Scientific Methods of Wrestling - Paul Prehn 1925

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Foreword:This document is an attempt at a faithful transcription of the

original document. Special effort has been made to ensurethat original spelling (including misspellings, of whichthere are several), line-breaks, and vocabulary are leftintact, and when possible, similar fonts have been used.However, it contains original formatting and image scans.All rights are reserved except those specifically grantedherein.

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Dedication:

Special dedication to my beautiful and very understanding wifeMylinda, my enthusiastic, precociously all boy, sonChristopher, and my radiant daughter Allison.

-Kirk Lawson


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Introduction:

Paul Prehn gives fairly extensive details of his biographyin the text of his manual but a few words are appropriatehere.

Prehn met and wrestled with other top names of the daybut, now, is little remembered except by the odd wrestlinghistorian.

Prehn was one of the early 20th Century Big Names.A member of the Wrestling Hall of Fame, he participated innumerous well-billed wrestling matches, both as a G.I., andas a civilian. He dedicated a good portion of his life to

promoting Wrestling and the manly arts including acting asa professional coach for collegiate wrestling with the Illini,successfully placing in top 10 matches such as the 1928

NCAA Collegiate Championship. As a G.I., Sergent Prehntaught Wrestling as an assistant coach at Camp Dodge in

1917 and won the 1918 Middle Weight Inter-Allied Gameschampionship. He was, for a time, the Chairman of theIllinois Athletic Commission. Prehn was elected to theoffice of President of the National Boxing Association in1928 which was then induced to add professional wrestlingto the list of the organizations responsibilities.

Among his other important contributions is thiswrestling manual. Being from 1925, it includes many

techniques and some advice which is now illegal orconsidered foul play, such as the use of arm-bars and neck-cranks. All par for the day, but forgotten by most and now,

but with the ascendancy of MMA and grappling, is nowbeing rediscovered by wrestling aficionados.

Thus it was with great pleasure that I found an old copyof his, essentially unremembered, manual. Of the earlyScientific Catch-as-Catch-Can manuals, it is easily one

of the best. ENJOY!-Kirk Lawson


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SCIENTIFIC METHODS

OF WRESTLING

BY

PAUL PREHN

Wrestling Coach University of Illinois

SECOND EDITION

Revised and Enlarged

Copyright 1925

BAILY & HIMES, Publishers

Champaign, Illinois


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DEDICATION

To my former Command-

ing Officer, Major John L.Griffith, I most affectionatelydedicate this book.

PAUL PREHN


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NOTE OF THANKS

The completion of an educational book onwrestling has proven itself to be a task whichmust have the most careful attention. To

properly illustrate every practical wrestlinghold, to show the defensive and offensive holds,to explain the exact position which every part ofthe body must assume in accomplishing theseholds successfully, has proven a very great task.It has been necessary for two wrestlers to go

through the exact positions of each hold in everydetail while the author explained the various of~fensive and defensive positions, and checked upon the technical positions that one must assumein the various holds which we have illustrated.

The unselfish and untiring work of JohnnyDoak is largely responsible for any value which

this book may have.I also wish to thank Captain Heck Kenney,

26 University of Illinois Wrestling team, andMiss Donnabelle Fry for her assistance in pre-

paring the arranging of material for print.


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PREFACEPaul Prehn began his wrestling career when he was

about fifteen years old. He commenced by wrestling pre-liminaries for Frank Gotch and others at his home town,Mason City, Iowa. The promoters soon became interestedin him, and he wrestled as a head-liner on a bill in the lit-tle town of Lyle, Minnesota, in 1910.

The first high point in Pauls wrestling career came in

1912, when he won the Iowa state welter weight cham-pionship at Cedar Rapids in an open tournament. Fol-lowing this he met and defeated many men of undoubtedability in the welter weight division, among whom wereRoss, Engle, and Jack Reynolds.

Prehn enlisted in the regular army in 1916, and servedone year on the Mexican border, during which time hewrestled and defeated many men wishing to doubt his

ability to put their shoulders to the mat. He got his dis-charge from the army in 1917 and in three months en-listed again to go to France. Germany had rushed Franceinto the ropes and Prehn considered it his duty to aid insending her back to her corner defeated. In 1918 Prehnwon the wrestling championship of the 88th division atCamp Dodge. He was then appointed wrestling, bayonet,and hand-to-hand fighting instructor at that camp.

After arriving in France, Prehn spent most of his timeback of the lines doing a valuable work as instructor inhand-tohand fighting. I once heard him say that he hadto flop the major against the ground several times beforethat officer was convinced that his stuff was good.

During his army life Prehn was at his best as a wrestler.In 1919 he won the inter-allied army championship atPershing Stadium, Paris; he was wrestling in the middle

weight division at this time. He met during this tourna-ment the best men from each nation represented in theallied armies.

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In a short time after his discharge from the army Prehnaccepted a position as instructor in boxing and coach ofthe varsity wrestling team at the University of Illinois.

He came to Illinois rather late in 1919, but in spite of thislate start he put out a team that won the conference cham-pionship.

In 1920 and 1921 Prehn made a strong bid for theworlds middle weight title. Talaber and Meyers, whoare now alternately holding the title, are the only men whohave beaten Prehn that he has not defeated in return.Prehns last trial for the championship was in 1923 at Ur-

bana, Illinois, where he lost to Meyers by straight falls ina long, hard match.

Prehn has made an enviable record as a coach since hehas been at the University of Illinois. He has coached thevarsity of that school for six years, and has won or tiedfor the Big Ten title in four out of the six years.I have learned from Prehn to try always to be a sports-man. If he got beaten, he gave his opponent credit, but

learned a lesson that helped him in his next bout. Hisadvice is, do not dodge the good men. They are the fel-lows that will make a wrestler out of you. Above all, livea clean life. Do not try to make yourself believe that youcan be successful by doing otherwise.

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WHAT THE ATHLETIC HEADS OVER THE COUN-TRY THINK OF WRESTLING

Wrestling is as old as the history of sport, and doubt-less had its inception in the battles of prehistoric man.In the beginning there was but little science employed.Wrestling was a struggle to throw the opponent to theground and so destroy him with greater ease and certainty.As time went on and the intelligence of the combatants

developed, new methods of attack were devised, and withthem came ways of preventing destruction.

The ancient Greeks and Romans brought the scienceof wrestling to a high degree of perfection but forbade theuse of the legs in either offense or defense. Such a pro-hibition showed marked advance in the application and

breaks for holds. In our own time the rise of the catch-as-catch-can style has done much to speed up the actionand develop the interest in wrestling.

There is no sport which requires such close coordinationof mind and body as wrestling. Every muscle of the bodyis used to achieve the end which only an alert mind canconceive. A fine body with a slow brain never attainssuccess. Wrestling is a sport in which only the intelligentever rise very high.

As a ground school for football there is nothing to becompared to it. The work done standing up is a wonder-ful developer of the leg muscles used to secure drive onthe gridiron. The agility in avoiding the attempts of anopponent to get a man to the mat are best designed to in-crease use of hands and shiftiness. Wrestling demands acontinual boring in, great aggressiveness, and the abilityto keep on fighting under physical punishment. Wrestling

is a mans game. Basketball players can be built up instamina and strength without loss of speed on their feet.Swimmers and water basketball men will gain in strength

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and fighting ability, and all other sports can have theirmen developed by a course in wrestling.W. S. VONBERNUTH, Wrestling Coach, Purdue.

Wrestling as a college sport has made rapid strides inpopularity during the past few years. I feel that this in-terest is well deserved as wrestling is splendid exerciseand has its proper place in any athletic curriculum.GEORGE HUFF, Director of Athletics, University of Illi-nois.

In my estimation wrestling calls for physical and mentalcooperation in the highest degree. I have had boys comeout for wrestling who were very awkward at first and indue time overcame this awkardness and displayed a re-markable sense of muscular coordination almost to the

point of being graceful. Any athletic activity which de-velopes coordination in a boy must of necessity be a great

aid to him as a football player or any other sport thatcalls for personal encounter involving judgment of dis-tance, speed, skill and strength. Wise football coachestoday are putting their men in the hands of wrestling ex-

perts during the winter season. Many great runners havealso used wrestling as an auxiliary exercise.CHARLESW. MAYSER, Director of Athletics, Ames, Iowa.

