Jonathan Miers

[jschrantz]

headed to Wyoming Sem. Shouldn’t be a surprise following the incident with his family and Coach and the NAACP. Heck of a wrestler though is Johnny and college prospect. Good luck, I know Smalls is disappointed with the piss poor handling of the situation by EASD. Pathetic

 

[Flying_Tiger]

Yea, that was an ugly situation. Guess Wyoming Seminary figured he shouldn't be held responsible for the actions of some his family.

 

[AgSurfer]

Ok, some of us who don't live in PA anymore are drawing blanks here. A little background info would be helpful. Can you explain or post a link?

 

[tikk10]

Ok, some of us who don't live in PA anymore are drawing blanks here. A little background info would be helpful. Can you explain or post a link?

https://www.yorkdispatch.com/story/...rsial-dismissal-pa-wrestling-coach/445309002/

I'm curious about the incident that triggered the chaos, if anyone knows. How was Miers failing to make weight the coach's fault? If the coach accepted responsibility I suppose there's more to this than is obvious from the article, but I'm just guessing. Obviously what happened after was inappropriate regardless of what triggered it but would still like to understand the story.

 

[El-Jefe]

Likely a case of the coach publicly deflecting blame away from the teenager, instead having those discussions privately.

Because really -- how could Billman have been at fault for Miers missing weight on Saturday after making weight on Thursday and Friday? Told him there was a Day 3 weight allowance that didn't exist? Put his thumb on the scale? Stuffed a feeding tube down his throat?

 

[matter7172]

All I know is all hell broke loose in the hallways at the Giant Center that day.

 

[jschrantz]

Ok, some of us who don't live in PA anymore are drawing blanks here. A little background info would be helpful. Can you explain or post a link?

My fault; here are some articles


http://www.mcall.com/sports/varsity/mc-spt-easton-wrestling-situation-0322-story.html

http://highschoolsports.lehighvalle...jonathan-miers-transfers-to-wyoming-seminary/

 

[jschrantz]

Yea, that was an ugly situation. Guess Wyoming Seminary figured he shouldn't be held responsible for the actions of some his family.

For sure...very unfortunate for the kid lost in the mess created by grandfather and then school. Billman handled it like an adult and role model

 

[Flying_Tiger]

https://www.yorkdispatch.com/story/...rsial-dismissal-pa-wrestling-coach/445309002/

I'm curious about the incident that triggered the chaos, if anyone knows. How was Miers failing to make weight the coach's fault? If the coach accepted responsibility I suppose there's more to this than is obvious from the article, but I'm just guessing. Obviously what happened after was inappropriate regardless of what triggered it but would still like to understand the story.

The 1-pound weight allowances were moved up to days 1 and 2 due to weather closing schools the day before. I guess Billman thought there was still going to be a weight allowance on day 3 for an additional pound and there wasn't.

 

[dicemen99]

The 1-pound weight allowances were moved up to days 1 and 2 due to weather closing schools the day before. I guess Billman thought there was still going to be a weight allowance on day 3 for an additional pound and there wasn't.

This is correct. As it is stated very clearly in the rules the max is +4. Since there was a snow day on Wednesday, everyone got an extra pound on the first day instead of plus 2.

You would be amazed at how many staffs are unaware of simple rules, so Jamar being caught with his pants down on this isn't all that surprising given he was only in his 2nd year as a head coach. Or maybe you wouldn't be amazed - see the Verkleeren like incidents that happen yearly. Our local staff is one of the best in the state but early in their careers they f'd up the descents so bad that two years in a row one of our best wrestlers was ineligible to go his proper postseason weight. Fortunately his family was a little more level headed than Miers.

People make mistakes and sometimes get confused. As a wrestler or his family, your first responsibility should be to familiarize yourself with the rules regarding weigh ins and descents. To push this responsibility to a staff which has 14 to 30 other weights and descents to track is foolhardy.

 

[oldcougar65]

Diceman you got it right. It's the wrestler's responsibility to know and make the weight. Here you are at the biggest venue in your life and you don't know what the weight allowance is? Not exhibiting a great deal of personal responsibility. Youth wrestlers from 6 to 16 must make weight every week. A high school kid can make it for states.

I feel sorry for the kid, but he bears the ultimate responsibility for this messy situation. And his family should understand that.

