Yesterday I was driving through Fresno. The headline story (yes the headline story) of the local paper concerned a high school wrestler who is facing sexual battery charges after he used the “butt drag” maneuver on a teammate during practice.

What is the “butt drag” maneuver in wrestling? According to the Fresno Bee:

The butt drag, when done legally and with proper technique, requires a wrestler to intensely grab his opponent’s butt cheek to obtain leverage and better positioning.

While facing a trial, the high school wrestler has been expelled from school for his actions. Coaches taught the wrestler the “butt drag” (sometimes referred to as “checking in the oil”) when he was in middle school. Though considered a common wrestling move, in 2007, a South Dakota wrestler was found guilty and sentenced to probation after being charged with rape for performing the “butt drag” on six other wrestlers.

I wrestled in junior high and fondly remember being taught a maneuver called the “purple wiener.” Basically, in wrestling you can legitimately give an opponent a “purple wiener” and a “butt drag.” Meanwhile, in ancient Greece, Olympic wrestlers would oil their bodies and wrestle in the nude.

Is the Fresno “butt drag” controversy just a bit of homophobia? Was there a larger line crossed? Fresno wrestling coaches are worried that the butt drag controversy is going to ruin the reputation of the sport. Come on, hasn’t wrestling always been a little gay?

Come see Harmon Leon perform on Thursday, December 9th/9pm @ Viracocha