Traditionally in the United States coaches teach wrestlers from the beginning of their youthful careers to protect their legs.  A wrestler that can't protect his legs is doomed from the outset.  Coaches drill the sprawl, they preach to the uninitiated to keep their hands "low" and to protect that lead leg.  This "Americanized" style of wrestling has its' roots in our scholastic style of wrestling commonly referred to as folkstyle wrestling.  The goal of course is to prepare wrestlers to be fundamentally sound: to be able to hit a good double, to shoot a good single, and to spin quickly behind an extended opponent.     But the artful and unpredictable side of wrestling is that there will always be a few that see things a bit differently.  Instead of focusing on protecting their legs, it's like they've traded in their legs for a second set of arms.  Wrestlers who have refined the ability to use their legs from the neutral position are exciting to watch and often very effective at scoring critical takedowns.  Moves like trips, props, and grapevines don't have to be gimmicks.  Rather, with practice a wrestler can add a new dimension to the foundation of a basic offense.      When teaching newcomers technique, coaches like to deal in absolutes.  Phrases such as "don't reach back" and "keep your head up" are not to be ignored or even questioned.  But eventually even the absolute of always protecting your own legs is softened when kids eventually learn single leg finishes from the high level.  The age-old maneuver of "tree-topping" an opponent to the mat is made even more effective with a sweeping trip by the attacker's leg.  (See a wrestler tree-topping his opponent with a leg trip.)  So, when dealing with technique there are no absolutes, and coaches should look to teach wrestlers a few attacks using their legs.       At the NCAA Championship Tournament this year one of the most highly anticipated bouts of the tournament occurred in the second round.  Many fans were hyped for the match between Reggie Wright of Oklahoma State and Mike Zadick of Iowa.  Both were highly seeded and represented teams in the thick of the title chase.      However, what made the bout worth the price of admission technically was that both wrestlers possessed the ability to score takedowns while attacking with their legs.  Reggie Wright had often fallen opponents with a vast array of upper-body maneuvers that included the use of a trip or grapevine to complete the attack.  (See Wright hit a body-lock with a trip.)      Zadick, had apparently soaked up Assistant Hawkeye coach Lincoln McIlravy's ability to hit a cross-trip takedown from hours of battling in the practice room.  (See Zadick hit a cross-trip takedown.)  The daring style of the two wrestlers kept the crowd in Iowa City fascinated to the last whistle.      Wrestling matches, where combatants open up and try every technique in the book to get the win, are crowd pleasers.  Undoubtedly the very techniques that thrill fans may also help a coach keep his/her wrestlers interested during a long season.  Of course, coaches should give their athletes a heavy dose of the basics; however, eventually there will be some wrestlers who are ready to try some more advanced techniques.      Kevin Jackson, National Freestyle Coach for USA Wrestling, advises, "Once kids are well versed on the basics, coaches at the grass-roots level should take the time to put their wrestler in more of these unusual maneuvers.  We don't want our wrestlers to only be exposed to just one style of wrestling.  We need to expose them to more positions beyond the typical folkstyle wrestling they see."  (See Coach Jackson hitting a bodylock with a trip in the World Championships.)  Coaches can advance their team's technique just by incorporating a few takedowns that use the attacker's legs as a potent weapon.        Commonly, one of the first attacks to learn which incorporates the offensive wrestler's legs is the inside-trip.  The inside-trip can be hit from a variety of tie-ups such as: an over-under, a 2 on 1, or even from an open position.  The inside-trip utilizes a trip on the same side of the opponent's stance.  If an attacker hits an inside-trip with his left leg, then he will penetrate through the middle of the defender's stance.  He then will bend his heal back to his left side.  The attack is relatively simple to teach and often helps in teaching wrestlers to penetrate past their opponent.  (View an inside-trip.)      Once wrestlers are effective at the inside-trip, coaches may want to begin teaching their wrestlers a cross-trip takedown.  A cross-trip attack is an effective way for wrestlers to attack their opponents when the defender is adept at tying up an opponent's arms.  When wrestlers are busy hand fighting for position an attacker that can freeze a tie-up will be able to hit a cross-trip takedown.  Sammie Henson, Olympic Silver Medallist and 1998 World Champion could use his legs to hit a cross-trip takedown.  (View Henson hitting a cross-trip.)      Henson often attacked with a cross-trip at a high-level.  Lincoln McIlravy, Olympic Bronze Medallist, had a great cross-trip at a low-level.  (View McIlravy hitting a cross-trip. ) Regardless of the level which a wrestler perfects the cross-trip at, the use of a leg as a grasping tool can be a deceptive and effective weapon in a tough match where you're forced to battle through tie-ups.      After wrestlers perfect the inside-trip and the cross-trip, the next obvious leg attack is to learn how to hit an outside-trip.  Similarly outside-trips are very effective when looking for an advantage in a hand fight.  An outside trip, however, can be very useful in covering both corners of a defender's stance.  An advanced outside trip involves a duck-under to one side, while outside-tripping to the other side.  (Click here to see an outside-trip with duck-under.)  (Click here to see another outside-trip takedown.)  Wrestlers that perfect the three types of trips: inside, cross, and outside broaden their technique allowing them to penetrate more effectively and counter tie-ups with greater success.      Beyond the use of trips in an attacking offense lies the ability to "prop" an opponent's feet.  A foot prop or sweep is an advanced way that a wrestler can use his legs to attack a defender.  Like the trip motions, foot props come in a variety of styles.  Wrestlers that are learning the ability to off-balance an opponent with a sweep usually begin to learn the skill from close contact tie-ups.      Essentially a foot prop is a borrowed technique from another combat sport, judo.  Combatants that use a foot prop are skilled in catching an opponent in mid-step and forcing the defender's stride to be a bit longer than expected.  The outcome is a loss of the defender's balance.      An easy tie-up for coaches to teach a foot prop from is a two on one, also known as a Russian.  (View a foot prop from a two on one.)  Because a foot prop from a two on one does not require the attacker to lift or hold the defender's weight, wrestlers can concentrate on the timing and motion of the foot prop.  Eventually wrestlers may advance to practicing a foot prop from an over-under tie-up.  (Click here to see four time Olympic Medalist Bruce Baumgartner hit a foot sweep from an under-hook and head-tie.)  (Click here to see Jim Scherr hitting a foot sweep from an over under.)    The exciting thing about foot props is the countless varieties and positions that the technique can be used from.  They can be hit from both the inside and outside with the same side leg or opposite side legs.  Once wrestlers are open to the technique they can be creative i