Where is Braxton Amos?

[BruceyB]

I was curious and looked up his wrestlestat where it shows he redshirted last year, and it shows that he is redshirting again this year (listed as 285)? I was just curious if anyone has insight to what his future plans are as far as college wrestling is concerned.

[Gantry]

I think he's going to the Midlands, don't remember where I read that but I'm pretty sure I did.

[BruceyB]

33 minutes ago, Gantry said:

I think he's going to the Midlands, don't remember where I read that but I'm pretty sure I did.

I'm curious if he is somehow actually doing back to back RS seasons. I'm assuming last year was an Olympic RS, and maybe he's using this year to grow into a Snyder-esque HW and letting the big dogs graduate?

[flyingcement]

19 minutes ago, Gantry said:

I think he's going to the Midlands, don't remember where I read that but I'm pretty sure I did.

He was originally included among Wisconsin's registered wrestlers.  Since that time, Wisconsin seems to have removed their registered wrestlers on Track (unless it was a mistake).  Some folks on the Wisconsin board mentioned that Amos is going to be wrestling unattached in Midlands while the rest of the Wisconsin squad does not attend.

[Jon_Kozak]

Braxton Amos is not wrestling at Midlands. Originally he and several other Wisconsin wrestlers were registered but I've since heard from the Wisconsin coaching staff that they're not sending any wrestlers to Midlands. 

[Hammerlock3]

Not getting on the turdbiscuit train for any reason other than accuracy, but from a fans perspective amos must have been mismanaged. He was amazing in highschool, technical strong tough conditioned etc, wrestled every style every chance he got so you knew he loved the sport....and somehow nothing. 

[funnyfletcher]

5 hours ago, flyingcement said:

He was originally included among Wisconsin's registered wrestlers.  Since that time, Wisconsin seems to have removed their registered wrestlers on Track (unless it was a mistake).  Some folks on the Wisconsin board mentioned that Amos is going to be wrestling unattached in Midlands while the rest of the Wisconsin squad does not attend.

Not only were they listed, but it seemed like everyone was listed up a weight, Rivera at 33, Fugitt at 41, Bobzien at 49, Zargo was even listed at 57.

[MPhillips]

Amos

220lber in HS. Committed to Wiscy in 2019. Deferred his enrollment till 2020.  2021 wrestled FS/GR only at 97kg.  Wisconsin 2021/2022 and 2022/2023 197lber behind Hilger. 2024 OLY RS.

2021 Junior World Champion gold medal in freestyle at 97 kg. 2021 bronze medal in Greco-Roman at 97 kg. 2022 Sr. World Team member, Greco-Roman at 97 kg.

I always wanted him to just go get bigger and wrestle 285 but there was Hilger (who was there an extra year/COVID) and yes, I understand that Amos was wrestling 97kg internationally. I believe making 197lbs and injuries just beat him down.

 

[bnwtwg]

If only there was a comparable 97 kg weight class. Oh well, who needs a kid who can make a world team in college when we can have more 4th string 141 pounders in the room who will never sniff the starting lineup!

[BruceyB]

6 hours ago, bnwtwg said:

If only there was a comparable 97 kg weight class. Oh well, who needs a kid who can make a world team in college when we can have more 4th string 141 pounders in the room who will never sniff the starting lineup!

What on earth does a comparable weight class have to do with a 4th stringer..?

[1032004]

Any chance he’s looking to hit the portal?  I’m sure he’ll do well at heavyweight next year especially with so many guys graduating 

[flyingcement]

17 minutes ago, 1032004 said:

Any chance he’s looking to hit the portal?  I’m sure he’ll do well at heavyweight next year especially with so many guys graduating 

This is his fourth year as a student so he may be graduating.  I'm not really sure.  

[bnwtwg]

19 hours ago, BruceyB said:

What on earth does a comparable weight class have to do with a 4th stringer..?

The point is too many lightweights not enough for larger guys and that won't change because it's the way things have always been done rather than adapt to the world senior weight classes. People around here get real butthurt talking about growth sectors within a niche sport.

[1032004]

19 minutes ago, bnwtwg said:

The point is too many lightweights not enough for larger guys and that won't change because it's the way things have always been done rather than adapt to the world senior weight classes. People around here get real butthurt talking about growth sectors within a niche sport.

Losing a middleweight to add a weight between 197 and heavyweight won’t grow total participants.  Raise 197 if you want to make the weights closer to international, don’t add one unless you’re suggesting 11 NCAA weights.

