For some unknown reason they have tried to turn these tournaments into two half-day affairs. Not sure if the facility rental is reduced by not having to pay as much help or if there is some party going on that I haven't found as yet. But how else do you explain starting your semifinal matches at 4:30pm on a Friday?
If it were up to me, we would lose the 5th and 6th place matches and go back to three mats per class.

Just did a little web research on the Intrust Arena after so many complaints.

The arena is owned by Sedgwick County. It is managed by something called SMS Group. Intrust bank must have bought the naming rights.

All those nasty calls to some little secretary at the bank were probably useless. Needed to call SMS Group or the County Manager or commissioners. I assume the event staff were wearing Intrust vests or Ts but were employees of SMS Group.

Someone mentioned using Allen Field House.....quick question....

If for some reason state wrestling was held there, would the wrestlers have to where skirts rather than singlets?

Just wondering since it is a baskeball location.

Contrarian,

It is Aggieville in Manhattan!

I thought that is what Bball floors were for, was rolling out wrestling mats on them?

"The site to adore on a basketball floor is wrestling mats from door to door."

One of the better shirts quotes I enjoyed reading growing up on the mat.

No skirts at Allen Field House. But wrestlers would have to wear long baggy trunks. However, spandex compression shorts would be optional!!

Noooooo, Intrust Bank does not own the Arena. We passed a sales tax increase a couple years ago to build it so it is owned by the County. LOL.... I would like to talk to the people that called the bank to complain! Now that is funny stuff! Man, that just made my day I am not going to lie!!!!!!

Intrust Bank paid quite a bit of money to have that building named that. Just like the Staples Center, Sprint Center, etc.

Intrust Bank Arena is managed by SMG Group. SMG Group also manages the Kansas Expocentre in Topeka.

SMG World Company History

Why are several posters knocking BB. That is "THE STATE GAME" of Kansas. If we did not have the Hawks and the Cats, and maybe the Shockers, we would be lower than whale s***. Just because your runty 125 pounder can't stuff the ball, don't rip all the players, coaches and fans.

It isn't a sport, it is a disease...................

I would rather be down there with the Whale stuff then root for B########l, or K-State. This is the same college that would not drive a National Qualifier to Nationals. He had to hitch-hike, had no coach, and then they reprimanded him because it made the news. The wrestler was Wayne Jackson.

Contrarian, you go ahead and root for your "State Game". I would rather look for a cure and make the state a better place.

Dam!! You really do not like BB.

Why did your wife and kids tell me you are glued to the tube during March Madness. I won't tell if they don't.

March Madness is like Mad Cow disease? If you don't want to get it, just don't expose yourself to it.

One of the issues I have with the college BB in this state is that is doesn't really support kids from the state. Look at the roster, not a whole lot of kids from KS.

Would like to see a wrestling program at one of those schools. I am sure the majority of the roster would be filled by kids from KS and they would be competitive.

I admit, I don't mind watching basketball.....when my DAUGHTER is playing.

BB, FB, VB, soccer and for all other sports, Kansas bigand small colleges and universities, and our JR/CCs, all recruit heavily out of state. Why? They say there is not the talent instate. Maybe so for the JayHawks' level of BB year after year after year. The most upsettig to me is the Jr/CCs. As I have said before, I coached competitive club soccer for years--as some of you have done with kids wrestling. I have watched club soccer from Alaska to Florida and CA to VA, and points in between. Good kids and good soccer all over. Same with wrestling, good kids and good wrestling all over. Look at the rosters of any sport at any of our Kansas Community Colleges. Almost all will be loaded with out of state, and for soccer international, players. To me, CC means colleges at the community level for community students. Out of state and international students and athletes are not from the community. Not to pick on anyone, But look at Colby CC. The wrestling roster lists 18 wrestlers, only 4 from Kansas (3 from Colby and 1 from Oberlien), 12 out of state, and 2 international (Mongolia and Uzbeckstan--how many folks in Colby can find either Mongolia or Uzbeckstan on a globe). Colby is right there not quite in the middle of all that 321A wrestling and they have only 4 local wrestlers on the roster. To me thats not a CC supporting the community. All other CCs rosters in all sports tell about the same story. Coaches are passing each other on the highways and in airports to go recruit. They think out of state and international athletes bring validity and prestige to their programs. Lets use Kansas tuition for Kansas students. And yes, some posters will come on here in a minute lamblasting CCs and CC sports--"they ain't D1". So what? It gets Kansas kids in college and in keeps them in sports.

Betcha a D1 wrestling program at a Kansas big University/college would be filled by out of state kids.

Wichita State would be a great school for D1 wrestling--sitting right in the middle of all that great Wichita/South Central Kansas HS wrestling. No problem filling a roster with D1 quality local kids. Won't happen. No money to run a program--being used for Title 9 girls rowing and team knitting, and if there was a program the coaches would recruit in a bunch of back east states.

Betcha!! Betcha!!

Ku BB roster lists 17 names, including 4 from Ks and a fifth from Mo but who played at a KS HS. 4 or 5 is not bad for that big a program.

KSU rosters 13 players. One player listed from Ottawa and Patterson NJ.

WSU rosters 15 with only two KS kids

Total: 45 roster slots, 7 Kansas kids ( 8 counting the MO kid from Miege). At best (8/45) 17.7%. Lower than I expected. Thought at least KSU and Wichita would have more Kansas kids. But, proves my point about coaches passing each other on the highways and in airport terminals!!

Maybe we should have gone with the "no re-entry policy"?

http://www.kansas.com/2010/04/16/1272676/intrust-bank-arena-will-lose-high.html?


Intrust Bank Arena will lose high school wrestling
A KSHSAA official says the Intrust Bank Arena was too costly, and the state is looking for alternatives.

BY JOANNA CHADWICK
The Wichita Eagle

But state wrestling won’t be coming back.

“They pretty well priced us out of the market to use that facility,” said Gary Musselman, the executive director of the Kansas State High School Activities Association.

Musselman said expenses were triple what the KSHSAA paid to use the Kansas Coliseum. The state wrestling tournament was at the Coliseum from 1985-2005 and 2007-2009.

The KSHSAA was responsible for an $11,000 license fee, as well as for merchandising, facility, ticket printing fees and reimbursable service expenses.

“We’re actively looking at other options,” Musselman said of a future site of the tournament. “We’ve met with them and they made it very clear to us that they have no desire or ability to reduce their operating costs.

“Then they made sure to call us back and say they’d have to increase our rent. OK, so you really don’t want us to think about even being able to come back. It’s pretty clear.”

Chris Presson, Intrust Bank Arena general manager, did not immediately return a phone call seeking comment Friday.

Heights wrestling coach Mike Church is saddened the tournament won’t be back at the downtown arena.

“I’m very disappointed,” he said. “I thought it was an awesome venue.æ.æ.æ. They felt they were in a high-profile arena. It built up upon the atmosphere of the sport. It was a phenomenal place to have a state tournament.”

Wow, sad but interesting. Please tell us more Chad. This bracket might interest some to validate Chad's point.

http://www.thewrestlingtalk.com/pdf/brackets/NCAA%201973.pdf

I also learned that Mr. Jackson was the Ark City coach during all of those years when they won back to back to back . . . titles.