Most underrated wrestler in 2023

[peanut]

Who is your most underrated wrestler of 2023?

[nhs67]

I think and obvious choice is Ethan Laird, Rider.

I think a less obvious choice is Will Lewan, Michigan.

[goheels1812]

I’ll go with Ryan Jack of NC State. He’s the little brother of Kevin Jack, a 3 time all American. Ryan is 23-3 on the year. Losses were by a combined total of 4 points. 2 losses were to Cole Matthews, and he went 1-1 against Brock Hardy this year. I don’t think he’s gotten a ton of national love, but he’s a guy you don’t want to see on your side of the bracket either. He feels like a lock to at least AA and has the upside to make a run to the finals.

[flyingcement]

Laird and Jack are good mentions.  

 

Nick Babin is a solid wrestler, not at the level of those dudes, but I feel he has never once been mentioned on this forum.  Columbia overall gets overlooked and seem to be on the rise

Edited March 8, 2023 by flyingcement

[One8alpha]

Josh Humphreys

[Pipewrench]

Levi Haines

[ILLINIWrestlingBlog]

Michael Blockhus.

My secret fetish over the last couple of years has been to go to The Guillotine and lurk while watching the posters (and trolls) denigrate Blockhus. It's not as bad as the Iowa fans (and trolls) denigrate Warnerov, but expectations for Jacob were and are a little higher. Still, my friends, this Blockhus lad was trying hard; he's just a little clumsy. But he had a nice year this year, and then he made it to the Big Ten finals (some credit to Austin Gomez here) and showed that he can beat anybody at the weight. 

My opinion of him goes from slightly-above-average-but-tough B1G plodder to highly-skilled and motivated wrestler who can beat anybody at his weight. That's a pretty big jump in perception for a guy who's been around a minute. 

[AKHUNTER]

5 hours ago, goheels1812 said:

I’ll go with Ryan Jack of NC State. He’s the little brother of Kevin Jack, a 3 time all American. Ryan is 23-3 on the year. Losses were by a combined total of 4 points. 2 losses were to Cole Matthews, and he went 1-1 against Brock Hardy this year. I don’t think he’s gotten a ton of national love, but he’s a guy you don’t want to see on your side of the bracket either. He feels like a lock to at least AA and has the upside to make a run to the finals.

jack is tough without a doubt .......but a run to the finals would be quite a feat at this point.

[goheels1812]

Just now, AKHUNTER said:

jack is tough without a doubt .......but a run to the finals would be quite a feat at this point.

For sure. I think it’s unlikely, but watching his matches with Cole Matthews he’s right there and getting closer every time. I could see the next match having the results flipped. But there are other guys at 141 that may be too much for Jack as well. Just a guy to keep an eye on in a couple weeks. 

[scourge165]

4 hours ago, Pipewrench said:

Levi Haines

LOL...who is underrating Haines?

He was the #2 seed at the B1Gs and will likely be the #2 at the NCAAs. I think people are rating him pretty appropriately. 

 

There are some good ones already mentioned, but 197 has a few. I'm a big fan of Trumble. I also think Beard has a shot at a NC. Though with how much 197 seems to be up in the air, I'm not sure any of these guys are underrated. I could see both potentially winning in the Semis or losing on the backside in the Rd of 12 or 16.

 

[GreatWhiteNorth]

Andrew Sparks and Caleb Fish. I expect them both to crank it up a notch in Tulsa. It's a crazy tough weight class so they'll have to.

[Threadkilla]

Matthew Olguin 

[jmoney]

Michael McGee, Ragusin, Shane Griffith, Ethan Smith, Sam Schuyler, Lucas Davison 

[Threadkilla]

6 minutes ago, jmoney said:

Michael McGee, Ragusin, Shane Griffith, Ethan Smith, Sam Schuyler, Lucas Davison 

Natty Champ Griffith is underrated?   He did just lose to Olquin twice.....

[jmoney]

24 minutes ago, Threadkilla said:

Natty Champ Griffith is underrated?   He did just lose to Olquin twice.....

Haven’t seen anyone pick him to even make the ncaa finals. For a guy with the track record he has, he has gotten only doubters predicting Hamiti over Griffith all season. The guy seems to show up at nationals 

[Southend]

Being underrated seems to be a relative term here. Just mentioning anyone in the Big Ten conference is a little silly. No way can any wrestler escape the highly visible national stage ,unlike any other,these guys are on.Most people on here know the wrestlers like the back of their hands. But  We see it every year , where someone from a low profile program hammers their way to the top or near the top of the podium. And very few here know where they came from ,until it happens. And it ain’t guys from the highly visible Big Ten.

[D3UC157]

Aaron Nagao got slept on until he popped himself in the B1G finals and rode RBY.

Kid is a monster on top.

[Southend]

14 minutes ago, D3UC157 said:

Aaron Nagao got slept on until he popped himself in the B1G finals and rode RBY.

