CHROMEBIRD

I meant the actual singlet, not the sport, and was talking in terms of commercial viability for wrestling. Basketball gets a ton of money because bball shoes, shorts, jerseys, warmups, and other gear are worn by athletes, fans, and even non-fans. It's just normal fashion for many. On the other hand, no one goes out or lounges around at home in a wrestling singlet and headgear (well, I can think of a few here who might, lol). Embrace the shorts and shirt combo, normalize it into something people will want to exercise or train or even lazily lounge (social media influencers, I'm looking at you) around in. Might as well give it a go and see if it brings more money to the sport.

That's more than what your average professional MMA fighter makes in a year

Shoe and apparel companies have been funneling kids to specific schools for years. The most obvious is basketball where the biggest retail money is. They tried to get around the NCAA by setting up teams, relationships, and programming at the AAU level. That's why elite kids from specific AAU programs or bball academies get labeled as "Adidas players" (destined for Adidas sponsored schools like Kansas, Louisville, or Indiana), Nike players, Under Armor players, etc. Happens also, to a much lesser extent, in soccer, volleyball, and tennis. Probably even less than that in wrestling, but I would expect more attention given to the sport with its link to MMA. Another reason to ditch the singlet, btw.

Portal was created for compliance so that there are no surprises during the transfer. In the past, a kid would transfer and the NCAA sometimes lose eligibility because some rule wasn't followed during the process. Now everything is in one place so there's no excuse for missing dates or not checking every box. NIL was something that was not allowed until one day it was. My feeling is that the NCAA okay, NIL deals are fine now, go wild but without a lot of structure, guidance, or cooperation with schools and sponsors. So now here we are.

Very clever! Similarly, I think John Smith has been quiet quitting over at Okie State.

I am. I liked Yianni's interviews and his mom.

People used to say Teskee was a little small for 125. Now that he's filled out a bit, I think he'd be a better there than at 133. Unfortunately, there's no way he's beating Ayala in a wrestle-off. It would be funny if Iowa gets Nagao and Teske goes back to PSU.

You are not required to transfer by having your name in the portal, BUT you can't transfer unless you're in the portal. He could just be testing the waters or putting his name in the portal just in case. There's a lot of movement in the offseason these days.

Portal + NIL are a brutal combo.

Because he could easily live in a bubble in Palo Alto and assuming he makes a decent salary could cruise along and finish in the Top 3 of his conference every year, have his pick of West Coast talent, own the camp scene in CA, enjoy nice food and weather... It would be like a vacation compared to a lot of the other jobs out there.

Stylistically, I don't know if Nagao beats Teskee on his feet. His advantage would be from top and I don't know if Teskee would be able to get out. It would be a closer wrestle-off than many might expect. Longer term, if Ayala fills out and moves up I am skeptical that Nagao would beat him too.

Hard to blame Eggum for retention. NIL sucks.

He could also be keeping his cards close to his chest with the US Open around the corner. Spencer said he and the HWC coaches haven't decided yet if he will go but I was very surprised (but at the same time not) that he hasn't had any mat time at all since Nationals. The Open is less than 4 weeks out.

Have they ever wrestled? I'm not sure that Nagao would be a significant upgrade over Teskee.

Patricia Miranda. I'm just joking around, but it would make a heck of a story and probably be a good for fundraising.

That might be right. I figured as long as he's being paid well and has the support of the AD, Koll would be living easy at Stanford. Guess not.

Good, timely interview to put a lot of questions to rest. You can tell what a great kid Spencer is. My takeaway is that he's accepted the loss and has moved past it, but is very much bothered by fans on both sides. How many times did he bring up annoying fans questioning or defending him? You can tell that he reads what we say online and that he gets annoyed. Rise above the noise, Spencer!

Sounds like love isn't so blind when it comes to cauliflower ear https://screenrant.com/love-is-blind-season-4-josh-demas-cauliflower-ears/

The Ferraris might be too Jersey Shore for even the Jersey Shore.

Good stuff. I appreciate your posts, always knowledgeable and well-thought out. I think you might be smarter than Gable and Cael (j/k). I've also looked up a number of the old videos and matches you mention and have been enjoying them.

Hasn't participation in youth sports in general gone down over the last 20 years? I don't doubt that success rate (which affects enjoyment) is a factor but so have concerns from parents about cost, safety (CTE), and their own time commitment. Plus kids get a lot of stimulation and gratification from video games. But, I digress. D1 wrestling needs to fix its RPI algorithm.

That right there is the difference. Watching old tapes, it's pretty noticeable that a lot of the top wrestlers have been in the sport for maybe 5 or 6 years and just went out and brawled, as opposed to wrestlers today who travel the country, compete year round, and study positions from a young age. Kids today are very measured and slick, and look more comfortable in any situation. So many wrestlers in the old videos look clunky by comparison. I do like how the old school guys really went after it and scrapped, but today that can get you countered and stuck.

Barstool?? Oh, ffs..

Last I heard he was at the team banquet and was doing fine. Give him a little space.

Good points about PSU wrestlers praising Cael. The jury is still out for me again, because he doesn't really say much so it's hard to tell what's going on in his head. Iowa wrestlers similarly exalt Brands but I don't think he's a coaching genius. Don't get me wrong (I could never have said that on HR) I like Brands fine, but don't believe is he more than what he shows us. Gable was more. Cael might be more. I do get a bit of a zen master vibe from him, like maybe he says things to calm his wrestlers down and help them focus... but then Cunningham does the work to make it happen, lol. On the other hand, I think ol' Tommie could benefit from better support in the room than M* and Telford or even Terry. Sorry if I'm beating a dead horse. It's an interesting discussion.