Final set of rankings heading into state.  As expected there were a number of surprises over region weekend, upsets and weight changes and kids out, but there seemed to be a lot more movement that usual.  A few random thoughts to go along with this update before the state report comes out on Wednesday.

- 106 could be a very interesting weight with any of the top 5 winning it

- 113 losing Birk has really opened the weight up

- 120 great match between Evans and Blevins at region, will we get a rematch on Friday night or someone spoil that party

- 138 looks like a flashback to 2022 with a Whorton-Meyer rematch; hope we see a little more action this time around

- 150 still have Brown at #1 (going 2-1 against Wojcicki), but this might be the tightest group at the top of any weight

- 157 Harris is the clear favorite, but this group is fairly tight at the top as well

- 190 Kiser-Virzi has to be one of the best rivalries in Ky wrestling in a while

- 285 please no stall controversy this year

- Team dynamics changed a lot of the last week.  A little more separation between Union and PT, then PT and Ryle.  While the pack is not quite as tight, 3-7 could fairly easily change order with a couple wins here and there.

Rankings_23_24_0212.pdf

thank you ranger!

Missed thoughts on 144

20 minutes ago, 1982Wrestler said:

Missed thoughts on 144

Just didn't have any immediate thoughts

@ 126, #6 vs #7 in the first round to likely wrestle #10 2nd round, to then wrestle either #25 or #28 (most likely) in the quarters.  One would think that there's a better way to seed this thing. Hate to see top 8 wrestlers get knocked out due to draws that require them wrestling each other and #20 (by example) get on the podium by not wrestling anyone inside the top 10.  It's a lot easier to say "let them settle it on the mat" when it is somewhat seeded than when you have random draws like we do. #1 vs #3 at 120 in the quarters and #1 vs #2 at 175 in the semis is another head scratcher.  KHSAA out here teaching "life isn't fair" lessons to everyone haha 

It’s go time now!! 

2 hours ago, GentleBeard said:

@ 126, #6 vs #7 in the first round to likely wrestle #10 2nd round, to then wrestle either #25 or #28 (most likely) in the quarters.  One would think that there's a better way to seed this thing. Hate to see top 8 wrestlers get knocked out due to draws that require them wrestling each other and #20 (by example) get on the podium by not wrestling anyone inside the top 10.  It's a lot easier to say "let them settle it on the mat" when it is somewhat seeded than when you have random draws like we do. #1 vs #3 at 120 in the quarters and #1 vs #2 at 175 in the semis is another head scratcher.  KHSAA out here teaching "life isn't fair" lessons to everyone haha 

Rankings are somewhat subjective, unless we have head to heads.  To say # so and so has so and so doesn’t hold much weight.  They have to go compete, my boys have been on both sides of the random draw so I get it.  It’s go time, as parents it only last for a short period of time enjoy it.  

Just now, Chris Duke said:

Rankings are somewhat subjective, unless we have head to heads.  To say # so and so has so and so doesn’t hold much weight.  They have to go compete, my boys have been on both sides of the random draw so I get it.  It’s go time, as parents it only last for a short period of time enjoy it.  

i understand the subjectivity of rankings, but to say there's not a gap between a top 5 kid and a #25 kid is misleading (not ascribing that to your statement). However, what's not subjective is a defending champ vs a runner up meeting in the quarters. It never fails, there are always going to be upsets at the state tournament, and I get that.  I also happen to believe the system is broken and requires a fix that is fairly simple. We can either bring back semi-state or use track to seed the tournament like we do with most every other tournament throughout the year.  Middle school seeds all the region champs with coaches input along with using track criteria.  At minimum, this is a straightforward process that can be done in 1.5 hours.  I'm just offering a solution to the wind at this point, I know haha

2 hours ago, GentleBeard said:

@ 126, #6 vs #7 in the first round to likely wrestle #10 2nd round, to then wrestle either #25 or #28 (most likely) in the quarters.  One would think that there's a better way to seed this thing. Hate to see top 8 wrestlers get knocked out due to draws that require them wrestling each other and #20 (by example) get on the podium by not wrestling anyone inside the top 10.  It's a lot easier to say "let them settle it on the mat" when it is somewhat seeded than when you have random draws like we do. #1 vs #3 at 120 in the quarters and #1 vs #2 at 175 in the semis is another head scratcher.  KHSAA out here teaching "life isn't fair" lessons to everyone haha 