 

[tikk10]

I think the wrestler has a reasonable expectation that what his coach tells him is accurate, so if that's what happened here it's at least 80% on the staff. But the bigger problem is family's reaction and behavior, pointing to a severe lack of perspective. Many parents would do well to stop living through their kids.

 

[NoVa Lion]

I think the wrestler has a reasonable expectation that what his coach tells him is accurate, so if that's what happened here it's at least 80% on the staff. But the bigger problem is family's reaction and behavior, pointing to a severe lack of perspective. Many parents would do well to stop living through their kids.

Why was Meirs the only Easton wrestler to not make weight? Was everyone else on the team 1+ pounds under? That doesn't pass the sniff test. Somehow the rest of the Easton team knew the rule and Meirs didn't. Guessing Billman told the team and Meirs wasn't bothering to listen or something else along those lines.

 

[tikk10]

Why was Meirs the only Easton wrestler to not make weight? Was everyone else on the team 1+ pounds under? That doesn't pass the sniff test. Somehow the rest of the Easton team knew the rule and Meirs didn't. Guessing Billman told the team and Meirs wasn't bothering to listen or something else along those lines.

Except Billman appeared to have accepted some blame, hence my speculation along those lines. If the scenario you suggest was what happened there'd be no reason to accept blame. Maybe Billman told team x, Meirs wasn't there and later asked Billman, who wrongly remembered and told him y.

 

[mrh1645]

Why was Meirs the only Easton wrestler to not make weight? Was everyone else on the team 1+ pounds under? That doesn't pass the sniff test. Somehow the rest of the Easton team knew the rule and Meirs didn't. Guessing Billman told the team and Meirs wasn't bothering to listen or something else along those lines.

Miers was the only Easton wrestler still wrestling on Day 3 of PIAA.

 

[NoVa Lion]

Miers was the only Easton wrestler still wrestling on Day 3 of PIAA.

OK, there goes that theory.

 

[jschrantz]

OK, there goes that theory.

Yes, tough year for the Rovers. They’ve been struggling to get back in wrestling and football where they enjoyed great success in the past despite a HUGE enrollment, but that doesn’t determine success.

 

[nitlion6]

All stud wrestlers in the NE used to somehow find their way to Northhampton, Easton, Wilson (Easton area) for a while and Nazareth. Now they all seem to want to go to Beca.

 

[dicemen99]

I think the wrestler has a reasonable expectation that what his coach tells him is accurate, so if that's what happened here it's at least 80% on the staff. But the bigger problem is family's reaction and behavior, pointing to a severe lack of perspective. Many parents would do well to stop living through their kids.

As I posted above, with examples given and I could give you a lot more, I don't think that this is a reasonable expectation. Especially when you are talking about most staffs having multiple coaches each with a different level of experience dealing with a complex set of rules. The head coach almost always takes the blame, but in many cases kids and parents may be relying on another staff member (may or may not be the case here, I have no idea).

Wrestlers and their families are best served investing a little time into a subject that they are in complete control of - their weight. Relying on others in this area has proved unreliable, time and time again.

I agree with the rest of your statement.

 

[tikk10]

As I posted above, with examples given and I could give you a lot more, I don't think that this is a reasonable expectation. Especially when you are talking about most staffs having multiple coaches each with a different level of experience dealing with a complex set of rules. The head coach almost always takes the blame, but in many cases kids and parents may be relying on another staff member (may or may not be the case here, I have no idea).

Wrestlers and their families are best served investing a little time into a subject that they are in complete control of - their weight. Relying on others in this area has proved unreliable, time and time again.

I agree with the rest of your statement.

I get and appreciate your post about how coaches are screwing it up and your point that perhaps it's not reasonable to trust your coach. But with only my own experience to go on, at that age I'd have trusted my coach if he told us to jump in a bonfire. I had a really good coach though; there was never a moment where he wasn't on top of things, and I'd be shocked if he ever gave us bad info on weight allowances (and I was usually cutting, so did rely on him). I didn't have involved parents (my mother saw me wrestled once) and I imagine today there are kids similarly situated. So perhaps I was lucky then, and/or maybe times have changed. I don't recall ever being confused by the weight allowance rules, even if I don't remember today what they were. Today's rulebook seems more complex, generally.