2022 Final Thoughts: 184 lbs

 I'm really surprised in discussions among wrestling fans & wrestling personnel that 184 lbs didn't get mor recognition for how insanely tough it was. Not only was it an extremely difficult weight class to win, it was also arguably the toughest weight class to All American in.  Testimony to how early four of 2021's All Americans got beat out.  4th place John Poznanski of Rutgers, 5th Place Dakota Geer of Oklahoma State,  6th pace Britt Wilson of Northern Illinois & 7th place Hunter Bolen of Virginia Tech all got beat out of the tournament before the R12. If that doesn't tell you how how incredibly tough 184 lbs was this season, nothing will. 

I'm always going to love Dan Gable & I'm also going to cherish him as a coach. He's cemented forever as a legend, but I think if we're honest with ourselves he's been surpassed. I mean just look over this Penn State lineup, what it has done & what it is most likely going to continue to do.  We've already talked about the possibility of a five time champion at 174 & now we look at Aaron Brooks at 184, who might end his Nittany Lion career a four time champion.  The level of talent here & more so getting that talent to produce damn near on a 100% level has me questioning if Sanderson might have made a deal with the devil. It IS true, but it seems too good to be true. 

Speaking of being surpassed, we can all agree that Myles Amine of Michigan ends his career as one of the greatest to never win an NCAA title. The question is where exactly do you rank him on that list? He has to be somewhere near the top.  Think about it, 4th-3rd-3rd-3rd-2nd in the NCAA's.  2nd-2nd-2nd-1st-1st at the BIG 10's. He's an Olympic Bronze medalist & he just won a gold at the European Championships (his third medal there).  If you aren't ranking him in the top 5 of best to never win, then you must have a Hell of an argument for those you put above him. If you aren't ranking him in the top 10 of best to never win a title, let me find Will Smith, cause you need slapped. 

I'm wondering if Parker Keckeisen of Northern Iowa might one day be on the "Best to never win an NCAA title list." I sure hope not. He's way too good to end his career having never won an NCAA title. 3rd-3rd thus far in his NCAA career he still has three seasons of eligibility left. Personally I don't think there's  a soul he can't defeat at 184 lbs, but he's been unsuccessful against Brooks thus far, and he has to contend with him for 2/3 more seasons.  Give me another reason why I put 184 on such a high pedestal for overall toughness. 

"That guy just decided to be good."  My Dad used to say that about wrestlers sometimes when I was growing up & I think that's the case with Cal Poly's Bernie Truax. Not only did he wake up one morning deciding he was going to be good, he woke up another morning deciding he was gonna be even better!  He was far better in 2021 than he was in 2020 & as far as I'm concerned overall (especially considering moving up to 184) he was better in 2022 than he was in 2021. I'm anxious to see what 2023 Bernie Truax looks like. 

When a weight class is as loaded as 184 lbs is, someone's going to place a little lower than some expect them too. That's a mathematical certainty.  A sudden victory loss here & a tiebreaker loss there, saw Trent Hidlay of NCST end up in 5th place. Still an extremely awesome accomplishment, considering the overall field. Kaleb Romero of Ohio State another guy who moved up to 184 after competing at 174 to show what he can do & Marcus Coleman of Iowa State who after only going 9-6 last season, really stepped it up a notch to bring home 7th place honors. 

I was really happy to see Jonathan Loew of Cornell make the award stand this season. When I was in high school my assistant wrestling coach Gary Jarmes used to say to us, "Stay the Course." I wish I would've known to the full extent what he was trying to say to us at the time. I think I finally get it not quite 20 years later as I watch Loew compete. You gotta constantly reevaluate, learn from your mistakes & stay the course. A ship gets damaged, you repair it. Your cannons aren't firing at full capacity, you upgrade them. You can't perform at full knots, you work on the engine until you can.  That's been Loew's career & that's been Loew's season. Anxious to see what he can do in his final year next season. 

The NCAA's is such an emotional time for me. Honestly, sometimes I wish I didn't follow wrestling as closely as I do. As rewarding as some moments are, other moments just plain suck.  I felt like throwing up when Taylor Venz of Nebraska yet again finished one match shy of being an All American. 4th as a freshman, this is the third time he's lost out in the R12. Nothing against those who beat him out, but man there's little else to say about it other than it just plain sucks.    

Again, this is why I say there's so much more to wrestling than the last 3 days of it.  101 varsity career wins. 3rd-2nd-5th-2nd at CKLV, arguably our toughest in-season tournament. Someone wants to still consider him to be one one of the all time greats at Nebraska? Got no problem with that. In fact, I'm someone. 

If you don't know by now, JT#1 loves, loves, loves, loves, loves hearing critics silenced.  I have a ton of respect for Charles Small of Hofstra, who I was already a fan of, but became even more of a fan of when he manned up & made a public recognition that he was wrong about Max Lyon of Purdue. A lot of people had a lot of opinions about Lyon getting an At Large bid to the NCAA's & Small was about the only one who refuted on his opinion & admitted he misjudged Lyon.  

In what again I'll call the toughest bracket to AA in, Lyon took a first round loss & won three consolation matches in a row including Gavin Kane of North Carolina, Kyle Cochran of Maryland & Keegan Moore of Oklahoma to finish one match shy of being an All American.  Last name Lyon, heart of a lion. 

