THE AAAAA WRESTLING REPORT:  2008 STATE TOURNAMENT EDITION 

Edited by:  Bob Berg

Epstein Becker & Green, P.C.

945 East Paces Ferry Road, Suite 2700

Atlanta, Ga.  30326

(phone)  404/923-9050

(fax)  404/923-9950

(e-mail)  rberg@ebglaw.com

 

 

            Welcome, and thank you for reading this 2008 State Tournament Edition of The AAAAA Wrestling Report.  We hope you enjoy it. 

 

            A Few Words about the  Format:    Once again, we have opted to employ the “modified Brakeman format” this year.  Thus, rather than a blow-by-blow assessment of the State Tournament, following the Region tourneys and the setting of the AAAAA State brackets, we offer up a pre-Region analysis, along with our best estimation of what is likely to happen in a few short weeks, when teams from all over the State converge on the Arena at Gwinnett Center (from now on, the “Gwinnett Center”) for one hell of a weekend of wrestling where, once again, all five classification championships will be wrestled under one roof.  So, how does the “modified Brakeman format” work?

 

            For each weight class, we project the most likely champion; we then give you our best guess at a “top 20” ranking, based on the information available to us as of February 7, 2008, when I sent out the bat signal and convened a conference call of some of the best and brightest minds available to talk AAAAA wrestling (OK, so it was just me and my five wayward partners in crime; “best and brightest” sounds much more Kennedy/Camelotesque!).  You will then see a short “view from 50,000 feet,” where we identify the most probable major combatants for the gold medal, followed by a more detailed look at each of the eight AAAAA Regions.  All told, you should get a pretty thorough blast of information and data, to use in watching and enjoying this year’s AAAAA State Tournament (assuming our assessment is not rendered totally meaningless by the eleventh hour weight class manipulations we are likely to see, resulting from the optimal performance calculating/alpha master reporting/under 7% body fat assessing/hydration testing/1.5% per week weight dropping can of worms known as the new GHSA “weight management program”).

 

            One word about the “rankings”, as they are oftentimes misunderstood.  If it turns out that our #17 wrestler beat our #8 wrestler during the year, there may be several explanations as to why we have the winner at #17 and the loser at #8:

 

            a)         We may not have that particular result in our data base.  Our bad, but even in this era of incredible technology and information flow, we just don’t have all the results, so we operate with something less than full information.  As Hyman Roth said in Godfather II, “this is the business we’ve chosen.”

 

            b)         We may have known the result, but discounted it (a very important technique in the prognosticator’s bag of tricks - - if a result appears to be aberrant or we don’t like it, we just ignore it!) for any number of reasons, including injuries, weight issues, conditioning issues (e.g., for those wrestlers coming out after football season), SAT forfeits, etc. 

 

            c)         We may have known the result, but trumped it based on each wrestler’s full body of work, rather than just that one result.  As we’ve all come to learn, the transitive property of inequalities (if A > B, and if B > C, then A > C) may work in algebra, but “if A beats B, and B beats C, then C will beat A” is a formula for disaster in the wrestling prognostication business. 

 

            d)         Similarly, we may know the result but, especially if it was prior to the first of the year, we may believe that the loser of that particular bout has improved substantially and would win the rematch.

 

            e)         Or, finally (and, in all probability, most likely), we may just have gotten it wrong.  To paraphrase Forest Gump, “stuff happens.”  That’s ok, we will live with our mistakes, hope they are infrequent and, most importantly, continue to understand that, ultimately, the outcomes of wrestling contests are determined on the mats, not on the pages of this Report.

 

            And that’s about it, in terms of the table-setting.  So, in the immortal words of ring announcer Michael Buffer, “LET’S GET READY TO RUMBLE.”

 

            The traditional Bob Berg disclaimer:  Please remember, we are not experts, and this is not the gospel.  We have tried to use the data available to us, along with observations from some very knowledgeable people, to assist us in preparing this Report.  In the end, we stand by our predictions and we will be held accountable for them.  Nonetheless, the primary purpose of this Report is not to engage in speculation.  It is to serve as a resource for wrestling fans throughout the State:  to help identify the many superb wrestlers who compete in Class AAAAA; to lend some perspective to the tournament; to help identify those matches which may dictate the outcome of the tournament or the outcome of an individual weight class.  So, think of this Report not as a set of predictions, but as a “commemorative program” for you to use in watching the tournament, either live at what is sure to be a rockin’ Gwinnett Center or through the posted results on the internet.

 

            A final acknowledgement of special thanks:  I have received an incredible amount of help in this project from some very knowledgeable, very special people, including coaches, the wrestlers themselves or their families, as well as many former wrestlers, plus fans of particular teams or of wrestling in general.  They have e-mailed me results (or posted them on the vent); they have e-mailed me observations; they have corrected my mistakes and supplied me with accurate information; they have been invaluable to me in the preparation of this Report.  I know who you are, and I know what you have done, and I couldn’t have done it without you.  More importantly, you have given me an ever-increasing number of teams to root for, and an even bigger number of individual wrestlers to follow and secretly wish for success.  If only there were enough team trophies and individual gold medals to go around, because I would want all of your teams and all of your wrestlers to win them.  And, of course, my annual note of gratitude to Brian Brakeman, who for the past 37 years has written the Ohio High School Wrestling Forecast, the finest work of its kind in the country, and who even called earlier in the week to share his observations and analysis on the Georgia wrestlers participating in the Ironman, Brecksville and GIT (Wadsworth) tournaments.  He is our idol and his work sets the bar for our efforts here. 

 

            Two other notes of particular gratitude.  First, to my now five partners in crime, who share in this endeavor on a daily basis throughout the year, in-season and out, and who help me see things more clearly, both as to wrestling and as to life its own self:  JimmyO, .theWB, X-Man, Dr. Truth and ScottO.  Thanks for being there when the bat signal went out (except for JimmyO, who no doubt was plotting the next hydraulics problem to keep my flights from taking off on time).  I may be the pilot on this annual trek, but I am flying on instruments only; you are my eyes and my ears and my boots on the ground, and I value your astute observations and keen analysis more than you know.  And, finally, thanks to Jane, who helps me keep everything in perspective and makes every day seem like the State Championship finals.

 

            That about does it for the preliminaries.  The ring announcer has made his call and the fighters are at center ring, getting their final instructions.  What’s left to say, other than to quote famous referee Mills Lane, “LET’S GET IT ON.”

 

 

103 LBS.

 

                        Projected Champion:   Stephen Spradlin (10), Camden County (103 – 5^th/Region Champ)

 

 2.        Anderson (11), Hiram (103 – sq/Region Champ)

 3.        K. Salone (11), Centennial (103 transfer from Alpharetta)

 4.        Jones (10), Parkview (103 – sq)

 5.        Anthony (9), Pope (Kids State placer)

 6.        Herrera (10), Kennesaw Mountain (103)

 7.        A. Lazor (9), Union Grove (Kids State placer)

 8.        Doyague (9), Collins Hill [or Carson (12), 103 – sq]

 9.        G. Epps (10), North Gwinnett (103)

10.        Sanders (9), Kell (Kids State placer)

11.        Garcia (12), McEachern (King of the Hill “KOH” 103 – 4^th)  

12.        Christakis (9), Harrison (Kids State Champ)

13.        Martin (9), Roswell (Kids State Champ)

14.        Hammett (9), Lowndes

15.        Ard. Smith (9), Marietta

16.        B. Smith, Chattahoochee

17.        Hobby (9), Grayson

18.        Z. Shoemaker (9), Murray County

19.        Jones (11), Warner Robins (112 – sq)

20.        Zunun (9), Colquitt County

 

The View From 50,000 Feet:    

Some of you who, like me, are older than dirt, may remember quite well how each episode started:  “The Lone Ranger!  A fiery horse with the speed of light,  a cloud of dust and a hearty Hi-yo Silver, away.  The Lone Ranger!  With his faithful Indian companion, Tonto, the daring and resourceful masked rider of the plains led the fight for law and order in the early West.  Return with us now to those thrilling days of yesteryear.  The Lone Ranger rides again….”  You may well also remember how each episode ended.  As the Lone Ranger rode off into the sunset (with yet another “Hi-yo Silver, awayyyyyyy”), some amazed and baffled observer would mutter “Who was that masked man?”  Well, it’s much the same for Stephen Spradlin, the younger of the two excellent Spradlin brothers, who fights for recognition in South Georgia and, after the end of each tournament where he’s excelled, leaves baffled observers muttering “who was that kid?”  5^th last year at this weight, he has dominated the 103 landscape this year, from winning gold at the Battle of the Border (beating Salone 11-2 in the finals), to taking 1^st at 112 at the Coastal Georgia Classic.  He has pinned Anthony in the first period (after spending some rare quality time on his back) and took an impressive 3^rd at the extremely tough Zac Jarzynka in Florida.  Assuming the bracket gods are kind, his likely finals opponent is the returning 4AAAAA Region Champ, Anderson.  Last year, he, much like Lone Ranger Spradlin, was small for this weight (as evidenced by his Junior National Freestyle 6^th at 98 pounds over the summer).   Following some early troubles (3^rd at the Southern Slam, 4^th at Sequoyah at 112 and 3^rd at the Battle of the Border, losing 6-1 to Salone along the way), he has come on like gangbusters, collecting gold medals at the Dirty South (pinning Anthony in the finals) and Alexander before stumbling a bit with a 3^rd at the Crossbones.  (Interestingly, Spradlin and Anderson met in the State consolations last year, where Spradlin’s 7-5 win eliminated Anderson.)  If the bracket gods aren’t cooperative, or even if they are, other possible finalists facing off with Spradlin include Salone, Jones and Anthony, and you can read more about their credentials below.  However, when the cloud of dust clears on the 103 bracket and everyone readies to ride off into the Gwinnett County sunset, the hand being raised will be the Camden County Lone Ranger.  Right?  “Um, that right, Kemosabe!”

 

Region 1AAAAA.   The best of the lot appears to be the freshman Hammett, who has served up a string of nice placements (2^nd at the Rebel, 6^th at the Dirty South, 5^th at the Fayette Christmas, 3^rd at the Valdosta Wildcat and 2^nd at Tift County).  His failure to place at tough tracks like the Battle of the Border (where Anderson thumped him 10-2) and North Metro (where he did go up by 5 on Lazor before being teched) suggests he may not be quite ready for prime time yet, but that will only be a matter of time.  Zunun was 2^nd at the Hornet, and he should earn a trip to the Gwinnett Center, along with Jones, who dropped down to 103 after a two-and-out experience at 112 State last year.  McCall (Tift County), 6^th at the Rebel, and R. Jones (Valdosta), 4^th at the Coastal Georgia Classic, should also contend.

 

Region 2AAAAA.   Alex Lazor should dominate this Region, as there is no one else who can come close to his “bona fides”:  3^rd at the South Metro (where he pinned Rana), 5^th at the Stockbridge Tiger (where, tellingly, he lost to Herrera before pinning Rana again), 2^nd at the Valdosta Wildcat (where he beat Zunun) and 3^rd at North Metro.  Beyond that, perhaps most impressively, he took out Carson 3-2 in the State Duals quarterfinals match between Union Grove and Collins Hill.  He is definitely good enough to stand on the podium at the Gwinnett Center.  As for the podium here, his fellow medalists are somewhere out there, but i haven’t a clue who they might be. 

 

Region 3AAAAA.   Spradlin will rule the school at this weight, with Hymans of Groves (6^th at the Toomey) as the only other wrestler from this Region on our radar screen. 

 

Region 4AAAAA.   Anderson is the cream of the Region 4AAAAA crop, with the most likely opposition in the finals coming from the veteran Rana (pinned by Lazor at both the South Metro and the Stockbridge Tiger - - I’ll bet he’s glad to be in a different Region from Union Grove! ) or S. Nakano (Paulding County), recently 6^th at the Crossbone Classic.

 

Region 5AAAAA.   While the “southern” Regions lack any serious depth, the “northern” Regions make up for it in spades, starting with 5AAAAA.  Any of the top four in this Region could take the gold:  Herrera won the Raider Rumble, was 2^nd at the Fayette Christmas, Titan Cup and Cobb County, and 3^rd at the Stockbridge Tiger.  We rate him top dog as a result of his pin wins over Smith (2x) and Sanders, along with a close win over Christakis; however, he has lost twice to Anthony (6-3 and 8-4), so it is critical that he place high in the Region to avoid a nasty first or second round State matchup.  Garcia was 3^rd at McCallie and 3^rd at Cobb County, where he lost on the first night to Christakis by pin but came back to beat Christakis 6-3 in the consolation finals, a circumstance which suggests foes might want to get Garcia early, when weight is an issue, as he will be a large 103 at tourney’s end.  The aforementioned Christakis, who serves as our most logical baseline at this weight, was 5^th at McCallie, 2^nd at Whitewater and 4^th in Cobb County.  He has won two out of three from Garcia, lost close to Herrera (4-3), won close against Salone (5-4) and pounded Shoemaker (14-1).  Indeed, we may have him highly undervalued here (a theme which appears throughout this Report with regard to Hoya wrestlers, for reasons which baffle me).  Finally, the youngest of the Marietta Smith brothers has managed to nab medals at the Knoxville Catholic (4^th), Sequoyah (6^th) and Rockmart (4^th), and if he is reasonably healthy (seemingly always an issue for the Smith boys), he should nab the last podium spot.  Others to watch would include Z. Shoemaker (4^th at the Dalton Carpet and Murray County, 3^rd at Soddy Daisy), Levya of Etowah (consolation finalist at the Last Man Standing) and Helterbrand of North Cobb (3^rd at the Adairsville Tiger and Coal Mountain, but pin losses to Smith, Garcia and Herrera). 

 

Region 6AAAAA.   While Region 5AAAAA is deep, this Region is cavernous!  K. Salone has spent much of the year at 112, where he did reasonably well (e.g., 3^rd at the Crossbone), but perhaps his most telling result was his 2^nd at the Battle of the Border, where he lost in the finals to Spradlin 11-2 but took a convincing 6-1 victory over Anderson.  He also has a 4-2 overtime win over Anthony (and, of course, that puzzling 5-4 loss to Christakis) and has definite finalist potential, where he would likely top 115 pounds by the pre-whistle hand shake.  Anthony, younger brother of Pope’s first State Champ, Caleb, has steamrolled through his frosh season, winning at Sequoyah, Bradley Central and Cobb County.  He has beaten Herrera twice, shut out Christakis and teched Garcia, while losing in overtime to Salone and getting pinned by Anderson in the Dirty South finals.  Those two are the likely finalists, but both Sanders (3^rd at the Rebel, 14-12 loser to Anderson at the Dirty South), if healthy, and Martin (2^nd to Anthony at Sequoyah, 1^st in Fulton County, 2^nd at Chattahoochee and 3^rd at the Titan Cup) will challenge.  They will also be challenged for State berths, most notably by B. Smith, who was 2^nd to Herrera at the Raider Rumble, 2^nd to Martin in Fulton County (losing 5-2 in the finals), 4^th at Chattahoochee, and 1^st at both the Santa Slam and the Coal Mountain; his failure to make it out of this Region would speak volumes as to the sick depth sometimes encountered in this 12-team Region.  Gilkenson (Milton), 4^th in Fulton County and 6^th at the Chattahoochee, Jerrus (Alpharetta), 4^th at the Raider Rumble, Leith (Sprayberry), Bailey (Wheeler), 4^th at Brookwood, and Hauser (Lassiter), 6^th at Whitewater, are also likely to be on the outside looking in when the podium snapshot is taken.  Needless to say, the Region Champ that gets #4 from this Region is in for an unpleasant and undeserved surprise.

 

Region 7AAAAA.   It appears that Carson has lost his weight battle, meaning the Doyague will represent the Eagles in the post-season.  Given Carson’s excellent performance at State last year, where he pinned both Anderson and St. James, his absence is not great news for Collins Hill.  Still, it isn’t all that bad, as Doyague took the gold medal in Gwinnett County (beating Epps 9-4 in the finals), beat Garcia 8-4 at the Walton Duals and has split two close matches with our baseline Christakis.  His opposite number in the Region finals is likely to be Epps, 3^rd at Sequoyah (where he lost to Martin 10-9), 3^rd in a brief Alabama excursion to Hewitt-Trussville, 2^nd in Gwinnett County and, most recently and most impressively, 1^st at Whitewater where he put a 13-5 hurting on our baseline Christakis.  The other two State qualification spots are there for the taking, with Beck (Mill Creek), Marionneaux (South Forsyth), 3^rd at the Raider Rumble, and Cross (North Forsyth), 2^nd at the Coal Mountain in the hunt, perhaps joined by Sponholz (Norcross), 2^nd at the Toomey and 4^th at the Coal Mountain. 

 

Region 8AAAAA.   Jones has spent most of the season toiling at 112, where he managed to collect a gold at the Southern Slam, 4^th at McCallie, 2^nd in Gwinnett County, 8^th at the Zac Jarzynka and 2^nd at Chattahoochee.  Since he dropped to 103 and quickly lost to Salone, he has been a hammer, taking 1^st at the Last Man Standing and 2^nd at North Metro.  He will be a monstrous 103, if he can survive the weight management required over a grueling three-day State tournament and be wrestling late into Saturday evening.  Hobby was 4^th at the Big Red Rumble, and should vie with Thomas (Brookwood) and Wofford (Shiloh), recently 4^th at the Lovejoy Wildcat, for the remaining qualification spots.

 

 

 

112 LBS.

 

                        Projected Champion:   Mitchell (10), Collins Hill (AA 103 – 1^st at Wesleyan)

 

 2.        Sartain (12), Peachtree Ridge (103 – 2^nd/Region Champ)

 3.        Bushart (10), Pope (103 – 4^th/Region Champ)

 4.        B. St. James (10), Centennial (103 – sq)

 5.        R. Maus (10), Kennesaw Mountain (103 – sq)

 6.        Vega (12), Brookwood (112 – sq/Region Champ)

 7.        Lane (9), Murray County (Kids State Champ)

 8.        Scott (9), Valdosta (Kids State Champ)

 9.        N. Mullins (9), South Forsyth (Kids State Champ)

10.        An. Stringer (10), Kell (103)

11.        Lunsford (11), Paulding County (112 – sq)

12.        L. Mosher (11), Harrison (AAA 112 – 6^th at Cass)

13.        Bell (12), Redan (112)

14.        Kreis (11), Grayson (103 – sq)

15.        Burris (12), Marietta (112 – sq)

16.        Ferreira (12), McEachern

17.        McAraw (12), Parkview (112 – sq)

18.        Mitchell (10), Newton County (112 – sq)

19.        Parks (12), South Cobb (112)

20.        Gary (10), Hiram  

 

The View From 50,000 Feet:     The 112 pound bracket is chock full of youth, with no less than four recent Kids State Champs likely to be among the combatants.  Still, when the final bout is wrestled, we anticipate two grizzled veterans who are used to wrestling under the spotlight toeing the line in the battle for the gold, much to the delight of wrestling fans throughout the State who have speculated, on “the vent” and elsewhere, as to the likely outcome when Mitchell and Sartain finally get it on.  Mitchell, plain and simple, is a phenom.  Undefeated AA Champ at 103 last year, he has done nothing this year (e.g., 1^st in Gwinnett County at 119, 2^nd at the Toshiba Midwest Classic where he lost 1-0 in the finals to nationally ranked Waters) to tarnish his national reputation and ranking.   He bombed Bushart 12-3 at State Duals, and likewise mashed Luke Mosher 11-2 the next day (giving him a clean sweep of the Mosher brothers, having bested brother Peter 12-4 at the Walton Duals); thus, you get some idea of the gap between Mitchell and some other highly regarded prospects at this weight.  Yet, Sartain is more than a worthy foe, having won championships in Gwinnett County, at Chattahoochee and at the Last Man Standing, and if he can wrestle Mitchell mostly on the mat, he has an excellent chance to climb to the top step on the podium.  Conversely, if the match is wrestled on their feet (as we suspect it will be wrestled), Mitchell is likely to be crowned king of the 112s by a reasonably comfortable margin.  Bushart and St. James look to be the best of the rest (more on them in the Region 6AAAAA summary), but while Bushart did beat Sartain with a last second takedown during last year’s regular season, this year’s 6-1 win by Sartain over Bushart’s teammate and highly ranked 119 Crowe suggests the Sartain may have passed him by over the course of the last year. 

