Division One is Number One

(3/17/03)

It’s a common argument among Wisconsin wrestling fans.  Which division is the toughest?  D1 athletes and fans think their division is the toughest.  D2 and D3 followers think their divisions are the toughest.  The two ways of looking at this argument are "individual" and "team".  Well, I have a few straight up unbiased answers.

There is only one way to truly solve this: A one-division State Tournament format.  However, don’t look for that happening anytime soon.  The WIAA realizes good revenue  from the three division state tournament format.   If the WIAA cuts the number of wrestlers qualifying for state, it see fewer families at the Kohl Center buying tickets and concessions.   Two years ago there were 32 wrestlers qualified at each weight class for the state tournament.  We need to go to a one-division format.  Not only would this solve the argument of which division is tougher, but it would also make for better state tournament.  The competition would be more intense and the matches would feature better wrestling over all.  Like I said before, I don’t see this happening.

First, D3 is out of the equation.  Aside from a few tough teams and individuals, this division can’t compete with D1 or two.  Currently Mineral Point is the only team in D3 able to compete with the best teams in D1 and two.  When I say "top teams" I mean top five teams.    Though Mineral Point may compete as a team, I don’t think more than two D3 state champs would have won it in D1 or two. 

Luxemburg-Casco has proven, this year, that it can compete with some of the best teams in D1.  However, if the individual state champions in D1 were to face the state champions in D2, D1 would win.  Heck, combine the D2 and three state champions and D1 still wins. 

            Besides two or three tough D1 sectionals, D1 is just as easy to make it to state as it is in D3.  Yes, that’s right, overall D2 is the most difficult division to make it to individual state.   Many really good D2 wrestlers stayed home from the state tournament, unless of course they went to watch.

As I said before, D3 is out of the equation.  Most of the schools in that division just can’t compete due to the numbers.  All the smart wrestling fans in the state know that a team with a lot of wrestlers will improve a lot faster and find more success than than thin ones.  "Why"?  Well, the simples answer is "more wrestlers pushing each other in the room and more variety in wrestling styles". 

Now that D3 is out of this argument, overall, D1 is hands down the hardest division to win the state championship individually and team wise.  Still, D1 is  easier to qualify for than D2.  Anyone thinking otherwise is just "wishful thinking".  Wrestling fans will no longer have to rank the difficulty of the divisions because it has already been done.  So it’s simple:  Division One is Number One!

John Elmer

Wiwrestling.com

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Written for WIwrestling.com by Freelance Columnist John Elmer