InterMat Staff

Today, the lineup for the 2023 NWCA All-Star Match was released. The event will take place on October 21st at Penn State’s Rec Hall at 7pm (EST). Men’s Matches 125 lbs: #1 Matt Ramos (Purdue) vs. #2 Anthony Noto (Lock Haven) 133 lbs: #4 Sam Latona (Virginia Tech). #8 Connor McGonagle (Lehigh) 141 lbs: #3 Lachlan McNeil (North Carolina) vs. #9 Clay Carlson (South Dakota State) 149 lbs: #2 Shayne Van Ness (Penn State) vs. #3 Kyle Parco (Arizona State) 157 lbs: #1 Levi Haines (Penn State) vs. #4 Jacori Teemer (Arizona State) 165 lbs: #4 Dean Hamiti (Wisconsin) vs. #6 Izzak Olejnik (Oklahoma State) 174 lbs: #1 Carter Starocci (Penn State) vs. #3 Mekhi Lewis (Virginia Tech) 184 lbs: #1 Parker Keckeisen (Northern Iowa) vs. #2 Bernie Truax (Penn State) 197 lbs: #1 Aaron Brooks (Penn State) vs. #2 Tanner Sloan (South Dakota State) 285 lbs: #1 Greg Kerkvliet (Penn State) vs. #2 Wyatt Hendrickson (Air Force) Women’s Matches 116 lbs: #1 Jaslynn Gallegos (North Central) vs. #2 Samara Chavez (King) 130 lbs: #1 Sarah Savidge (Life) vs. #2 Alexis Janiak (Aurora) 136 lbs: #1 Adaugo Nwachukwu (William Penn) vs. #1 Yele Aycock (North Central) 160 lbs: #1 Marlynne Deede (Iowa) vs. #1 Latifah McBryde (Life)

On the final day of women’s competition at the 2023 U23 World Championships, Amit Elor was able to add to both her legacy and medal collection. Legacy is a strange word to use for a young woman who competed at the U20 World Championships earlier this year, but Elor continues to rewrite the history books for USA Wrestling. Elor’s finals victory today gave her titles at the U20, U23, and Senior World Championships for a second consecutive year. In 2022, Elor was the first American to win all three events in the same year, so she’s obviously the only one to achieve the feat twice. Elor now has eight world titles after counting the U17 and U20 gold medals she captured in 2021. Not only has Elor made history, but she has done so in an utterly dominant fashion. Today’s gold medal match was similar to her first two matches of the tournament. Within the first ten seconds of the bout, Elor got a takedown off of a snapdown and spin. She then proceeded to get an ankle lace and turned Jyoti Berwal (India) four times for a quick 10-0 victory at 72 kg. Like 22 seconds quick! Elor’s semifinal match was the only one that went the full six minutes and it was still a 5-0 shutout. In her three remaining matches, Elor was only on the mat for :57 seconds combined! In her four matches, Elor did not surrender a single point. In addition to Elor, teammates Xochitl Mota-Pettis (57 kg) and Macey Kilty (65 kg) both wrestled for bronze medals. Ultimately, each would come up one point shy of earning bronze. Mota-Pettis and Elvira Kamaloglu (Turkey) both exchanged points for a shot-clock violation, with the American getting her point in the first period. The decisive sequence occurred in the waning seconds of the bout as Mota-Pettis snapped Kamaloglu down and rolled her through for exposure. Both athletes were given exposure points; however, Kamaloglu’s occurred last, giving her criteria. The American corner challenged the ruling; however, the challenge was lost giving Kamaloglu an extra point for the 4-3 victory. Kilty also had an Indian opponent, Monika, who got on the scoreboard first as she shot a double leg at the edge and forced Kilty to step out of bounds. Later in the first, Kilty overextended herself going for a trip and stepped into a leg attack from Monika, who would lead 3-0 at the break. In the second period, Kilty was finally able to get some offense going as she nimbly stepped along the edge of the circle, avoiding a throw out of bounds from Monika, and jumped behind her opponent for a takedown. On the ensuing restart, Kilty hit a picture-esque swing single and, after a long fight, was able to convert for a takedown that pushed her ahead 4-3. With under :40 seconds remaining in the bout, Monika got to a single of her own. Kilty attempted to roll through and expose Monika; however, she was caught on her back. Those two points ended up deciding the bout, 5-4 in favor of Monika. The American women finished in fourth place with three medals. Friday also marked the first day of Greco-Roman competition. None of the American contingent made it to the finals. Tyler Eischens, at 82 kg, was the lone American to win multiple matches on the day. He notched a fall in his first bout and a 10-3 victory over Branko Kovacevic (Serbia) in the Round of 16. The only American from today’s competition who is alive in repechage is Robert Perez III at 67 kg. Perez III suffered a 2-0 loss to Turkey’s Mustafa Yildrim, who later went on to make the finals. Perez III will need to win two repechage bouts in order to wrestle for a bronze medal. His battle back starts with a bout against India’s Umesh.

Purdue - The Boilermakers were an insanely young team last season. Youth is a reason, not an excuse, and I’m a firm believer that there is a big difference between reasons and excuses. The expectations for this team are higher, as they should be. The team from last year is battle-tested and ready, and the expectations from fans and coaches are greater. One interesting thing about this team, is it might somehow be younger cumulatively than they were last season, but with greater expectations. The freshmen from last season now know what the grind is like, but they are still only in their second season in the lineup. As you’ll see, you might even get some true freshman and redshirt freshmen competing in the lineup this season as well. Regardless of eligibility status, these Purdue wrestlers are expected to produce at a greater level than they did last season. They have a strong leadership group of coaches and athletes and will grow into a real force by March. This is a team that has a strong and lasting foundation for continued success. TOP RETURNERS The Boilermakers have some solid bookends at 125 and Heavyweight. Matt Ramos starts it off for Purdue. Coming off of an NCAA finals appearance and being the highest returning All-American, he begins the season ranked #1 at 125. That’s the highest that you can be ranked, in case you were wondering. Matt Ramos should be one of the wrestlers who benefit greatly from the three-point takedown. He’s excellent on his feet and extremely dangerous from a variety of attacks. I’m excited to see an extra confident season from Matt Ramos, and what that means for his opponents. Hayden Copass is a returning NCAA Qualifier for the Boilermakers. He had a strong finish to the season at B1Gs, avenging some losses from earlier in the season to qualify for NCAAs. I am a firm believer that NCAA Tournament experience is hugely valuable to returning athletes. You come in with the expectation to return the next year, and I feel like most wrestlers meet that expectation with their commitment to training and continued growth. I’m excited to see what techniques Hayden has developed this summer to add to his humongous frame and athleticism. KEY DEPARTURES One of my favorite wrestlers of the last couple of years was Kendall Coleman. He was as explosive and exciting as you could have found in a wrestler. He had a great double leg and fakes that would get you out of your shoes. If you pressured in too much, he had a slide by that would leave you wondering where he went. He was a big contributor for the program over the last several seasons, and I sure will miss watching his matches. They are also losing Parker Filius who was a gritty veteran who, win or lose, would make sure his opponent wasn’t looking forward to the next time they wrestled. It was great watching him get on the podium last season, but this is a big gap to fill as well. Thankfully Purdue has a couple solid options to backfill these two studs. NEWCOMERS As mentioned above, the Boilermakers were very young last season. Even so, they have a couple strong newcomers coming in via transfer to bolster their lineup and increase the competition levels in the room. James Rowley, transferring in from Wisconsin, is a super talented kid and looks good at 184, which is where he is expected to compete this season. He was a big recruit coming out of Oregon and was second in the world at the Cadet World Championships in 2021. He was 8-8 in his redshirt campaign with the Badgers, but I expect him to have a big impact right away with Purdue. Marcos Polanco, transferring in from Minnesota, was an NCAA qualifier for them at 141 pounds in 2021. Marcos, looking to get a chance to compete full-time in a college lineup, has transferred to Purdue in hopes of doing just that. There’s a lot to be said about just having the opportunity to compete week in and week out, and the leaps that you can make as a wrestler with just that experience. I expect him to build confidence as the season goes on. Joey Blaze, one of the top recruits in the country, is making a strong case for going this year. My understanding is that they will give him a really hard look early, and see what he can do with his early season weigh-ins, but by all accounts he’s looking strong early on. Greyson Clark is getting evaluated as well as a true freshman. Another strong recruit, from this beastly recruiting class, could make a case to be a starter right away as well. Brody Baumann redshirted last season, but had a very strong redshirt season, winning the Purple Raider Open, Greyhound Open, and placing fifth at the Clarion Open. He had a record of 17-5 overall, and most recently placed top five at 79 kgs at U23. He is expected to be an impactful guy at 174 for Purdue off the jump. WRESTLER TO WATCH Dustin Norris was a favorite of mine from early last season. He is tall and lean for 133, but showed signs of development as the season went on. By B1Gs, he was closing the gap on many of his opponents, and had even pinned All-American Rayvon Foley. Norris has been looking strong in the room, and in my conversations with the coaches, they feel like he was really close to getting over the hump last season. He’s a guy to keep your eye on and don’t be surprised when he comes in with a fire lit under him. Stoney Buell was my breakout pick at 165 last season. He had some solid wins last year, including winning the Greyhound Open, but had struggled in B1G competition. The good news though, is I don’t give up, and neither does Stoney. Like Norris, he is going to come into this year with much more confidence and the knowledge that he’s seen this before. Purdue over the years, and with this staff, has consistently shown the ability to develop their talent. Especially talent with a pedigree like Stoney Buell. He’ll be ready this year and should turn some heads. Ben Vanadia competed for the Boilermakers at 184 last season, and like Buell, had some ups and downs. These three guys (Norris, Buell, and Vanadia) all jumped into the lineup early, and each of these weights was completely loaded in the B1G and generally throughout the country. In seasons with super seniors and super duper seniors like we’ve had the last couple of years, I’m not particularly worried about freshmen struggling a bit in their first seasons of competition. What you look for is indicators that they are getting to attacks, fighting through tough positions, and not giving up. I saw that from Vanadia as well. He will be bumping up to 197 this season, and from all accounts seems to be filling into the weight very well. He’s another young Purdue wrestler to keep your eyes on. TOP OUT-OF-CONFERENCE DUAL On November 11th, Purdue will wrestle both Army and North Carolina State. NC State is ranked higher than Army is currently, and conventional wisdom should tell you that makes them the top out-of-conference dual. I’m not arguing against that, but I’m simply combining the Journeymen/Wranglemania as their top dual(s). NC State is perennially a strong team, and Pat Popolizio always has his teams ready to go. Matt Ramos vs Jakob Camacho should be a great matchup at 125, and if Joey Blaze ends up starting at 157, then you could see him go up against Ed Scott for an awesome early-season challenge. Army is no walk in the park though. They have been doing an excellent job with developing talent and will have some solid matchups as well. They have Ethan Berginc at 125, and Ben Pasiuk at 174 who should provide some solid challenges to Purdue, as well as Nathan Lukez at 157. November 11th will prove to be a day to show the Boilermakers where they are to begin the season.

