The United States flew out an all-star lineup, highlighted by world champions Logan Stieber (65 kilograms) and Kyle Snyder (97 kilograms). World bronze medalist Nick Gwizdowski (125 kilograms), as well as standouts Kyle Dake (79 kilograms) and David Taylor (86 kilograms) will be in action over the course of the three-day event. Standing in their way will be a Russian side filled with Olympic, world and European champions.
While still early in the season the event should give fans of Team USA some insight into how much of an advantage (if any) the new same day weigh-in rules may provide an American side well-versed in that event program.
You can read more about the Ivan Yarygin entries and watch the event live and for free on the UWW website.
To your questions …
Spencer Lee (Photo/Mark Lundy, Lutte-Lens.com)Q: Like many other wrestling fans, I was excited to watch Spencer Lee face off against Nathan Tomasello. I didn't know what to expect, but I was surprised that Lee won despite the fact he didn't score an offensive point. What is your take on this match?
-- Patrick A.
Foley: Spencer Lee is a monster on top and has an unreal level of maturity for a freshman. To beat Tomasello showed that he is the type of program-shifting presence that Tom Brands figured he would become.
Lee didn't score an offensive point, but he wrestled under the same rule set as Tomasello and found the W despite giving up a takedown. Plenty of lightweights (Matt Valenti comes to mind) have won NCAA championships with few takedowns, but that lack of scoring action is less an indictment of the wrestler, and more shows a flaw in the scoring system utilized by NCAA wrestling.
I continue to believe that encouraging neutral wrestling through the elimination of riding time and the enforcement of out of bounds rules will create more action. Until then it's BRAVO to Lee for finding a way to win!
Q: Kyle Snyder is the best heavyweight college wrestler in the county. He's the best 97-kilogram wrestler in the world. I sometimes forget that he's not really a heavyweight despite his collegiate heavyweight success. In your opinion, how does Snyder compare to some of the best heavyweights in NCAA history? Stephen Neal, who proved himself as the best heavyweight in the world at one time, really jumps out in my mind. How would the smaller Snyder do at heavyweight with the likes of an NCAA age Neal or Kerry McCoy?
-- Dustin K.
Foley: Should Snyder win his third NCAA title in 2018, it will be his third title at heavyweight and his fourth overall trip to the finals. Snyder will also own a win over two-time champion, three-time finalist and 2017 world bronze medalist Nick Gwiazdowski.
While Stephen Neal and Kerry McCoy were dominant heavyweights with a notable size advantage over Snyder, it would be difficult to see Snyder losing any cross-generational matchup. Even against a tough-minded competitor like Steve Mocco, the skill set and mental toughness of Snyder are without comparison. How would you beat someone with his level of self-belief?
Time and again Snyder has shown that he's willing to face any obstacle (Jake Varner, Abdulrashid Sadulaev, et. al) and come away victorious. There is no evidence that some extra weight would "tip the scales" in favor of these past champions.
Q: I watched the Seth Gross-Bryce Meredith match on replay, and I know I'm beating the proverbial dead horse, but the far ankle defense needs to go away. If the wrestler in on the legs doesn't struggle to try and finish, it is a stalemate. The effectiveness of the far ankle is only effective if the man on the legs works to finish … it's got to stop. It kills me to watch this style. Austin DeSanto is what the sport needs. 12-10 battles, not 2-1 snorefests with points being two escapes and riding time. Blah!
-- Keith F.
Foley: We are saying the same thing: college wrestling has devolved into gamesmanship and horseback riding, which is frustrating because it could be an engaging wrestling style with the potential to attract new fans.
The far ankle defense will be in play so long as there is no significant or immediate penalty for exposing your back from the neutral position.
Q: I have heard America's top wrestlers can command a lot of money at camps and clinics, but don't know specifics. What do wrestlers like Jordan Burroughs, Logan Stieber, Kyle Dake, J'den Cox, David Taylor make for clinics/camps?
-- Mike C.
