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The forum is fortunate to have you D3 - all your time and effort to keep the rest of us informed has not gone unnoticed. Thank you!

When the two piece uniform was approved by the NFHS the "experts" told us that this would make us mainstream. In my area the kids that complained about "rolling around with other sweaty dudes" couldn't make it through a week of practice. It wouldn't matter what we allowed them to compete in, they were not going to be wrestlers. If they don't complain about the singlet, they will complain that we have tournaments and practice over Christmas break and etc.... It is a hard sport and not everyone is willing to take the kind of beating that it takes to see a good level of success.

Israel Borge is definitely going to be at 144 or 150 for this upcoming year probably. I think that is what he was planning on going for the year but probably made a big cut for super 32.

Oh, by the way... Jacobson won the bronze w/ a 5-3 dec. over the Azerbaijani wrestler. US U23 Greco isn't going to be shut out on the podium! D3

Just reporting what Willie said

I can't speak specifically to the whole process, but I know when I was in A school in 2013, there were a ton of BUD/S dropouts. I don't know how much of a choice they had in their jobs after dropping, but they told me that the majority of them were getting the "nerd" jobs because they had already done at least part of the security clearance process and the Navy didn't want to waste it. I feel like they have you pick a secondary job in case you don't make it through now. I had a guy that I wrestled with and coached who was removed from BUDS after Hell week because he got extremely sick from being so run down physically. They had him stick around to redo the course. He said that the guys that did great were those that had the mental capacity to accept that it was going to suck and just keep going until your body shuts down and can't any more. You just hope that it didn't shut down.

Brandt Harer deserves a shout. I think we all knew how good he was but not giving up a single point from the round of 16 on is pretty insane. Nadav Nafshi has made crazy jumps kid got pinned 3 times in the state tournament 2 years ago has like 50 career high school losses and just took 4th at super 32. Kooper deputy was able to wrestle 6 minutes with Ariah mills competitively which is something I did not really expect to see for Mills until he got a bit bigger.

I would probably do my tiers something like this: 1 - McEnelly 2 - Ferrari, Ryder, Sinclair, Welsh 3 - Allred, Smith 4 - Brenot, Fishback, Mantanona, Thompson 5 - Ayzerov, Cartegena-Walsh, Dean, Goin That is out the gate. There is room for a lot of up/down movement. I don't think Fishback enteres Tier 3, but Brenot and Mantanona could. Ayzerov could have the most 'bloated' record of the bunch, but likely has Goin and Mantanona early in the season despite a very easy back stretch - will be good come seeding purposes for him, though. Allred and Smith being upper classmen could see some reduction in production. Soldano could see inclusion in to this list very quickly. These are off the top, not sure if I missed anybody. Thompson, I so badly wanted to put at Tier 3, but with his showing at the wrong weight class (174lbs) two seasons ago, I just couldn't. Edit: For those who don't remember or don't know how I do my tiers - unless someone is unexpectedly decked or injured, there shouldn't be many 'tier jumps' with wins or losses. For example, anyone in Tier 4 should be expected to have good, competitive matches with anyone in from Tier 3 to Tier 5, but shouldn't expect to beat Tier 2 or lose to Tier 6. There are outliers, but these generally hold true. Disclaimer: This list can (d)evolve. Edit #2: The tiers are alphabetical, once listed. Don't get your panties in a bunch because I said Ryder > Welsh or Mantanona > Thompson.

