Tough Day....

For four winters, I rolled out of bed early most, if not all Saturday mornings during wrestling season. Off to school by six a.m., bus wheels rolling by seven. Onward towards another tournament.

This isn't your NCAA Tournament, playing two games on the weekend before taking a week off to rest and prepare. Nor is it anything like a baseball tournament. For instance, the Rocky Mount Easter Tournament, which is played over a few days.

A wrestling tournament is something that is undescribable. Whistles blow and start the early rounds as the sun is coming up outside the gym, and often the finals and trophys are finishing well after the sun has set on the day.

Nothing compares to a wrestling tournament, right? Well.....that's what I thought. Until last Saturday.

Last Saturday, I took the trek with a friend down to Myrtle Beach, to watch my friend Erica Mazur's club volleyball team play in a tournament. Mazur, and most of the other girls playing Saturday, play college volleyball.

By the time I got there, around 11:30 or so, the teams had already played twice. And had many more to go. As they had three games going on at the same time, there had to be around 25 teams there.

Three courts? Yes. This wasn't your average high school gym. Welcome to the SportsZone. This place home to a multi-purpose floor, which has the three volleyball courts, two full-length basketball courts, all on a full size roller hockey/ indoor soccer floor.

(photos - icecourt.com)

Set over three levels, this place also houses a batting cage and a sportsturf area to train on. Oh yeah, and for the kids, all the regular games. You know, like when you're at Chuck-E Cheese?

The three courts each were their own bracket - the gold, silver, and bronze brackets - based on each team's age group and skill level. (I thought they were all pretty darn good.)

The huge area got me thinking. After all the years of thinking wrestling compared to nothing else, I have to give it to these girls. Many of them have been doing this for years, year-round. Same as wrestling, early mornings, late nights, and little downtime in between going all out.

As I sat on the balcony overlooking the courts, I thought about how many mats could be placed out. My modest estimation gets at least 12 mats in there, but I wouldn't doubt more.

Here's a picture of the NCHSAA State Wrestling Championships, set at Wake Forest University's Lawrence Joel Memorial Coliseum -

(photo -Nick Phillips)

The one difference between Joel Coliseum and the SportsZone?

Sports Zone is lacking seating. Temporary, five-row bleachers were all that as available. Set around the ouotside of the court, they couldn't come close to holding the number of teams coming, yet alone all of the fans coming.

Although the SportsZone isn't going to be hosting any wrestling tournaments anytime soon, it was an ample site for a volleyball tournament.

And it opened my eyes to the fact that there are other athletes out there that go through some of the same routines as wrestlers.

Wrestling Match Canceled

Rocky Mount's final home match of the season, scheduled for Wednesday night, against Tarboro, was canceled.

The Gryphons will next be in action on Saturday, January 31st, at Southern Nash High School, as they participate in the NEW 6 Individual Conference Tournament.

You may remember, Rocky Mount tied for first place in the conference team tournaments earlier this season. Saturday's individual tounament will help decide if the Gryphons will grab the conference's #1 seed for the NCHSAA team tournament.

scoring is kept the same as a regular match. Each win for a wrestler adds points to their team's score. (Six points for pins, three for a decision victory, etc.) The team between Rocky Mount and Nash Central who ends the day with the higher team point total will grab the top ranking.

Remembering Kay Yow

NC State women's basketball coach Kay Yow lost her battle with breast cancer on Saturday morning at the age of 66.

Yow will be remembered for being more than a pioneer for women's basketball. She will be forever seen as a tremenous fighter, as her battle with breast cancer was brought to the forefront of Americans in North Carolina and the country, as she continued with her life and with coaching during her three stints battling the disease.

One of the best articles I've seen is on ESPN.com, which also includes two video tributes on the same page. The link is here - http://sports.espn.go.com/ncw/news/story?id=3857041.

