Have often wondered about the "How comes" of the 14 weight brackets for HS wrestling. Some of the differientials between brackets do not make sense, especially since kids are getting bigger and stronger (nutrition, training, weight rooms). I would hope that the current brackets are based on some kind of medically accepted growth patterns---but I realyy do not think so. Someone, sometime, somewhere wrote them down and here we are.

Why not a few more brackets-with a more standard pattern. 103 to 112 is 9 pounds, or an 8.7% growth factor. 135 to 140 is only 5 pounds and a 3.7% growth factor. 160 to 171=11 pounds and 6.9%. 189 to 215 is 26 pounds and 13.8%. 215 to 285 is 70 pounds and 32% growth factor.

I would agree with keeping the 5 pound differientials from 125 through 152 because thats where the majority of kids will fall (remember the bell curve when you went to school and the teacher explained why you got that "F" grade). Back to wrestling, why not a 168 weight (5% increase), 176 bracket (5% increase), 185 bracket (5+%), 196 bracket (6% increase), 209 bracket (7%), 224 bracket (7%), 240 bracket (7%), 260 bracket (8%), 280 (8%). Would also recomend a 103 109, 115, 120 brackets in the lowest weights (vice 103, 112, 119).

My numbers result in 20 weight brackets. May be too many, may be not enough. But, makes more sense to me than the current system. Puts more kids on the mats in more weights, probably cuts down on cutting weight, and makes it easier for kids to go up or down to fit into a bracket.