Kid is a monster on top.

He’s been hammering all year ,and getting better. Pinto the same. 

[creek chub]

12 hours ago, goheels1812 said:

I’ll go with Ryan Jack of NC State. He’s the little brother of Kevin Jack, a 3 time all American. Ryan is 23-3 on the year. Losses were by a combined total of 4 points. 2 losses were to Cole Matthews, and he went 1-1 against Brock Hardy this year. I don’t think he’s gotten a ton of national love, but he’s a guy you don’t want to see on your side of the bracket either. He feels like a lock to at least AA and has the upside to make a run to the finals.

Agree 100%. It pains me to say that as a VT fan but the dude is really good. There’s nothing flashy about him but he gets his hand raised a lot. 

[creek chub]

That 197 Allred dude from Nebraska is pretty tough and not talked a lot about 

[nhs67]

7 hours ago, ILLINIWrestlingBlog said:

Michael Blockhus.

My secret fetish over the last couple of years has been to go to The Guillotine and lurk while watching the posters (and trolls) denigrate Blockhus. It's not as bad as the Iowa fans (and trolls) denigrate Warnerov, but expectations for Jacob were and are a little higher. Still, my friends, this Blockhus lad was trying hard; he's just a little clumsy. But he had a nice year this year, and then he made it to the Big Ten finals (some credit to Austin Gomez here) and showed that he can beat anybody at the weight. 

My opinion of him goes from slightly-above-average-but-tough B1G plodder to highly-skilled and motivated wrestler who can beat anybody at his weight. That's a pretty big jump in perception for a guy who's been around a minute. 

Blockhus is a good one

  Aside for JO's loss to Retherford, Blockhus gave him his toughest match at 70 KG WTT last year.

[ILLINIWrestlingBlog]

7 minutes ago, nhs67 said:

Blockhus is a good one

  Aside for JO's loss to Retherford, Blockhus gave him his toughest match at 70 KG WTT last year.

I didn't know that. Cheers!

[nhs67]

12 hours ago, nhs67 said:

I think and obvious choice is Ethan Laird, Rider.

I think a less obvious choice is Will Lewan, Michigan.

I would like to explain a little bit, since others are as well.

Ethan Laird, Rider

The guy has one freak loss to a guy who has handed out 10 of his 17 victories via Fall on the season, in Owen Pentz.  Last year, a redshirt year, he lost one (1) match to Trent Hillger up at 285.  His prior season, which was his first season at 285 and only offseason at 285, he went undefeated in the regular season (beating Jordan Wood 8-5).  He lost to Stencel, Central Michigan and 5x MAC champion, in the finals at MACs and then Ornerydwarf, the Ohio State, and Parris, Michigan, at NCAAs.  The Parris loss was a 14-4 drubbing, but who wasn't getting drubbed that season (not including Steveson - keep in mind Parris won via bonus against EVERYONE that season other his daddy).  Now add in that he established himself as a Tier 3 challenger in the 97 KG ladder this last Freestyle season (Tier 1 is Snyder/Cox, Tier 2 is Moore/Macchiavello) even beating King Dudley soundly for 3rd at the 2022 Trials via 10-5.

He is absolutely a contender and has an insane gas tank.  If a guy like Warner can't get up on him early, he could very well stall him out in the third, or at the very least pull of bonus late.

Will.I.Am Lewan, Michigan

This guy is 12-4 in the last two seasons in OT matches.  That takes some stone cold marbles to come through on that.  Yet because he is always(ALWAYS) in these close matches he isn't respected as what would be perceived as a contender.  He absolutely is.  He isn't particularly elite or athletic in the physical sense, so if you can out-athlete or out-horse him, you can exploit him (See Coleman, Carr, and Deakin).  That said, if you aren't elite there, he is going to drag you through over seven minutes of annoying hell.  It can't be fun for his opponents to go in to a match knowing that no matter what you do, you are going to OT because this guy is good enough to make you go in to OT.  He holds a 2-0 advantage on Rob in their career and lost in OT to Haines in their dual.  Keep in mind in that dual Michigan had just lost, convincingly and dominantly, three straight matches - so momentum was not in his favor.

He is absolutely a contender and has an insane ability to be in matches that nobody really gives him a shot in.  If he can avoid Coleman, there isn't a guy he cannot take to OT in the field.  And as I said before 12-4 in OT matches?  He is okay going to OT.

[bnwtwg]

2 hours ago, D3UC157 said:

Aaron Nagao got slept on until he popped himself in the B1G finals and rode RBY.

Kid is a monster on top.

Reminds me of another Minnesota 133 that no one wants to go under at nattys...

[bnwtwg]

I don't know if underrated is the correct term since he was a 4 seed last year but Ed Scott has 7 losses this year and didn't qualify frosh year. Don't be surprised if you see Ed Scott on Saturday night competing with Lee for the Gorarrian