A couple of weeks ago, the postseason assignments for the 2023-2024 wrestling season were released. As is the case every year, there is a lot to unpack in regards to the changes in assignments. Now as a wrestling and geography nerd, trying to break down the assignments is a task, tedious as it may be, that I thoroughly enjoy doing. Fortunately for myself, there are others who share the same interests so I figured it would be best for the wrestling community to create a one-stop shop for those looking to take a deeper look into the postseason assignments. I’m doing this intro before I’ve even typed one single word in this blog but if I had to predict I’m guessing that I am walking you folks into a novel about the assignments. Before getting into each sectional I will have a list of supplementary resources that folks can use to help better understand the breakdowns between divisions and sectionals. If you’re looking for casual reading just the blog will suit you fine but if you’re into all the minor details like myself you will probably end up perusing through this while bouncing between 3-4 other tabs. I will say that this blog is not possible without the efforts of North Fond Du Lac/St. Mary’s Springs head coach Doug Forsythe. Doug has not only had many conversations with folks regarding the assignments but he also has a beautiful spreadsheet that we will post below that shows how the divisions shook out this year. Keep in mind, Doug puts out a preliminary spreadsheet beforehand and he is almost spot on with his predictions, which is almost more impressive than the final product in my opinion. In terms of the blog Without further ado, here is the deep dive into this year’s postseason assignments:
Supplementary Materials:
Wiaa Postseason Assignments:
If you’re just looking to see where your favorite team is at and you don’t have the time on your hands for a deep dive, here are the assignments from the WIAA website, along with who is hosting each postseason event.
For those of you that want to see how close your favorite team fell in their division, this is the spreadsheet for you. Not only does this have a list of every team and their enrollment, but it also is color coded to show which teams are new this year and which teams switched divisions. Enrollment numbers are from Fall 2022.
2023-2024 Regional/Sectional Assignments Map
I will start off the bat by telling you this is a lot easier to look at on a computer or laptop than a phone. I’ve spent more time looking at this than I did creating it, and this map does a great job showing the geographical cutlines in each sectional, plus you can mentally try and map out assignments yourself (much easier said than done). I recommend looking at no more than one division at a time as the map can be overwhelming with over 300 pins on it and apologies in advance for the color coding, I may be a geography nerd but I am no expert cartographer.
Postseason Assignment Podcast with Doug Forsythe
For those of you who would rather watch/hear my rambling thoughts as opposed to reading them, this is the link for you. Doug joins Steve and I on the show and we talk about every regional and sectional, along with listing the participating teams in each one. There will be a lot of overlap between the podcast and this blog but looking at both will still help paint a more complete picture of the changes this year.
Do you want to see who shares or maybe has different viewpoints on your thoughts on the assignments? Join the conversation on the forum and see what other folks have to say!
LINKS TO EACH DIVISIONS BLOG BELOW
D1 blog: https://rokfin.com/article/13807/D1-Sectional-Assignments-Blog
D2 blog: https://rokfin.com/article/13808/D2-Sectional-Assignments-Blog
D3 blog: https://rokfin.com/article/13809/D3-Sectional-Assignments-Blog
Special shoutout goes to Doug Forsythe for all of his resources and for taking his time on the podcast. I waited until after the show to write this so I could put out the best product possible and Doug delivered as always. If anything, he gets the credit for this, not only for getting me into the nuances of Sectional Assignments, but he has so many observations that I don’t think I would have caught on my own. I also need to thank Steve for the idea of doing way too early predictions. While I cheated a little and did some research against his wishes, getting the conversation going in July and getting me thinking about everything we have to look forward to this season added a fun little spark to the dog days of Summer. Getting people enthusiastic about wrestling is one of Steve’s many talents, plus I think we both secretly enjoy getting messages from folks telling us about how wrong our picks will be, well-researched or not. Three months until wrestling folks, the season will be here before we know it!
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