My friend Addison Teachey put it best when talking about Yow. Saturday night, he posted this about her:

"Today (Saturday) the game of basketball lost one of its most honorable members. N.C. State women's basketball coach Kay Yow passed away today after a long and brave fight with breast cancer. However it was not only the game of basketball who lost someone. Coach Yow was not only a great coach but a great person also. Coach Yow was a coach, teacher, and inspirational figure. Her fight with breast cancer inspired many others with the same disease to continue to fight with the same passion that she did. Even though we will remember her on the basketball court, we will remember her more for being the wonderful person that she was and the passion that she fought with. So not only did the game of basketball lose someone. The world lost someone very special to us. - Rest In Peace - Kay Yow - 1942-2009"

On the popular social networking site Facebook.com, NC State students had created the group "In Memory of Kay Yow." By Sunday night, the group had already swarmed to over 6,000 members and counting. It will be mind-blowing to see that same number by next weekend. The same people are encouraging everyone to wear pink on Monday as a tribute to Yow.

Women's basketball teams across the country on Sunday showed respect to Coach Yow, some by wearing shirts during warm-ups, others with patches on their jerseys.

But it might have been North Carolina who stood out the most. During Tar Heels' away match-up at Maryland, a prime-time game televised on ESPN2, instead of their Carolina blue away uniforms, the Lady Heels donned pink jerseys with Carolina blue lettering and numbers. They also had Yow patches on their jerseys.

During the second half of the game, with a Carolina player stepping to the free-throw line, one of ESPN's announcers made the comment "These jerseys aren't pink. They ARE Kay Yow."

On Saturday, several women's coaches and prominant figures said that they will always associate the color pink with Yow.


Kay Yow was a great coach, both for the Wolfpack and the gold medal-winning 1988 USA women's national team. But more than that, she will be remembered as a fighter, an insperation for others with her disease, as someone who didn't allow the disease to control her life.

As former NC State coach Jim Valvano stated shortly before his death in 1993, "Cancer can take away all of my physical abilities. It cannot touch my mind, it cannot touch my heart, and it cannot touch my soul. And those three things are going to carry on forever."

Kay Yow embodied this quote to the fullest extent. And as on Wolfpack fan put it, "Kay and Jimmy will make a heck of a cheering section for NC State."

Kay Yow was one of those people that you felt like could enrich your life just for having met her. I would have loved to meet her, not as a coach, but because of the person she was and the way she carried herself over the last two-plus decades while she battled cancer. She was a fighter until the end, and was able to be around the game and players she loved until the final weeks.

We will always remember her for her fight and the awarness of breast cancer she brought to the forefront of people's minds across the country.

There will never be another Kay Yow, not as a coach, but more importantly as a great person.




Sandra Kay Yow
1942 - 2009

Gryphons Collar Bulldogs

Rocky Mount's wrestling team wreaked havoc in Princeton Thursday night, defeating the Bulldogs 45-21. It was their first action on the mat since the Conference Duals meet January 10.

The Gryphons had their work cut out going into this match. Wrestling most of the year without regular 103 or 119 pounders, they would also be missing wrestlers in the 112 and 125 slots on the night. On top of that, Guy Williamson's participation was still in question. Coach Jones is taking no chances with Guy's ankle he injured in the last conference match. Williamson said he was ready to go, but Jones wants everyone to be 100% for Individual Conference and Regional action.

Dedrick Silver got things rolling for the Gryphs with an opening match 10-1 victory at 171. Daryl Cross followed with a pin at 189 before Williamson and Grant Wilson won by forfeit.


-Gryphs Senior Silver
(photo - Nick Phillips)


The Bulldogs only had wrestlers at 112 and 119 earning forfeits to inch closer on the scoreboard, 21-12.

Francisco Alfaro (130) and Chandler Phillips (135) each recorded pins and Johnny Stewart won by forfeit to extend the Gryphon advantage to 39-12.




-Gryhs Senior Alfaro
(photo - Nick Phillips)

Damien Smith recorded Rocky Mount's final points on the night with a pin in the 145 pound match. The Bulldogs won the last two matches on the evening with a 4-2 decision at 152 and pin at 160 for the final score.


