Well, Missouri has made a liar out of this year's Iowa-heavy prognosticators.
Winners of the 2015 NWCA National Duals, Missouri upset favorite Iowa 18-12 in Sunday's finals, and in doing so also challenged the popular perception that the Hawkeyes would walk away with the team title in St. Louis.
Though Iowa is likely the favorite to win the NCAA tournament, it's obvious that teams like Missouri, Ohio State and Minnesota have the talent to challenge the Hawkeyes and nip at their heels throughout the three-day tournament.
Though the upset matters as a stand-alone event, the big question coming out of a drama-filled weekend of pushing, flapping and shooshing is how anyone could mount a substantial argument against the National Duals and their impact on the future of college wrestling.
I was in Tehran covering the Greco-Roman World Cup and despite the poor Internet and time difference, the buzz around the National Duals was so loud online that results and storylines were easy to follow even when flying back through timelines of other journalists. Upsets in the first round and a lineup packed with schools with broad name recognition to both wrestling fans and those outside the sport.
That's media gold and a way to drive attention and viewership in your product.
While there are years in which selling wrestling to major publications is easier than others (Kyle Dake vs. David Taylor), the stories wanted by the press tend to start with colleges -- something that every sports reader can know with ease. Cornell is Ivy League. Iowa is a dominant power. Penn State has Cael Sanderson as coach. These are pretty basic items that maybe half the sports world knows heading into March.
That's why the Missouri-Iowa upset became a story with resonance in and out of the wrestling community. Because it was Missouri -- the school, the colors, the everything -- who performed this upset feat, not an individual with a more difficult back story. School successes and failures are easier to follow for fans and therefore are preferred by the media.
Overall, the National Duals format has a ways to go before it can be the most meaningful competition of the NCAA season. Much of the discussion of duals will center on scheduling and how the competitions might impact the proven money-making NCAA tournament, but the writing is on the mats -- in a rapidly changing athletics environment money and interest are necessary for survival.
To your questions ...
Q: Missouri coach Brian Smith wrestled collegiately at Michigan State. Any chance we could ever see him replace Tom Minkel in East Lansing?
-- Mike C.
Foley: Absolutely. The Missouri wrestling team is currently ranked No. 1 in the nation in the dual meet rankings, something that nobody would have predicted even with the Askren brothers in town. After 20-plus years of hard work Coach Smith has a contender.
Brian Smith (Photo/Clayton Hotze)Well, maybe he wouldn't (there is no opening as of now), but the argument for why he would is the same for why college basketball coaches love to take over dynasty programs that are in the dumps. First there is the challenge of the turnaround, which can be a confidence building exercise in and of itself, but also there is an institutional and professional admiration that is extended to coaches who perform such turnarounds. Next, there is the idea that Michigan State, competing in the Big Ten, has a better chance of winning the national title and that they'd have more institutional support at-the-ready. Finally, he may want a change and to take over at an alma mater he loves (if he does).
Who knows if he'd apply, but taking Missouri to No.1 in the nation is a huge feather in his coaching cap and should he want another challenge, either in the Big Ten, Pac 12 or the ACC, there aren't many athletic directors who wouldn't give Coach Smith an interview.
Q: What do you make of the debacle with the VHSL?
-- John T.
Foley: To clarify for those who don't know the back story: Last week during the Virginia state wrestling tournament the VHSL was facing pressure from schools to reduce risk during an impending snowstorm. The tournament was meant to run Friday and Saturday, but with the storm the VHSL chose to make it a one-day tournament with no first-round wrestlebacks. With everything squeezed into a single day of wrestling the finals were late at night and had no public awards ceremony. The wrestlers were given their medals behind the bleachers.
Sooo ... Bing. Boom. Out. Wrestling started late and ended around 10 p.m. No pomp and very little time for celebration.
The VHSL was embattled well before this decision. Last year the organization decided to create additional state tournaments and classifications (to help with football) and forced wrestling to an eight-man bracket. This was of course strange, not only that there were eight state champions in a state that used to have three, but also that half as may wrestlers qualified.
The resulting chaos of last week's decision has been horrible publicity for the VHSL, and for good reason. Though there is always room for caution their actions seemed rushed and in part ruined the wrestling seasons of many young high school students. With no seeding at the state tournament the two best wrestlers might've met in the first round and left the loser out in the cold (literally) with no medal. With all the money being spent by individuals and families on the athletic careers of their sons and daughters, this type of slight could be perceived as irreparable.