Foley: The rates for any star is dependent on several factors, namely their relationship to the institution hosting the clinic, time it takes for the talent to travel to the location, how many days they work in total, and how many students are expected. Add that to the quality of the name and you start getting some general numbers
Depending on the variety of factors laid out above, the top wrestlers are charging between $300-$1,000 per hour of instruction, with some significantly higher and some a touch lower. To put that in perspective, I know more than a few jiu-jitsu instructors who charge $5,000-plus per day of a seminar, but I also know guys who will work for $500 per day. It all just depends on name ID.
Q: In Cleveland there could be four three-time NCAA champs crowned: Dean Heil, Zain Retherford, Isaiah Martinez and Kyle Snyder. I remember years recently where even a single wrestler going for their third title was outrageous, but four?! According to d1collegewrestling.net, 1983 was a similar year where Nate Carr, Mark Schultz and Ed Banach all capped their careers off as three-time champs, but that was 35 years ago. Seems like there was a drought between Jake Rosholt (2006) and Kyle Dake (third title in 2012), but since then there's been a three-timer every season. Between Jason Nolf, Vincenzo Joseph, Mark Hall, Bo Nickal and Myles Martin, we will have at least one in 2019 as well. What elements do you think are attributing to this uptick in three-time (or more) national champions?
-- Vik C.
Foley: Penn State? Cael Sanderson?
The overall wrestling intelligence of the college freshman wrestler is much higher than it was even ten years ago. With access to more technique videos and live matches there has been a significant increase in the ability of young wrestlers to win against older and more experienced competition.
Q: This year's class of freshmen is just crazy. Yianni Diakomihalis, Spencer Lee, Nick Lee, Daton Fix, Mikey Labriola, etc. My question to you is, out of this crop of phenom freshmen, which wrestler do you think finishes his career with the best results? My money is on Yianni or Fix, but you obviously can't go wrong with any of the aforementioned wrestlers. When all is said and done, do you think this could possibly go down as the greatest class of all time?
-- Todd S.
Foley: Tough to judge the classes against each other, especially without this class having competed in an NCAA championship. Let us see how they do in Cleveland before too closely comparing them to the classes of the past.
As for who will have the best career, I stand by my previous statement that it'll be neck-and-neck between Fix and Lee. But man, Yianni is looking tough!
Q: Who do you see as the next four-time NCAA wrestling champ?
-- Gregg Y.
Foley: With one under his belt and Penn State at his back you'd have to think Vincenzo Joseph is the most likely to be the next four-time NCAA champion. Mark Hall has Zahid in his path, but would be another top choice.
Q: If Daniel Cormier moved up to fight Stipe Miocic, how do you see that fight going?
-- Mike C.
Foley: One of the most intriguing inter-weight matchups in a while. Though I doubt the UFC wants to risk another multiple weight class champion a la Conor McGregor, there would be a built-in mega-audience for this type of heavy-hitting matchup.
What happens in the cage? The wrestling would seem to cancel each other out, but I don't know if that would hold. Cormier would have to respect Stipe's size and power and while his wrestling advantage is relatively marginal to other matchups, he still would see a significant return on each high-level attack -- and from the ground Stipe's power is all-but-neutralized.
I'd take Cormier by smother-and-pound.
WRESTLING STORY OF THE WEEK
By The Doc
The son of a colleague had wrestled in the Lehigh Valley since midgets, not particularly successfully, but with dedication and affection for the sport and his teammates. He sat on the bench until his senior year, when his high school team ended up with his weight-class empty -- so the spot was his.
He lost every match he wrestled that year. Every match saw him warming up, practicing hard and toeing the line to begin his bout. Every match he gave his best, keeping most of them close, and avoiding giving up '6'… And after every match, his smile was infectious, no matter the score.
Late in the season, with a district dual team slot on the line, he faced a seriously-tough, ranked opponent, and with the team score close, he HAD to avoid a pin for his team to win.
What a bout! Constant action as he kept off his back, eventually losing the major, but avoiding the fall -- and his team WON the match, proceeding to D11 team duals.
His entire team crowded around him, screaming his name and the entire auditorium went crazy!
Later in the year, I happened upon my colleague, who was very sheepish regarding his son's performance, "0-25!" But I noted that his son had become my hero. He put in years of effort, never in the limelight, supporting his team always -- and when he had the chance, his son had done his very best -- and it mattered.
I love this sport!
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