The Gryphon wrestlers will make their last appearance at home for the season on Wednesday, January 28 at 7:00 pm against Tarboro.

Gryphons Make NCMAT.COM List

Check out NCMAT.COM this week. On the right hand side of their homepage is a link to their list of "Active 100+ Career Wins".

Click onto that, and you can find Rocky Mount Gryphon seniors Francisco Alfaro and Guy Williamson listed.

With a few regular season matches remaining in the season, plus conference individual tournament, team state participation, individual regional tournament and (hopefully) an individual state tournament appearance still left on the slate, Alfaro has a chance to move up on the active list and join only 21 other wrestlers in the state with 125 or more career victories. I have Francisco (unofficially) at 116 wins.

While we are on the watch, keep an eye out for yet another Gryphon wrestler to break the 100-win mark before season's end.

Coincidentally, this is Coach Jones' first class of wrestlers he has steered from freshman through senior year. Could he have more on the way?

(photo - Nick Phillips)

Williamson Joins Elite Club

Senior Guy Williamson notched his 100th career varsity win Saturday, January 10 at Northern Nash High School in NEW 6 Conference Tournament action.

Williamson got his 100th win against Southwest Edgecombe in his first round match during the Conference Duels. He becomes the second Gryphon this year to join the elite club. He won four more matches on the day to bring his four year total to 104.

Guy has become a special wrestler for the Gryphon program during his four years. He has been wrestling this year in the 215 pound weight class, but is a relative lightweight for the division. Routinely weighing in under 200 pounds, he gives up precious pounds to every opponent he goes against on the mat.

Teammate Chandler Phillips said "Guy's got heart. He's got a lot of heart", as he was describing Guy's performance during his last two matches at Conference Duels against Nash Central and Northern Nash. In Williamson's final match against the Knights, he fought through a sprained ankle that he he suffered in the match's first period and came back to win points in the final seconds.

The last few years, Guy has been bumped up in weight class to help the team in crucial matches. He has wrestled at heavyweight this season on a handful of occasions, going up against competition sometimes 80 or more pounds heavier than he is.

Never one to complain, Guy has put his body on the line for the team. And that team has come to depend on him to win. More often than not, Williamson has come through for them.

One Hundred Times.

And counting.

(photo - Nick Phillips)

Dungy Retires

The NFL lost a great one today in the Colts' Tony Dungy. Not only was he a great coach, but he was also a mentor to both his players and fellow coaches around the league.

His playing career was nothing special, playing only three seasons. But he was hired as an assistant at the ripe young age of 25 and never looked back.

His teams made the playoffs in eleven of thirteen years with him at the helm, including the last ten years.

When he was first hired by the tampa Bay Buccaneers, the team had never had a winning season in their thirteen years of existance before Dungy arrived. He went on to compose a 54-42 regular season record with the Bucs and become the winningest coach in francise history and an NFC title game appearance in 1999.

Moving to Indy, Dungy's Colts made the playoffs all seven of his seasons, as he was paired with a quarterback named Payton manning, who was starting his fourth season when Dungy came into the organization.

The Colts and Dungy have won at least twelve games in each of the last six seasons, an NFL record. Dungy is the only coach in NFL history with six straight 12-win seasons and ten consecutive playoff appearances.

His seven seasons in Indy included five division titles and two AFC Championship games. Not only did Dungy's teams make the playoffs, they won.

But Dungy's career wasn't without pain.

In 2005, his oldest son, James, committed suicide, and Dungy spent a week away from the Colts. When he returned the next week, he was presented with the game ball from his players.

Dungy and the Colts went on to make it to the Super Bowl the next season, where their victory over the Bears allowed Dungy to become the first African-American head coach to win a Super Bowl.

