St. John Vianney's Anthony Knox Jr. wrestles Southern's Hunter Borer in Holmdel, N.J. on Jan. 8, 2025.
The ongoing battle regarding the status of St. John Vianney High School (Holmdel, New Jersey) star wrestler Anthony Knox Jr. is one of the most interesting stories in the country right now.
According to Brian Deakyne of NJ Advance Media, Knox has now been charged "with simple assault/knowingly causing bodily injury" by Collingswood police.
This stems from a brawl in the stands of a wrestling meet at Collingswood High School on Feb. 22. Knox became involved in the brawl that initially included his father:
Knox's dad — who, like his son, was ultimately handcuffed after the brawl cleared — said the incident began when he asked a spectator to stop cursing at his son and using racial slurs towards other wrestlers he knew:
Knox said he was attempting to protect his family.
The New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association didn't buy Knox's explanation and issued a ruling banning him from the state championships. For context, Knox is already a three-time State Champion and was looking to make it 4-for-4 in his senior season.
NJSIAA executive director Colleen Maguire issued the following statement on Feb. 25 when the decision was made.
“I did not make this decision lightly," Maguire said. "I am fully aware of the consequences to the student-athlete. He is a senior and this disqualification effectively ends his high school career. However, my role is to uphold the integrity of high school athletics by ensuring that all participants adhere to the same rules and are held to the same standards of sportsmanship and safety.
“Let it be clear, the Association cannot, and will not, condone actions that violate its sportsmanship policy or its member school approved rules.”
However, Knox — who is committed to Cornell University — was successful in his legal battle to overturn the ruling, with Mercer County Superior Court Judge Patrick J. Bartels giving the wrestler a temporary restraining order to override the NJSIAA ruling on Feb. 28:
BREAKING: Mercer County Superior Court Judge Patrick J. Bartels grants Anthony Knox a TRO, overrules the NJSIAA's disqualification and says Knox can wrestle at the Region 7 tournament today at Lacey HS.
"Given the prominent role high school athletics play in society, this court… pic.twitter.com/Nx67FGmXQV
Days later, Knox won a regional title and advanced to the state tournament:
St. John Vianney's Anthony Knox is a four-time region champion! The Cornell commit won via an 18-3 TF over Lacey's Aidan Flynn.
Knox becomes the 10th wrestler in Shore Conference history to win four region titles.
Knox was not available for comment afterwards - he was escorted… pic.twitter.com/GD6nfjV1f5
What happens now that Knox has formally been charged will be interesting. The state championships will be held March 6-8. Will the NJSIAA's appeal of the judge's ruling blocking their ban be heard before states? If not, whatever is ultimately decided will be moot. Knox's high school wrestling career will be over Saturday. If the NJSIAA is successful in having the ban reinstated, will Knox have any recourse that moves quickly enough to allow him to wrestle? Whether you care about high school wrestling or not, this is a super interesting story.