As always I can't keep rambling on forever. Gotta find a place to stop & I'll stop on Trey Munoz of Oregon State. If he doesn't come back with a huge chip on his shoulder ready to open up a can of whoop " " on the whole nation, I'll be shocked.  Here's a guy that stuck Bernie Truax at the PAC 12's & then majored Jonathan Loew 12-2, only to watch Truax take 4th & Loew take 8th, while he finished one match away from All American status. If the sport of wrestling has taught me anything, it has taught me that life isn't fair. He's got three more seasons left in him, let's see what the son of an orange & black, does the rest of his black & orange career.  


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Amine is gone & all of the other 7 All Americans are back. Plus Munoz & Illinois' Zac Braunagel & a whole heap of others. 184 doesn't get any easier. 2023 will be as nuts as 2022 was. 

2022: Final Thoughts 174 lbs

 Sorry for the delay! Did 125 through 165, where is 174, 184, 197 & HWT?  Well, had somethings happen, including my maternal Grandpa's death and it put working on the website on the shelf for a few days.  Anyway, I'm back & I'm here to talk about what many felt was the toughest weight at the NCAA's this season, 174 lbs! 

Five time NCAA Champion? Almost seems unreal doesn't it? Yet the way Carter Starocci won last year's loaded bracket & then turned around and won this year's just as (if not more) loaded bracket gives us every reason to think that concept is a very real possibility.  He'll continue to have immense challenge, but what could end up being his greatest adversary is health. I hear quite a few in wrestling circles say, "this is a young man's game" & I think there's a bit of misconception that comes with that saying. I think sometimes people take it & mean it as younger wrestlers are just plain better. In some cases, maybe they are, but I think there's another factor that goes into it that could stand to be discussed.  It's hard to stay healthy & 100% over an entire collegiate wrestling career.  To go without injuring your elbow, your knee, your back, whatever, is pretty rare these days by the time a wrestler enters their final year of eligibility.  Not so sure if the soldier entering the war without a scratch on his body is necessarily better than the solider who's already seen three tours of duty, but he may certainly appear that way compared to the guy with slugs in his shoulders and elbows, and a stump where his leg used to be that was recently blown off by a mortar. It's a beautiful thought to think that in three years, Starocci could have his fifth national title, but that's a long time to go without facing injury.  To combat thoughts of fear, Penn State under Cael Sanderson has not faced many injuries. He's had a very good track record of keeping his guys healthy.  

Of course staying healthy isn't the only thing Starocci has to worry about.  For the next two seasons he's going to have to continue to deal with Virginia Tech's Mekhi Lewis, who gave him all he could handle in a 5-5 tiebreaker in this year's NCAA finals. Can Starocci defeat Lewis every time they meet from here on out? If that's his mission, I can't think of too many with a tougher assignment. Matter of fact, that may very well be the toughest task of anyone in 22'-23' or 23'-24' (assuming they both stay at 174 lbs).  

I remember once at a wrestling camp as a kid, Dan Gable saying to a group of us, "You can learn a lot by watching."  I think those are very true words. I think what someone can learn best from studying the career of Hayden Hidlay is attitude. They guy never allowed a negative to ever get the best of him.  He won four ACC titles during his time as a member of the Wolfpack, but had to settle for 3rd this season.  That would've killed some guys. Torn them completely apart mentally. Not Hidlay. He took that negative, turned it into a positive & headed into the NCAA's with the preparation of being an NCAA champion. Then he dropped his semi-final match to Starocci.  Let's take it into perspective for a moment. Here's a guy that is in his final NCAA tournament. He made the NCAA finals as a freshman & he's facing the realization that he'll never be in an NCAA final ever again. Again, that would kill some guys. I've seen it. I've seen guys get to this moment & then completely shut down. They end up losing their next to matches, as they crawl up into the 6th place slot on the award stand, completely flushed.  NOT Hidlay. Instead he comes back & wins two back to back victories to claim 3rd place. 

I'm not a wrestling coach, but if I were, I'd want to pick this guy's brain apart. I'd want to know the mental conditioning & the mental strength training that he goes through. How does he think? What goes through his head?  I'd want to know these things so I could instill these ideas & philosophies into my wrestlers.  We talk about mental toughness all the time in wrestling, but we often only allude it to wrestlers who seem to win all the time. I want to know about the guys whose time on the mat doesn't always go as planned. The guys who had to face adversity, like being a four time ACC champion that didn't win their 5th title.  I want to know about these guys & how they got themselves back into the game mentally.  I think a lot of wrestlers & coaches could stand to take a chapter out of Hidlay's book. 

I chose this picture specifically, because I think it best represents who Mike Kemerer of Iowa was as a collegiate wrestler.  A burning fire. A man of desire whose flames burned hot even in the severest of weather. Through rain & even snow, he stayed lit.  The one thing that Iowa has done such a good job of over the years has been coming together as a team. They have done so through leadership & Mike Kemerer was a big part of that. I've gone to many Iowa duals over the years & I will miss Kemerer. 3-4-2-4 at the NCAA's, what a tough hombre. 

