NJ wrestler’s path to 4th championship could still be blocked by court

☑️ A judge allowed Anthony Knox to compete after he was banned

☑️ The NJSIAA is appealing the judge's decision

☑️ Coaches, athletes and fans seem to be evenly divided about the ruling

The final chapter in the high school career of St. John Vianney High School wrestler Anthony Knox Jr. will play out in Atlantic City and possibly a courtroom.

Knox, a senior, won his matches at the Region 7 NJSIAA wrestling tournament on Friday and Saturday and is poised to become only the fifth New Jersey wrestler to be a four-time state champion if he wins his matches at the championship tournament in Atlantic City.

He was allowed to compete after Superior Court Judge Patrick Bartels blocked the  NJSIAA disqualification issued in response to Knox's involvement with a spectator brawl with his father.

The NJSIAA is appealing the ruling, claiming that Bartels did not fully understand the group's rules. The ruling “adversely prevents the NJSIAA from conducting its tournament pursuant to NJSIAA’s rules and procedures," NJSIAA attorney Robert Levy said.

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'Back to the plan'

"Every other person you talk to seem to have a different opinion," New Jersey high school athletics writer Bob Badders said.

"No one on the record will say that he shouldn't be wrestling but I think most of them think, hey, there's rules here. He broke them. Why does he get to skirt the rules? But at the same time they might be like, yeah, he's going for this record. Cool," Badders told New Jersey 101.5.

Knox did not speak to the media during the tournament. The wrestler who is headed for Cornell in the fall, wrote on his Instagram account “back to the plan.”

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NJSIAA authority eroded?

Badders said he believes the NJSIAA's authority is in danger of being eroded. A fight after a quarterfinal round game in the boys hockey tournament between the Marlboro and Ocean Township-Shore-Monmouth co-op teams led the NJSIAA to suspend 11 players, 6 Marlboro and 5 Ocean Township.

"You can make the case that somebody from one of those teams wants to say 'no,my son wasn't involved. We're going to take you to court,'" Badder said. "That precedent seems like it's been set."

The Ocean players will be suspended for the first two games of the 2025-26. The Marlboro players will not play in the sectional semifinals.

The directors of Athletics Association of New Jersey (DAANJ) Board of Trustees voiced their support for the NJSIAA's role in "upholding the integrity, sportsmanship, and educational values that define high school athletics," in a letter.

"The rules and policies established by NJSIAA protect the integrity of competition, ensure athlete safety, and reinforce the core principles of sportsmanship and accountability—all of which are foundational to the high school athletic experience,' the directors wrote.

The directors said they were disappointed that the judge's ruling in the case as it goes against the core values of both the DAANJ and NJSIAA.

"In spite of the decision, we will continue to work along and support the NJSIAA to provide professional development opportunities, reinforce sportsmanship, ethical leadership and education-based athletics," the DAANJ wrote.

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