Take a look at this list:

Highest Winning % for Coaches with one team (min. 50 games)

1. George Seifert - 49ers - .766

t-2. John Madden - Raiders - .759

t-2. Tony Dungy - Colts - .759

4. Don Shula - Colts - .755

5. Vince Lombardi - Packers - .754

Dungy is still in what many would call his prime at the age of 53. But for Dungy, his priorities were always family, faith, and then football.

The ability for Dungy to walk out on his own terms is something that is not seen often, but the right move for a man who believes he has a higher calling.

For some, there is always debate over becoming a Hall of Famer.

For Tony Dungy, there is no debate. He should be a sure-fire Hall of Famer.

Although he will be missed on the football field, he will not fade away. He is just entering the second stage of his life.

(photo - nfl.com)

Gryphon Wrestlers Tie for Title

Rocky Mount's wrestling team did not leave the Northern Nash gymnasium looking like a team that just won a second consecutive conference championship. Despite finishing the regular season in a tie with Nash Central, the Gryphons were much more disappointed than celebratory.

After sweeping the first round of conference duels, the team had it's sights on being alone at the top. After beating Southwest Edgecombe, Southern Nash and Fike in the first three matches, the Gryphons needed one more victory to clinch a conference championship. A win over either Nash Central or Northern Nash.

The Gryphs fell by a mere five points to the Bulldogs, then in the last match of the day by a heartbreaking three to the Knights.

Francisco Alfaro, Chandler Phillips, Dedrick Silver, Daryl Cross and Guy Williamson each posted 5-0 individual records.

Johnny Stewart, Justin Atkinson and J.K. Williamson all went 3-2.

Damien Smith went 3-1 on the day while Demonte Hill was 2-3.

Antonio Ramerez notched his first varsity win in his only match of the day.

ROCKY MOUNT 42 - SOUTHWEST EDGECOMBE 30

Despite the final score, this was a slow start for the Gryphons. Against a team that had scored a mere 12 points on them less than a month ago, only Alfaro and Phillips won their matches. Both by pin. In the other matches that were contested on the mat, four Rocky Mount wrestlers lost by pin.

ROCKY MOUNT 43 - SOUTHERN NASH 24

The Firebirds had come into the day with only one conference loss and was the team Rocky Mount figured it needed to beat when the day began. The Gryphons took care of their business in this one, but got no help from Southern in their later matches. Four matches won by pin and four others by decision paced the team, which at one point held a dominating 43-12 advantage.

ROCKY MOUNT 57 - FIKE 18

The Gryphons rolled out to a 57-0 lead by getting five wins by pin and three by forfeit.

ROCKY MOUNT 31 - NASH CENTRAL 36

The Gryphons won eight of the 14 matches. Nash Central won six of the 14 matches. The difference was that Rocky Mount could not record a pin in six of their wins. Nash Central won three matches by pin and another three by forfeit and out-pointed the Gryphons, if not out-wrestling them. Rocky Mount held a 31-12 advantage after 10 matches, only to watch helplessly as Nash Central caught and passed them on the scoreboard with three consecutive forfeit wins and a pin in the last match on the mat.

ROCKY MOUNT 33 - NORTHERN NASH 36

Four wins by pin, one by forfeit and a 6-5 decision win was all the Gryphons could get against the Knights. Again, the Rocky Mount team got the better of their opponents on the mat, but with three forfeits looming toward the end of the match, they could not pull far enough ahead of the Northern team to get the victory. For the second consecutive match, the team wrestled into the lead, then watched helplessly as the Knights side of the scoreboard clicked enough points by Gryphon forfeit to catch and pass them.

Despite the way it ended, the Gryphons finish on top of the Conference for the second consecutive season. A trip to the Team State Tournament may be hinging on the outcome of the conference tournament, where each wrestler will compete individually for their places in each weight class while earning team points.

Tostitos Fiesta Bowl

Monday night's Tostitios Fiesta Bowl between Texas and Ohio State may have placed itself as the best bowl game of the year so far.

Many believed that Ohio State would roll over and be blown out in another bowl game, but the Buckeyes stretched the Longhorns out until the final half minute before falling 24-21.

