Highest Placing Freshman at Each Weight

[1032004]

16 hours ago, steamboat_charlie said:

I haven't been following everything that closely this summer and don't have a great grasp on who the newcomers to keep an eye on are at each weight class.  So, I will take a stab at this and let you guys correct me where I'm missing things.  Counting redshirt freshmen as well as true frosh here:

125) Marc-Anthony McGowan - Princeton - True Freshman.  It feels like his high school career didn't exactly end with a bang, but it wasn't exactly a tragedy either.  Still a high tier recruit, and even though his coach left he'll have to be thinking, I've just gotta live my life.  

133) Nic Bouzakis - Ohio State - RS Freshman.  I think he can beat anyone in this weight class outside of the top 2.  I also think he'll take some head scratching losses--in part because he's a freshman, and in part because that's just who he is.  

141) Mac Church - Virginia Tech - True Freshman.  How good is this kid?  I don't know much about him.  He's got a great name though.  Sounds more like a quarterback than a wrestler, but still cool none the less. 

149) Michael Gioffre - Virginia - RS Freshman.  The Lannister boy.  This kid is pretty tough.  Solid in all three positions.  Not a ton of offensive firepower but that could come later, he looks the part. Could see him moving up into the R12 range this year.  

157) Meyer Shapiro - Cornell - True Freshman.  One of, if not the best, recruits of the past five years.  His potential is scary, and he's already scary good.  Predicting a true freshmen to compete for a title is a little silly but I think I have to do just that.  AA at minimum.  

165) Nick Hamilton - Virginia - RS Freshman.  Had a nice redshirt season.  Don't know much about him.  The other possibility at this weight is Mesenbrink forcing his way into the PSU lineup.  I'd guess Facundo will go, but not sure anyone knows at this point.  

174) MJ Gaitan - Iowa State - RS Freshman.  I gotta be honest, I've never seen  him wrestle.  He was a highly ranked recruit, that's about all I know.  

184) Bennett Berge - SDSU - RS Freshman.  Can he translate his freestyle results into folkstyle success--remains to be seen.  Took a few lumps in open comp last year.  I think this kid is a stud.  South Dakota has quite a salty lineup this year.  

197) Luke Geog - Ohio State - RS Freshman.  Not sure he'll be in the lineup to start the season, but I think he'll pass up Hoffman before the year is over.  Breaking into the top 8 at 197 this year looks very difficult, though.  Mac Stout is another freshman to watch at this weight--I went with Geog due to their respective matches vs. Davison.  

285) Dayton Pitzer - Pitt - RS Freshman.  I know people would expect Feldman here, but I'm going to go Pitzer.  For one, Feldman hasn't wrestled a match in over a year.  And second, Pitzer made the finals at Midland as an undersized true freshman and has wins over guys like Schultz and Hillger.  

 

Who'd I miss?

Another Gioffre (Jack) could be an option for 141.  He only wrestled 6 matches last year, but 4 were against national qualifiers and he went 2-2 (beat Dylan Chappell and Kal Miller, lost to Carter Young and Dylan Droegenmueller).

[1032004]

And if we’re not counting Mesenbrink for 165, another option could be Hunter Garvin of Stanford.  Started off slow but had a couple decent wins toward the end of the season.  He did get majored by Cam Steed of Mizzou, who appears to be their starter at 157 and had a good redshirt year of his own, although Shapiro is definitely the safe bet for 157.

[JBluegill133]

