Welsh to PSU makes no sense

[Caveira]

  On 3/28/2025 at 2:08 AM, Eagle26 said:

It really does make no sense. I can’t imagine Welsh picked PSU without getting any cash. In this day of NILs, he’s worth a lot to many schools. But he barely helps PSU (if at all). Why would they spend any money on him? Eventually this has to have an effect on recruiting.

Expand  

I thought psu didn’t pay athletes.  Didn’t poach athletes.  Doesn’t recruit over athletes.  Nor do they rely on the portal.    #weird.  

[ionel]

  On 3/28/2025 at 2:12 AM, Caveira said:

I thought psu didn’t pay athletes.  Didn’t poach athletes.  Doesn’t recruit over athletes.  Nor do they rely on the portal.    #weird.  

Expand  

[macwoodfleet]

  On 3/28/2025 at 2:08 AM, Eagle26 said:

It really does make no sense. I can’t imagine Welsh picked PSU without getting any cash. In this day of NILs, he’s worth a lot to many schools. But he barely helps PSU (if at all). Why would they spend any money on him? Eventually this has to have an effect on recruiting.

Expand  

PSU's recruiting is really struggling.

[Fletcher]

  On 3/28/2025 at 2:28 AM, macwoodfleet said:

PSU's recruiting is really struggling.

Expand  

When you have to go halfway across the world just to find someone who will wrestle for you, then yea.

[macwoodfleet]

  On 3/28/2025 at 2:37 AM, Fletcher said:

When you have to go halfway across the world just to find someone who will wrestle for you, then yea.

Expand  

He moved here lmao.  "Find someone that will wrestle for you" We have the highest graded recruiting class in program history coming in this year on the backs of our previous best class ever last year. Cmon mane.

Edited Friday at 02:41 AM by macwoodfleet

[Threadkilla]

  On 3/28/2025 at 2:41 AM, macwoodfleet said:

He moved here lmao.  "Find someone that will wrestle for you" We have the highest graded recruiting class in program history coming in this year on the backs of our previous best class ever last year. Cmon mane.

Expand  

Right, Masa was saying he loved Cael after winning U20s.  He chose the train at PSU. 

Edited Friday at 02:55 AM by Threadkilla

[Elevator]

Of all the surprises of ass kicker transfers to PSU, this one (if it is so) seems the most troubling and potentially counterproductive.  They are so loaded at 174-184 that - incredibly- it does not seem like much of a marginal benefit.  Maybe there is something we don’t know??? 

[PortaJohn]

  On 3/28/2025 at 2:57 AM, Elevator said:

Of all the surprises of ass kicker transfers to PSU, this one (if it is so) seems the most troubling and potentially counterproductive.  They are so loaded at 174-184 that - incredibly- it does not seem like much of a marginal benefit.  Maybe there is something we don’t know??? 

Expand  

I think Cael has created an environment that there is only a loyalty to wrestling.  He's only selling the narrative that it's the best room in the country.  If a guy is not good enough to start then that's just the game.  It'll be interesting to see how sustainable this is.   

[Elevator]

Kind of expecting a Hwt transfer next??

[fishbane]

  On 3/27/2025 at 11:58 PM, MLB9 said:

Someone still has to sit the year after. I’d guess ZR would rather have three tournaments at Penn State than four anywhere else, but we shall see. If he can’t beat Welsh, he probably wasn’t going to place next year anyway. 184 will be loaded.

Expand  

Doesn't 184 clear out?  Three of the top 4 (Starocci, Keckeisen, Plott) graduate along with Foca, Washington, and Ruth.  Welsh should be preseason top 3 at 184.  Ryder could lose to Welsh and still make the podium.  He beat Parker (OU) 9-2 at the Scuffle and Parker was R12 at NCAAs.

[Wrestleknownothing]

  On 3/28/2025 at 3:10 AM, Elevator said:

Kind of expecting a Hwt transfer next??

Expand  

I have a friend in the Bahraini embassy who says PSU is working on a student visa. No idea who that is for.

[Chas2105]

  On 3/28/2025 at 12:32 AM, 1032004 said:

Serious question, has there been any PSU alumnus that did not transfer out and had notable international freestyle success that wasn’t at least a 3 (maybe even 4) year starter for the college team?  Seems like if they can’t consistently crack the PSU lineup, they probably aren’t going to accomplish their international dreams either.

Expand  

Until recently PSU didn't have the depth where guys like Ryder or Mirasola might use a year of eligibility as a backup. I'm sure there may be others but Cassar and Bearclaw are 2 that became AAs after spending more than a year as a backup. Neither came to PSU with the pedigree of the guys that may lose a year or 2 on the team right now. So my opinion on your question is that it really hasn't happened yet to know if any would have Sr. level international success. 

