(photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com)Hey there Jagoffs and Jagettes. Not only am I back from a one-week hiatus, but I just got back from watching Rider and Rutgers battle for a Big Mac or something and you really can't beat the live experience of watching a dual. The speed of the action just hits differently as the crowd reacts with every move like a symphony in unison with the athletes. When I'm home, I miss half the action because I'm scrolling on my phone to see what everyone's saying. Here, I could've forgotten it in my car and barely would've noticed.
Believe it or not, this season is quickly winding down, so if you haven't gotten to any matches yet this year, then I suggest you get off your butt then back on your butt inside a gym to support your local team. Huge thanks to my good buddies Brian Miller and Dan Seifring for accepting me into the crew and I hope we enjoy many more duals in the future.
To your questions! (There's like three, maybe I'm losing my sex appeal)
Are you impressed by the viewership numbers of Penn State and Iowa? @PelikanHead
Impressed? No. Encouraged? A little bit. I'm not really one to care that much about ratings, but it is an important element to expanding the reach of wrestling. I'm encouraged that the numbers are growing. I became a full-time fan in 2017 out of the blue and I can't be the only one since. The tricky thing about wrestling is it's not a sport for the casual fan. You either watch it or you don't. The beauty is that once you're in, you're hooked because you find your favorites and follow their whole career. By then, the next crop of young stars pops up and you want to see what they do.
What am I gonna do? Stop watching after this year and not see what Nick Feldman
does in college? Of course not. So how do we bring in new fans? You say get big matches on ESPN so it can reach new viewers. Ok, getting good ratings definitely helps that.
Yes, a huge promotional push from the Worldwide Leader would go a long way in the sport's popularity, but unfortunately, it will take a lot more than a peak of 300,000 to make it happen. They know people want to watch wrestling. That's why it's on the app. Why put a niche sport on the main channel when they can just get subscriptions from the niche fanbase? As we all know, the younger generation has pulled the plug on cable and you'd be surprised how many miss big duals on boomer cable anyway. (Shout out @DropTweetin, love you buddy)
We have numerous options to stream from now and that's a good thing. Nary a dual is not streamed anymore. In fact, you can find them all here
What were we talking about? Ratings? I think it's great for BTN since they have many of the marquee teams. Don't worry so much about what ESPN does as long as they keep
up the streaming.
1. If VTech beats NC State in the non-conference dual, and NC State wins the conference, should we consider it legitimate?
2. Do you think Northern Iowa is ranked appropriately after their conquest over the entire state of Oklahoma? @MTorriero
I'm just glad for the sake of the sport that these two great teams came to an agreement to have the dual. I don't really care who hangs what banner where.
How about that Panther Train rumbling through Oklahoma so hard they left aftershocks on the way out! Doug Schwab and the gang left such a mark that the ground literally moved when they were done. I don't know if they're ranked appropriately and I don't care. I do care that a team living in the shadow of not one but two storied programs is starting to make its own mark in the state. It goes to show what you can accomplish with a charismatic, young, (Doug and I are the same age… shut up we're young) head coach who can get his guys to buy-in. The foundation being laid by the entire Schwab family is a joy to watch develop and I don't see the train slowing down any time soon.
Who has the best faded T and jorts look in wrestling? @Jkos11
Kaleb Romero. If aliens landed and said show me Man, you show them Kaleb Romero. That is a man.
That's it for this week, friends. Some great duals on tap for the weekend, plus high school teams are starting to get into team postseasons. Get out there and check some out if you can.
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