As former University of Tennessee at Chattanooga athletic director David Blackburn was fond of reminding folks from time to time, the first time he took in the school's Southern Scuffle wrestling tournament midway through the 2013-14 school year, he was stunned to find no parking places available anywhere near McKenzie Arena, including his own spot.
"I learned then," he would say later, "that this was a much bigger event than I'd ever imagined."
Whether concerned about that dynamic or not, new UTC AD Mark Wharton arrived at McKenzie early Monday for the start of the Mocs' seventh hosting of the Scuffle with credentials at the ready.
"Luckily, my individual spot was available," he said by phone. "I don't like to say I'm the UTC AD in situations like that, but this time I did."
Wharton's interest in wrestling far predates his UTC hiring. During his four years at Penn State prior to coming to Chattanooga, one of his jobs was the development liaison for wrestling. The Nittany Lions program won three NCAA championships during his tenure, and Tuesday brought their seventh Scuffle title in a row, not counting last year when they did not participate.
"So I'm pretty excited about the Scuffle," Wharton said. "Though I've never been to it before, I'd heard about it for years through the folks at Penn State. Coaches all across the country talk about it, how it's the best non-championship tournament of the year. It's kind of an out-of-body experience to have it here in Chattanooga."
Nor is this Wharton merely beating the drum for his employer. To recycle a quote from last year's Scuffle, courtesy of national wrestling writer Christian Pyles: "The Scuffle is one of, if not the toughest in-season tournament in the country."
What concerns Wharton is that the Scuffle, for all its acclaim, doesn't seem as tied to the Scenic City as he wishes it was.
"There's definitely a brand nationally concerning the Scuffle," he said. "I'm just not sure that enough people know that UT-Chattanooga is the host."
However, not six months on the job, Wharton is 100 percent sure he wants to grow the UTC wrestling program even bigger than it is today.
"Look around," he said. "Presbyterian is getting ready to add wrestling. Wrestling is back in the Olympics. Go to the NCAA Championships and it's a sold-out atmosphere. It's a unique fan base - very blue collar, and college wrestlers reflect that. They have a great work ethic. Good time management. Very disciplined. Almost always strong academically. I saw that at Penn State, and you see it in our program here. And (UTC coach) Heath Eslinger is known as one of the best in the country."
He also knows that anything that helps make the Scuffle better also figures to, in his words, "help UTC in recruiting."
So what, if anything, would he like to help change about the UTC program moving forward?
"Programs like Penn State routinely get seven or eight wrestlers to the nationals," he said. "Right now, we might get three or four. I'd like to see this program grow to a point where we can get seven or eight."
Let that happen and finding a parking place for future Scuffles might take more than a UTC athletic department ID.
Contact Mark Wiedmer at mwiedmer@timesfreepress.com.