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Survival Guide for Parents of New Wrestlers

So your junior high student has joined the wrestling team and you have no idea what is going on with this sport. This survival guide is intended to familiarize you with the sport so you can support and encourage your student. (There are a number of female wrestlers and references to "him" in this document are intended to refer to both male and female wrestlers.) This document describes the objectives of the sport, a few of the moves wrestlers use, the composition of a wrestling team, and the different events in which students wrestle. The words in bold are wrestling jargon that your student might start to use. The lingo isn't any more complicated than a "first down" in football or a "stolen base" in baseball, and you should be able to pick it up quickly.

Wrestling as an Individual Sport

Each wrestling match is a one-on-one contest. Students of about the same weight compete head-to-head. The wrestler's objectives during a match are to (1) gain control over his opponent, thereby earning points, and (2) hold both of his opponent's shoulders or shoulder blades to the mat for two second.  If he can do this, he earns a pin or fall. At the beginning of a match, both wrestlers stand in the middle of the mat, neither one in control. This is called the neutral position. After the wrestlers shake hands, the referee whistles the start of the match. The wrestlers try to gain control by taking his opponent to the mat. Among the ways a wrestler can accomplish this are:

·         He can shoot-- drop below his opponent's torso and charge in to grab his opponent's legs. He can attempt a single-leg takedown by grabbing one leg or double-leg takedown by grabbing both.

·         He can throw his opponent to the mat or execute a carry.  Throws are very important in Olympic wrestling and they are used in folkstyle wrestling, too.

·         He can trip his opponent. (Trips can be used to finish a single- or a double-leg takedown.)

These moves aren't always easy.  In order to make them work, the wrestler has to use a set-up, e.g. move in a circle around or tie-up his opponent (grab his neck and upper arm).

Once a wrestler maintains control of his opponent (e.g., the opponent is not holding one of his legs) and the opponent's supporting parts (hand, arms, torso, knees, thighs, or buttocks) are on the mat, he has achieved a position of advantage and he is awarded 2 match points for a takedown. However, this position must be maintained; control is not established by a move if the opposing wrestler reacts immediately to counter the move.

While one wrestler attempts to get a takedown, his opponent is not passive; he tries to stop the attack and gain the advantage himself. If one wrestler shoots, the other wrestler will sprawl by pushing down on his opponent's head and shoulders while kicking his own his legs back. From this position, he will try to gain control, for example by running behind the other wrestler, or by using a trip or throw. Whichever wrestler gains control earns two point for a takedown and has the position of advantage. The wrestler with the advantage is called the offensive wrestler; his opponent is called the defensive wrestler.

Once a wrestler has the advantage, his goal is to turn his opponent's back to the mat in order to earn a pin. If one wrestler pins his opponent, the match is over and the offensive wrestler wins by fall. There are many, many moves that wrestlers use to accomplish this. The headlock (locking your arms around the opponent's head and one arm), half nelson (placing your arm under the opponent's elbow and on his head, then lifting the elbow while pressing the head down), and cradle (locking your arms around the opponent's head and one knee), are a few you'll see commonly. Some of these moves require that the defensive wrestler be flat on his torso, so the offensive wrestler will often try to break him down. If the offensive wrestler turns his opponent and holds his shoulders to the mat for two seconds, he earns a victory by fall. If he cannot accomplish this, but he is able to expose his opponent's shoulders to the mat for longer than reaction time, the offensive wrestler is awarded a near fall. Holding this position for two seconds earns 2 points, while holding it for five seconds earns 3 points. These points are also called back points for obvious reasons.

While the offensive wrestler tries to earn back points or get a pin, the defensive wrestler is busy, too. His goal is to either get free from his opponent's control (called an escape) or to gain the advantage himself (called a reversal). An escape earns 1 point while a reversal earns 2. A defensive wrestler can use any number of moves, too. He can turn his back to the offensive wrestler and either sitout or standup by pressing his back against his opponent's chest, shoulders, or head, or he might try a switch, in which he spins around the side of the offensive wrestler. If the defensive wrestler escapes, then there is no advantage, and the match continues in the neutral position, just as at the start. If there is a reversal, the wrestlers pursue their new goals: the new offensive wrestler tries to turn his opponent and the new defensive wrestler tries to escape or reverse.

While all of this is going on, the wrestlers must stay in bounds. If the supporting parts of both wrestlers are out or bounds, the referee will stop the match. If neither wrestler had as advantage, then the match will resume in the middle of the mat just as at the start. If one of the wrestlers had an advantage, then the wrestlers will assume the referee's position. In this position, defensive wrestler will kneel on his hands and knees, then the offensive wrestler will squat next to him with at least one knee beside him. The offensive wrestler will put one hand on his opponent's near elbow, his head on or above his opponent's back, and wrap the other arm around his opponent's waist. The referee will whistle to resume the match, and the contestants will continue as before. Occasionally the offensive wrestler will use the optional start, in which he stands next to the kneeling wrestler and places his hands together on his opponent's back.

One other thing about the out-of-bounds rules bears mentioning.  Sometimes a wrestler will have his opponent's back exposed or even touching the mat, but he will not be awarded a fall or near fall.  Usually this is because the wrestlers are out of bounds.  In order to earn back points or a pin at least a portion of BOTH shoulders or shoulder blades must be in bounds.  It is important for wrestlers to be aware of their location on the mat, especially when they are near the edge.