The VHSL, like many amateur athletic organizations, seems to operate outside the jurisdiction of any larger authority, which for parents causes even more heartache since there is nowhere to point their frustration.
Wrestlers deserve the opportunity to compete in the fully bracketed tournament they were promised at the beginning of the season. Would they have played only three quarters of a football game? Of course not. The VHSL should make a public apology and look to make serious changes to the way they govern individual sports.
Q: United World Wrestling is doing a lot better than FILA. Still a ways to go, though. How is Arena coming along? What are some of the features we can look forward to once it goes live? This has a lot of potential for our sport.
-- Dan L.
Foley: Arena is cruising right along! The major improvement is that we can now have up-to-the-minute results embedded on the site as the tournament is happening. The results will come in an easy-to-read format that is fan friendly and allows for better use by the media.
The United World Wrestling site has been updated and is now filled with photos, videos, results and stories. The big events now have their own pages where users can find the live stream for the event, important matches and even same-day highlights. That multimedia can be a painful process when trying to navigate the troubles of hosting events in places like Iran or Cuba or Myanmar, but the structure is being created. Those are all kinks that can be ironed out over time, but it's important to understand that for wrestling to be grown worldwide, it's vital for a variety of countries to host tournaments.
Of course not every tournament will be covered the same. There is a range of competitions on the calendar, but each of the United World Wrestling branded competitions (Continental Championships, World Cups, World Championships) will have the full available treatment. Video is also now being treated as a priority.
Wrestling deserves to be in front of the fans. Though we started with 12k Facebook fans in February 2013, the growth has been immense. For example, more than 1.8 million people saw the United World Wrestling page last week during the Greco-Roman World Cup. Those are insane numbers for no Facebook advertising and only 220k Facebook fans.
The content is perfect for sharing and the passion of the fans ignites a ton of outside interest over platforms like Facebook and Twitter.
The media operation will continue to expand, but that will take time and money and of course demand patience from the wrestling community.
MULTIMEDIA HALFTIME
Best match of the 2015 Greco-Roman World Cup
Ben Askren takes on the culture of the Iowa wrestling culture's love for "He's STALLING, ref."
Post by Ben Askren.
Link: What's bugging Andy, support Iowa wrestling
Link: Wrestler invents fire extinguisher that uses sound
Link: Utah gymnastics sets record attendance
Link: Save Bishop Eustace wrestling
Q: Which freshman has a better chance to finish this season as an undefeated NCAA champion, Isaiah Martinez or Bo Jordan?
-- Mike C.
Foley: Isaiah Martinez is just not being threatened and that makes me think that he's on the level of Cael Sanderson as a freshman. The tough part about being an undefeated four-time NCAA champion is winning every match, and that's especially true the first two years when hiccups are much more common.
Given his desire to score a lot of points and wrestle to the pin, I think that Martinez will be the favorite heading into Big Tens, and if he makes it through THAT weekend unscathed then he can likely make it through the NCAA tournament without a blemish.
Either way, it's exciting and special to have two undefeated freshmen near the top of the college rankings and heading into the NCAA tournament capable of joining recent greats in making history.
Rant of the Week
By Patrick S.
What happened to respect in wrestling? Where did silent intensity go? Why does it seem like there are multiple incidents of disrespectful behavior in every dual that I watch? I'm so sick of people writing off childish post-whistle behavior by saying something to the effect of: "Well if you don't want any intensity go watch figure skating!"
The extracurricular activity and constant showboating are simply embarrassing. You're representing your school, coaching staff, and teammates poorly. If you're not mature enough to compete without standing over your opponent and flexing after every win or without taunting the opposing crowd after a hard fought victory, then good luck getting along in life after sports.
In my opinion, these kinds of shenanigans add nothing to the sport. They don't add entertainment value. I don't watch wrestling for the soap opera angle of who's mad at who or to see student-athletes play dirty. I want to see guys compete in the actual sport that they're supposed to be participating in and I want to see them do so in an intense and mutually respectful manner.
Do you know what does add entertainment value? Takedowns. Throws. Pinning combinations. Exciting wrestling offers entertainment value. Do you want to put on a show for the crowd? Go after your opponent for seven minutes and quit it with the cheap "boxing weigh-in stare down" style dramatics. It's tired. It's played out. You're not a badass because you shushed a crowd or you cheap-shotted an opponent. You're a child. Your effort inside the circle should speak for itself every time. If you have to punctuate it with antics, you're doing something wrong.
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