I get that stuff like this happens. With that being said if they seeded the KY state tournament you would literally have to watch 2 straight rounds of first and second period falls and techs. I would rather watch 2 good (or even really bad for that matter) guys battle back and forth over good guys pinning bad guys. At that point go to 16 man brackets. Pretty sure Ranger did the stats one year on guys outside of the top 16 placing and it's EXTREMELY low. This is clearly coming from a spectator and not a coach with a draw like this LOL. 

 

As have mentioned the before.  Did you see how track seeded the tournament during COVID.  NOT GOOD.  How do you compare wrestlers, when many wrestle out of state, or a different wt. class etc ect. Going by last years results makes very little sense to me. 

Seeding the regional champs I can agree with.  But will that really change much.  Most of the problems happen with the 2nd and 3rd place finishers. Plus moving a kid up one spot or down one spot really doesn't matter much.  (I was one of those who probably would have moved up one if on the other side back in the stone age). I also don't want to see regional teams wrestling in the championship bracket before the semi-finals. Which may happen if you seed everyone regardless the placement at region. 

On this one point KHSAA is NOT making a bad decision. 

25 minutes ago, grappler-of-old said:

As have mentioned the before.  Did you see how track seeded the tournament during COVID.  NOT GOOD.  How do you compare wrestlers, when many wrestle out of state, or a different wt. class etc ect. Going by last years results makes very little sense to me. 

Seeding the regional champs I can agree with.  But will that really change much.  Most of the problems happen with the 2nd and 3rd place finishers. Plus moving a kid up one spot or down one spot really doesn't matter much.  (I was one of those who probably would have moved up one if on the other side back in the stone age). I also don't want to see regional teams wrestling in the championship bracket before the semi-finals. Which may happen if you seed everyone regardless the placement at region. 

On this one point KHSAA is NOT making a bad decision. 

Seeding the ones would fix it. If the second best wrestler in the state is in the same region as the one they go opposite side of the bracket. Then they can prove they’re the second best and we get the best finals. I get boring 1st and 2nd rounds. We are going to have some pins and techs in the finals instead. Not many but a couple brackets have cake walls to the finals with the top 3-4 guys being in the other side. 

1 hour ago, Elite Training Center KY said:

I get that stuff like this happens. With that being said if they seeded the KY state tournament you would literally have to watch 2 straight rounds of first and second period falls and techs. I would rather watch 2 good (or even really bad for that matter) guys battle back and forth over good guys pinning bad guys. At that point go to 16 man brackets. Pretty sure Ranger did the stats one year on guys outside of the top 16 placing and it's EXTREMELY low. This is clearly coming from a spectator and not a coach with a draw like this LOL. 

 

 

To mitigate the issue, we could go back to semi state, remove the fluff, and have a 16 man bracket. When I wrestled in a different state, only 8 made the state bracket and placed top 4. I was surprised when I moved out here and found out Kentucky PLACES top 8. 16 man brackets can have competitive matches throughout. I’m not sure KHSAA seeds any sport, but it would definitely be beneficial in our sport. I’m not convinced anything will change, but the fixes/adjustments are not rocket science. This discussion suggests to me that we (people involved/familiar with the sport) can hash out ideas to create a better product for everyone.

     I too was against the 32 man bracket.  KY had a 16 man bracket until 2002. The 32 man bracket has done wonders for KY wrestling.  At that point there were about 80 schools that had wrestling (Maybe less).  Since then we now have 133 schools with wrestling.  

     We have traded off good wrestling throughout the state tournament for having more participants in the state.  Kids who normally would not qualify for the state tournament now go and bring back that experience to their school.  It helps keep kids out and getting more kids involved in wrestling.  I was not a supporter of the 32 man tournament but the proof is in the pudding. From the 80's when I wrestled to the 2000 we only increased the number of teams by about 15.  From 2000 to 2024 we have increased the number of teams by about 50.

