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Hasn't been discussed here, but this officially came down the pipe this morning. https://lehighsports.com/news/2025/5/27/lehigh-university-adds-womens-wrestling-as-26th-varsity-sport Sixth D1 to add the sport, joining Iowa, Presbyterian, Sacred Heart, Lindenwood and Delaware State. Among NCAA schools, that's now 116 teams. As of this moment, there's 37 Division II schools with the sport and 74 Division III. Definitely a plus since the academic profile of Lehigh is a draw.

In response to my returning points thread, someone on 34andcounting asked what kind of points could a freshman be expected to score at the NCAA Tournament. Using Willie's Big Board data I decided to take a look. One huge caveat is that the numbers below are fitted lines through some VERY noisy data. The first thing I looked at was the odds of qualifying for the tournament based on BB rank. There are 12 years worth of graduating classes in the data (2013 - 2023) that have completed true freshman and redshirt freshman years. For these calcs I am including true freshmen and redshirt freshmen for each high school graduating year. For example, for 2022 grads I include 2023 true freshmen plus 2024 redshirt freshmen. 80% of Success is Showing Up 100% of #1 Big Boarders qualified for the tournament as either a true freshman or a redshirt freshman. These are your only sure things. By the time you get to the #10 BB it is a 50/50 proposition whether they even qualify for the tournament, never mind score once they get there. No Participation Points But you can't just show up. Once a freshman makes the tournament they still need to score. Combining scoring with probability of making the tournament steepens the curve somewhat. At almost 18 points per, #1 BB can be expected to score in the high teens in their freshmen year (true or redshirt). But that is it. No other rank cracks double digits. And by the time you get to the #10 ranked freshman recruit you are looking at about 4 points. Bring in da' Noise, Bring in da' Funk That really should be Mitchell Mesenbrink's walk out music. Remember what I said about the noise in the data? Mesenbrink is the physical embodiment of that noise (and he was trained by the Master of Funk). As the #59 ranked wrestler in his class, the line above suggests he is good for about a half a point in his freshman year. Well, at 19.5 points he is what we would call an outlier. And the reason you should take this with a grain of salt.

Never has so much time been spent talking about something that hardly ever happens. Thrust me on this, the people who have their panties in a bunch over this not only don’t watch women’s sports, they HATE women’s sports. It’s just an excuse for bigots to bully a marginalized group.

**Caveat, I do not know Ben Askren...or at least I don't talk to Ben Askren, but I know SOME people who are in his circle. Acute Pneumonia is what I've heard. I asked about the staph infection and apparently he had one, but that's not a pressing issue at the moment. While acute pneumonia can be deadly, it is GENERALLY only deadly for people who have pre-existing conditions or who are not in good shape. Knowing what I know of Ben, he could go out and run a marathon(well...just prior to this he could have) and wrestled a full 7 minute match. I couldn't understand if he was in a medically induced coma, if he was given something to help him sleep or if he was non-responsive from the pneumonia. It sounded like he was unresponsive because the Drs had given him something... but to make VERY-VERY clear, this is someone I know who is tangentially related to AWA and who may or may not have spoken to someone who's in the know. But the key here and the only thing I got that I have confidence in, is that it was acute pneumonia and the dangers of that are mostly impacted by your pre-existing conditions. So...the type of thing you would think a world class athlete like Ben Askren could suffer from.... but I would suspect the way he lives and how he takes care of himself will make all the difference here. Here's hoping he's on Flo or something in a couple months talking about how much this sucked and what a fluke thing it was. I wouldn't bet against Askren.

