Simply put…
�" NCAA Wrestling (@ncaawrestling) February 26, 2020
This is going to be AMAZING!#NCAAWrestling | 🎟ï¸: https://t.co/jSPhk3NRM2 pic.twitter.com/FiRMzUJhuM
The intention of the graphic was to excite fans about the possibility of 40K-plus wrestling fans packed into a football stadium to enjoy their favorite sport. However, due to Oregon Trail-worthy graphics the net effect for many fans (including me) was to take the mockup literally. Which in our defense you'd expect when the official Twitter account for the host organization released the information less than a month before the start of the action.
While the quality was akin to the stick figure drawings, it was all the inconvenient items left out that irked the masses. Prime among the exclusions were the head table, scorer's tables, score clocks, and coaches' chairs. There was also a noticeable lack of TV cameras, photographers, and the staff necessary to escort wrestlers to and from waiting areas.
Another concern was the warmup area for the wrestlers. While the mockup still shows eight mats, they are separated by wide gaps of floor space -- a tough pill for anyone who has ever tried to warm up on the mats in previous years and found them already a little tight.
But in the end it was the message the image was trying to send about epic crowds and increased exposure that lends itself to constructive critique.
The idea of more seats equating to anything more than increased revenue is likely misplaced. There is probably a small bump in secondary news stories that cover the number of people attending, but it'll be marginal especially when compared to the impact of improved fan experience in the arena. Revisiting the setup for the field of play, AV interactions with the audience, and ensuring a full social media experience is available would likely promote the sport (and the NCAA) in a more productive way.
Let's also not forget that adding a dual meet championship, moving to a single semester, and avoiding the start of the basketball season would all be better revenue generators for the NCAA and create more opportunities for fans to watch healthy wrestlers compete.
Baby steps? Maybe. I can see this being the first big initiative of many more, but to get to a new place college wrestling needs its stakeholders to agree on new initiatives. That, unfortunately, is a gap even wider than the floor space between the mats in Minneapolis.
To your questions …
Wrestlers from Team Taylor at the inaugral AWL event (Photo/Mark Lundy, Lutte-Lens.com)Q: It seemed like AWL had some potential as a professional wrestling league, but seems to have folded. Why has it been so difficult to create a sustainable wrestling league in the United States? Where have the organizations gone wrong or made the biggest missteps?
-- Mike C.
Foley: In journalism we call this an evergreen topic -- one that will always be relevant to readers. Seven years after the launch of several leagues and we are no closer to implementing a sustainable wrestling league here in the states.
Each has failed for their own reasons, but one major reason is there hasn't been proper alignment of incentives between the athletes, networks (streaming and linear), and sponsors. The stakes need to be high enough to interest the athletes to not only participate but to train for and promote the event. In the past the athletes have been focused on maximizing their personal return (fair) but they haven't always delivered proper promotion. Likewise sponsors are adding money, but not activating on those dollars which means they see absolutely zero positive feedback.
Our Olympic athletes aren't always able to hop off the four-year cycle and dedicate time. So what's the best solution? It could be a Joes vs. Sports Stars method where local income producing competitions are held between jiu jitsu fighters, strongmen, CrossFit guys, and rugby players. Allow the individuals to dress up how they like and treat it as a festival setting. Use a TBD takedown-focused style and allow for lots of creativity and promotion. Events in major cities will draw sponsors and the best of the best -- usually former wrestlers -- graduate to a national stage where they take on current champions of this TBD style and some of America's biggest mat stars.
This system allows for maximum return on sponsorship dollars, IG-worthy events, and a sustainable mode for supporting our sport's biggest stars while also distributing the sport to a larger audience.
If interested in making this happen, please send me an email!
Greg Kerkvliet wrestling Jordan Wood at the U23 Nationals (Photo/Sam Janicki, SJanickiPhoto.com)Q: It sounds like there is a possibility Greg Kerkvliet enters the Penn State lineup at heavyweight for the postseason. Do you see him as a game changer, someone who could help put the Nittany Lions in the thick of the team race?
-- Mike C.
Foley: I don't. I'm all for dramatic WWE surprise walkouts but this would be unprecedented in our sport's history to transfer, sit, and suddenly be eligible come plat season. How is this OK? I could never have transferred from U.Va. to UNC and expected to wrestle in the same season.
Kerkvliet is unquestionably very talented but that talent hasn't been on the collegiate mats. To debut at the Big Tens is like never having ice skated and then expecting to impress Michelle Kwan on a first date. That's not to say Kerkvliet couldn't win a match or two more than Nevills at the NCAAs, but does that guarantee Penn State will overcome Iowa? Is risking his redshirt worth the squeeze?
Not my call, but I think this isn't a well thought out plan, and it's bound to end with some bruised egos.
Q: What did you make of Iowa State not sending most of their starters to a dual meet against Missouri last Saturday, instead sending key starters to their home open? It seems as though there was gaming going on, getting some starters questionable wins to increase their chances to qualify for the NCAAs.
-- Mike C.
Foley: We all know this was a blatant disregard for how the wrestling world works, but look around you. Look at the world -- nothing matters in a battle of morality. The only thing is winning or the perception that you did everything you could to WIN. We don't have right and wrong. We have winning and losing. Exploitation of anything so long as it helps get another tick in the W column.
I'm saddened and disappointed that the Iowa State administration allowed this to happen, and I think that the NCAA should take aggressive measures to ensure than it doesn't happen again and that the results of the tournament are invalidated.
Q: Is Zahid Valencia out of the Olympic Team Trials in April?
-- Josh K.
Foley: Yes. Given the timing and initial reports, his positive test would have been international, which would preclude his participation. However, there is an appeal process and he's very able to submit to that process and possibly be vindicated.
The entire episode is regrettable. I hope that there is something pending that could vindicate him or at least dampen the disappointment of his teammates and fan base.
Q: There have been a lot of media reports about how the coronavirus could cancel the Olympic Games. Do you see this as a real possibility?
-- Mike C.
Foley: As of now there is no real indication the Olympic Games will be moved or canceled. Some sporting events, especially those in Asia, are being canceled or reassigned to other nations. The virus is spreading rapidly, but the vitality and severity have yet to be determined. Death rates range from two percent to four percent of infections. In the scope of sports, it's an unrealistic risk to ask for those infections to spread for the benefit of game playing.
But if we're honest with ourselves we also have to recognize that that the virus' two-week incubation makes it perfect for a drip-drip of developing news that creates fear. Japanese school closings, unknown transmission sources in the USA, and the quarantine of northern Italy all drive the fear that makes it difficult for political leaders to sanction activity.
I think the decision point will be June 1. That's 90 days from now, which would imply a further knowledge of how the disease is behaving and a more accurate indication of its deadliness. If things are still gloomy you could expect that some news might be expected.
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