Edited December 29, 2024 by 1032004

[bnwtwg]

11 hours ago, 1032004 said:

Losing a middleweight to add a weight between 197 and heavyweight won’t grow total participants.  Raise 197 if you want to make the weights closer to international, don’t add one unless you’re suggesting 11 NCAA weights.

Who said anything about eleven weight classes? The ask is merely to adjust to the UWW weights, whether free or greco is irrelevant so long as there is more equity.

[BruceyB]

5 minutes ago, bnwtwg said:

Who said anything about eleven weight classes? The ask is merely to adjust to the UWW weights, whether free or greco is irrelevant so long as there is more equity.

57 kg (125 lbs)

61 kg (134 lbs) (non-Olympic class)

65 kg (143 lbs)

70 kg (154 lbs) (non-Olympic class)

74 kg (163 lbs)

79 kg (174 lbs) (non-Olympic class)

86 kg (190 lbs)

92 kg (203 lbs) (non-Olympic class)

97 kg (214 lbs)

125 kg (276 lbs)

4 weights between from 190 to 276 is the problem with international wrestling. 40% of the roster allocations reserved for athletes that walk around at 200+ pounds is never going to help the sport. Argue about shifting college weights all you want, but I would never trade our current weights for international. Essentially with the shifting you are eliminating the 149 pound to add 214. Take a poll on who thinks that is best for the sport.

[Gus]

21 minutes ago, BruceyB said:

57 kg (125 lbs)

61 kg (134 lbs) (non-Olympic class)

65 kg (143 lbs)

70 kg (154 lbs) (non-Olympic class)

74 kg (163 lbs)

79 kg (174 lbs) (non-Olympic class)

86 kg (190 lbs)

92 kg (203 lbs) (non-Olympic class)

97 kg (214 lbs)

125 kg (276 lbs)

4 weights between from 190 to 276 is the problem with international wrestling. 40% of the roster allocations reserved for athletes that walk around at 200+ pounds is never going to help the sport. Argue about shifting college weights all you want, but I would never trade our current weights for international. Essentially with the shifting you are eliminating the 149 pound to add 214. Take a poll on who thinks that is best for the sport.

My suggestion was to stretch out the 4 upper weights to 175 - 190 - 215 - 285

[scourge165]

14 hours ago, 1032004 said:

Losing a middleweight to add a weight between 197 and heavyweight won’t grow total participants.  Raise 197 if you want to make the weights closer to international, don’t add one unless you’re suggesting 11 NCAA weights.

This is exactly what I'd do.

-You're losing a LOT(most) of the top HWT talents to Football.

-Of those who are left...there's still certainly a lot of talent and guys you can pick here and there who would thrive, but enough to fill up another weight class? I don't know...Keuter, Feldman, Trumble, Bastida, Pitzer...I don't even know who else, but a lot of the HWTs would cut to the 225 or 220 weight pretty easily. Even the 215. 

 

So as I said in another thread, I'd bump each weight up a bit. 

Not sure how I'd do that, but...make MFF Classes make some sense...they skew too heavy though(particularly given my argument about losing a lot of athletes to Football). 

125, 134, 143, 154, 163, 174, 190, 203, 214, 276
Makes those 
125, 133, 142, 150, 158, 167, 177, 190, 212, 285

I'd say make it matside weighins as that's...apparently popular, but I wouldn't do that. Just make those the weights. 

Quote

My suggestion was to stretch out the 4 upper weights to 175 - 190 - 215 - 285

I should have read all the way down. That's similar to what I'd do. 

Edited December 30, 2024 by scourge165

[BruceyB]

5 minutes ago, scourge165 said:

This is exactly what I'd do.

-You're losing a LOT(most) of the top HWT talents to Football.

-Of those who are left...there's still certainly a lot of talent and guys you can pick here and there who would thrive, but enough to fill up another weight class? I don't know...Keuter, Feldman, Trumble, Bastida, Pitzer...I don't even know who else, but a lot of the HWTs would cut to the 225 or 220 weight pretty easily. Even the 215. 

 

So as I said in another thread, I'd bump each weight up a bit. 

Not sure how I'd do that, but...make MFF Classes make some sense...they skew too heavy though(particularly given my argument about losing a lot of athletes to Football). 

125, 134, 143, 154, 163, 174, 190, 203, 214, 276
Makes those 
125, 133, 142, 150, 158, 167, 177, 190, 212, 285

I'd say make it matside weighins as that's...apparently popular, but I wouldn't do that. Just make those the weights. 