Is it possible to finish the exact same place you did a year ago & still conclude that this was one of your best finishes ever. 174 lbs was loaded this year, & yes, I do consider the final season of Logan Massa's to be his best. Even though 3rd in 2017 & he was 5th in 2021, I still think overall 21'-22' was Massa's best year.  I say this because of the competition he faced, and how well he did all things considered.  His only losses this tournament were to Lewis & Kemerer, plus he defeated Dustin Plott of Oklahoma State twice. 

What's the toughest pill to swallow at the NCAA tournament? Well that's subjective. In my opinion it's working your way back through the consolation bracket, winning three matches, only to lose out in a close match to be an All American. That was the case for both Drexel's Mickey O'Malley & Ohio State's Ethan Smith. Fortunately O'Malley has two more seasons & Smith has one more season to go. 

Mikely Labriola of Nebraska finishing 7th after 6th & 3rd place finishes earlier in his career has little to do with him & everything to do with the toughness that was 174 lbs this season.  It wouldn't surprise me at all to see him be an NCAA finalist next season. Matter of fact while we don't' think of him currently being, he could very well be a challenge to Starocci next season. A lot can happen in a year's time. He's got the attitude & work ethic, plus he has a phenomenal coach in Mark Manning, who rarely gets the credit he deserves. You saw how much Lovett & Robb improved from 21' to 22', I have good reason to think that Labriola can do the same in 22' to 23'. 

Of course there's always 10,000 more things I could say but I'll end it with thoughts on Clay Lautt of North Carolina. I just love seeing all of the positive things I'm seeing with Tar Heel wrestling. North Carolina prides itself as a "basketball school" & with as well as they're doing in the NCAA basketball tournament they should, but guess what? They're also a wrestling school & they become more and more of a wrestling school as time goes on. Lautt is living, breathing proof of the positives that are going on in Chapel Hill. 

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I actually do think 174 clears out a bit after this season. The graduation of Hidlay, Kemerer & Massa is going to be felt this upcoming season. I don't want to give the false impression that it's going to necessarily get "easier" for anyone, but those are land mines that one no longer has to worry about stepping on when they cross the battle fields of 174 lbs.  It makes me wonder who steps in and fills those slots.   174 will be interesting next season. 

JT#1's Maternal Grandpa Hated Wrestling

 

It's hard to believe that as much as I love wrestling & as strong of a passion as I have for the sport that I would have someone in my family that hated the sport, but I did. My Grandpa Richard Grimm, who passed away yesterday, hated wrestling with a passion. He thought it was a stupid sport & you know those people who try and degrade the sport by calling it gay or saying that it isn't anywhere near as tough as football? That was Grandpa Grimm. 

Yet despite his hatred for the sport, he did come and support me quite a bit. If any of my matches were an hour's drive or closer, he was often there.  From pee wee all the way through High School, he showed up. I often got a card from him afterwards. "Congrats on the big win!" Or "Better luck next time."  He was never shy about telling me his feelings towards wrestling, but at the same time he was often in the stands cheering for me anyway. 

He once got in a fight with Dan Gable. That moment made me glad Grandpa Grimm was my maternal grandpa & that I did not share a last name with him. This actually happened back in the late 70's before I was born & hopefully it's something that Gable doesn't even remember. Grandpa loved to tell the story though.  You see Grandpa Grimm worked as a custodian at the University of Iowa from the late 60's through the late 90's. He got to know all of the Iowa people & he didn't care for too many of them. Along with this fight that he got into with Dan Gable, he also once got into it with Hayden Fry. I'm not proud of the reason why & it's a story for another day, but when Iowa played Michigan State sometime in the early 1980's, he was ejected from the game by security.  He was a good man in a lot of ways, but he had a wild side to him. He would apologize for his actions, but he never apologized for who he was. 

As to the Gable incident, I guess there was some professional wrestling in the area. Now professional wrestling was something my Grandpa liked. When I got into it & did it for a period of six years, he loved coming to those. I guess Gable said something negative about the professional wrestlers & Grandpa told him that none of his guys could take any of the pro guys. They went back and forth & Grandpa said that some of the pro guys were huge, on steroids, 6 feet tall & over 300 lbs.  

"I don't give a damn how tough his guys were. A 126 pound kid against a guy like Andre the Giant!?!? Call it fake if you want to, he ain't takin' Andre the Giant!"  

Then he told me about a time years later when he had just cleaned a huge area & some Iowa wrestlers came in & messed it all up again.  It made him so infuriated.  He'd talk about that incident that happened some 40 years ago like it happened earlier in the day.  

So I always grew up thinking that his hatred for wrestling came from the altercation he had with Dan Gable & the time the Iowa wrestlers messed up an area that he had spent a long time cleaning up.  

"Is that why you really hate wrestling?" I asked him one day about two years ago. 

"No." He said to me. 

"Then why do you hate wrestling?" 

This is when I found out something about my Uncle Tom that I had never known before. 

I had never known that anyone on my mother's side, other than my cousin Cody for a couple of years had ever tried wrestling. I thought I was the sole wrestler on that side of the family.  Yet I guess my Uncle Tom, way too small for football & way too short for basketball, decided to go out for the newly formed wrestling team his freshman year of high school. 