With the USA's struggles at 65kg over the past twenty years and the revolving door that is USA reps at the weight, I went back year by year to 2006 and looked found every medalist in Worlds and Olympics. During this span, 12 wrestlers have represented the red white and blue. 6 of them were 1 time reps. 4 have represented the USA twice. Zain has been the man on three separate occasions, and Metcalf leads the pack with 4 trips to the World Championships. This made me wonder if other countries have had a similar lack of continuity with their representatives, as well as similar struggles to place at the worlds most competitive weight class. Here are the most to least medals by country since 2006. 1. Russia: 12 total medals from 8 different wrestlers. 4 gold, 2 silver, 6 bronze 2. Japan: 6 medals from 3 different wrestlers. 4 gold, 1 silver, 1 bronze 3. India: 6 medals from two different wrestlers. 1 gold, 2 silver, 3 bronze 4. Iran: 5 medals from 3 different wrestlers. 1 gold, 3 silver, 1 bronze 5: Georgia: 5 medals from 2 different wrestlers. 1 gold, 1 silver, 3 bronze 6. Cuba: 5 medals from 2 different wrestlers. 1 silver, 4 bronze 7. Hungary: 3 medals from Muszukajev. 1 gold, 2 bronze 8. Azerbaijan: 3 medals from two different wrestlers. 3 silver 9. Mongolia: 3 medals from two different wrestlers. 3 bronze 10. Turkey: 2 gold medals from Sahin. 11: USA: 1 gold from Zadick, 1 silver from Diakomihalis. 12. Italy: Chamizo 1 gold, 1 bronze / Armenia: 1 gold and 1 bronze. 13: Ukraine, Navruzov, Kazakhstan, Puerto Rico all with 1 silver and 1 bronze each. 14. Poland with 1 silver. 15. Moldova, Kyrgyzstan, and Albania with 1 bronze each. Some other interesting notes that I discovered during this research include.. No wrestler has won 3 golds at 65kg, and only three have claimed 2. Otuguru for Japan, Romonov for Russia, and Sahin for Turkey. Only Tushishvili of Georgia, Lopez of Cuba, Punia of India, Romonov, Muszukajev, and Yonemitsu have medaled 3 times at the weight. Only Tushishvili and Punia have earned four medals with 1 silver and 3 bronze respectively, and no one has 5 medals. Of the 40 medalists over the past 20 years, exactly 20 of those wrestlers earned just 1 medal at the weight class. I spent far too much time putting this together (I'm sure someone better with excel could have done it much faster than I) and maybe @Wrestleknownothing can create an interesting graphic from this information if it suits his interest. Nevertheless, if you actually take the time to read this, I'd love to for you to share any takeaways you might have from the information, how it pertains to USA wrestling, or just the landscape of 65kg as a whole.

I just threw up a new database that has all ~40k matches that have taken place at the NCAA D1 championships. Check it out here. I just noticed the search and filter aren't working. I'm going to have to reach out to try and figure out why. Enjoy!

He's going to NYCRTC

Someone on the Penn State forum posted a screen grab of a picture she posted on Twitter. She pulls no punches, that is for sure.

