Eagle26

1904 and 1908 were a lot different times, so it’s hard to compare. There were no world championships then so we don’t know how many if any he would’ve won. Overall gold medal count is 2 for Mehnert and 4+ for everyone else. Olympics are weighted higher than worlds but IMO it’s not much if any more difficult of a feat. Plus, technically speaking, we all know guys today are waaaaay better than they were 120 years ago!

That’s pretty much exactly how I see it. Top 4 should be easy. 1/2 is debatable between Burroughs and Smith but I’m giving the nod to JB. 3 is Big Bruce, 4 is Snyder, and 5 is another debate between DT and Dake. DT has the all important Olympic gold which is really the only thing that keeps him the conversation with Dake. I just can’t put him over Dake in any list because of how many times Dake actually beat him. Then again, I can’t put anyone in the top 5 all time that doesn’t have an Olympic gold. I don’t know what to do lol. Maybe Dake will get it done in 2028 and make it easy for us.

They had 16 guys that won 3 or more titles, and I think close to 40 that won 2 or more. So he might be in the top 50. That’s no disrespect to Hendrickson… he had an amazing year and I’m a huge fan. Just pointing out the history of OK St is pretty crazy

If a big name enters the portal at 285, DT and Cael are going to have a bidding war! Maybe Iowa too depending on Keuters status. Could be some major cash in it

I guess that’s why DT is still undefeated in fantasy matches against Dake I get your point but I have a hard time seeing a guy that finished 2nd as “best” just because they scored more team points.

I don’t understand how Taylor is winning this poll. The OP asked about best PSU wrestler so you have to assume that means while they were in college. Not taking anything away from him but DT is getting credit for things that he accomplished 5-10 years after he graduated lol. He was amazing in college too, but when the ultimate goal is NCAA championships, how can you put 2 titles above all those guys with 3 or more?

Seriously though, can you imagine if they didn’t have Gable and Hendrickson last?! It would’ve really taken away from the rest of the night. I’m sure everyone (except Carter) is glad they made the right call

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.

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.

Hayden matched up with Nolf, so that’s not much better. He beat him too if you ask me. Unfortunately, they only asked the ref, but it was definitely a controversial win for Nolf

The obvious answer is Daton Fix, but there’s a lot of incredible wrestlers on this list. I think Mike Poeta deserves a mention too

Agreed. I like the addition of Parker and Hardy as well. Keegan O’Toole needs a mention as well. He would top my list.

Maybe they would throw some big money around to get DT to switch OSUs? He’s from Ohio. That would be the best move they could make after Tom Ryan retires. FWIW, I think Ryan is a great coach, and I think they will be fine as is. I do agree they should hire a big name young guy who is outside the program to get on staff and/or get some bigger names to join the RTC

Fair enough. Yes, I bet Levi weighed over 174 the day he got back from NCAAs last year lol. Doesn’t mean he would’ve done well at 174 that year. BUT, I think he was probably already stronger than most 165lbers last year. And, I do think he probably could put on another 10 lbs of muscles in a year. So he was not quite the biggest strongest guy at 174 like he was at 57, but he filled the weight pretty well.

In regards to Haines, he has a teammate at 165 who is the best in the country. He sucked like crazy to get to 157 last year. Knew he couldn’t do that to himself again, didn’t want to wrestle off MM, so the day after NCAAs last year he committed to filling out to 174. Considering how much he was cutting, his genetics, and 9 months of strength training with the best program in the country, I have no doubt he naturally filled out to 174.

Did they show the interviews?

Yes, I know I’m playing into your trap, but recruiting is certainly part of coaching. So you can’t say “best coach overall”. We all know that’s Cael right now. If you want to make the claim that he’s best at developing his own talent, now that’s a feasible claim that you can use to get the Penn State fan going. You’re welcome.

Hidlay was awesome! I listened to him and Sparks on Matcast the entire tournament except for the finals and I really enjoyed it. I missed them after listening to the ESPN crew lol. Did anyone watch the finals on ESPN+? How was it? Do you miss out on the post match interviews? I may have to watch that next year

I have an idea for that… what about if it’s 0-0 after two minutes, the ref has to put someone on a 30 second shot clock and if they don’t score, their opponent gets a point.

He beat Geno, Geno just won the Olympics. There is definitely reason to believe he is the best freestyle wrestler in the world right now. Whether or not he would prove that, we don’t know. But to say he “is certainly NOT”, would be a terrible take.

And you are two takedowns away from winning… just like you would be if you had given up two takedowns when they were 2 points. There’s no difference

I don’t buy it. You’re down one takedown either way. I don’t see an increase in cautious wrestling because of the rule change. This has been a gradual increase because guys are so darn good at counter offense. This. The stalling part is an unintended consequence for sure, but I don’t think there’s anything to suggest there are fewer TD attempts. I think the 3 pt takedown gives you a better indicator of the more dominant wrestler, but is it worth the trade off of more stalling with a 3 pt lead? Not sure.

I swear wrestling fans will complain about anything. Who gives a sh!t… we are all going to watch them all anyway! They can start the broadcast hyping Starocci’s attempt at 5x and then end with the biggest name in the sport. Makes sense to me, but I could care less what order they are in. It’s all about catering to the casual fan at this point.

8 guys in the top 3 is just ridiculous!! AND we all know Kerk would have very likely taken third even with a bum knee if he chose to wrestle. They have a great chance to set the points record too. Best team ever without a doubt now!

Name a team where all 10 starters were better