Tuesday, January 01, 2013
- by B.B. Branton
A great way for wrestling fans to welcome in the New Year is to attend the 10th annual Southern Scuffle today and Wednesday at the UTC McKenzie Arena.
#1 – Strong Team Race … the nation’s top three school’s – Penn State, Oklahoma State and Minnesota – should lead the battle for the team title.
Penn State edged Minnesota for the Scuffle title last January and is the two-time defending NCAA champ.
Oklahoma State, the greatest college wrestling program ever, has won 34 NCAA titles
#2 – Support UTC Wrestling – a great national stage on which UTC wrestlers have a chance to shine … coach Heath Eslinger was pro-active in bringing the Scuffle to Chattanooga and a great opportunity for fans nationwide to visit Chattanooga
#3 – Kyle Dake (Cornell, 165) – what an opportunity this side of attending the NCAA tourney to see one of the best college wrestlers ever ... 3x NCAA champ with 51-match win steak prior to today
#4 – 7 NCAA Champions and 24 All-Americans
#5 – Great Ticket Prices - General Admission - $15 adult ...$5 student each day
#6 – watch Kyle Dake (Cornell, 165) wrestle … Dake should face either No.2 seed David Taylor (2012 NCAA champ) or No.3 seed Tyler Caldwell in Wednesday night’s final ... Dake has beaten both this season.
#7 – Four UTC Coaches in Attendance … current head coach Heath Eslinger … his predecessor, Chris Bono is in town coaching South Dakota State … his predecessor, Mark Leen, will be in the stands cheering on Virginia wresters as his son, Jordan Leen, is a UVa assistant coach … former Mocs coach Jim Morgan will also be on hand.
#8 – Olympic Gold Medalists in the Coaches chairs … head coaches Cael Sanderson (Penn State) and John Smith (Oklahoma State) are former Olympic gold medalists
#9 -Chattanooga as a Destination City … with a vibrant downtown and riverfront - a good variety of restaurants and hotels and The Aquarium – plus Northgate and Hamilton Malls, and several tourist attractions makes Chattanooga an excellent destination city with a rich high school, college and international wrestling heritage.
#10 – Watch Kyle Dake (Cornell, 165) wrestle five times without buying a ticket to the NCAAs
contact B.B. Branton at William.branton@comcast.net