Last week we gave you answers to eight burning questions regarding the MAC for the 2023-24 preseason. It was relatively thorough, but at the same time, the MAC is a huge conference, so there is still more to talk about. Today, we have five more questions about the conference in the upcoming season. Get ready for some MAC-tion! 1) We’ve talked about a dark horse team. Who are some individual dark horses to watch? First and foremost, we have to mention Bloomsburg’s Josh Mason. In each of the last two years, Mason has come into the MAC tournament, on the top half of the bracket, and made his way to the finals. Last season, he was seeded fourth and took out Jaivon Jones (Northern Illinois) a match after Jones knocked off top-seeded McKenzie Bell (Rider). In 2022, it was Mason doing the upsetting as he downed top-seeded Dresden Simon (Central Michigan) and #5 Gabe Willochell (Edinboro) on his way to the finals. Both years he’s beaten a wrestler that defeated him earlier in the regular season. While Mason starts the year outside of the national rankings, he can and has beaten the best in the conference. He’s also shown he can shake off some earlier losses and focus when the stakes are the highest. For another one, let’s look towards Clarion’s John Worthing. It’s probably not fair to label him a dark horse as he already has established himself, to an extent, and has made the big show and picked up two wins along the way. Worthing is someone who established himself during a breakout season in 2022-23 and, more specifically, at the MAC Championships. Worthing knocked off third-seeded Sal Perrine (Ohio) and second-seeded Tyler Stoltzfus (Lock Haven) to clinch a spot at nationals and make the conference finals. Interestingly enough, Worthing had defeated Stoltzfus during the regular season, but had a few extra conference losses on the resume. With some attrition at 174 lbs due to graduation, Worthing started the preseason ranked #19 at the weight. While he might not be a dark horse to MAC followers, should he continue to improve he could turn some heads nationally and get closer to All-American status. 2) How many 149 lbers go to Kansas City? Let’s face it. There are some thin weights in the MAC. It’s really rough having wrestlers from 13 teams vie for one or two NCAA berths. One bad match at the conference meet could even doom someone who earned an allocation. The lack of qualifiers available at some weights can make fans feel good about seeing a weight like 149 lbs in the MAC. The conference was allocated five representatives at the weight before the MAC Championships. That makes it the highest total in the conference. Two other weights were allocated four slots. Because of upsets, when it was all said and done, six MAC wrestlers went to Tulsa at 149 lbs. The good news for followers of this conference is that four of those six return (Nathan Higley - George Mason; Quinn Kinner - Rider, Ryan Burgos - Edinboro, Caleb Tyus - SIU Edwardsville). In addition, Central Michigan’s 149 and 157 lbers have swapped places. Both were qualifiers in 2023 and are expected to contend for MAC titles in 2024, so it’s not a stretch to throw Corbyn Munson into the mix. In addition to those five, there are two others in the preseason rankings #31 Derek Raike (Ohio) and #32 Kyle Schickel (Clarion). If that isn’t enough, you have Nick Stonecheck (Lock Haven), who just missed out on qualifying last year. That’s eight right there and doesn’t account for anyone that emerges from the other conference schools. Now, let’s be realistic. With eight NCAA-level wrestlers in one weight class, they’ll likely exchange wins and generally beat each other up. It might be difficult for all of them to have good resumes at the end of the year. Ultimately, I think six is probably a safe number for this bracket again. 3) Along with question two, can any other weights approach 149’s allocations/qualifiers? As mentioned before, two other weights in the conference had four allocations in 2023; 157 and 174 lbs. In our preseason All-330 projections, we had both weights sending three wrestlers; however, in the “just missed” category both weights had two additional wrestlers from the MAC. Realistically, I don’t think any weight in the conference challenges 149, but those two weights have some good, safe bets for qualification amongst their three from the All-330, plus some strong secondary options. Some other weights that may push for four qualifiers? I’d look at the bottom with 125 and 133. I view both weights very differently. 125 has a ton of depth between the wrestlers ranked #20-#33 and from #34-40, if a list existed. The difference between #28 and #40 at 125 lbs (nationally) is very small and that #40 ranked wrestler is certainly capable of racking up quality wins. So what does that mean for the MAC? They have a handful of those guys between #28-40 with #33 Blake West (Northern Illinois), UR Markel Baker (George Mason), and UR Joey Fischer (Clarion). Based on the information we have now, it would be hard to fathom two of those four getting at-larges or allocations. The good news is that it’s a new season and a bunch of wins by those wrestlers (or others) could completely change a preexisting narrative. 133 is a weight that is very thin nationally after the #15-20 range. It would be much easier for a previously unheralded wrestler or two to make a mark and jump into the national ranking at 133. In the MAC, past qualifiers Gable Strickland (Lock Haven) and Richie Koehler (Rider) return, plus Virginia Tech transfer Brandon Wittenberg (George Mason) has made his weight into the preseason top-33. Again, with the composition of the weight class nationally, it isn’t far-fetched to think that another wrestler or two from the conference could make it four or five qualifiers. 4) You haven’t mentioned Rider much. Will they contend? I noticed that in part one! Rider seemed like a possible MAC Championship squad heading into the 2023 tournament, but didn’t have a great tournament. Only Quinn Kinner (149) and Ethan Laird (197) earned automatic qualifying bids. McKenzie Bell (141) was added as an at-large berth to bring their qualifiers to three. Laird went on to earn All-American honors, but has graduated and moved on, while Bell and Kinner return. Both could be considered favorites for conference titles. Other potential MAC championship threats for the Broncs include Richie Koehler (133) and David Szuba (285). Koehler and Jake Silverstein (157) are both past qualifiers that will make an impact again. A new face to keep an eye on is Will Betancourt at 125 lbs. Rider will likely redshirt 2023 starter Tyler Klinsky and give Betancourt a shot. Betancourt didn’t see the mat last season at Penn State, but went 15-6 in 2021-22 for Ohio State competing primarily unattached at 133 lbs. If the weight isn’t a factor, Betancourt surely could make an impact at 125. That means that 125-157 could be very solid for Rider in 2023-24. Should they get consistent production from 165-197, they might be a threat to Lock Haven/Central Michigan. Expected to see the mat for John Hangey’s team at those weights are Cole McComas (165), Michael Wilson (174), Isaac Dean/Brock Zurawski (184), and Asa Terrell/Azeem Bell (197). 5) Have I missed any notable weight changes? Surprisingly there aren’t “that” many when it comes to NCAA qualifying contender types. Earlier, we mentioned that CMU’s middleweight tandem Corbyn Munson and Johnny Lovett are flipping weights. Munson is going back down to 149, while Lovett moves to 157. Both have had some success at those weights in the past. This should give both a chance to contend for All-American honors at their respective weights. Each is the highest-ranked MAC wrestler at their weight nationally. One you may have missed was Justin Ruffin for SIU Edwardsville. First of all, we were under the assumption that an injury cut short Ruffin’s career last season, so it’s great that he’s back and ready to compete for the Cougars. Ruffin has qualified for three national tournaments at 157 lbs; however, he’s only gotten to wrestling in one (2019). The 2020 tournament was cancelled and in 2021 he was awarded an at-large berth but couldn’t compete due to injury. Now Ruffin is back and will start the season at 165 lbs. A move up in weight is probably a good idea for a wrestler who has dealt with severe injuries like Ruffin. InterMat does understand that there’s a possibility that Ruffin might move back down to 157 at some point. Another change to mention is one that has Clarion’s Cam Pine going from 165 to 184. Pine has won 46 matches over the past two seasons against only 16 losses. At times last season, Pine was very close to breaking into the national rankings. With more experience and a good partner like Worthing at his disposal, Pine might be able to take the next step at a higher weight.

