Jan. 29, 2007 • Week in Review
Brandon vs. Oviedo: the match that wasn’t
By Rob Sherrill, W.I.N. High School Editor
We should have been reporting about one of the biggest high school matches in Florida wrestling history. But we didn’t. And we won’t.
The ink was barely dry on the agreement that Class 3A kingpin Oviedo High would be traveling to Class 2A power Brandon High in the finals of a hastily-arranged “tournament” Jan. 24.
The dream matchup, apparently, was doomed before it even started. It was officially called off on Jan. 18, barely a week after it was officially arranged.
And that means “The Streak,” as Brandon’s 34-year dual meet winning streak of 439 victories is known, will survive into next season alive and well. For his part, current coach Russ Cozart is 357-0 since taking the reins in 1980. (Who was the last team to beat the Eagles? Answer at end of column.)
It’s been interesting to read the sniping between the two programs in the Florida newspapers. There’s been plenty of it to go around.
It’s a fact — and this is a shame — that a lot of administrative considerations hampered the scheduling of the Brandon-Oviedo showdown.
Hillsborough County, just outside of Tampa and where Brandon is located, does not permit its teams to wrestle non-tournament dual meets against teams from outside the county. So in order to wrestle Oviedo, located 100 miles down the road in suburban Orlando, the Eagles had to embed the match within a “tournament” setting. So Brandon arranged a four-team tournament, securing two other teams for semifinal competition, with Brandon and Oviedo ostensibly to meet each other in the “final.”
Then the fun started. Who would officiate the match? Oviedo wanted an NCAA or “neutral” official, which Hillsborough County reportedly wouldn’t give its approval to. And there was one other disadvantage for Oviedo: With such short notice, Oviedo would only have obtained approval for its starting lineup of 14 wrestlers to leave the school early to make the trip to Brandon — whereas the host Eagles would have had their full team and flexibility if necessary — available for the weigh-in.
I’m not going to assign blame exclusively to one side or the other. Both sides have pointed the finger at the other. So there’s plenty of blame to go around.
Two unfortunate things are striking about the situation.
First, it’s apparent that both teams didn’t want this to happen – at least, not bad enough. The talk has been talked – but when it came to walking the walk, both came up short.
Second, a great opportunity to market the best experience Florida high school wrestling has to offer has been irretrievably lost. As an Orlando Sentinel columnist so eloquently stated, for one glorious night in mid-January, high school wrestling would have been on the front pages of the newspapers in two of Florida’s biggest media markets.
(Answer: The last time Brandon lost a dual match was the final contest of the 1972-1973 season, when the Eagles fell to Bradenton Manatee, 28-19. Since then, the Eagles have been nearly flawless. They tied Manatee nine matches into the 1973-'74 season, which puts their unbeaten streak at 448).
By Rob Sherrill, W.I.N. High School Editor
We should have been reporting about one of the biggest high school matches in Florida wrestling history. But we didn’t. And we won’t.
The ink was barely dry on the agreement that Class 3A kingpin Oviedo High would be traveling to Class 2A power Brandon High in the finals of a hastily-arranged “tournament” Jan. 24.
The dream matchup, apparently, was doomed before it even started. It was officially called off on Jan. 18, barely a week after it was officially arranged.
And that means “The Streak,” as Brandon’s 34-year dual meet winning streak of 439 victories is known, will survive into next season alive and well. For his part, current coach Russ Cozart is 357-0 since taking the reins in 1980. (Who was the last team to beat the Eagles? Answer at end of column.)
It’s been interesting to read the sniping between the two programs in the Florida newspapers. There’s been plenty of it to go around.
It’s a fact — and this is a shame — that a lot of administrative considerations hampered the scheduling of the Brandon-Oviedo showdown.
Hillsborough County, just outside of Tampa and where Brandon is located, does not permit its teams to wrestle non-tournament dual meets against teams from outside the county. So in order to wrestle Oviedo, located 100 miles down the road in suburban Orlando, the Eagles had to embed the match within a “tournament” setting. So Brandon arranged a four-team tournament, securing two other teams for semifinal competition, with Brandon and Oviedo ostensibly to meet each other in the “final.”
Then the fun started. Who would officiate the match? Oviedo wanted an NCAA or “neutral” official, which Hillsborough County reportedly wouldn’t give its approval to. And there was one other disadvantage for Oviedo: With such short notice, Oviedo would only have obtained approval for its starting lineup of 14 wrestlers to leave the school early to make the trip to Brandon — whereas the host Eagles would have had their full team and flexibility if necessary — available for the weigh-in.
I’m not going to assign blame exclusively to one side or the other. Both sides have pointed the finger at the other. So there’s plenty of blame to go around.
Two unfortunate things are striking about the situation.
First, it’s apparent that both teams didn’t want this to happen – at least, not bad enough. The talk has been talked – but when it came to walking the walk, both came up short.
Second, a great opportunity to market the best experience Florida high school wrestling has to offer has been irretrievably lost. As an Orlando Sentinel columnist so eloquently stated, for one glorious night in mid-January, high school wrestling would have been on the front pages of the newspapers in two of Florida’s biggest media markets.
(Answer: The last time Brandon lost a dual match was the final contest of the 1972-1973 season, when the Eagles fell to Bradenton Manatee, 28-19. Since then, the Eagles have been nearly flawless. They tied Manatee nine matches into the 1973-'74 season, which puts their unbeaten streak at 448).