Based upon Board recommendations The NCWA will proceed with the nationals date as published and may make change decisions as we get closer to January 1st, the expected opening of the season. If By January 8th we have a MINIMUM of 50 men’s programs committed through administratively signed team applications and paid dues we will proceed with an NCWA 2020-21 Wrestling season.
On Sept 6th 2020 the NCWA Executive board made the following decisions concerning the 2020-21 Season:

1) For the NCWA to Sponsor a wrestling season in 2021 a Minimum Team member threshold of 50 (fifty) Men’s TEAMS must be approved for membership. The Deadline for this threshold is January 8th 2021. ( It will be very important for teams to register sooner than the deadline to insure the season moving forward )

2) Team Registration may begin on November 1st - all applications and team dues will be processed, but all approvals will be held until Jan 1, 2021 pending the 50 Team minimum season threshold being met. (should the Season Threshold not be met funds will be refunded to the credit card account used to pay team dues)

3) For those teams that have submitted applications and fees before year end their athletes may begin registration for insurance coverages on both the team and individual athletes on Jan 1, 2021. NOTE: Prior to meeting the season threshold and athletes properly registering: including Individual waivers, athlete dues and photo upload by the coach, the NCWA will NOT furnish liability nor injury insurances. ( It is recommended that teams choosing to practice outside the official NCWA season independently secure USA Wrestling cards to insure their athletes and coaches have proper insurance coverages.)

4) Once properly registered, athletes will enter a 4 (four) day Covid 19 blackout period ( in prior seasons 14 days ) in which they must practice but may not compete. Currently the earliest competition date possible would be Jan 5th 2021

5) This shortened season shall necessitate changes in the 2021 National Championships as follows:

The Current NCWA 2021 National Championships remain scheduled for March 11th, 12th & 13th, 2021

A) There will be No Required Conference Tournament as a Qualifier to the National Championships.
( individual conferences may hold a conference event if numbers warrant )
1) As a result Jan 5th - March 6th will comprise the 9 ( nine ) week 2021 season.
2) All athletes registered and cleared for competition will be considered qualifiers to Nationals if:
a) They have a minimum of 2 weigh-ins and competitive matches prior to Nationals registration.
b) And register for Nationals during the 10 day official registration period between Tue. Feb. 23rd
and midnight est. Thur. March 4th 2021.
B) All Member NCWA teams may submit a maximum of 2 (two) athletes in each weight in both men’s and women’s divisions.
1) Registrations will be accepted on a first come first serve basis beginning Feb 23, 2021 at 12 noon cst.
( maximum 32 man bracket for men’s division and 16 women bracket for women’s division )
2) Register EARLY to secure your spot at Nationals. Only applications of cleared NCWA athletes with paid entry fee and documented 2 weigh-in & 2 match minimum will be considered.

C) Seeding will be determined by the 2021 Nationals Tournament Committee based upon:
1) Returning All-Americans
2) Returning National Qualifiers
3) Other 2021 season results as determined by the committee.
4) Non-seeded athletes will be randomly drawn into the bracket.

NOTE: These are the “CURRENT" 2021 season protocols and are subject to change based upon changing information concerning Covid 19, CDC / State requirements and or individual university administrative directives

We will also be exploring all date options with the Allen Event Center between March 18th through April 29th.
Depending on the size of this years membership and possible open dates to book the venue and the availability of staff to run the event we will carefully consider the wisdom of expanding the length of the season.