Wrestling

In light of the recent decision by the IOC to cut wrestling from the future Olympics, I got to thinking about the viability of it as a sport at UP. It is incredibly cheap (according to the old Oregon wrestling coach) and fun to watch. The only programs that I can think of off of the top of my head in Oregon are Oregon State (successful at D-I level), Southern Oregon (multiple championships at NAIA level), and Pacific, although there could be more... If Title IX weren't an issue, what would be your thoughts on wrestling at UP?

Not going to happen. The demographics say we have to add another women's sport first. Women's Lacrosse (12 scholarship equivalents) is pretty cheap, too.
Already have the field.
A stick, a mouth guard, and goggles

I was surprised by how many women are on the crew team. That isn't enough to make the demographics work?

An_Undergrad wrote:If Title IX weren't an issue, what would be your thoughts on wrestling at UP?

I guess that I should have been more specific... I just meant culturally. Could it work in Portland? At a small school?

blacksheep wrote:I was surprised by how many women are on the crew team. That isn't enough to make the demographics work?

Yeah, I think the count is around 50. But we aren't ( yet) giving out anywhere near the 20- something scholarships allowed, so it doesn't begin to even things up.

One measure is participants. Another is scholarships, another is coaches and facilities. Another is publicity and emphasis.

We actually give out more scholarships for women than men, I'm pretty sure, but we also have a larger enrollment for women than men, and we don't spend as much on the women's programs as we do for men (basketball skews the numbers).


I'm not even sure we are near the point of adding teams, but I'll bet the next expenditure is for women.

An_Undergrad wrote:

An_Undergrad wrote:If Title IX weren't an issue, what would be your thoughts on wrestling at UP?

I guess that I should have been more specific... I just meant culturally. Could it work in Portland? At a small school?

Culturally it could work. The school I went to was small college and sent teams to the nationals in wrestling back in the day. Had some All Americans. It had a strong program on the national scene. Still does, but in D3, and there is no national across divisions now. I think PSU did, too.

It is possible, especially when bcs schools are dropping out.

It's a niche sport, and UP does well in those- soccer, xc, rowing, for examples.

The only programs that I can think of off of the top of my head in Oregon are Oregon State (successful at D-I level), Southern Oregon (multiple championships at NAIA level), and Pacific, although there could be more...

I'm pretty sure that Oregon doesn't have a team anymore. If I remember correctly they disbanded Wrestling in favor of Baseball a few years back.

I just spent the weekend covering the Oregon high school wrestling tournament at the Memorial Coliseum. It's fun to watch, but the problem is there are few communities where wrestling is a big thing.

It is declining in popularity at the college level largely due to the fact that uses a lot of male scholarship spots and its not a big draw. Not only has Oregon dropped its program but so has Portland State. Also remember as an indoor sport in the winter it would be fighting for facility time with mens and womens basketball, unless UP wants to come up with the money to build its own wrestling facility.

As fun as the sport is, especially when the team aspect is counted in, I'd have to agree with Geezer that womens lax is likely the next sport added -- if and when we ever get to that point. I'd think softball could also be a possibility considering its fit with the rest of the WCC, but I don't think I've ever seen a softball field considered in the new campus expansion plans.