OSU freshman QB Terrelle Pryor 66 yards passing and 78 yards recieving, as well as his first career reception, a touchdown that pulled the Buckeyes closer.

The Buckeyes running back Beanie Wells finished with 106 yards, but only ten came in the second half, and he was on the bench late in the game.

But it was Colt McCoy who stole the show and the game in the last minutes.

McCoy finished with 414 passing yards, including 76 on the final drive of the game. He hs already become many voters choice for next year's Heisman as he lead Texas on the 78 yard scoring drive with two minutes to play.

McCoy's pass to Quan Cosby for the 26-yard touchdown with sixteen seconds left capped off the two minute drill. McCoy and Cosby added to their already record number of touchdown hook-ups for their college career.

Cosby finishes his Texas' playing days with a celabratory dive into the endzone to win the game.

With the loss, the Buckeyes have now lost three straight bowl games, but it was only their first Fiesta Bowl loss in four games.

Texas has now won five concecutive bowl games, the longest streak in the nation. The Longhorns (3-0) are also one of five schools undefeated in BCS Games. They join LSU (4-0), Wisconsin, West Virginia, and Utah (each 2-0).

Apex Wrestler Opens Eyes

We get pretty wrapped up in winning. Winning seems to be everything. Losing, well, I've told you in the past what I think about losing.

When we go to sporting events, we pull for our team to win. Usually our personal emotions are focused on who we are pulling for. We love to watch the celebrations for those we root for, and we turn away from those who vanquish our heroes.

Last year when we won the baseball State Championship, I seriously doubt that any of the East Rowan parents were watching our wild dog pile celebration out on the field. More likely, they were trying to swim through their own emotional let down to figure out how to console their own sons. Conversely, there were probably few Gryphon supporters who noticed the tears in the other dugout, either.

It's very seldom about the other team, or the other athlete. Only your own.

Every so often there is some sort of magical moment on the field, in the pool, on the track, or in this case, on the mat, when someone other than our own captures and holds our attention. When we just watch in awe of someone we are supposed to be rooting against at all cost.

Tyler Forythe is just that kind of athlete.

Tyler is not an intimidating individual. He weights all of 112 pounds. He attends Apex High School as a sophomore and is a member of the school's wrestling team. His coach said he has been wrestling for 3 years now and he has probably lost as many matches as he has won over that time.

Tyler Forythe is visually impaired.

He was led through the Edenton Holmes gymnasium by a coach or another team member wherever he went. And he went everywhere. To the scorer's table. To the mat. To his competition. To the opposing coach after his matches. Back through the crowd. Back up the bleachers. Again and again. All day.

After shaking hands with an opponent he could not see, he was on his own.

Nobody to follow.

And Tyler Forythe won. And won. And won.

They have rules that opponents must follow when wrestling against Tyler and others like him (if there are any.) The rule is, you have to stay in contact with him. Just a hand on him somewhere.

That's it. Not much of a special rule in a competition where contact is almost non-stop anyway. Just stay in contact with him because he can't see you.

Everyone in attendance on Saturday saw Tyler, even though he could not see them. He could not see them watching him wrestle. He could not see how they were impressed by that wrestling. He could not see how amazed they were at how quick and nimble his steps were going up to his perch at the top of the bleachers. He couldn't see how almost everyone was rooting for him.

Even though he was not one of their own.

Tyler's last match of the day was against Rocky Mount's Ahmir Scott. Both were undefeated on the day, at 3-0, so that match was for first place & everyone knew it.

My dad said he was pulling for Ahmir to win. He also said that it would be amazing if Tyler would win. That's the magic Tyler has. You root for him even when you're not supposed to. You feel good when he wins.

Even if he's not one of your own.

Ahmir was victorious on the mat. He pinned Tyler to take first place.