Class of 2027 Guesses: ****Please note, I have no inside info, these are just some guesses based on a myriad of different factors and maybe what seems to make sense, at least to me.*** Melvin Miller- Iowa. Just do not see a world where he does not go with Bo to Iowa. Not even sure where I would guess outside of Iowa. Obv everyone will be after him, he is an absolute monster. Joe Bachman- Lehigh or PSU. I think Lehigh has a really good year next year which attracts some more folks and they also do a great job with their guys and education is top notch, feels like a fit maybe. If not Lehigh, would be hard to see PSU letting him slip out of PA. Saw UPenn in the mix somewhere, maybe this forum, so that could be a thing as well. Darian Cruz is a really good assistant I think. Sonny Amato- Rutgers or VA Tech. Amato is a huge talent and it would be hard see RU letting him get away, because I am sure they want to lock Jersey down. Seems like he would also be a fit with VA Tech because he is in that weight range where they have had lots of success recently. Landon Sidun- Iowa, PSU, and VA Tech- Iowa very much in play per willie so obv that is an indicator. Kid is a massive talent and VA Tech has signed some real dudes of late so just a thought. PSU should also be a player here I am guessing as it would be hard to see him leaving PA. Side note would be awesome to see Pitt snag him- maybe with Roselli there they have a shot. Borge- Oklahoma State or Mizzou- Just going based off geography here. I know as a youth he wrestled out of MO, so figuring would be a homecoming of sorts, and am also guessing they know him pretty well. As noted he will be attending HS in Stilly, so that would have one think they have to have a great shot there. I also think he can be a good bit bigger and end up 65/74? Maybe. Also, I could see him being a fit at Iowa. Burnett- Ohio State/PSU/Purdue. Burnett is really solid, well coached and competes hard. Again kind of a theme here but would be hard for me to see Ohio State not putting up a massive push to keep him home. However, teammate Blaze is headed to PSU so I imagine that relationship runs deep and he could end up there. Other teammate is at Purdue and I wonder with Ramos on staff if that is an attractive option. Mario Carini- Oregon St/ASU/Michigan. Carini has placed at everything as an underclassman in the heavier weights, which proves his mettle. It is a need weight for ASU and he is close, ASU has not gotten a ton of Poway guys but you would think they are in play. Also, Oregon State has had tons of success with elite CA kids of late and Willie noted that they will be one of the most improved teams in the country, so adding those two together this is what I have. Also, Michigan because they have a strong RTC and Poway kids wrestle a ton of FS/GR and also who wouldn't want a pipeline to Poway? Tsarni- VA Tech/NC State. Not sure here, kind of threw a few schools out there. Again, he is a monster get for someone and again with the trend of what I have written VA Tech has been getting some really highly ranked kids of late, so this may be a thing? Also, NC State in the mix, I would think need weight plus proximity may make for a great match. Lucas Boe- Mizzou/Iowa State- Boe from LHP in Florida so he would be a great get and could help a pipeline with a program that just seems to churn out dude after dude. Interesting to note that LHP goes to all the majors and their kids are battle tested, they may have had the toughest schedule in the country. That being said ISU is on it in terms of recruiting and I can see them going hard after him, because he would be a great fit with Perry/Metcalf. And I do not know why but I just think Missouri as well. Of note though, many LHP kids go to Ivies and schools with high academics, if that is the case add Cornell, UVA, UNC, and Stanford in the mix. Dean Anderson- He is my son, no comment. Clinton Shepherd- Indiana/Nebraska/Purdue. Not sure on Indiana, not sure at all but again you would think they would throw the kitchen sink at him to get him to stay in state. He has tons of upside and wonder what he projects. I saw him at UWW U17 trials two years ago and he was massive for 132, wonder how big he gets, especially after a layoff from injury. You would think Purdue as well would be possible (see Indiana comment). I could also see him fitting in at Nebraska as he is solid in all positions and just a go getter. Sean Kenny- Lehigh/Va Tech/Rutgers. Another really good one close to Rutgers. Rutgers really making the push to be a top 8-10 team year after year at NCAA's and that only gets easier with locking down top Jersey talent. Would think Lehigh would be a fit as well because they are going to have a great season so that may help the process. Again, see VA tech. Note in Willie's first calls he talked about VA Tech going in big on a few guys and so maybe I thought he would be a guy because he is certainly good enough to warrant attention from everyone. Knopoka- NCST, Lehigh. No real feel here but with a kid from CT guessing Jack has an in for NC State. Also Lehigh (I know bullish on them) academics and high level wrestling would be a fit as well. Hayden Schwab- UNI. Jessie Grajeda- ASU/Cal Poly/Oregon State/Stanford. Bosco has sent a ton of kids to ASU and not sure if the Valencia to ASU pipeline is as open as it once was but I am guessing he would be a fit at a need weight for them. Valencia at Okie State may shake things up a bit but they are so loaded in there may be hard to get someone else in there. Oregon State would be a fit as it was noted earlier that Oregon State has landed quite a few elite CA prospects. Maybe throw Stanford in there as they do not have tons of need but Grajeda is a good one for sure. Perhaps Cal Poly could make a run here as well. Kikinou- UNC or Cornell. Poway sending come guys to UNC (Navida/Towson etc) has me think they have a shot in there and it seems the Poway kids do lean to schools with high academics and wrestling, so mix that with Koll who did spend time in CA at Stanford and is a master recruiter/CEO and I think you have UNC in the mix. Also, see Cornell as it seems this may be a fit for him. He is a Greco guy and Oregon State has had some guys in the Greco mix so maybe that works? IDK Gabe Logan- Michigan or Cornell. Michigan connection with dad who was an AA for them. As for Cornell, he is a Delbarton kid and obviously the Grey connection is a thing (see Perentin). Seemingly, Cornell is getting a boatload of guys and they all cannot start so wonder what happens here if kids start to think there will be a massive logjam. Brock Rothermel- Pitt/Ohio State. Pitt is close and have Roselli who is really really good at working with guys so maybe that is a fit. I say Ohio State because I can see them making a big push into PA, especially if they do not land Burnett. Seamus Regan- NCST- From SC, rumored somewhere he likes NCST which would seem to be a good proximity fit at least. Is at McCort so he will be all over the majors (events) and probably will get lots of attention from everyone. Maybe the connection with Iowa comes into play here and they can pick him up, but not sure thats a huge need for them. Gavin Mangano- Rutgers. Long Island kid who would be close to home in Piscataway, so maybe that is a thing. New York has seen a resurgence in the number of kids coming out of it (always been tough but down a little for a few years now seemingly stronger) and RU wanting to be a perennial top ten may see him as a huge pickup. He is a guy that is long so i wonder how big he can get over the next 2-3 years which makes me wonder wonder what he projects at, which could change all this hence my only listing one school. Jimmy Mastny- Illinois/Northern Iowa. Mastny is really really good and Illinois would do well to keep him at home. That would be huge for them as a program to land him as he is a really good big guy who started his youth as a smaller guy so he moves really well and is not a plodder. I also could see him being a guy who would fit in at UNI style wise, just a gritty dude that scraps and hand fights hard. *****Disclaimer, I have no real inside knowledge on any of this, but as noted before because I have been to a ton of events with Dean I have seen a lot of these kids and followed this class quite a bit from Junior High Rankings to now*** Just thought it may be good to get the ball rolling on this topic a little before 6/15.