Last night, the University of Maryland wrestling team took the mat for their Red and Black Intersquad event. After the action, Richard Mann spoke with various team members and head coach Alex Clemsen about the action. Head Coach Alex Clemsen 149 lber Ethen Miller 285 lber Seth Nevills

Carl Sandburg

The second and final group of US women hit the mat Thursday in search of hardware at the 2023 U23 World Championships in Tirana, Albania. The team’s most experienced and accomplished team members, Amit Elor and Macey Kilty, ultimately shined the brightest and are still alive in the tournament. In addition to the final five women starting their tournaments, two others who were in action yesterday wrapped up theirs in gold medal matches. Unfortunately, both Audrey Jimenez (50 kg) and Kennedy Blades (76 kg) would have to settle for silver. Jimenez was injured in the semifinals and was unable to compete in today’s final against Japan’s Umi Ito. Blades trailed by a slim 3-2 margin at the break, but was on the wrong end of a second-period surge from India’s Reetika Hooda. About a minute into the second period, Hooda used a counterattack to take a more comfortable 5-2 lead. Along the way, Hooda would add a pair of points via step out and another takedown from an errant Blades shot to win 9-2. From the crop of women whose tournament started today, only Amit Elor advanced to tomorrow’s gold medal match. Elor only needed a stunning :35 seconds to get through her first two matches, both of which ended via fall. In the semifinals, against Poland’s Wiktoria Choluj, Elor got on the board with a first-period takedown after stuffing a half-shot from Choluj. That was all the advantage that Elor needed; however, she added a step-out point later in the first period after shooting Choluj out of bounds. Late in the first, Elor snapped Choluj down and spun for a second takedown and a 5-0 lead. No points were scored in the second stanza resulting in an Elor victory. She is just one match away from winning three age-group titles in back-to-back years. So far, in 2023, Elor has won the U20 and Senior World Championships. Elor will meet India’s Jyoti Berwal in tomorrow’s gold medal match. The United States' other semifinalist, Kilty, notched falls in her first three matches, setting up a contest against 2021 World Champion Irina Ringaci (Moldova). Kilty got the scoring started as she dropped to a single leg after a throw-by attempt from Ringaci. The American deftly avoided a crotch lift attempt and was able to convert the takedown. Kilty nearly had a second takedown, but Ringaci was able to threaten with a crotch lift, then spun for a takedown of her own. Later in the first, Ringaci got to her offense; however, Kilty nearly sat the corner for her takedown. As Kilty readjusted, Ringaci did the same, switching to a double leg and a takedown. She’d lead 4-2 after one period. Early in the second period, Ringaci added to her lead with a step out, as she was pursuing a takedown. At around the 1:00 mark, Kilty got in on Ringaci’s legs and the pair got into an extended flurry. After many close calls, Kilty finally got a takedown with :29 remaining in the match. She quickly transitioned to a leg lace but wasn’t able to add any points from exposure. That left the American down by a point at 5-4. After a restart with :20 left in the contest, a visibly tired Ringaci dove in on Kilty’s legs and held the position for the final :15 seconds, which resulted in a win for the Moldovan star. Kilty will drop to a bronze medal match tomorrow and await the winner between Turkey’s Busra Efe and India’s Monika. Xochitl Mota-Pettis, at 57kg, will compete tomorrow in repechage, as well. Women’s Freestyle 50 kg Gold Medal Match - Umi Ito (Japan) over Audrey Jimenez (USA) Injury Default 53 kg Round of 16 - Beatrice Ferent (Romania) over Katie Gomez 2-1 57 kg Round of 16 - Sara Natami (Japan) over Xochitl Mota-Pettis Fall 5:05 62 kg Qualification: Agaugo Nwachukwu over Ameyalli Jessel Rojas (Mexico) 6-2 Round of 16 - Irina Kuznetzova (Kazakhstan) over Agaugo Nwachukwu 12-0 65 kg Qualification: Macey Kilty over Gilbery Garcia Franco (Venezuela) Fall 1:30 Round of 16: Macey Kilty over Kseniya Tsiarenia (Belarus) Fall 1:49 Quarterfinals: Macey Kilty over Amina Capezan (Romania) Fall 1:11 Semifinals: Irina Ringaci (Moldova) over Macey Kilty 5-4 72 kg Round of 16: Amit Elor over Zanieb Sghaier (Tunisia) Fall :17 Quarterfinals: Amit Elor over Viktoryia Radzkova (AIN - Belarus) Fall :18 Semifinals: Amit Elor over Wiktoria Choluj (Poland) 5-0 Gold Medal Match: Amit Elor vs. Jyoti Berwal (India) 76 kg Gold Medal Match: Reetika Hooda (India) over Kennedy Blades 9-2

