Jump to content



  • Photo: Photo/Sam Janicki

    Christopher Miller •

    Photo: Photo/Sam Janicki

    Five weekend takeaways in college wrestling

    Freshman Beau Bartlett started for Penn State at 149 pounds on Friday (Photo/Sam Janicki, SJanickiPhoto.com)

    The final weekend of the 2021 regular season is behind us. Even though we saw a slew of Big Ten matchups canceled due to a COVID-19-related issues yet again, the last weekend of the regular season did not fall short on noteworthy storylines.

    Here are five things that caught my eye from this past weekend (Feb. 19-21) in college wrestling.

    Penn State seems to still be playing musical chairs at 149 pounds

    When Penn State took on Big Ten rival Michigan on Feb. 14 in Ann Arbor, redshirt freshman Terrell Barraclough got the nod at a 149 pounds. This was a tough match against a top-10 opponent in Kanen Storr. At the time of the bout, the dual was still in reach for both teams. Barraclough battled back from an early deficit but lost a tough 4-3 decision to the ranked Wolverine.

    To me, this signaled that Barraclough would be the starter moving forward. After watching the dual against Ohio State this weekend, it would appear that the 149-pound weight class is still up in the air in State College. Against Ohio State, it was true freshman Beau Bartlett who had the rather unenviable task of making his varsity collegiate debut on the road against No. 2 Sammy Sasso.

    Bartlett proved he was up for the challenge. The Tempe, Arizona native took an early lead with the bout's first takedown. But Sasso battled back and took a 4-2 lead into the third. The Buckeye then rode Bartlett nearly the entire third period to claim the riding time point and took a 5-3 decision. Sasso remained perfect on the season at 9-0.

    As I have said all season, it will be interesting to see who Sanderson decides to start in the postseason with all-important team points up for grabs. In limited action, both Barraclough and Bartlett have showed promise despite their inexperience. Similarly, both were four-time state champions in high school. I'm inclined to think Bartlett will be the starter at the Big Ten Championships, but only time will tell.

    California Baptist set to join Big 12 Conference

    Last week on Tuesday, Feb. 16, we learned that California Baptist University wrestling has received a letter of intent from the Big 12 Conference regarding affiliate membership starting in 2022-23.


    The approval of CBU to join the Big 12 is conditioned on the program's successful completion of its NCAA Division I four-year reclassification process. The Lancers are in the midst of the third year of the transition period with an anticipated final approval in July 2022. The affiliate membership will be effective for the 2022-23 academic year. CBU will join the other Big 12 wrestling members in a regular season scheduling alliance and will compete for the league's postseason title and automatic qualification into the NCAA championships.

    California has a very storied, wrestling-rich history at the youth and high school levels. Yet, we don't see many opportunities for California high school wrestlers to stay in their home state to compete collegiately at the highest level.

    With the Big 12's acquisition of CBU, not only will Cali kids have another opportunity to stay home for their college careers if they so choose, but also, they have the opportunity to do so while competing in a strong and successful wrestling conference. This is great to see.

    Bedlam Series 2.0

    Rivalries are good for sports. The Oklahoma State vs. Oklahoma rivalry, otherwise known simply as "Bedlam" is one of the best rivalries in all of sports. This weekend, we got to see the second iteration of Bedlam unfold on the wrestling mat. Not only did the matchup live up to the hype, but also, it was a great way to end the dual meet regular season, with a nationally televised Big 12 showdown.

    The Cowboys bested the Sooners 24-16, a closer contest then when the two squads met earlier this month. In the first matchup, Oklahoma State won the dual by a 14-point margin. That said, during Bedlam 2.0, three things in particular stuck out to me:

    1. Daton Fix didn't miss a step during his suspension. On the year, Fix is 5-0 with four falls and one tech fall. Should he take home an NCAA title in a stacked 133-pound weight class in March, Fix could also be bringing a Hodge Trophy back to Stillwater as well.

    2. A.J. Ferrari responded well after suffering his first collegiate loss in an Oklahoma State singlet. The Cowboy won a close one, 4-1, against a No. 15-ranked Oklahoma Sooner foe. It was impressive to see Ferrari remain composed and earn a bounce-back win. In the win, Ferrari showed that he has the ability to ride when necessary. He also showed that he has a short memory and can come back strong after a tough loss. Both qualities will serve the rookie well as he prepares to enter the postseason at a weight that is absolutely loaded, both in conference and nationally.

    3. Dustin Plott is one tough dude. Last weekend, his match in the finals of the Cowboy Challenge went viral after the freshman upperweight appeared to dislocate his shoulder and then effortlessly pop it back into place as he walked to the center circle. Against Oklahoma, he dropped a tough one, clearly fighting through pain in that injured shoulder. While impressed by Plott's toughness, I am genuinely worried for his health moving forward. I was surprised to see him compete this weekend.


    Carter Starocci appears to be the real deal

    After a tough loss start to his college career, a tight 10-9 decision, to Indiana's Donnell Washington, Carter Starocci proved that he is in fact as talented as his prep resume would suggest. Last week, the highly regarded freshman had the statement win of the dual, taking down a top-six opponent in Logan Massa of Michigan in a marquee match at 174 pounds. The freshman battled the veteran evenly taking the bout to sudden victory tied 1-1. After a scoreless extra stanza, Massa chose down in his tie-breaker period and Starocci turned the Wolverine for four back points and posted the thrilling win, 7-1, in overtime. The performance was strong enough for Starocci to earn his first career Big Ten Wrestler of the Week honor.

    Friday, against No. 13 Ohio State, Starocci picked up exactly where he left off. This time, the Nittany Lion took down No. 3 Kaleb Romero via a 2-1 overtime decision. Starocci was able to escape early in the first overtime and then held the on top advantage in the second overtime to claim the narrow victory over Romero, a 2020 NCAA qualifier for the Buckeyes at the same weight.

    The freshman out of Erie, Pennsylvania, has proven that he has arrived on the college scene and he will be an instant title-contender and potential All-American during his first season in State College.


    Iowa inactive once again

    It looked as if the No. 1 Hawkeyes were going to get the all-clear to return to the mat and get a final dual meet tune-up against conference foe Wisconsin prior to the Big Ten Championships. Unfortunately, while the Iowa medial staff signed off on the dual, the Wisconsin medical staff did not. As a result, the dual was canceled out of an abundance of caution.

    As it stands right now, Iowa is not slated to take to the mat again until March 6-7 in State College for the Big Ten Championships. If this holds true, that means Iowa will enter the Big Tens having not wrestled a live dual in one month. Additionally, No. 5 Kaleb Young (157) and No. 1 Alex Marinelli (165) will take to the mat for the first time since Jan. 22.

    On paper, the Hawks likely have the most talented starting lineup in the country. That said, it will be interesting to see how Iowa performs when the lights are brightest after such a long layoff. While I still expect the Hawkeyes to do well, it is less than ideal to be thrown into the meat grinder that is the Big Ten Championships after such a lengthy hiatus.

    Equally unfortunate for both competitors and fans alike, we likely won't see No. 1 Iowa and No. 2 Penn State square off in a dual to determine the Big Ten regular season team champion.
    Go to articles

    User Feedback

    Recommended Comments

    There are no comments to display.



    Create an account or sign in to comment

    You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

    Create an account

    Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

    Register a new account

    Sign in

    Already have an account? Sign in here.

    Sign In Now

×
×
  • Create New...