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Mar 18, 2018
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Heisenberg
Joined: Nov 30, 2016
Posts: 157
Location: WNY |
Heisenberg wrote:I’ve only seen 4 of Yianni’s matches this year( including Meredith and Eierman), but he seems to attack quite abit to me. I’ve never seen a guy get so extended out when hes in on a leg, yet come out with the TD. I expect to see him on top of the podium Saturday night.
Great call Heisenberg, predicting Yianni to win !
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Mar 18, 2018
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Heisenberg
Joined: Nov 30, 2016
Posts: 157
Location: WNY |
Gee, Thanks!
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Mar 20, 2018
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LImarty
Joined: Nov 28, 2003
Posts: 1130
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Got eat some crow here. Yianni proved that he has the presence never to be out of a match. No way did I think he would win over Meredeth yet, no way was I gonna be so profound to pick Meredeth with Diakomiholis in the weight.
As far as Piccininni goes....solid 125 lber that is undersized. Suriano the same. Lee is a "stud" wasn't taken down all Tourney.
ESPN's coverage terrible like always. Too much talk- too much emphasis on the Team race. In Kyle Snyder's ball bag all week. Again, too much focus on the #1 and #2 seeds....usually, poor matches to view in the first two rounds. On a glass half full...at least they're covering Wrestling. PS... Can we lose Billy Baldwin.
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Mar 20, 2018
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firemenj
Joined: Oct 19, 2007
Posts: 162
Location: NY |
LImarty wrote:Got eat some crow here. Yianni proved that he has the presence never to be out of a match. No way did I think he would win over Meredeth yet, no way was I gonna be so profound to pick Meredeth with Diakomiholis in the weight.
As far as Piccininni goes....solid 125 lber that is undersized. Suriano the same. Lee is a "stud" wasn't taken down all Tourney.
ESPN's coverage terrible like always. Too much talk- too much emphasis on the Team race. In Kyle Snyder's ball bag all week. Again, too much focus on the #1 and #2 seeds....usually, poor matches to view in the first two rounds. On a glass half full...at least they're covering Wrestling. PS... Can we lose Billy Baldwin.
ESPN had online coverage of every match... how is that terrible coverage? The wrestling buffs like you could go online and pick and choose which matchups they wanted to see, and they had solid commentary on those matches as they happened. The design their main channel broadcast to attract as many viewers as possible, that includes non wrestling people and casual fans, and that's who wrestling needs to appeal to. I thought it was great coverage. The amount of people who know nothing about wrestling but were super into it this weekend in the area was big(granted Yianni had a large part to do with that). I have been very happy with the coverage. Wrestling needs coverage like that. Not coverage for the diehard deep fans like you and I (which they had with their online covering of every match on every mat), but for the casual sports fan to see it as an option. How do you do that? You advertise a superstar, which Kyle Snyder is. You push a team aspect and a team race, which we had a good one. If the race wasn't so close, they wouldn't have pushed it so hard, but it was close, so yeah that creates excitement and drama and watchability.
There are many things I would prefer to see differently about the way ESPN does their coverage from a personal standpoint. But my opinion is irrelevant. So is yours. ESPN needs viewers, so they offer it in a way that gets people to watch, and I think they've done a great job of that. Let's not be fools. The ONLY reason NCAA Wrestling gets the primetime coverage it gets is because ESPN lost out on all the March Madness Basketball contracts. If ESPN had those again, we would be relegated to just finals coverage on ESPNU, at best. As you said, they are covering it which is huge for making wrestling look like a more viable option to the mainstream, and the way they cover it does that. Someone who does know a slide by from a duck under needs to be able to turn the TV on and be entertained for wrestling to keep getting the coverage, and to keep growing the sport. I think ESPN does a very good job of that without dumbing it down. I think what ESPN offered this weekend helps legitimize the sport in the eyes of a non wrestling fan, which will make more kids more likely to give wrestling a shot, which is what the sport needs.
And as for Billy Baldwin, yeah he's a douche. But he is a great advocate for the Sport of Wrestling, and again, Hollywood involvement pushes legitimacy in the eyes of non fans, so I'm okay with having him around.
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Mar 20, 2018
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subway101
Joined: Jan 17, 2013
Posts: 70
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firemenj wrote:LImarty wrote:Got eat some crow here. Yianni proved that he has the presence never to be out of a match. No way did I think he would win over Meredeth yet, no way was I gonna be so profound to pick Meredeth with Diakomiholis in the weight.
As far as Piccininni goes....solid 125 lber that is undersized. Suriano the same. Lee is a "stud" wasn't taken down all Tourney.
ESPN's coverage terrible like always. Too much talk- too much emphasis on the Team race. In Kyle Snyder's ball bag all week. Again, too much focus on the #1 and #2 seeds....usually, poor matches to view in the first two rounds. On a glass half full...at least they're covering Wrestling. PS... Can we lose Billy Baldwin.