Sheldon South

The college wrestling season is right around the corner, and there are potentially some top duals in the early portion of the season. Some coaches make a business decision to hold out top guys, and in many cases that works out for the best. However, fans can hope that they get the early contests that they are hoping to see. The following are the top six duals matches on the schedule for the month of November. 11/10/2023 No. 7 Ohio State at No. 4 Virginia Tech For three of the last four seasons, the Hokies and the Buckeyes have faced off in a marquee early-season dual. Virginia Tech got the victory 21-15 during the 2020 season, but Ohio State has won the last two seasons (17-13 two years ago and 18-15 last year). The Buckeyes have excelled on the recruiting trail and will bring an extremely talented lineup to Blacksburg. However, this might be one of the stronger Tech teams in recent memory. Currently, half of the starting lineup is ranked inside the top six in the InterMat rankings. The headline bout could come at 174 pounds where Virginia Tech’s former NCAA champion No. 3 Mekhi Lewis could face off against No. 7 Carson Kharchla. While injuries plagued Kharchla last season, he has proven he can go with anyone when healthy. 11/19/2023 No. 26 North Carolina at No. 18 Illinois This early season ACC-Big Ten clash could really come down the wire. There is certainly some star power in the field with No. 6 Lucas Byrd at 133 pounds for Illinois and No. 4 Lachlan McNeil at 141 pounds for North Carolina. However, the real intrigue with this dual is the potential for it to come down to the wire. The current WrestleStat prediction for the dual is 17-15, and it feels like it is the type of bout that will be that close. 11/19/2023 No. 11 Arizona State at No. 3 Missouri Next year, both of these teams will be members of the Big 12, at least for wrestling. This season, the dual will remain one of the top out-of-conference matches. While the overall match is likely to be a competitive contest, the highlight individual match will likely come at 149 pounds. No. 3 Kyle Parco, the likely starter for the Sun Devils, lost against No. 5 Brock Mauller back in 2021. However, last season Parco was able to pull out a pair of one-point victories over Mauller. This is a key bout that could certainly have seeding implications down the line. 11/19/2023 North Dakota State at No. 13 Oklahoma Roger Kish was the head coach for the North Dakota State Bison from 2012 to 2023. This past offseason, he moved to Oklahoma to attempt to revive the storied program. Interestingly enough, the two squads will meet in an early season match. The Bison were hit hard by the transfer portal this past season, but they should be able to keep it competitive against the Sooners. There are expected to be a lot of new faces in the Oklahoma lineup as well with No. 31 Antonio Lorenzo (125) coming over from Cal Poly, No. 26 Jace Koelzer joining from Northern Colorado, No. 19 Giuseppe Hoose (184) transferring from Buffalo and two-time All-American No. 2 Stephen Buchanan (197) finally making his Oklahoma debut after sitting out last year with an injury. 11/20/2023 No. 15 Pittsburgh at No. 22 Maryland Last year, Maryland found themselves in the InterMat dual rankings after a breakout victory over Pittsburgh. The upset was fueled by a pair of overtime wins from No. 27 Michael North and Dominic Solis, who bested Dazjon Casto and Luca Augustine, respectively. The Terps return the majority of their lineup from last season and added former Penn State heavyweight No. 17 Seth Nevills to replace veteran Jaron Smith. Pittsburgh will also need to replace Micky Phillippi and Nino Bonaccorsi who were staples of the lineup for years. Despite the losses, the Panthers will still bring a strong squad into College Park looking to get one back from last year. 11/26/2023 No. 8 Iowa at No. 10 Iowa State While the Cy-Hawk rivalry has been extremely one-sided recently, this year’s match is full of storylines. Iowa State coach Kevin Dresser is leading an impressive turnaround for the Cyclones, but he has yet to pick up a signature victory against Iowa. The Hawkeyes lost several key contributors from last year’s squad, but they reloaded in the transfer portal by adding Victor Voinovich, formerly of rival Oklahoma State, as well as both No. 2 Jared Franek (157) and No. 5 Michael Caliendo (165) from North Dakota State. Iowa State also visited the portal to secure the services of No. 17 Garrett Grice (133) from Virginia, No. 5 Will Feldkamp (184) from Clarion and No. 17 Cody Chittum from… uh… Iowa… awkward. Both athletic programs overall have dealt with issues surrounding the sports betting investigation, so it's entirely possible this dual looks differently than expected in November. However, this might be one of Iowa State’s better chances in recent memory, and it could be a very dramatic match.

Illinois - I’m excited to see what season three of Mike Poeta’s Fighting Illini looks like. I feel like season three for a head coach is where you can really start to see some of their recruiting efforts take form, as well as how their specific impact on their returning talent begins to develop. In addition to Poeta and company, they recently picked up 2x NCAA Champion Austin O’Connor, an Illinois prep product returning to his home state after a successful and dominant senior season with North Carolina. This squad has a handful of upperclassmen who were very close to some of their goals last year, including three bloodround finishers which we’ll discuss in a moment. Even where they didn’t have some qualifiers last year, I like the foundation of what they have and look forward to seeing how they develop. It doesn’t hurt either that they are building brand-new wrestling facilities as well. TOP RETURNERS When I think of Illinois wrestling, the first person who comes to mind is Lucas Byrd. The 2x All American enters his redshirt junior season ranked sixth in the country. Lucas Byrd has been exciting to watch since the moment he jumped on the scene and wrestles consistently in that he routinely beats who he is supposed to. Byrd had as impressive an NCAA run that you can have without being on the podium. He dropped a 3-2 quarterfinal match to Daton Fix, before dropping his Bloodround match to Jesse Mendez of Ohio State in tiebreakers. Mendez has since bumped to 141 and Byrd remains a dangerous and exciting podium threat. Edmond Ruth is entering his second full season for Illinois. He had a great first year with the squad, going 30-8 overall, and was one win away from being on the podium. He dropped his fifth place B1G championship match, as well as his NCAA bloodround match to Nelson Brands of Iowa. Ruth begins the season ranked 5th at a loaded 174, and if he’s able to add some more consistent attacks to his stingy defense, then he can beat almost anyone. Zac Braunagel had a great season for Illinois at 197. He also finished his season with a loss in the bloodround, but throughout the year had shown that he can hang with the best at the weight. He made the quarterfinals by beating Michael Beard, who was seeded 5th at the time, and dropped a close match to Ethan Laird of Rider (3-2), and then lost 6-4 to Jacob Cardenas of Cornell to end his season. The B1G has five 197 pounders between 7th and 12th in the rankings, and those guys are certainly going to trade regular season wins, but Braunagel is the one who looks the least fun to wrestle. KEY DEPARTURES Michael Carr stepped in for the Illini last season and helped them out with a 4-0 dual record, including a fall in the Maryland dual. He helped out where he could in his last year of eligibility, and ultimately ended his career by going 0-2 at the B1G tournament. That being said, 157 was a lot to ask of Carr. He had previously placed 2nd at the B1G tournament as a freshman at 141, and had been a strong competitor when healthy. Thankfully for Illinois, they will have most of their lineup back and ready to go. NEWCOMERS Replacing the aforementioned Michael Carr at 157 is expected to be Joe Roberts who transferred to Illinois from NC State. He was 11-16 in his first season with Illinois and 3-2 last year. I hope Roberts stays healthy and I expect him to have a good showing for the Fighting Illini. There is some additional depth behind Roberts at 157, so he’ll be pushed all year in the room to continue to improve and hold that spot. WRESTLER TO WATCH At 125 Illinois has Justin Cardani who is entering his senior season after not competing last year due to injury. He’s a 2x NCAA Qualifier, and should provide some senior leadership to the squad. He’s been someone who has shown that he can get some big wins. He has career wins over Eric Barnett, Michael DeAugustino, and Brock Hudkins, so he can beat some established guys. Additionally, he’s theoretically coming in healthy, so I’m excited to see how he develops. Danny Pucino had some super impressive results from last season. He struggled a bit at B1Gs and as a result, didn’t make it to NCAAs, but we shouldn’t forget what he was able to do in duals. He had pinned Parker Filius of Purdue in their dual, beat Frankie Tal-Shahar of Northwestern, beat Kal Miller of Maryland, and overall was 6-2 in their duals. He has shown he has the upside to compete with the best and I expect the disappointing end to last season will help fuel his fire to hit the ground running for the Fighting Illini. Never bet against Braunagels. For that reason, let’s highlight Danny Braunagel who is entering his last season with Illinois. He has been a 2x NCAA Qualifier to this point, and is expected to maintain his spot in the lineup at 165. For most of his career, he’s hovered in the rankings somewhere between 15 and 25, depending on recent results. He has yet to make it onto the podium, but final chances have a funny way of helping people to break through and finish strong. Dylan Connell is expected to remain the starter at 184 and build upon his 18-18 record from last season. He lost a close match to Brian Soldano of Rutgers at the B1G tournament before having to injury default against Lenny Pinto of Nebraska on the backside. He showed that he can be physical with these guys, and with 3 of the 4 B1G semi-finalists gone, I expect he’ll be able to assert himself as a strong young 184 to watch out for in the B1G. Heavyweight, Luke Luffman, is back for the Fighting Illini as well. He redshirted last season, but should come in refreshed and ready to reintroduce himself to the B1G field. He is already a 2x NCAA Qualifier, and he too will be trying to take that next step and All American. TOP OUT-OF-CONFERENCE DUAL Illinois begins the season off with a series of great out-of-conference duals. They start with SIUE followed by Navy two days later on 11/2 and 11/4 respectively. Next up is a tri-meet with Central Michigan and North Carolina on 11/19. Next, they travel to Pittsburgh for a dual with the Panthers on 12/3, which leads us to the real answer for Illinois. They travel to Missouri to take on Brian Smith and the Tigers. Missouri is currently the 3rd ranked dual team by Intermat, and they continue to produce some of the high-level talent. The best matchups in this dual will be at 174 with Edmond Ruth taking on Peyton Mocco, and at 197 with Zac Braunagel taking on Rocky Elam.