 

Region 1AAAAA.   Two freshmen are likely to lead the way, as Jovan Scott (brother of former 2x State champ Jamal) and Thomas (Lowndes) appear to be the class of this weight class.  Scott was 3^rd at the Rebel and 4^th at the Battle of the Border, before winning the Valdosta Wildcat (topping Thomas in the finals); there was some early talk that he might contend for State gold this year, but his 11-0 loss to Bushart at the Walton Duals pretty much silenced expectations of that sort.  Thomas has also generated an enviable track record, including a 3^rd at the Hornet, 6^th at the Rebel, 4^th at the Valdosta Wildcat and 2^nd at Tift County.  By my count, he’s lost at least three times to Scott, though, so he is likely looking at arriving at the Gwinnett Center as a second seed.  Returning State qualifier Holmes (Houston County) looks to improve on his one win at State last year, with results like his recent 3^rd at the Toomey supporting that possibility, while Creech (Coffee 103 - sq) hopes to return to State to better his 0-2 performance of a year ago.

 

Region 2AAAAA.   While this weight class earlier seemed to be wide open, the veteran Bell looks to be rounding into form after some early slips and is now clearly the frontrunner.  He was 4^th at the Stockbridge Tiger and 2^nd at the Fayette Christmas (losing in each to Maus), before winning gold in Dekalb County and, most recently, at the Lovejoy Wildcat.  Mitchell took 1^st at the Red Skin Rumble, which bodes well for him bettering his 0-2 performance at State last year.  Beyond that, the freshman Benton (3^rd at the Valdosta Wildcat) will probably join the throng of Union Grove wrestlers qualifying for State.  We expected to see returning Region Champ Nelson of Stephenson at this weight, but we have no results for him this season and don’t know if he is wrestling. 

 

Region 3AAAAA.   No names jump out at us in this bracket, and we lack the data to even hazard a guess.  Most notably,  we have no results for returning State qualifier Sororian of Windsor Forest and don’t know if he is wrestling this year. 

 

Region 4AAAAA.   Lunsford looks to be the clear choice, with a stellar record including 2^nd at the Mohawk, 1^st at the Raider Rumble (where he shocked the highly ranked Maus 2-0 in the finals), 4^th at Alexander and 3^rd at the Coal Mountain.  Former Kids State Champ Gary has been up and down, bookended by an 8^th at the Southern Slam in South Carolina early in the year and a 6^th at the Crossbone late, but he has a strong youth wrestling pedigree and could surprise at this weight.  Forbus (Newnan) won two matches at State last year and has Region finalist potential this year.

 

Region 5AAAAA.   As with 103, 112 in this Region is loaded.  Maus leads the way, and the champ at the Stockbridge Tiger (where he pinned Bell) and Fayette Christmas (along with 2^nd at the Raider Rumble, 3^rd at the Dirty South and Titan Cup and 2^nd at Cobb County)  has definite State placement potential.  But first, he will have to tame a tough set of Region opponents, perhaps led by the youngest of them, Lane, who took gold at the Dalton Carpet and was a finalist at both Soddy Daisy and Murray County (and who punctuated his rise up the charts with same day Region Dual wins over both Mosher, 8-2, and Maus, 3-2).  AAA returning placer Mosher has suffered through the perils of the murderous Harrison schedule (Ironman, the Clash, Powerade, among others) but managed to score some jewelry along the way, including 2^nd at Whitewater and 4^th at Cobb County; like his running mate at 103, Christakis, I fear we may have misconstrued that brutal schedule and, as a result, underestimated Mosher, as well.  The fourth and final qualifying slot will be the subject of a fierce battle, leaving several qualified candidates by the wayside.  Burriss was 3^rd at the Knoxville Catholic, 3^rd at Sequoyah, 4^th at the Last Man Standing and 6^th in Cobb County (where he beat Ferreira 2-1) and he probably has the inside track.  Ferreira went into overtime with Mosher at Cobb County before falling by pin, and, as mentioned, lost 2-1 to Burriss, so the margin between those two is miniscule.  Add in Parks (champion at West Laurens and 5^th at Alexander) and it should be exciting times at the McEachern gym.

 

Region 6AAAAA.   Bushart and St. James have been knocking each other around for as long as I can remember, going back to kids wrestling days and continuing through 103 last year, and by all rights, they will lock horns again in the Region finals.  Bushart has been flat out dominant to date, winning gold medals at Sequoyah (where he crushed Burriss 11-0), Bradley Central, the Dirty South (6-2 over Maus in the championship tilt) and Cobb County (5-2 over Maus in the return match), along with a 2^nd to the excellent Ohio Division III placer Minnard at the Wadsworth Grizz.  St. James has run in different circles, but with equally dominating results, winning titles at the Battle of the Border, the Heart of Dixie in Alabama, the Coal Mountain (beating Mullins along the way) and North Metro (winning an exciting finals match against Vega).  Beyond those two, the younger Stringer brother (4^th at the Rebel, 6^th at the Dirty South, 3^rd in Cobb County) and Massoor of Milton (5^th at the Knoxville Catholic, 3^rd in Fulton County) look to have the best chance of punching State tickets (with Stringer’s 15-2 win over Massoor suggesting the likely outcome should they meet in the consolation finals).  Cleary (Northview) took 4^th in Fulton County and at the Raider Rumble, and he appears to be the logical  threat to the top four, with Grossman (Walton), Martin (Chattahoochee), 4^th at the Coal Mountain, Jennings (Wheeler), 6^th at Sequoyah, and A. Lesesne (Sprayberry) more distant pursuers. 

 

Region 7AAAAA.   Mitchell and Sartain exit from this Region, enhancing the possibility that their long-awaited matchup in the finals will, in fact, be a rematch.  N. Mullins is also very good, judging by his 1^st at the Santa Slam, 2^nd at the Coal Mountain (losing to St. James in the finals and beating Lunsford) and 3^rd at the Raider Rumble; his 7-2 loss to Sartain at Chattahoochee also suggests he is not one to be trifled with.  Rivera (Norcross), 5^th at the Toomey, is a late arrival on our radar screen.

 

Region 8AAAAA.   Vega returns as the Region Champ at this weight, with an enviable record this year including gold medals at Brookwood and the Santa Slam, a silver at North Metro (losing a close finals match to St. James) and a bronze in Gwinnett County (where he beat closest pursuer Kreis 9-1, suggesting there is no reason to expect that Vega will not repeat as Region titlist).  He was rolling towards placement at State last year when he was derailed by Pope’s Crowe in the consolations, but we see him on the podium at the Gwinnett Center this time around.  Kreis was 3^rd at the Big Red Rumble and at Hoover, but stumbled at Gwinnett County and at Region Duals, losing to Vega 9-1 and then by pin.  McAraw was 3^rd at the Southern Slam and 4^th at the Last Man Standing, each at 119, before taking part in the “Parkview Shuffle” and dropping to 112, where he was an impressive 3^rd at North Metro.  Cooley (South Gwinnett), Fernandez (Central Gwinnett), 4^th at the Adairsville Tiger, and Daverna (Shiloh) are others to keep in mind.

 

 

 

119 LBS.

 

                        Projected Champion:   Westerman (11), McEachern (103 – 1^st/Region Champ; ’06 103 – 1^st)

 

 2.        Sam Spradlin (12), Camden County (112 – 3^rd/Region Champ; ’06 112 – 5^th)

 3.        Crowe (12), Pope (112 – sq)

 4.        Davis (12), Parkview (119 – 5^th/Region Champ)

 5.        Devita (11), Union Grove (119 – sq at Northview)

 6.        Willard (10), Collins Hill (112 – sq)

 7.        P. Mosher (11), Harrison (AAA 103 – 3^rd at Cass)

 8.        Pfifer (10), Lassiter (103 – sq)

 9.        N. Isburgh (10), Grayson (103 –sq/Region Champ at South Gwinnett)

10.        D. Brown (10), Central Gwinnett (112 – 5^th)

11.        Taylor White (12), Forsyth Central (112 – sq)

12.        Knutsen (12), Lowndes (transfer from Michigan)

13.        Ho (11), Shiloh (112 – sq)

14.        Reinhardt (12), Valdosta (112 – sq)

15.        Thompson (12), Newnan (119 – sq)

16.        Balkhanian (12), Northview

17.        Wilson (10), Roswell (103)

18.        Wagner (11), Etowah (103 – sq)

19.        Castanaro (11), Milton (112)

20.        Conti (12), North Cobb (103 – sq)

 

The View From 50,000 Feet:    

They are both highly skilled, with a seemingly endless supply of moves, counters and counter-counters resulting in a long and steady stream of wins.  And now, they seem destined to meet, hopefully in the finals where the spotlight can shine on the two of them.  Westerman, the Champ everyone seems to love to hate - - “He lucked into the title when Fields missed weight.”  “He weighed 140 pounds, he must have cheated to get down to 103.”  “He is part of that evil horde known as the McEachern Indians.”  Bad stuff.  And then there’s Spradlin, the kid everyone seems to love to love - - “He would have won two titles if he could only stay healthy.”  “He’s a great kid and deserves to win a title now.”  “He gets no respect, because he’s from South Georgia.”  Good stuff.  Yep, this is your classic good versus evil, enough so that, if they do meet in the finals, the spotlighted mat may well start to take on the look and feel of the Planet Cybertron!  Westerman, known as Megatron, the leader of the  Decepticons, with the ability to turn his right fist into a chain mace, and lateral drop buildings with a single move.  Spradlin, the leader of the Autobots, known as Optimus Prime, swinging a mighty red sword and transforming from a Peterbilt truck to a robot faster than switching from a single leg to a double (and we know how fast he can do that!).  So we have the two of them, Megatron and Optimus Prime, Westerman and Spradlin, facing each other in the finals.  Do you suppose they might just shake hands and say:

 

Optimus Prime: It's you and me, Megatron.
Megatron: No, it's just me, Prime.
Optimus Prime: At the end of this day, one shall stand, one shall fall!

 

OK, maybe not.  But the truth of the matter is that 2x State Champ Westerman hasn’t been beaten in well over a year, winning this year at McCallie, the Dirty South (9-2 over Crowe in the finals) and Cobb County (besting Crowe again, this time by a 9-3 count).  At the same time, 2x State placer Spradlin, facing his last shot at an elusive State crown, has steamrolled through some tough fields to take gold medals at the Battle of the Border, the Zac Jarzynka and the Coastal Georgia Classic.  And whether they are Transformers or not, the final battle, should it occur, will be one of the most entertaining of the evening.  I can’t wait for the call:  ROBOTS, ROLL OUT!

 

Region 1AAAAA.   Knutsen, a Michigan transplant, seems to have taken a liking to Southern hospitality, winning the Hornet and earning a series of excellent outcomes, including 4^th at the Rebel, 5^th at the Dirty South, 4^th at the Fayette Christmas and 3^rd at the Valdosta Wildcat.  As best as we can tell, after splitting his first two matches with Reinhardt (winning by one, then losing in the consolation finals at the Rebel), he has won the last two meetings, by pin and 7-4, thereby solidifying his claim to the top spot in this Region.  But the veteran Reinhardt is a tough customer (as you may recall, he reached the quarterfinals at State last year before getting derailed in back-to-back shutout losses to Hudson and Harrison); he has a 3^rd at the Rebel, a 2^nd at the Valdosta Wildcat and a 3^rd at the Coastal Georgia Classic in his column already, and is likely to be a finalist here.  Land (Coffee), 6^th at the Rebel, may be the next best, most notably if Kochera (Warner Robins 119 – sq last year) is not wrestling (we have no results for him this year).

 

Region 2AAAAA.   In a widely publicized move, Devita transferred from Northview (where he had won gold in Fulton County and taken 3^rd at the Chattahoochee) to Union Grove, and the initial returns have been encouraging, as he won the title at the North Metro with an outstanding win over Davis in the finals, catapulting him squarely into the hunt for a high State podium step.  Ware (Newton County 119 – sq) was 4^th at the South Metro and, more recently, won top honors at the Red Skin Rumble; look for him to be a finalist as well.  J. Brown (Redan) was 5^th in Dekalb County, while returning State qualifier Lopez (Luella) also looks to make another trip to the Gwinnett Center.

 

Region 3AAAAA.   Spradlin should coast past this field without shifting into third gear, with the veteran senior C. Hutcherson (Johnson-Savannah), and the freshman Sanders (Groves), 5^th and 6^th at the Toomey, respectively, among those providing the opposition. 

 

Region 4AAAAA.   Thompson looks to be the favorite, given his 5^th at the Fayette Christmas and 2^nd at the Granger, although Martin (Hiram), 5^th at Sequoyah, may be closing the gap quickly.  Baker (119 – sq), 4^th at the Raider Rumble and 5^th at Alexander, or K. Nakano, 4^th at the Crossbone Classic, should provide Paulding County with another State qualifier.

 

Region 5AAAAA.   Westerman heads the field in what appears to be a highly competitive bracket.  P. Mosher was 3^rd at McCallie and topped Pfifer in a rousing 5-4 finals to win gold at Whitewater; he was also 3^rd in Cobb County, where he lost to Crowe 9-6 but came back to win the consolation finals by a 9-8 count over Conti.  Wagner was 4^th at Sequoyah (where he lost to Pfifer 6-0 but beat Conti 8-4) and 6^th at Chattahoochee, before taking the top prize at the Last Man Standing, while Conti, who won three matches at State last year, has put together a very solid year (2^nd at the Mohawk and the Adairsville Tiger, 5^th at Sequoyah, 4^th in Cobb County and 1^st at the Coal Mountain) which he looks to wrap up by qualifying for State again.  Others standing in his way include Hibbert (Marietta), 3^rd at Rockmart at 125, Napier (Murray County 112 – sq), 4^th at Murray County, Logan (Kennesaw Mountain), 3^rd at the Fayette Christmas and 4^th at the Titan Cup, both at 125, Vaughn (South Cobb), 2^nd at West Laurens, and possibly Sexton (Woodstock). 

 

Region 6AAAAA.   This looks to be a two-man race, between two combatants very familiar with each other.  Crowe was 2^nd at Sequoyah, losing in the finals 3-0 to Pfifer.  He was also 2^nd at Bradley Central, 3^rd at the Dirty South (beating Pfifer 7-3 in the consolation finals), 4^th at the Wadsworth Grizz in Ohio and 2^nd in Cobb County to Westerman.  Pfifer won not only at Sequoyah, but also at the Knoxville Catholic and the Fayette Christmas, complimenting a 2^nd at Whitewater (where he lost to Mosher 5-4).  Their most recent tussle was a 2-1 four overtime wrestlepalooza, won by Pfifer, but we look for Crowe to turn the tables, either here or at State, given his size advantage and maturity.  The battle for the remaining two spots should be a very good one, decided among as many as eight quality wrestlers (making this one of the deeper Region brackets in AAAAA):  Balkhanian, who won the Raider Rumble, was 2^nd in Fulton County and 5^th at the Chattahoochee at 125, then dropped down with the departure of Devita; Wilson, who was 3^rd at Sequoyah, 1^st in Fulton County (pinning Balkhanian in the finals), 4^th at Chattahoochee (where he lost to Castanaro in overtime) and 3^rd at the Titan Cup; Castanaro, 5^th at Chattahoochee; Colbert (returning to Kell, after wrestling his junior year for Cherokee), 6^th at the Rebel; Rinehart (Sprayberry), 6^th at Sequoyah, 3^rd at Whitewater and 5^th in Cobb County; Halpert (Walton), who has a dual win over Castanaro (10-9); Harris (Chattahoochee), 3^rd at Coal Mountain (beating Mullins along the way); and Wright (Centennial), 3^rd at the Crossbone Classic.  It should be fun to watch unfold.

 

Region 7AAAAA.   Willard started off the year by winning the NHSCA National Open Middle School tourney at 125, then performed well in an 8^th place finish at the Toshiba Midwest Classic.  He was 2^nd in Gwinnett County at 125, and recently put some major beatings on both Mosher (13-6) and Taylor White (18-9 and 13-1); he has the look of a Region Champ.  White was 3^rd at the Battle of the Border, 2^nd at Chattahoochee (where he beat Wagner 8-5 and Devita by pin, along with a wild 19-17 win over Carroll of North Forsyth) and 3^rd at the Sham Slam, while C. Mullins (South Forsyth), 2^nd at the Raider Rumble, 3^rd at the Santa Slam and 4^th at the Coal Mountain, has won two out of three from Carroll, who he will likely meet again in the battle for 3^rd and 4^th.  Singletary (North Gwinnett), 5^th at Whitewater, could also contend.

 

Region 8AAAAA.   Davis, 5^th at this weight last year and Region Champ, as well, has wrestled most of this year at 125, picking up a 3^rd at the Southern Slam, 3^rd in Gwinnett County, as well as finalist appearances at the Chattahoochee and the Last Man Standing.  He then dropped to 119 and made the finals at North Metro, losing close to Devita.  He will be a huge 119 on State Saturday.  “Little Izzy” Isburgh has bronze medal performances at the Big Red Rumble and Gwinnett County, together with a 5^th at Hoover and a 2^nd at the Crossbone, but to get to Davis in the finals, he’ll likely have to defeat D. Brown, 5^th at 112 last year, who returned second semester and showed well at North Metro.  Ho was 4^th in Gwinnett County (losing 4-1 to Isburgh in the consolation finals) and 2^nd at the Lovejoy Wildcat, while Lee (Berkmar) was 3^rd at Brookwood.

 

 

 

125 LBS.

 

                        Projected Champion:   Crozier (11), Union Grove (125 – 1^st/Region Champ)

 

 2.        Hudson (11), Sprayberry (112 – 1^st/Region Champ; ’06 103 – 3^rd)

 3.        M. Smith (12), McEachern (112 – 2^nd/Region Champ)

 4.        Konigsberg (11), Centennial (130)

 5.        J. Isburgh (12), Grayson (125 – sq/Region Champ at South Gwinnett)

 6.        Legg (11), Walton (103 – 3^rd)

 7.        Allgood (10), Collins Hill

 8.        Bell (11), Harrison (119 – 4^th/Region Champ)

 9.        Armstrong (11), Lowndes (112 – sq/Region Champ)

10.        Adams (12), Murray County (125 – sq)

11.        Momen (12), Norcross (125 – sq)

12.        Payne (11), Pope

13.        A. Drew (9), Coffee (Kids State placer)

14.        Stephens (11), Kennesaw Mountain (125)

15.        Webb (12), Chattahoochee (125 – sq)

16.        Hay (12), North Cobb (119)

17.        Epps (11), Brookwood (130 – alt)

18.        Bourque (11), North Forsyth (119 – sq)

19.        Porter (12), Redan (119 – sq)

20.        Mrozik (11), South Forsyth (119 – sq)

 

The View From 50,000 Feet:    

Sorry, no cute pop culture references here.  This is, plain and simple, Ali v. Frazier.  UNC v. Duke.  Ohio State v. Michigan.  Yankees v. Red Sox.  Crozier returns as the State Champ at this weight and has crafted a season loaded with blue ribbons, winning at South Metro, the Stockbridge Tiger (at 130), the Valdosta Wildcat and the North Metro.  Hudson also returns as a defending State Champ (at 112), and other than a blip at Sequoyah, where he bumped up to 130, got stuck by Adam Smith and finished 3^rd, he also has crafted a season loaded with blue ribbons, winning at the Knoxville Catholic (at 130), the Dirty South, Whitewater and in Cobb County.  Rest assured, in a weight class with five returning State placers and six returning Region Champs, there is a whole lot more than just these two, starting with giant killer Matt Smith (you will recall, a short year ago, his 2-1 quarterfinals win over our pick to win at 112, Sam Spradlin), winner at McCallie this year but 2^nd to Hudson 7-1 in Cobb County (almost identical to the 5-1 loss to Hudson in last year’s 112 State finals).  Still, when all is said and done, we see Crozier, having wrestled a much more difficult schedule this year and, perhaps as importantly, having gone through a much tougher, more physical bracket last year (with several close, grind ‘em out wins), coming out on top in a low-scoring finals match with Hudson that will be recalled fondly for years to come.   As far as numbers 4 – 10 on the above list, you  may wish to shuffle them up and re-rank them any number of times; if you are like me, it will come out completely different each time you shuffle!