Now, I only have my Grandpa Grimm's account on this, so the story is only told from one man's perspective, but the way Grandpa Grimm talks, Tom took to wrestling pretty well. He wrestled at the second to lowest weight class & the other kid at his weight was a beginner just like him. At first the other kid was beating him, but not by much. It often came down to a couple of points. Then one night Tom came home all excited because he had beaten the other kid for a spot on the varsity.  Yet when the next dual came, the other kid still started while Tom remained on the reserves. This didn't set  well with Grandpa Grimm. He let it go the first time, but then they had another wrestle-off, and Tom came home from school saying he had won that wrestle-off too.  Yet when the next match came, the other kid was again starting & Tom was sitting on the bench. 

At first Grandpa Grimm thought that maybe Tom was lying. He thought that maybe the other kid was beating Tom & Tom was lying about winning the matches. He confronted Tom about it and Tom stood by his word.  Grandpa Grimm asked some of Tom's friends who were on the wrestling team with him & they claimed the same thing, that Tom had won the last two wrestle-offs.  This is when Grandpa Grimm decided it was time to go to a wrestling  practice & ask the Coach what was going on. 

He went to the wrestling practice, walked right up to the coach and asked him if Tom had won the last two wrestle-offs.  The Coach admitted that Tom had won.  Grandpa Grimm then asked him why the other kid was starting if Tom had beaten him in the wrestle-offs. The Coach said because the other kid seemed to have more promise on the mat than what Tom did. Grandpa Grimm wasn't too happy with this answer.  

That's when Grandpa Grimm made another discovery.  He went over to Tom and asked him what the Coach's name was. Then he asked him what the kid's name was that he was wrestling for the varsity spot. They had the same last name.  

Grandpa Grimm was done talking.  He went up to the wrestling coach & assaulted him. Exactly what he did is up for debate. He's told the story a few different ways over the past couple of years. Whatever he did, it wasn't good. The assistants had to pull him off and by all means he's lucky that the law didn't end up getting involved.  The sad part is, Tom was thrown off the wrestling team and not welcomed back.  Wrestling may not have ended up being his thing anyway. Who knows? Maybe he would have quit on his own. Nonetheless, I wish that would have been his decision rather than someone else's. 

So that was the real story as to why my Grandpa Grimm hated wrestling.  

Find Me A New Home: A look at Those in The Transfer Portal & Where They Might End Up.

 ***This is strictly an opinion piece. I have no inside information or leads to anything. I simply take a look at some of the names that I know are currently in the transfer portal who have yet to announce their new home. I take this information, combine it with programs that could use someone at the weight they compete at, I speculate and I guess.  This is an offseason for fun article to bide the time. Please do not take this a verbatim information. "Hey, what's up with telling everyone I'm going to ' ' ." Rather not deal with that thank you.*** 

Anyway, those still in the transfer....

Drew West 
125 lbs
Former School: Northern Illinois
Where I think he might end up: Purdue 

Here's why I'm thinking we might see Drew West end up at Purdue.  The Iowa native originally began his career at Northern Illinois so that he could compete alongside his brother Bryce.  Yet with both competing for the 125 lbs spot on the Husky team, it means one will be the starter & the other will sit on the bench. I think Purdue is a good fit for him because essentially you can make it to Dekalb from West Lafayette in about 2 1/2 hours, making him still relatively close to his brother.  With the graduation of Devin Schroder, the Boilermakers could use a solid replacement. 

Blair Orr 
125 lbs
Former School: Pennsylvania 
Where I'd Like to See him end up: Chattanooga or Oklahoma 

This is 115% wishful thinking. Truth is, I was kind of sad to see Orr's name in the transfer portal. Quaker wrestling is on the rise & I think Orr has been a part of that success. Yet with Ryan Miller only a freshman in the spot, I don't blame Orr one bit for trying to find a new home for his final season of competition. I don't rightly have the slightest clue where he'll end up, but I sure would like to see him at Chattanooga. The Mocs have had quite a bit of success at 125 lbs throughout the years. It's been a weight class that they have always been competitive at.  Matt Pitts, Nick Soto, Alonzo Allen, Fabian Gutierrez, the list goes on.  125 has been a weight you usually see UTC rockin' in the SOCON tournament finals. If not at Chattanooga, I'd also like to see Orr maybe end up at Oklahoma.  With the graduation of Joey Prata, the Sooners could use a good 125'er. 

Jake Rundell 
133 lbs
Former School: Purdue
Where I think He Might End up: Indiana 

I'm anxious to see where 2021 NCAA qualifier Jake Rundell ends up.  To me, Indiana makes sense. This would give him an opportunity to stay in the BIG 10 & be relatively close to home in the four hour drive to Oak Park, Illinois. Brock Hudkins career now over, he'd easily slip into the Hoosier lineup. 

Tye Varndell
133 lbs
Former School: Edinboro
Where I think He Might End Up: Buffalo 

Now I'm not under the impression that every wrestler wants to compete close to home, nor am I under the impression that every wrestler wants to remain in the same conference. I know sometimes wrestlers want to get as far away from home as possible & they'd rather compete in different conferences. I get that, but I do think Varndell is one of those people, who does enjoy going to school close to home.  Buffalo is a little less than two hours from where he grew up. Granted it's further than the 10 minute drive to Edinboro, but still pretty darn close. He has yet to qualify for the NCAA tournament, so he's not going to a hot commodity at this point for one of the bigger wrestling schools, say Virginia Tech, so I think Buffalo might be a good fit for him. Honestly, I don't think the plan was to ever leave Edinboro, but he's got Gabe Willochell at the weight with him & he wants to be varsity. 

