I see anywhere from 3 to 7 NCAA qualifiers for the Mountaineers this season, with two of the qualifiers contending for All American status. Curious as to the whereabouts of Ryan Sullivan, I have been informed that Noah Adams, even though he technically has two more years of eligibility remaining, has since graduated and will no longer be wrestling.
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| 125 Killian Cardinale Junior Record: 73-42 NCAA: 20'NQ, 21'7th BIG 12: 21'3rd MAC: 20'2nd |
An All American last season for the Mountaineers, Cardinale will contend with Northern Iowa's Brody Teske and Utah Valley's Taylor Lamont for the BIG 12 title.
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| 141 Caleb Rea Junior Record: 36-36 |
Ever watch a film or a television show where someone is doing research and they seem happy and content with the information they've found? Then suddenly a new piece of information comes their way that leaves them so frustrated that they take their papers and toss them into the air? That's what watching Caleb Rea of West Virginia is like. Watch one match, you're left feeling like this guy isn't even going to place in the top 8 at the BIG 12's. Watch him again, and making the BIG 12 finals seems doable. He has some really ugly losses, but he has some really good wins. He pinned All American Dom Demas of Oklahoma & he defeated All American Clay Carlson of South Dakota State in a 2-1 tiebreaker. He also owns victories over NCAA qualifier Drew Marten of Central Michigan, Chris Sandoval of Northern Colorado and Tim Rooney of Kent State.
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| 149 Luke Karam Junior Record: 57-23 NCAA: 18'NQ EIWA: 18'3rd SOUTHERN SCUFFLE: 18'6th |
Karam had a pretty decent showing as a freshman for Lehigh in 2018. Since then he has moved up a weight class and struggled at 149. Nevertheless I do feel that if healthy, he should be an NCAA qualifier for the Mountaineers this season.
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| 157 Alex Hornfeck Sophomore Record: 43-34 |
Hornfeck has yet to make the NCAA tournament, but I believe that he will this season. He owns a 6-3 decision over All American Wyatt Sheets of Oklahoma State & he defeated EIWA champion Holden Heller of Hofstra by a score of 5-0.
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| 165 Peyton Hall Freshman Record: 16-6 NCAA: 21'R12 BIG 12: 21'4th |
The BIG 12 is rather loaded at 165. With Keegan O'Toole of Missouri, Travis Wittlake of Oklahoma State & Demetrius Romero of Utaha Valley I believe that leaves Hall contending for 4th place along with Tanner Cook of South Dakota State & Luke Weber of North Dakota State. With that said, Hall should contend for All American honors this season. Notable wins include a 14-4 major decision of Virginia's Jake Keating and a 10-5 decision over Kennedy Monday of North Carolina.
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| 174 Scott Joll Sophomore Record: 18-27 |
Like Rea and Hornfeck, I'm not sold on NCAA qualification, but I can see it happening. Notable victories include a 14-9 decision over two time NCAA qualifier Thomas Flitz of Appalachian State and a 9-7 victory over three time NCAA qualifier Hayden Hastings of Wyoming.
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| HWT Michael Wolfgram Freshman Record: 19-14 |
The last question mark on the WVU roster is Michael Wolfgram, who like Rea, Hornfeck and Joll remains on the list of possible, but not guaranteed NCAA qualifiers. Wolfgram's most notable victories include defeating NCAA qualifiers Dalton Robertson of Northern Colorado 10-8 and Jordan Earnest of Ohio 13-4.
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125 - All American
133 - DNQ
141 - Possible NCAA qualifer
149 - NQ
157 - Possible NCAA qualifier
165 - All American
174 - Possible NCAA qualifier
184 - DNQ
197 - DNQ
HWT - Possible NCAA qualifier
Obviously 7 NCAA qualifiers is better than 3, but a good win here and there obviously isn't going to cut it. Rea, Hornfeck, Joll and Wolfgram have proven that they're capable of doing big things, they just have to do them more often. As elementary as it sounds, it really is that simple.
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