Takedown Report

Brian Brakeman wins 2017 Dellinger Award

TDR Notes; Yes this is way overdue yet we wanted to extend our recognition to Mr. Brakeman and thanks to him for all of his work in supporting wrestling over the years. The National Wrestling Media Awards have not been announced for 2018 (or at least we have missed seeing them) and we look forward to passing them along when they come to our attention.
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Cleveland’s Brian Brakeman, producer of the annual “Brakeman Report” which covered Ohio amateur wrestling for more than four decades, has been named recipient of the 2017 Bob Dellinger Award for amateur wrestling writing, the award’s sponsor, Amateur Wrestling News, announced in the magazine’s Oct. 15, 2017 issue. Here’s how the Greater Cleveland Sports Hall of Fame, which recently inducted Brakeman, described this year’s Dellinger Award winner and his contribution to wrestling in the state of Ohio. “Brian Brakeman’s influence on Ohio high school wrestling is legendary. A statistical wizard with the papers to prove it, Brakeman has compiled a dazzlingly accurate state tournament forecast that for 45 years has been an invaluable guide for wrestlers, coaches and college recruiters. He calls it the “Brakeman Report.” Others call it the wrestling “bible.” It is the premier state wrestling forecast in the country.
“Since 1972, Brakeman has ranked the top 25 or so wrestlers in each weight class in every division, highlighted by projected state champions and order of team finish. In all these years his accuracy rate is 70%. One recent year he picked 13 of 14 state champs in Division I …” Amateur Wrestling News described Brakeman as “the face of high school wrestling in Ohio.” Beginning in the early 1970s, Brakeman, along with Mike Massa, anchored WVIZ-TV telecasts of the sectional, district and state wrestling tournaments in Ohio. The Ohio High School Athletic Association (OHSAA) adopted many of his recommendations for enhancing the state tournament. …. note: Among the past recipients of the Dellinger Award: Mike Finn, Jason Bryant, Andy Hamilton, Tom Elling, AWN writers Don Sayenga, Jim Kalin and Ron Good, author Jamie Moffatt, late historian and “The History of Collegiate Wrestling” book author Jay Hammond, and Mark Palmer, InterMat senior writer.
Rest of the story at
http://intermatwrestle.com/articles/18730?mc_cid=543c156430&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

March 29, 2018 - Posted by The TakeDown Report | Uncategorized