Against All Odds+ (Need Multiple Tourneys)

[TrueFish]

I truly love this sport with all my heart.. I seen the positive benefits wrestling has done not only in my life but the life of  hundreds of other kids throughout the years. Milwaukee Pulaski went from a powerhouse not only in the city of Milwaukee but the State back when Coach Ed Kurth was at the helm to 8 years later the program being dead. I left being an assistant at Bradley Tech which at the time was the new leader of the pack in the city with a State Champ (Jeff Lemmer), place winner (James Parker) , tens qualifiers and young studs on the rise (Travis Smith, John Jude etc.. to a program that didn't have a wrestling room, singlets, equipment...anything. I was definitely up for the challenge especially because I experience the onslaught of Pulaski when I was in HS and wanted to revive that. Anyone working in MPS knows all the obstacles you have to jump beyond the mat and I feel we made alot of progress! We went from practicing on the stage in the Auditorium , to sharing the gym with basketball, to finally getting our own wrestling room last year. We ended my first year with 6 kids.. Last Year we ended with 23 kids able to wrestle. We won the Duel meet Championship( Ruffin Division) for the first time in 10 years..  Even more important 80% of the team had 2.0 higher GPA's which might not sound like success but was huge! So with all the progress you would think the school would start to be believers but NOPE!
I finished my schedule in March and my AD STILL hasn't responded to emails. We actually lost our spot in a tourney because of no response. Tourney's that had dropped or made changes I had no clue because the AD doesn't answer/return calls or emails OR is never in the office. Then I find out the Football coach is actively recruiting kids NOT to wrestle and join his "Hour long"  Off season conditioning . Don't even need to say what wrestling does to help football players.. I feel like we are against all odds before we even hit the mat! Wrestling is already on the brink of no longer being in some places and its easy to give up but I will stick it out! Why? Because Wrestling taught me to never GIVE UP! Any advice from anyone out there possibly dealing with a similar situation??
Enough with my Rant If anyone has tournament openings for 12-21-13, 1-11-14 and 1-18-14 please let me know!

Thank you guys!
Trueman McGee

[Ghetto]

The Belcher Invite at Hamilton is on 1/18 I am pretty sure.

[bkraus]

Yep, The Belcher is on Jan 18th.  I imagine they would have a spot for you.  Good luck.  I remember wrestling in the Pulaski duals in the late 80's early 90's.  I believe it is the DeBraie duals at Tech now.  Always was a tough tourney.  I hope you are able to clear these hurdles and return Pulaski into a competitive team!

[Kurth]

Trueman, you are a great coach and a great man. Just keep pulling the kids in one at a time. Every kid who wrestles for you is lucky. You'll lighten the burden of your obstacles with every year and every success. They don't completely go away but they get smaller. Check with the football coach and verify what was said. I know its difficult for wrestling coaches to do but I'd also suggest explaining your support for football and what you can bring to it.
I think parent groups and publicity can get things rolling for wrestling teams, but your team may struggle with those things. Many towns have local newspapers but Milw Pulaski's local paper is the Milw Journal/Sentinel - tough to get many articles in there. So getting some coverage of your stars in a school newspaper, a flyer, or posters around the school may be your best publicity. Focus on victories and any championships, JV or Varsity. The chicken and the egg in wrestling is: Success breads support and support breads success. I think the dual title you won is the success that can still bring more support.

Regarding the contract, I found out from Rapids that it hadn't been returned when you thought it had been sent back months earlier.

Thanks for working to create more city wrestlers. Pulaski's comeback is really impressive.

[TrueFish]

Thanks Coach I appreciate that!!

[mdbriggs]

Plymouth High School just had a team drop from our Varsity Dual Tournament that is Jan. 11, 2014.  5 Duals in one day and done by 5p.m.
If you need more info:

mdbriggs@plymouth.k12.wi.us