On Sunday, February 20, 2011, Wichita Eagle writer Bob Lutz wrote a commentary about the number of Kansas wrestlers on the University of Oklahoma Wrestling Team. In the artcle he reported the following:

"(Jack)Spates didn't intentionally go about luring Wichita wrestlers to OU, it just happened. He's a champion for high school wrestling in Kansas, saying it has passed Oklahoma in quality and quantity. Think about that statement for a second. Oklahoma has two of the country's most traditionally successful college wrestling programs, yet Spates believes Kansas is at least comparable in high school wrestlnig."

"'Kansas wrestling just keeps getting better and better,' Spates said. 'Those high school coaches there are doing a fabulous job. And the great thing about these Kansas kids is that they're not only great on the mat, but great off the mat, too. They're polite, respectul and absolute warriors on the mat.'"

That is a heck of a compliment to Kansas Wrestling!

Thanks Matt for putting this on here. I personally get tired of hearing people from Kansas always talking about how wrestling is better from other states, Missoui, Oklahoma, etc. We are improving all the time, and with a small population compared to other states we do great. Some people go to a Kansas tourney, and their kid gets beat by an Oklahoma kid, and they automatically assume that Oklahoma kids are great. Most of these kids that travel usually are good or they wouldn't be going out of state looking for competition. So its really great for coach Spates to say these things and help set the record straight. The grass is not always greener on the other side.

Missouri has over twice as many people as Kansas, and Oklahoma has almost a million more. The more people you have, the better chance of building a better team. So this really makes Kansas look good.