Wrestling is one of the great personal contact gamesbecause it is intricate enough to make an appeal to theimagination. The young men who indulge in this sportcannot help but develope qualities which will be of directvalue to them in other sports.

I encourage my football candidates to wrestle becauseexperience has taught me that I can expect the results

from that practice which makes the man quicker andmore resourceful. It develops the great requisite for thesuccessful athlete, muscular co-ordination and balance.

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Wrestling develops that which is a wonderful asset tosuperiority in athletics, namely: the ability to think clear-ly and act deliberately while under pain.ROBERT

ZUPPKE, Head Coach of Football, University of Illinois.

Wrestling, to my mind, is the greatest of the personalcontact games, not only from the standpoint of sport, butalso as a developer of athletes. Coaches of other sportsin our colleges and high schools are beginning to realizethis and in many of the universities are urging the forma-tion of wrestling teams as an aid to helping their football

players. Wrestling develops the muscles most needed forfootball playersespecially linemenand what is evenmore important, gradually irons the awkardness out of

big men, so that they can handle themselves efficientlywithout loss of strength or time.SEC. TAYLOR, SportingEditor The Des Moines Register.

For my football players, especially the linesmen, I can

recommend no better exercise, no better developer of cor-relation of mind and body, than wrestling.BERT ING-WERSON, Head Coach of Football, University of Iowa.

Wrestling taught me to beat the other fellow to it, andhelped me in my last years as a guard on the Universityof Illinois football team.JIM MCMILLIAN, Capt. U. ofI. Football Team, 1923.

I believe that wrestling is the best developer of thebody and the mind for quick action and coordinance thatany one may participate in. It is a fundamental trainingfor a football player.JACK CRANGLE, Football Coach,University of Missouri.

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INDEX PAGEINTRODUCTION .................................................................XIIIEQUIPMENT ..................................................................... 1

UNIFORMS ....................................................................... 2CAULIFLOWER EARS ........................................................ 3TRAINING THE TEAM ....................................................... 4EXERCISE ........................................................................ 5TRIALS ............................................................................ 9WORKOUTS DURING THE SEASON .................................... 10DIET ............................................................................... 12STALLING ........................................................................ 15THE OFFICIALS ............................................................... 15ELIGIBILITY ..................................................................... 16MIXED BOUTS ................................................................ 17SPORTSMANSHIP ............................................................... 18THE ON-GUARD POSITION ............................................... 19THE REFEREES HOLD .................................................... 20THE GRIPS ..................................................................... 22METHODS OF GOING BEHIND YOUR OPPONENT FROM STANDINGPOSITION

The First Method ...................................................... 24The Forward Switch ................................................. 26

The Switch ............................................................... 28The Elbow Switch .................................................... 30The Duck .................................................................. 31The Football Tackle ................................................. 31The Pickup ............................................................... 35The Trips .................................................................. 36

METHODS OF TAKING OPPONENT TO THE MAT WHEN YOU HAVETHE POSITION BEHIND

The Leg Lock ........................................................... 39

The Forward Bar Leg ............................................... 39The Double Leg Block ............................................. 40The Crotch From the Rear and Reverse Body Hold.. 42

POSITIONS ON THE MATOn All Four .............................................................. 44The Sitting Position .................................................. 45On One Thigh .......................................................... 46

METHODS OF KEEPING A MAN DOWN ON THE MAT WHEN BE-HIND .............................................................................. 48TAKING A MAN OUT OF POSITION .................................. 51THE NELSONS

The Half Nelson ....................................................... 55The Full Nelson ........................................................ 55

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PAGE

The Three Quarter Nelson ....................................... 56The Further Nelson .................................................. 57The Quarter Nelson ................................................. 58

THE INSIDE CROTCH AND HALF NELSON ........................ 60THE BODY SCISSORS ...................................................... 64THE HEAD LOCKS .......................................................... 75DOUBLE WRIST LOCK ..................................................... 83THE HEAD SCISSORS ....................................................... 90THE ARM SCISSORS ........................................................ 93THE REVERSE WRIST LOCK ............................................ 95THE JACK KNIFE ............................................................ 97THE DOUBLE BODY HOLD ............................................. 98

THE

REVERSE

ARM

SCISSORS

......................................... 100METHODSOF GETTING AWAY WHENONTHEMAT WITH THEOPPONENTINTHE UPPERPOSITION

The Side Roll ........................................................... 102Bridging ................................................................... 104The Forward Head Lock .......................................... 105The Switch ............................................................... 106

THE SHORT ARM SCISSORS ............................................ 109THE FLYING MARE ......................................................... 112THE INSIDE CROTCH AND HEAD LOCK ........................... 114

THE INSIDE CROTCH WITHTHE LEGAND HALF NELSON .... 115THE OUTSIDE CROTCH HOLD .......................................... 115HALF NELSON AND FURTHER BAR ARM ......................... 117THE DOUBLE ARMS WITH THE LEGS AND THREE QUARTER

NELSON .......................................................................... 118THE HAMMER LOCK ....................................................... 120THE TOE HOLD ............................................................. 121THE DOUBLE LEG SPLIT ................................................ 125THE REVERSE LEG SPLIT ............................................... 126

THE WESTERN INTER-COLLEGIATE WRESTLING RULES ......... 128THE NATIONAL A.A.U. WRESTLING RULES ........................ 137THE NATIONAL COLLEGIATE ATHLETIC ASSOCIATION OF AMER-ICA WRESTLING RULES ..................................................... 144

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LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONSPLATE PAGE

MR. PAUL PREHN................................................Frontpiece IIBRIDGING........................................................... 7

ON GUARD POSITION........................................... 1 20REFEREES HOLD................................................ 2 21THE WRESTLERS GRIP........................................ 3 23METHODSOF GOING BEHIND OPPONENT FROM THESTANDING POSITION

First Method................................................ 4 24Defense for First Method............................ 5 25The Forward Switch.................................... 6 27Defense for Forward Switch....................... 7 28

The Switch.................................................. 8 29The Football Tackle.................................... 9 32Defense for Football Tackle....................... 10 34The Trip...................................................... 11 37

METHODOF TAKING OPPONENTTOTHE MAT WHENYOUHAVETHE POSITION BEHIND

The Leg Block............................................ 12 40The Forward Bar Leg.................................. 13 41The Double Leg Block................................ 14 42

POSITIONSONTHE MAT

On All Four................................................. 15 45The Sitting Position.................................... 16 46On One Thigh............................................. 17 47

METHODSOF KEEPING MAN DOWNONTHE MAT WHENBEHIND

Keeping Man Down on Mat When Behind.............. 18 48Taking Man Out of Position (Starting)....... 19 51Completed................................................... 20 52Pulling Man Back From Sitting Position.......... 21 52

Double Wrist Lock With Single Leg Scissors.......... 22 54THE NELSONS

The Half Nelson.......................................... 23 56The Three-Quarter Nelson.......................... 24 57The Quarter Nelson..................................... 25 59Inside Crotch and Half Nelson.......................... 26 61Inside Crotch and Half Nelson Taken to a Fall. 27 61Inside Crotch with Leg and Half Nelson........... 27A 62

Body Scissors

First Position............................................... 28 64Second Position........................................... 29 65Reverse Body Scissors................................ 30 66

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PLATE PAGE

Reverse Body Scissors and Reverse Wrist Lock...... 31 67Leg Scissors and Bar Arm Back of Head................. 32 67Single Leg Scissors and Double Wrist Lock............ 33 68

Figure Four.............................................................. 34 69Defense for Figure Four........................................... 35 72The Top or Double Scissors..................................... 36 73Defense for Body Scissors....................................... 37 74

HEAD LOCKS

Head and Hop Lock.................................................. 38 76Head Lock From the Mat (Starting)......................... 39 77Head Lock From the Mat (Completed).................... 40 78Head Lock From the Front....................................... 41 80Head Chancery and Bar Arm................................... 42 82

DOUBLE WRIST LOCKS

Double Wrist Lock (First Position).......................... 43 83Double Wrist Lock (Second Position)...................... 44 84Double Wrist Lock (Third Position)........................ 45 85Defense for Double Wrist Lock............................... 46 86