    Lets look at the number of teams competing in the state tournaments.  1964 (1st year of the state tournament) 5 teams competed. 1974:  47 teams 1984 50 teams. 1994 48 teams. 2004 66 teams.  2014 88 Teams.  2024 109 Teams. 

Now I know these are just the teams who competed in the state tournament but it should correlate with the number of teams in the state. 

6 hours ago, Elite Training Center KY said:

This is clearly coming from a spectator and not a coach with a draw like this LOL.

Ahhh yes. Very well known to have never accomplished anything in Kentucky wrestling, Nathan Boston.

/s

9 hours ago, GentleBeard said:

@ 126, #6 vs #7 in the first round to likely wrestle #10 2nd round, to then wrestle either #25 or #28 (most likely) in the quarters.  One would think that there's a better way to seed this thing. Hate to see top 8 wrestlers get knocked out due to draws that require them wrestling each other and #20 (by example) get on the podium by not wrestling anyone inside the top 10.  It's a lot easier to say "let them settle it on the mat" when it is somewhat seeded than when you have random draws like we do. #1 vs #3 at 120 in the quarters and #1 vs #2 at 175 in the semis is another head scratcher.  KHSAA out here teaching "life isn't fair" lessons to everyone haha 

138 #3 vs #8 First round as well. 4 of the top 8 wrestlers being in region 1 makes for a tough draw for Hunter Luttrell.

2 hours ago, 385 said:

138 #3 vs #8 First round as well. 4 of the top 8 wrestlers being in region 1 makes for a tough draw for Hunter Luttrell.

I think Luttrell wants to win a title. If he's worrying about #8 guys he's already lost IMO. Not saying to look past them but he's a top 3 guy for a reason. 138 isn't the weight I see KY having 8 guys as title contenders. I think 150 is the deepest as far as people actually capable of winning a title and I would say cut off there is with Lehman at 6. 

Ranger report today??

2 minutes ago, pin4thewin said:

Ranger report today??

yep.  finishing touches as I close out some work stuff, run practice, go to college senior night, and get ready for the weekend.

2 hours ago, Ranger123 said:

yep.  finishing touches as I close out some work stuff, run practice, go to college senior night, and get ready for the weekend.

Sounds good!

So close but have to run to practice and senior night back to back.  Look for it about 8:00 if all goes well.

On 2/13/2024 at 11:39 PM, Elite Training Center KY said:

I think Luttrell wants to win a title. If he's worrying about #8 guys he's already lost IMO. Not saying to look past them but he's a top 3 guy for a reason. 138 isn't the weight I see KY having 8 guys as title contenders. I think 150 is the deepest as far as people actually capable of winning a title and I would say cut off there is with Lehman at 6. 

Agreed on all counts. I dont believe he is worrying about #8 guy as he believes he will win it all, im just commenting from an outsiders perspective. Gonna have to beat em all anyways though! I think he can do it.

On 2/12/2024 at 10:36 PM, Ranger123 said:

 

- 120 great match between Evans and Blevins at region, will we get a rematch on Friday night or someone spoil that party

Didn’t expect to see these returning champs battle it out in the blood round, though. From state champ to not placing is tough.

9 hours ago, GentleBeard said:

Didn’t expect to see these returning champs battle it out in the blood round, though. From state champ to not placing is tough.

Crazy to see. I would not be shocked to see Blevins pull this out. For someone like Evans who a lot of people saw as a lock (myself included) it will be interesting to see how he shows up today. He may come in today and tech his way to third. Third is sometimes harder to get than first in my opinion.

Will there be any end of season rankings

On 2/18/2024 at 2:24 PM, TinkXXXX said:

Will there be any end of season rankings

Yes he said he will put one more ranking out. Often does it on Wednesdays I have noticed

On 2/18/2024 at 4:31 PM, Alien01 said:

Yes he said he will put one more ranking out. Often does it on Wednesdays I have noticed

Whenever he does it we all should appreciate the work it takes to do any of this!

No rush but do you know when the new rankings will be out?

1 hour ago, TinkXXXX said:

No rush but do you know when the new rankings will be out?