Dom Demas 
141/149 lbs 
Former School: Oklahoma
Where I think He Might End up: Penn State, Michigan, Rutgers or Iowa State 

Rumor, speculation and innuendo, whatever the reason is, Dom Demas is no longer at Oklahoma. The 2019 All American in my opinion will be a sought after open agent.  Can he make 141 again? That's a good question. If he can, he'd be a valued asset at a number of schools.  As dominant as they already are, can you imagine Penn State picking him up? Michigan wanting to stay in the game, I would think would be thrilled to have him.  Both Rutgers & Iowa State, as they continue to build in their own right I would think would gun hard for someone like Demas.  

Kevon Davenport 
149 lbs
Former School: Nebraska
Where I think He Might End up: Rutgers, North Carolina State or Iowa State 

When I first started thinking about where Kevon Davenport might end up, Michigan entered my mind. He attended high school in nearby Detroit & it kept him in the BIG 10 conference. Then I considered the fact that the Wolverines already have redshirt Chance Lamer ready to fill that spot this upcoming season & if Davenport were to go there, he could very well end up stuck in the same position he was at in Nebraska. Where does that leave him then?  With the graduations of Mike Van Brill, Tariq Wilson & Jarrett Degen, Rutgers, NC State & Iowa State could all use a good 149'er.  I can't see Davenport going small school, that just doesn't seem like him, so I think he'll go big school.   

Zach Price
149 lbs
Former School: South Dakota State
Where I'd Like To See Him End Up: George Mason or Clarion 

Now Zach Price is a guy that I CAN see competing for one of the smaller schools. It might be wishful thinking to think he'd go that far out east to compete for George Mason or for Clarion, but I'd like to see it. The 2021 NCAA R12 finisher was 3-4-3-3 at the Iowa high school state championships during high school. That means that if he makes All American status in his two remaining years of eligibility he'll be an All American who never won a state title. That's a list I personally LOVE seeing grow.  Why George Mason or Clarion?  Well, Clarion for one is on a mission to return to their glory days & I'd like to see something like this to help them out in their efforts. George Mason has made a commitment to wrestling & I know first hand that Coach Beasley is doing all in his power to make the most of Patriot wrestling. Something like this would be a boost for the program in my opinion.  

Jaden Enriquez 
149 lbs
Former School: Michigan State
Where I'd Like to See Him End up: Campbell 

Now I'm really going out on a limb here. I have no other reason other than I'd simply like to see him at Campbell to think that Jaden Enriquez might end up down south. Despite having yet to make an NCAA tournament, he's had half a dozen impressive victories during his career. He's beaten Park Filius of Purdue, Kody Komara of Kent State, Christian Kanzler of Illinois, Jake Butler of Oklahoma, Cayden Rooks of Indiana & most impressive, Yahya Thomas of Northwestern. Forgive me for saying this, but I think what it might come down to Enriquez is the grind of the BIG 10 schedule. This might make some angry, but let's be honest with ourselves, while still very competitive wrestling a SOCON schedule Vs wrestling a BIG 10 schedule...we can all spot the differences right?  I can see Enriquez having success down south and finding himself opposite Appalachian State's Jonathan Millner in next year's SOCON finals.  

Luke Gardner 
157 lbs 
Former School: Penn State
Where I think He'll End Up: Lock Haven 

There are only 10 varsity spots on the Nittany Lion Wrestling team & as good as Luke Gardner is, he wasn't making one of them. Now personally, I think that Lock Haven would be the perfect fit for him. He's still only two hours from home, simply in a different direction. I would hope that Scott Moore would be thrilled to have someone like Gardner. He'd be an excellent replacement for graduated Ben Barton. Maybe to no one else it does, but to me this just makes sense. 

Kennedy Monday
157 lbs or 165 lbs
Former School: North Carolina
Where I'd Like to See Him End Up: Iowa or Cal Poly 

Now some have already speculated that Monday might end up at Princeton to compete alongside brother Quincy.  I don't see that happening myself. If it were that important to compete with or near Quincy, then why did one go to Princeton & the other go far away to North Carolina? If I'm wrong, I'm wrong, but I think Monday ends up being the "bring in the heavy artillery" a team needs to compete.  Let's face it, Iowa could use him. Kaleb Young now out of the picture, he'd be an excellent 157 lbs'er for Iowa (if he can still make that cut).  Iowa's got a few ? marks & if they want to compete with Penn State next season they need answers.  Monday would provide them with one. 

I'd also love to see Monday go out to Cal Poly. I cannot tell you how happy it makes me to see the Mustang Wrestling program putting forth such a gallant effort. The school's commitment to its wrestling program is such a positive in an area that has seen so much negative. If you're not aware, California has been hit hard when it comes to collegiate wrestling. No state has suffered the devastation when it comes to dropped wrestling teams than California. You take that into consideration & combine it with A.D.'s like Bernard Muir of Stanford who tried everything in his power to be rid wrestling, it really makes you appreciate what's happening at Cal Poly.  For that alone, I'd like to see them go from one All American (Evan Wick 3rd this season) to another at 165.  Monday would provide them with that opportunity. 