ESPN had online coverage of every match... how is that terrible coverage? The wrestling buffs like you could go online and pick and choose which matchups they wanted to see, and they had solid commentary on those matches as they happened. The design their main channel broadcast to attract as many viewers as possible, that includes non wrestling people and casual fans, and that's who wrestling needs to appeal to. I thought it was great coverage. The amount of people who know nothing about wrestling but were super into it this weekend in the area was big(granted Yianni had a large part to do with that). I have been very happy with the coverage. Wrestling needs coverage like that. Not coverage for the diehard deep fans like you and I (which they had with their online covering of every match on every mat), but for the casual sports fan to see it as an option. How do you do that? You advertise a superstar, which Kyle Snyder is. You push a team aspect and a team race, which we had a good one. If the race wasn't so close, they wouldn't have pushed it so hard, but it was close, so yeah that creates excitement and drama and watchability.
There are many things I would prefer to see differently about the way ESPN does their coverage from a personal standpoint. But my opinion is irrelevant. So is yours. ESPN needs viewers, so they offer it in a way that gets people to watch, and I think they've done a great job of that. Let's not be fools. The ONLY reason NCAA Wrestling gets the primetime coverage it gets is because ESPN lost out on all the March Madness Basketball contracts. If ESPN had those again, we would be relegated to just finals coverage on ESPNU, at best. As you said, they are covering it which is huge for making wrestling look like a more viable option to the mainstream, and the way they cover it does that. Someone who does know a slide by from a duck under needs to be able to turn the TV on and be entertained for wrestling to keep getting the coverage, and to keep growing the sport. I think ESPN does a very good job of that without dumbing it down. I think what ESPN offered this weekend helps legitimize the sport in the eyes of a non wrestling fan, which will make more kids more likely to give wrestling a shot, which is what the sport needs.
And as for Billy Baldwin, yeah he's a douche. But he is a great advocate for the Sport of Wrestling, and again, Hollywood involvement pushes legitimacy in the eyes of non fans, so I'm okay with having him around.
Totally agree with your assessment. With the ESPN app on my FireTV, I was able to switch around from various matches. It would be great if they could broadcast more during the season which could help expose the sport even more. And Yanni couldn't have made his matches any more exciting. What a phenomenal job!
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Mar 20, 2018
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bigkidsdad
Joined: Feb 18, 2017
Posts: 166
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Agree with the two of you (firemenj, and subway), ESPN great job. I watched an hour after my kids because I was at a birthday party and got home late. I watched the DVR'd version in my bedroom with my wife and we were yelling, screaming, cheering, and clapping out loud for almost every match. ESPN brought a level of credibility to the NCAA tournament that a Flo, or Track wrestling could never do. I was an hour behind so I wasn't taking phone calls but when I finally caught up friends of mine who are not wrestlers were interested and were calling me with questions, that in and of itself was intriguing to me. I hope ratings were up. I do think the finals were the best I've seen (I know that comment will provoke a certain someone to have their selective memory sparked and tell me how I'm wrong). Thoroughly enjoyed this one, hope you all did too.
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Mar 20, 2018
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quickpick
Joined: Jan 9, 2015
Posts: 284
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LImarty wrote:Got eat some crow here. Yianni proved that he has the presence never to be out of a match. No way did I think he would win over Meredeth yet, no way was I gonna be so profound to pick Meredeth with Diakomiholis in the weight.
As far as Piccininni goes....solid 125 lber that is undersized. Suriano the same. Lee is a "stud" wasn't taken down all Tourney.
ESPN's coverage terrible like always. Too much talk- too much emphasis on the Team race. In Kyle Snyder's ball bag all week. Again, too much focus on the #1 and #2 seeds....usually, poor matches to view in the first two rounds. On a glass half full...at least they're covering Wrestling. PS... Can we lose Billy Baldwin.
Suriano did an interview after his match with Lee where he said his body was still growing and he didn't know if he was going to be able to stay at 125. His frame is big, or at least it appears that way on TV. He seems to have broad shoulders and may grow a little bit more. Not sure if he is undersized but he can definitely handle the weight. Lee didn't look overwhelmingly bigger than Suriano in that match though he dominated that match after the first. I agree they hyped the Snyder match too much. While he may be the face of wrestling internationally and to most avid wrestling fans, to the onlookers I don't think I would hype a heavy weight match outside of his finals with Gwiz a couple years ago where two monsters wrestled like 125lbers. His matches with Coon this year have all been low scoring and the action isn't enough to draw many people in and if it does, they may leave disappointed with the lack of action/scoring. As far as Billy Baldwin, ESPN hounds him all weekend and he always seems more interested in the action than the interview. His efforts to reinstate Binghamton wrestling can't be ignored though and I think any celebrity publicity is beneficial.
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Mar 20, 2018
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Oldskool
Joined: Feb 1, 2004
Posts: 1182
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Hyped too much? Snyder is an Olympic Gold medalist. They kinda have to.
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Mar 20, 2018
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Heisenberg
Joined: Nov 30, 2016
Posts: 157
Location: WNY |
I got tickets online for the finals and made the 3.5 hour trip down Saturday with my son. If you’ve never been to the finals, put it at the top of your bucket list. It seemed like everyone there was a hardcore wrestling fan and the atmosphere was electric, high energy. Next year is Pittsburgh, only 3.5 hours away, again.