 

Well, the final rankings were really set on Friday in Lexington.  But I will post a state follow up in the next couple weeks.  I would like to take time and really dig into it and round up all my stats from the old 32 man brackets.  As far as rankings without seniors, it will likely be a couple months before move on to next season.

One stat that sticks out.  This is the fist time since 1972 that Northern Kentucky has NOT had a state champion. 

10 hours ago, grappler-of-old said:

One stat that sticks out.  This is the fist time since 1972 that Northern Kentucky has NOT had a state champion. 

 

 

Wow.

20 hours ago, Ranger123 said:

Well, the final rankings were really set on Friday in Lexington.  But I will post a state follow up in the next couple weeks.  I would like to take time and really dig into it and round up all my stats from the old 32 man brackets.  As far as rankings without seniors, it will likely be a couple months before move on to next season.

Thanks for all the hard work my man

On 2/22/2024 at 10:22 PM, grappler-of-old said:

One stat that sticks out.  This is the fist time since 1972 that Northern Kentucky has NOT had a state champion. 

 

 

WOW!  I knew it had been a long streak, but would not have guessed over 50 years.  Now that I am turning 50 I know that is a long, long time.

Mainly Ryle that has produced them? Maybe Holmes as well?

On 3/16/2024 at 1:48 PM, Alien01 said:

Mainly Ryle that has produced them? Maybe Holmes as well?

Ryle has their fair share, but Walton, Campbell, and SK have a bunch as well.  Check out Alex Green's youtube channel to get a first hand view and meet many of them.

just to set the record straight. NK state champions.

Campbell 30-----Simon Kenton 27-----Ryle 23------Conner 20--------Bonne county 11-------Newport Catholic 11--------Scott 10--------Walton Verona 9---------Dixie 2-------Holmes 2----

7 other schools with 0 (Brossart--Cooper--Cov Cath--Highlands--Holy Cross (Cov)--Lloyd--Newport) I believe these are all the school that have ever had wrestling in NKY. 

On 4/1/2024 at 12:53 PM, Ranger123 said:

Ryle has their fair share, but Walton, Campbell, and SK have a bunch as well.  Check out Alex Green's youtube channel to get a first hand view and meet many of them.

Ok thank you!

On 4/1/2024 at 2:33 PM, grappler-of-old said:

just to set the record straight. NK state champions.

Campbell 30-----Simon Kenton 27-----Ryle 23------Conner 20--------Bonne county 11-------Newport Catholic 11--------Scott 10--------Walton Verona 9---------Dixie 2-------Holmes 2----

 7 other schools with 0 (Brossart--Cooper--Cov Cath--Highlands--Holy Cross (Cov)--Lloyd--Newport) I believe these are all the school that have ever had wrestling in NKY. 

what 10 has scoot produced other than Brendan pye?

Tim Vaughn 138 (1987)

Tony Stewart 152 (1996)

Mike Fields 135 (1997)

Jarrod Combs 171 (1997)

Dylan Bell 130 (1998)

Clint Bell 145 (1998)

Dylan Bell 130 (1999)

Jason Daviaux 112 (2000)

Jason Daviaux 125 (2001)

Benden Pye 113 (2019)

Freestyle State was fun this year, lots of ranked kids showed up with multiple Folkstyle State Champs in the mix!

21 hours ago, Alien01 said:

Freestyle State was fun this year, lots of ranked kids showed up with multiple Folkstyle State Champs in the mix!

120 was exciting, Wells, De Los Santos, Valera, and Mayberry was a tough bracket.  

23 hours ago, CUTiger184 said:

120 was exciting, Wells, De Los Santos, Valera, and Mayberry was a tough bracket.  

165 as well with Wojicki,Harris,Ray,Neal,Leader,McKune

On 4/22/2024 at 10:28 AM, CUTiger184 said:

120 was exciting, Wells, De Los Santos, Valera, and Mayberry was a tough bracket.  

where can I see the results of freestyle state?

On 4/29/2024 at 4:27 PM, kadenruss said:

where can I see the results of freestyle state?

Trackwrestling

On 5/1/2024 at 1:49 PM, Alien01 said:

Trackwrestling

For most tournaments thats your best bet

When are preseason rankings coming out?

Well its still summer so.....