After one minute of wrestling, the horn will sound and the referee will whistle the end of the period. Then the referee will then flip a coin or disk to determine how the second period will begin. The wrestler who wins the flip may choose any of the positions described above-- the top or bottom positions in the referee's position, the neutral position-- or he may defer his choice until the third period. If he defers, the other contestant must choose top, bottom, or neutral. Once the choice is made (usually after consulting with the coach) the match begins again as described above for out of bounds. In the third period, the other wrestler has his choice of positions. In addition to takedowns, reversals, escapes, and back points, penalties points are awarded for various technical violations (stalling, locking hands while in the position of advantage, fleeing, grabbing clothing, and false starts) and for infractions (unsportsmanlike conduct, unnecessary roughness, and illegal holds). The penalties for these offenses escalate with each occurrence and may lead to disqualification. The referee also stops the match when a wrestler is injured or a potentially dangerous situation arises.  There are also rules to cover situations when a wrestler is injured or bleeding.

The match ends immediately when one wrestler achieves a pin, forfeit, disqualification, or a technical fall. A tech fall occurs when one player leads by 15 or more points. If the match comes to its normal conclusion and the difference in score is less than 15 points, the leader is said to win by decision. A lead of 8-14 points constitutes a major decision. If neither wrestler has a lead at the end of the third period, the match has an overtime or sudden victory period. The wrestlers start in the neutral position, and whoever scores first wins. If no one scores in the overtime, then a double overtime or tiebreaker period begins. The wrestler who scored first in the match has the choice of top or bottom. The clock is set for 30 seconds. If the defensive wrestler escapes or reverses within 30 seconds, he wins. If he does not, the offensive wrestler wins. A pin is still possible in both overtime and tiebreaker periods.

Sometimes it can be difficult for the new parent to tell which wrestler is in control and scoring points, but there is a little trick to help you keep track. At the start of each match, one wrestler dons a green ankle band and the other dons or red ankle band. (Sometimes, for dual meets, the ankle bands are not used, but in that case the home team is "green" and the visitors are "red.") The referee also has a green sweat band on his right wrist and a red sweat band on his left wrist. When awarding points he raises his arm and holds up his fingers to show how many points are awarded. He raises the arm with the color corresponding to the contestant being awarded points. The referee also uses hand and arm signals to show why the points are being awarded. A diagram showing these signals can be viewed at the National Federation of State High School Associations. By the way, that disk used to determine choice of positions in the second, third, and tiebreaker periods is also red on one side and green on the other. The officials, scorers, and timekeepers will usually refer to the wrestlers only by their color, not by name or team (e.g., the referee might say, "Green, down," to tell the wrestlers their starting positions.)

Wrestling as a Team Sport

Wrestlers compete in matches as individuals, but they are also members of a team. All of the students on the wrestling squad are teammates, but for each event, eighteen wrestlers form a team, one for each of the weight classes: 65 pounds, 70, 75, 80, 85, 90, 95, 100, 105, 112, 119, 126, 135, 145, 155, 167, 185, 275. In order to qualify to wrestle at an event, each wrestler will have to make weight, i.e., cannot exceed the weight specified for his class plus any weight allowance that has been agreed to by the teams and the IESA. Normally each student will only wrestle against students of the same weight class but occasionally a wrestler will bump up a weight class. Each wrestler is trying to earn team points as a result of his match. These are different from the match points described above. The way these team points are awarded depends on what kind of event is being wrestled. At a dual meet, involving only two teams competing head-to-head, team points are awarded according to the following table:
 

The team with the most team points wins the dual meet. Note that sometimes three teams can arrange a triangular meet, which is essentially a set of three dual meets.

Sometimes, however, several teams (ideally 8 or 16) compete together in a tournament. In that case, scoring gets a little more complicated. Individual awards are given to the winners and placers in each weight class and the teams also compete against each other for the overall team tournament victory. Before the tournament starts the matches in each weight class are posted graphically on a bracket. After the first round of matches, roughly half of the wrestlers will have won their matches and continue to the next round in the championship or top bracket. Those who lose their first round matches continue to wrestle in the consolation, bottom, or wrestle-back bracket. Round after round, wrestlers either move on in the top bracket or move to the wrestle-backs. Wrestlers who lose their first two matches are usually eliminated from placing. In the end, there will only be two undefeated wrestlers left in the top bracket for each weight class. They will wrestle to determine first and second place. The two who remain in the bottom bracket will wrestle for third and forth place. (In large tournaments, additional consolation matches may be held.) Sometimes there will not be enough wrestlers in a given weight class to fill out all the spots, e.g. when there are 14 contestants in a 16-man bracket. In that case, one or more wrestlers will receive a bye and move directly to the next round.

In tournaments team points are awarded for placement, advancement, and for match performance. The number of placement points awarded depends on the number of places the tournament awards. Each tournament may do things a little differently, but these are the recommended placement points:
 

In addition, 2 advancement points are awarded for each victory in the top bracket except for the final championship match and one point is awarded for each victory in the wrestle-back bracket except for the final consolation match(es). If wrestlers receive a bye in the top bracket and win in their next match, they receive 2 additional team points. If they receive a bye in the wrestle-back brackets and win their next match, they receive 1 additional point. Match performance points are awarded for each pin, forfeit, default, or disqualification (2 points), tech fall (1.5 points), and major decision (1 point). These are over and above the placement and advancement points.

Well, that should get you started understanding your student's new sport. If you understand the lingo, that's half the battle. If something isn't clear, just ask your student, another parent, or one of the coaches.  The wrestling community is really pretty tight-knit, and new fans who are just learning are usually welcomed with open arms.  Have your student show you some of the moves he is learning.  It's more interesting to see a move executed than read about it.  You may not know the difference between a crossface and a cross-body ride (or even care), but this is your student's sport, and he's learning to love it.  He's learning lessons that will serve him his whole life: how to work hard toward a goal, the value of delayed gratification, and self-discipline.  He's also gaining self-confidence, endurance, and courage.  So you stick with him, and with the sport.  It will pay off in the end.

From the Mahomet-Seymour Junior High Wrestling Web Page

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