Papillion-LaVista

Forest Lake

Any drama surrounding the team race in the men’s freestyle portion of the 2023 U23 World Championships was put to rest by the American squad on days one and two. Three champions and a bronze medalist proved to be too much for any other country to compete against. That meant there was no additional pressure on the final group of wrestlers who took the mat on Wednesday. The Americans got a fourth gold medal from NC State’s Isaac Trumble at 97 kg. Trumble was incredibly dominant on his run to the finals and nothing changed in the gold medal match. Early in the match, his opponent Radu Lefter (Moldova), went for the knockout blow and tried a headlock. That proved to be a costly mistake as Trumble took advantage for the first takedown of the contest. Trumble continued to put pressure on the Moldovan with underhooks. He threw them by later in the first and tossed in a half-nelson to expose Lefter before getting a takedown for a 4-0 lead. A step out combined with a caution and a defensive takedown made the score 8-0 in Trumble’s favor at the break. The second period saw Lefter get on the scoreboard with a takedown. He looked close to another; however, Trumble showed off his defense and exposed Lefter with a belly wrap. Trumble would end the match and lock up a gold medal after he thwarted another Lefter attack and spun for a takedown and the 12-2 victory. In his four matches, Trumble posted technical falls in each of the last three. The only match that lasted the full six minutes was his first and that was not particularly close either; Trumble prevailed 13-4. The NC State star outscored his competition 47-6 across four matches. Earlier in the afternoon, a pair of Americans wrestled for bronze medals, with opposite results. Nebraska All-American Brock Hardy outlasted Goga Otinashvili (Georgia) in a wild 8-5 victory. Otinashvili got the scoring started with a four-point arm-throw, but Hardy never wavered and wore the Georgian down in the second period. The other American who wrestled in a bronze medal match was Penn graduate Doug Zapf at 70 kg. Zapf was never able to totally solve the problems presented by Azerbaijan’s Kanan Heybatov. Heybatov ran up a 6-0 lead before Zapf was able to get on the board, with less than 90 seconds remaining in the bout. Wednesday also marked the first day of competition in women’s freestyle. After one day of action, two American women advanced to the finals, while the remaining three that started today were eliminated. At 50 kg, Audrey Jimenez made her second world final of the year. Earlier this summer, Jimenez was a silver medalist at the U20 World Championships. Jimenez posted a pair of tech’s before getting pushed in the semifinals by Elnura Mammadova (Azerbaijan). Mammadova held a 4-1 lead with under a minute remaining in the contest before a Jimenez rally. After a takedown, Jimenez got a reversal and immediately transitioned to a gut wrench tying the score at four, though Mammadova held criteria. Jimenez took the lead after a step-out point and iced the match by defending a frantic Mammadova and ducking under for a takedown and the 7-4 win. Also in tomorrow’s gold medal match is Kennedy Blades at 76 kg. Blades has yet to surrender a point this tournament. In three matches, Blades has not wrestled three total minutes. Blades has locked up her third age-group world medal and her second of 2023 (bronze at U20’s). Women’s Freestyle 50 kg Round of 16 - Audrey Jimenez over Rubio Torres (Spain) 10-0 Quarterfinals - Audrey Jimenez over Neelam Sirohi (India) 12-2 Semifinals - Audrey Jimenez over Elnura Mammadova (Azerbaijan) 7-4 Gold Medal Match - Audrey Jimenez vs. Umi Ito (Japan) 55 kg Round of 16 - Alisha Howk over Immacolata Danise (Italy) Fall 4:44 Quarterfinals - Aryna Martynava (AIN - Belarus) over Alisha Howk 10-0 59 kg Round of 16 - Nichole Moore over Wiktoria Karwowska (Poland) 9-0 Quarterfinals - Michaela Rankin (Canada) over Nichole Moore 7-0 68 kg Round of 16 - Vusala Parfianovich (AIN - Russia) over Katerina Lange 7-1 76 kg Round of 16 - Kennedy Blades over Patrycja Slomska (Poland) 10-0 Quarterfinals - Kennedy Blades over Inkara Zhanatayeva (Kazakhstan) 10-0 Semifinals - Kennedy Blades over Kamile Gaucaite (Lithuania) 10-0 Gold Medal Match - Kennedy Blades vs. Reetika Hooda (India) Men’s Freestyle 57 kg Repechage - Niklas Stechele (Germany) over Cooper Flynn 3-2 65 kg Repechage - Brock Hardy over Pavel Graur (Moldova) 7-4 Bronze Medal Match - Brock Hardy over Goga Otinashvili (Georgia) 8-5 70 kg Bronze Medal Match - Kanan Heybatov (Azerbaijan) over Doug Zapf 9-2 97 kg Gold Medal Match - Isaac Trumble over Radu Lefter (Moldova) 12-2

