I'm not gonna get behind Beeson 100%, but we do coddle our kids a little too much with pats on the back. I think they need just as many reality checks, aka "you got beat becuase you don't work hard in practice", or whatever the reason might be, as they do pats on the back. I agree that sometimes an 8th place finish for one kid might be a huge accomplishment, whereas a 2nd place finish might be underachieving for another. Some kids will quit when you push them, others dig in and work harder. I made a post a couple of years ago when I returned from middle school duals,maybe it was Schoolboy duals, about a rather "out of shape" kid that was taking a beating, but kept coming back the next round for another beating. He was obviously not an athlete, but kept trying. There were a few matches where he didn't get pinned, thus saving his team some forfeit points if he hadn't wrestled at all. He caught my eye and I had to mention it. That is the type of situation, on the complete opposite side of this argument, that we need to balance out. Who knows, that kid may fill out and be an animal one day. Maybe not, but I bet he learned some valuable lessons from wrestling.

I like the idea of a hardluck bracket, like Tulsa Nationals used to do before they started their novice nationals tourney. Pretty generic medals, but mat time.