 

Region 1AAAAA.   Armstrong, who came within one match of placing at 112 last year (losing to Sam Spradlin in his go-to-placement match), has had some huge “ups” this year, such as his gold medal performance at the Hornet, his 3^rd at the Valdosta Wildcat (where he beat Drew in the consolation finals), his 2^nd at Tift County and his State Duals win over Isburgh; he’s also had a few curious “downs”, perhaps highlighted by his pin loss to Stephens at the Dirty South, where he failed to place.  He should meet up in the finals for a rematch with the younger Drew, 3^rd at the Hornet, 6^th at the Rebel (130), in addition to his 4^th at the Valdosta Wildcat.  Beyond them, Brown (Valdosta) took 4^th at the Coastal Georgia Classic and gave Armstrong a good match in losing 13-7 at Region Duals, while the veteran Denny (Tift County 103 – sq) was 4^th at the Hornet and hopes to make a repeat visit to the Gwinnett Center. 

 

Region 2AAAAA.   Crozier should have little to worry about here, but Porter showed well at the Stockbridge Tiger (3^rd) and took 4^th in Dekalb County, so he is not to be overlooked.  Collins (Newton County) finished 3^rd in the Red Skin Rumble and is the only other recognizable name to us.

 

Region 3AAAAA.   Bazemore (Jenkins), 4^th at the Swainsboro Anders, and Roland (Johnson-Savannah 119 – sq), 4^th at the Toomey and 4^th at the Coastal Georgia Classic at 130, should battle once again for Region honors (we understand that Bazemore won the last go-round), with Espinosa (Camden County), 6^th at the Coastal Georgia Classic, providing some dangerous opposition to one or the other in the semis.

 

Region 4AAAAA.   Not a whole lot on our radar screen, with Stiggers (’06 112 – sq at Mundy’s Mill) and Hunter (6^th at the Southern Slam and 3^rd at Alexander) the most plausible finals match, although Wilson (Newnan) was 6^th at the Fayette Christmas and could spoil that matchup.

 

Region 5AAAAA.   We look for a highly entertaining bracket to play out, with several solid wrestlers missing out on a trip to the Gwinnett Center.  In addition to M. Smith, returning placer Bell (6^th at McCallie, after being injured in the semis), if reasonably healthy, is a real load, as is Adams, 3^rd at the Dalton Carpet, at Soddy Daisy and at McCallie (where he split with Legg, losing 4-2 and winning 4-3), plus a gold medal performance at Murray County.  Stephens has been up and down, with a 2^nd at the Raider Rumble at 130 and at the Stockbridge Tiger (where he majored Porter) highlighting the former and failures to place at Cobb County (at 130) and a 6^th at the Dirty South (including a 5-4 loss to Legg, although he did pin Armstrong) representing the latter.  To qualify, these four will face some serious obstacles, in the form of Hay, who has made a habit out of placing throughout the State and beyond (2^nd at the Mohawk and Adairsville Tiger, 4^th at Sequoyah and at Hoover in Alabama, 2^nd at the Coal Mountain and 5^th in Cobb County), Galloway (Etowah), 3^rd at the Last Man Standing, and Anderson (South Cobb), 2^nd at West Laurens and 6^th at Alexander.  One of the deeper brackets in 5AAAAA, for sure.

 

Region 6AAAAA.   Hudson should land the top spot on the podium steps, but not without a fight from Konigsberg (brother of former State Champ Sam), coming back off some injuries with a solid 1^st at the Coal Mountain and 3^rd at North Metro.  Or perhaps his finals opposition will be supplied by Legg, up three weight classes from his 3^rd at State last year, who has 4^th place finishes at McCallie, the Dirty South and Cobb County.  Payne is a late comer at Pope, having fending off Winiarczyk and Fischel in a series of close wrestle-off bouts, but his 3^rd in Cobb County (where he lost to Hudson 9-0 but beat Legg 9-7 for 3^rd) and his most recent 1^st at the Red Devil, where he beat DeNova of Columbus in the finals, certainly stamp him as someone to be reckoned with.  If he is to move on to State, he will have to outlast a deep field of competitors, including Webb (champ at the Raider Rumble, beating Mrozik 18-4 in the finals; 2^nd to Devita in Fulton County; 3^rd at the Santa Slam and the Coal Mountain), Eastis of Milton (6^th at the Knoxville Catholic, 4^th in Fulton County), Guy (Lassiter) and Lynch (Roswell), among others.

 

Region 7AAAAA.   Who knows what to do with Allgood?  He barged onto the scene like gangbusters with an outstanding performance at the Battlefield Duals in Virginia, followed by a series of stellar dual wins, including 11-3 over Payne, 9-1 over Adams, 18-3 over Bourque, and, so I hear, 11-4 over Legg and a close win over Isburgh this weekend.  We may have him too high, or too low, or just right, but he sure has been impressive, a performance level he will need to continue in the face of significant opposition in this Region.  Momen, who won three matches at State last year, won the George Thompson and the Toomey, along with the Coal Mountain at 130, and he has been called a “beast” by more than a few observers.  Bourque took 2^nd at the Santa Slam and 4^th at Chattahoochee, and he seems to trade wins and losses on a weekly basis with Mrozik, who was 2^nd at the Raider Rumble, 6^th at Chattahoochee and 4^th at the Coal Mountain.  Franklin (North Gwinnett), apparently starting in place of the excellent Biggers (Region Champ at 119 last year), took 3^rd at Whitewater, and we don’t know who will be starting for Mill Creek, as returning placer Harrison has apparently been suspended for several matches and will miss the Region tourney, where he definitely would have competed for top honors.  Either Martinez (5^th at the Sham Slam) or Podwin should represent Forsyth Central well.

 

Region 8AAAAA.   John “Big Izzy” Isburgh looks to be the odds on choice, having won at the Big Red Rumble and Gwinnett County,  along with a 2^nd at Hoover and a 3^rd at the Crossbone Classic.  Epps was 2^nd at Brookwood and 3^rd at the Sham Slam, but was pummeled by Momen 11-0 at Gwinnett County and may find Big Izzy a bit too much to handle.  Chiza of Central Gwinnett was 4^th at the Adairsville Tiger, which at least put him on our radar screen.  We would also look for the Parkview representative at this weight, following Davis’ drop to 119 (Atkinson?), to earn the right to continue wrestling the following week.

 

 

130 LBS.

 

                        Projected Champion:   Lazor (11), Union Grove (119 – 2^nd/Region Champ; ’06 103 – 5^th)

 

 2.        P. Holloway (11), Walton (119 – 1^st/Region Champ)

 3.        Nielson (12), Milton (130 – sq)

 4.        J. Mallard (12), Pope (125 – sq)

 5.        S. Drew (12), Coffee (119 – 3^rd/Region Champ)

 6.        Smithson (12), Collins Hill (’05 112 – sq; KOH 130 – 1^st)

 7.        Shelton (12), North Gwinnett (125 – sq)

 8.        Ad. Smith (12), Marietta (125 – sq)

 9.        Moody (11), Lowndes (125 – sq/Region Champ)

10.        Hillis (11), Parkview  

11.        Lentz (10), Camden County (119 – sq)

12.        Webster (11), Redan (’06 112 – sq/Region Champ)

13.        Howard (11), Chattahoochee

14.        McCafferty (10), Kennesaw Mountain

15.        Kostal (12), Lassiter

16.        Patten (11), North Cobb

17.        Gazaway (11), Hiram (112 – sq/Region Champ)

18.        Tyler White (12), Forsyth Central (’06 AAAA 112 – sq)

19.        A. Condon (10), Harrison (112)

20.        Taylor (12), Shiloh (135 – sq)

 

The View From 50,000 Feet:    

Back in 2001, the Brakeman Report, at 140 pounds in Division III, started off this way, in describing the likely finals match between returning champ (from my high school, no less!) Michael Linsker and Ryan Hurley, whose brother Michael had been the victim of Linsker’s third period spladle in the State finals the year previously, which turned a 7-2 deficit at the time into a pin win for the gold:

“I’m a big movie fan, but, in general, I stay away from sequels.  After Jurassic Park –part two and Speed 2 you realize that they’re generally a pale imitation of the original.  But there are exceptions - - Terminator2 and quite possibly here at 140#.  Again we have a sensational, once beaten Hurley, in this case Ryan- - whose biggest obstacle to a state title may once again be the seemingly ubiquitous Linsker.”

Other than perhaps adding Godfather 2 to the list of sequels living up to the originals, that description is an apt one for the likely rematch between last year’s finalists at 119.  The favorite, then as now, is Lazor, who has been on a mission this year, winning gold medals at the South Metro, Stockbridge Tiger, Brecksville (in front of Brian Brakeman himself, among others) and the Valdosta Wildcat.  The underdog, then as now, is Holloway, who characteristically has had some bumps in the road (e.g., a loss to Nielson resulting in a 3^rd place finish at the Dirty South) but has come through with top honors at McCallie and Cobb County.  Last year, we picked Lazor to win and were surprised, along with most everyone else, to see Holloway come out on top 5-4 in the finals.  This year, we pick Lazor again, and would be even more surprised to see someone else’s hand being raised as Champion.  Still, there are several others with finalist potential, as described in the Region summaries below. 

 

Region 1AAAAA.   This should shape up as the last of several years of battles between two outstanding wrestlers:   S. Drew, who started the year at 135, where he won at the Hornet and was 2^nd at the Rebel, the Battle of the Border and the Valdosta Wildcat , before dropping down to 130, where he won silver at Tift County; and Moody, who, if he wanted to, could wear more jewelry than Mr. T, scoring titles at the Hornet and Tift County, plus 3^rd at the Rebel, 4^th at the Dirty South, 3^rd at the Fayette Christmas, 4^th at the Valdosta Wildcat and 4^th at North Metro.  Moody defeated Drew in the finals at Tift County, but we chalk that up somewhat to Drew “settling in” at 130, and we expect the outcome to be reversed in the Region finals match.  Whitley (Houston County 130 – sq), 6^th at the Toomey at 135, is probably next in line, followed by Valdosta transfer Derr, recently 5^th at the Coastal Georgia Classic.  We anticipated seeing Rogers, the Warner Robins senior state qualifier, at this weight, but we have no evidence he is wrestling this year. 

 

Region 2AAAAA.   Lazor should skate through this Region, with Webster (3^rd at the Raider Rumble and 2^nd both at the Fayette Christmas and in Dekalb County) the likely finals opposition.  Reynolds (Newton County) was 4^th at the Red Skin Rumble and should contend for State qualification.

 

Region 3AAAAA.   As in most weight classes, I don’t have much to go on in Region 3AAAAA.  Lentz is something of an enigma.  When he is good, he is stellar - - 4^th at the Battle of the Border at 135, 5^th at the Zac Jarzynka, winner at the Coastal Georgia Classic, for example.  But then, there are times when he is curiously passive, such as a 9-1 loss to Mallard at the State Duals and his performance at State last year, where he managed only a single win surrounded by a somewhat surprising first round loss and a 34 second consolation pin loss.  Perhaps the explanation is nothing more than Lentz was a youngster last year and a sophomore this year, and he will mature and get more consistent with age?  We assume so, and look for him to shine this time around.  Tsoi (Savannah Arts 130 – sq), 4^th at the Toomey, should also make it through to the next weekend.

 

Region 4AAAAA.   Gazaway was a surprising (at least to us) Region Champ last year, and has taken some lumps this year (6^th at the Southern Slam and Alexander, but failed to place at Sequoyah, the Battle of the Border and Dirty South); still, he is the odds on favorite to capture a second Region Crown, allowing him to improve on his 2-2 record at State last year.  Henry (Newnan ’06 112 – sq) and Doolittle (East Coweta 119 – sq) look to be the possible finals opponent.

 

Region 5AAAAA.   Adam Smith, much like his brothers, has had a career pockmarked with injuries, but when he is healthy, watch out! (You may recall that he was one match from placing last year at State, losing out to former Champ Turpin in the go-to-placement round.)  He was 2^nd at Sequoyah, losing to Mallard in the finals but pinning State Champ Hudson in an earlier round.  He was also Champ at the War Eagle, while finishing 2^nd at the Last Man Standing and 3^rd in Cobb County (where he lost again to Mallard, this time by a 12-7 count, but beat Stephens 10-7 and Kostal 11-3).  McCafferty is another of those precocious sophomores who make me grayer by the day.  His best result was a 2^nd at the Titan Cup, but he has beaten Gazaway by pin, Webster at the Stockbridge Tiger (where neither placed in a very tough bracket) and Adams by a 4-2 score when Adams bumped up to 130, showing he can run with the big dogs when so inclined.  Patten is one of a number of underpublicized North Cobb Warriors, taking 3^rd at the Mohawk and 6^th at Sequoyah; he has beaten some tough customers like Gazaway and Klug, but will need to bring his “A” game to place.  The same can be said for the younger Condon, 6^;th in Cobb County, for standing in the wings are a number of wrestlers capable of standing on the podium, including Rogers (Etowah), 5^th at Chattahoochee (where he split with Hillis), Etheredge (South Cobb), 2^nd at West Laurens, and Holt (Woodstock), 3^rd at the Santa Slam and 4^th at the Coal Mountain.

 

Region 6AAAAA.   Again, this Region leads the way in terms of overflowing with talented wrestlers, several of whom will not get the chance to prove their worth at the State level.  Holloway should repeat as Region Champ, but Nielson has already beaten him one (8-7 at the Dirty South), and, depending on how much you buy into the “Kemp Trained” dogma (obviously, we buy into it a bunch!), Nielson could be a State finalist; certainly, his showing to date (1^st at the Knoxville Catholic, Fulton County at 135 and Chattahoochee, along with a 6^th at the Dirty South when he beat both Holloway and Moody before missing the weigh out and forfeiting to 6^th) supports the high ranking we bestow on him.  (Remember, Nielson made the quarterfinals last year, losing to Ryan Medved 6-4, then dropped a 9-6 decision to Redan’s excellent Kyles in the consolations.)  We also highly rank the Pope veteran Mallard, gold medalist at Sequoyah and the Dirty South, with silvers at Bradley Central and Cobb County (where he lost to Holloway in the finals 12-6) and a 3^rd at the Wadsworth Grizz, losing only to a then-undefeated Ohio State Champ.  So, with three of the top four State ranked wrestlers in this Region, there is not much room for the others.  We look for the rapidly improving Howard (5^th at the Heart of Dixie, 3^rd at Chattahoochee, 2^nd at the Coal Mountain and 5^th at the Crossbone Classic) to grab that spot, but not without stout opposition from the likes of Kostal, 6^th at the Knoxville Catholic, 5^th at Sequoyah, 6^th at the Fayette Christmas and 4^th in Cobb County, Klug (Chattahoochee ’06 103 – sq), 4^th at the Raider Rumble, 3^rd at the Santa Slam and the Coal Mountain, F. Jacob (Alpharetta), 2^nd at the Raider Rumble and in Fulton County, 3^rd at the George Thompson, McGrath (Wheeler) and C. Smith (Roswell).

 

Region 7AAAAA.   Shelton and Smithson have clearly distanced themselves from the field and should provide a rousing Region finals match.  The slick Shelton was 4^th at Sequoyah (losing 12-7 to Mallard), 1^st in Gwinnett County, 3^rd at Hewitt-Trussville and 7^th at the Zac Jarzynka, while the rapidly improving Smithson was 2^nd in Gwinnett County.  They have split two bouts this year, with Smithson winning 9-8, followed by Shelton winning 9-5 in the Gwinnett County finals rematch.  It would not surprise us if Shelton won this matchup, but Smithson ended up being the one standing on the State podium; certainly Smithson’s latest efforts, including decisive wins over defending State Champs Crozier and P. Holloway, suggest he has taken it to a new level and is ready for a serious run at State placement.  Beyond those two, Tyler White, who was 2^nd to Nielson at Chattahoochee and 5^th at the Sham Slam, and O’Connor (North Forsyth), who was 2^nd at the Santa Slam and 4^th at Chattahoochee, look to be the odds on candidates for the remaining qualification berths, although Appling (Mill Creek), 4^th at Brookwood and Bloodworth (Peachtree Ridge) could surprise.

 

Region 8AAAAA.   Hillis is up and down like a yo-yo, winning gold at the Southern Slam, taking 5^th at McCallie, taking 3^rd in Gwinnett County, getting 6^th at Chattahoochee, winning gold at the Last Man Standing (where he pinned Adam Smith in the finals) and earning a silver medal at North Metro.  We look for him to be moving upward as Region approaches, which should be enough to ward off the likes of Taylor (4^th in Gwinnett County, winner at the Lovejoy Wildcat), Collister (Brookwood), 1^st at Brookwood but failed to place at Gwinnett County where he was pinned by Taylor and Hulsey (Grayson 119 – sq), 2^nd at the Big Red Rumble and 6^th at the Crossbone Classic.

 

 

135 LBS.

 

                        Projected Champion:   Fields (12), Parkview (125 – inj; ’06 – 130 – finalist/DQ; ’05 103 – 6^th)

 

 2.        R. Medved (12), Harrison (130 – 3^rd/Region Champ)

 3.        J. Smith (10), Collins Hill (130 – 4^th/Region Champ)

 4.        Vinson (12), Union Grove (130 – sq)

 5.        A. Maus (12), Kennesaw Mountain (135 – 4^th)

 6.        A. Holloway (11), Walton (130 – sq)

 7.        Floyd (12), McEachern (’06 112 – 2^nd) [if wrestling; if not, Carpenter (10)]

 8.        Schneider (10), Milton

 9.        Walden (12), Groves (130 – sq/Region Champ)

10.        Andrews (11), Pope (135 – sq)

11.        Pace (12), Brookwood (135 – sq)

12.        Darron Jackson (11), North Cobb (135)

13.        Drawdy (11), Tift County (130 – sq/Region Champ)

14.        Zahm (11), Roswell (125 – sq) [or Lord (10)]

15.        Chavarria (12), Lowndes (135 – sq)

16.        Anglin (12), East Coweta (135 – sq/Region Champ)

17.        Cole (12), North Gwinnett (135)

18.        Collins (12), Lassiter (125)

19.        Mendoza (12), Newton County (135 – sq)

20.        Lanier (11), North Forsyth

 

The View From 50,000 Feet:    

Surely you are familiar with the famous painting “The Spirit of ‘76” (or, as it was originally known, “Yankee Doodle”), painted by Archibald Willard in the 1870s.  Three men, marching in front of a pack of battered soldiers hoisting an American flag, passing through a battlefield strewn with discarded weaponry and dead bodies.  Two drummers, one fife player.  Bandaged heads.  Bloody, bruised faces.  This painting has come to symbolize the American Revolution to many.  Unfortunately, it has also come to symbolize the high school wrestling career of Carson Fields, one of the few Georgia wrestlers to win a national championship at Fargo (Cadet Greco Nationals champ in 2006).  Rib injuries sidelined Fields at State his freshman year, forcing him to default to 6^th, while an injury while he was trying to make weight following his semifinals defeat of Joey Lazor in the 103 semis cost him the chance to wrestle for the title his sophomore year.  Last year, injuries ended his season prematurely, leaving him with one last chance to wrestle for the gold under the spotlight at the Gwinnett Center.  He has been virtually unstoppable this year, winning titles at the Southern Slam, McCallie, Gwinnett County, Chattahoochee, the Last Man Standing and North Metro, some at this weight and some at 140; the only blemish on his record is a 2^nd at the Zac Jarzynka, where he ran into a Florida buzzsaw named Tico Baez in the finals.  If he can just stay healthy for a few short weeks, then Fields is very likely to replace the Spirit of ’76 imagery with another, new image -  - a shiny gold medal, symbolizing a State title.