HEAD SCISSORS

The Step-Over Head Scissors (First Position).......... 47 91The Step-Over Head Scissors (Second Position)..... 48 91

THE ARM SCISSORSAND DOUBLE WRIST LOCK..................... 49 93

REVERSE WRIST LOCKAND ARM SCISSORS........................... 50 96REVERSE WRIST LOCKFROM UNDERNEATH.......................... 51 96THE JACKKNIFE................................................................ 52 98DEFENSEFORDOUBLE BODY HOLD..................................... 53 99REVERSE ARM SCISSORS......................................... 54 100METHODS OF GETTING AWAY WHEN ON THE MAT

WITH OPPONENTINTHEUPPERPOSITION

The Side Roll (First Position)................................... 55 102The Side Roll (Second Position).............................. 56 103Bridging.................................................................... 57 105

The Forward Head Lock........................................... 58 106The Switch................................................................ 59 107

THE SHORT ARM SCISSORS................................................. 60 110THE FLYING MARE............................................................ 61 112THE INSIDE CROTCHAND HEAD LOCK.................................. 62 114THE OUTSIDE CROTCH HOLD.............................................. 63 116THE DOUBLE BAR ARM WITH THE LEGS AND THREE-QUARTERNELSON.............................................................. 64 119THE HAMMERLOCK........................................................... 65 120

THE DOUBLE TOE LOCK..................................................... 66 123THE CROSS OVERTOE HOLD.............................................. 67 125THE DOUBLE LEG SPLIT..................................................... 68 126THE REVERSE LEG SPLIT............................................... 69 127

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INTRODUCTION

Wrestling is the greatest of all personal contact games,a battle of personalities, a test of strength, a basic train-ing ground for other forms of athletic competition. It isa sport which, when studied in all its ramifications, leadsathletics to the realm of psychology, yet it is one of themost natural outlets for the spirit of play which lies deeplyimbedded in our natural instincts.

Wrestling has progressed so swiftly in the past decadethat there is but scant need for a justification of its exist-ence. Aside from its own ends, football coaches all overthe country are warm in their praise of wrestling as a con-ditioning work for the gridiron game. The mat competi-tion furnishes exercises which bring about muscular co-ordination, balance, drive, speed and endurance, andwhich make it possible for the bulky linemen to attain a

perfection of play otherwise impossible. The case of JimMcMillen at Illinois illustrates the point to perfection. Ayear on the mat transformed McMillen from a hard-try-ing, better-than-the-average-lineman into an All-Americanguard. Again, wrestling furnishes something which can

be procured to an equal degree in but one other sportboxing, and to a lesser extent in football. This somethingis the element of personal contact, the matching of skill

against skill in hand-to-hand combat.The cost of staging wrestling bouts is negligible and

easily within the reach of the poorest community highschool. In comparison with the highly-equipped, costlygame of football, wrestling needs but a mat, wrestlingtights, a coach and a desire to learn.

At Illinois 630 men last year took part in the mat gameeither on varsity or freshmen varsity teams, or in Intra-

mural competition. In the matter of popular appealwrestling is likewise mounting higher and higher. TheIllini varsity last season appeared before 10,000 people

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and wrestling, practically unknown in colleges ten yearsago, has now climbed to a point where it is recognized asking of the minor sports.

Perhaps a glance at the history of wrestling might bringto light some facts which would account for the increasingpopularity of the sport. Given, however, a group of smallboys of the present day, this journey back into the lostages is scarcely necessary. With the gang gathered, it isnever long until someone has made a clutch of sorts at the

person of another, and the wrestling match is on. Per-haps it is not strictly scientific, but nevertheless it is a bout

that is bound to bring results, a bout which proves thatwrestling is as natural to the human race as is the desirefor superiority. We are indebted to those who havestudied the origin of the mat game for the statement thatwrestling is as old as the history of sport. Imagine thatfirst wrestling match between a pair of prehistoric men,with no gallery to applaud, perhaps for the love of a mate,

perhaps for a morsel of food which one or the other had

cut from a passing antelope and was ready to defend withhis life. There were no rules in those days, merely thedesire to bring ones opponent to earth as quickly as possi-

ble, to remove some particularly vulnerable member, or toexterminate an enemy with as great dispatch as possible.

Then came the ancient Greeks and the Romans andwrestling was caught up in the general sweep of life ofthat period and placed on a higher plane than ever before.

Wrestling here took on a scientific form, new modes of at-tack were devised and with them, as a result, new defensesto prevent destruction. These same Greeks and Romansforbade the use of legs either in offense or defense. Sucha prohibition showed marked advance in the applicationand breaks for holds. In our own time the rise of thecatch-as-catch-can style has done much to speed up theaction and develop the interest in wrestling.*

With the coming of this new era, wrestling fell into evil

*W. S. Von Bermuth.

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ways. The frame-up professional matches, the bally-hoo and pretended grudge matches besmirched thegame to such an extent that no decent person would be

connected with the game, and it was taken for grantedthat a goodly percentage of the matches were prearrangedbefore the men stepped to the mat. But now wrestling isgroping its way out of the woods. Men with a definitecode of mat ethics may be found among the professionaltopnotchers, while in the amateur class wrestling has em-

braced the university field and is now finding its way intoan increasingly greater majority of the high schools. As

a result, college grads are frequently numbered amongthose making their living on the mat. Bringing with themthe ideal of fair play and sportsmanship gained in col-legiate competition, they are doing much to place wrest-ling in its proper niche.

The name that first suggests itself as a pioneer in arous-ing interest in wrestling in America is that of Frank Gotch.The man from Humboldt, Iowa, held the worlds cham-

pionship for ten years and died undefeated. Gotch proba-bly did more toward stimulating interest among the boysof America than any other wrestler. Until his advent allof the foremost wrestlers had been foreigners, and it wasGotch who blazed the championship trail for the manyAmericans that have followed in his footsteps.

It is of interest to note the fact that one who has beenacknowledged as perhaps the greatest of the presidents of

the United States, Abraham Lincoln, once issued an openchallenge for a wrestling bout with anyone his size orlarger.

Farmer Burns of Omaha, Nebraska, may be cited as aliving example of what one may hope to garner fromWrestling in the way of physical perfection. Burns, whois now 66 years of age, started wrestling as a boy, rose tothe place of worlds heavyweight champion and still is ableto take his daily workout on the mat with some of thestrongest young bloods in the game.

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Perhaps some of the readers will lose interest in wrest-ling because of the thought that the wrestling mat is notthe only place where exercise can be found. Why not the

wheat field, or the wood pile that our parents announcewas good enough for their generation? Wrestling, as wellas other sports, must show wherein it offers something

better than the wheat field-wood pile exercise, and whythe time spent upon it is of value not only to the indi-vidual, but to society as a whole. Coleman R. Griffith, inhis book Psychology and Athletics answers the question

better than could the author hope to, and by Mr. Griffiths

courtesy we offer his solution. We shall raise two objec-tions to the view that the play tendencies can be satisfiedover the woodpile or on the corn rows. The first objectionhas to do with the actual need there is upon us of findingsome outlet for the energies that lie in our original natures.This need is satisfied by athletic competition. . . . .

The second objection to the argument that the playtendencies can be satisfied over the woodpile or along thecorn rows lies in the fact that play trains capacities andends in values that are not trained or gotten anywhereelse.

Genetic psychologists are now fully convinced that theplay energies of the young child force it to make use of itsperceptual, memorial imaginative, emotional, and elabora-tive capacities in a way that formal education could never

approach. Later on in this book we shall try to show thatwhen games are played wholeheartedly and for the funthere is in it we get as a by-product personal and socialrewards that are of the greatest possible value to our indi~vidual and public life. In short, play is not a waste oftime. It represents a fundamental part of our naturewhich we can study, understand and bring to proper use.

Again we quote from Mr. Griffiths book concerning thesocial rewards of sports. While not written with directbearing on wrestling the following quotation most cer-

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tainly justifies a sport which allows as many to realize therewards of competition as does wrestling.