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Well there you have it.  10 of the best wrestlers currently in the transfer portal & me making 10 guesses as to where they might end up.  There's a strong possibility that I could go 0/10 on my guesses. Matter of fact let me make an 11th guess & say I guess that I do go 0/10 on my guesses. I simply wrote this as a way to discuss what is relatively a new topic to the collegiate wrestling scene. The "Free Agent" era. I've heard my cousins go back & forth about this kind of stuff with pro football, pro basketball & pro baseball. I figure since transferring is more or less a breeze these days & so many wrestlers are in the transfer portal, it might as well be something we discuss as wrestling fans. 

2022: Final Thoughts 165 lbs

 Is it the wolf defending his spot on top of the mountain or the wolf climbing the mountain who is hungrier for success? I think we saw examples of both here at 165 lbs in NCAA Division I wrestling. The bright & vibrant determination of youth ready to claim their stake & the steadfast tenacity of experience hellbent to defend theirs. That makes for some exciting wrestling. 

I cannot get over how good some of these wrestlers are today. I thought at the University of Missouri between 2-2-1-1 Ben Askren & 1-5-1-1 J'Den Cox, we were looking at the two best in Tiger history, but along comes Keegan O'Toole. If he keeps it up, he'll surpass both of them. 3rd as a freebee, national champion as a freshman. He has three seasons of eligibility left. 

I have so much admiration for a guy like Shane Griffith. At a non-traditional wrestling school, one where he had to fight tooth & nail to save the program. There has been so much negativity in concerns to California collegiate wrestling. California has been hit harder than any other state when it comes to dropped wrestling programs. The positive that he has done & the positive that he continues to generate are nothing short of commendable. 

Speaking of positive things happening in the state of California for collegiate wrestling, Evan Wick has helped breathe life back into the Cal Poly Wrestling program. When you've witnessed Cal State Fullerton, UC Davis & Fresno State in more recent times all ax their programs & then you get on Twitter to read that Life Pacific just announced their discontinuation, it makes fighting pessimism a challenge. Yet you see all of the improvements & dedications at Cal Poly and it gives you a reason to be optimistic.  

My heart goes out to Evan Wick.  Wrestling is a sport where you have to continuously prove yourself again and again.  It's not like football where you get to beat a team once & determine that you're the better.  He defeated Shane Griffith three times during the season, but lost to him in the NCAA semi-finals.  For himself, for his team & for the state of California which needs all of the representation it can get, he came back to a very strong third place finish.  Redundancy works in this situation, nothing short of commendable. 

"You must show no mercy, nor have any belief whatsoever in how others judge you, for your greatness will silence them all." Jim "Warrior" Hellwig.   

When Cam Amine of Michigan took 7th at last year's NCAA championships a lot of doubters were more than happy to call it a miracle run, questioning if he could do it again.  He shut them up in a hurry didn't he? Not only did he do it again, he did even better. A lot better!  He's got three seasons left too!  

I've been around Iowa wrestling my entire life. My first exposure to collegiate wrestling, was Hawkeye wrestling. I know the way a Hawkeye wrestler thinks. Chad Zaputil doesn't think of himself as a three time NCAA finalist. He thinks of himself as a guy who lost in the finals three times. He doesn't see three silver medals, he sees three medals that aren't gold.  It'll haunt Alex Marinelli till the day he dies that he never won a national title. I know better than to ever think that's a thought that won't in one way or another make its way through his mind on a daily basis.  

Yet he referred to himself as a champion, and he is. He is on and off the mat. The BIG 10 title is the toughest conference title to win in all of collegiate wrestling. He won that title four times. No one can take that away from him & it is one of the greatest accomplishments in wrestling.  6-7-R12-5, I'd call that a pretty good career. 

Man, there were so many great freshman this season, but I tell you what, this D.J. Hamiti of Wisconsin is something else. He's a true freshman too! I am just so impressed with this kid. Only four losses all season, two to Marinelli, one to Griffith & one to Amine. If he stays healthy, I think the sky is the limit for this guy. I mean this kid was in high school this time last season & he majors a return NCAA finalist to make All American status! Who does that?   I was a fourteen year old kid when I came up with the name Johnnythompsonnum1 just shy of my 15th birthday. I think if I were fourteen right now & looking for a good moniker to go by, DJHamiti#1 might be what I go by.  Love watching this guy on the mat. 

I'm gonna miss watching Jake Wentzel of Pittsburgh compete. He was one of those guys that often had the ability to turn around losses. Just because you beat him a time or two before, doesn't mean that you'd beat him again. Finished one match shy of being an AA this season after making the NCAA finals last year. It's a tough tournament.  

He'll never be remembered for being as good as he was.  In the years to come, the name Anthony Valencia will be shelved and forgotten. That's one of the reasons why I've never been one of these people to put all emphasis on the NCAA tournament. It's why I cringe when I hear, "All that matters" or any rendition of the philosophy.  He's so much more than the "Only made All American once" label that he'll be stuck with the rest of his life.  Injuries had a lot to do with it, but he's one of those guys that you'll always look back on feeling woulda, coulda, shoulda.    