 

I'd agree that something close to your suggestion is probably the best move.

I'm with you on the matside weigh-ins. I've never understood the popularity. I can't imagine being in the middle of a tournament and having to "check my weight" in between matches, or even possibly in between drinks of water. I'm sure there is a system that could potentially work.. but the whole idea just seems like a hassle for everyone involved. I love the direction wrestling seems to be going with a lot of guys pulling much less weight than even 10-15 years ago, along with the frequency that guys are willing to move up a weight class, but if things were moved to matside weigh-ins.. could you imagine trying to fill a roster around everyone's ideal walking around weight?

[scourge165]

13 minutes ago, BruceyB said:

I'd agree that something close to your suggestion is probably the best move.

I'm with you on the matside weigh-ins. I've never understood the popularity. I can't imagine being in the middle of a tournament and having to "check my weight" in between matches, or even possibly in between drinks of water. I'm sure there is a system that could potentially work.. but the whole idea just seems like a hassle for everyone involved. I love the direction wrestling seems to be going with a lot of guys pulling much less weight than even 10-15 years ago, along with the frequency that guys are willing to move up a weight class, but if things were moved to matside weigh-ins.. could you imagine trying to fill a roster around everyone's ideal walking around weight?

Well...for the sake of the argument, I don't think they'd apply to tournaments, but yeah, I don't like them. What do you do? Waivers for shoes?  Or is that included? 

Two hours, that works. It's not like the old Wild West, when guys were cutting their nuts off. Guys died. Now, guy are moving up because...they don't want to spend 4-5 years being miserable cutting weight. 25 years ago Mesenbrink would be a '57(probably at UNI or something), guys like Kasak would be '49 pounders, SVN would be a '41. Barr probably...'74. Sinclair would be a...'49! Ok, little hyperbolic on that one, but '57/'65 isn't crazy the way they cut before the rule change. 

I think that change has allowed the sport to grow so much. 

When you're not spending every day focused on your weight, you're getting stronger, working in practice on something other than just sweating and being ground down. 

 

For all the hand-wringing over the problems with the sport, I see more talent and better Wrestling than ever. 

 

***Off Topic, but just got to thinking about a hypothetical duel 25 years apart and remembered how awesome that '99 class was, so...just wanted to suggest it. 

I'd like to see a 1999 vs 2024 hypothetical duel;

125-Stephen Abas(Soph) vs?
133-Guerrero(3rd Title) vs Crookham
141-Schwab vs Mendez
149-TJ Williams vs Henson/SVN
157-Casey Cunningham vs Kasak
165-Kirk White vs Mesenbrink
174-Glenn Pritzlaff vs O'Toole/Haines
184-Cael(Freshmen)vs Starroci
197-Hartung vs....?
HWT-Neal vs Gable

 

That list on the left is a completed, finished list. The one on the right is not. I think Lillendahl could end up with 2-3 or even 4 titles, I think Crookham lost his last match last year when he took a 3rd, Mendez is on his way to potentially winning 3, Hensen the defending Champ or SVN, 3rd as a True Fresh, Kasak, same. Mesenbrink, like Cookham, I believe he's lost his last College match, O'Toole and Haines are going to end up with 5 titles between the two and they'll end up with 4 more top 3 finishes. 
5X for Starroci, who knows about Barr and Gable is the greatest D1 HWT Wrestler of all-time, I'll let the old heads discuss him vs the 6X Champ who went on to become a stud for the Steelers!

 

 

[1032004]

6 hours ago, bnwtwg said:

Who said anything about eleven weight classes? The ask is merely to adjust to the UWW weights, whether free or greco is irrelevant so long as there is more equity.

So adjust some of the UWW weights downward?  Now you’re talking, although I have a feeling that’s not what you meant.

I don’t think you answered in the other thread, but what’s your opinion on raising 197 (and probably 184)?

[bnwtwg]

18 hours ago, 1032004 said:

So adjust some of the UWW weights downward?  Now you’re talking, although I have a feeling that’s not what you meant.

I don’t think you answered in the other thread, but what’s your opinion on raising 197 (and probably 184)?

Or adjust to the rest of the world?

[1032004]

2 minutes ago, bnwtwg said:

Or adjust to the rest of the world?

 

18 hours ago, 1032004 said:

I don’t think you answered in the other thread, but what’s your opinion on raising 197 (and probably 184)?

 

[BruceyB]

41 minutes ago, bnwtwg said:

Or adjust to the rest of the world?

I guess we are just skipping the whole point of the discussion, eh @1032004?