 

Region 1AAAAA.   The top two dogs in this Region are very familiar names, as both have shown well in high visibility tournaments throughout the State.  Drawdy was 5^th at the Rebel at 140, before dropping to this weight, where he took an impressive 3^rd at the Stockbridge Tiger and 1^st at Tift County.  He has split two matches with Chavarria, losing at the Valdosta Wildcat (where he failed to place) and winning in the finals at Tift County.  Chavarria had some tough sledding early on at 140, failing to place at the Battle of the Border (losing to the excellent Vasquez in the semis) and the Dirty South (losing to Spice 13-3).  Back at 135, he, like Drawdy, failed to place at the Valdosta Wildcat, although he did beat Drawdy before losing to S. Drew and missing placement by one match.  Since then, he has shined more brightly, reaching the finals both at Tift County (losing to Drawdy) and North Metro (losing to Fields).  It is not beyond the realm of possibility that, with a favorable draw, the winner of their finals match could go on to place at State.  Beasley, the Valdosta freshman (6^th at the Rebel and 3^rd at the Coastal Georgia Classic) and Heck (Houston County) are other possibilities.

 

Region 2AAAAA.   With Floyd transferring back to McEachern, Vinson has dropped down to 135, where he stands an excellent chance to place in an extremely tough bracket.  He is one of the most improved wrestlers in the State this year, which we all saw when he reached the finals in the NHSCA National Open (beating Maus 6-4 along the way).  He has won gold at South Metro (at 140) and the Valdosta Wildcat (at 145), plus a 4^th at the Stockbridge Tiger, and it would take a stunning upset for him to not come out of this Region as the #1 seed.  Mendoza, 2^nd at the Red Skin Rumble,  should improve on last year’s one win at the Gwinnett Center.

 

Region 3AAAAA.   Walden is a veteran having a sensational senior year for Coach Tatum’s crew.  He took 1^st at the Swainsboro Anders and the War Eagle, along with 2^nd at the Coastal Georgia Classic and 3^rd at West Laurens and the Toomey.  His recent 11-6 lost to Joel Smith in a dual looks accurate to us, in terms of the distance between the two.  Wainright (Camden County 130 – sq) was 5^th at the Coastal Georgia Classic, but after last year’s 15-4 loss to Drawdy at State, he’ll need to be much improved to join the hunt to State medals this year.   We thought we might see former State qualifier Riddle or the oft-injured O’Toole representing Savannah Arts again, but we have no data on either this time around.

 

Region 4AAAAA.   Anglin won this Region at this weight last year, and he is certainly the likely Champ again this year, which should give him the opportunity to improve on what was surely (to him) a disappointing performance at State last year, where he was teched by Andrews and pinned quickly by J. Mullins.  The freshman Slate (Hiram) was 5^th at Alexander and has possibilities here, as does Knoll (Paulding County).

 

Region 5AAAAA.   The talent at the top of this bracket is as good as it gets, which should lead to yet another classic battle between the defending Region Champ, Ryan Medved, and his archrival, Alex Maus.  Medved has not come out of the Harrison scheduling gauntlet totally healthy, although he performed well in making the go-to-placement round at the #1 toughest tournament in the country, the Ironman, and in placing 4^th at the almost as tough Powerade; back on Georgia soil, he won at Whitewater and at Cobb County, where he topped Holloway 6-1 in the semis.  Maus, a State semi-finalist last year losing 6-4 to Kendall Albert, took 5^th at the NHSCA National Open during the preseason, won at 140 at the Raider Rumble, took 2^nd to Helena at 140 at the Stockbridge Tiger, took 3^rd at 140 at the Dirty South (losing 3-2 to Spice) and won the Fayette Christmas at that weight, but since has dropped to 135, where he won the Titan Cup before getting hurt at Cobb County and forfeiting to 6^th.  He beat Medved 5-2 back in mid-December, and if Ryan is not reasonably healthy (and assuming that Alex has recovered from the injury at Cobb County), he will probably do it again here.  Darron Jackson looks like the likely bronze medalist.  He was a finalist several times, including the Mohawk, the Adairsville Tiger, Sequoyah and the Coal Mountain (winning all except the first); lately, however, he may have dropped off a bit, judging by his 4^th at Hoover and his 5^th in Cobb County, where he lost by a surprisingly large margin (17-6) to Andrews and was pinned by Holloway.  We don’t know much about Carnes (Murray County), other than he finished 2^nd in his home tourney, and we have seen little of Carpenter (McEachern) and Shelton (Marietta), since the latter garnered a 6^th at the Knoxville Catholic.   We may see even less of Carpenter, if Floyd, who recently transferred back to McEachern, is eligible to wrestle.  If so, the lineup of Medved/Maus/Floyd will be a tough one to top at any Region, in any classification in this State. 

 

Region 6AAAAA.   I know it’s sounding like a broken record by now, but once again, the depth of this Region at this weight is astounding.  Al Holloway won the title at the Dirty South (where he beat Schneider 17-5 in the finals), took 3^rd in Cobb County and 5^th at McCallie, and just like his brother last year, he could get on a hot streak that starts here and runs all the way to the podium at the Gwinnett Center.  Schneider (1^st in Fulton County at 130, 2^nd to Holloway at the Dirty South, 3^rd at Chattahoochee,  losing only to Fields) and Andrews (3^rd at Bradley Central at 140, 4^th at the Dirty South, 2^nd in Cobb County) are probably the next best, with Andrews looking to reverse an 11-6 loss to Schneider the last time they met.  If Zahm is healthy, he will challenge those listed above, as he did with his 6^th at Sequoyah and 2^nd at Chattahoochee, losing to Fields; however, we have not heard from him since, and there are rumblings that Lord may be manning that spot for Roswell.  Collins has 5^th place finishes at the Knoxville Catholic and the Dirty South (where he lost to Andrews 18-3 and Schneider 5-4), along with an 8^th at Whitewater and a 4^th in Cobb County (losing twice to Holloway by wide margins).  Tony Salone (Centennial) is a very talented freshman who will be heard from in a big way in future years; for this year, however, he’s faced with a severe test to make it to State, judging by his pin losses to Andrews and Holloway, although he did manage a 3^rd at the Coal Mountain and a 6^th at the Crossbone Classic.  Other possibilities include Bogosian (Alpharetta), 2^nd to Nielson in Fulton County and 4^th at the George Thompson, Lee (Wheeler) and McCrory (Kell).

 

Region 7AAAAA.   As we understand it, the very tough Anderton of Mill Creek (1^st at Brookwood, 4^th in Gwinnett County), like his teammate Harrison, has received a three-match suspension and will be unable to wrestle here.  That leaves no one of note to challenge Joel Smith, the tremendously talented sophomore won the NHSCA National Open Middle School 140 pound title over the summer and looked sensational, according to sources there, in reaching the finals at the Toshiba Midwest Classic in Missouri.  He was 2^nd in Gwinnett County (losing to Fields 7-5 in the finals) and beat two highly ranked “national kids” (Giordano and Drew Squires) at the Battlefield Duals.  Keep in mind, though, that Medved handled him 9-4 in the consolation finals last year, and manhandled him 10-0 this year at State Duals.  Cole was 3^rd at Sequoyah and a finalist at both Hewitt-Trussville and Whitewater (where he lost to Medved18-6) and, in the absence of Anderton, could reach the finals here.  Gerrell (Forsyth Central ’06 AAAAA 140 – sq), 6^th at Chattahoochee, and Lanier, 4^th at the Santa Slam and 5^th at Chattahoochee (where he beat Gerrell 6-5) look to be the best of the rest, although Smith (Berkmar), 4^th at the Big Red Rumble, and Bonet (South Forsyth), 4^th at the Raider Rumble, could threaten either.

 

Region 8AAAAA.   You know about Fields, but you may not know much about Pace, who took 2^nd at Brookwood and 3^rd both in Gwinnett County and the North Metro.  Expect them to be the finalists, followed by George (Grayson), 7^th at Hoover and 4^th at the Crossbone Classic, and Olaba (Shiloh), 3^rd at the Lovejoy Wildcat, in close pursuit. 

 

 

 

140 LBS.

 

                        Projected Champion:   Albert (12), Peachtree Ridge (135 – 2^nd; ’06 125 – 1^st; ’05 119 – 1^st)

 

 2.        A. Medved (12), Harrison (135 – 5^th/Region Champ; ’06 119 – 6^th)

 3.        Matyac (12), Brookwood (140 – 3^rd/Reigon Champ; ’06 135 – 5^th)

 4.        Vazquez (12), Forsyth Central (140 – 5^th/Region Champ)

 5.        G. Spice (12), Kell (130 – 5^th; ’06 119 – 5^th; ’05 103 – 4^th)

 6.        Helena (12), Shiloh (130 – sq; ’05 103 – 2^nd)

 7.        Hoppenbrouwer (11), Collins Hill (KOH 145 – 1^st)

 8.        Newman (12), North Gwinnett (130 – sq)

 9.        Fultz (11), Kennesaw Mountain (130 – sq) 

10.        DeArron Jackson (11), North Cobb (152 – sq)

11.        Williamson (10), Lowndes (130 – sq)

12.        Phillips (12), Union Grove (135 – sq)

13.        Gonzalez (11), Camden County (135 – sq/Region Champ)

14.        Hurst (11), Marietta

15.        Ciciora (12), Warner Robins (AAAA 145 – sq at Madison County)

16.        R. Holliman (12), Valdosta

17.        Bashir/Yost, Norcross

18.        Ade (12), Milton (140)

19.        Joseph (12), Newton County (140 – sq)

20.        Moot (10), Wheeler

 

The View From 50,000 Feet:    

Kendall Albert has been a fixture in the AAAAA State finals throughout his high school career.  From his freshman year, when he won the much ballyhooed semis showdown with McEachern’s Anton Prater on his way to the title, to his sophomore year, when he won a similarly highly anticipated finals showdown with Lassiter’s Bryan Jacoutot, to his junior year, when he lost an even more highly anticipated finals showdown with Taylor Knapp, Albert has set the bar for outstanding big school wrestling in Georgia.  So, it comes as no surprise that, in a weight class bursting with talent, the consensus of our little band of prognosticating brothers is that Albert, who has won gold this year at McCallie, Gwinnett County and Chattahoochee, will reach the finals again, where he will meet one of several highly qualified opponents and go on to earn his third State Championship.  Who will he vanquish in the finals?  Let’s meet the possible combatants:  Alex Medved, like brother Ryan, lost his go-to-placement match in a nice Ironman showing and placed 4^th at the Powerade, sandwiched between a 3^rd at McCallie and 1^st place finishes at Cobb County (where be beat Spice 3-1 in overtime) and Whitewater.  Like his brother, he has some pretty serious injuries to overcome, but also like his brother, he is projected to reach the State finals this year.  Matyac spent the summer growing, culminating in his 8^th place finish at 160 pounds at the NHSCA National Open, and he’s been shrinking ever since:  1^st at Brookwood at 145, 2^nd in Gwinnett County at 140 (losing 9-3 to Albert in the finals), 1^st at the Sham Slam (beating Vazquez 3-2 in overtime) and 1^st at North Metro.  Three-time placer Spice won gold at the Rebel and silver medals at the Dirty South and Cobb County (losing 3-1 in overtime to Medved in the finals); he also lost an early, early season 3-2 decision to Albert, up at 145 pounds.  Helena has not placed since he reached the State finals his freshman year (losing to Turpin in the 103 finals), but he started the preseason strong by placing 140 – 7^th at the NHSCA National Open and 140 – 5^th at the Super 32, and followed it up with tournament titles at the Stockbridge Tiger and the Lovejoy Wildcat; he took 3^rd in Gwinnett County, losing to Matyac 5-3 but beating Hoppenbrouwer 5-1.  Finally, we have Vazquez, not as widely reputed as the others (although maybe he is, after his recent decision win over Spice) but a fine wrestler in his own right, winning gold at the Battle of the Border and finishing 2^nd at the Zac Jarzynka and the Sham Slam (losing 3-2 in overtime to Matyac in the finals).  Obviously, given the scores cited above, the margin for error at this weight class is razor thin, both to reach the podium and to climb up to the highest steps. 

 

Region 1AAAAA.   This looks to be a very strong bracket, one of the few where there will be steep competition, at a high level, for the last qualifying slot.  Williamson won the Hornet early and the Tift County late in the season; in between, he took 6^th at the Rebel, 4^th at the Fayette Christmas and 3^rd at the Valdosta Wildcat.  He is a very talented sophomore, and we look for even better things from him over the next two years.  Holliman has had a tough time placing in tough venues like the Battle of the Border and the Valdosta Wildcat (where he lost to Williamson and Phillips), but he has pinned Region 3AAAAA Champ Gonzalez and split with Chavarria, suggesting he has the talent to do well here.  Ciciora is another, like Stephen Spradlin, who has left more than a few observers asking “who is that kid?”  The former AAAA Region finalist was 5^th at Sequoyah, losing to Newman but beating Power, and recently won the Santa Slam.  Wilcox (Tift County 140 – sq) was 4^th at the Rebel, while Thompson (Houston County) was 6^th at the Toomey. O’Steen (Coffee) may also contend at this weight.

 

Region 2AAAAA.   Phillips has bounced back and forth between 135 (where he was 5^th at the South Metro) and 140 (where he was 4^th at the Valdosta Wildcat and 3^rd at North Metro), and he looks to be the best at this weight class.  Joseph, who missed placement at South Metro by one match, should also earn a return trip to the Gwinnett Center, along with Wimpey (Redan), 4^th in Dekalb County.

 

Region 3AAAAA.   Gonzalez has medaled in some tough tourneys, such as 4^th at the Battle of the Border and 5^th at the Coastal Georgia Classic, and we look for him to do significantly better than his 0-2 at State last year.  Not much else to report, except that Henry (Groves) was 5^th at the Toomey. 

 

Region 4AAAAA.   Not much here in the way of State medal prospects, but the fight for qualification and Region supremacy should be a close, hard fought one.  Lynch (Paulding County) was 4^th at the Crossbone Classic and beat Isley of Hiram (6^th at Alexander, 5^th at the Crossbone Classic) 8-7 in an early 2008 meeting, so there is little to distinguish those two.  Rumohr (Newnan 140 – sq) finished 6^th at Whitewater, while Harris (Tri-Cities) finished 4^th at the Raider Rumble.  Todd (Mundy’s Mill), 8^th at Whitewater, also made our list.

 

Region 5AAAAA.   Several very skilled wrestlers in this Region are not going to qualify for State, as the talent level here is outstanding.  Medved tops the chart, but should be seriously challenged by a few, starting with Fultz, who won titles at the Raider Rumble and Fayette Christmas (at 145), along with a 3^rd at 145 at the Stockbridge Tiger, 4^th at the Titan Cup and 3^rd in Cobb County (losing to Spice 2-1 and beating both Jackson, 6-4, and Hurst, 9-6).  DeArron Jackson left the gate quickly, taking 2^nd at the Mohawk, winning gold at the Adairsville Tiger, getting 4^th at Sequoyah and winning at the Coal Mountain (beating Lemke in the finals).  Like his lighter brother, though, he may have hit something of a wall, failing to place in Cobb County, where he lost to Fultz 6-4 and to the Pope backup, Andrew Mallard, 5-3.  Hurst has confounded us the entire year, zigging left when we thought he’d go right and zigging right when we looked for him to go left.  He was 5^th at the Knoxville Catholic, losing 2-1 to Ade, and 2^nd at four straight tournaments, starting with Sequoyah (where he beat Newman 10-9 and pinned Jackson) and continuing with the War Eagle, Rockmart and the Last Man Standing.  He was 4^th in Cobb County, losing to Fultz 9-6 and Medved 6-3), but just when we thought we had him pegged, he dropped a 6-2 dual to Sprayberry’s Morgan, who is not likely to make it out of Region 6AAAAA.  Confused?  We certainly are.  Beyond those four, you should also expect to see spirited efforts from Lemke (Woodstock 140 – sq), 3^rd at the Santa Slam and 2^nd to Jackson at the Coal Mountain; Baldwin (Murray County), 2^nd at Soddy Daisy and 3^rd at Murray County; Calixte (South Cobb) and Wynn (McEachern).

 

Region 6AAAAA.   If you think Region 5AAAAA is stacked, wait til you get a load of this group (and the next group in Region 7AAAAA).  Spice should have his way with the rest, but there is a fairly equal group of as many as 9 – 10 others with State qualification potential and little to choose among them.  We like Ade’s body of work, with placements at Knoxville Catholic (4^th, where he beat Hurst 2-1), Fulton County (1^st), and Chattahoochee (4^th, losing to Albert 19-4 but beating McDaniel 4-2); perhaps more meaningful, he owns wins over both Power (8-5) and Morgan (2-0), two of his closest Region rivals.  We also like Moot (5^th in Cobb County) and Power (6^th at Sequoyah), if they could just keep healthy for a prolonged period of time; these two could be poster boys for the nearest East Cobb urgicenter!  I suppose the same could be said for McDaniel (Centennial KOH 135 – 3^rd), who returned from a knee injury in January to finish 5^th at Chattahoochee, where he lost 4-2 to Ade, 3^rd at Coal Mountain, where he beat Govatos, and 2^nd at the Crossbone Classic.  Lee (Northview) and Govatos (Alpharetta), who was 4^th at the Raider Rumble and at Coal Mountain, along with top dog in Fulton County and 2^nd at the George Thompson, are also deserving of mention.  The Walton entry should either be Laskey (KOH 125 – 3^rd) or Sulmonetti (KOH 112 – 3^rd), with the former owning a pin win over McDaniel.  The aforementioned Morgan (Sprayberry) was 5^th at Whitewater, where he beat Rumohr, and owns a 6-2 win over Hurst, but his overall record, including 7-0 and pin losses to Power and a 2-0 loss to Ade, suggest he’s got a steep hill to climb to reach even the fourth step on the podium.  So, too, do the Chattahoochee entry (either Lawler, 6^th at Chattahoochee, or Kanceruck, 3^rd at the Raider Rumble) and Rose (Roswell), 6^th at Sequoyah and the Titan Cup.

 

Region 7AAAAA.   You do the math - - five top 20 ranked wrestlers, four qualification slots.  It wouldn’t be surprising to me to see some weight class shuffling going on here, as none of these excellent wrestlers should be forced to watch the State tournament unfold from the stands.  You have already read about Albert and Vasquez, and they are likely to be joined by Hoppenbrouwer, 10^th at the Toshiba Midwest Classic and 4^th in Gwinnett County, losing to Helena 4-1 and to Matyac 8-0.  Newman was 3^rd at Sequoyah, 4^th at Hewitt-Trussville and 4^th at Whitewater.  If he is in, then that leaves no room for the Norcross entry, either Bashir or Yost, who recently won the silver medal at the Toomey.  Hill of North Forsyth (2^nd at the Coal Mountain, 2-2 at State last year including a nice pin win over Drawdy) and Cunningham of Duluth, 4^th at the Big Red Rumble, are others to keep in mind. 

 

Region 8AAAAA.   Matyac and Helena should meet up in a highly charged Region finals, with much at stake, in terms of bracket seeding and avoiding a second round matchup with the wrong Region Champ (e.g., Albert, Medved or Spice).  Not much else to report, beyond the Grayson entrant, which should be either Casciano or Mangini (3^rd at the Big Red Rumble) and the Parkview entrant, either Anderson or Aiken.

