By Mike Lopresti, Gannett News Service
BRANDON, Fla. — Now here's something you don't see every day. Matter of fact, nobody had seen this in ... 35 years.
BrandonHigh School lost a wrestling dual meet Saturday night. Why should anyone care? Because the last time BrandonHigh School lost a wrestling dual meet, Richard Nixon was president, gas was 39 cents a gallon, and ESPN did not exist. That'd be February of 1973.
There are winning steaks, and then there is something extraterrestrial. Brandon, just east of Tampa, won 459 straight matches. No team in any sport in any American high school had ever done that.
But now, it's over. No joy in Matville.
Brandon lost Saturday night 32-28 to South Dade from Miami in the championship round of its own tournament, before a nearly full gymnasium. It was like watching Rome fall.
And when the deed was clinched with one match left to go — while the South Dade fans chanted "Beat the Streak!" — what did Brandon coach Russ Cozart do? Curse the wrestling gods? Bay at the moon?
No. He jogged across the mat to hug South Dade coach Victor Balmeceda, and then shook hands with every wrestler on the South Dade team.
"No one wanted to be on the team that got beat," Cozart would say later. "But let's face it. This is a world record that just came to an end. This is not the end of the world. I always told people when the streak got beat it would be a time for celebration."
But it had to hurt. Cozart has been coach since 1980. Think Bill Belichick is hot stuff with his perfect regular season? Before Saturday night, Cozart was 384-0.
"I finally messed up. I finally blew it," he said. "Hopefully they won't fire me."
"He's a class act," Balmeceda said. "Everybody emulates what he is. If I'm half the coach he is in my future, then I'm going to be a great man."
Brandon's dynasty made the Yankees look like the Bad News Bears. The Eagles passed the old national high school record — by a volleyball team from New York — 11 years ago. Last time they lost, Balmeceda was 2 years old.
Maybe it was just time for the end. Brandon had heavy graduation losses from last year's 18th state champions. And the early signs were ominous Saturday night, when the Eagles dropped two individual matches in the final five seconds.
"The reason we lost is not because of the kids," Cozart said. "It's because of me. I didn't quite have them ready enough for this type of competition. I know they feel bad about it. I can see it on their faces. They didn't do anything wrong. I'm going to tell them they gave me everything they had.
"I have no regrets. It's been a great ride. Now there's going to be a number out there for other schools to shoot at. If they can beat that, all power to them."
With South Dade ahead 32-22 and only one weight class left, the issue was settled. But Cozart had to coax the last wrestler to focus on his own match.
That'd be Joey Cozart. "Let's win the last one," disappointed father said to crushed son.
Joey Cozart pinned his opponent in just over 100 seconds. Talk about your hollow victories.
"I was dying on the inside," Joey said, "But I couldn't show it."
Many of Brandon faithful stood around afterward, holding something of a wake. Fathers and sons and brothers have carried the streak. This was a family loss.
"What this streak has done for this town and this school," Cozart said, "is give it a cornerstone, a gem, a diamond to look at and to hold up. I hope they keep it that way."
Not far away stood a group of little boys, ages 7-12, in various Brandon Eagles apparel. Some were crying. Some were vowing redemption one day. They were the Brandon youth wrestling club, and they had just watched something they had never seen before in their lives. But so had lots of people.
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