What has become a preseason staple for us at InterMat, counting down the top 50 wrestlers for the upcoming season, is back for 2023-24. With a large chunk of sixth and seventh-year seniors gone, there is plenty of turnover from last year’s list to this one. That makes for a lot of fun and perhaps some spirited debates. Like last year, the third iteration of this feature will show five wrestlers at a time, counting down from #50 to #1. For each wrestler, we’ll have some basic information along with career highlights, and a brief analysis of their career (with an emphasis on last season), followed by an outlook for the upcoming season. Here are #21-25 #26-30 #31-35 #36-40 #41-45 #46-50 20) Cam Amine (Michigan) Weight: 165 lbs Collegiate Achievements: 3x NCAA All-American (4,4,7), 2022 Big Ten Runner-Up 2022 Top-50 Ranking: #23 It was quite the year for Cam Amine as he got onto the NCAA podium for the third time in as many tries. Amine’s season got off to a late start; his first event was the Cleveland State Open the second week of December. During the Big Ten portion of the dual season, Amine picked up wins over a pair of returning All-Americans in Dean Hamiti (Wisconsin) and Carson Kharchla (Ohio State). A fourth-place finish at the Big Ten meet followed. That led to the 11th seed at nationals. In what has become a tradition for Amine, he drastically outperformed his seed. That’s been the case for him in each of his three NCAA Tournaments. In the most recent one, Amine downed both Big Ten finalists (Hamiti and Iowa’s Patrick Kennedy) on his way to a fourth-place finish. His final win over the tournament came over 2021 NCAA champion (and now-teammate) Shane Griffith of Stanford. 2023-24 Outlook: Amine starts the year ranked third at one of the most top-heavy weights in the nation. Both wrestlers ranked above him are past champions and met in the 2023 NCAA finals. As rankings go, Amine is the highest-ranked wrestler in the Big Ten, which means he’s in the driver’s seat for his first conference crown. The big goal is a national title and, to do so, Amine will likely have to beat two of the best wrestlers in the nation in back-to-back matches at nationals. Currently, Amine is 0-3 against returning champion Keegan O’Toole (Missouri) and hasn’t met David Carr (Iowa State) in their collegiate careers. That being said, Amine is someone who has gradually improved each year in Ann Arbor, so don’t rule it out. 19) Peyton Robb (Nebraska) Weight: 157 lbs Collegiate Achievements: 2x NCAA All-American (6,4), 2023 Big Ten Runner-Up 2022 Top-50 Ranking: #38 Peyton Robb spent a large portion of the 2022-22 season as the top-ranked wrestler at a very competitive and deep 157 lb weight class. Robb navigated the entire regular season without a loss and came into the Big Ten Championships with a 23-0 record. During that run, Robb captured titles at the Navy Classic and the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational. Just in the regular season alone, Robb tallied three wins over two eventual AA’s, one over a past All-American, and two more over eventual bloodround finishers. Robb suffered his first loss of the season in the Big Ten finals when true freshman sensation, Levi Haines (Penn State), took him down in sudden victory. Haines would do it again in the NCAA semifinals. That led to a sixth-place finisher for Robb, making him a two-time NCAA All-American. 2023-24 Outlook: Shortly after the 2023 NCAA Tournament, it was revealed that Robb was dealing with a leg injury that turned into a flesh-eating bacteria and nearly cost him his leg. Gruesome pictures of the leg also surfaced, which would lead you to question whether or not Robb would be able to wrestle. Based on video footage and the word coming out of the Husker wrestling room, Robb should be ready to go for the 2023-24 season. If he’s close to top form, he’ll be a key contender/favorite at the weight. For anyone without a rooting interest at 157 lbs, Robb will probably be a sentimental favorite. 18) Ridge Lovett (Nebraska) Weight: 149 lbs Collegiate Achievements: 2022 NCAA Runner-Up, 2021 Big Ten Runner-Up 2022 Top-50 Ranking: #30 Back-to-back Huskers in the ranking and in the lineup as Ridge Lovett and Peyton Robb will occupy the 149/157 lb slots for Nebraska. Lovett is back after redshirting the 2022-23 campaign. The last time we saw him in collegiate action, Lovett was in the national finals opposite Yianni Diakomihalis (Cornell). Beating Lovett gave Diakomihalis the third of his four national titles. To get to the raised stage, Lovett the 10th seed, dominated #7 Josh Heil (Campbell) and pinned #2 Tariq Wilson (NC State) in the quarterfinals. In the semis, Lovett got by the dangerous Bryce Andonian (Virginia Tech), 5-4. Earlier that year, Lovett gave Diakomihalis his closest scare of the season when they went to sudden victory at the CKLV Invitational. 2023-24 Outlook: With both finalists from 2023 not returning, 149 is wide open this season. Lovett starts the year ranked number one based on his body of work compared to the rest of the weight and his past finals appearance. Lovett and his Nebraska teammates are seeking to become the first Cornhusker wrestlers since Jordan Burroughs (2011) to win a national title. There are a couple of dates to circle on the Nebraska schedule in reference to Lovett. The CKLV Invitational could feature four other top-ten wrestlers (maybe more depending on development) and is always a tough test. Nebraska’s final two dual meets come against Arizona State and Penn State. Those schools feature the third (Shayne Van Ness) and fourth (Kyle Parco) place finishers from nationals and they slot in right behind Lovett. During his time in Lincoln, Lovett has earned the reputation of a “gamer” and someone who thrives in the spotlight. So, if he were to drop a match or two along the way, I wouldn’t be worried. He’s proven he can thrive regardless of seedings or matchups. 17) Matt Ramos (Purdue) Weight: 125 lbs Collegiate Achievements: 2023 NCAA Runner-Up, 2023 Big Ten 3rd Place 2022 Top-50 Ranking: Not Ranked After finishing in the NCAA bloodround in 2022 at 133 lbs, Matt Ramos decided to drop down to 125 lbs since Big Ten runner-up Devin Schroder was no longer in the equation for Purdue. That proved to be a wise decision and Ramos finished the year with one of the most memorable moments in recent years at the 2023 NCAA Tournament. The Boilermaker was in the midst of a back-and-forth semifinal bout with three-time national champion Spencer Lee (Iowa). Ramos was almost responsible for the roof coming off the BOK Center as he pinned Lee to make the national finals. In doing so, Ramos became Purdue’s first NCAA All-American since 2013, head coach Tony Ersland’s first placer, and the school’s first finalist since 2006. Don’t be fooled by the incredible semifinal match, Ramos had an all-around great year. He won the Southern Scuffle and Clarion Open and was a finalist at the CKLV Invitational. Overall, Ramos went 35-5 2023-24 Outlook: Ramos was probably one of the most difficult wrestlers to place on this list. He doesn’t have the long track record of collegiate success like others on the list, but they don’t have a Spencer Lee-type win. He also had more losses than most in this range, but also showed up to wrestle more often than almost anyone else. And looking at his NCAA Tournament, Ramos had to pull off some magic to get through the quarters and semis. You can either say he may not win those types of matches again or think “he’s just a winner.” A bit of both might be where the truth lies. Ramos holds the top ranking at 125 lbs headed into the season. He’ll be tested right away in week two as Purdue faces NC State and likely, Jakob Camacho, a past All-American threat. Purdue also travels to the CKLV again which is sure to provide top-flight competition. He now has his sights set on becoming Purdue’s first national champion in more than three decades. 16) Shane Griffith (Michigan) Weight: 174 lbs Collegiate Achievements: 3x NCAA All-American (5,2,1), 2020 Pac-12 Champion, 4x Pac-12 Finalist 2022 Top-50 Ranking: #11 In each of the three years that this feature has existed, Shane Griffith has been among the top-16 wrestlers in the country. Griffin does so after getting on the NCAA podium for a third time; though his fifth-place finish was the lowest of his excellent career. He started his 2022-23 season with 16 consecutive wins, a span that included tournament titles at the Meno Open, the App State Invite, and the Southern Scuffle. Griffith has always been a wrestler whose performance rises along with the importance of the competition. In each of the last three seasons, Griffith has lost in the Pac-12 finals and each time to a different opponent. Every time he has outwrestled his NCAA seed and the wrestler who defeated him. While Griffith’s fifth-place showing stands out as being unusual, both of his NCAA losses came via a 2-1 decision, so they could have easily been flipped. 2023-24 Outlook: In the offseason, Griffith and the Northwestern trio of All-Americans joined the Michigan program as graduate transfers. They should help the Wolverines remain in NCAA trophy contention. With Cam Amine already at 165 lbs, Griffith is expected to move up to 174. With his long frame, he should be able to put on the weight just fine and not have much of an adjustment period. He’ll trade one monster weight for another. Like 165, 174 features a pair of past champions, in addition to Griffith. Should everyone enter, the CKLV Invitational is expected to feature two of the three wrestlers ranked above Griffith.

Dysen Gould is back and today talks with Illinois' two-time All-American Lucas Byrd. The two talk about the recent Illinois training cycle, the Illini coaching staff and why Byrd chose to come to Champaign. He also discusses the grind of wrestling in the Big Ten. After some wrestling talk, Byrd is forthcoming about life with a DI athlete as his significant other and the elephant in the room....how Lucas resembles a famous movie wizard. For the full interview: Click Here

Queensbury

For Minnesota, this year will be summed up as “one last shot”. It’ll be one last shot for sixth-year senior and two-time NCAA All-American Patrick McKee to prove that he can get the job done on the front side of the bracket at NCAAs. It’s one last shot for AA Michael Blockhus, who returned to the team after making his MMA debut this summer at Bellator 298. And potentially, one last shot for Olympic Gold Medalist Gable Steveson to claim Gopher wrestling history by becoming the first three-time NCAA Champion in program history. No matter what, the Gophers are looking to make this a year to remember. Hear from Head Coach Brandon Eggum. Top Returners Patrick McKee For the multiple-time AA, the narrative has been that he’s the bandit of the backside of the bracket. In 2021-22 he collected six straight wins to finish fifth at the National Championships. The year before, he had the same six-match win streak on the consolation side to claim third place. No one can refute the fact that McKee is a gamer and he’s never out of the match. However, he doesn’t get off to the best start when the lights are the brightest. But make no mistake about it, he is certainly a tone-setter at the front of the lineup. Michael Blockhus In April, he said he was moving on from wrestling and heading into the Bellator cage. But then after a successful debut, he had a change of heart and decided that he still had something left to give the Gophers. Like McKee, Blockhus will be coming back for his sixth and final year. A season ago, he finished in eighth place at 149 pounds, but this year he’s moving up to 157 where he will look to finish on the podium once again. Andrew Sparks After making an appearance at the NCAA tournament a season ago at 165, Sparks returns to the lineup at 174. He sits at #17 coming into the year and while we’ve seen some very good wrestling from Sparks during his career, he certainly has a lot to impress upon this year. Isaiah Salazar Salazar came so close to finishing on the podium last season as he saw things come to an end in the bloodround after falling to Clarion’s Will Feldkamp, 8-4. Salazar and Sparks have the potential to form a formidable 1-2 punch in the back half of the lineup that can use some firepower. Salazar will be the lone returner in this part of the lineup coming back at the same weight. Note: It hasn’t been announced that Gable Steveson will in fact be back in the lineup at heavyweight, but this is where he would go. [insert the paragraph of accolades and superlatives for how great he is here]. Key Departures Coach Eggum’s squad lost a few NCAA qualifiers from last year, but the biggest hit is the loss of 133-pound fifth-place finisher Aaron Nagao, who transferred to Penn State. In addition, they lost NCAA qualifiers Jake Bergeland and Bailey O’Reilly. Bergeland unfortunately had to medically forfeit out of the championships last year. Newcomers Vance VomBaur The redshirt sophomore will be coming into the lineup at 141 this year. He saw some mat time last year with an appearance at the Southern Scuffle where he notched three wins. He also claimed a 5-4 win over No. 9-ranked 2x AA Clay Carlson last year as well. Wrestlers to watch Tyler Wells The true freshman is coming in as one of the six guys part of the Gophers’ recruiting class. With Jake Gliva coming back, I don’t expect to see Wells a lot this season. But I’m betting he will be using all of his allotted starting spots that he can make and still maintain his redshirt. During my conversation with Coach Eggum, he mentioned how important it is for him and his staff to keep the in-state talent in Minnesota and Wells is part of that contingent this season as he’s one of the four wrestlers staying in their home state to join the Minnesota roster this year. Wells finished his high school career as a four-time state champ and a 162-1 record. He also won a U15 Freestyle World title in 2019. Garrett Joles Last season he put the team first and bumped up to fill a void at heavyweight where he received an at-large bid to NCAAs. This year he will be at 197. And with the experience from last season where he took on the big boys and claimed wins over four ranked opponents, he will be looking to make a big splash in a star-studded weight class. Top out-of-conference event For this one, I’m taking a guess. On December 29-30, they will be wrestling in the Soldier Salute Collegiate Wrestling Tournament where, and again, I’m guessing, they will face opponents UNC and UNI at some point over that 2-day span. Both schools have wrestlers that would make for good matchups with the Gophers.

