What teams will be at the Garden City Tourny? And who will be tough to beat?

Garden City, La Junta CO, Olathe South, Great Bend, Basehor, Dodge City, Parker Ponderosa CO, Canon City CO, Andale, Scott City, Hugoton, Emporia, Goddard, Ulysses, Lamar CO, Liberal, Hays and Sublette. I would think that it would be Ponderosa, Goddard, and Andale in the hunt to win it.....but don't count out Garden in their own tourney. Great Bend seems to be on the rise, and SC has a decent team this year also. It's going to be a tough tourney to place high in.

My prediction for team standings.
Goddard, Andale, Ponderosa, Garden City, Canon City, Scott City are my top 6 in that order, and I'm wondering if Hugoton will finish above Ulysses again, what a shocker, when was the last time that they placed higher than U-town? Yes I know AJ was hurt but even if he would of gotten first at Scott City the point difference was too great for him to make it up by winning it.....

When did Derby pull out of this tournament and does anybody know where they are going instead?

Derby will be there. The team is starting to have all their varsity wrestlers back in the line up. It will be interesting to see how they do.

Regarding Hugoton...they probably have the best team that they have ever had. They actually led the Pratt tournament most of the day before finishing third. They will do well in the smaller tournaments, but not as well as the tournaments get tougher. They have good kids, not great kids that will rise to the top of a tourney like GC, but they could score some points through the early rounds and through the back side. What is going on at Derby? Injuries? Skin problems? Eligibility? They are not on the original list.

Derby has had a strange year. They have had differant people out all year with injuries, several for surgeries, several with the flu. No skin or grade problems this year. Their a close net group of guys, it will be fun to see them all back together going into the end of the year.

The caravan is ready for a rowdy weekend. Time for the car flags.

I just wanted to say something about Derby’s JV wrestlers this year. Derby, with the year they have had this year, has had to ask some of the JV wrestlers to step up and fill a lot of huge holes on the Varsity squad. They have done a GREAT job trying to fill in. They have won some and lost some, but they all worked their buttes off doing their part. Their efforts win or lose, made a difference on several of the close duals. GREAT JOB GUY’S. You are the future of the team.

I actually wanted to find an excuse to brag on Coach Ross and his staff. I have to say, Rob is exactly right, this is a close group of guys who are close to getting to full strength for the first time this year. However, my comment on Coach Ross, I am honored that my son wrestles for him, he is a man of integrity and knows about team concepts. He has done as good a job at developing team camaraderie as any coach I have ever seen or known. For those that know him, or have wrestled with or for him you will know of what I am talking about. He really cares about the kids, from not just the wrestling mat, but from the classroom and to their personal lives. When I think back of the positive role models I had as coaches, I know that one day my son and many others will look at Coach Ross in the same way I look at my coaches. There are other great ones, coaches, and I could mention many of them, but great programs and great coaches go together for a reason. I know Coach don’t like hearing stuff where he gets a pat on the back, but that don’t take away from the fact that he deserves it.

Do we need a group hug here!!!