 

 

 

145 LBS.

 

                        Projected Champion:   Taylor Knapp (11), Collins Hill (135 – 1^st/Region Champ; ’06 119 – 3^rd)

 

 2.        Lanham (12), Walton (135 – 3^rd/Region Champ; ’05 112 – 2^nd)

 3.        McClafferty (12), Brookwood (145 – 4^th)

 4.        George (12), Valdosta (’06 145 – sq)

 5.        Aaron Stringer (12), Kell (140 – sq/Region Champ)

 6.        Hollis (12), South Cobb (145 – sq)

 7.        Hail (12), Parkview (140 – sq)

 8.        Hanley (12), Milton (’06 125 – sq)

 9.        Buck (12), Forsyth Central (145)

10.        Sealy (11), Centennial (135)

11.        Markley (11), Pope (130)

12.        Barron (12), Paulding County (145 – sq/Region Champ)

13.        J. Mullins (12), South Forsyth (135 – sq)

14.        Sotres (10), North Cobb (140)

15.        Whittenburg (11), Harrison (GHSA 135 – 1^st at Riverside Military)

16.        D. Lesesne (12), Sprayberry (160)

17.        Rivera (9), Kennesaw Mountain (Kids State placer)

18.        Austin (11), Shiloh (140 – sq)

19.        Gibson (12), Murray County (140)

20.        Rogers (12), North Gwinnett (145 – sq)

 

The View From 50,000 Feet:    

For the last several years, Pope has started off its wrestling season by visiting Collins Hill, where the varsity squads and several layers of J/V wrestlers squared off.  Back in November, 2005, when we visited Collins Hill to kick off the 2005 – 2006 season, as I did each year, I spent some time chatting with Coach Ramos before the matches.  During that conversation, he pointed over to a young freshman wrestler and said “You see that kid?  He very well could be my next Tyler Parker.  He’s that good.”  I looked over in the direction of Coach Ramos’ point, and knowing that Coach Ramos throws wrestling platitudes around like manhole covers, I sought out some stud wrestler, probably eating raw meat and crushing apples in his hands like Danny Hodge.  But I didn’t see anyone meeting that description; I didn’t see Brian Shute from Vision Quest, I saw someone who, standing tall and gangly in his green Collins Hill singlet, looked a little bit like Gumby.  “Where?”  I replied to Coach Ramos.  “All I see is that skinny, scrawny kid over there.  You can’t be talking about him, can you?”  “Yes, that’s him,” said Coach Ramos.  “That’s Taylor Knapp, and before he’s done here, he is gonna be a good one, maybe one of the best ever here.”  Well, as is usually the case when we talk, chalk another one up for Coach Ramos, as he certainly hit the nail on the head with that little bit of prophesizing.  After placing 3^rd his frosh year (as a somewhat undersized 119), Knapp bounced back from an early season tech at the hands of Albert to beat him at Region, and then again in the State finals last year.  This year, he has stepped up his game even more, starting with a gold medal performance at the NHSCA National Open and a 5^th place finish at the even tougher Super 32, and continuing with a 3^rd in an extremely different weight class at the Toshiba Midwest Classic and a 1^st in Gwinnett County.  He beat Walton’s Lanham 11-8 in the State semis last year, and you might want to keep that in mind, as Lanham, who spent most of this year at 152 (with wins at McCallie and the Dirty South and a 3^rd at Brecksville), has established himself as the top contender at 145 with his title-winning effort in Cobb County.  If the bracket gods cause these two to meet before the finals, don’t be surprised to find McClafferty waiting for the winner in the finals.  He was a semi-finalist last year, losing 9-8 to Jack Roberts, and has won this year at Brookwood (at 152), the Sham Slam and North Metro.  Knapp pounded him 17-5 in the Gwinnett County finals; I don’t think the margin will be nearly as large, should they wrestle again, but the outcome will be the same.

 

Region 1AAAAA.   You may not know a lot about George, but pay close attention, cause he is the real deal.  4^th at the Rebel, losing to Stringer in the consolation finals; 3^rd at the Battle of the Border, shredding Sealy 15-2 and beating Buck 8-3 along the way; 1^st at Tift County; 1^st at the Coastal Georgia Classic.  Like I said, the real deal.  Mack (Tift County), 4^th at the Hornet, should contend.  I’m not sure about R. Smith of Lowndes, 3^rd at the Hornet at 152, who is behind the very good Chamberlain at that weight.  If he can get down to 145, he certainly has an excellent chance to qualify for State. 

 

Region 2AAAAA.   Once again, not much to go on in this Region, with Pape (Luella 130 – sq) looking the best, based on his 3^rd at South Metro.  E. Martin (Redan) was 3^rd at the Lovejoy Wildcat and should step on the podium, as should former State qualifier Vaughn of Union Grove, who looks for a more reasonable State draw this year, after having been teched in succession by Matyac and Hail last year.

 

Region 3AAAAA.   The only wrestler of note on our list is Steele (Camden County), a Virginia move-in who took 3^rd at the Coastal Georgia Classic.  Knowing our track record with Camden County wrestlers, I can almost assure you that our failure to rank Steele in the top 20 is erroneous, but without any further data, and assuming that the “2^nd at the Hornet Rule” made famous by Manning of Coffee only applies to Region 1AAAAA wrestlers, we are stuck with our decision.  We have no data on Mays of Johnson-Savannah, a State qualifier at this weight last year, and we assume he is not wrestling.

 

Region 4AAAAA.   Barron has racked up more silver than found in your typical Nevada mine, with 2^nd place finishes at the Mohawk, the Raider Rumble (where he lost to Rivera 13-5), the Coal Mountain (where he lost to Sealy in the finals after beating Mullins in the semis) and the Crossbone Classic; he added some bronze for good measure, finishing 3^rd at Alexander.  He went 2-2 at the Gwinnett Center last year, and with some bracket luck, this likely Region Champ could wind up on the podium this time around.  Ivey (Hiram) was 6^th at the Southern Slam, 6^th at the Crossbone Classic and 5^th at Alexander, and he should be considered, along with Thomas of Mundy’s Mill (4^th at South Metro and 2-2 at State last year, as well), as the other possible finalist.

 

Region 5AAAAA.   This is an absolutely intriguing bracket, and I suspect there are two things we know about it:  First off, we know what we don’t know - - we have no idea how the bracket will play out and who will survive to move on to State; and second, we know that at least two wrestlers good enough to score points at State will have no chance to do so.  Hollis is a veteran State performer who has won gold at West Laurens, silver at Whitewater and bronze at Cobb County (where he lost to Stringer 5-4 and beat Sotres twice, by 5-2 counts each time, perhaps the most solid evidence that he ranks as the Region favorite ahead of Sotres.  The latter looks to be a very talented sophomore and part of an improving North Cobb squad; he was 1^st at the Mohawk, 3^rd at the Adairsville Tiger, 2^nd at Sequoyah (beating Rogers by pin), 4^th at Coal Mountain (losing to Mullins and Sealy) and 4^th in Cobb County (with those two close losses to Hollis and an 8-3 win over Whittenburg).   Rivera is a highly regarded frosh who, unfortunately, is required to go 145 in a Kell lineup that features Spice at 135 and Stringer at 140.  He scored his greatest success early, winning the Raider Rumble (beating Barron 13-5 in the finals), earning 4^th at the Stockbridge Tiger, 3^rd at the Dirty South and 1^st at Fayette County.  More recently, he was 3^rd at the Titan Cup and didn’t place in Cobb County, losing by pin to Lanham and Lesesne.  He’s lost to Stringer (5-1), Whittenburg (7-6) and Gibson (7-0) at this weight, which does not bode well for his making it out of this Region, but whether it is this year or next year, this is a wrestler to watch closely.  Whittenburg is a puzzle to us, but it seems like others in the Region may have caught up with him.  He has two pin wins over Gibson and that early season win over Rivera, coupled with a 6^th at McCallie and a 6^th at Cobb County, where he lost to Sotres 8-3 and was pinned very quickly by Lesesne, after beating him 14-6 earlier; Whittenburg could be highly underestimated here … or, if we are right, he will be in a dogfight for one of the last three qualifying spots behind Hollis.  Gibson doesn’t seem to have figured out Whittenburg, but he has figured out many others, judging by his 1^st at Murray County and 2^nd at the Dalton Carpet.  Then there is Aghai (McEachern KOH 140 – 4^th), who appears to be struggling to find the right weight.  He started the year at 160, with minimal success, then took 5^th at the Dirty South at 152.  Since then, he has failed to place in Cobb County (losing badly to Savransky and Watts), and we are not sure just where he will end up. 

 

Region 6AAAAA.   Lanham is the clear choice here, but Stringer isn’t all that far behind.  Stringer won the Region at 140 last year, and started this year off with a bang, taking 3^rd at the Rebel (where he beat George, among others).  He took 5^th at the Dirty South, losing both to Hanley 9-2 and Markley 2-1, but he has turned things around in January, including a 7-2 win over Sealy and a 2^nd in Cobb County where he lost to Lanham 8-4 but beat Hollis 5-4.  Hanley is a complete mystery to us.  He was 2^nd at the Knoxville Catholic at 152 and 1^st in Fulton County at that weight.  Then came a 3^rd at the Dirty South, where he pounded Stringer 9-2 and a 2^nd at Chattahoochee where he lost to Buck 8-5.  Since, he has lost to Sealy 2-1, thus adding to the confusion that is this bracket.  Sealy won most recently at the Coal Mountain, including victories over Barron and Sotres, complimenting his earlier 5^th at the Heart of Dixie and 4^th at the Battle of the Border (where George drilled him 15-2); he has beaten Hanley (2-1) and Markley (3-1) but lost to Stringer 7-2, suggesting that the seedings and matchups in this Region may play a critical role in its outcome.  Markley has been a vital cog in what has been, up to this point, the most successful Pope squad in its history.  Markley was 3^rd at Sequoyah, 5^th at Bradley Central, 2^nd at the Dirty South (beating Stringer 2-1), 8^th at the Wadsworth Grizz; he lost to George 3-0 at the Walton Duals, where he also clobbered Whittenburg, and, as previously noted, he has lost close to Sealy.  He will need to be totally healed from his recent injury to contend for a podium step.  And if that isn’t enough, there are others who could surprise, including the aforementioned Lesesne, 5^th in Cobb County (where he pinned both Rivera and Whittenburg), as well as Janas (Alpharetta), 2^nd at the Raider Rumble at 140.

 

Region 7AAAAA.   Knapp will not be challenged here, but the battle for the other finalist slot should be a good one.  Buck won at this weight at the Chattahoochee, beating Hanley 8-5 and Govatos 12-7, and he was 3^rd at the Sham Slam; however, his mid-January 15-0 loss to Knapp evidences a wide gap between the top wrestlers here.  J. Mullins was 3^rd at the Raider Rumble, where he beat Govatos 9-0, 2^nd at the Santa Slam, 4^th at Chattahoochee (where he was pinned by Hail but beat Govatos again 13-2), and 3^rd at the Coal Mountain, where he lost to Barron but beat Sotres.  And lest we forget, Mullins made it to the quarterfinals at State last year, where he lost to Maus, and came up one win short of the podium.  The final podium step should be the subject of a spirited battle among several wrestlers on relatively equal ranking footing, including Rogers (4^th at Sequoyah, 3^rd at Hewitt-Trussville and 5^th at Whitewater), Carter of Peachtree Ridge and Briend of North Forsyth.

 

Region 8AAAAA.   If Parkview is going to make a serious play for the top 10 this year, they will need solid point scoring from Hail, who looks to build on his 2007 State experience when he made the go-to-placement round, only to lose to Matyac 4-3.  This year, he has looked good across the Southeast, from Tennessee (3^rd at McCallie) to South Carolina (4^th at the Southern Slam), from Florida (6^th at the Zac Jarzynka) to Georgia (4^th in Gwinnett County, 3^rd at Chattahoochee and 3^rd at the Last Man Standing).  Given McClafferty here and the dearth of similar competition at 152, we could see a “Parkview Shuffle” upwards, with Hail relocating there to strengthen his State seed; at either weight, however, we see him on the cusp of a low placement.  Austin was 4^th at the Stockbridge Tiger, losing twice to Fultz, but he came back to win gold at the Lovejoy Wildcat.  He should do fine at this weight, as we have him well ahead of both Dunster (Grayson) and Beck (Central Gwinnett), the only other names on our list. 

 

 

152 LBS.

 

                        Projected Champion:   Condon (12), Harrison (160 – 1^st/Region Champ; ’06 152 – 1^st; ’05 145 – 5^th)

 

 2.        DeCormier (12), Kell (160 – sq)

 3.        B. Dukes (12), Hiram (152 – 6^th/Region Champ)

 4.        Tiller (11), Collins Hill (160 – sq; ’06 171 – 6^th)

 5.        Rioux (12), Centennial (145 – sq)

 6.        Rainey (12), Murray County (152)

 7.        Savransky (10), Pope (140 – sq)

 8.        Hagen (12), North Gwinnett (140 – sq)

 9.        Chamberlain (12), Lowndes (160 – sq)

10.        Beck (11), Camden County (152 – sq at Shiloh)

11.        D. Harris (12), Grayson (152 – sq) [or Goff (11)]

12.        L’Estrange (12), Roswell (152 – sq)

13.        Olson (12), Forsyth Central

14.        Josh Ertel (12), Etowah (’06 AAAA 119 – sq)

15.        Coyle (12), Brookwood (135)

16.        Barnwell (12), Warner Robins (152 – sq)

17.        Thompson (12), Valdosta (’05 135 – sq)

18.        Crowder (11), North Cobb

19.        Wymbs, Morrow (145 – sq)

20.        Browder (12), Houston County (145 – sq)

 

The View From 50,000 Feet:    

Finding the right visual to describe the best Georgia wrestling has to offer is not an easy task.  You may remember, perhaps, that we used the Stradivarius analogy last year in discussing Carrington Banks, and we offered up the Magic Johnson analogy in discussing Andy Olsen.  How, then, do you describe Josh Condon, who, when wrestling anyone other than royalty (you will recall that, in his freshman year, Condon lost twice at State to the Lord of Roswell (Pirmin Lord, to be exact) on his way to a 5^th place finish; I don’t know that he’s lost in Georgia since, including this year, when he really stoked the Georgia wrestling fires by winning the Ironman tournament, including a semifinals win over one of the top ranked 160 pound wrestlers in the country, Eric Cubberly of Ohio.  He was also 1^st at McCallie, 1^st at Whitewater and, after the drop to 152, 1^st in Cobb County; his lone loss this year was in the Powerade finals.  Barring a freak slam forfeiture or similar mishap, he will win this weight class easily and take home his 3^rd State gold, before traveling up the road a bit to wrestle for Coach Bono at UTC.  So, what is the right visual?   I suspect this descriptive quote, offered up by one Kyle Reese back before Condon was born, fits as well as any: 

 

Come with me if you wanna live! I'm here to help you. Listen and understand. That terminator is out there. It can't be bargained with, it can't be reasoned with. It doesn't feel pity, or remorse, or fear, and it absolutely will not stop. Ever. Until you are dead.   

I can’t say there is some concrete correlation between the fact that Condon is here and the fact that, on the whole, this is one of the weaker weight classes in AAAAA this year.  That wouldn’t make much sense, since Condon just recently dropped down from 160 to this weight.  And yet, the fact is that he is here and a lot of other good wrestlers are not.  I think that about says it all.  Well, that and the fact that I was talking to a security guard at the Gwinnett Center after last year’s finals, waiting for a print out of the final brackets, when Josh Condon walked by.  He stopped, looked around the grounds intently, waved to me (we’ve known each other since the Sunday mornings at the Fiacco dojo many years ago), then said “I’LL BE BAAAACK!” and left.  That’s my story and I’m sticking to it.

 

Region 1AAAAA.   There are five pretty good and pretty equal wrestlers here, which is the right formula for a very interesting Region tourney.  Chamberlain took 3^rd at the Hornet, the Rebel and the Battle of the Border, and he recently took home the gold at the Tift County.  He also beat Thompson 10-6 at Region Duals, a match that may be replayed in the Region finals, as Thompson has done very well for himself this year, including a 2^nd at the Rebel at 160 and a 3^rd at Tift County at this weight.  We don’t have much on Barnwell, but he did beat Thompson at State last year 11-3, which is a sizable difference to overcome in a year.  Hurst (Coffee) finished 4^th at the Rebel, but failed to place at the Valdosta Wildcat where he was defeated by Thompson.  Finally, there is Browder, who pinned Barnwell this year and showed much promise at State last year, beating Rogers of North Gwinnett 5-4 before losing by that same score to Helfrich of Roswell.  My sense is that Chamberlain should reach the finals, but the other name on the bout sheet could just as easily be Thompson, Barnwell, Hurst or Browder.

 

Region 2AAAAA.   It is probably not a good thing when you only have two names on your list for a Region, and one is hurt while the other is missing in action.  That, my friends, is what we have here.  Union Grove’s M. Smith (’05 135 – sq) seems to have been injured for most of the last three years; my only result for him was a “did not place” at the Stockbridge Tiger, where he did manage a pin win against Barnwell.  If his injury is healed, he should be the Region Champ.  Beyond that, we had expected MLK’s Gater (152 – sq) to be right in the thick of this battle, but we do not believe he is wrestling this year.

 

Region 3AAAAA.   Here’s what little we have:  Beck is a transfer from Shiloh, who, in typical Camden County stealth fashion, avoided our sophisticated detection systems until he popped on our screen with a resounding BLIP, winning gold at the Coastal Georgia Classic.  We don’t know where he’s been, but we do know that at State last year, he was majored by Perkowski of Walton 15-3 and, after a forfeit in the first consolation round, he was majored again by Burger of Parkview.  We suspect a similar fast exit is not in the cards this time around.  Bigelow (Jenkins) showed well, taking 3^rd at the Swainsboro Anders and 5^th at the Rebel.  Batts of Johnson-Savannah (152 – sq) is nowhere to be found.

 

Region 4AAAAA.   The smaller of the Dukes of Hiram had some mixed results at 160 (2^nd at Sequoyah, 1^st at the Battle of the Border where, interestingly, he beat Rioux 8-6 in the finals).  His first foray at 152 went poorly, as he was a distant 4^th at the Dirty South, losing to DeCormier 16-7 and to Savransky by pin in the third period.  Since then, however, he has been money, taking 1^st at Alexander and again at the Crossbone Classic.  He looks like a solid medal contender.  Wymbs caught a miserable draw at State last year, losing to our pick to win it all, Furr of McEachern, in the championship bracket, then getting former 3^rd placer Roberts of Groves in the first consolation round; needless to say, he was two and out.  This year, we know he was 6^th at the Fayette Christmas and lost in the final pre-placement round at the Stockbridge Tiger, where, significantly, he beat Turner, his rival here; he also went 2-2 at South Metro.  Turner (Mundy’s Mill 135 – sq) was 5^th at Whitewater and didn’t place at the Stockbridge Tiger, but while losing there to Wymbs, he did manage a win over M. Smith.

 

Region 5AAAAA.   Condon heads up a pretty deep weight class here, with Rainey probably second in line.  You may not be all that familiar with him, but check out his resume:  1^st at the Dalton Carpet, 1^st at Soddy Daisy, 2^nd at McCallie (losing to Lanham by pin in the finals), 1^st at Murray County.  Ertel was 4^th at Chattahoochee and a consolation finalist at the Last Man Standing, while Crowder, after dabbling at 160 with a 4^th at the Mohawk, has rattled off a string of nice placements, including 1^st at the Adairsville Tiger, 5^th at Sequoyah, 2^nd at Coal Mountain and 4^th in Cobb County.  (Crowder has lost to Ertel, 7-4, beaten Williams 6-4, and beaten Nelson in overtime; again, the scores in matches involving the contenders here look to be very close, suggesting that the results of this bracket may turn on the smallest of margins.)  Watts (South Cobb) was 2^nd at West Laurens, 6^th at Alexander, 7^th at Whitewater and 5^th in Cobb County; he has split with Williams, losing 19-7 then winning 7-6; he also lost to Ertel 12-6.  Frankly, Williams surprises me, as I had him pegged for a shot at the State podium early in the year.  He was 3^rd at the Raider Rumble, but since has missed placement at the Stockbridge Tiger, the Titan Cup and Cobb County (where he lost to both Crowder and Watts).  It could be a slump, it could be an injury, it could be a weight issue; whatever it is, if Williams intends on wrestling at the Gwinnett Center, he will need to turn it around/heal/get it under control quickly.  Also contending at this weight may be Del Rosso of Woodstock (4^th at Coal Mountain) and the freshman Nelson of Marietta.