I haven't been following everything that closely this summer and don't have a great grasp on who the newcomers to keep an eye on are at each weight class.  So, I will take a stab at this and let you guys correct me where I'm missing things.  Counting redshirt freshmen as well as true frosh here:
125) Marc-Anthony McGowan - Princeton - True Freshman.  It feels like his high school career didn't exactly end with a bang, but it wasn't exactly a tragedy either.  Still a high tier recruit, and even though his coach left he'll have to be thinking, I've just gotta live my life.  
133) Nic Bouzakis - Ohio State - RS Freshman.  I think he can beat anyone in this weight class outside of the top 2.  I also think he'll take some head scratching losses--in part because he's a freshman, and in part because that's just who he is.  
141) Mac Church - Virginia Tech - True Freshman.  How good is this kid?  I don't know much about him.  He's got a great name though.  Sounds more like a quarterback than a wrestler, but still cool none the less. 
149) Michael Gioffre - Virginia - RS Freshman.  The Lannister boy.  This kid is pretty tough.  Solid in all three positions.  Not a ton of offensive firepower but that could come later, he looks the part. Could see him moving up into the R12 range this year.  
157) Meyer Shapiro - Cornell - True Freshman.  One of, if not the best, recruits of the past five years.  His potential is scary, and he's already scary good.  Predicting a true freshmen to compete for a title is a little silly but I think I have to do just that.  AA at minimum.  
165) Nick Hamilton - Virginia - RS Freshman.  Had a nice redshirt season.  Don't know much about him.  The other possibility at this weight is Mesenbrink forcing his way into the PSU lineup.  I'd guess Facundo will go, but not sure anyone knows at this point.  
174) MJ Gaitan - Iowa State - RS Freshman.  I gotta be honest, I've never seen  him wrestle.  He was a highly ranked recruit, that's about all I know.  
184) Bennett Berge - SDSU - RS Freshman.  Can he translate his freestyle results into folkstyle success--remains to be seen.  Took a few lumps in open comp last year.  I think this kid is a stud.  South Dakota has quite a salty lineup this year.  
197) Luke Geog - Ohio State - RS Freshman.  Not sure he'll be in the lineup to start the season, but I think he'll pass up Hoffman before the year is over.  Breaking into the top 8 at 197 this year looks very difficult, though.  Mac Stout is another freshman to watch at this weight--I went with Geog due to their respective matches vs. Davison.  
285) Dayton Pitzer - Pitt - RS Freshman.  I know people would expect Feldman here, but I'm going to go Pitzer.  For one, Feldman hasn't wrestled a match in over a year.  And second, Pitzer made the finals at Midland as an undersized true freshman and has wins over guys like Schultz and Hillger.  
 
Who'd I miss?

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[JBluegill133]

Don’t know how to delete a post on my phone. My bad.


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[ionel]

7 hours ago, JBluegill133 said:

Don’t know how to delete a post on my phone. My bad.


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Deleting posts is difficult.  You have to lay some flowers at Bob's grave site in Arlington or at 1035 N Maple in Russel, KS after which you have 15 minutes to delete the post.  Good luck. 

Edited September 28, 2023 by ionel

[creek chub]

On 9/27/2023 at 10:08 AM, nhs67 said:

I believe the plan is for Crook to redshirt this year, but I wouldn't be surprised to see them pull his redshirt if it means a spot on the podium for a team finish.  Virginia Tech has a sneaky good and deep team this year and with Cassioppi out for the year it makes one less landmine for Catka to go through.

All I mean is I wouldn't be surprised to see some lineup shifts happen (Lewis to 184, for example).

Can crook still make 141? The VT board chatter seems to indicate he may have outgrown that weight class. Later in the season, he seemed to fade with gas tank issues. He’s a shooter and fun to watch. I knew he was going be a good one when I watched him at the SE open last year and he beat the Columbia kid pretty convincingly. 
 

I had heard mehki might go 184. If true, that’d be interesting who slots at 174. 

[11986]

9 hours ago, creek chub said:

Can crook still make 141? The VT board chatter seems to indicate he may have outgrown that weight class. Later in the season, he seemed to fade with gas tank issues. He’s a shooter and fun to watch. I knew he was going be a good one when I watched him at the SE open last year and he beat the Columbia kid pretty convincingly. 
 

I had heard mehki might go 184. If true, that’d be interesting who slots at 174. 

any chance Sam Fisher would go down to 174 in that scenario?

 

[nhs67]

58 minutes ago, 11986 said:

any chance Sam Fisher would go down to 174 in that scenario?

 

I can't imagine it would be any easier for him to go 174 as it would Lewis, if Lewis were going up.

That said... what other option(s) would VTech have?

157/165/174 would be some amalgamation of Andonion, Ulry, and Brady.  I am okay with that... they would need time, though.  Ulry then Andonian then Brady would be my guess at best option (157/165/174) were that the case.