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" Who are you talking to right now ? .... Who is it you think you see ? " |
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Mar 20, 2018
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LImarty
Joined: Nov 28, 2003
Posts: 1130
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I'm talking about the National Coverage. Focus on #1 and #2 seeds in the first round and second rounds doesn't make for competitive matches < my point. I think Snyder / Coon match-up is NOT the thing to sell by constantly following around Snyder....there were many more appropriate sales..Conel/Kent St. Retherford/ PSU....and others. BTW- Team Race is so ridiculous especially, when the prediction is already known...to wrestling fans across the Nation- all season. It was gonna be PSU/OSU . Who else is watching - Who else cares ??????? PERIOD !!
"PROPS" to Pops !! Outstanding performance by NC St.
ps. Out of the 40 wrestlers in the semi finals . How many from PA/ NJ / OH ..and elsewhere. Too lazy..lol.
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Mar 20, 2018
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subway101
Joined: Jan 17, 2013
Posts: 70
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LImarty wrote:I'm talking about the National Coverage. Focus on #1 and #2 seeds in the first round and second rounds doesn't make for competitive matches < my point. I think Snyder / Coon match-up is NOT the thing to sell by constantly following around Snyder....there were many more appropriate sales..Conel/Kent St. Retherford/ PSU....and others. BTW- Team Race is so ridiculous especially, when the prediction is already known...to wrestling fans across the Nation- all season. It was gonna be PSU/OSU . Who else is watching - Who else cares ??????? PERIOD !!
"PROPS" to Pops !! Outstanding performance by NC St.
ps. Out of the 40 wrestlers in the semi finals . How many from PA/ NJ / OH ..and elsewhere. Too lazy..lol.
I guess you will never see the positive side of any view other than your own. I seriously think someone could drop a million dollars at your feet and you would complain about a tripping hazard!!!!
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Mar 20, 2018
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bigkidsdad
Joined: Feb 18, 2017
Posts: 166
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Team race goes to a discussion on using the dual meet to bolster wrestling. Whether you like it or not the team race is "easy to sell", and digestible by non wrestling fans. Most of us knew it was Penn State on day one w/o divine intervention. ESPN did a great job selling wrestling to non wrestlers, period, end of topic, finito. Just ask anyone who doesn't frequent this and other wrestling forums. We need more people in seats, and while ESPN may not have wrestling in their hearts if they can make money at it and promote it because they don't have college basketball then I'm ok with that. More butts in chairs means more wrestlers on mats in future, period. Enjoy the national coverage while it lasts and stop complaining.
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Mar 21, 2018
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LImarty
Joined: Nov 28, 2003
Posts: 1130
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subway,
....put the mil by my feet.
..........................................
Actually, I'm not complaining. Just too much talk- and- too little wrestling.
You all knew that having Lee and Yianni winning that it was the first time since 1940 somethn - that two true freshmen won titles in the same d-1 national tourney.
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Mar 21, 2018
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quickpick
Joined: Jan 9, 2015
Posts: 284
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Oldskool wrote:Hyped too much? Snyder is an Olympic Gold medalist. They kinda have to.
I'm not arguing his credentials. I'm just saying if you're going hype a match, it better be an exciting one. A heavy weight match with a total of 3 actual TD attempts is not exciting to me, and probably not to a non-wrestling fan. If you're trying to promote the sport to a non-wrestling fan, I think the 141lb bracket was one of the most exciting weights. With returning national champs, a freshman phenom and some of the best scrambling in the tournament, this was probably a weight that anyone could have gotten into. Don't get me wrong, Snyder is an amazing talent and has the ability to move like a 157lber, Coon just doesn't open up enough to really provide the show that a non-wrestling fan would appreciate.
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Mar 21, 2018
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duddems
Joined: Jan 25, 2018
Posts: 139
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LImarty wrote:Got eat some crow here. Yianni proved that he has the presence never to be out of a match. No way did I think he would win over Meredeth yet, no way was I gonna be so profound to pick Meredeth with Diakomiholis in the weight.
As far as Piccininni goes....solid 125 lber that is undersized. Suriano the same. Lee is a "stud" wasn't taken down all Tourney.
ESPN's coverage terrible like always. Too much talk- too much emphasis on the Team race. In Kyle Snyder's ball bag all week. Again, too much focus on the #1 and #2 seeds....usually, poor matches to view in the first two rounds. On a glass half full...at least they're covering Wrestling. PS... Can we lose Billy Baldwin.
Good post Marty. And Yanni did the qtrs on w a badly injured knee. Thank god he has offseason to heal. Billy Baldwin could use a sobering up, but i dont mind him. 141 was one of the toughest weight classes in memory, and yanni ran the tabke hurt with 3 toughtough wins in a row w late 3rd oeriod "must have" production. He never stops impressing me. Spencer Lee looked dominant, even w his prosthetic superleg.
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