I'm sure that Tyler, being an athlete, was disappointed finishing second. And I'm sure that this is where I'm supposed to say he was really the winner just for doing what he does. And he was. He is. But the real winners where the ones who had the opportunity to watch this individual do things we, as normal people, cannot comprehend.

Even if he's not one of our own.

Gryphon Wrestlers Compete in Edenton

The Gryphon wrestling team pulled out of the Rocky Mount High parking lot at six a.m. Saturday morning. It was an early start on a below freezing morning. The bus would not pull back into that same parking lot until just after 11:30 that night.

The day was mixed with successes, failures, highs, lows, bruises, scrapes and bloody noses. Not to mention the occasional nap on the gymnasium floor or in the bleachers. In the end, most of the guys had wrestled four or five matches, with several placing in the top three in their divisions. Those efforts gave the Gryphs a fourth place finish as a team.

Long day. Tough day. Good day. Wrestling day.

Not sure why I still need to refer to pre-season rankings when we are halfway or better through the season, other than I cannot locate any updates from those who do those sorts of things. But at least that gives you an idea of the competition the Gryphons have been going up against this year.

Coach Jermaine Jones has always believed that you don't get better by beating up on inferior competition, you go out there and compete with the big boys. You learn more by losing than by winning, as the saying goes.

The Edenton-Holmes Aces, ranked (Pre-Season) #8 in 2A, invited some very good competion into their house for this one. The Currituck Knights, who ended up on top of the heap this time around, were ranked #4 3A in the East. (RMHS was ranked #8 3A East). The Pasquotank Panthers (#4 2A East), First Flight Nighthawks (#5 2A East) and Louisburg Warriors (#3 1A East) were all competing. Also there was Manteo High (who always seem to have only a half team, but individually are very good wrestlers), North Pitt Panthers, Northeastern Eagles and Apex - what a ride from Wake County!

Ahmir Scott won all four of his matches by pin to take first place in the 112 pound weight division and Francisco Alfaro took first place by winning all five of his matches at 130.

Dedrick Silver took home a second place medal at 171 by going 2-2. Silver won his first two matches of the day before falling by a single point. The loss halted an impressive 14 wins in a row to open his season.

Daryl Cross lost a coin flip to finish third. Yes, a coin flip.

NCHSAA rules limit wrestlers to 5 matches in a day. Daryl was 3-2 in a tough 189 pound division where a couple of wrestlers had tied with the same record. Since they could not wrestle, it was decided off the mat. (This account is not official, only my assessment of the circumstances).

Guy Williamson finished 3-1 to take third at 215, while Johnny Stewart finished in third by going 3-2 on the day.

Ezekial Thorne, Chandler Phillips, J K Williamson each went 2-2 for the tournament.

If Jones does not come up with a surprise match this week, the Gryphons will be on the practice mat until Saturday, January 10, when the second round of the NEW 6 Conference Duels will be at Northern Nash High School.

Rocky Mount's Virgil Shines in Orange Bowl

Rocky Mount High alum Stephan Virgil put his name on the national map Thursday night as he and his Virginia Tech Hokie teammates defeated the Cincinnati Bearcats 20-7 in the FedEx Orange Bowl.

Virgil completed the night with three tackles, including a 0.5 tackle for a loss on a third down play.

But Virgil's biggest play of the night may have come late in the first half, when he intercepted Cincinnati QB Tony Pike's pass attempt in the endzone. The INT came on a second and goal for the Bearcats from the eight yard line.

Virgil came from across the field from his opposite corner position as Pike rolled out, before leaping in front of the Cinci receiver.

The play later earned Virgil the Allstate "Good Hands Play of the Game."

Had it not been for Hokie freshman running back Darren Evans' 100-plus yards rushing in the second half, Virgil may have been a serious candidate for the game's MVP.

Virgil ends his junior season with a total of seven interceptions, playing the second corner opposite senior Victor 'Macho' Harris, who many believe with play on Sundays next year.

Hokie officials are optimistic that Virgil will turn into their shutdown corner next season as he fills Harris' role.

(Photo: Getty Images)