Tuesday was the first day that medals were awarded at the 2023 U23 World Championships and the US men’s freestyle team cleaned up. All five of the Americans who started their tournaments yesterday were in medal contention at the outset of day two. When the smoke cleared, the US went 3-for-3 in gold medal matches and added a bronze to the medal haul. The first American to take the mat during the medal session was Keegan O’Toole at 74 kg. O’Toole’s opponent was 2017 Cadet World medalist Imam Ganishov (AIN - Russia). The two-time champion from Missouri controlled the pace of the entire match and never let Ganishov get to his offense. Early in the bout, O’Toole got in on the Russian’s legs and needed an extended period of time to get the finish. Along the way, he avoided giving up exposure points via crotch lift. Shortly afterward, O’Toole used a low single to secure his second takedown for a 4-0 lead. Late in the period, O’Toole had the Russian in a quad pod at the edge of the mat. Ganishov refused to concede the position and eventually got a point for an O’Toole step-out. Initially, the sequence was ruled a step out in O’Toole’s favor; however, it was overturned after a review. Despite a 4-1 lead in the second period, O’Toole continued to be the aggressor. After narrowly missing a takedown after a low attack, O’Toole stayed on the offensive and scored his third and final takedown. That was all he’d need, as he won 6-1. For the Tiger star, it’s his second career world title after winning one at the U20 level in 2021. Next up for team US was Aaron Brooks at 86 kg. Brooks’s opponent was 2022 U23 world champion Tatsuya Shirai of Japan. Despite his impressive resume, Shirai proved to be no match for the Penn State superstar. Brooks got a takedown just after the one-minute mark, but really blew the match open in later in the opening stanza. He stunned Shirai with an ankle pick and picked up four points for the feet-to-back exposure. Still in the first period, Brooks went back to the ankle pick and finished for two points. Seconds later he’d transition to an ankle lace and turned Shirai to send the bout into match termination territory. Like O’Toole, Brooks is now a two-time world champion. His first title came in 2017 at the Cadet age group. Completely the championship trifecta was Wyatt Hendrickson at 125 kgs. Hendrickson squared off with Cadet and Junior world bronze medalist Adil Misirci (Turkey), an opponent that had only surrendered one point in his three prior matches. That would change quickly as Hendrickson attacked off the whistle and stunned his Turkish counterpart with a takedown. Hendrickson continued the onslaught for the better part of the opening period. Late in the first, Misirci got in on a single leg and Hendrickson rubber-knee’d out of trouble. The Air Force All-American would take an extended amount of time returning to the center and was obviously hampered by some sort of a knee injury. While in pain, Hendrickson continued to wrestle and attack. He finished the first period with a step-out point to lead 7-0. After extending his lead with a takedown and exposure, Hendrickson and Misirci got into a scramble where both wrestlers were exposed. That was enough to give Hendrickson the 13-3 win on technical superiority. Despite walking back to the corner very gingerly, Hendrickson still managed to take a lap with the American flag and celebrate his world title. Also competing for a medal at 92 kg was Jacob Cardenas. The Cornell 197 lber grabbed his second consecutive U23 world bronze medal with a 4-3 victory over Pruthviraj Patil (India). The men’s freestyle team still has the opportunity to add more hardware to their collection as four wrestlers who started their tournaments on Tuesday are still in medal contention. Isaac Trumble at 97 kg leads the way, as he made the finals and has locked up at least a silver medal. Trumble demolished the competition with 11-0 techs in both the quarterfinals and semis. His 13-4 win in the Round of 16 over Japan’s Hibiki Ito represented his “closest” bout of the tournament. Standing between him and a gold medal is Moldova’s Radu Lefter. Lefter was Moldova’s representative at the 2023 Senior World Championships. He picked up a win in his first match before losing to Kyle Snyder, 12-1. Lefter was a U23 World silver medalist back in 2021. Cooper Flynn (57 kg) and Brock Hardy (65 kg) are both in repechage and need to win a bout tomorrow morning to secure a place in a bronze medal bout. That’s where Penn graduate Doug Zapf (70 kg) is after falling in the semifinals. Tomorrow will mark the final day of competition in men’s freestyle, but also the first day of women’s freestyle. American results 57 kg Qualification: Cooper Flynn over Vasyl Ilnytskyi (Poland) 4-1 Round of 16: Manvel Khndzrtsyan (Armenia) over Cooper Flynn 11-0 61 kg Repechage: Mezhlum Mezhlumyan (Armenia) over Julian Chlebove 11-0 65 kg Qualification: Brock Hardy over Sammy Alvarez (Puerto Rico) 12-7 Round of 16: Brock Hardy over Artem Kryvenko (Ukraine) 11-0 Quarterfinals: Ziraddin Bayramov (Azerbaijan) over Brock Hardy 14-11 70 kg Qualification: Doug Zapf over Benedikt Huber (Austria) 12-1 Round of 16: Doug Zapf over Ion Marcu (Moldova) 7-0 Quarterfinals: Doug Zapf over Orozobek Toktomambetov (Kyrgyzstan) 3-3 Semifinals: Inalbek Sheriev (AIN - Russia) over Doug Zapf 9-2 74 kg Gold Medal Match: Keegan O’Toole over Imam Ganishov (Russia) 6-1 79 kg Round of 16: Masaki Sato (Japan) over Dustin Plott 2-2 86 kg Gold Medal Match: Aaron Brooks over Tatsuya Shirai (Japan) 10-0 92 kg Repechage: Jacob Cardenas over Satoshi Miura (Japan) 6-0 Bronze Medal Match: Jacob Cardenas over Pruthviraj Patil (India) 4-3 97 kg Round of 16: Isaac Trumble over Hibiki Ito (Japan) 13-4 Quarterfinals: Isaac Trumble over Oktay Ciftci (Turkey) 11-0 Semifinals: Isaac Trumble over Sergey Sargsyan (Armenia) 11-0 125 kg Gold Medal Match: Wyatt Hendrickson over Adli Misirci (Turkey) 13-3