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We're spoiled as wrestling fans. It's really that simple. We're spoiled because of how insanely competitive this weight class is going to be in the future.  O'Toole, Griffith, Amine, Hamiti already mentioned throw in Carson Kharchal of Ohio State, Peyton Hall of West Virginia, + many more and you see how tough this weight class will be next season.   

2022 Final Thoughts: 157 lbs DI

 A lyric from one of my favorite songs, Bob Seger's Against the Wind comes to mind at the moment. "What to leave in, what to leave out."  As I look over the 157 lbs weight class for 21'-22' those are my exact thoughts. So much to say here and while I don't want to inundate with too much information, I don't want to leave anything out either.  So bare with me, this one might be kinda long. 

Watching Ryan Deakin of Northwestern finally get his national title was one of the most rewarding moments of the NCAA tournament to me. So many times in life, things don't turn out like they should. Gawd knows how many examples of that I could give you. Yet every once in a while, they do. Every once in a while things end exactly as they should & this was one of those moments. 

Very cool watching Monday make the finals for the Princeton Tigers. So many great things are happening at Princeton. Already said it when I wrote about Glory, but "brains & pains" are on their way up & seeing a school known for its rigorous academics have such success in wrestling is something that our community should be celebrating as a whole. 

"That's why they were a national champion" - Sometimes you find out more about a national champion in a time when they didn't win the title, than in the time when they did. Both David Carr of Iowa State & Austin O'Connor of North Carolina, 2021 NCAA champions, lost early on in the tournament. Carr came back from a second round loss, fighting through the Beaches of Normandy aka the 157 lbs consolation bracket to a 3rd place finish. banged up, battered & bruised, on one good ankle, O'Connor fought all the way back to secure All American honors himself.  Keeping up with the will of a champion, Peyton Robb of Nebraska also came back from a second round loss to high finish of 4th place. 

Hunter Willits' win over Carr in R2 did not surprise me as much as it did many others. I've been saying this about Willits for a long time. He's an outside shooter's worst nightmare. If your style is to keep away from your opponent & overcome him with blast shots, you're going to struggle with Willits. He overcrowds you & ties you up, keeping you from creating the space that is vital to your offense.  For those of you that remember Jedd Moore of Virginia, he wrestled the exact same style. He gave James Green of Nebraska such fits whenever the two wrestled.  

As opinionated and unabashed as I am to give my opinion, I've held my tongue quite a bit this season when it comes to Kaleb Young of Iowa. This kid received so much criticism and s-h-i-t this season and nearly all of it was unwarranted, unsubstantiated & above anything else unnecessary.  I guess I was raised a little different than a lot of people. I grew up with parents and grandparents that instilled within me that winning wasn't everything.  You wouldn't know that seeing the way Young was treated. In fact, you'd think just the opposite. You'd think that winning was everything. You'd think it was the only thing that mattered.  Whether anyone likes it or not, there is luck involved in this tournament. Where you are placed can make a big difference, as can many other facts. You know what one of Young's last victories of the season was? An 8-1 decision over Robb at the BIG 10 consolation semis, who ended up 4th at the NCAA's.  Young's season didn't end on a high note, neither did a lot of other really good wrestlers. That is a fact that I cannot deny.  Yet I also know that Young never tried to injure an opponent, Young never acted like a hooligan after a loss & Young win or lose always behaved in a respected manner. I value that. 

If you read JT#1 regularly you know that I've been a big fan of Dazjon Casto of The Citadel for a long time & season after season I've been calling him one of the best wrestlers yet to make the NCAA tournament. Well, he FINALLY made it this year & I think more than proved why I said what I've said about him for so long. Upsetting O'Connor in the first round & finishing one match shy of All American honors. Wasn't quite as good of an ending as it could have been, but still I think he proved himself well enough. 

Another guy I've been a fan of for quite sometime, Hunter Richard of Cornell is another guy I'd like to put a word in for. A natural 149 lbs'er, he moved up to 157 this season & after fighting for the varsity spot on the Big Red team, he made the most of his season. All things considered, as tough as this season was & how loaded the bracket was, he went 2-2.  A close loss to Teemer, he fought back hard with impressive wins over Kendall Coleman of Purdue & Justin Thomas of Oklahoma before getting knocked out by O'Connor.  

I know I have plenty of those in disagreement with me, but I think that luck DOES have something to do with it. In fact, sometimes I think it has a lot to do with it. I mean come on, could you have gotten a worse draw than Wyatt Sheets of Oklahoma State? There's a reason why he 8th in the nation last season & why he was 1-2 this year.  He had Ryan Deakin in R1 & then David Carr in CR2! Draws DO make a difference.  


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I think I'll stop here.  As with every weight class, 157 is going to be every bit as exciting in 22'-23' as it was this year. So many great wrestlers return. It's gonna be a barn burner! 

2022 Final Thoughts: DI 149 lbs

 This is just a plain & simple fun weight class, full of a lot of entertaining wrestlers who went out and put on exciting performances. That's sometimes we don't discuss much in the sport of wrestling. Wrestlers don't go out on the mat with the intent of entertaining us, nor should that be their focus. However, sometimes even if it isn't their intent, their performance is extremely entertaining anyway. I saw a lot of this in this particular weight class. 

