"We got three really outstanding kids today," Manning said. "These guys all are good students, good wrestlers and have good character."
NU's class is led by in-state recruit Matt Vacanti. The Papillion-LaVista product is 103-0 in his high school career and is slated to wrestle at either 133 or 141 pounds for the Huskers. Vacanti was 35-0 with all wins by fall last season en route to his third career state championship. Vacanti is also accomplished on the national stage, as a two-time cadet national champion.
"Matt has a great work ethic and is a tough, hard-nosed kid," Manning said. "His style of wrestling fits in well with the rest of our team. He's an exciting wrestler to watch and he gets after it."
Joining Vacanti is Curtis Salazar of Greeley, Colo. Salazar is a two-time Colorado state champion and a three-time state finalist. Salazar, who is projected to wrestle at 149 pounds in college, is another valuable addition to the NU wrestling team, according to Manning.
"He's a good wrestler who wants to get better, and he is a great student," Manning said. "He's been dominating in state and national competition and beat a lot of good, ranked opponents. He's come to our camp the last couple years and gets along well with our guys. We're happy to have him be part of our family now."
Rounding out Wednesday's signings is Alex Ward, from Mount Saint Joseph High School in Baltimore, Md. Ward, projected to wrestle in the middle weights in college, is a two-time state champion at 145 pounds. A fourth-place finisher the last two years in the national prep tournament, Ward is the son of three-time NCAA finalist and former NU assistant wrestling coach Kelly Ward.
"He's an outstanding kid from a heralded program in Mount Saint Joseph High School," Manning said. "We expect him to improve and develop a lot in our program. He's an intelligent young man with great potential and upside. He will help us out in the future."
The early signing period continues until Nov. 16.
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 accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now