Congrats to Payton, fantastic job. Bronze Medalist

That is where we disagree. Smith and Allred aren't touching McEnelly. Ergo, they cannot be within one tier of him. I believe they could both beat anybody in Tier 2, though. I don't see anybody in Tier 2 losing to anybody in Tier 4. I could see Smith and Allred losing to anybody in Tier 4, though. Mind you, they should be favored, but if any of them were to lose to Brenot, etc. I would not be surprised. To explain blandly, yet more fully: Tier 1 - Should beat anyone Tier 3 and lower unless a 'fluke' pin, injury, or something else happens (such as getting Carver'd or something of that sorts). Expect barn burners with Tier 2. Tier 2 - Should beat anyone Tier 4 and lower unless a 'fluke' pin, injury, or something else happens (such as getting Carver'd or something of that sorts). Expect barn burners with Tier 1 and Tier 3. Tier 3 - Should beat anyone Tier 5 and lower unless a 'fluke' pin, injury, or something else happens (such as getting Carver'd or something of that sorts). Should lose to Tier 1 unless a 'fluke' pin, injury, or something else happens (such as getting Carver'd or something of that sorts). Expect barn burners with Tier 2 and Tier 4. Tier 4 - Should beat anyone below Tier 5 unless a 'fluke' pin, injury, or something else happens (such as getting Carver'd or something of that sorts). Should lose to Tier 1 and Tier 2 unless a 'fluke' pin, injury, or something else happens (such as getting Carver'd or something of that sorts). Expect barn burners with Tier 3 and Tier 5. Tier 5 - Should beat anyone below Tier 6 unless a 'fluke' pin, injury, or something else happens (such as getting Carver'd or something of that sorts). Should lose to Tier 1 , Tier 2, and Tier 3 unless a 'fluke' pin, injury, or something else happens (such as getting Carver'd or something of that sorts). Expect barn burners with Tier 4 and Tier 6. Etc. I did not do a Tier 6. Seemed excessive for a three minute drill. I spent more time on this post than I did the post you're in question of. Also, as @fishbane does well explaining good reasoning, too. All these said, one of those 'other' scenarios are that styles make matches. Much like Sammy Brooks over Myles Martin there is such a thing as 'bad matchups' that should be taken in to consideration (and disregarded). Also, also - these are mine. Do yours. I'd enjoy seeing them.

DeSanto vs Megaludis is on for RAF02

he's been arrested as he should be. how many whacko leftists are arrested for their threats?

There is no accepted conclusive scientific evidence to back this claim.

I agree. We have known Vinny since he was in 7th grade, my kids wrestled with him on national duals. He is funky as hell, and his top game should not be overlooked. I think Paniro will be the one out this year, which is kinda crazy. Paniro is a DIE HARD Cyclone too, I mean lives and breathes it. Iowa State is gonna be legit tough man. This year is going to be fun! Iowa St, Penn St, Okie State, Iowa, Nebish Woooaaahh

Ech was going 141 regardless. Many people believe that is a hard cut for him, when in reality, he would walk around 152/153 and he would be in the 140's after practice. Jacob cannot beat Ech, and neither can Evan. Evan is in a tough spot because he could start on my teams at 141, but he can't here. So he will have to pull like no other again to get down to 133, and then there is that problem. Grice is good man. That doesn't mean Evan won't beat him, but Grice could start at many schools at 133. Hell he walked through that Cyclone open and he pinned the Mizzu starter (I can't remember)....BUT at the same tournament, the 4th string Iowa State kid at 133 beat JJ McComas, so you never know. Paniro and Jacob is gonna be a good one. Paniro athletic as hell, but his tank is not good. Frost is a machine. I think Frost beats Paniro and starts at 149. We will see if he tries to go up and wrestle Vinny after that, but Vinny is tough as hell too.

Or are 6 feet under and can not make it to the rally, I don't think Zombies are real, are they?

Alright... gotta go to work. Catch ya later! D3

Remember, he cannot do it alone. He needs a compliant city council. He just can't change laws by himself or he becomes a king and we know we don't want those around here. But to answer Braves concern, it is a matter of who will pay for this. He wants to rapidly raise costs for the city and that means higher taxation, but who will get taxed? Businesses and the rich. Businesses will just raise their prices and Joe taxpayer will foot that bill. So costs go up in the city. Businesses can relocate and that will further exacerbate the situation. When the rich leave the city, then the burden will fall on those that don't or can't leave. Then it becomes the utopia you are looking for when the city can no longer afford these perks and expectations are shattered. This is a voice of warning that many are giving. It is borne out of history and experience. "There is no such thing as a free lunch" is as true today as it was yesterday. Someone eventually pays for the lunch. And usually it is the little guy. mspart

Zach Ryder and Brock Mantanona will have a thing or two to say about it.

