With COVID-19 there are no perfect scenarios, only slightly less bad options. While bringing football players back signals the possibility of a season it would likely be truncated, definitely without fans, and likely with a pushed off start date. Still, any sign that the revenue from televised football could enter athletic departments should be celebrated. Without that money there is high likelihood that wrestling programs around the country could be eliminated.
The cuts have already started. According to Jason Bryant, 110 college sports teams have been eliminated (60 from schools that have completely closed) since the outbreak of COVID-19, a sobering reminder that even with some restaurants opening up there is a significant distinction between a taste of normalcy in daily life and financial stability within higher education.
The next several weeks will be instructive as to how the virus operates in the warmer months and how well social distancing guidelines are followed. Will the face masks, distance, and handwashing have a positive effect? Yes. Will it be enough to allay the fears of those in the larger school systems as to allow the return of students and athletes? That's still to be determined.
For those who can afford the expense, now is a great time to send funds to your respective programs. If you can collect monies from a group of donors, all the better. Make it known you support the program in both the size of the gift and in the number of donors. Being active is a positive sign that gets transmitted up the ranks and helps protect programs if and when cuts are to be made.
To your questions …
Matt McDonough (left) coaching Wisconsin against Army West Point (Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com)Q: There was a job posting for a Wisconsin assistant coaching position. Did Matt McDonough leave? Any details? Are they making room for Seth Gross to join the staff?
-- Mike C.
Foley: Yes, Seth Gross is staying in Wisconsin, but no information if he is getting the job. However, Jon Reader (associate head coach) and Ben Askren (RTC coach) just got extensions so it would seem somewhat clear that McDonough is leaving and that the short application window means they are keeping Gross.
Q: Where do you see NCAA and international wrestling in four years?
-- Bobby P.
Foley: That's a tough question because with every setback due to COVID-19 I remember all the progress we'd been making on both fronts. On one hand, wrestling has never been watched by a larger, more enthusiastic audience at home and abroad. The international federation has something close to a dozen distribution deals with TV outlets and OTT providers on every continent. Just this week Eurosport replayed the 2019 World championships from Nur-Sultan. There is also increased participation as seen through the number of licenses at USA Wrestling and United World Wrestling, as well as an expansion of Division II programs and the addition of Division I women's wrestling seemingly imminent. There are women's programs being added in state after state and the possibility of being in all fifty by 2026. The international governing body is floating women's beach wrestling as a possible addition to the 2024 Games in Paris.
On the other hand there is COVID-19 and what might be an extended economic recession at home and abroad that will absolutely affect all of the above mentioned gains.
Where do we fall in four years? I remain really hopeful. The entire focus of human intelligence and ingenuity is laser-focused on finding a cure, or vaccine, for COVID-19 and there is no way it will elude us much longer. There will be short term economic pain and the heartbreak of losing those we love, but in four years I think we will be in a place that has tremendous focus on public health and a vibrant worldwide wrestling community to witness and enjoy.
MULTIMEDIA HALFTIME
Henry Cejudo on UWW Live
Top wrestlers of the 2000s
Q: Henry Cejudo said he wants to be in the UWW Hall of Fame. Do you think there is any chance of that happening?
-- Mike C.
Foley: Maybe. Really it depends on who is running the committee and if Cejudo dedicates more time and energy to the sport of wrestling. He's been an incredible advocate for the sport while fighting in the UFC and will be successful at whatever he chooses, but the UWW Hall of Fame typically inducts those with multiple Olympic and world medals. Could change, but that's the current standard. One more caveat, there is the option of a different category for those who have made a large impact through MMA and/or celebrity.
Q: Kaori Icho and Aleksandr Karelin both had 13-year unbeaten streaks. Do you think we will ever see an international winning streak like those again in our lifetime?
-- Mike C.
Foley: One of the reasons wrestlers were able to stay undefeated so long is that the international calendar was pretty sparsely populated with events. Typically, competitors in the 80's and 90's would show up to the continental and a world championships and sometimes they'd skip entire years. Really that was the trend until the last few years where there was more incentive to compete on a semi-regular basis with Ranking Series events and more clear outcomes for competitions.
If someone competes enough, and with the reduced number of weight categories, it's very difficult to think anyone could go more than 4-5 years undefeated. The quality of the athletes, the spread of Russian wrestlers worldwide, the increase in women's wrestling participation, and the advent of technical coaching on the internet means there is much more parity at the top ranks of the sport.
So, summarily, not zero, but very close to zero.
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