I know the Chattanooga wrestling community is saddened by this news. They did a great job with the individual tournament for as long as I can remember. Just remember if Ward Gossett hadn’t tried to sir up trouble in Clarksville none of this would have happened. I guess Soddy is the biggest looser in all of this. A big thank you to all those who worked so hard over the years to make the State Tournament happen, let’s wish the Franklin area schools all the luck in making it as smooth and successful as it has been in the past.
Very interesting article, Ward stirred the pot to invent this story and then has to twist truths to make a personal attack on Jeff to make a story. Jeff's question for years has been why put a Middle Tennessee ref or Chattanooga ref on the mat with Middle Tn and Chattanooga teams on the mat. It's not done in any other sport. Has nothing to do with the ref themselves, but more how they are assigned and why. Several years ago when Clarksville and Bradley met in the finals, I went to ask Ronnie Carter to please put two West Tn refs on the mat so there wouldn’t be any perceived notions of favoritism. He personally told me OK, when we got started it was a totally different case. West Tn officials did not report to the mat, when Jeff questioned Ronnie Carter, he became very angry. Yet when I asked him it seemed like it wasn’t a problem at all, I can only speculate this came after talking with the man responsible for official assignments. Why the TSSAA doesn’t want to treat wrestling like all other sports makes a person wonder. But Ward didn’t want to report that Clarksville has been working on this for several years now, or that Clarksville has wanted to do away with the duals for awhile. (I have been begging to give it up because it has become such a distraction for the team. I think we should be able to show up and wrestle like every other team.) It appears Ward just wanted to make a personal attack on Jeff. By the way Ward couldn’t report it because he never asked, the threat occurred when there was a blood time out in the 285 pound weight class. Cleveland didn’t think there was blood and our wrestler was gased. I won’t repeat what was said but I heard it as I watched the coach say it. I wiped the kid’s blood out of his mouth without gloves in order to speed up the stoppage. I even got blood on my finger and can be seen walking across the mat to the trainer during the match to get it cleaned off on our video, which should be very clear on Cleveland’s two cameras. The coach has even admitted that things were said that shouldn’t have and that’s why he talked to Jeff after the match. What was said is not really of importance but the fact that Ward is attacking Jeff’s character surely shows his lack of, and poor jourlistic abilities
Wrestling tourney leaving Chattanooga for Franklin
I know the Chattanooga wrestling community is saddened by this news. They did a great job with the individual tournament for as long as I can remember. Just remember if Ward Gossett hadn’t tried to sir up trouble in Clarksville none of this would have happened. I guess Soddy is the biggest looser in all of this. A big thank you to all those who worked so hard over the years to make the State Tournament happen, let’s wish the Franklin area schools all the luck in making it as smooth and successful as it has been in the past.
Prep wrestling blog: A few minor complaints and guess who wants to quit?
Very interesting article, Ward stirred the pot to invent this story and then has to twist truths to make a personal attack on Jeff to make a story. Jeff's question for years has been why put a Middle Tennessee ref or Chattanooga ref on the mat with Middle Tn and Chattanooga teams on the mat. It's not done in any other sport. Has nothing to do with the ref themselves, but more how they are assigned and why. Several years ago when Clarksville and Bradley met in the finals, I went to ask Ronnie Carter to please put two West Tn refs on the mat so there wouldn’t be any perceived notions of favoritism. He personally told me OK, when we got started it was a totally different case. West Tn officials did not report to the mat, when Jeff questioned Ronnie Carter, he became very angry. Yet when I asked him it seemed like it wasn’t a problem at all, I can only speculate this came after talking with the man responsible for official assignments. Why the TSSAA doesn’t want to treat wrestling like all other sports makes a person wonder. But Ward didn’t want to report that Clarksville has been working on this for several years now, or that Clarksville has wanted to do away with the duals for awhile. (I have been begging to give it up because it has become such a distraction for the team. I think we should be able to show up and wrestle like every other team.) It appears Ward just wanted to make a personal attack on Jeff. By the way Ward couldn’t report it because he never asked, the threat occurred when there was a blood time out in the 285 pound weight class. Cleveland didn’t think there was blood and our wrestler was gased. I won’t repeat what was said but I heard it as I watched the coach say it. I wiped the kid’s blood out of his mouth without gloves in order to speed up the stoppage. I even got blood on my finger and can be seen walking across the mat to the trainer during the match to get it cleaned off on our video, which should be very clear on Cleveland’s two cameras. The coach has even admitted that things were said that shouldn’t have and that’s why he talked to Jeff after the match. What was said is not really of importance but the fact that Ward is attacking Jeff’s character surely shows his lack of, and poor jourlistic abilities