It’s gotta be one of the best weight classes in a while. Don’t sleep on Aedon Sinclair either. He beat McEnelly once at the world team trials and was damn close in the other one. He’s right there. My question is can McEnelly get to Ferrari’s legs? Max is so good from space and that one touch range but Ferrari doesn’t allow anything from space with his 3 point stance before he engages. I’ve been impressed with Ferrari since his who’s number one days. I’ll go Ferrari 1, Max 2 and Aedon 3. I think all 3 are better than Welsh but PSU has a couple good guys around his weight in the room so that might help!

And by the way... Black is pulled into repechage, thanks for the Egyptian winning his semifinal bout! D3

Yes. The schools in my area spend a ton of time talking about trans gender , homosexuals etc in 2/3/4th grade than they need to. It should be zero. Just do math and writing and reading.

Does Bo call Mineo Uncle Pat/Uncle Minnow?

AND... that's it. Black lost and his only hope for a bronze is for the Egyptian to win his semifinal bout. Other than that, Jacobson goes for bronze later on. Semis @ 11am ET... medal matches are at Noon ET. D3

Man, there are so many different ways they do it now. Some schools do simulations. Get down to weight, 2 hour wait and then scrap. Iowa St does that a lot. They want to see how you perform when you get down to weight. Some guys can perform fat and happy, but what happens when you get down. They rank that way. Then if it is close, put them in a tournament and see who places higher. I see it both ways, and I would do it how dresser is doing it this year.

They are 6 feet under. For sure. Maybe a few are still in their "SAFE SPACES". Do you remember those?

I largely agree w/ your tiers but I have a two part question; what makes you include Goin and what makes you exclude Neitenbach? I feel that's the only disagreement I have w/ what you listed

Yes

Tanxs for the correction... apparent switch that I wasn't aware of at the time. D3

Day 2 Mat Assignments: Mat A Rix McElhinney, Match 1 Mat B Kikiniou, Match 5 Ramberg, Match 7 Crosby, Match 26 Mat C O. Black, Match 17

Sure. Because it’s at no cost.

I love McEnelly!! My hope is he runs the table and Sinclair is runner up.

No Raney at 55; it's Kenneth Crosby.

I want SS eliminated in its current format; draw a line for a certain age group and go. I want the military spending reduced. I want efficiency and effectiveness increased in medicare. I don't know about cutting the budget but I definitely want the waste reduced. If it gets the deficit reduced... yea cut a percentage of spending.

I'm wouldn't have Ryder in the same tier as the others yet. Welsh - 2nd as a true freshman (174). Has NCAA wins over Wolak, Wask, Turley, Ruth, Ruiz, Kennedy. He was 5th at Senior nationals (86kg) and won the u23 trials (86kg) defeating Jaxon Smith in the best of three. McEnelly - 3rd as a red shirt freshman (184). Has NCAA wins over Smith, Ruth, Plott, Foca, Berger, Allred. He won U20 nationals and the trials beating Sinclair in both. Went on to win the U20 world title (86kg). Ferrari - He will be a redshirt freshman this season. Has not wrestled at NCAAs. Has NCAA win over Plott. Won Soldier Salute (184). Sinclair - He will be a redshirt freshman this season. Has not wrestled at NCAAs. Has NCAA win over Salazar. Won Soldier Salute (197). He won U20 nationals in 2024 (86kg) beating Josh Barr in the finals. In the best of three at the trials he fell to Josh Barr 2 matches to 1. In 2025 lost in the finals of U20 nationals to McEnelly (86kg). At the trials he again fell to McEnelly 2 matches to 1. He also wrestled at Senior nationals in 2025 where he finishes 2nd (92kg) to Hidlay. He beat NCAA champ Michael Macchiavello in the semis and out placed Plott. He has lost to Plott in the dual. Zack Ryder - Will be a redshirt freshman and has not wrestled at NCAAs yet. Has an NCAA win over TJ Stewart. 2025 Southern Scuffle Champion (184). Won 2024 U20 Nationals (79kg) and U20 trials. Went on to place 2nd at U20 worlds. Beat Mulvany and Ruiz at U20 nationals and Gabe Arnold in the best of three at the trials. I'd probably have them McEnelly, Welsh, Sinclair, Ferrari, Smith as the top 5 in that order. If I were forced to rank based on only NCAA results Smith is probably 3 and Ferrari 4 with Allred 5th. Ryder is outside the top 5 regardless, but that could change after national duals.

