Tuesday Morning Takedowns, 7/8/14

Every Tuesday we will sit down and go takedowns with the hottest topics in Michigan wrestling.  This week's TMT is written by Michigan Grappler founder and owner Tony Greathouse.  Greathouse wrestled collegiately at Michigan State, prepped at Mason HS, and is the current Head Coach at Brighton High School.

HAVE A QUESTION FOR TMT?  Email to associatedwrestlingpress@gmail.com or tweet us @michgrappler

WEEK IN REVIEW...

Last weekend was the 4th of July and while many wrestlers and coaches were probably spending their holiday weekend relaxing and getting away, there was a contingent of Michiganders who spent their Independence Day on the opposite end of the spectrum - in Las Vegas!

NUWAY, in conjuction with their newly formed "Ultimate Alliance" with the Rocky Mountain Nationals and the NHSCA, put together the "Ultimate Alliance Duals" as well as "The Ultimates Last Man Standing" tournament in Las Vegas that was done in partnership with the UFC and their International Fight Week that was going down all week long.

It was a first year event, and while there was an extremely talented Indiana team as well as some California and Nevada hammers mixed in with the loaded Michigan squad, there is still a lot of room for improvement in terms of the overall size and depth of the event.

However, like many other recent NUWAY projects, the potential of this event in terms of its impact on the sport of wrestling is much larger scale than just wrestling matches.  If you take a look at the photos in our article that was published yesterday, you see high school wrestlers rubbing elbows with the biggest names in MMA and the biggest UFC stars.  This is awesome for those wrestlers, but also a huge step for our sport.  The UFC is a multi-billion dollar industry and honestly, it is the first thing we have had close to a "NFL-type" option for wrestlers.  To be working side-by-side with the UFC and have a youth and high shcool amateur wrestling event tied in with UFC events is huge for the growth of our sport, and it is really exciting to see what comes in the future from this partnership.

MAILBAG QUESTIONS

What do you think of the movie Foxcatcher? - Nick

If you have not watched the trailers yet, check it out below!  I cannot wait for this movie to come out in theaters and I will be one of the first ones in line with my popcorn, a bottle of spark, and some peanut M&Ms waiting to see this thing on the big screen!

I have spent my whole life trying to convince myself that movies like Vision Quest and One More Shot were mainstream wrestling movies, but the fact of the matter is the sport of wrestling is really yet to be put on display and depicted accurately in a major Hollywood film.  Foxcatcher, hopefully, will finally push our sport into the mainstream.  

I have only see a couple trailers, but based on the cast with HUGE names like Channing Tatum, Mark Ruffalo, and Steve Carrell, it seems like it is a cant-miss type of movie.

The thing that excites me the most about this movie is the hope that it will make wrestling more mainstream as a sport.  Hopefully when teenage girls see Channing Tatum cutting weight and wearing a singlet, they will be less likely to poke fun at their middle school peers who decide to wrestle.  Hopefully millions of parents will see Mark Ruffalo and Tatum cast as Olympic Wrestlers on the big screen and be more likely to push their kids into the sport of wrestling that they thought was wierd before.  Needless to say, I have high hopes for this movie!

Can you tell what the deal is with MHSAA transfer rules?  I have heard that they are getting more strict with transfers, and that sounds great but I have yet to see anyone get in trouble for bouncing schools. - Curt

Congratulations Curt, you just hit possibly the most controversial issue with high school wrestling in Michigan, and honestly, this is an issue with most all high school sports in Michigan.

First of all, you are correct the MHSAA has instituted new rules with harsher penalties for athletes who "transfer" schools.  I have sat in a couple meetings and read a few emails that describe the new rule, which is called "LINKS" or something like that.  Much like all other state policies, there are tons of fine print and stipulations and exceptions to sift through, but the main jist of the new rule is that if you transfer to a new school that you have some sort of "link" to, the result is sitting out an entire calendar year (which is much worse than the old rule of sitting out half the season or sitting out until MLK day).  So, for wrestling, theoretically you will be out for the entire season after transferring if you have a link with that school.

What is a "link"?  Well, once again, tons of fine print to flip through here, but pretty much it is a former coach, or if you have attended workouts at that school, or if you were on a travel team with that coach.  Basically, if there is any chance you were recruited to come there you sit out a year.

