles the ball, is really accessible. Its not practical or attractive in other countries because its completely impractical, insanely dangerous and expensive. I don't know how it got a cultural foothold in the US. 

[Sheerstress 70]

On 9/24/2019 at 7:17 AM, TexRef said:

I would like to see the other divisions (JUCO, NAIA, D3, & D2) Champions or maybe even top 3 per weight added to the D1 brackets. 

I am not sure if it will grow wrestling, but it would be good watching. 

That was how it was until the early 1990s with Div 2 and Div 3 champs advancing to Div 1.  

Personally, I liked it, but Div 1 coaches put an end to it because of how it affected team races.  

[gimpeltf 963]

14 minutes ago, Sheerstress said:

That was how it was until the early 1990s with Div 2 and Div 3 champs advancing to Div 1.  

Personally, I liked it, but Div 1 coaches put an end to it because of how it affected team races.  

It wasn't the coaches, it was the NCAA bean counters. No other sport allowed teams or competitors two bites at the apple. 

[treep2000 825]

On 9/24/2019 at 9:17 AM, MDogg said:

Step one: get rid of the singlet

Watch what the No Gi BJJ guys wear.  That's the right outfit for wrestling moving forward.  

[MDogg 181]

14 hours ago, treep2000 said:

Watch what the No Gi BJJ guys wear.  That's the right outfit for wrestling moving forward.  

Totally agreed. It would also get apparel companies like Nike and Under Armor more interested in investing in and promoting the sport because there’s actually something other than shoes they can sell. 

[AHamilton 127]

On 9/23/2019 at 6:51 PM, Lefty142 said:

Would love to hear what the board thinks of this. Let 2 guys go per weight, per school to postseason. All we've seen since 1972 is programs dying and numbers dropping. This would change a LOT and I think most of it would be for the better. Increase the number of qualifiers to 64 (so non wrestling people get it, like basketball), and allow one point scorer. Redraw rounds that have teammates facing each other. Lets grow, not shrink. Insane? Plausible? 

Twice as many parents and girlfriends in the stands!

[TexRef 12]

On 9/26/2019 at 12:31 PM, Sheerstress said:

That was how it was until the early 1990s with Div 2 and Div 3 champs advancing to Div 1.  

Personally, I liked it, but Div 1 coaches put an end to it because of how it affected team races.  

Yeah and I bet there was a high D1 seed that got bumped to the backside of the bracket too 

[gimpeltf 963]

On 9/26/2019 at 1:47 PM, gimpeltf said:

It wasn't the coaches, it was the NCAA bean counters. No other sport allowed teams or competitors two bites at the apple. 

TexRef- what do you think is so funny about this? Might the coaches have indirectly started the re-evaluation? Sure. But I worked the event at that time. I talked with the NCAA rep about the ruling. What I posted is what I was told by him. He gave me a bunch of stats about it. Never mentioned any feedback from coaches affecting things. And overall, the coaches wanted the kids in. Don't forget that at about the same time the NCAA downsized 2 and 3. Why would the D1 coaches want that also? They have kept the size of D1 where it was even with the number of teams dropping like they have because of the financial success of the event.

[steamboat_charlie v2 722]

Just water it and fertilize 

[John Morgan 19]

On 9/26/2019 at 10:48 AM, Gantry said:

I don't think football is easy to understand, we just grew up with it and it all seems natural/obvious now.  Had a friend from New Zealand live here for awhile and she gave up after a couple games because of how confusing all the rules were.  Also a big reason why it's struggling to get traction outside of the US, if you didn't grow up here a lot of it is weird and nonsensical.   Totally agree with the rest of your points though...

I don't think folkstyle wrestling is easy to understand, we just grew up with it and it all seems natural/obvious now.  Had a friend from Russia live here for awhile and he gave up after a couple meets because of how confusing all the rules were.  Also a big reason why it's struggling to get traction outside of the US, if you didn't grow up here a lot of it is weird and nonsensical.   Totally agree with the rest of your points though...

My point is...people who grow up in wrestling love wrestling (for the most part).  Grow the sport at the grassroots and you sustain the craft.  Hard to get people who love tennis to start watching wrestling if they didn't grow up doing it.  

[Cooch1 114]

[TLS62pa 32]

On 9/25/2019 at 9:16 PM, ScarletKnight said:

76 D1 schools, 62 D2 schools and 97 D3 now.  That's 235 total.   And if D1 goes down and D3 goes up, that's a loss in scholarship opportunities. 

What are you so please about, more community / 2-year schools with wrestling?   Are you counting the rise in women's programs as part of the good news? 

Just in the past two years in Division 1 we've added:

Fresno State

Arkansas Little Rock

LIU-Post

Presbyterian

 

Cal Baptist, Augustana, and Bellarmine are transitioning to Division 1. 

 

Recently we've lost Boise, Eastern Michigan, and Grand Canyon (that one before making the full transition)