Unfortunately in recent years the All-Star Classic has failed to deliver. Last year only nine weight classes competed in the All-Star portion of the event. Not a single wrestler that competed in the 2011 NWCA All-Star Classic won an NCAA title in March, and only 11 competitors earned All-American honors. The competitiveness that drew fans and reporters was missing. Gone too were the fans.
That's all disconcerting, but even the delivery of the event, over LiveSportsVideo, was so glitchy that it became unwatchable.
For many fans last year's All-Star Classic was a wake-up call for the sport. The event seemed poorly considered and it became obvious that substantial changes needed to be made to ensure that the sport could recapture the appeal the event once held.
The 2011 NWCA All-Star Classic drew a sparse crowd in Tempe (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com)Again. In terms of appeal the 2011 NWCA All-Star Classic in Tempe, Ariz., only drew a few hundred fans and the Web stream provided by LiveSportsVideo.com was unwatchable.
So, should the All-Star Classic be suspended? Or should it just be re-imagined and redesigned?
Mike Moyer, president of the National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA), the organization that puts on the event, says that he shares some of the concerns over the quality of the content the All-Star Classic, but that the event did more good than most people realize.
"Last year we were able to raise the visibility of vulnerable programs," says Moyer. "When we were at Fresno State we raised $100k, which went to hiring a lobbying firm to help advance our cause in the state."
The cause was a bill in the legislature that demands universities ask students to vote on programs before they can be cut. If students deny the request then the university must return student fees for athletics in the amount saved by cutting the program. Ostensibly this would prevent schools from cutting programs to put the savings into football.
"I think that was a pretty substantial gain for wrestling," says Moyer.
NWCA executive director Mike Moyer with Takedown's Scott Casber at the 2011 NWCA All-Star Classic in Tempe, Ariz. (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com)To account for the lack of fan and wrestler involvement in 2011, Moyer says that the NWCA is shopping for a location in the Washington DC area. He believes a new East Coast location will draw more fans to the event and allow for easier access by wrestlers traveling from the Midwest.
"We wanted to bring the sport some recognition in the troubled areas out West but it became difficult to get wrestlers in and out," says Moyer. "We think bringing the event to the East Coast is the best thing we can do to create a more competitive event."
Competition has been lacking in recent years. Like the football players who don't tackle at the NFL Pro Bowl, and basketball players who don't play defense at the NBA All Star game, our wrestlers are choosing not to show up for the event because of the perception that it could affect their postseason seeding -- even as it's earned an exemption from consideration. To counter, the NWCA is appealing to the NCAA to allow them to alter the match to include period lengths of 2-2-2, rather than the traditional three-minute first period. That effort, Moyer says, will alleviate the speculation by coaches that the event will negatively affect seeding. The NWCA is also moving the event two weeks earlier to Sunday, Nov. 4 to prevent any conflicts with important early-season dual meets.
Anthony Robles signs autographs at the 2010 NWCA All-Star Classic (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com)The college wrestling community deserves a premier early-season event. Done well the NWCA All-Star Classic can catapult the discussions over which individuals are primed for a championship run, and which teams look prepared after the long offseason. Interest creates revenue, and revenue helps protect programs.
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