Is there a HS wrestling rule against?

I attended a local HS league wrestling tournament today. A very, very good wrestler was wrestling a very good wrestler. But, there was a definite difference in ability, experience, etc. in the 2 athletes, although the lesser wrestler will probably qualify for state. The better wrestler put on a take down clinic---take down and cut the other wrestler, repeat, repeat, etc. Nothing wrong with that. But, when he cut the opponent, usually on or near the circle, with a big shove and a sneer or a giggle, to me it appeared he was taunting the lesser wrestler. After he had built a comfortable lead, 10 plus points, he went to the mat and made lack luster moves, never really attempting get free, and appeared to again be playing with the opponent. Maybe there is no rule against taunting per se', but it was surely poor sportsmanship.

There certainly is a rule against taunting, per se, or otherwise. Any act deemed to be taunting is unsportsmanlike conduct, by rule. There is nothing that prohibits takedown/release/takedown, that's in the rule book, or case book. There's also no rule against being full of yourself and acting the fool, at least so long as your aren't unsportsmanlike in doing so.

Unlike most of the rules, taunting does require the official to discern the wrestler's intent....is he really intending to belittle his opponent, or is just having fun. A happy wrestler isn't necessarily a taunting wrestler. There are always ways for the official to intercede, but if it isn't unsportsmanlike, which is a judgment call, it becomes a question of whether you are injecting your own subjective view of what the better wrestler is thinking. I've seen lots of kids with a dumb, wiseacre grin on their face....and they were the ones getting clobbered!

Also, as adults, we sometimes view things differently than high school aged kids. When I was that age, there were a lot of things that I thought and did that I wouldn't think or do as an adult. They get some slack because of their immaturity.

Thanks. Me, I felt he was trying to belittle his opponent--doubly so when he went down on the mat!

Must not have been that good...

Sorry, don't understand your comment!

If he was being dominated like that, toyed with...he must not be that good.

what about taunting after a match,off the mat? I watched a wrestling match yesterday and apparently winning wasn't enough for one of the wrestlers and he decided to go over to were losing wrestler was sitting,saying derogatory things to him and trying to pick a fight. for future reference,is there any rule for this type of behavior?

Both that good! Both ranked in their class and both ranked in all-class. Lower ranked wrestler could have been sick or injured--don't know.

Added: maybe the winner did not want to wrestle down and dirty on the match--seen that before.

There is. It is Unsportsmanlike conduct after the match. A penalty and a team point, obviously not a match situation. If the kid picked up two off-mat UC he'd be ejected from the event. That's not the case if its during a match. Hard for an official to catch that off-mat behavior and wrestlers, as a group, aren't usually trash-takers. Shame on anyone that does this sort of thing.

I believe I know what match you were talking about. This was not taunting. Put on your big boy pants and watch some college wrestling, this happens all the time. This is called tough wrestling.

really? college wrestlers run around in the stands cursing and talking smack to their opponents well after their matches are over? maybe you were repling to an earlier post,sorry.

He was referring to taking an opponent down and cutting them repeatedly. Surely you could figure that out. However, I have seen some crazy stuff similar to your comments at Carver Hawkeye!

so only a ref can enforce this type of penalty? this happened in front of fans and wrestlers in the stands well away from any refs on the mats. no dog in this fight but I seen the taunting post and just had to ask.

Unfortunately all parents have not taught their children right from wrong. Even worse, some parents encourage this type of behavior. Where parents have failed, coaches need to try and do right. Now, coaches and parents can not be every where at all times. Personally, I would have said something to the kid if I saw this type of behavior and put a stop to it immediately. Sometimes, just knowing that they have been seen doing wrong will stop the behavior. Allowing it, is telling them it is ok.

So only a ref can enforce this type of penalty? this happened in front of fans and wrestlers in the stands well away from any refs on the mats. no dog in this fight but I seen the taunting post and just had to ask.


Only the official can enforce the wrestling rule. No one else can assess the penalty. But that doesn't mean other adults cannot take action -- coach, parent, school administrator--all might have more influence over the situation. Probably the person with the least amount of impact on the kid will be the official. Having a coach take you by the ear makes a lot bigger impression---at least that's my recollection.

Sorry, but this was not tough college wrestling---it was high school wrestling. As I stated, the takedown and cut drill did not bother me--seen it before many times. What I think I personally saw was an attitude expressed in the hard shoves out of bounds and off the mat, the sneers, the giggles, laying on the mat and showing the opponent he was impervious to the opponents efforts, etc. I took all this as taunting and un sportsmanship conduct. If a wrestler is so much better than the opponent then go out with a stone face and put him away quickly---no playing around.

Different wrestlers have different tactics to win. Sometimes throwing your opponent off his game is a strategy. If you can get him worked up he might do something stupid. The hard shoves sometimes is hard wrestling. This is a physical sport, as long as you are not doing anything illegal such as hitting or cheap shots you should be OK. We want our athletes to get to the next level. Watch the next level and see what they do. They wrestle hard and with intensity and emotion.

I have seen this in just about every tournament I attended this year and I use it as a motivational factor. This sends a clear message that he feels threatened by the other wrestler and I see it as a form of respect. I have seen many guys get fired up once this happens and then the fight is on. Nothing like a wrong to get someone pumped up so this tactic usually backfires. As a father I tell my son to let his wrestling do his talking and stay focused bad behavior leads to bad results. The problem with this type of activity is that things tend to spiral out of control really fast.

Some wrestler are just more dangerous on the mat, my son included. He has had the above done to him several time this year.

It was obvious that he wasn't good enough on his feet with the upper level of wrestlers, but did pretty well on the mat.

Those kids knew that and let him up to take him down.

Also just a great point to the wrestler of what they need to improve on. Did it belittle my son...maybe...but it also motivated him to improve his wrestling in that area.

He has suffered an long term mental problems....well more thatn he already had.

Bill,

Watch this video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sndY3caXU2E

Is Brands taunting NCAA Jeff Prescott, I don't think so, he is making an exciting match with intensity. He pushes him when he lets him up and tries to create more opportunity to score and break his opponent mentally and eventually gets the tech fall.