 

Region 6AAAAA.   This is a nicely talented bunch, although the top four look to have distanced themselves from the rest.  DeCormier has wins over several of the top 152s, including Dukes (16-7 at the Dirty South, where he took 2^nd), Rioux (4-2 at Region Duals), Savransky (pin win in Cobb County, where he took 2^nd following a third period pin loss to Condon in what may have been a State finals match preview) and Crowder by pin; he also won the gold at the Rebel.  Rioux has been very solid, taking 2^nd at the Battle of the Border (losing 8-6 to Dukes in the finals), 3^rd at the Heart of Dixie, 2^nd at Chattahoochee, 1^st at the Coal Mountain (beating Crowder in the finals) and 1^st at North Metro.  He did have one bad day, however, where he lost 4-2 to Savransky and 4-2 to DeCormier, surrounding a pin loss to Lanham; we feel like that day was an aberration, and that Rioux will reverse at least one of those decisions this time around.  Savransky, a mere sophomore, has improved by leaps and bounds this year, to the point of being a serious contender for State placement honors.  He was 2^nd to Sheehy at Sequoyah, 3^rd at Bradley Central and the Dirty South (where he pinned Dukes), as well as in Cobb County (where he lost to DeCormier by pin but beat Watts 13-4, pinned Crowder and teched Aghai in an excellent showing); he will probably need to replicate his 4-2 win over Rioux at Region Duals to reach the finals here.  L’Estrange is a funkmeister who was 4^th at Sequoyah, 6^th at Chattahoochee and 4^th at the Titan Cup, where he pinned the Lovett wrestler who earlier had beaten Williams 11-0.  (I know, I know, remember to forget the transitive property of inequalities!)  We hear he may be hurt now, though, which could open the qualification door for a number of others, including Baker of Milton (3^rd in Fulton County), Paykagar of Chattahoochee (2^nd in Fulton County) and Chasez of Alpharetta (3^rd at the George Thompson). 

 

Region 7AAAAA.   Lots to choose from at this weight, starting with Tiller, who seems to be shrinking right before our very eyes (171 as a freshman, 160 as a sophomore, 152 as a junior this year).  He finished a solid 9^th at the Toshiba Midwest Classic, then came back home and won gold at 160 in Gwinnett County, where he has spent most of his time this year.  He lost very early in the year 16-6 to Condon in a match wrestled at 160.  Hagen, too, has been at 160 for most of the year, with moderate success, including a 4^th at Sequoyah, 4^th in Gwinnett County, 7^th at the Zac Jarzynka and 3^rd at Whitewater.  However, with Sheehy moving up to 160, the North Gwinnett brain trust apparently believes that Hagen probably has a better overall chance to place at State at this weight.  Olson was 3^rd at Chattahoochee, where he beat Ertel 11-6 and Bourne 12-4 but lost to Rioux 15-6; Voss (Mill Creek) was 5^th at that same tournament.  Connell (South Forsyth), 1^st at the Raider Rumble and 3^rd at the Santa Slam, and Bourne (North Forsyth) should also be in the mix, along with Gigolaev of Peachtree Ridge, who recently made the consolation finals at the Last Man Standing.

 

Region 8AAAAA.   As indicated previously, you may see Hail of Parkview show up here, given the lack of depth currently evidenced at this weight.  Coyle is probably the best of the current lot, having finished 4^th at Brookwood at 160, 4^th in Gwinnett County at 152 and 5^th at the Sham Slam at that latter weight.  Thomas (Shiloh 145 – alt) was 3^rd at the Lovejoy Wildcat.  We don’t know who the Grayson entrant will be, but D. Harris qualified for State at this weight last year (losing 4-3 to DeArron Jackson) while Goff was 3^rd at the Big Red Rumble.   If Hail is not at this weight (we still rank him at 145), Gaddy, Graham or Anderson (KOH 130 – 6^th) would be the Parkview entrant; Gaddy has beaten Goff 6-3 but lost to Coyle 9-3.  James of Meadowcreek may also be at this weight, although we have no results for that team. 

 

 

160 LBS.

 

                        Projected Champion:   Bradley Banks (12), Union Grove (160 – 3^rd/Region Champ)

 

 2.        Sheehy (12), North Gwinnett (152 – 2^nd/Region Champ; ’06 135 – 2^nd)

 3.        Genov (12), Sprayberry (152)

 4.        Matt Chapman (12), Peachtree Ridge (145)

 5.        Zimmerman (11), Kennesaw Mountain (160)

 6.        Parker (12), Collins Hill (KOH 140 – 1^st)

 7.        Bennett (12), Murray County (135 – sq)

 8.        Major (11), Groves (152 – sq)

 9.        Bess (11), Mundy’s Mill (152 – sq)

10.        Pinkerton (12), Kell [or Amend]

11.        Gilbert (9), Camden County

12.        Conway (12), Woodstock

13.        Tibbets, Tift County

14.        York (11), Harrison (KOH 135 – 4^th)

15.        Malone (10), Centennial

16.        Simmons (10), North Forsyth (140)

17.        Haskins (11), Lowndes (152 – sq/Region Champ)

18.        Braithwaite (12), Valdosta (160 – sq)

19.        Kennedy (11), Milton

20.        Costello (11), Wheeler (152)

 

The View From 50,000 Feet:    

You are well aware, I am sure, that every year, I face one bracket which gives me so much trouble that I seek  a life line to help sort things out.  In years’ past, it’s been “Plant Guy,” who was bringing me a new corn plant; he had a green thumb but a bad eye and was of little help.  Then, we had “Carpet Cleaning Guy,” who was great at cleaning carpet but not so great at assessing the ability of heavyweights across the State.  Finally, last year, I resorted to the infamous 8-Ball (Shake. Shake.  Shake.  “It will be very foggy today!”), which simply made things more hazy and offered little in the way of concrete help.  So here I sit, trying to analyze what is clearly one of the weakest overall weight classes in recent AAAAA memory (perhaps the aftermath of Condon the Terminator dwelling here for the bulk of the year?), and I am clueless.  But wait.  A longtime friend and colleague, who for purposes of this Report shall be known as “Big Daddy,” works with someone of Chinese descent who we fondly have nicknamed “the Geisha” (yes, we may be fifty-somethings but we are nothing if not juvenile!).  Maybe I can ask her for help; the Chinese have thousands of years of history thinking deep philosophical thoughts, and Sumo wrestling is pretty close to amateur wrestling, right?  Yeah, that’s it, the Geisha can help me out….  Hey, Geisha, any thoughts on this bracket?  “Ah, yes, it is a most interesting bracket.”  Wait a minute; you can’t fool me, that’s an old Chinese curse (generally thought to be “May you live in interesting times.”).  I don’t need any more curses; I have enough of those already.  I need help.  Please, Geisha, help me out.  “OK, look to the Tao for help.  If one must rule, rule young.”  Hey, that’s great, but the top four are all seniors, that doesn’t do much for me, now does it?  “When confused, use Confucianism to solve the riddle.  Rid of the two ends, take the middle.”  Oh, now that makes sense - - rule young; take the middle.  You want me to pick #11, Gilbert (as Larry Munson once said about Herschel Walker, “A freshman!  My god, a freshman!”), to win it all?????  Maybe some day, but not today.  This is getting me nowhere fast.  Geisha, please, pretty please, if you can’t give me total consciousness on my death bed (it would be great if I had that goin’ for me, which is nice), at least give me some basis for picking a winner, between Banks and Sheehy.   “I am going to leave you and go to that Happy Land.  Happy Land, Happy Land, where I will find my place….  And you can take that to the bank!”  Bank?  Banks?  Close enough.   The Geisha says we go with Banks, brother of four time State Champ Carrington, winner this year at the Stockbridge Tiger, the Valdosta Wildcat and the Metros, North and South, along with a solid 5^th at Brecksville (where he lost in the semis to a returning Ohio State Champ).  Sheehy is certainly not fried rice, having placed 3^rd at the NHSCA National Open this summer (where he beat Matyac 10-1 along the way), also earning gold medals at Sequoyah, Gwinnett County (beating Parker 8-0 in the finals), the Zac Jarzynka and Whitewater and a silver medal at Hewitt-Trussville.  It will likely be a match (hopefully competed in the finals) where one mistake may decide the outcome … and you can take that to the Banks!  Or, if you disagree with our pick, then feel free to go find the Geisha and tell her she is full of Sheehy!

 

Region 1AAAAA.   Three fairly equal talents lead the way in this Region.  Tibbets started the year strong, with a 2^nd at the Hornet and 5^th/6^th (5-match rule in effect) at the Stockbridge Tiger; more recently, he was 6^th at the Rebel.  Haskins was also 2^nd at the Hornet, up at 171 (where he lost to Dunn in the finals); he was 6^th at the Rebel, also at 171, losing to Braithwaite in the 5^th/6^th match, a result he later reversed with a 9-4 win at Region Duals.  After his 5^th at the Rebel at 171, Braithwaite was 2^nd at the War Eagle and made the semis at the Valdosta Wildcat, where he lost to Banks.  He looks to improve on his one win at State last year.  (We assume that the senior Grevette, 5^th at the Coastal Georgia Classic at this weight, has no place in the Valdosta lineup, given Braithwaite/Stokes/Scruggs at the next higher weight classes.)  Finally, Douglas (Houston County ’06 152 – sq) was 6^th at the Toomey.

 

Region 2AAAAA.   Banks is the man, with Lunn (Luella 160 – sq) looking for a return trip to better his 0-2 record at the Gwinnett Center; he failed to place in a very tough bracket at South Metro and was pinned by Zimmerman in his go-to-placement match at the Stockbridge Tiger.  Sutton (Redan) also was pinned by Zimmerman at the Stockbridge Tiger, but he did finish 5^th at the Fayette Christmas at 171 and 5^th in Dekalb County at this weight. 

 

Region 3AAAAA.   Major won at the Swainsboro Anders and the Toomey, and took 3^rd at both West Laurens and the Coastal Georgia Classic; he only lost to 5^th place State finisher B. Dukes 3-1 at State last year, suggesting he will be a factor at this weight this time around.  The freshman Gilbert is a new name to us, but we were amazed to learn that he had won his wrestle-off with the senior starter Thacker (3^rd at the Battle of the Border); we were even more amazed when he took 2^nd at the Coastal Georgia Classic, beating Major in the process.  Expecting a young frosh to be a Region finalist and ranked in the top 10 in any State bracket, weak or strong, is pretty heady stuff; we opted to rank Gilbert #11, just to minimize the pressure.  We have seen neither hide nor hare of King from Jenkins, last year’s Region Champ at this weight, so we assume he is doing something other than wrestling.

 

Region 4AAAAA.   Bess is the wrestler to beat, having made the semis at South Metro before losing to Banks and falling to 5^th.  At State last year, he beat Haskins by quick pin before falling to Sheehy in the 3^rd period.  The Paulding County entry, either Johnson (seeded 3^rd at this weight at the Crossbone) or Churchill (152 – sq), missing in action for most of the year, should also contend, along with Wilson (Hiram), who was 5^th at the Crossbone Classic.

 

Region 5AAAAA.   Zimmerman has been a varsity starter since he first hit the mats at Kennesaw Mountain, and this may be the year that he finally hits the podium … at Region or at State, or both.  He was 2^nd at the Raider Rumble, 4^th at the Stockbridge Tiger (pinning Lunn), 5^th at the Dirty South, 5^th at the Fayette Christmas, 3^rd at the Titan Cup and 2^nd in Cobb County.  At Region Duals, he lost 7-6 in overtime to Bennett, his main competition here.  Bennett reached the consolation finals at the Dalton Carpet, was 2^nd at Soddy Daisy, 5^th at McCallie (losing 16-2 to Chapman) and 2^nd at his home tournament.  Conway won the bronze medal at the Mohawk and, last month, took the gold at the Coal Mountain, beating Malone in the finals.  The Condon move to 152 has generated much speculation, centered in part on the issue of whether York, with little chance to place at 152, might backdoor more points at this weight class.  If so, the experiment has been a success to date, as York beat Malone 10-5 at Region Duals and lost to Tiller by only two points.  Mahlabe (South Cobb) won 6^th at Alexander, 7^th at Whitewater and 4^th in Cobb County (including a pin win over Lancaster), and he looks to be a likely qualifier if one of the top four stumbles.  Lancaster (Marietta) was 6^th at Sequoyah (losing to Costello 5-1) and failed to place in Cobb County, being pinned by Costello and by Mahlabe.  The McEachern entry at this weight is a mystery to me, either Heidelberg (KOH 145 – 2^nd) or Horan (KOH 152 – 1^st); neither has had much success this year, as far as we know, although Horan did beat Costello 11-5 in Cobb County.

 

Region 6AAAAA.   If Genov is even close to being 100%, he should dominate this Region, much like he did at Sequoyah, where he won the gold with a 16-5 win over B. Dukes.  He has had some odd results, though, such as his 6^th in Cobb County (forfeiting after a loss in the semis), along with several other injury defaults.  We rank him based on the assumption he returns in good health; if not, all bets are off.  The Kell entry is probably Pinkerton, who was 4^th at the Rebel (losing to Chamberlain), 4^th at the Dirty South (beating Bandoly 7-4),  although Amend wore the burnt orange at Cobb County, finishing 3^rd and losing to Genov 3-2.  And where is Lassiter’s Dupree, who beat Genov 9-4 in the finals of the Knoxville Catholic in late November but has not been heard from since the middle of December?  (We have acted on the belief that Dupree is out, leaving Dopson to wrestle instead; he had a 6^th at Whitewater but did not place in Cobb County, losing 3-1 to Bandoly and 10-1 to Horan, suggesting that placement here is a long shot.)  Malone started the year off right, finishing 171 – 3^rd at the NHSCA National Open Middle School tourney this past summer.  He was 7^th at the Heart of Dixie in Alabama, 2^nd to Conway at the Coal Mountain (where he majored Simmons) and 3^rd at the Crossbone Classic.  Kennedy finished 3^rd in Fulton County at 189, but then dropped to this weight, where he took 5^th at Chattahoochee (losing 7-4 to Simmons); he also beat Genov 6-4 at Region Duals, a very curious result to us.  Costello was 5^th at Sequoyah, beating Bandoly 5-3 in the process (reversing an earlier 7-2 loss), but he failed to place in Cobb County, where he lost 11-5 to Horan after pinning Lancaster.  Bandoly is probably an equal bet with Kennedy and Costello, having placed 6^th at the Dirty South and having split two close matches with Costello; he has also pinned Horan and lost to Pinkerton 7-1.  Jacob (Alpharetta) was 2^nd in Fulton County, losing in the finals by pin to Cave of Roswell, also at this weight.  Blank of Northview got off to a good start, taking 3^rd at the Raider Rumble, but got sidetracked by some extracurricular activities and had not been seen in a good while. 

 

Region 7AAAAA.   Sheehy should come out on top, although Chapman has been coming on strong as the year progressed.  He was 3^rd at McCallie, where he beat Bennett 16-2, and 2^nd in Gwinnett County, losing 5-1 to Tiller in the finals.  Chapman won gold at the Chattahoochee (beating Simmons by fall in the finals) and also at the Last Man Standing.  Parker is one of the feel-good stories of the year, as the senior (and younger brother of 4-time State Champ Tyler, now wrestling at Stanford), gets his chance for State placement … albeit as a 140 pounder wrestling 160.  He was 2^nd to Sheehy at 152 in Gwinnett County, losing 8-0 in the finals, so expecting a Region crown may be a bit much, but a solid 3^rd at this weight and a trip up the street to the Gwinnett Center, where he can gobble up points for the Eagles in the State tournament, would be a fine end to the story.  Simmons, just a sophomore, was 3^rd at the Santa Slam, 3^rd at Chattahoochee and 3^rd at the Coal Mountain; by our count, he has beat Pittman at least three times, as well as Tinsley (7-4 at Chattahoochee).  Tinsley (Forsyth Central), another sophomore, was 4^th at the Battle of the Border and at Chattahoochee, while Pittman (South Forsyth) was 4^th at the Santa Slam at 171, 6^th at Chattahoochee at this weight and 4^th at Coal Mountain.  Assuming he goes here, look for Goebel (4^th at the Raider Rumble), to be South Forsyth’s 171.   Gasaway of Mill Creek should also contend. 

 

Region 8AAAAA.   An atypically weak bracket for this Region, headed up by Smith of Brookwood (6^th at the Sham Slam), Whitworth of Parkview (consolation finalist at the Last Man Standing) and Ballesteros of Grayson (3^rd at the Big Red Rumble at 171, 4^th at the Crossbone Classic at this weight. 

 

 

 

171 LBS.

 

                        Projected Champion:   Nick Smith (12), Collins Hill (171 – 3^rd/Region Champ; ’06 160 – 5^th)

 

 2.        Dunn (12), Tift County (171 – 5^th/Region Champ; ’06 171 – 5^th)

 3.        Roberts (11), Union Grove (145 – 2^nd/Region Champ)

 4.        J. Olsen (11), Walton (145 – 5^th/Region Champ; ’06 125 – 4^th)

 5.        Baggett (12), Murray County (160 – sq; ’06 AAAA 171 – 5^th)

 6.        Sills (12), Centennial (171 – sq)

 7.        Reffett (12), North Gwinnett (160 – sq)

 8.        Pressley, Morrow (171 – sq)

 9.        Merfert (11), Shiloh

10.        Tillery (12), Forsyth Central (160 – sq)

11.        Brooks (12), Colquitt County (152 – sq)

12.        Godhigh, Harrison

13.        J. Richardson (12), South Cobb

14.        Kennedy (10), North Forsyth (171 – sq)

15.        Rounsaville (12), Kennesaw Mountain (189)

16.        Johnson (10), Lowndes (171 – sq)

17.        Taylor (11), Camden County (171 – sq)

18.        Stokes (11), Valdosta (171 – sq)

19.        Johnson (10), Parkview (KOH 160 – 3^rd)

20.        Griffin (10), Lassiter

 

The View From 50,000 Feet:    

[Note:  This one’s for .TheWB, the Claude “Thunderbolt” Patterson of our gang ‘o five.  The Bad Man from Watts.  (Well, more like the Bad Man from Tipp City, but some know TC as “the Watts of Central Ohio”.)  “The man’s threat and the woman’s pet.” ]  Sometimes, when I’m dealing with a weight class like 171, where you have four outstanding competitors of relatively equal ability but strikingly different body sizes and styles, it helps me to go back to my roots - - professional wrestling in the 1960s, 1970s and early 1980s.  I know that period like the back of my hand, and by matching up today’s top four with professional wrestlers of my era, I can get a much better view of the “comparables” and figure out what might happen in AAAAA’s version of a “Steel Cage” match (maybe, if we’re lucky, it will be the iteration known as the “Hell in a Cell” match).  Here, let me show you how it’s done:  We have Jeff Olsen, who reminds me quite vividly of a taller, lankier version of 6-time World Heavyweight Champion Lou Thesz, “the man of a thousand holds.”  (Come on, tell me you don’t remember “the powerbomb”?!?!)  Olsen is long, and solid on defense, which can come in very handy in a “Texas Bull Rope” match, but where he really excels is on the offense side of a match; he can attack from anywhere and, with extensive youth experience at the national level (two-time WUSA triple crown winner), his offense can take control of a match, as is evident from his results this year, mostly at 189 pounds:  1^st at McCallie, 2^nd to Jordan Dukes at the Dirty South (which probably convinced many that Olsen would be better off at 171, a relatively easy cut for him), 1^st in Cobb County.  Next, you have Roberts, clearly the Tommy “Wildfire” Rich of this group - - the youngest Champion in the history of the NWA, known for his exciting style and excitable temperament, which always came in handy in a “No Disqualification” match.  Roberts burst on the scene last year, winning a series of close matches (10-8 over Rioux in the second round, 2-1 over West in the quarters - - notably, West later beat Olsen, 3-1, in the consolation semis - - and 9-8 over McClafferty in the semis) to reach the finals, where, like many before him, he was bombed out (powerbombed?) quickly by Jesse (the Body) Miller (I just made up the nickname, but it really does fit, doesn’t it?).  Roberts brings a lot of energy and effort to each match, and the results bear that out:  2^nd at the South Metro and the Stockbridge Tiger (where he lost to Dunn 7-5 in overtime in the finals), 5^th at Brecksville (where he managed to go the distance with Ohio uberfrosh sensation Chris Phillips, who, as Brian Brakeman pointed out in his Report, beat three nationally ranked wrestlers, from St. Eds, Blair and St. Paris Graham, in the same Ironman tournament, without giving up a takedown!!!), 2^nd at the Valdosta Wildcat (where he again lost to Dunn, this time by a 6-5 score after jumping out to an early 5-0 lead - - perhaps he snuck up on Dunn from behind and “Pearl Harbored” him before the referee blew the whistle?) and 1^st at North Metro (beating Sills in the finals).  Dunn is a brick, clearly Stan “the Man” Hansen, the “Bad Man from Borger, Texas,” who used an impenetrable defense to control his matches and, ultimately, his signature move, known as “the Lariat,” to take out his opposition.  A two-time placer in two extremely competitive brackets (of note last year was his 13-3 win over Sills and his pin loss to Smith), Dunn has excelled once again this year, and we like his chances in any kind of “Lumberjack” (or sometimes called a “Bunkhouse”) match:  1^st at the Hornet, 2^nd at the Rebel, 1^st at the Stockbridge Tiger and the Valdosta Wildcat (beating Roberts in the finals both times), 1^st at Tift County.  And then you have N. Smith, our version of Mr. Wrestling II, perhaps the greatest professional wrestler never to win the Heavyweight Championship; the total package (before Lex Lugar stole that description), “Two” (as his friends called him) had it all, the defense to slow down a match, the patience to wait for the right time to strike, and, of course, the signature move to snatch victory at the last moment (the “Bionic Knee Lift”).  Smith wrestles much the same way; he can win high scoring matches (15-8 over Baggett at State Duals, for example) or he can win matches that are wrestled at a more physical, slower pace (e.g., 5-3 and 3-1 wins over J. Dukes at State last year), not to mention his total dominance in any type of “Parking Lot Brawl” match.  Smith used a 4^th at the NHSCA National Open to jumpstart his year, and has continued with outstanding efforts at the Toshiba Midwest Classic (4^th) and Gwinnett County (1^st at 189); he’s pinned Reffett, beaten Tillery 19-4 and, as noted above, beat Baggett 15-8, defining perhaps the size of the gap between the top four here and the rest.  So, when the final whistle is blown (the cardinal rule in any specialty wrestling match, as you surely know, is “there must be a winner”), who wins this AAAAA “Loser Leaves Town” extravaganza?  Lou Thesz?  Tommy “Wildfire” Rich?  Stan “the Man” Hansen?  Mr. Wrestling II?  Well, perhaps Mr. Wrestling II said it best himself, on the eve of his titanic battle with Tim Woods, known as Mr. Wrestling I (we’ll leave for another day the question of why someone would become a masked wrestler when everyone already knew who he was).  When asked by ring commentator Gordon Solie who was going to win the match, Mr. Wrestling II shook his fist, sneered and uttered these immortal words:  “There’s only room for one Mr. Wrestling, and that’s Mr. Wrestling II.”  And that’ll do it for this week from the Peach State of Georgia…..