I am going to go out on a limb and say that one person did not cause this entire sequence of events. The person quoted may be the face of the anti-Focus movement on campus, but no way is she the only reason. Use your noggins folks, don't go down the Minnow rabbit hole. Actually, let me correct myself. One person did cause this entire sequence of events: AJ Ferrari. Actions have consequences and they can last a very, very long time both positive and negative.

His ordeal is a good reminder to check the donor box on your driver's license and/or your health care directive. You never know when yourself or a loved one will need a transplant.

LOL...this is dumb. It's happening in female high school sports all over the country. Bioglogical boys competing against biological girls in sports and smashing records. I have two daughters in sports and watch it all the time....and I LOVE women's sports - if it is actually women's sports. Don't come on here and claim we hate womens' sports because we don't want biological men competing against our daughters and sharing locker rooms. That's just dumb. Who is actually doing the bullying when a biological male is competing against a athletically marginalized group in biological women?

100% agree... this is such a non issue that's being blown up to create manufactured outrage... The amount of news coverage this gets by certain outlets in proportion to the amount of athletes this applies to is asinine. If those news outlets talked about school shootings or even rare diseases affecting people in proportion to this topic it would flood the airways 24/7. Transgender fuss is only happening with a certain subset of people intent on getting 'news' from a few specific outlets...

Anddddd this is why people don't say anything. Because people victim blame. It sounds like the said individual is a creep, did some things that violate teammates and women. Good for them for speaking up, regardless of timing.

#BuiltNotBought

Here's my two cents. I've softened on AJ. Not saying I'd want him on a team I root for, but I thought he conducted himself well enough last year that he deserves a second chance somewhere. Like everyone else, I watched him at NCAAs waiting for the time bomb to go off, but he handled his wins and loss just fine. Give credit where it's due. Minnow's a clown, but the UNC article does rub me the wrong way. Who is Madison Soltys, and why is she quote-worthy? It seems like the author is using her as a mouthpiece to basically say that the sexual assault charges are true, and that AJ's "camp" bullied her into dropping the charges. But no support is given beyond the accuser's say-so. This is where #metoo goes too far: The accuser deserves to be heard, but if she drops her charges -- no matter the stated reason for doing so -- it's unfair to hold those charges against the accused, who now has no way to prove his innocence. It's just too easy to lodge bogus charges, say you're dropping them because you were "bullied," and ruin someone's life as a result. I realize AJ may not be the best vehicle for this message, as his history doesn't exactly scream martyrdom, but the principle still applies. UNC withdrawing their offer rubs me the wrong way for the same reason. There's plenty of good reasons to take a pass on AJ on the front end, but UNC had plenty of time to do their due diligence and still said yes. To back out now smacks of caving to the post-article pressure, and now drags him through the mud unfairly. All of this said, it may work out for the best. UNC never struck me as a good fit for AJ. His personality screams Jersey Shore so for the life of me I don't understand why he isn't at Rutgers, where's he's just 20 mins from the NJRTC for tougher goes, or maybe Rider or one of the LI schools.