In athletic competition one learns respect for the plays

and powers of the other fellow. . . . We learn not only toincrease our own skill by building upon the skill of thosewho work with us, but we learn to measure our own skill

by the skill of the men we compete against. There is anOld saying, That there is plenty of room at the top, butthe saying did not go on to describe the sort of mind of themen who could get only part way up the ladder. We mustsomewhere learn the lesson and be contented with it that

many people are apt to be better than we are. There isno reason why we should grudge them their success if wehave made the most of our own powers. Heredity makesus men of one or two or five talents. Stern athletic com-

petition, team play, and full and generous recognition ofthe talents of another person together with the honest de-velopment of our own talents is one of the high social re-wards of athletic competition.

Who1e hearted competition leads to cleaner com-munity living. A man who gives himself up to a game forall there is in the game must develop habits of bodily andmental health. He has a high respect, also, for all the

personal rewards of competition. If we avoid those thingsthat rob us of the personal rewards we insure ourselvesand our fellows worthy social living. A happy society can-not exist on weak, unfair, untrained individuals. If a

social group is to be a strong group, the members of thegroup must be strong individuals. They must know howto play hard, and to do well in spite of fatigue, pain, andapparent defeat. They must know the sheer joy of livingthat comes with healthy bodies. They must know how to

balance themselves in unbalanced situations. They mustkeep a full perspective on life. They must have ameasured amount of idealism.

Whole hearted athletic activity guarantees to us a cer-tain kind of social future. Hints of this future may be

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seen in the early returns from the play ground movement.A lad who must play within four walls of a small yard andwho picks his ethics of play and his ideas of moral con-

duct out of the gutter cannot be expected to make for agood social future. The playground movement meantthat acres of land could be devoted to baseball diamonds,tennis courts, football fields, under the direction of a com-

petent trainer and guide. The boy scout movement andthe girl scout movement are a part of the program whichthe great institution of physical training offers to the so-ciety of the future.

Competition is a way of developing deep loyalty andintergroup understanding. There is a certain virtue in anhonest, genuine, good hearted rivalry. There is a way ofsublimating our ancient tendencies toward rivalry so theywill contribute to intergroup understanding rather than to

personal advancement. A group of men who have the op-portunity of traveling from one college to another or fromone state to another cannot help but aid the process of

transplanting ideas, of exchanging hopes and fears, ofbinding a group of people together. Ideas are not indi-vidual or personal. They are international. Ideas are forall times and places. They can be made a universal meansof exchange. Then, there is the fact that we cannot beloyal to unworthy things. Loyalty seems to imply some~thing high and noble. Even loyalty among thieves is avirtue. Competition is a way of developing loyalty. We

learn to be loyal to our college.During the Olympic games we learn again to be loyal to

our flag and our country. The worthy achievements of aman in our fraternity, in our school, in our town, in ourstate, or in our country stir us again to the regard whichwe have for our own kind.

Athletic competition has an important relation tomodern industrial problems. Games are a way of escapefrom toil. They are a way of getting a change of scene.They give us rest. After eight hours in a steel mill or in

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a ditch, a vigorous spirited hour in genuine play makes oneof the best forms of relaxation. But the resort to play forrelaxation does not often come unless one has acquired a

little skill in a game before one has gone into industry orbusiness. In a great many different forms of industry itis being shown that men who work hard all day and whocan then spend other energies upon the athletic field in-stead of upon drink, grievances, and the like, not only be-come better workmen but they automatically help them-selves in the solution of some of our most difficult socialand industrial problems.

The greatest social reward of athletic competition liesin the possibility of making football, baseball, basketball,and the other sports a genuine substitute for war. Wehave already seen that football is closely related to someof the same tendencies that would drive us to war. Wehave also seen that all of the competitive sports are moreor less closely related to the fighting instincts and to theinstinct of rivalry or of emulation. Since our original na-

ture is what it is and since we know no way of wiping itout, we must change it so that the energy that lies in itwill be directed into useful channels. War is a useful ex-

penditure of human energy and a way of wasting humanproducts. Athletics are a way of conserving energy andadding to human products. We know that instinct may

be sublimated, that is, we know that the energy which liesbehind an instinct may be directed into related channels

which will satisfy that expression of the instinct. It is al-together within reason, then, that athletic competitionShould become a way of expressing international rivalryand satisfying our combative tendencies. Not only is thistrue, but international contests are a way of exchangingldeas and a way of learning how to respect the integrityof personalities that are different from our own.

Other races are human beings. They have hopes andfears, joys and sorrows, ambitions and discouragements

just as we have them. In warfare we are inclined to for-

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get personalities. We become killing machines. Athleticcompetition strengthens our respect for personalities. Itought to raise our respect for the skill of another person

whether he be black, white, or yellow.This quotation encourages the building of stadia, thespending of large sums of money on equipment for themore highly organized team games. Wrestling then, withits simplicity of organization, with the same instincts men-tioned in the other games as deeply rooted within it, ismost certainly worthwhile from a physical and socialstandpoint.

With the more or less general consideration of wrestlingcompleted we may now turn to the more specific problemsof putting the mat game on a paying basis, as to dividendsrealized in health, enjoyment, finance and, lastly, in bene-fits to society as made clear by Mr. Griffith.

Wrestling has been made an attractive sport at smallhigh schools where football is not part of the athletic cur-riculum as well as in the larger schools where it is fast

mounting to a place close on the heels of the grid game inpopularity. While school championships furnish a methodof implanting wrestling firmly in the athletic system in itsfirst year, competition then becomes necessary to keep itthriving. Means of procuring meets with outside schoolsis a simple matter. Probably the best manner of accom-

plishing this is by forming a league or conference madeup, say, of high schools within the county in which your

school is situated. An experiment of this sort was triedduring the past year in Champaign county where hereto-fore wrestling had had no part in the county athletics.Some five teams came into the league and the competitionwas so highly satitsfactory that twice the number ofschools in the original circuit were clamoring for admis-sion at the reorganization for the next season. This samewrestling circuit, by the way, carried Sadorus high schoolto a county basketball championship. The Sadorus lads,toughened by their season on the wrestling mat, formed a

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team of but fair basketball material. However, the su-perior Sadorus stamina, both mental and physical, broughtabout by hard, conscientious training on the wrestling

mat, helped them sweep the other teams off their feet inthe closing rounds of a gruelling tournament play, andbrought home for them the coveted title.

This league idea gives a team the added impetus togreater effort as there is a definite end, a championship to

be gained. Another aid in arousing interest is an indi-vidual championship at each weight among the men in theconference, to be held separate from the team title. It is

well to offer medals as prizes. While the medals need notbe costly, they are always highly prized by the lads ob-taining them.

The individual championships may be held in the sameweights which are used to divide the team matches. Theseclasses as set forth in the wrestling rules are as follows:108 pounds and under; 115 pounds and under; 125

pounds and under; 135 pounds and under; 145 pounds

and under; 158 pounds and under; 175 pounds and under;over 175 pounds.

Probably the initial step in putting on wrestling boutsis that of educating the public. This is just as importantas teaching the team to wrestle and is made necessary bythe intricate nature of the mat contest. Unless the specta-tor has some knowledge of the holds used, and under-stands something about what the men are doing, there will

be but little intelligent enthusiasm. A demonstration be-tween halves of a basketball game (or any spot where acrowd has already gathered) offers a most excellentchance for this education. Two men may appear betweenhalves and explain the different holds, the breaks for themand what the men are attempting to do while sparringabout on their feet. An explanation of the point scoringsystem, which will be taken up later in this book, should

be made at this time.A sidelight on this education of the crowd is the pub-

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licity which may rightfully be claimed by the wrestlingteam. Stories of what wrestling will do for the growinglad, pictures of the team and stories of its progress should

be furnished the newspapers at frequent intervals. Thisnot only keeps the sport in the minds of the public, butencourages the boys in a faithful and earnest pursuance oftheir efforts that they, too, may gain public recognitionand see their names in print.

Publicity and the success of the teams here at Illinoishave gone hand in hand, and have sent wrestling to thetop by leaps and bounds. Six years ago, when the writer

first brought his supply of holds and breaks to the Uni-versity of Illinois, only 25 men worked out for the wrest-ling team. One small corner of the gymnasium, sur-rounded by gymnasts, volley ball players and basketshooters, was all the space needed. There are now morethan 600 men wrestling, and a very large special room isutilized by the mat squad.

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EQUIPMENT NEEDED

THEMATAll that is necessary for the practice session is a mat.

