No, I did not get to seen Lankis and Austin wrestle but I was wrestling during that time. I think it is easy for us all to agree that folk style wrestling has changed dramatically since the '60's to now . My point is that it is difficult at best to compare styles. The '60s had little free-style influence and there was still an emphasis on control and mat wrestling and high school still had riding time. Shoot, in those days if you took someone down and let them up repeatedly you ran the risk of being penalized for unsportsmanlike contest! So to compare wrestlers of the 60's to those of the 90's/current is difficult; to me it is much like comparing an Indy car of the 60's to one today--they both go fast but . . . .

Boyle was well schooled and proficent in Greco & Free Style and you could see this in his folk style wrestling. The closer starting position was definitely to his advantage due to his incredibly strong grip--the farther starting position of the 60's probably meant that Lankis and Austin's matches lasted 10 - 20 seconds longer as it was harder for them to catch their opponents.

No, I did not get to see Lankis and Austin, but I caanot imagine either of them being better than Jeff Boyle--I have told people and I will make the same statement here, Jeff Boyle was a once in a generation athlete--Incredibly talented, off the chart work ethic, his strength was such that really is no good way to describe it, a good student and one of the nicest people (thank goodness) that I have ever had the privelege of knowing.

TRUE STORY: After a dual one night I helped the Norton team move a mat back to their wrestling room; I partnered with Boyle; when he grabbed my wrist to lock under the mat the circulation in my hand was immediately cut off; by the time we had got the mat to the wrestling room (two minutes at the most) my hand was numb and blue.