Want me to write you a list of all the guys who have competed in the Silver Division over the last few years? Some of the biggest names start out wrestling in those brackets as Freshmen… in fact, most do. Silver brackets are essentially a bracket for the Freshmen. That includes the elite Freshmen and the Freshmen who need work. Most coaches do this for the majority of their guys… I don’t know for sure, but I presume it’s to help them get acclimated to the college level. Coaches have to be careful with Freshmen wrestler’s confidence. Most freshmen, even your blue-chippers come into the D1 room at the beginning and get their asses kicked for the first time ever and it is not uncommon for some of them to have the thought, “this is tough, can I even do this?!” At the beginning of the season when the tournaments start unraveling, most Freshmen are still getting their butts kicked by the veterans in the room….and they are probably frustrated as hell about it.
Confidence can be a fragile thing even for the toughest and most confident people. If you are struggling with something for a prolonged period of time, chances are, you are in need of a confidence booster. Or at least something that won’t hurt it…
Freshmen wrestling in the varsity/gold divisions at the first couple open tournaments of the year are likely going to get their butts kicked by an upperclassmen. Considering the butt-kickings most Freshmen are taking on a daily basis in practice, getting your butt kicked by an upperclassman at a tourney in front of a crowd, would do nothing, but add to the frustration. Salt on the wound.
Wyatt could have done just fine in the Gold Division at 141. And he was wrestling against other Freshmen who are in the same boat as him. He was NOT facing bad competition for a Freshman in his first ever college tourney. In fact, I’ve seen several instances in which the champion of the silver bracket could potentially beat the champions of the gold bracket.
I can understand how someone would think Wyatt wrestled bad opponents at Luther, but I think these people are wrong. Wyatt is just so good and physical with his snaps that he made people look bad that day.
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