The mat should be large enough to accommodate the en-tire squad. For class work a sawdust mat is used. Saw-dust is spread three inches thick and canvas nailed over

it. This makes a mat both clean and fast. Such an ar-rangement, however, is scarcely practicable for the highschool wrestling room, as space is limited and the matmust therefore be one which can be moved about andstored in the least possible space. It should be a hair orfelt mat two inches thick and should be from sixteen totwenty feet square. Bailey & Himes, Champaign, andmany other companies specialize in wrestling mats.

THE RING

For competition a standard ring is necessary. This, asstated in the wrestling rules, is not less than 16 feet normore than 24 feet square, and shall be formed of posts andropes, the latter extending in triple lines, 2, 3 and 4 feetfrom the floor of the ring. The floor shall extend belowthe lower rope a distance of not less than two feet. Postsmust be properly padded and padding on the floor shallnot be less than one-half inch in thickness.

The above is clear enough except for the statement thatposts should be properly padded. This padding may

be 1n the nature of any protective material (as thick can-vas matting) thick enough so that the men will not be in-jured when they come in contact with the posts.

1


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2 SCIENTIFIC METHODSOF WRESTLING

UNIFORMAccording to the rules the competitors must wrestle in

regulation trunks and may wear light slippers or rubberswithout heels. Such a rule makes the question of uni-form one entirely up to the coach. The cost of equippingthe team is almost negligible. For pre-season work any-thing in the way of gym suit, sweat clothes, or any cos-

tume of the sort may be worn, together with almost anysort of gym or tennis shoe. The only restriction on thematter of clothing is that when the men begin actualwrestling on the mat they should most certainly have theirelbows, shoulders and knees covered. This, however.should not worry beginners for, as we shall learn later, noman is sent to the mat until he has had at least eightlessons.

One vastly important item in the matter of uniform isthat each man should have his entire wrestling wardrobelaundered at least once a week. If this is done the dangerof infection is well-nigh eliminated.

The best and cheapest equipment which may be usedand kept clean easily is sweat shirt and pants, the heaviestobtainable. This costume likewise keeps the men coveredwhen the time has come for them to go to the mat and

prevents burns until such time as their skin shall havetoughened.

Coupled with this matter is the fact that mats, if possi-ble, should be covered with a thick cotton-flannel topcovering. This material is soft and will not burn the skinof the wrestler, and can be washed.

When sending the squad into competition the matter ofcostume should be considered with more of an eye to

pleasing details. Clean, fresh, well-appearing costumesnot only give the men a feeling of confidence but also im-

press the audience favorably. The school wrestler shouldwear full length tights, an ankle height shoe with rubber


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CAULIFLOWEREARS 3

sole, and a large black elastic supporter. Another mark

of neatness which may well be carried out is to have theman appear in a clean, white gym shirt and take it offafter he has entered the ring. By all means have the teamcostumed uniform, as there is nothing that puts a teamoff to a bad start in the eyes of the audience as straggly,careless appearing uniforms.

CAULIFLOWER EARS

As Cauliflower ears can be considered no longer aspart of the equipment of the good wrestler, we must nowturn from the subject of equipment to other matters. Thewriter believes the commonly termed tin ear deservesmention in this book because so many youngsters are held

back from mat competition by fear of this disfiguredfeature. With the new methods of caring for wrestlersthe disfigured cartilage which was formerly an ear is nolonger necessary or inevitable. As a matter of fact, if themen are properly cared for, Cauliflower ears will be en-tirely absent. The old style wrestling game was responsi-

ble for a great many of the disfiguring ears to be witnessedon the oldtimers in the grappling profession. The head-

lock which causes the ear injury, was formerly used timean time again during a match; now the greater varietyof golds makes it distinctly less important.

During the workout in the gymnasium the chance forprocuring a cauliflower ear may be entirely abolished bythe use of a headguard, especially prepared for this pur-

pose. One particularly pleasing form of this head wearhas been invented by Bailey & Himes at Champaign, andthe University of Illinois. This head guard costs but 75cents and is therefore not an expensive item. As the en-tire secret of preventing the cauliflower is keeping the earsfirmly pasted against the head, tapes and bandages will


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also work after a manner, though not as satisfactory as

the headguard, and are much less pleasant to use.Should a man acquire an injured ear during competitionhe should be sent to a doctor immediately. The propertreatment for the injury is to puncture the ear at the bot-tom of the swelling with a hypodermic needle and drainsuch matter as has collected to produce the swelling. Thenhot applications should be applied. As the injury which

produces the Cauliflower is a rupture of the cartilage ear,

the swelling will not disappear until the ear is completelyhealed. For this reason the man should be kept fromwrestling for several days.

THE MANNER OF TRAINING THE TEAM

THECOACH

Wrestling seems to be a sport most ably studied from abook. The holds are applied correctly in a definite man-ner, and when well illustrated in a book, can be takentherefrom with a great amount of accuracy. But booklearnin has its limitations, and a coach is necessary. Ofcourse, other things being equal, the man with a great dealof actual mat experience makes the best coach. However,where no vast outlay of money is possible, any man con-

nected with the athletic department and possessing a fairdegree of astuteness and application can be dependedupon to get wrestling under way with the aid of a goodwrestling book. One man, by using the method of illustra-tion by the instructor and practice by the class, can teachwrestling to a group of 100 men. Wrestling, as any othergame, to be learned must be actually played. This greattruth may be summed up by the fact that to learn towrestle one must wrestle.

The wrestling book, however, can by no stretch of imagi-nation condition the men and toughen them for the bumpsand punishment they must bear. This naturally turns our


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EXERCISES 5

attention to the matter of pre-season conditioning exer-

cises.

PRE-SEASONCONDITIONINGEXERCISESAs wrestling in the schools is a "winter sport" the wrest-

ling season should, as a usual thing, get under way aboutNovember 1. Generally, however, there will be boysanxious to get started at an earlier date. This is highlydesirable and should be encouraged, as the coach will then

have considerable time to correct weaknesses in his menwhile it is possible to give them his personal attention.These early birds as well as the rest of the squad should

be kept from the mat until they have completed a systemof conditioning exercises which will reduce chances of in-

jury to a minimum.Light setting-up exercises may well be the steady diet of

the entire squad for the first two weeks with an occasional

trip to the mat to keep the boys interested. During theseoccasional mat workouts during the first fortnight, themen should be given some easy holds which they are ableto master quickly.

This, as Coleman R. Griffith tells us in his Psychologyand Athletics, spurs the men on to greater efforts.

EXERCISES THAT DEVELOP FOOTWORK ANDHELP WRESTLERS MAINTAIN PROPER

BALANCE

EXERCISEONE

Pair men off of equal size. Right foot of both men for-Ward. Grasp opponents right hand. Keep the left hand

behind the back. The object of this exercise is to makeyour opponent lose his balance, move his feet, or touchany part of his body to the floor. Alternate by using rightand left hands behind the back.


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EXERCISETWO

Right foot of both men forward. The object is the sameas in exercise one, to make your opponent lose his balance,move his feet, or touch his hands to the mat. This is ac-complished by placing your right hand on your opponentschest, shoulder or small of his back. Do not try to usestrength entirely but try to deceive your opponent byfeinting, and throw him off his balance when he least ex-

pects it.

EXERCISETHREEPair men off as in Exercise One. Men face each otherwith left foot forward. Place left hand on back of op-

ponents neck and the right hand wherever it can be usedto the greatest advantage. From this position try toshove your opponent back off the mat. In this exercise,keep your feet well apart, weight resting on balls of yourfeet, body inclined forward, making opponent carry your

weight. Try to keep him off balance. If you do this youwill be able to gain the advantage easily when matchingyour strength with an opponent. Keep in mind that it isvery important to have your feet well apart and nevercross them.

EXERCISES TO DEVELOP SHOULDERS AND

ARMSEXERCISELEANINGREST

Lie flat on your stomach, keep the heels and toes to-gether, body rigid, hands close to the sides and raise selfat least ten times without bending the body. Graduallyincrease the number as your muscles become toughened.

EXERCISES FOR DEVELOPMENT OF NECK

EXERCISEBRIDGINGLie flat on back, bring feet back as far as you can and

bridge up on your head and feet. In doing this, move the


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EXERCISES 7

head backward and forward and to the right and left. The

Same exercise can be employed in similar manner whenlying on stomach.