 

Region 1AAAAA.   Dunn should have his way with this Region again, but the depth here goes at least four deep.  Brooks was 4^th at the Hornet, and while he didn’t place at the Valdosta Wildcat (losing in the go-to-placement round), he did beat both Johnson and Stokes, his two closest rivals here.  Johnson took 3^rd at the Hornet at 189, and looks to improve on this 1-2 record at State last year.  He came up short at the Dirty South, losing to Rounsaville and Abraham, and also missed placement at the Valdosta Wildcat when he lost to Brooks and Dunn (presumably the wrestlers, not the country singers).  He did beat Stokes, though, 7-1 at Region Duals.  Stokes managed to place 4^th at the Valdosta Wildcat, although losing to Brooks; he also placed 4^th at the Coastal Georgia Classic.

 

Region 2AAAAA.   Roberts leads the pack, with MLK’s Bumbry (3^rd in Dekalb County, one match from placing at the Stockbridge Tiger, where Dunn teched him) next in line.  The Newton County entrant, either Moore (4^th at the Red Skin Rumble) or Hines (strong showings at the Stockbridge tiger and South Metro), should contend, as should Ransom of Lithonia.

 

Region 3AAAAA.   With Scott moving up to 189, the door is wide open here for somewhat of an unknown to wear the Region crown.  Taylor, a State qualifier last year as a sophomore, was 3^rd at the Coastal Georgia Classic, where he beat Stokes in the consolation finals, while Lark (Johnson-Savannah 171 – sq) was 5^th at the Toomey and looks to improve on his one win at State last year.  We have not seen State qualifier J. Hutcherson of Windsor Forest this year, so we don’t know whether to expect him, at this weight or even at this Region.  And, we don’t know whether Groves’ very good 189, Taylor (3^rd at the Swainsboro Anders, 6^th at the Coastal Georgia Classic), can drop down to 171 on fairly short notice.

 

Region 4AAAAA.   Pressley lost his go-to-placement match at the South Metro, but has done extremely well ever since, taking 3^rd at the Fayette Christmas and 3^rd at the Lovejoy Wildcat, where he beat Gwinnett County Champ Merfert in the consolation finals.  Those credentials should be sufficient here, although the East Coweta veteran Talley (171 – sq last year) would threaten if he is wrestling here (we have no results for him this year, although we noted he was a 5^th seed at the Stockbridge Tiger).  Willis (Paulding County 171 – sq) hopes to return to State and improve on his 0-2 record last year.

 

Region 5AAAAA.   Baggett has had an impressive run this year, taking 2^nd at the Dalton Carpet, 4^th at McCallie and the gold medal at his home tournament.  If anyone is going to crash the “Battle Royale” likely to be staged by the top four described above, he is probably the one.  Godhigh (4^th in Cobb County) is a bruiser (8-3 loss to Smith at State Duals is probably your best evidence of that), and we assume he will be in the Hoya lineup, rather than Craig (2^nd at Whitewater) or Huddleston.  Richardson was 2^nd at West Laurens, while Rounsaville was 3^rd at the Raider Rumble, and both are dangerous foes here.  Wester (McEachern KOH 189 – 1^st) is the wildcard in this deck of wrestlers.  He was 5^th in Cobb County and 4^th at the Dirty South, and it would come as no surprise to see him standing on the podium at the end of the day.  (With Parker inserted in the Indians’ lineup at 215 and Malandro dropping to 189, we assume this means we won’t be seeing Z. Smith (KOH 171 – 1^st) at this weight.)  Marietta’s Fiore (160 – sq) was 2^nd at Sequoyah, 3^rd at Rockmart and 4^th at the Last Man Standing, and he, too, could earn a return trip to the Gwinnett Center in this very evenly matched bracket; Richardson has beaten him (8-4 in early December), but he pinned Rounsaville that same day.  Baitcher (Woodstock), 3^rd at the Coal Mountain, and Armandarez (North Cobb), 2^nd at the Adairsville Tiger and 6^th at Sequoyah, also bear watching. 

 

Region 6AAAAA.   Olsen sets the bar here, although Sills should make a difficult finals opponent.  He was 3^rd at the Heart of Dixie, 2^nd at Chattahoochee, 1^st at the Coal Mountain (beating Kennedy in the finals) and 2^nd to Roberts at North Metro; he has a good shot at a low place, but his results at State last year, including losses to Smith, 8-4, and Dunn, 13-3, call into question his chances of reaching the highest steps on the podium.  Griffin, only a sophomore, is probably a year away from mounting a serious challenge for State placement, but he was 5^th at the Knoxville Catholic, the Dirty South and Whitewater, plus 3^rd in Cobb County, and should make it out of this Region in good stead and get a “feel” for what it is like to compete at State.  Abraham (Kell) looks to have the inside track on the last qualification spot, judging by his 4^th at the Rebel and 6^th in Cobb County; he has beaten Fiore and Richardson, among others, and should fend off challenges from the likes of Hady (Chattahoochee), 2^nd at the Raider Rumble, 4^th at Coal Mountain; Monroe (Alpharetta), 2^nd in Fulton County, 4^th at the George Thompson; Masci (Pope), 5^th at Sequoyah and Bradley Central; and Schaub (Milton), 3^rd in Fulton County, 6^th at Chattahoochee.  Platt, the Northview wrestler who was 2^nd at the Raider Rumble but engaged in some unfortunate extracurricular activities, has not been heard from since, and I assume he is done for the year.

 

Region 7AAAAA.   Smith should have little problem in taking the Region gold, but the rest of this bracket is a high level mystery to us.  Reffett was 1^st at Sequoyah, pinning Fiore in the finals, then lost to Merfert 5-1 in the Gwinnett County finals.  He rebounded with a 3^rd at Hewitt-Trussville and a 4^th at the Zac Jarzynka, and ended with a gold medal performance at Whitewater; he looks to be second in command in this bracket.  Tillery wrestled close with Baggett at State last year, losing by a 6-2 tally, and he hopes to get a chance at revenge this year; given his 3^rd at Chattahoochee (losing to Sills 7-4) and his 5^th at the Sham Slam, he may get his chance.  Kennedy, only a sophomore, won the title at the Santa Slam and was 2^nd to Sills at the Coal Mountain.  He has had some odd “off” performances (losing to Whitfield and Caputo at Chattahoochee, for example), but we chalk that off more to a sophomore’s inexperience and expect him a different result should they meet again.  The aforementioned Caputo (Mill Creek), 5^th at Chattahoochee, and Whitfield (Peachtree Ridge) should also challenge; Caputo has beaten Whitfield by pin and 17-5, making the former more likely to contend than the latter.

 

Region 8AAAAA.   I have no clue what to make of Merfert.  He was money at Gwinnett County, winning gold with his 5-1 victory over Reffett; he was more like pocket change at the Lovejoy Wildcat, where he finished 4^th, losing to Pressley in the consolation finals.  Which Merfert shows up here?  Your guess is as good as mine.  Parkview’s Johnson has quietly and steadily built up a fine body of work, taking 5^th at the Southern Slam and at McCallie at 189, before dropping down to this weight.  He beat Smith of Brookwood 9-1 and King of Grayson 20-7 at Region Duals, suggesting he is very comfortable at the lower weight, and should show well here.  Manson (South Gwinnett), 4^th at Brookwood and 3^rd in Gwinnett County, as well as Roman (Brookwood), 4^th in Gwinnett County (losing by pin to Manson in the consolation finals), look to be the best of the rest, as we understand that Mathews of Central Gwinnett (3^rd at the Adairsville Tiger) is done for the year.

 

 

 

189 LBS.

 

                        Projected Champion:   Jordan Dukes (12), Hiram (171 – 4^th/Region Champ; ’06 AAAA 171 – 1^st; ’05 AAAA 152 – 2^nd)

 

 2.        Scruggs (11), Valdosta (189 – sq)

 3.        Scott (12), Groves (171 – sq/Region Champ)

 4.        Malandro (12), McEachern (KOH 215 – 2^nd)

 5.        C.J. Collins (11), Collins Hill (KOH 171 – 4^th)

 6.        Bodiford (12), Union Grove (189 – sq/Region Champ)

 7.        J. Shoemaker (12), Murray County (189)

 8.        Rowlands (11), Paulding County (189 – sq)

 9.        Hughes (12), Kell (171)

10.        Shubert (12), Harrison (171 – sq)

11.        Kuntz (11), Peachtree Ridge (152 – sq)

12.        McFall (12), Parkview (KOH 171 – 2^nd)

13.        Byerly (12), Chattahoochee (215 – sq)

14.        P. Ardilla (11), South Gwinnett (160 – sq)

15.        Simmons (12), Camden County

16.        Yurk (12), Grayson

17.        Jake Ertel (12), Etowah (189)

18.        Veal (12), Wheeler (189)

19.        Hajiric (12), Central Gwinnett

20.        Hasty, Tift County

 

The View From 50,000 Feet:    

First Aristotle, in ancient Greece, and then Galileo, many centuries later, suggested that “nature abhors a vacuum”; when air leaves a space, then something else (water, in the case of the lever-operated water pump developed by Galileo) will take its place.  We can apply that concept to the 189 pound bracket, as well.  First, we had the “vacuum”, created by all the wrestlers leaving 189, perhaps incentivized to do so by the stellar performance of one Jordan Dukes:  7^th at the NHSCA National Open (he forfeited once he reached the medal rounds).  7^th again at the Super 32.  1^st at the Southern Slam.  1^st at Sequoyah.  1^st at the Battle of the Border, where he beat Scruggs 2-1 in the finals what may have been a preview of coming attractions.  1^st at the Dirty South, beating Olsen 5-1 in the finals.  1^st at Alexander.  1^st at the Crossbone Classic.  Glub.  Glub.  Glub.  Out goes the air.  But then, as nature suggests will always occur, once wrestlers saw the contender vacuum existing at 189, they appear to have re-entered the picture, in effect filling the vacuum (Scott, who has spent virtually the entire year at 171, being perhaps the most visible example).  In any event, while 189 is by no means a bastion of wrestling talent, it still offers up a solid bevy of challengers to duke it out with Dukes, as it were.  Please read on, to learn more about them. 

 

Region 1AAAAA.   Scruggs is a hammer, and he, perhaps more than anyone else, poses the biggest threat to Dukes.  He started the year off at 215, where he beat Floyd (6-5) and was 6^th at the Rebel.  After dropping down to this weight, however, and after his 2^nd at the Battle of the Border where he lost to Dukes 2-1 in the title match, he has been unstoppable - - 1^st at the War Eagle, 1^st at the Valdosta Wildcat (where he beat Hasty early on) and 1^st at the Coastal Georgia Classic.  He should roll through this bracket, although Hasty (5^th at the Stockbridge Tiger and 4^th at the Valdosta Wildcat) will not be easy.  Carter (Houston County), 5^th at the Dirty South and 2^nd at the Toomey, and Miller (Coffee) are others to watch.  We had anticipated seeing either Dillard (189 – sq) or Delapaz for Tift County, but with Hasty on board, we are not sure on their status.

 

Region 2AAAAA.   Bodiford was 2^nd at the South Metro, 4^th at the Stockbridge Tiger and 3^rd at North Metro, where he beat McFall in the consolation finals.  That should be more than enough to repeat as Region Champ here.  White (Luella) as showed well at the South Atlanta tournaments (South Metro and Stockbridge Tiger) and hopes to earn a repeat trip to the Gwinnett Center.

 

Region 3AAAAA.   Scott was highly ranked at 171, having won gold medals at the Swainsboro Anders, West Laurens and the Coastal Georgia Classic.  However, his 14-6 loss to Nick Smith in late January, combined with the vacuum effect here, apparently has led to his moving up.  We have no comparables for him here, but we do note that at State last year, Scott lost to Dukes by a margin of 7-3 in the go-to-placement round.  Simmons was 6^th at the Zac Jarzynka and 3^rd at the Coastal Georgia Classic, which probably makes him the second favorite here.  Beyond that, we can’t leave this Region without wishing the best of luck and success to Chris Wall, Camden County’s State runner-up at this weight last year as a junior; it would have been a pleasure to watch you at the Gwinnett Center one last time.

 

Region 4AAAAA.   Dukes should have little worry here, as he has beaten his main rival, Rowlands, by pin and by tech in their last two meetings.  Still, Rowlands was 3^rd at the Mohawk, gold medalist at the Raider Rumble, 2^nd to Dukes at Alexander and again at the Crossbone Classic, and titlist at the Coal Mountain (beating Byerly in the finals).  We fully expect him to surpass his one win at State last year, several times over.

 

Region 5AAAAA.   Malandro has been one of the few bright spots for the Indians.  He started the year at 215, where he won the Dirty South, but with the return of Parker to 215, he dropped down to this weight, where he won gold in Cobb County (beating Hughes in the finals 5-3).  J. Shoemaker is another of the excellent Murray County wrestlers you may not have heard much about yet, but you will.  He was 2^nd at the Dalton Carpet, in his best outing of the year, and we expect a dogfight between him and Shubert, another Hoya serving as our baseline for this weight.  He was 6^th at McCallie, 2^nd at Whitewater and 4^th in Cobb County, and for comparative purposes, we note the following:  Shubert lost to C.J. Collins, 6-2 and 7-3; he lost to Kuntz pin-2; he lost to Hughes 3-2; and he was pinned by Brooks, in somewhat of a surprise result to us.  Still, these are probably your top three, with the final podium spot up for grabs, in a fight to be contested by several worthy adversaries:  Jake Ertel, 2^nd to Dukes at Sequoyah (losing 12-3, but pinning Brooks along the way), 6^th at Chattahoochee (losing to Byerly 10-8) and 4^th at the Last Man Standing (losing to Kuntz); Brooks, of Marietta, 5^th at Sequoyah, 3^rd at Rockmart and 3^rd in Cobb County; and Ilitzky of Kennesaw Mountain, who we expected great things from but haven’t seen since early in the season.

 

Region 6AAAAA.   This Region is loaded with a number of relatively equal competitors, so, to us at least, the four qualification spots are wide open.  Hughes is our highest ranked wrestler, based on his 3^rd at the Rebel, 4^th at the Dirty South (where he lost to Dukes 12-2) and 2^nd in Cobb County (where he lost to Malandro 5-3 but beat Shubert 3-2).  Byerly, a State qualifier at 215 last year, where he won two bouts, was 3^rd at the Raider Rumble at 215, 2^nd at the Santa Slam and Chattahoochee at this weight (losing to Kuntz 6-3 and beating Ertel 10-8) and 2^nd at the Coal Mountain (losing to Roland in the finals and pinning Covert).  Veal had a great December, finishing 4^th at Sequoyah (pinning Brooks but losing by pin to Dukes) and 2^nd at Brookwood; however, we have not heard from him since, and he may in fact be out, which should open the door for Covert (Centennial), 3^rd at Chattahoochee and at the Coal Mountain; Griffen (Pope), 5^th in Cobb County; Tillitski (Milton) and Ogene (Sprayberry), 6^th in Cobb County, among others. 

 

Region 7AAAAA.   We keep staring at the ranking and wondering how we can list Collins that high.  But then, we look at his scores and the reason is obvious:  He has wins over Shubert (6-2 and 7-3), Kuntz (4-2), Bodiford (4-2) and Shoemaker (4-2), all top 11 ranked in this weight.  So, while we are not overly confident, especially considering Collins’ injury at the Toshiba Midwest Classic, his overall 30-14 record, and the closeness of all the wins noted above, he does find a way to get the job done, and until he proves otherwise, we will assume he will continue to do so.  If he does slip up, the most likely cause will be Kuntz, 3^rd at McCallie (where he pinned Shubert), 1^st at Chattahoochee (where he beat Byerly in the finals 6-3) and 3^rd at the Last Man Standing.  Wilson (North Forsyth), 3^rd at the Santa Slam at 215 and 4^th at Chattahoochee, as well as Roberts (North Gwinnett), 6^th at Whitewater, Esbeck (Forsyth Central) and Barnard (South Forsyth), 4^th at the Santa Slam, 3^rd at the Raider Rumble and 4^th at the Coal Mountain, should also be in the mix. 

 

Region 8AAAAA.   McFall was reasonably successful at 215, finishing 4^th at the Southern Slam, 2^nd in Gwinnett County, 3^rd at the Zac Jarzynka and 6^th at Chattahoochee.  Since his drop to 189, however, he won gold at the Last Man Standing, pinned both Yurk and Roman of Brookwood at Region Duals, and took 4^th at North Metro, losing to Bodiford in the consolation finals.  He looks like a wrestler who is comfortable at this weight, and we see him winning the Region crown, probably over Ardilla (3^rd at Brookwood and Gwinnett County, 5^th at the Sham Slam) or Yurk (2^nd at the Big Red Rumble, 4^th in Gwinnett County, losing 2-1 and 3-1 to Ardilla but defeating Kuntz 5-3, 5^th at Hoover and 6^th at the Crossbone Classic).  Hajiric, 2^nd at the Adairsville Tiger, should grab the final qualification slot. 