Ah yes, Pat, it's the girlfriend of a THWC member, who happens to vote for one political party, that is the problem here. It's definitely not the fault of the person who was attempting to wrestle for (counts on fingers) his fourth different school. Truth be told, I'm amazed that that woman had the stones to put that out there. Good on her.

I don't this doesn't come out as off-putting, but IMO we should just keep this thread to actual updates on Ben's health while avoiding playing doctor by trying to explain why, how, or what is going to come of Ben's current situation. I know that we are all on the same team, but we should stick to what we know based on the information that has been made public. I know that's not typically the spirit of a forum, but in this critical time, I don't think any of us want to give "opinion" on what may or may not be transpiring. This is an absolutely horrible situation, and I think we would all be best giving it space. Please continue to share updates, but let's not bring opinions or speculation into the picture anymore than necessary.

The gun

@Interviewed_at_Weehawken I blame you for bringing Jimmy over to the International forum that is usually a safe haven for the more intelligent crowd. You started a Jimmy style thread and desecrated a hallowed institution

Iowa State will find a way to lose this handily. On paper, they should have a very good chance to win. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

He's a dude playing a dude disguised as another dude

RBY deserves a spot for his contribution to the sport. He taught us all that a person can win with one arm tied behind their back.

You asked a general question and got a general question...and now use a very specific examples of a very rare syndrome. Of course there are going to be very, very limited syndromes and other things that come up in the discussion. Do you think that redefines the entire system of what a female or male is? So let's get right to the heart of it, what is your definition of male and female and do you support biological males with a penis with xy chromosomes competing against girls born with a vagina and xx chromosomes?

Last year's 2nd place gets 1st place this year after 1st place guy graduates. How bold of you

Happy Father's Day! This is what my son got me (he's 11)- it's awesome! A little book with 50 pages of things. Page 3 on the list below! How cool is that!!!

Take inspiration from Banana Baseball. It is the most fun baseball event I've attended, and some of their rules should be merged to the MLB. Banana Wrestling The match can consist of five 72 second periods. The winner is chosen based on most periods won rather than the total points scored. This makes it so one bad period doesn't cost the match. A tech or pin wins the period, not the match. Intentional mat fleeing results in the immediate loss of the period. Stepping out of bounds twice in a match results in the passive wrestler wearing a "COWARD" bandana for the match remainder. During the activity clock period, the passive wrestler scores points as normal. The aggressor has a Golden scoring opportunity where all points are doubled. A wrestler put on the activity clock two times in the match is immediately disqualified. The match is over when a wrestler reaches wins 3 periods, after 5 periods are completed, or when a wrestler is disqualified. More can be discussed here with regards to bonus for winning a period by pin or five+ points. Add some humorous penalties for passivity or lost challenges. You win the tiebreaker by escaping the banana splits... Things that engage the crowd... It hurts me to predict that standard wrestling will not bring the revenue to keep RAF going. This has been tried before... If following the International Freestyle rules, I have one request. Consistently enforce the passivity rule by always calling passivity on the truly passive wrestler, regardless of how many times it occurs within a period or match. Eliminate the practice where the non-passive wrestler is penalized for passivity in the first period, followed by the passive wrestler being penalized in the second period.

Exactly the same as UWW Freestyle. Sorry, but why do I want to see the best in the US wrestling another different style. If they are doing a different style than what the best in the world does it is a gimmick.

Ben Askren once called me a wimp on FRL. I hope he can do it again.

False, and shows you are out of touch. But keep saying the same thing over and over again if it helps you feel better. Supporting this lunacy is the only "sudden" thing that has happened over the past few years. Biological men should not be competing with women in sports. This isn't difficult. Stop being anti-woman, and do better,

This is sad and does bring up that we are all mortal and our time can come at anytime, no matter how fit, strong, or healthy we are. Very sad news for Ben's family and Ben. I hope he recovers. I had pneumonia for 2 months last year and the medicines did not work until the third and most extreme type. It just kept spreading. A few days after I got a shot in the butt of the last medicine I felt well enough to go outside and walk, and I still remember being amazed how how it felt to get a full lung of air. I didn't recognize I had much of a problem in that way, but it was incredible. It was a long 2 months let me tell you. I got the pneumonia shot a few months after that. I don't need that again. Best wishes for Ben and his family. mspart

Born with a penis for a boy with XY chromosomes.... Born with vagina for girls with XX chromosomes. Not difficult. 8th grade science.

