He said "scufflers" are wrestlers who just happen to still train in the traditional style. He added that there is no universal system, and every c&e guy will differ in the amount of ground knowledge, for obvious reasons, but all are very skilled in stand up grappling. I asked how can you tell a real scuffler from a fake, since I searched for days and couldn't find any videos.
I don't know if agree with the idea of "fake scufflers". You either train in the style or you do not. Wrestling is a sport and I believe that anyone can play a sport whether they are trained or untrained as long as they remain true to the spirit of said sport. Collar-and-Elbow has rules to be followed and a preference towards speed, positioning and leverage. No ranks, no formal titles, we are all just wrestlers at heart.
Anyone can learn how to wrestle while following a specific rule set with, or without, instruction. Calling yourself a scuffler is a way of representing the assets you've learned by practicing the style. There are scufflers with lineage and others whom are considered revivalists. I consider all to be real scufflers because there is no rank system in the style. The only real debate would be "are they a good scuffler"? That can only be determined by their instructional abilities. I was lucky to have past family members participate in the style. When it came time to teach their children how to defend themselves from the common bully, they demonstrated the fighting techniques which had protected them for so many years. This continued on with each generation developing, and adopting, new techniques from experience.
Do they understand the rules? Do they understand the purpose? Do they understand the history? Do they understand the philosophy? And do they practice the Collar-and-Elbow style because they see the effectiveness of the training? They might do things different because they dislike shin kicking and felt it was too striking oriented after being exposed to other styles. They might be better at ground wrestling than stand up. Does that mean they are not authentic? No. Only that they have decided to do what many scufflers before them have. Adapted the style to fit their personal attributes and abilities. They would most likely still believe in the proven philosophy of using speed to achieve positioning in order to apply strength to the leverage gained. Even if you are Brock Lesnar, you can only benefit from this belief.
What is a style anyway? Is it really defined by what techniques differ because most share a majority of the same? I believe the rules, preferences, training methods and philosophy are the true factors that dictates "style", in my opinion only. I accept all unless their answers to above questions, placed in the paragraph above, dictate otherwise.
You posted "a scuffler is just a wrestler that still practices the traditional style". I agree with this statement. How they came to study Collar-and-Elbow is unimportant to me. Whether or not they understand it is. This is strictly my own opinion because the style possesses no titles such as Shooter, Hooker, or Black Belt. It is only a style of wrestling. They are still wrestlers, whom should never restrict themselves to a specific set of techniques or rules. This is why scufflers enjoyed competing against styles with different rule sets. They were grapplers who enjoyed competition and learning the ways of others, while still representing their own preferred style of wrestling and training.
Good posts Bumpkin. Thank you again for creating this thread. I have truly enjoyed it.