[ionel]

  On 3/28/2025 at 3:38 AM, Wrestleknownothing said:

I have a friend in the Bahraini embassy who says PSU is working on a student visa. No idea who that is for.

Expand  

[Fletcher]

  On 3/28/2025 at 2:41 AM, macwoodfleet said:

He moved here lmao.  "Find someone that will wrestle for you" We have the highest graded recruiting class in program history coming in this year on the backs of our previous best class ever last year. Cmon mane.

Expand  

When you can't recognize a joke, you may be a PSU alum.

[buckshot]

No guarantee Welsh can even win a spot. No way he can beat Levi so he'll have to beat Ryder to get a spot and there's no reason to think Zach can't beat him.

As it stands this is their bench for 2026:

125-Desmond

133-Davis

141-Nagao

149-Perry

157-Duke

165-Sealey

174-Henckel/Cunningham

184-Ryder

197-Mirasola

285-Bundy/Frichionne

It's not nuts to think Davis, Nagao, Duke, Henckel, Ryder and Mirasola could all AA. 

 

 

[Threadkilla]

  On 3/28/2025 at 3:54 AM, Fletcher said:

When you can't recognize a joke, you may be a PSU alum.

Expand  

Your jokes suck 

[cl415]

  On 3/28/2025 at 2:12 AM, Caveira said:

I thought psu didn’t pay athletes.  Didn’t poach athletes.  Doesn’t recruit over athletes.  Nor do they rely on the portal.    #weird.  

Expand  

Right PSU has never actually recruited a transfer. Anyone who has ever came to PSU via the portal (including the UWW portal) actually recruited Cael.

[macwoodfleet]

  On 3/28/2025 at 3:54 AM, Fletcher said:

When you can't recognize a joke, you may be a PSU alum.

Expand  

 Jokes are funny. Granted, you are a clown, and they're supposed to be funny.

[BarSeries]

  On 3/27/2025 at 11:58 PM, MLB9 said:

I’d guess ZR would rather have three tournaments at Penn State than four anywhere else

Expand  

That's actually insane. 

[Eagle26]

  On 3/28/2025 at 2:28 AM, macwoodfleet said:

PSU's recruiting is really struggling.

Expand  

Eventually was the key word… meaning it obviously hasn’t yet, but it will. When you have guys like Davis, Nagao, Ryder, all losing their spots and then see guys like Barraclough having success elsewhere, I think things are going to change. I know they’ve done a lot of recruiting over guys in the past but this is a new level. They already have a lot more guys in the portal than I ever remember. 

[1032004]

  On 3/28/2025 at 3:45 AM, Chas2105 said:

Until recently PSU didn't have the depth where guys like Ryder or Mirasola might use a year of eligibility as a backup. I'm sure there may be others but Cassar and Bearclaw are 2 that became AAs after spending more than a year as a backup. Neither came to PSU with the pedigree of the guys that may lose a year or 2 on the team right now. So my opinion on your question is that it really hasn't happened yet to know if any would have Sr. level international success. 

Expand  

Maybe not as much as they have now, but they have had guys like Mason Manville and Joe Lee come in with age level freestyle success, not be able to crack the starting lineup for an extended period yet stay in the PSU room but then not really do anything post-collegiately either.

[juniorvarsity]

My opinion, and I guess it is beginning to seem like an outdated view, is that you shouldn't being in guys from the portal when you already have someone. 

Why take Welsh when you have Ryder, a U20 silver medalist. Oh an Will Henckel will have overlapping eligibility with everyone too. Oh, and Connor Mirasola is coming out of redshirt at 197 And Josh Barr isn't going down to 184 to make that work.

Why take Ono when you have Marcus Blaze, two AAs at 133, and a Nate Desmond who will be stuck behind Lilledahl, and Lilledahl might even need to go up to 133 in the future. 

Carl is selling memberships to the Penn State wrestling room, and that seems to be all that these kids care about. Blue chip recruits are going to continue to lose years of eligibility there, and they think they are better for it. 

[1032004]

  On 3/28/2025 at 3:10 AM, Elevator said:

Kind of expecting a Hwt transfer next??

Expand  

Before the Welsh news, Willie mentioned a rumor of Feldman talking to Penn State, he said it wasn’t true, maybe that was really Welsh, or maybe it was true.   One Mirasola was already likely being squeezed out of the lineup, so that could make sense if they both leave 

[Kov88]

  On 3/28/2025 at 11:53 AM, 1032004 said:

Before the Welsh news, Willie mentioned a rumor of Feldman talking to Penn State, he said it wasn’t true, maybe that was really Welsh, or maybe it was true.   One Mirasola was already likely being squeezed out of the lineup, so that could make sense if they both leave 

Expand  

Feldman’s dad laughed at that rumor btw

[Cowboy08]

What weight is PJ Duke projected at?  Kid has been an absolute menace in high school and I feel like he is an afterthought as a PSU recruit even as the #1 prospect lol