Bastida

Does she get the equivalent of a VIP credential for being a participant? I'd get tech'd twice in under a minute for a lanyard that lets me roam around matside for the rest of the tournament....probably wouldn't cut weight though, need to be at full strength

This match will never happen Bassett career timeline: 2025-26 senior HS 2026-27 redshirt 2027-28 OLY redshirt 2028-29 RSfrosh 2029-30 RSsoph 2030-31 medical redshirt 2031-32 OLY redshirt 2032-33 RSjunior 2033-34 global nuclear war - eligibility frozen for all active athletes 2034-35 RSSenior1 (gets one additional year due to nuclear war the previous year) 2035-36 OLY redshirt 2036-37 RSsenior2 Ends college at the ripe old age of 49, at 197lbs, and 6.9 million dollars richer. He will never hit Stanich, Blaze, Forrest or any of his other cohorts.

Righty tighty, lefty loosey.

As the person who said Dean hamiti national champ in last years iteration of this I would like to go 2 for 2 with Jordan Williams 149 national champion.

Made a post in another thread and made me want to check something. Woods was outscored 34-6 in second periods between the open and trials. On the other hand, he outscored his opponents between those two events 61-3 in the first. We may have our very own American Musuakaev.

every missed test was after he retired (the OLY Trials) so who gives a rip? he was tested plenty, and never popped, during his medal run.

The bigger issue is.......there shouldn't be any to find.

I think redshirting in general should be taken away. Also no more double holdbacks. Especially in the top prep schools. Most are a minimum of one year hold backs. Some are close to three years after they take a post graduate year. So as a red shirt freshman some if these kids/men are 22 years old! It simple is not right. Guys like Duke and Forrest would be 3 timers instead of 4 timers. I wish they would reign this practice in. Then half of the low level D1 guys who are sometimes only 17 are wrestling full grown men. So unfair man. But with all that said PSU is another problem. Like a dang monopoly. Senior world team members should not be redshirting. Go to another freaking team man!

It's like I've read this thread and have responded to items before. The issue for the trans individual is very complicated I agree. There is plenty of mental issues involved and if they do transition, a lifetime of mental/psychological therapy that I would wish on no one. But that does not mean participation in sports is complicated. My issues are these: 1. No boys in girls bathrooms and no girls in boys bathrooms. Locker rooms are the same. 2. No boys playing against girls in girls sports. I would prefer that girls not play against boys in boys sports. The physical advantage is not there and there is the element of risk of injury due to this that is the reason there are boys and girls sports. In my mind, the girl is making the decision to compete against stronger and faster athletes. The girls on a team are not making the decision to play against a stronger and faster athlete when a boy enters the scene. It is being forced on them. And from what I have seen, if they complain they are shamed and bullied into submission by admin and coaches. That is just as wrong as bullying trans folks. 3. This is simple with regard to sports, bathrooms, and locker rooms. It is incomprehensible to me that people support boys and men competing against girls and women in girl's and women's sports. It makes no sense to me. mspart

Nebraska is the place for him. Manning is getting older. Bring Burroughs on staff for a couple of years & then Manning can retire. Much like Kurdelmeier did with Dan Gable at Iowa.

Texas and Florida are gaining electoral college votes. Blue states (including California and NY) are losing them for 2028.

Hopefully this is the end of him in college.

Not an AJ fan in the slightest. In fact, the opposite. I think he deserves every bit of bad karma he gets. That being said, UNC just had a basketball player arrested for sexual misconduct a month ago, they have a 70+ y/o Bill Belichick running the FB program while dating a 24ish year old, and who knows how many FB players have had legal issues. So to say AJ bring "too much baggage" seems hypocritical.

You actually subjected yourself to an hour and a half of these two pumping each others tires? I saw this on my youtube feed and thought, "that has to be the most insufferable podcast ever recorded."