Foley: Was the Grapple in the Apple worth it?

Jake Herbert was in the stands for the majority of last week's Grapple in the Apple. The Pennsylvania native and 2009 World silver medalist was taking it all in alongside Kyle Dake, Bubba Jenkins, and three well-heeled businessmen in dark suits and side-parts.

"What the hell is going on?" asked one of these (likely) finance guys in frustration.

Beat The Streets Grapple in the Apple raised $1.4 Million For New York City area youth wrestling and education programs (Photo/John Sachs, Tech-Fall.com)

Herbert overhead their interest and in all his charming oafishness popped into their conversation to give them pointers on scoring and positioning. For five minutes they posed questions and Herbert answered. Finally they realized that the enormous and fit human in front of them might have wrestled as well.

"Did you wrestle?" (Really? What else on EARTH could possibly have given him that frame? You can't see his ears behind his traps ... SUIT.)

Herbert explained that he was still wrestling but was sitting out this match. Almost without thinking of the attention it might grab he added that he'd be wrestling in the Olympics. The dapper trio lost their minds. A REAL Olympian was sitting in front of them. Cell phone photos were taken.

Ten minutes later their enthusiasm wasn't subsided and there were promises of watching all of Herbert's matches and possibly buying a few T-shirts. Herbert wasn't trying to sell them, he was sharing his passion with new people by using the available platform: The Grapple in the Apple.

Wrestling icon Dan Gable was in New York City to take in the event (Photo/John Sachs, Tech-Fall.com)

The wrestling community loves attention and save for a few glitches the match held in Times Square could be considered one of the most successful events in amateur wrestling history. Why? Because it managed to raise money, awareness and excitement -- the event is equal parts friend-raiser and fundraiser. Herbert, albeit an Olympian, used the event to promote his passion and earned the sport three new friends with a personal connection and a positive image of the sport.

Three new fans isn't a small thing.

In the days leading up to the match, the USA Wrestling team was on a full-scale promotional tour through NYC. (Kudos to Gary Abbott of USA Wrestling for selling some of the biggest names in the MSM on wrestling -- not an easy task.) In the course of one week we saw Jordan Burroughs on the NBC Today Show, CNN Early Start, and the WSJ video section. In print he was even more thoroughly covered including a piece on SI.com. The rest of the team also got into the act showing up at the closing bell of the NYSE and Yankee Stadium for batting practice. Herbert made an appearance on NBC affiliates in Chicago and NYC.

The event was covered by the AP, ESPN, Reuters, and dozens of other media outlets, much of which had to do with the ease of the location, but also because the event itself was meaty, with the Russians visiting and an Olympic spot on the line. Local media picked up the achievements of their favorite athletes. For the first time since March my Google news alert for "wrestling" was void of references to Vince McMahon. Every story had something to do with the Grapple in the Apple.

Coleman Scott defeated Reece Humphrey and Shawn Bunch to make the U.S. Olympic Team at 60 kilos in men's freestyle (Photo/John Sachs, Tech-Fall.com)

The matches themselves were almost inconsequential to the overall feel of the event. Beating the backup Russian team was impressive and the Coleman Scott vs. Shawn Bunch could not have been more tense or ended in a more dramatic fashion, but it was the event itself that drew the attention of the media. (ESPN did not include Scott's final throw as a Top 10 play.) We live in an attention economy and getting our best in front of the camera and described in print will assist in selling the sport to more fans and more future supporters.

In addition to the MSM and national media attention, the $1.4 million to support BTS also had a significant impact on the long-term sustainability of amateur wrestling. The monies raised at the banquet following the event will presumably be used to expand the organization's reach within the NYC Metro area with enough left over to help support the capital behind the new BTS program in Los Angeles. That West Coast branch of BTS will be headed up by former Division I All-American and longtime assistant coach Yero Washinston. As a grassroots program, BTS will succeed in its mission to get kids off the streets and through wrestling find a path to college, but from a sustainability standpoint BTS helps wrestling en masse by creating positive local media. In turn that media helps builds support within school administration and local governments. After parents and bureaucrats decide that wrestling is a positive option for their youth there is an increase in participation rates. That wouldn't be possible without the Grapple in the Apple.

Jordan Burroughs dominated Russia's Kamel Malikov (Photo/John Sachs, Tech-Fall.com)

Ultimately the legacy of the national media event like the Grapple in the Apple won't be with how many times we got to see Burroughs and Herbert on the television, or how the crowd became entranced by the back-and-forth between Scott and Bunch. The big payoff is that we have a grassroots organization impacting local communities. By cultivating the image of the sport at the local level we'll change the perception and habits of active youth, which will help us guarantee that there will always be a wrestling team to watch, cheer, and support. Like Herbert did in Times Square with the suits, our local wrestlers will recruit interest from family and friends. In turn they'll ensure that we have the support and the attention we've always pined for.

Thanks to Beat the Streets, wrestling has its first long-term sustainable approach to creating, capturing, and capitalizing on an interest in the sport of wrestling. In a sport that seems more about contraction and negativity, this is the bright spot we can all enjoy.

Footnote: I've been thinking it for some time (after the third-place finish at the 2011 Worlds, then after the third-place finish at the World Cup), but it's time to start considering a healthy overdose of praise for USA Wrestling's head coach Zeke Jones. There are several factors that have contributed to the recent uptick in international results (regional training centers, overall talent pool, Jordan Burroughs) but the coach of the program is the CEO and fair or not he'll take praise for the wins and criticism for the losses. Watching the Russian dual left me feeling hopeful about the United States chances not only in this year's Olympics, but for the next cycle as well. (Prediction: Logan Stieber will be a multi-time World and Olympic medalist. Grit. Speed. Strength.)

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Foley: Was the Grapple in the Apple worth it?

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