Wrestling Advisory Committee
Minutes
March 22, 2004 • 10 a.m.
FHSAA Headquarters
Gainesville, Florida
Paul McLaughlin called the meeting to order at 10 a.m. The following committee members were in attendance: Matt Morris, Bolles School (Jacksonville), Lawrence Yudin, Sandalwood High School (Jacksonville), Rick Tribit, Winter Springs High School, Russ Schenk, Berkeley Prep (Tampa), Albert Pardo, South Miami High School, Charlie Zies, Florida Christian School (Miami) and Vic Lorenzano, St. Cloud High School. John A Stewart, Associate Commissioner, Paul K. McLaughlin, Director of Athletics, and Jack Watford, Director of Communications, also attended the meeting.
1. Mr. McLaughlin welcomed the committee members to the FHSAA Office. He explained the procedure for completing the expense vouchers.
2. Mr. McLaughlin gave the committee members an overview of the purpose of the meeting.
3. Each committee member introduced himself.
4. The agenda was adopted as submitted. unanimous (Motion Lorenzano, Second Yudin).
5. Vic Lorenzano, St. Cloud HS, was selected chairman by a unanimous vote. (Motion Pardo, Second Tribit).
6. Citizen Input (those in attendance who are not members of the committee were given an opportunity to discuss items on the committee agenda). John Lawton, a registered wrestling official, commented on several items listed on the agenda as well as some other items.
7. The minutes from the 2003 committee meeting were reviewed and accepted as written. (Motion Tribit, Second Yudin).
8. General comments regarding the 2003-04 FHSAA Wrestling Manual were very positive. The size of the manual is easier to carry and work with. Mr. McLaughlin indicated that the district assignments will be put back into the manual and that the cover will be blue again.
9. The 2004 state wrestling tournament was discussed. The coaches were unanimous in their dislike for the mats being placed on top of the ice in the arena. It was too cold for the wrestlers to be able to sufficiently warm-up and stay loose for competition. The unevenness of some of the mats was a safety concern due to the poor quality of homasote underneath the mats. Also, the close proximity of the mats to the dashers is a legitimate safety concern. Crash pads need to be added around the dashers. The coaches were disappointed in that an RFP was not done to find a larger venue. Running a tournament of this size on 8 mats is far from ideal. If 12 mats were utilized, the tournament could be done in two days and save the schools considerable travel expense. Mr. McLaughlin reviewed the abuse of floor access credentials. It was suggested to print a label with each coach's name to be affixed to the credential. Each school would be required to submit the names of the coaches prior to the tournament. The sliding scale used to determine how many credentials are issued will be modified to provide four credentials for some schools. Credentials are much more professional than wristbands. Mr. Watford indicated that there were 28 members of the news media in attendance. The entrance for participating wrestlers and coaches on the north side of The Lakeland Center continues to be a big improvement over previous tournaments when entrance was through the rear of the arena. Additional areas for improvement include [possible solution in ( )]: in the early rounds, bouts for wrestlers from the same school were often taking place simultaneously on different mats (need a 4th floor pass so that all assistant coaches can be on the floor to coach during the tournament / use the same mat for wrestlers from the same school where possible), difficult to see score clocks (try moving the score tables back from the mats towards the stands or use 3-sided clocks), lack of printed brackets for coaches (use 3 copiers and make additional copies), too many people on the floor during the awards ceremony (limit to recipients and coaches with cameras), awards ceremony could run smoother (set up 6 chairs per classification for the next group of recipients to “be on deck”). Mr. McLaughlin thanked GMAC for providing licensed trainers for the tournament.
10. National Federation wrestling rules were discussed. The coaches want FHSAA staff to work with the registered officials to get a more consistent and compassionate understanding of 4-1-1a regarding the reasons to allow a competitor to wear a t-shirt under his/her singlet.
11. Detailed information regarding the following recommendations that passed can be found on the attachments to these minutes.
2003 Recommendation #1:
Replace 106.04 with, “Each wrestler’s minimum certified weight class shall be established by using the National Wrestling Coaches Association web based Optimal Weight Calculator. This program includes both hydration and body fat testing by an FHSAA approved assessor as well as nutrition education information. Additionally, a wrestler may not loose more than 1_ % of his/her weight per week. Schools must participate in this program but are not bound by the results for the 2004-05 season. Schools choosing this method of establishing minimum certified weights are no longer bound by NFHS rule 1-3-2b (50% rule). Schools may chose the former method of determining minimum certified weights for their wrestlers (submitting a MCWF buy the Thursday of week 27). Unanimous (Motion Tribit, Second Morris).
12. New Business
2004 Recommendation #1:
Add clarification language to 106.05 regarding weigh-ins for dual-team events and for an individually bracketed tournaments. “(5) For a dual team event, the coach may alter his line-up within the stipulations of NFHS rule 4-4-2.” (6) For individually bracketed tournaments, once a competitor’s weightclass is established, the competitor must wrestle at that weightclass for the duration of the tournament. Unanimous (Motion Tribit, Second Pardo).
2004 Recommendation #2:
Establish a core “teaching faculty” of 5-8 of the best officials in the state to conduct FHSAA Field Clinics. Attendance should be mandatory once every other year in order for any official to be assigned to work a region or state tournament. These regionalized clinics shall utilize wrestlers on the mat for training purposes. Unanimous (Motion Schenk, Second Yudin).
2004 Recommendation #3:
Reduce the sanction application fees in 104.06 to
Classics—$75
8 teams or less—$100
9 to 16 teams—$150
17 to 32 teams—$250
Unanimous (Motion Zies, Second Morris).
2004 Recommendation #4:
Expand the 16-line bracket to a 24-line bracket in each weightclass at the state tournament by placing the top 6 wrestlers in each weightclass at each region tournament for advancement to the state tournament. Unanimous (Motion Tribit, Second Schenk).
13. Mr. McLaughlin stated that there was one competitor was found to have forged his WR1 form (skin disease) at the state tournament. Coaches were cautioned to be sure any use of a WR1 form is legitimate.
14. Discussion was also held on the following items:
a) Abuse by coaches of NFHS weigh-in rules.
b) Assignment of officials to the state tournament.
c) The members of the news media should be encouraged to select a MVP in each classification at the state tournament.
d) Sunshine Network should be strongly encouraged by the FHSAA staff to televise the finals at the state tournament.
15. In conclusion, Paul McLaughlin thanked all the committee members for their years of service on the committee. No ones term is expiring at the end of this school year. Russ Schenk indicated that he would be taking a job in Indiana next year. Committee members wished him well.
16. Mr. Lorenzano adjourned the meeting at 1:45 p.m.