EDIT: I like Andonian at 165 because that makes 74 KG an option for him in Freestyle.  That said... 157lbs is 71.2 KG... if he were to try for Greco glory, he would need to go 67 KG or 77 KG.  165lbs is 74.8 KG so... maybe?  Anyone giving him a chance against Bey/Perkins/etc?

Edited October 5, 2023 by nhs67

[Gus]

1 hour ago, nhs67 said:

I can't imagine it would be any easier for him to go 174 as it would Lewis, if Lewis were going up.

That said... what other option(s) would VTech have?

157/165/174 would be some amalgamation of Andonion, Ulry, and Brady.  I am okay with that... they would need time, though.  Ulry then Andonian then Brady would be my guess at best option (157/165/174) were that the case.

EDIT: I like Andonian at 165 because that makes 74 KG an option for him in Freestyle.  That said... 157lbs is 71.2 KG... if he were to try for Greco glory, he would need to go 67 KG or 77 KG.  165lbs is 74.8 KG so... maybe?  Anyone giving him a chance against Bey/Perkins/etc?

Andonian came up from 149 to 157 last year. I would be very surprised if he jumped into 165 this year. He is a legit title threat at 157 and it not at 165 (See O'toole, Keegan and Carr, David). 

[nhs67]

16 minutes ago, Gus said:

Andonian came up from 149 to 157 last year. I would be very surprised if he jumped into 165 this year. He is a legit title threat at 157 and it not at 165 (See O'toole, Keegan and Carr, David). 

I agree with everything you said.

I still think Ulry - Andonion - Brady is their best 1 - 2 - 3 punch at 157-174 if Lewis goes up.

[Gus]

34 minutes ago, nhs67 said:

I agree with everything you said.

I still think Ulry - Andonion - Brady is their best 1 - 2 - 3 punch at 157-174 if Lewis goes up.

For a dual, yes. For points at nationals? No.

[nhs67]

10 minutes ago, Gus said:

For a dual, yes. For points at nationals? No.

Fair, yes.

[Gus]

15 minutes ago, nhs67 said:

Fair, yes.

Bryce certainly has the height and length to go up and be successful at 165. Not sure if he has the horsepower... maybe!

[lightweight]

On 9/27/2023 at 8:52 PM, Gus said:

Pitzer did beat Shultz last year and has put on 20 pounds. Gavin does a good job developing his guys. 

Agree with Gus.  See Nino Bono...

[nhs67]

On 10/5/2023 at 11:53 AM, Gus said:

Andonian came up from 149 to 157 last year. I would be very surprised if he jumped into 165 this year. He is a legit title threat at 157 and it not at 165 (See O'toole, Keegan and Carr, David). 

This doesn't mean anything... but this is their official account, so...

 

[nhs67]

Andonian looks absolutely massive right now.

[Gus]

7 minutes ago, nhs67 said:

This doesn't mean anything... but this is their official account, so...

 

Maybe you are on to something 

[nhs67]

2 hours ago, Gus said:

Maybe you are on to something 

That is what my reply was to on Twitter.

[flyingcement]

8 hours ago, nhs67 said:

That is what my reply was to on Twitter.

In this situation - I would hope / bet that Tom Crook opts to jump up to 157 rather than redshirt.  Other alternative is Ulrey if he can still make that weight.  I don't think Brady can.

[creek chub]

13 hours ago, Gus said:

Maybe you are on to something 

He looks jacked! He looks like a bonafide 165 guy in that pic and noticeably more muscular than last year.  Even at 165, I’d pencil him as a natty title contender. Ed Scott likely highly approves BA’s move to 165. 
 

I’d be interested to see if Brady could handle the move to 174 if Lewis bumps up. 
 

If Crook packed on muscle like BA this summer, he’d likely beat Ulrey for the spot. The kid is good. 

[Idaho]

On 9/27/2023 at 9:38 AM, Antitroll2828 said:

Cael said in the off-season that Robbie will get all his eligibility back and still has 4 years , so idk if that’s Cael just knowing the system or if they received conformation or what but Cael isn’t known for just randomly spouting bs so I’ll take him at his word 

Both  could be  true... he won't "technically" get it issued until later, but he meets all the qualifications for the hardship waiver and there isn't any reason he won't get it. 

[steamboat_charlie]

We're only a couple weeks into the season, but I wanted to come back and update this, mostly so that I can point out the guys that I missed.

