First of all, kudos to former fellow Northern Iowa Panther Chad Harberts for adding his two cents — you were right on the mark.

Speaking as both a coach and a journalist, whoever it was that said that coaches in the state do a lousy job of promoting this sport was 100 percent right. For the most part we do. Some coaches do not make themselves available after the meets, and most do not even begin to try to get previews to even their local media in advance.

Face it — Kansas is a basketball state, and try as we might, wrestling will never replace it. And a few idle threats of subscription cancellations is not going to chance that anytime soon. Fact of the matter is that newspapers make little of anything on subscriptions; the real money is in advertsing.

Coaches, if you want media notice, ask for it. Call your local paper and/or radio or TV station BEFORE and immediately after every meet. And parents/fans, don't call up the local media and call them everything but a Child of God because they didn't show up at an event. Many times they have priorities over a local wrestling tournament that means they can't staff it. But if the coach or tournament director is on the stick, they will get results to the media in a timely manner and it will get published. Trust me, that's how it works!!!

And one more thing to the fans: If you aren't seeing results in a timely manner in your local media, chances are it's the coach, not the media's fault. Instead of calling the paper or the station, call the school. Many times, informing the media is either in the contract or in the job description. If they're not doing it , they could be in trouble.

Sincerely,
Jeff Holmes
Assistant Coach Atchison High School
20 years as a sports journalist
Free-lance writer