As the 2022-2023 FHSAA wrestling season approaches we begin to think… what can we expect? Each year seems to have some storyline or underdog who comes out of nowhere to make a name for themselves. Well, what should we expect this season? I say we should expect the unexpected! In my 48 years involved in this great sport, I have learned that anything and everything can and usually does happen. From incoming Freshman beating everyone in their path, to transfer students helping their new team get a little further than the previous year. But for the most part, I think the same teams who are solid every year will probably still be pretty solid.
With the state series now having an IBT championship and a Dual Team championship we are treated to some exciting action. We get to watch the coaches try and outcoach each other with strategic moves within their line-up’s in order to win that dual they may not have normally been able to win. Kids will be bumped up and kids will cut down to a lower weight for the good of the team as a whole. Sometimes it works great and sometimes it was not such a great move. Last season in 1A Jensen Beach HS won both the Duals and the IBT championships leaving no question who the top dog is in the 1A classification. In 2A and 3A we saw different teams crowned. In the 2A Dual Championships Lake Gibson HS beat Tampa Jesuit for the team state title and then at the IBT championships Tampa Jesuit beat everyone and was named the IBT state champions. And in 3A Palmetto Ridge was named the team state champions while South Dade HS won the IBT state title in March.
I think we have a tremendous amount of talent in our state and we have more youth programs feeding our high schools now than ever before. This is the key to building Florida into a powerhouse wrestling state. We are getting there and our elite kids can hang with any other states elite kids. We lack depth and that’s it. I feel with the new clubs popping up left and right and with the help of training centers and wrestling schools like Beebe Trained, Kangas Wrestling [Will of a Warrior] Top Gun, Gladiator, All American Wrestling Academy etc. we are well on our way to creating more future high school wrestlers and this will bring some depth with it.