By John Raffel
The wrestling team state finals are leaving the only home they’ve ever known and relocating to Central Michigan University.
It seems, for the most part, to be a popular move.
Starting next year, the finals will be held at McGuirk Arena at Central Michigan University in Mount Pleasant. The MHSAA has approved a two-year deal with the arena, formerly Rose Arena, which is part of the CMU Events Center. It reopened in 2010 after undergoing $22.5 million in renovations.
“We are sad to leave Battle Creek but look forward to starting a new tradition at CMU,” Brandon Day, coach of state championship team Richmond, said. “I have been told the venue is extremely nice, and that there are more hotels and places to eat for fans and teams to choose from. I have also been told that there will be more parking available for spectators.”
“I think it’s exciting, however, I have always appreciated the hospitality shown by the businesses in the Battle Creek area, especially McCalmly Plaza,” Greenville coach Paul Johnson said.
McGuirk can hold 4,867 fans for wrestling competitions, and the building also features adjacent practice areas that will be utilized by teams competing at the MHSAA Finals.
“Although I am very excited for the change, I must admit that I get a little nostalgic when it comes to Battle Creek,” Jeff Campbell of New Lothrop said. “Since I was in high school, it has always been the team mantra to make it to BC. Over the years, we have been very fortunate to make the trip, including the last 15 years in a row. Because of this, the town has sort of become a home away from home for the people of New Lothrop during the Team State Championships. From the anthem of Mr. Jeff McGinnis to the memories of battles won and lost, we will miss that arena.”
Nate Ethridge, coach of Chippewa Hills, which has made several state finals appearances, has mixed reactions. “I love the tradition of Battle Creek,” he said “I wrestled there as an athlete and have coached in that arena. Everything from the anthem to seating, it is familiar. It is part of team wrestling. We talk about ‘making it to the Creek.’ On a personal level, I will miss it. From a wrestling standpoint., I think it had some huge issues.”
The team finals have been hosted by Kellogg Arena in Battle Creek since their inception in 1988.
“We are grateful to the athletic directors, staff, and volunteers whose time and energy factored heavily into creating and growing the Team Wrestling Finals at Kellogg Arena,” MHSAA Executive Director John E. “Jack” Roberts said in a statement. “The decision to move from Battle Creek was not an easy one. However, we believe Central Michigan University offers us a fantastic opportunity to continue growing one of our most popular championship events.”
Mark Uyl, MHSAA assistant director who works with wrestling, said that the agreement with Battle Creek was year-to-year. “The people in Battle Creek have served wrestling and the MHSAA for many years and did a wonderful job with the event. Battle Creek had some shortcomings with the arena that they were able to overcome for many years. The shortcomings we would hear about from our schools was that there was no place for their kids to warm up, there were no places for team benches and a team dual tournament. A lot of the equipment, from the scoreclocks to scoreboard, sometimes didn’t work. We had some challenges with the motels. The host group was able to overcome those.
Central Michigan completely renovated their arena and were eager to host and put together an attractive proposal. That’s why the representative council moved to do what they did.”
After the first year or so, if the deal looks to be a good one, Uyl indicated that it could be extended. “You have to go at least two years, because it shows a commitment to them,” he said. “We anticipate it being longer.”
CMU’s basketball teams still might be playing that time of year, but Uyl said that won’t present a problem. “It’s no different than what the Pistons and Palace do for us for the individual wrestling,” Uyl said. “They’re able to avoid those. The Mid-American Conference would give Central those two dates. There is a mechanism in place where that can be our home for many years the last Friday and Saturday of February.”
Kellogg Arena officials expressed disappointment at the move while acknowledging that college campuses can provide more conveniences.
“Certainly, I think the group you need to listen to the closest are our schools,” Uyl said. “At the end of the day, what all our championships should do is give our kids the very best possible experience. This was a decision made with what’s best for kids at the forefront.
“Kudos to the host team in Battle Creek because, for over 20 years, they were able to overcome some of the shortcomings of the facility, but it got the point where some of those concerns weren’t going away. The timing was right for the folks at Central.”
There are concerns about the move. “I think the fear is that the new location will lack the mystique and feel of Kellogg Arena, where the fans are right on top of you,” Brighton coach Tony Greathouse said. “I have wrestled in every Big Ten venue and can tell you nowhere I have ever been compares to what it was like competing at Kellogg. I just hope that Mount Pleasant can duplicate that feel.”
“One of my main issues has to do with weigh-in and warm-up,” Ethridge said. “Weigh-in takes far too long, there isn’t any ‘good’ location to do it in the [Kellogg] arena. You literally have about 10-15 minutes to get warm on half a mat with the team you are about to wrestle. That is not adequate. In the past, having the hotel attached was a big draw. Now staying there is a pain. Rooms get overbooked. Sometimes you are unable to check it until after you wrestle. It just seems to be a nightmare. We were off-site this year, and it was without a doubt the easiest trip we have made in years.”
“There will be more things for the families to do during the long weekend, as the area around Kellogg had limited options,” Campbell said. “I feel that the central location of Mount Pleasant may help some of the northern teams with travel issues. It seems the last couple of years, especially, our fans have had issues with the hotel connected to the arena having the rooms available that they were promised, so I hope the hotel issues at CMU will be a little better. Finally, from what I am told, we will have designated warm-up areas at Central, which I feel are key to preparing your team to compete at such a high level.
“I am hopeful that there will be some adjustments made to the weigh-in procedure. I would like to see the process sped up, so our athletes have more time to recover prior to competition. It seems trivial, but I think we are ready for some new music to be played during the parades. I like the old song, but maybe only play it during one of the rounds and mix in something new.”
Johnson suggests the MHSAA consider a Final 16 rather than a Final 8. But in speaking on behalf of many coaches, Johnson provided the following tribute to Kellogg Arena:
“A sincere thank you to Battle Creek for the last 28 years.”