EXERCISE TO DEVELOP ABDOMINAL MUSCLES

EXERCISEONELie flat on your back with your hands in the rear of

head. Come to a sitting position and then let yourselfback slowly to the mat. Continue this exercise about 15times and gradually increase the number as muscles re-

spond to this form of exercise.EXERCISETWO

Lie flat on back, raise feet to a height of about two feetabove mat, knees straight, heels and toes together. Makea figure eight by revolving the legs in a circle.

EXERCISETHREELie flat on back, raise legs up over your head and en-

deavor to touch mat with your toes. This exercise shouldbe continued about live times and gradually increased.

EXERCISEFOURLie flat on back. Raise your legs perpendicular, place

BRIDGING


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the hands at the sides and proceed to go through the mo-

tions of riding a bicycle. Start slowly and gradually in-crease speed.

ROPE SKIPPING

Rope skipping is probably one of the best exercises tohelp develop speed, particularly while on your feet. Italso develops the leg muscles. While jumping the ropeyou should always attempt to carry the weight of your

body on the balls of your feet.Shadow boxing is another very good method to help

you develop foot-work in speed as well as offense and de-fense on your feet.

CHANGING POSITIONSON THE MAT

Every wrestler should spend at least five minutes eachday changing positions on the mat using positions that wedescribe later. To get away from your opponent, espe-cially if he is a good man, it will be necessary to be ableto use all the positions on the mat and to change from oneto the other very rapidly. By spending considerable time

changing positions on the mat you will be surprised at thespeed you will develop when down on the mat.Hand ball, medicine ball and a bit of actual boxing are

all desirable in helping the youthful matman to acquirepoise, balance, speed, wind and endurance. A few lapsjogged around the running track each day is a great helpin developing the wind. This jog had best be changed toshort sprints as the men begin to round into shape. These

short distance sprints may be increased slightly each dayand later the men may be sent out with instructions tosprint as far and as fast as possible.Impress the men with the fact that, though they have


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TRYOUTS 9

gone as far as to them seems humanly possible, there is

still some distance and some speed left in their systems.By taking a bit of punishment a man will bring to light asurprising store of reserve energy hidden deep in his ner-vous system waiting to be tapped. This will give thesquad the habit of carrying on in a match when all seemslost, and is necessary through the fact that many inexperi-enced wrestlers are likely to quit before they are halfthrough. This punishing sprint system gives them the in-

centive for the final effort which wins so many closely con-tested mat bouts. This system, while it can be carried tothe utmost in University, must be practiced with judgmentwhen applied to the still growing high school lad. The

boys must be taught that this spirit of fighting to the lastgasp is the spirit of competitive athletics, as it is the spiritof life.

TRYOUTS

After the men have rounded into condition and havebeen on the 1nat for five or six days tryouts should be heldat least twice each week. The tryouts should be held asnearly under actual competition conditions as possible. Ifthere are no two boys of equal ability on the team, match

the varsity man in the class with some tough lad five orten pounds heavier. This is good experience for the boy,and when the student body becomes aware of the fact thatthe tryouts are being held on certain days the gym will intime be crowded. The crowded gym is particularly de-sirable, as becoming stage struck is one of the big weak-nesses of the untried man, and in this manner he will be-come accustomed to appearing before a large number of

spectators and will not be worried or distracted by thenoise of the crowd. Pick the man to represent the schoolin each meet by a series of tryouts, best two out of three

bouts. During the last one or two tryouts before the sea-


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son opens have the men make weight as they will have to

do in actual match wrestling. This will show them howmuch work they will have to do to make their weight limit,how to train and eat in order to get down to this weightlimit on time and how they feel after they have made it.Many men worry about their ability to come down inweight; once they have made it and found themselves stillstrong after the reduction, this worry is eliminated.

WORKOUTS DURING THE SEASON

Perhaps the best manner of outlining the practices dur-ing the week after the season has opened is to give a day

by day schedule which has proved successful for thewriter.

MONDAY

Spend at least thirty minutes discussing the meet of theSaturday before. Tell each man separately his good and

bad points. Point out means of smoothing out the roughspots in his offense and defense. With this procedure outof the way, turn your attention to the meet of the follow-ing Saturday, While scouting the rival team is not cus-tomary in the Big Ten it could probably be accomplishedin the county league where the rival towns are but a fewmiles apart. During this scouting expedition obtain, asfully as possible, the offensive and defensive methods ofeach man on the rival team, and learn his strength and hisweakness. With this information it is possible to build upa defense for the rival offense and an offense which willwork best against the defense or weakness peculiar to thestyle of the opponents. Build the program for the week

for each man on the team around this information andafter a light and snappy workout consisting of setting-upexercises and work for speed, dismiss the squad and tellthem to think it over. Mental wrestling is very good

practice.


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WORKOUTS DURINGTHE SEASON 11

TUESDAY

After the usual warming up exercises give the squadplenty of wrestling. The workout for each man should beat least twice as long as the time allowed for a regulation

bout. By selecting a second string man who will make hisvarsity opponent strengthen his weak points this workoutis highly valuable. Let this man apply the strong pointsand weaknesses of the next opponent. As soon as one sec-ond string man is tired send another against the varsity

entrant and in this manner keep the first string workingfast and hard.

WEDNESDAY

The program for Wednesday can well repeat the one ofthe day before. The prospective varsity men at eachweight can be sent against each other in the first tryoutsfor the Saturday match.

THURSDAY

The second set of tryouts for the Saturday match canbe used as the wrestling part of the workout on Thursday,with the other half of the session given over to intensive

practicing of holds and breaks.

FRIDAY

A Give the entire squad a light, fast workout for but two

0r three minutes. Inspect the squad closely and if thereis the slightest indication of staleness on the part of anyman do not allow him to wrestle. Attend to the weighingof the men personally Friday in order to be able to tellthem what and how much to eat. Order the men in bed

by 10 oclock, and tell the squad to report early Saturdaymorning in order to weigh the members, so that you maytell them whether they should eat anything before the offi-

cial weighing in time or not. Weighing in should takeplace 5 hours before the first match is called. If one ofthe men seems likely to be slightly overweight at that timedress him in heavy sweat clothes and have him run the


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unwanted poundage off, or if he is not too much over-

weight a good rub down will do.MAKINGWEIGHT

One of the most important and yet most abused mattersin training wrestlers is the matter of making weight. Whilethere are numerous methods of getting down to the poundlimit, the one safe and sane manner of accomplishing it is

by the natural means of regulating the diet. Several meth-

ods may be used in correlation with the diet reduction,but the sweat room is certainly not one of them. If aman has to resort to the sweat room it is because he hasnot trained conscientiously or is not fitted for the divisionin which he is to wrestle. The sweat room weakens theman, worries him, makes him dizzy and is to be avoidedat all costs, particularly in the case of high school boys.Running while clothed in heavy material has already been

mentioned as a means of reducing. The drinking of nowater will do away quickly with the extra pound or so theday before the match. During the no water period theman can satisfy his thirst by gargling his throat and bysucking an orange or lemon now and then. Usually fromthree to tive pounds can be taken off in this manner dur-ing the eighteen hours preceding the weighing in.

When making weight for a match weigh as early as pos-

sible on the official scales, as different scales will some-times vary as much as one-half pound or more.

DIET

Learned discussions on the matter of diet have filledmany volumes. The weird angle of the matter is that notwo authors agree on more than two or three eggs or a

parsnip. Experience has taught the author that the mat-ter is entirely one of individual digestion, the personalequation.

One portion of food may be poison to one individualand another person may find the same dish necessary to


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DIET 13

his existence. One stomach may completely digest a meal

in two hours and another may labor over the same food forfive hours. Each man should make a thorough study ofhis digestive apparatus and in this manner find what hecan and cannot eat and which foods he digests quickly.Eat, as by the age old advice, wholesome foods-fruitsand vegetables in season, and above all eat slowly. Sweetsin limited quality are good for the men if eaten sparinglyand not on an empty stomach. While a cup of coffee or

tea now and then is not particularly harmful, milk or fruitjuice as a beverage is far superior.The matter of food on the day of the match, after the

weighing in has taken place, calls for careful considera-tion. While the rest of the men are weighing in the man-ager (in case there is no such dignitary the heavyweightwill do as he does not have to weigh) should be given in-structions as to food and sent to the restaurant to order

it in advance. Not only should he order the meal but re-main and see that it is prepared in order that the teammay be rushed directly from the scales to the food.

