By Rob Sherrill, W.I.N. High School Editor

There’s an old saying that only two things in life are certain: death and taxes. Two things also are certain in the world of wrestling rankings — and both of them are just as unpleasant:

1. You will be wrong — a lot.

2. The feedback you receive is almost exclusively negative.

To that I say this: Keep it coming all you critics of my high school rankings.

Wrestlers and wrestling people are competitive. They want to win. That’s why the great ones become great. For them, nothing but the best is acceptable.

And that’s why some of the feedback I receive is, well, amusing. So many people out there have the mentality that if you’re not No. 1 on the list, you’re nothing. Tell that to the majority of wrestlers who experienced success in the NCAA Championships this past weekend at Auburn Hills, Mich.

Before those guys became college stars, they were high school stars — well, most of them were, anyway — and so they passed through my grading process. How many of last weekend’s college top dogs held that position in high school? As it turns out, not that many.

And that’s why it’s fun to look back. Success comes from talent, athletic ability, technique and perhaps most of all, a passion for the sport. As we look back at today’s stars yesterday, the lesson is that I was wrong … a lot. But so, it turns out, were those of you who skewered me regularly about “that guy I can’t believe he had ranked.”

I thought it would be interesting to break down this year’s All-Americans and how they stacked up when they sat down for my final exams as high school seniors. As it turns out, only four of the 10 NCAA champions from Auburn Hills finished their high school careers ranked No. 1. In fact, the meet’s Outstanding Wrestler, Derek Moore of California-Davis, was unranked and it’s easy to see why. As a high school senior, Moore finished only fifth in the California state tournament at 119 pounds. Three of the top four weights — 174, 197 and HWT — each had three All-Americans who finished their high school careers unranked and two more in the bottom half of the rankings.

Here’s a quick rundown, weight by weight:

125: Neither of the finalists, champion Paul Donahoe of Nebraska or Sam Hazewinkel of Oklahoma, were No. 1 in high school. Donahoe finished No. 3 in my rankings as a senior, Hazewinkel No. 4. As it turns out, those are two of the higher rankings among finalists. Cornell’s Troy Nickerson and Indiana’s Angel Escobedo, who met for third place, were No. 1 to end their careers and three of the other four finished No. 2. Lock Haven’s Obe Blanc, who finished sixth, was unranked and as you’ll discover, he had plenty of company.

133: Once again, two All-Americans were No. 1 to finish high school and once again, neither was the champion. Two-time champion Matt Valenti of Pennsylvania was a No. 2. Of the No. 1s, Oklahoma State’s Coleman Scott and Michigan State’s Nick Simmons were second and third, respectively. Seven of the eight All-Americans were ranked No. 6 or better, four in the top two. Then there was sixth-placer Tyler McCormick of Missouri, the second All-American who finished his career unranked.

141: Moore must really be laughing at us. He also beat another No. 1, eventual fourth-place finisher Nathan Morgan of Oklahoma State. Seventh-place J Jaggers of Ohio State was the third prep No. 1 to earn All-America status. Seven of the eight All-Americans were No. 7 or higher. The lowest-ranked wrestler: third-place Charles Griffin of Hofstra, who checked in at No. 15. At least we had all eight. You’ll find that quite an accomplishment as we move on.

149: Once again, there were three No. 1 high school wrestlers and none of them won. One, Dustin Schlatter of Minnesota, beat one of two true freshmen to place at the weight, No. 1 Lance Palmer of Ohio State. The other, J.P. O’Connor of Harvard, was No. 3. The third No. 1 was seventh-place Matt Coughlin of Indiana. Champion Gregor Gillespie of Edinboro, who closed his career at No. 3, turned back No. 9 Josh Churella of Michigan. Two wrestlers ranked in double digits also placed: fifth-place Tyler Turner of Wisconsin (No. 18) and eighth-place Jordan Leen of Cornell (No. 14).

157: Iowa State’s Trent Paulson became the first No. 1 to win a title. Illinois’ Mike Poeta (third) and Minnesota’s C.P. Schlatter (sixth) also were No. 1. That’s where the good news ends. Two All-Americans, Hofstra’s James Strouse (fourth) and Drexel’s Ryan Hluschak (eighth) were unranked as seniors. Two more were in double digits: fifth-place Matt Kocher of Pittsburgh (No. 10) and seventh-place Josh Zupancic of Stanford (No. 13).

165: Mark Perry of Iowa and Johny Hendricks of Oklahoma State formed the only former No. 1 high school pair to meet in the college finals. Fourth-place Eric Tannenbaum of Michigan finished No. 2. But sixth-place (this is becoming a pattern) Mike Patrovich of Hofstra was unranked and two others were in double digits: third-place Matt Pell of Wisconsin (No. 11) and eighth-place Mike Miller of Central Michigan (No. 12).

174: It’s hard to believe that Missouri standout Ben Askren was No. 7. He was actually the fourth highest-ranked wrestler. The weight’s two No. 1s, Michigan’s Steve Luke and Columbia’s Matt Palmer, finished sixth and eighth, respectively. Thumbing their noses at our esteemed rankings were unranked Keith Gavin of Pittsburgh (second), Eric Luedke of Iowa (third) and Brandon Sinnott of Central Michigan (seventh). And Navy’s Matt Stolpinski (fourth) checked in at No. 14. Who says colleges can’t develop talent?

184: With Northwestern champion Jake Herbert leading three No. 1s, this weight class went more to form. Minnesota’s Roger Kish (third) and Ohio State’s Mike Pucillo (sixth) were No. 1 and Iowa State’s Jake Varner, who fell to Herbert in the finals, was a No. 2. The only All-American lower than seventh in our rankings was Cornell’s Josh Arnone (eighth), ranked 12th in a 189-pound weight class that was loaded that year.

197: American’s Josh Glenn was in Derek Moore territory, ranked 14th. He’s up 45 pounds from the weight class he won as a high school senior in 2003. The wrestler Glenn defeated in the finals, Iowa State’s Kurt Backes, was the weight’s only No. 1 as a prep. Fifth-place Phil Davis of Penn State was a No. 12 and Chris Weidman became the third unranked Hofstra All-American. Cornell’s Jerry Rinaldi (sixth…AGAIN!) and Northwestern’s Mike Tamillow (seventh) also were unranked.

Hwt: Two-time champion Cole Konrad of Minnesota was the fourth No. 1 to win a title. He pinned one of the weight’s unranked All-Americans, Aaron Anspach of Penn State. Also unranked: fourth-place Ty Watterson of Oregon State and seventh-place Payam Zarrinpour of Sacred Heart (we don’t do Iranian rankings…we have a hard enough time doing them here). In the double digits: fifth-place Ryan Gritter of Central Michigan (No. 12) and eighth-place Mike Spaid of Bloomsburg (No. 14).

So what does all of this mean? More than anything, it means that the wrestlers don’t care about the rankings. A No. 1 ranking doesn’t guarantee you anything but a big bulls-eye. And not being No. 1 probably translates more to motivation than it does to failure.

Just as you give it your best shot every time out, we promise to do the same.

(Rob Sherrill is one of the top high school wrestling analysts in the country and a long-time columnist of W.I.N. He also publishes the “American High School Wrestling Yearbook”. To order a copy, e-mail him at centermatpress@hotmail.com.)