Now, based on my understanding, this "links" rule is only for transfer students or School of Choice students who transfer during the high school career.  For example, if you S.O.C. the summer before 9th grade and you start your career at a school that is not your home school, even if you have 5 links to that school, your still eligible right away.

The impact of this rule?  Hard to tell.  If it is just for S.O.C. kids, then I dont think the impact will be all that great because a good amount of the high profile kids who are switching districts are usually move-ins, and you cannot really mess with that.

While I think that a lot of the transfers and school changes that happen from year to year are a bit excessive, I also think that it is a bit unjust that we make kids sit out for changing schools.  The State of Michigan allows students to use School of Choice to pick which school they want to attend.  If they can decide to switch schools because of Math programs, Drama programs or AP courses, then why is it not ok for a student to want to switch schools because their current school is not meeting their needs from an athletic standpoint?  In my opinion, if the State of Michigan says you can switch schools for academics, then it is crazy for the MHSAA to come in and say it is not ok for athletics.

A piece of me thinks the whole school of choice concept is becoming a problem in all aspects, not just athletics.  The S.O.C. system that we have in Michigan puts all the power in the hands of the parents, and as history tells us parents can sometimes be irrational about their children.  I have seen way too many instances where a student gets poor grades or gets in trouble in school and the parents reaction is to blame teachers for poor grades or blame the culture of the school for creating an environment of bad behavior.  Too many parents are allowed to point the blame and inevitably back the teachers, administrators and district into a corner by hanging their potential SOC transfer over their head.  School districts, meanwhile, are almost all in tight financial situations so the threat of losing a student and the State funding that is attached to that student is someting they do not want risk.

Likewise, with athletics, parents can too easily blame the coach for not giving their kid enough playing time, and bounce him or her out of the school to another school.

At the end of the day, parents have a right to put their children in the situation that they see best fit for them to suceed.  I think that our athletic policy should match up with our academic policy.  My beef with moves and transfers is more about what we are teaching our kids.  If you are moving to a new school to legitimattly improve your child's likilihood of success, then I say go for it.  But, if your just moving them out to run away from a problem, I say stop, sit down, and talk to your kid about what their struggling with and then help them get through it.  Changing school should be the last resort, not the first option.  I promise that it won't be the last time they fail at something, hear something they don't want to hear, get bullied, don't like their superiors, don't fit in with peers, or anything else that is creating issues.  Put yourself in the best position to suceed, but don't just be a grass is greener on the other side kind of guy.

ADVOCARE SPOTLIGHT - MEAL REPLACEMENT SHAKES

AdvoCare's Meal Replacement Shakes are awesome because they do two things that typical protein shakes and meal replacements fail to do, 1) they taste good and 2) they are actually convenient.

They mix with water and only water for the perfect consistency and as long as they are mixed with cold water, they taste great.  And they mix quickly and easily, no need for blenders or forks or anything else.  

I have a Meal Replacement shake almost every single day for breakfast.  If you have busy mornings like me, it is tough to get a good breakfast and unfortunately our most commonly skipped meal is the most important.  Therefore, the Advocare Meal Replacement shakes are perfect to get some good tasting, well rounded nutrition to start your day and get your metabolism going.

Losing weight? - meal replacements are perfect for you.
Gaining weight? - meal replacements are a great supplement to make sure your getting the calories, carbs, and protein you need.
Living a busy lifestyle? meal replacements are perfect to ensure your getting nutrition and staying healthy.

As always, any nutrition questions at all - email me at associatedwrestlingpress@gmail.com.

Browse all the great AdvoCare products at www.grapplernutrition.com

WHATS COMING UP?

This next week is a little slow, however, it is the calm before the storm as the Grand River Rumble is going down next weekend (July 17-18) and the week-long event that is Fargo will get going next weekend as well.

As for new things to keep up with, tune into the Associated Wrestling Press, our new national wrestling website that continues to get more in-depth as we put more energy into it.  MI Grappler's own Steve Widzinski has released national grade-level rankings for each grade and will be putting out more great national content over the summer and into next season.  There are no free grade level rankings on the web, until now, as the AWP grade level rankings are absolutely free of charge.

Our first ever Documentary film, which will highlight the journey of Lowell native Gabe Dean from an unaccomplished youth wrestler to one of the best college wrestlers in the country, will be coming out later this summer!

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