This guy has but one blemish on his entire career & I think when it is all said & done next season, it'll remain the only loss he had during his time in college. For people that consistently search for the next Cael Sanderson, that one loss has to just irritate the bejeezus out of them. Nevertheless, he's already one of the greatest wrestlers we've seen, & if he goes undefeated next season to a fourth title, that'll cement his already established legacy even more.  After watching what Kyle Dake did, I was certain that he'd go down in history as the greatest Big Red wrestler of all time. The argument can certainly still be made, but Diakomihalis is in a position to pass him. 

Ridge Lovett had a phenomenal tournament didn't he? Mark Manning has been doing great things at Nebraska for well over 20 years now, season after season. I'd conclude that he is one of the most overlooked & underappreciated Coaches in wrestling today.  For Lovett to go from getting pinned at the BIG 10's in 20 seconds, to becoming an NCAA finalist is nothing short of amazing. The cradle he used to upset Tariq Wilson of North Carolina State was one of the most fun moves to watch of the tournament.   Thumbs up to both him & Bryce Andonian of Virginia Tech for giving us what was one of the most exciting matches in the entire tournament.  Both technically only sophomores, hopefully we see plenty of battles in the future between these two. 

I was under the impression this was Austin Gomez's final season on the mat, but I've since been informed by others that he may have another year left due to all of the injuries he's sustained over his career. Whether he is back again in 22'-23' or this was his last season, either way it was rewarding to see him finally healthy so that he could wrestle a full season, win a BIG 10 title & make the NCAA award stand. 

I swear to you I'm not going to talk about all 78 varsity wrestlers at 149 lbs, but it's hard to skip past anyone as this is such a fun weight class, full of vibrant characters, with incredible talent. Sasso too is technically only a sophomore with two more seasons of eligibility.  It just goes to show how this weight class will remain one to look forward to for quite some time. 

My hat is off to Jonathan Millner of Appalachian State, who for the second season in a row as more or less been the leader of the Southern Conference. Came back from a tough second round loss, all the way to a 6th place finish to become the conference's sole All American. 

I will miss watching Tariq Wilson of North Carolina State compete. This guy went out and put on a show every time he stepped on the mat. I'm sure 7th wasn't exactly where he wanted to end up in his final NCAA tournament but just placing this season was an accomplishment in it's own right.  I've said it before & I'll say it again, 21'-22' is the toughest season I have ever witnessed in all of my years watching collegiate wrestling.  What I appreciated about Wilson most is that he could have gone out in his 7th place match & lollygagged around like some have in the past, but instead he went out & gave us fans one last incredible performance.  That's something I think we should all appreciate.  Dan Gable once said to me that he felt it was our duty to make wrestling as exciting & exhilarating for  the fans as possible.  Every match I ever witnessed of Wilson's, he did just that. 

This guy has to get on the award stand next season, he just has to.  Three times the R12. Like Micky Phillippi at Pittsburgh, Iowa's Max Murin enters the 22'-23' season one of the best yet to be an All American next year.  His improvements and how much he's stepped it up a notch in my opinion have gone uncredited. He's made leaps and bounds over the past few seasons. The Max Murin of this past season, would major the Max Murin from only a couple of years back.  His only losses this tournament were to Champ Diakomihalis & Millner.  Next season unfortunately won't be any easier than this season was, but I hope it ends with Murin finally getting the medal that has thus far eluded him. 

Life can be outright unreasonable and unfair sometimes.  After the controversy that many felt saw Josh Heil of Campbell get the raw end of the stick at last year's NCAA tournament, I was really hoping that he'd have a good tournament this season. It didn't happen.  He didn't earn an All American finish. I'll tell you what he did earn though. He earned his fifth trip to the NCAA tournament & may I also add that he became Campbell's first Mat Men Open Champion.  He did so by defeating Gomez 3-1 sudden victory.  

I was hoping to see Degen back on top of the heap again this season, but like last year, I felt like he was missing something all season. The weight cut, an injury, whatever it was something was off about him this year as it was last year. Again, maybe not the best end to his career, but still a successful career none the less. 

Literally I guess I could probably say something about every wrestler in this weight class.  It was such a fun weight class this year & it'll be every bit as exciting next season as it was this season.  I've already mentioned a lot of the talent that will be back next season but believe it or not, there's so much more.  Even more than what I have pictured here.  I do know that I hope to see Josh Finesilver of Duke do well next season. The Blue Devil wrestling program is in a slump at the moment & they could use a huge positive like that.  Yahya Thomas of Northwestern, despite missing out on the award stand this year, is very capable of being an NCAA finalist next year.  Diakomihalis might be out of his league, but other than that he's capable of beating anyone at this weight class.  I'll say the same for Arizona State's Kyle Parco.   


My last thoughts I'll share as to 149 lbs 21'-22' is how incredible it was to watch Kaden Gfeller of Oklahoma State make what I consider to be an incredible comeback. Last year did not end well for him at all as he finished 8th at the BIG XII's & failed to qualify for the NCAA's. This season he went 21-4 overall, winning the BIG XII tournament, finishing a match away from placing. If that ain't turning it around, you tell me what is.  Another one of the many overlooked, untalked about stories in college wrestling that I think deserves a mention.