11 Key Matches for Big Ten Seeding Purposes

Earlier today, our guy Willie Saylor posted the current Big Ten seeding picture at each of the ten weights. As always, he produces high-quality content, so be sure to check it out. As a companion to Willie’s article, we examined some of the upcoming dual matchups for the remainder of the season, specifically those that could have the most significant impact on Big Ten seeding. Some are obvious and straightforward. Others might require an upset or have multiple moving parts. There are some battles for the #1 seed and others that could land a wrestler on the opoosite half of the bracket, away from that dreaded #1 seed. However, these play out, we’re in for a couple of great weeks of regular season Big Ten dual action. 125 lbs February 13th - #1 Luke Lilledahl (Penn State) vs. #2 Nic Bouzakis (Ohio State) This one is kind of a no-brainer, as both wrestlers are technically undefeated and also ranked #1 and #2 in the nation. Barring some unforeseen circumstances, the winner is the top seed at Big Ten’s and the loser takes the #2 seed. As of now, Dean Peterson would be the #3 and Jore Volk the #4. I don’t know that you’re better or worse with either matchup. Because of the way the rest of the weight has unfolded, the B1G winner (provided it’s either of these two) will be the frontrunner for the #1 seed at nationals. 133 lbs February 13th - #2 Ben Davino (Ohio State) vs. #4 Marcus Blaze (Penn State) Top-ranked Lucas Byrd is the #1 seed and is very likely to go into the postseason unbeaten. His remaining conference schedule includes Blake Boarman, Jacob Van Dee, and Sean Spidle. That means this is a de facto wrestle-off for the number two seed. Either way, these two could meet in the Big Ten semis, as well. Looking at Willie’s potential seeds, the three seed could end up with a quarterfinal matchup against the returning All-American Van Dee, while the two seed would have Spidle. 149 lbs February 15th - #4 Carter Young (Maryland) vs. #7 Ethan Stiles (Ohio State) February 15th - #12 Joe Zargo (Wisconsin) vs. #13 Lachlan McNeil (Michigan) After top-seeded Shayne Van Ness, this weight class gets pretty messy. For now, Willie has Carter Young as the second seed. In two weeks, he’ll take on Ethan Stiles, who is just fresh off a loss to Joe Zargo. As of now, Stiles, Young, and Zargo all have one Big Ten loss. That same day, Zargo meets Lachlan McNeil, who is just behind him in the rankings, but unbeaten in the Big Ten. This week, Van Ness/McNeil meet so that zero in the loss column could go away from McNeil. That being said, McNeil has the best career accolades of the bunch. 157 lbs February 13th - #3 Antrell Taylor (Nebraska) vs. #9 Kannon Webster (Illinois) We’re going under the assumption that top-ranked Brandon Cannon might not be able to take the mat for Ohio State’s dual with Penn State and freshman star, PJ Duke. Without that match in the equation, Antrell Taylor and Kannon Webster suddenly becomes very critical in the seeding process. Should Webster win, he would only have one conference loss, while Taylor has two and Charlie Millard has three. Currently, Willie has Millard above Webster due to the head-to-head win. Could a Webster win vault him into the second or third seed and away from #1 Cannon. At the same time, if Cannon is vulnerable, maybe the top side of the bracket is the place to be. A loss from Taylor might put Duke/Webster at 2 and 3 and Taylor/Millard at 4 and 5. 165 lbs February 8th - #4 Joey Blaze (Purdue) vs. #8 Braeden Scoles (Illinois) Obviously, the Joey Blaze/Michael Caliendo match on February 15th is one of the best remaining of the year. However, to get to that match unbeaten, Blaze will have to go through Braeden Scoles. Scoles currently only has one Big Ten loss this year (Caliendo). Should he win, that could put him in position to grab the #3 seed and put Blaze in the #4 slot - should he lose to Caliendo. Of course, the #4 seed meets Mitchell Mesenbrink in the B1G semis. If Blaze wins this match, his bout with Caliendo is for the #2 seed and they likely meet again in the B1G semis. As of now, the #6 and #7 seeds are Andrew Sparks and Paddy Gallagher. Both are solid. I’m not sure there’s a preference for one over the other. 174 lbs February 13th - #3 Patrick Kennedy (Iowa) vs. #11 Beau Mantanona (Michigan) There’s definitely some chaos that could happen in the B1G bracket discussion with the current 2/3/4 seeds, Patrick Kennedy, Christopher Minto, and Carson Kharchla. Kennedy and Kharchla meet this week. The pair already met at the National Duals Invitational and Kennedy won. He’s currently perfect in B1G competition. A Kharchla win throws this entire bracket for a loop. But, assuming Kennedy repeats, the match to watch is him versus Beau Mantanona. A Mantanona upset might be enough to get him to the bottom half of the bracket. Currently, he’s at the fifth seed, behind Minto and Kharchla, whom he has lost to. 184 lbs February 6th - #1 Rocco Welsh (Penn State) vs. #7 Brock Mantanona (Michigan) We haven’t seen Angelo Ferrari in the last few weeks and aren’t sure of his status yet, so we’ll ignore him for now. Brock Mantanona is coming off a big win over Dylan Fishback and has top-ranked Rocco Welsh on Friday. Let’s say Mantanona pulls an upset - not out of the realm of possibility. That would leave everyone in the B1G with a conference loss except Max McEnelly. McEnelly also has the best path of any of the potential top seeds. Moving McEnelly to the top seed would set up a potential Welsh/Ferreri Big Ten semifinal. 197 lbs February 13th - #1 Josh Barr (Penn State) vs. #10 Luke Geog (Ohio State) So this isn’t necessarily a match to watch based on whether or not Luke Geog can upset Josh Barr. As of now, that is looking like a tough proposition. Should the rankings hold and Barr beats Geog, that would give him his second conference loss of the year. Camden McDanel also has one loss and a H2H win over Geog, putting him in a good position for the #2. With a second loss, could Remy Cotton leapfrog Geog for the third seed? Cotton’s remaining conference schedule consists of Gavin Nelson and Kael Wisler, both winnable matches. Geog also has a tough bout against Branson John. 285 lbs February 6th - #5 Taye Ghadiali (Michigan) vs. #12 Cole Mirasola (Penn State) February 6th - #3 Nick Feldman (Ohio State) vs. #8 Ben Kueter (Iowa) Right now, 1-3 will be difficult to determine as Nick Feldman beat AJ Ferrari twice, Ferrari majored Taye Ghadiali, and Ghadiali beat Feldman. This Friday could help the seeding or make things more complicated. A win over Ghadiali could push Cole Mirasola into the top three. While we’re talking about different years and different situations,Ben Kueter had three wins over Nick Feldman last season. Should history continue with Kueter, it would really shake up the rest of the seeds.

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