Trust me, you're not alone in thinking this after watching the interview...

The government will spend 10x% of our taxes every year every time period. No matter what you give them they will spend more. There needs to be an end somewhere and neither party gives a shit because it’s someone’s else’s problem down the road. politicians and politics sucks. Term limits for all.

That Bo Bassett trophy is ugly as hell

Some guys that stood out to me: Cody Clarke: Placed 5th, beat Lotier and Wenrich and lost 1 point matches to Noble and Kenny Jimmy Mastny/Judah Heeg: good at wrestling Gavin Mangano: placed 3rd beating Youngblut, Dean Anderson, Braylon Reynolds, and lost to Sam Herring 4-2 side note: Alex Rozas may have the best top bottom game of anyone

Brock just seems extremely undersized compared to them all. He’s very very good, I just think 184 is asking a lot for him.

It happens all the time. Tons of guys go to a knee and get beat. If it was an unsolvable defensive strategy we'd see far more of it. Most wrestlers spend a match trying to put a guy down on his knees. Go behinds and front headlocks are probably the most common takedowns in college wrestling. The only thing dropping to a knee does is make it hard for the other guy to attack from space. Once they engage the guy on his knee is doing everything he can to get off his knee because it's a disadvantage.

The problem for Ferrari and Welsh is both are so limited offensively. McEnelly got takedowns on Both ncaa champs. Nobody has rode Max either.

He didn't whine. You are the only one whining about it. You have whined five straight posts, whiner.

Don’t forget. The 11teen time ncaa champ couldn’t take Ferrari down.

We don't give points for step outs in college wrestling. I'm fine penalizing the drop to a knee, but I think it's a weird thing to get worked up about in a sport with far worse examples of stalling. The entire country parallel riding for RT and wrestling the edge in neutral seem like much bigger problems.

It is one thing to go to the mat due to being engaged with the opponent, but purposely going to the mat seems wrong. We give points for step outs, why not for step downs?

The Tony Davis one was insane. Three part episode. Dude went from being the GOAT in Illinois kids' wrestling, to one of the top junior prospects in the country, to dropout gangbanger getting jumped in the streets as a whole life spiral that started when he lost to Reggie Wright in the state final. Then after a lot of hard work, the right team around him, and big change of scenery he winds up losing in the NCAA final to former teammate and lifelong friend TJ, and then wins it all the next year. You get the vibes from the interviews that he'd most likely would have quickly become a victim of street violence (dead or in prison) had JUCO coaches and eventually Mark Manning not knocked on his door in that moment. Chicago was a whole hell of a lot worse in the mid 90's with gang activity. Talk about "wrestling changed my life"... what a story to tell! He is a teacher now (same with Reggie Wright, FWIW) so I hope he's inspiring a bunch of kids with his experiences/back story! Here it is: https://wrestlingchangedmylife.com/escape/

A big-budget documentary series on the history of the Twisters is a million dollar idea that I'll share with y'all for free. They've been churning out AA's, NCAA champs, and Olympians since the current crop of outstanding club coaches (Askren Bros, Zac, KD, Izzy, Pinnacle guys, Stritmatter Bros, etc.) were kids themselves? The story would be a positive story to tell about Chicago when all you hear lately is bad.

Joe Williams, Tony Davis, TJ Williams

That seems a bit generous for them...