Great care should be taken that the food ordered willdigest quickly as the digestive apparatus is hampered bythe fact that the men are nervous. It is far better to reachthe mat hungry than with a stomach loaded with food.When overfed, a man becomes weak and dizzy if he

reaches a position where his head is lower than the rest ofhis body.

While there is no set rule in the matter of this last meal,the author has found that a small steak, broiled, or two

poached egs and toast react the best. Toast should alwaysbe furnished before going on the mat in place of bread.The meal may be completed with fruit, greens of somesort and hot tea or coffee. No water should be furnishedwith this pre-match meal.

THEWAITINGPERIOD

Despite the general belief that the coach has completed


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his work when the men have mastered the art of wrest-

ling, his hardest work has just begun. Probably morematches are lost in the period of time between the lastmeal and the start of the bout than are lost on the mat.

After the final meal descibed above is finished, the menshould be given something to occupy their time, perhapsreading, light exercise in the form of a walk, or a car rideinto the surrounding country. After an hour of this, putthe men to bed and let them relax completely and, if pos-

sible, sleep until about an hour before the meet. Thenget the men together and make them forget the meet bytelling them a story, an experience, or by any other meansthat occurs to you to keep them from worrying about whatis coming. Keep this light-hearted spirit alive until thegym has been reached.

Once in the dressing room, become serious and talk toeach man, telling him something of the man he is to face.

Never attempt to drive the man to great accomplishmentby telling him what a good man he is to meet. Insteadtry to give him courage and confidence and show him thatyou believe he is capable of winning. If a man showssigns of great nervousness have someone carry on a con-tinuous conversation with him. In this manner a manwill be kept from taking the aproaching bout too seriouslyand will step on the mat strong in mind and body. In

many cases where nervousness has triumphed men havebeen physically "all in" from worry before the match hasstarted.

Just before going to the ringside, get the men togetherand give them a short pep talk. Let them know you haveconfidence in them and just what you expect each of themto do. Always let the man who is to go on next warm up

by skipping the rope or by any other exercise which willloosen him up, get him breathing easily and break up hisnervousness. It is well to sit next to the man who is tofollow in the next bout and to repeat briefly the informa-tion you have as to the style of man he is to wrestle.


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STALLING 15

STALLING

Stalling should be discouraged. This is desirable be-cause of the manner in which points are scored, as well asfor the benefit of the public. The men on the squadshould be trained to take the offensive. A fall can not begained unless this is done and since under the Big Tenscoring system two falls (live points each) count the sameas five decisions (two points each), it is essential that theman take the aggressive. If the Sport is to be popularized

there must be no stalling, as no spectator craves to wit-ness a slow uninteresting bout, and as the success of asport is dependent upon the public, the public must beconsidered. Several years ago when amateur wrestlingwas in its infancy many coaches encouraged stalling. Inthose days almost as many points were gained for a deci-sion as were attained by a fall. The premuim at the pres-ent time is placed on the fall, thus speeding up the

matches and making them more interesting. Stalling, how-ever, still has its place in the bout at the present time.Perhaps a man of fair ability is to meet an opponent ofgreat skill. In this case the poorer wrestler will be in-structed to go on the defense and not to take any chances,thereby lessening the likelihood of losing five points by

being pinned. Another case where defensive action ispermitted comes about when the team is leading by a fiveOr six point margin. In this case again send the man inthe final match on to the mat with instructions to be care-ful. However, stalling is becoming increasingly unpopu-lar and if never employed will detract nothing from the

pachs reputation. An aggressive, hard-trying aggrega-tion will gain numerous points by falls which the con-ervative team will never score. Such a man will likewise

increase public interest many fold.THEOFFICIALS

Too great care cannot be exercised in selecting the offi-cials for the meet. The author has found that perhaps


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the best way of selecting officials is the following: Have

the coach of the opposing team submit the names of threeofficials all of whom would be satisfactory to him. Do thiswith the understanding that you are to select any one ofthe three to referee the bouts. In this manner a compe-tent referee in whom both teams and coaches will havecomplete confidence will be chosen. After the referee isselected impress the men on the team with the absolutenecessity of accepting in good spirit any decision rendered.

Considering that the referee, as all other humans, is notinfallible it will be a hard task to please the spectators,teams, and coaches of both schools. One of the most dis-gusting and unsportsmanlike actions possible is for thecoach to rush to the ringside and dispute a decision, thusexciting the crowd against the referee. It is well for coachof both teams to have a complete understanding with thereferee before the match starts, covering all points in

doubt as to rules and as to the application or barring ofholds, and then explain carefully to the wrestlers the deci-sion reached. Even though an incompetent referee should

be encountered his decisions should be taken without ques-tion in the interests of sportsmanship and wrestling. Anycomplaints as to the officiating should be registered withthose who selected the referee after the bout is over.

ELIGIBILITY

An ineligible man is of no value to the sport, the school,or to himself. Impress the men with the fact that theirstudies come first and that athletics and other activitiesare of secondary importance. It is the business of thecoach to take a personal interest in the scholastic standingof his men. If a man is low in any certain study it is not

amiss for the coach to find out from the instructor wherethe trouble lies. Then take the issue squarely to the man.Tell him that he must stay away from the gym until theinstructor believes him again ready to compete. In this


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MIXED BOUTS 17

manner many ineligibilities will be avoided and the coach

will have found a closer personal contact with his men.PERSONALHEALTH

Aside from the items discussed, such as having the uni-forms laundered each week so as to foil any possible infec-tion, there is the important matter of the daily bath. Eachevening after practice every man should take a hot bath,using plenty of soap and finishing with a light alcohol rubin order to kill any germs collected from the mat. In case

sawdust mats are used it is well to change the mat coversweekly. Precautions have already been set forth for pre-vention of mat burns. Hoever, should a man burn hisskin on the mat a bunion plaster large enough to surroundthe burn should be placed on the sore spot. The dressingshould be made in such a manner that it will not touchthe burn. This will allow the air to enter and the burnwill heal quickly. The coach should see that all men getat least eight hours sleep each night.

MIXEDBOUT

There has been a great deal of discussion of late as tothe outcome of a mixed bout between a wrestler and a

boxer. The author has conducted many bouts of this kindin and out of the army, seen and heard of a great manyothers, and only once remembers of a boxer winning. This

once the boxer happened to be very good and the wrestlervery inferior. This is no discredit to the boxer, as thewrestler is trained to do the very thing that will bring vic-tory. The one chance that the boxer has is to knock outthe wrestler with the first punch. The wrestler knowsthis and spars, with his chin covered, until the boxer leavesEm opening. The wrestler tackles the boxer and down tothe mat they go, after which the boxer has no chance asthe wrestler is in close and can apply some hold that willCause his opponent to give up. The contest seldom lastsmore than two minutes at the most and is very disappoint-ing


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SPORTSMANSHIP

While wrestling teaches sportsmanship much as do othersports, there is one phase of sportsmanship brought outon the wrestling mat which can be found nowhere else. Inmy own experience I have seen varsity veterans on theteam teach new men the game when they knew perfectlywell that it would not be long until they were displaced,and possibly kept from making their letter by their pupil.Wrestlers in the same weight of almost equal ability will

meet many times during the season for the honor of repre-senting the school. In these tryouts it has been my experi-ence that the men will give all they have in an attempt todefeat each other, and then the moment the bout is over,

be the best of friends. I want my men to do their best,but I insist, above all else, on sportsmanship.


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SCIENTIFIC METHODS OF WRESTLINGTHEONGUARDPOSITION

At the beginning of a match a man should always as-sume the On Guard Position. This position is correct foroffensive and defensive work. The On Guard Position issometimes called the Starting Position.