How are the guys that I pointed out doing so far?

125) Marc-Anthony McGowan - Princeton - True Freshman.  Anybody know what's up with him?  Guess he's greyshirting?

133) Nic Bouzakis - Ohio State - RS Freshman.  Rocky start.  Loss to Latona I would expect but took two losses to tough but not upper echelon opponents at Clarion open.  Has a lot of things to work on still.

141) Mac Church - Virginia Tech - True Freshman.  Hasn't wrestled.

149) Michael Gioffre - Virginia - RS Freshman.  Not a strong start.  4-3 with a couple of bad losses in there.

157) Meyer Shapiro - Cornell - True Freshman.  Looking good.  

165) Nick Hamilton - Virginia - RS Freshman.  OK start, not great.  2 losses to unranked guys and might have picked up an injury.

174) MJ Gaitan - Iowa State - RS Freshman.   Looks sharp, albeit against light competition.

184) Bennett Berge - SDSU - RS Freshman.  Hasn't wrestled.

197) Luke Geog - Ohio State - RS Freshman.   Looks very good, handled a tough Andy Smith fairly easily.  Missed some training with a small injury in the month leading up to the season so gas tank not quite there yet.

285) Dayton Pitzer - Pitt - RS Freshman.  Took a loss to Navy's heavyweight, which I wouldn't have expected.  Early days still.  

Who did I miss?

125) Ryan Crookham - Lehigh.  Obviously.  Two top ten wins in one weekend, including against the world and NCAA champ...

165) Antrell Taylor - Nebraska.  Kid looks very sharp, possibly the next James Green?

197) Mac Stout - Pitt.  I mentioned him briefly... looks the part.  Wish Geog would've been ready to go for Clarion so we could've seen that matchup.  197 is absolutely loaded.  

[MPhillips]

285) Nick  Feldman - Ohio State - RS Freshman.  Good start. 7-0 Beat Hunter Catka(VT) Looked very good so far.

[lu_alum]

We're only a couple weeks into the season, but I wanted to come back and update this, mostly so that I can point out the guys that I missed.
How are the guys that I pointed out doing so far?
125) Marc-Anthony McGowan - Princeton - True Freshman.  Anybody know what's up with him?  Guess he's greyshirting?
133) Nic Bouzakis - Ohio State - RS Freshman.  Rocky start.  Loss to Latona I would expect but took two losses to tough but not upper echelon opponents at Clarion open.  Has a lot of things to work on still.
141) Mac Church - Virginia Tech - True Freshman.  Hasn't wrestled.
149) Michael Gioffre - Virginia - RS Freshman.  Not a strong start.  4-3 with a couple of bad losses in there.
157) Meyer Shapiro - Cornell - True Freshman.  Looking good.  
165) Nick Hamilton - Virginia - RS Freshman.  OK start, not great.  2 losses to unranked guys and might have picked up an injury.
174) MJ Gaitan - Iowa State - RS Freshman.   Looks sharp, albeit against light competition.
184) Bennett Berge - SDSU - RS Freshman.  Hasn't wrestled.
197) Luke Geog - Ohio State - RS Freshman.   Looks very good, handled a tough Andy Smith fairly easily.  Missed some training with a small injury in the month leading up to the season so gas tank not quite there yet.
285) Dayton Pitzer - Pitt - RS Freshman.  Took a loss to Navy's heavyweight, which I wouldn't have expected.  Early days still.  
Who did I miss?
125) Ryan Crookham - Lehigh.  Obviously.  Two top ten wins in one weekend, including against the world and NCAA champ...
165) Antrell Taylor - Nebraska.  Kid looks very sharp, possibly the next James Green?
197) Mac Stout - Pitt.  I mentioned him briefly... looks the part.  Wish Geog would've been ready to go for Clarion so we could've seen that matchup.  197 is absolutely loaded.  

Crookham is a 133.


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[poorwrestler]

I don’t know think he will outplace Crookham or Bouzakis, in fact I don’t even know if the gophers will pull his shirt this year, but true Freshman Tyler Wells at 133 will make some serious noise as soon as he is a starter. Toughest kid he wrestled at the Bison Open was Derrick Cardinal who he tech’d. I think he’s capable of making the blood round right now.


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