 

 

 

 215 LBS.

 

                        Projected Champion:   Farris (12), Parkview (285 – 2^nd)

 

 2.        Flavin (12), East Coweta (189 – 3^rd/Region Champ)

 3.        Parker (12), McEachern (285 – sq/Region Champ)

 4.        Floyd (12), Harrison (215 – sq)

 5.        Smith (12), Berkmar (215 – sq)

 6.        W. Collins (12), Collins Hill (189 – sq)

 7.        Slattery (12), South Forsyth (215 – sq/Region Champ)

 8.        Beal (12), Hiram (215 – sq)

 9.        Becker (12), Centennial (215 – sq)

10.        Robertson (11), Camden County (215 – sq/Region Champ)

11.        Hodge (11), Kell

12.        Buck (12), Northview (215)

13.        Nilson (12), Brookwood (285 – sq)

14.        Greer, Duluth

15.        Laury (12), Kennesaw Mountain

16.        Walker (12), Lassiter

17.        Thornbury/Goforth, Murray County

18.        Freeman, Mundy’s Mill

19.        Abrams, Stephenson

20.        Wade (11), South Cobb

 

The View From 50,000 Feet:    

Jack Dempsey is generally credited with as the source of the oft-quoted sports saying, “A good big man will beat a good little man every time.”  Legend has it that he made the statement in 1921, after watching the then-European heavyweight champ, Georges Carpentier, prior to what became, at that time, the largest live gate for a boxing match in the sport’s history.  Whether it is true or not, it would seem to have some logic, in that, where two boxers are equal in all other aspects, the fact that one is much larger than the other would seem to make a difference.  Of course, the fallacy is in how you structure the question:  it is quite rare for two fighters to be so equal in all other areas that the only difference is in their size.  So, instead, the big man/little man logic generally is used when by prognosticators when they can’t think of some other reason to choose on fighter over another.  After more than 35 hours preparing this Report, when things start to jumble just a bit and I start to wonder how many times one man can type “3^rd at the Last Man Standing,” deciding who will win between two excellent 215s becomes an overwhelming in the absence of some simple way to choose between the two; in this case, that simply methodology is “good big man v. good little man.”  Playing the role of the good big man is Farris, 2^nd at 285 last year and rolling along at breakneck speed this season:  1^st at McCallie, 5th at the Zac Jarzynka, 1^st at the Chattahoochee and 1^st at North Metro, all at 285, as well as 1^st at the Last Man Standing at 215 (when Flavin forfeited in the finals due to an injury.  He is agile and athletic and very tough for any 215 (or 285, for that matter), to handle.  Flavin is an incredible talent, as was evident when he finished 4^th at the NHSCA National Open.  He has been 1^st at the South Metro and the Stockbridge Tiger, along with 2^nd at the Fayette Christmas, the Granger and the Last Man Standing (the latter two finals lost by forfeit).  He has the funk to confound Farris and the skill set to pull off the upset, but at the end of the day, his loss last year in the semis to Wall, his rash of injuries this year, and the fact that Farris looks to be a bigger version of Flavin, combine to cause us to cast our lot with the big man in this case.  This is not a two-man bracket, by any means, so here are some others to watch out for:

 

Region 1AAAAA.   With returning Region Champ Mizell of Coffee not wrestling this year, this bracket is wide open.  Cruz (Colquitt County) was 3^rd at the Hornet and missed placement at the Valdosta Wildcat by one match.  He beat Lewis (Valdosta) at that tournament and should do so again here.  Richardson, Mizell’s replacement this year, was 2^nd at the Hornet but lost to Lewis at Valdosta.  Not much to go on, but it’s the best we can do.

 

Region 2AAAAA.   Abrams was 2^nd at the Lovejoy Wildcat, while Amancio (Newton County) was 4^th at the Red Skin Rumble.  Beyond those two, Hunt (Union Grove) scored several pins at Region Duals and must be factored in to the mix, as well.

 

Region 3AAAAA.   Robertson won this Region at this weight last year and is a heavy favorite to do so again; he was 4^th at the Battle of the Border and most recently 2^nd to AAAA State Champ Paz at the Coastal Georgia Classic.  Wade (Groves) was 4^th at the Toomey and 3^rd at the Coastal Georgia Classic, which probably boosts him above Michaels (Johnson-Savannah), who finished 6^th at the latter.  We have no data on Davis, State qualifier from Jenkins last year, so we assume he is not available for this tournament.

 

Region 4AAAAA.   Flavin is obviously the clear choice here, but we have been highly impressed with Beal, 1^st at the Southern Slam, 2^nd at Sequoyah, and gold medalist at Alexander, where he beat the same Paz who beat Robertson; he was also 2^nd at the Crossbone Classic.  We had high hopes for Dale of Paulding County, but after a smattering of early results, we have not heard from him, so we don’t know whether he is in or out.  Freeman took 6^th in a pretty tough field at the Stockbridge Tiger and later was 8^th at Whitewater.

 

Region 5AAAAA.   A fairly deep bracket became even better with the recent return of Parker, who in past years has traversed the heavyweight landscape from 189 to 215 to 285 and back, several times (last year, he was the Region Champ at 285 but had a terrible draw at State, losing to two monstrous heavies, Garner and Brewster, in the early going).  This time, he returns at 215, where he took 1^st in Cobb County beating Floyd 8-3 in triple overtime.  Floyd has survived the brutal Harrison schedule, winning gold at Whitewater and silver in Cobb County; he also took 4^th at McCallie.  Other than his recent overtime loss to Parker, he has lost to twice to Will Collins and once to Scruggs of Valdosta, but beaten many of the other listed contenders, including Becker, Laury and Walker.  Laury has quietly crafted a very successful season, medaling at the Raider Rumble (4^th), the Fayette Christmas (6^th), the Titan Cup (1^st) and Cobb County (3^rd).  We don’t know whether the Murray County entry will be Thornbury (2^nd at Murray County) or Goforth (4^th at Soddy Daisy), but either should contend for the final qualifying spot, along with Wade (3^rd at West Laurens and Alexander, 4^th at Whitewater, and Rechsteiner (son of Rob Rechsteiner, known to wrestling fans around the world as “Rick Steiner”), of Etowah, 6^th at Chattahoochee and 4^th at the Last Man Standing.  Two others to note are Edwards (Marietta), 4^th at Sequoyah and 2^nd at the War Eagle, and Frankovsky of North Cobb.

 

Region 6AAAAA.   Becker seems to have a hard time with Floyd (who doesn’t!), losing by pin to the Harrison 215 at State last year and at the State Duals this year, but as to the rest of those listed, he does much better:  2^nd at the Battle of the Border (beating Robertson along the way 5-3), 3^rd at the Heart of Dixie, 4^th at Chattahoochee (losing to Slattery by pin) and 1^st at the Coal Mountain (pinning Slattery in the finals).  He has solid placement potential, but his State Duals pin losses to both Farris and Floyd serve as cautionary notes.  In the short term, however, Becker best worry about what lies in wait at this Region:  Hodge, only a sophomore, was 4^th at the Rebel and 3^rd at the Dirty South, and he has beaten, among others, Walker, Laury and Nilson, while splitting two matches with Becker.  Buck was the gold medalist in Fulton County, 2^nd to Slattery at the Raider Rumble and 5^th at Chattahoochee.  Both have outside State placement potential.  Beyond these three, Walker was 6^th at the Knoxville Catholic, 3^rd at  Sequoyah, 4^th at the Dirty South, 3^rd at Whitewater and 4^th in Cobb County (losing to Floyd 3-2); he could surprise.  Zentner (Chattahoochee) was 2^nd to Slattery at the Santa Slam and 3^rd at the Coal Mountain, while Farr (Pope) took 6^th in Cobb County, losing 4-1 to Laury.  Noble (Walton) has a somewhat more tenuous future, in terms of continuing his season the week after Regions.

 

Region 7AAAAA.   Will Collins has had his ups and downs, but the ups (beating Floyd twice this year, once by pin; 4^th in Gwinnett County; beating Buck 9-4) far outweigh the downs.  Still, he is by no means a lock to earn the Region crown, as Slattery is another with definite placement potential; he won gold medals at the Raider Rumble (pinning Buck) and the Santa Slam, won silver at Coal Mountain and won bronze at Chattahoochee (beating Becker twice and Buck again).  Impressively, he pinned Beal at State last year.  Greer (Duluth) was 2^nd at the Big Red Rumble at 285 and 3^rd at North Metro at this weight in a very impressive showing, but failed to place in Gwinnett County, so I don’t know quite what to make of him.  Gunter (Forsyth Central) has beaten Zentner and Rechsteiner, among others, so keep him in mind as a possible spoiler. 

 

Region 8AAAAA.   Farris, the good big man, is the man here, with the most likely finals opposition being supplied by Smith, 2^nd to Nilson at Brookwood, 3^rd in Gwinnett County (beating W. Smith 5-3) and 2^nd at North Metro.  Nilson has been relatively quiet this season, other than his title at Brookwood and a 8-7 loss to Hodge in early January; we assume he is OK to go here.  Martinez (Shiloh) was the State alternate last year, and hopes to turn that around this season; we have little to judge him on, other than a pin loss to Collins, but he did reach the go-to-placement round at the Stockbridge Tiger, after being seeded 6^th.  The Grayson entrant, either Champaign (2^nd at the Big Red Rumble and 6^th at Hoover) or Cassidy (6^th at the Crossbone Classic) may be a good choice for the last spot, most notably in Sanson (Central Gwinnett), 2^nd at the Adairsville Tiger, is no longer wrestling. 

 

 

 

285 LBS.

 

                        Projected Champion:   Coffey (12), Collins Hill (285 – 5^th/Region Champ)

 

 2.        Mena (11), Union Grove (285 – sq/Region Champ)

 3.        Tabachino (12), Kell (285 – 6^th)

 4.        Francis (11), Walton (285 – inj)

 5.        Daniels (12), Valdosta (215 – sq)

 6.        Joassaint (12), Pope (285 – 4^th/Region Champ)

 7.        McGee (12), McEachern (KOH 285 – 1^st)

 8.        Buffington (12), North Gwinnett (285 – sq)

 9.        Adebayo (12), South Gwinnett (285 – sq)

10.        Solomon (12), Jenkins (285 – sq/Region Champ)

11.        Aiken-Phillips (9), Central Gwinnett (Kids State Champ)

12.        McConathy (11), Murray County (215)

13.        Whitley (12), Newnan (215 – sq)

14.        Toves (10), Forsyth Central

15.        Jenkins (12), Centennial (285)

16.        Boegel (12), Northview

17.        Joseph (11), Harrison (285)

18.        Bruce (12), Warner Robins (285 – sq)

19.        Freeman (11), Groves (285)

20.        Elakatt, Parkview

 

The View From 50,000 Feet:    

If you read the Ohio Wrestling Forecast, you will note that the incomparable Brian Brakeman prepares the Report in 42 segments; he starts with the easiest to predict and leaves the toughies for last.  Newcomer Josh Lowe of Wrestling411, a walking encyclopedia of wrestling data and information, prepares his forecast the same way.  Unlike those two, however, I am neither incomparable nor encyclopedic; I am anal and linear, which means that I prepare this Report the same way I tackle any project - - front to back, intro to epilogue, 103 to 285.  Strangely, though, different paths lead to the same end spot, and I end up just where Brian and Josh did, finishing up with the very hardest weight class to assess, the big guys.  Amazingly, I have picked the winner right in this weight class every year, going back to 1998, with the exception of 2002, when no one other than Coach Bailey would have picked Bouie of Fayette County to win.  On the other hand, I have made making mincemeat of this weight class an annual event, missing tons of placers and listing wrestlers in the wrong order repeatedly.  While I blame myself, I take some consolation in the fact that the difference, in many cases, between #3 and #21 may be nothing more than who wins the coin toss in the 2^nd, 3^rd or 4^th overtime period (whenever it now occurs).  So, with that as prelude, we turn to this year, where I am even more confused than most.  We have a group of big boys who are not the best of all time, but very equal in talent, such that any of the top 8 or so can win, depending on the bracket and on who wins the coin toss.  Our gang of five came nowhere close to reaching consensus on a winner, so it is left to me, all by my lonesome (no Geisha in sight) to do the heavy lifting, so to speak.  I can make a great case for almost every one of the top 8; I can also make the case for that wrestling finishing 7^th.  But, when the last whistle is blown, I like the only wrestler in the group to have beaten Farris (my conspirators all talked about how the 285 they picked could have beaten Farris; my guy is the only one who did beat him, 3-1 in overtime in early December (later reversed when Farris beat him 3-2 in the Gwinnett County finals).  My guy has been the most consistent of the lot, winning gold at the prestigious Toshiba Midwest Classic, 2^nd to Farris in Gwinnett County.  He beat Mena (4-2) and Tabachino (9-4) at State last year; while he lost to Joissaint at State last year (2-1), he has reversed that outcome this year (3-1 in the first match of the year).  He may not win it all, but at this point in time, he looks like the best choice to extend my 5-year winning streak.  So, holding my breath, I choose Coffey, 5^th at 285 last year, to win it all.  As for those who can make that pick look foolish, read on.

 

Region 1AAAAA.   As is usually the case, there are some good heavyweights in South Georgia, and Daniels is one of the best.  He is small enough to go 215, but we sense that he will end up year, given his advantage in athletic ability.  Daniels will have to endure a series of slowed-down matches against wrestlers weighing 50 – 60 pounds more than him, but he has shown he can do it (3^rd at both the Battle of the Border, where he beat Toves twice, 1-0 and 4-2, and 3^rd at the Valdosta Wildcat, where he took Mena to overtime before losing, plus 1^st at Tift County and 2^nd at the Coastal Georgia Classic).  He should be challenged by Bruce, 4^th at Sequoyah and maybe 4^th at the Santa Slam (it could have been Lavritsen), or by returning State qualifier Crenshaw of Lowndes (4^th at Tift County).  Walsh (Colquitt County) was 2^nd at the Hornet and came up one round short of placing at the Valdosta Wildcat, while Faulk of Coffee was 3^rd at the Hornet but lost to Walsh at the Valdosta Wildcat and didn’t place either.  Watson of Tift County looks to be on the outside looking in. 

 

Region 2AAAAA.   Mena is the man, without question.  2^nd at South Metro, the Stockbridge Tiger, Brecksville (where he pinned Francis in the semis) and 2^nd at North Metro (losing to Farris in the finals), paired with a gold medal at the Valdosta Wildcat after beating Daniels in overtime.  He definitely has the bona fides to stand on the top step of the State podium; I see that happening next year, though, not this year.  Fellows of Newton County is the only other name on our list.

 

Region 3AAAAA.   Solomon, following in his brother’s footsteps, won at the Swainsboro Anders and was 4^th at the Rebel, and should win this Region with relative ease.  However, after losing last year to both Farris (10-6) and Mena (10-5), he has a ways to go to reach the State podium.  Freeman was 3^rd at the Anders, 4^th at West Laurens and 5^th at the Toomey, and should be the runner-up here.  After that, we have no names to offer up. 

 

Region 4AAAAA.   Whitley has showed well in several tough tourneys, winning gold at the Granger, 2^nd at Whitewater and 5^th at the Fayette Christmas.  We look for Brown of Paulding County (3^rd at Coal Mountain) or Blalock of Hiram (6^th at Sequoyah) to be his main challengers, assuming that returning State qualifier Brewster did not return for his senior year (we have no results for him this season). 

 

Region 5AAAAA.   McGee is tough to figure.  He is certainly good enough to place at the top of the leaderboard; he was 3^rd at the Dirty South (losing to Francis 7-6) and 4^th at McCallie (beating McConathy by pin); he has won 2 out of 3 from Joassaint and lost close to both Coffey and Tabachino (5-2 in the Cobb County finals).  He should come out of this Region as the #1 seed, and the rest may depend on the draw he gets.  McConathy won the Dalton Carpet and was 2^nd at Soddy Daisy, before taking 6^th at McCallie and 3^rd at Murray County.  He has beaten Joseph (3^rd at Whitewater) 1-0, and will probably have to do so again to make the finals.  Freiman (Kennesaw Mountain), Davis or Coburn (Marietta), Smith (North Cobb) and Williams (South Cobb) all have a pinner’s chance to qualify. 

 

Region 6AAAAA.   The outcome of this bracket may be determined in part by the seedings, and the ultimate outcome at State will certainly depend on which four come out of this Region, and in which order.  Tabachino, 6^th last year (where he pinned Buffington but lost to Coffey 9-4), is probably the most technically sound of the big man.  The former Ohio wrestler was 2^nd at the Rebel, 1^st at the Dirty South (beating Francis 7-2 in the finals), and 1^st in Cobb County (beating McGee 5-1 in the finals after beating Francis again, 5-2 this time).  Francis, the Walton stud footballer, can go with any of the big guys, as he showed when he beat Coffey by one last week (right after I decided to pick Coffey to win here!  Thanks a lot!)  He was 6^th at Brecksville, after losing to Mena by pin in the semis, along with the 2^nd at the Dirty South (losing to Tabachino but pinning Joassaint and beating McGee 7-6) and 3^rd at Cobb County.  He is only 1-3 v. Tabachino, but he is 2-0 against Joassaint this year (and also beat him last year).  As we said, matchups are everything in this Region.   The final qualifying spot is up for grabs, with Jenkins (gold medalist at Coal Mountain, winner over both Elekatt and Joseph at State Duals) and Boegel (1^st at the Raider Rumble and Fulton County, 4^th at Chattahoochee) the most likely grabbers.  Christopher of Lassiter is a tough 215 who has relocated here, taking 6^th in Cobb County (he was 3^rd at the Knoxville Catholic and 3^rd at Sequoyah at the lighter weight), but the trees are too big and too thick for him to see out of the forest.  McKee (Sprayberry), Lanham (Milton) and Major (Alpharetta) are others to watch. 

 

Region 7AAAAA.   My pick of Coffey to win is certainly predicated on his exited this Region as Champ.  He’ll probably have to beat Buffington (3^rd in Gwinnett County, gold medalist at the Zac Jarzynka) to do so, but if Joassaint and Tabachino could both pin Buffington at State last year, I am hopeful that Coffey will have what it takes this time around.  Toves is a sophomore with lots of promise; he was 4^th at the Battle of the Border (losing to Daniels close twice but beating Jenkins) and 5^th at the Santa Slam; he should move on as the #3 seed.  Fitch (Mill Creek) was 6^th at Chattahoochee, and he looks to be the next best, although both Stratton (Peachtree Ridge), 4^th at the Last Man Standing, and Sapp (North Forsyth), 2^nd at Coal Mountain, losing to Jenkins in the finals, could earn that last step on the podium. 

 

Region 8AAAAA.   I’m looking forward to my first look at Aiken-Phillips, the young frosh who started the year off with a bang, beating Mena by pin.  He was 1^st at the Adairsville Tiger and 4^th in Gwinnett County, losing to Buffington here.  We will be hearing a lot from him over the next few years, but I think he is second best in this Region, after the veteran Adebayo (1^st at Brookwood and 2^nd at the Sham Slam), who should challenge for high placement at State.  Dixon (Grayson) placed 4^th at Hoover and could qualify, as could Elekatt, who emerged from behind Farris to take 3^rd at the Last Man Standing.

 

 

THE TEAM COMPETITION:

 

After all is said and done, after all the matches have been concluded, when the computer whirrs and hisses and spits out the numbers, how does the team competition turn out?  Here is one wrestling forecaster group’s very humble (and, I would imagine, soon to be very humbled) opinion; first and second places should distance themselves from the rest, but third through tenth will be one of the closest in recent memory:

 

The Top 10:

 

             1.        Collins Hill (4 Champs/11-13 State Placers) 

 

             2.        Union Grove (3 Champs/8-10 State Placers)

 

             3.        Harrison (1 Champ/7-10 State Placers)

 

             4.        Pope (5-9 State Placers)

 

             5.        Walton (6-7 State Placers)

 

             6.        Parkview (2 Champ/6-7 State Placers)

 

             7.        McEachern (1 Champ/5-7 State Placers)

 

             8.        Centennial (5-8 State Placers)

 

             9.        Kell (5-8 State Placers)

 

            10.        Hiram (1 Champ/3-5 State Placers)

 

High Honorable Mention:

 

Brookwood, Camden County, Kennesaw Mountain, Murray County, North Gwinnett, Peachtree Ridge, Valdosta

 

 

And that, wrestling friends and readers, is a wrap.  I hope you enjoyed this year’s Report, and we all look forward to a safe, successful and healthy State Tournament for all involved.  Good luck and, win or lose, thank you for allowing us to watch competition at its purest and best unfold.  Thanks for reading, too, and please stop by and say hello if you see me at the Gwinnett Center; I’ll be the one hiding from all of the wrestlers I mistakenly failed to list in our Top 20 listings.  What’s that, Geisha?  Buddha says “Meditate. Live purely. Be quiet. Do your work with mastery. Like the moon, come out from behind the clouds! Shine.”  Yeah, OK.  I’ll be the one shining from behind the clouds … right after you help me master the 285s! 

 

Bob