This scramble marked the end of the second period of a semi-finals match between two wrestlers ranked in the top 10 nationally by InterMat Wrestling.
Bryce Brill (Mt. Carmel – Chicago, IL) takes a bad shot from left field on Jake Short (Simley, MN) and appears to give up a takedown at the end of the second period of this Cheesehead Wrestling tournament semi-final match.
However, when the dust settled, no points were awarded.
While I believe this match was well officiated from start to finish, I believe an error was made when it comes to this non-call at the end of the second period. Once Short was able to work back on top and control Brill’s hips prior to the buzzer, a takedown should have been awarded. The fact that Brill was still attempting to counter, first with the body lock then with a body whizzer/knee block, is of no consequence. There are three different illustrations in the 2011-2012 NFHS Rule Book that illustrate this point:
In my opinion there is not much difference between any of the illustrations above and the position that Brill and Short ended up in at the buzzer. I seems to be a pretty clear takedown to me. Let’s look at the rule referenced in all of the illustrations above:
I believe all of the criteria laid out in 5-25-1 have been met.
Brill and Short started in the neutral position at the beginning of the scramble. Short ultimately gained control over Brill’s down on the mat. The supporting points of at least one wrestler were inbounds when control was gained.
That said, reasonable people can disagree on a call this close.
Since there is no way to codify what constitutes “control” in all positions and situations, often times control must be “felt” by the calling official. The NFHS Wrestling publications state several times that “control is felt rather than observed”. In scramble situations such as these it can be difficult to get a feel for when control has been obtained. I’m sure that’s what lead to a no-call in this case.
The 2011-2012 NFHS Wrestling Manual also attempts to highlight how important “feel” is when it comes to the awarding of points. It also offers some guidelines to assist in making determinations of whether or not control has been obtained/maintained:
The second paragraph contains a hidden gem that when applied to this scramble would have helped the official to get to what I believe would have been the correct call: ”(i)n a double leg, when the countering wrestler is seated on the mat, a takedown can be awarded as soon as this wrestler is no longer able to use the legs as a means of support”.
If you haven’t already, check out the full match.
It’s a treat. You’ll see two of the nations top young wrestlers going at it in a well officiated match at one of the top prep tournaments in the country.