To assume the On Guard Position (see Plate 1) take a

natural stride forward and to the left with the left foot.Let the weight rest equally on balls of both feet, kneesbent, body inclined slightly forward from the waist, armsextended, elbows slightly bent and kept in close to thesides, chin drawn in, back slightly arched. This is a well-

balanced position and it is easy to shift from one positionto another. Keep muscles relaxedbut always on the alert.Always try to keep the arms on the inside of opponents

arms. Have the fingers extended and joined.It is perfectly proper for contestants to wrestle witheither foot forward, but with most men the left foot for-ward makes the better position. Often you will go into amatch with an unknown opponent and the first thing to dois to try and feel him out, i. e,, find his strong and also hisweak points. You should never go into a match with themuscles tense because you will tire quickly. Some wrest-

lers have a particular way they like to start into a matchwhile others would be thrown at a disadvantage to try andwork that way. It is left entirely to the individual to findsome starting position that he is best adapted to.

It will be noticed (see Plate 1) that the wrestler iscrouched, every joint is relaxed, he leans slightly forward,the chin is low, the back bowed, hips and knees are bentand he is in an easy position on the balls of his feet, so that

his balance can be shifted quickly and easily from one tothe other, forward and backward, in and out to either side.

From this position various movements or feints can

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be made to test the opponents alertness and ease of posi-tion.

When a man steps out on the mat and assumes such aposition it is easy to see that this ease of position is anasset to him, and every wrestler should try to acquire it.

THE REFEREES HOLD

When you have learned all you can about the opponentfrom this position, it is generally a good thing to grasp himin some manner so that you may test his strength andequilibrium. The most common practice is to place your

PLATE NUMBER1ON GUARD POSITION


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THE REFEREES HOLD 21

lefthand back of the opponents neck and pull his head in

tight to your shoulder on the left side of your head (seePlate 2). The opponent usually assumes a like position.

Then place your right hand on the opponents left elbow.

The feet should be kept well back and apart but do notlean too fer forwardor you will be off balance.From this position you can push your opponent back

and forth, or from side to side, and any flaw in his posi-tion or balance will suggest an opening. The common mis-take with amateur wrestlers is too much rigidity while inthis position. Do not tire yourself by tensing your mus-cles and exerting yourself without accomplishing any-

thing. While in this position attempt to keep your oppo-nent off balance, but at the same time do not exert a greatdeal of effort. This is a time to save your energy althoughYou must always be on the alert. The muscles should be

PLATE NUMBER2REFEREE'S HOLD


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METHODSOF GOING BEHIND 23

an opponent to break it because the fingers are concealed

and well protected. You are not permitted to lace fingers.If it is impossible to use the agove grip, try to apply thefollowing grip: Grasp left wrist with your right hand orvice versa.

METHODS OF GOING BEHIND YOUR OPPONENTFROM THE STANDING POSITION

There are a great many methods that can be used to gobehind your opponent or take him off his feet from theStanding position. Some of them are more or less freakholds and are not practical. However, some of them areused successfully by some men. Only those that are mostPractical will be explained in this course.

By completing the following methods you will be in aPosition behind your opponent. Whenever you have this

PLATE NUMBER3THE WRESTLER'S GRIP


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position always place your arms around your opponents

waist, using the Wrestlers Grip, your feet back and apart,making your opponent carry as much of your weight aspossible.

In the first method assume that they are working in anupright position as described in Referees Hold with theirleft hands back of each others head.

The man on offense places his right hand above hisopponents left elbow with the thumb to the inside and

shoves his opponents arm up and to the left ( see Plate 4),

PLATE NUMBER4GOING BEHIND YOUROPPONENT


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thus turn him in front. As soon as the man on defense

has started to the left you should drop your left hand tohis waist line. As soon as you have turned him to the leftplace your right hand also around his waist, clasp bothhands together, using the Wrestlers Grip. Once you havegained this position make your opponent carry yourweight by drawing in your arms toward your body andthrusting your shoulder into the small of his back. Keepyour feet well back and apart. The secret of going behind

with this method lies in the amount of force that you exertwhen you shift your opponents arm up and to the left.This method can be used at any time but to a greater ad-vantage when the opponent is in an upright position.

DEFENSEFORFIRSTMETHOD

Always be on the alert and as soon as your opponentplaces his hand on your left elbow, bend the elbow and at

the same time pull him quickly toward you with a sharpjerk of the arm.

PLATE NUMBER 5-DEFENSEFORFIRST METHOD


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It is also practical to relax the muscles of your arm, as

soon as your opponent places his right hand at your elbow,and then step back quickly. Should he succeed, however,in turning you in front of him, continue the turn as rap-idly as possible until you face him again. If he shouldsucceed in getting behind you, keep your feet well apart

body inclined forward until your hands almost touch themat. In this position it is possible for you to grasp youropponents foot (see Plate 5) and pull it forward and

up between your legs, at the same time forcing him to themat with the weight of your body. After you hit the matrelease his foot and turn quickly facing him.

THEFORWARDSWITCH

This method can be used regardless of the position thatyour opponent is in but to a greater advantage when heis in a crouched position.

Assume that your opponent is working in a crouchedposition. When he leads grasp his left wrist with yourright hand. Place your left hand well under his left arm-

pit (see Plate 6) with palm up. As soon as this positionis obtained pull your opponent forward and to the leftwith your left hand, being careful to guide his left hand

past your body with your right hand. As soon as his lefthand is out of danger release it, placing the right arm

around his waist, grasping your left hand, thus securingthe Wrestlers Grip. Be sure that your feet are well backand apart. This method can be used from the oppositeside by grasping the opponents right wrist with the lefthand and following the methods just stated above.

Sometimes it is impossible for you to turn your oppo-nent in the manner just described. When the above meth-od fails the following method can be used quite often.Grasp your opponents left arm in the same manner. In~stead of turning him in front of you, step in deep, withyour left foot between his feet. Fall backward to the mat.on your back and left side, pulling forward with your left


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arm and shoving back and up with the right. As you hitthe mat, your opponent will be face down. Release his left

arm just before you hit the mat. Hook his left leg, turnquickly to your left, and go behind.

DEFENSEFORTHEFORWARDSWITCH

As soon as your opponent attempts this method of goingbehind, instead of permitting him to turn you, step inClose, thus blocking his turn with your left hand across tothe right side of his body. For a man who has good use

of his legs and who is fairly fast, there is a very good tripthat may be used. When your opponent pulls you forwardand to the right step in quickly with your left foot, plac-mg it on the outside and just behind his left leg. (See

PLATE NUMBER 5THE FORWARD SWITCH


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Plate 7). At the same time slip your left arm up under

his chin or across his face, and then drive your left footback and force him backwards to the mat with your leftarm.

Should the above breaks fail and your opponent suc-ceed, however, in turning you in front of him, continuethe turn as quickly as possible until you have faced himagain.

THESWITCH

The Switch can be used quite often when going in andout of a clinch. It can probably be used better when your

PLATE NUMBER7DEFENSEFORFORWARD SWITCH


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opponent is in an upright position. However, it is possible

to use the switch when your opponent is in the crouchedposition. Assume that your opponent leads with his leftfoot and left hand and you are in a like position. Grasphis left wrist with your right hand, place your left armover and back of his left arm placing your left hand, palmout, in his crotch, pulling his left arm forward with yourright. Keep your left arm straight. Throw the weight ofyour body into your opponents left shoulder and then

turn to the left quickly. Keep your left arm in as close tohis body as possible and force him to the mat. Releasehis left hand just before you hit the mat, and switcharound behind your opponent, keeping your left arm inclose to his body and around his waist. This can be ap-

plied from the right or left side. (See Plate 8).

PLATE NUMBER 8THE SWITCH


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DEFENSEFORSWITCH

As Soon as your opponent grasps your left wrist withhis right hand and attempts to use the Switch, pull yourhand away from him if possible, and step back.If you fail to release your hand, step in close to youropponent as quickly as possible, bending your left elbowand forcing it to your left. This will raise his arm and

prevent him from placing his left hand in your crotch.

From there it is possible for you to go behind your oppo-nent by driving forward with your body, placing your leftshoulder against your opponents left shoulder and thenshift behind.

Should he succeed in placing his hand in your crotch,pull away from your opponent, throw your weight for-ward, shoot the left leg back quickly until his hand slipsout of your crotch.

THEELBOWSWITCH

While working on your feet and sparring for an opening by shoving your opponent in and out of a clinch untilhe becomes careless, as you are shoving him out of a clinch

by placing your left hand in front of his

Scientific Methods of Wrestling - Paul Prehn 1925

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