Welcome to Kabra Wrestling - I'm glad you're here.

BY BRANT PARSONS —

In December 2004, I was looking for a new challenge.

Through my radio connections, I set up a meeting with the sports editor of the Orlando Sentinel.

I told him that I had covered sports for the school newspaper at UCF and would love to string, or freelance write, for them.

Two days later, I received a call from the high school sports editor at the time and he asked "What do you know about wrestling?"

I hadn't followed it since high school, I said, but I grew up around it, wrestling and going to tournaments every year with my dad.

That was all he needed to hear.

I covered the Winter Springs Rotary Tournament just two days later and apparently did a good enough job because I was given another wrestling assignment the next weekend.

In fact, every weekend the rest of the season, I covered a wrestling tournament for the newspaper, including the first two days of the state tournament that season.

They then had a full-time reporter come in and cover the final day of the state tournament - and it was the last time that someone else covered a wrestling event for the paper.

Building a Florida high school wrestling community

Eventually I was hired as a full-time sports producer for the website and using my skillset there, I slowly built up our coverage of high school wrestling.

In 2016, I expanded my coverage to include the entire state of Florida because I felt that the sport was missing a centralized spot for schedules and results.

Rankings for Florida high school wrestling followed not that long after and soon a large part of my job was dedicated to the sport of wrestling.

It was my dream job.

Shifting tides

In June of 2021, I made the difficult decision to move on from the Orlando Sentinel after over 15 years of being there.

It was a decision I mulled over and one that myself and my family did not take lightly.

I was ready for whatever was next -- but I also wasn't prepared to let go of Florida high school wrestling and the community that have come to mean so much to me.

I wanted to continue with my award-winning coverage of high school wrestling in Florida and give the community a new home to find all they needed - and more.

That's where Kabra Wrestling was born.

What can you expect?

Kabra Wrestling will be your place to come for everything high school wrestling in Florida.

It will have rankings, schedules, results, and stories about the people and programs that make this sport life-changing for those who participate in them.

I am starting from scratch with the site and look forward to building it alongside you, my readers.

Kabra Wrestling will partner with businesses that have an interest in local high school sports -- and will accept donations from readers who wish to share this journey and vision with me.

If you'd like to contribute to Kabra Wrestling, you can click on the Donate button.

Whether you are a wrestler, a coach, a parent, an alum or just someone who enjoys excellence in sports journalism, I look forward to having you as part of the Kabra Wrestling community.

So let's get this thing started -- I know I can't wait.