One of the idiosyncrasies of college athletics is that student-athletes only get four years of collegiate competition before either going to pursue their sport professionally or moving on to other ventures. Of course, COVID and extra eligibility have thrown that traditional four-year mark for a loop these past few years. As we move farther away from the extra eligibility and more towards normalcy, more college athletes will graduate and move on. This applies to wrestling like any other sport. Today, we’ll look back at some of the collegiate stars who have graduated and moved on after the 2023 tournament. As it applies to the upcoming season, we’ll look at the wrestlers slated to replace those greats. Replace may not be the best word, because, in a lot of these instances, it will be extremely difficult to replicate the production and leadership that these great wrestlers provided at their respective institutions. That being said, someone had to try! Below we’re going weight-by-weight and have singled out some of the notable seniors and have information on the wrestler (or wrestlers) that will replace them in the lineup: 125 Patrick Glory (Princeton) Replacement: Marc-Anthony McGowan - It’s not easy replacing the first national champion for your program in 70 years, so suffice it to say that Marc-Anthony McGowan has big shoes to fill. McGowan is very capable though, he was ranked #12 overall in the Class of 2023 and is expected to be a day-one starter for the Tigers. McGowan was a Cadet World Champion and a three-time Walsh Ironman finalist (two-time champion). ***Editors Note**** After publication, InterMat learned of an injury to McGowan which will prevent him from competing during the 2023-24 season. Look for true freshman Drew Heethuis, the #111 recruit in the Class of 2023, to man the 125 lb class this year for Princeton. Brandon Courtney (Arizona State) Replacement: Richie Figueroa - It sounds slightly disrespectful and presumptuous to think that there will be little to no drop off from a multiple-time All-American and national finalist leaving, but that’s more of an indictment on the talent of Richie Figueroa than a knock on Brandon Courtney. Figueroa went undefeated last year filling in for Courtney and won the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational, downing the eventual NCAA runner-up, Matt Ramos (Purdue), in the process. In his 14 matches last season, Figueroa defeated nine past or future national qualifiers without a hiccup. Spencer Lee (Iowa) Replacement: Drake Ayala - This season will mark the first time since 2017-18 that Spencer Lee isn’t either in the Iowa lineup or a possibility to start for the Hawkeyes. Stepping in for Lee is Drake Ayala, a top recruit who wrestled for Iowa in 2021-22 while Lee was injured. Ayala showed plenty of promise that year with wins over All-American Michael DeAugustino (Northwestern) and Big Ten finalist Devin Schroder (Purdue); however, he was a first-round upset victim at nationals and went 1-2. Ayala was 13-1 competing unattached and redshirting last year, but has dealt with multiple injuries since the last time he was in the lineup. If healthy, he could be in for a possible high finish in Kansas City. 133 Roman Bravo-Young (Penn State) Replacement: Aaron Nagao - Throughout the 2023 postseason, one of Roman Bravo-Young’s toughest opponents was Minnesota’s Aaron Nagao. In his first season as the Gophers starter, Nagao made the Big Ten finals and opposed Bravo-Young in the national quarterfinals. Nagao would end up finishing fifth at 133 lbs. After the season, Nagao entered the transfer portal and picked Penn State as his next destination. While RBY is out of eligibility, he’ll still likely get to work with Nagao in the room. There’s bound to be some level of drop-off when you lose a two-time national champion; however, maybe not “that” much with Nagao continuing to grow. Michael McGee (Arizona State) Replacement: Julian Chlebove - The extra Covid years of eligibility kept ASU’s lightweight tandem intact, but forced former top recruit, Julian Chlebove, to watch from the sideline more often than competing. Chlebove’s patience has finally paid off and he looks to be the guy at 133 for the Sun Devils. As a possible precursor to the 2023-24 season, Chlebove is in Albania this week competing at the U23 World Championships after winning the Trials in June. Freestyle and folkstyle success don’t always go hand-in-hand, but Chlebove did notch some solid wins competing unattached in 2022-23. 149 Yianni Diakomihalis (Cornell) Replacements: Cole Handlovic/Colton Yapoujian - Sometimes the replacement for a star wrestler isn’t cut and dry. That appears to be the case with Cornell and 149 lbs, as Mike Grey’s team prepares to groom a successor for four-time national champion Yianni Diakomihalis. With blue chip prospect Meyer Shapiro at 157 lbs, a pair of 157’s from last year have moved down in Cole Handlovic and Colton Yapoujian. Handlovic was the primary starter at 157 lbs and posted two wins over NCAA qualifiers before going 1-2 at the EIWA Championships. Yapoujian has shown plenty of promise during his career in Ithaca, he’s just had problems staying healthy. Should one or both be able to handle the weight cut, this could end up being another solid weight for an already strong Big Red squad. Max Murin (Iowa) Replacement: Victor Voinovich - Iowa middleweight stalwart Max Murin finally got over the bloodround hump and made it to the All-American podium in his last shot. Looking to replace Murin is someone who made the rare Oklahoma State-to-Iowa transfer, Victor Voinovich. A top recruit for the Cowboys, Voinovich redshirted and then went 17-13 in his only season wrestling with the orange singlet. Voinovich saved his best for last going 2-2 at the NCAA tournament, which helped him to a preseason ranking of #10 at 149 lbs. 157 Austin O’Connor (North Carolina) Replacement: Sonny Santiago/Danny Nini - It’s fitting that a pair of wrestlers look to be the replacements for a two-time national champion. Sonny Santiago was UNC’s primary starter during the 2021-22 season at 165 lbs and amassed a 9-12 record. Last year, he wrestled a more natural 157 lbs and went 9-1 unattached. Santiago is in the process of representing Team Puerto Rico at the U23 World Championships. He advanced to the 74 kg world semifinals before losing via fall to Keegan O’Toole. Santiago will wrestle for bronze tomorrow. Also in the mix is Danny Nini. Last year, Nini redshirted but did get to see action in duals at 149 lbs. Though he finished the year 6-7, Nini did notch a win over MAC champion Johnny Lovett (Central Michigan) at the Collegiate Duals. Josh Humphreys (Lehigh) Replacement: Max Brignola - Lehigh is generally deep at most weights and 157 is no exception. Max Brignola is the most experienced of the bunch having qualified for the NCAA Tournament in 2022 as a true freshman. Last season, Brignola competed primarily at 149; however, he did fill in for Humphreys during a few duals at 157 lbs. Now, he’ll likely do so on a full-time basis. Brignola’s best win at 157 came against Arizona State and it was instrumental in the Mountain Hawks 20-16 win over the powerhouse from the West. Should Brignola stumble, Pat Santoro’s team can also turn to veterans Luca Frinzi, Nathan Haubert, Tyler Sung, and Zac Martin. 165 Quincy Monday (Princeton) Replacement: Holden Garcia - Once again, Princeton needs to replace a longtime star, this time it’s NCAA finalist Quincy Monday. Another member of their 12th-ranked recruiting class, Holden Garcia, may get the first opportunity to step in at 165 lbs. Garcia was a two-time Pennsylvania state finalist (one-time champion) and a two-time Junior freestyle All-American in Fargo. He was tabbed the #80 recruit in the Class of 2023. 174 Mikey Labriola (Nebraska) Replacement: Elise Brown Ton - Between returning talent and the transfer portal, the bulk of Nebraska’s 2023-24 lineup seems pretty straightforward (and really good). The big question mark is who replaces NCAA runner-up Mikey Labriola. During the 2022-23 campaign, Elise Brown Ton got a lot of mat time and amassed a 19-2 record competing largely unattached. He did see action in a dual against Purdue and posted a 6-3 victory over Macartney Parkinson. Brown Ton’s best showing was at the Navy Classic where he was unbeaten and downed a pair of eventual national qualifiers (Sam Wolf - Air Force and Sal Perrine - Ohio). Should Brown Ton develop into an NCAA qualifier or more, it would provide a huge boost to a Nebraska team that should be in the NCAA trophy hunt. 184 Kaleb Romero (Ohio State) Replacement: Seth Shumate/Ryder Rogotzke - This week we’ll get a wrestle-off between Seth Shumate and Ryder Rogotzke to give us a hint about the Buckeyes starter for the 2023-24 season. Each were top 50 recruits in their respective classes, Shumate being a redshirt freshman and Rogotzke a true freshman. Shumate went 12-2 last year with a dual win against Northwestern starter Evan Bates. His best win of the year came against Rutgers’ All-American John Poznanski at the Cleveland State Open. Rogotzke was a two-time Super 32 champion and placed top-four in both styles at the Junior division in Fargo. Marcus Coleman (Iowa State) Replacement: Will Feldkamp - The Cyclones will trade one All-American for another as Marcus Coleman has departed, but Clarion graduate transfer Will Feldkamp will take his place. The pair actually met at the 2023 NCAA Tournament and Coleman prevailed via fall. Feldkamp was seeded 14th but made the podium and posted wins over the 9th, 11th, and 13 seeds. He closed out his NCAA Tournament by pinning North Carolina’s Gavin Kane for his seventh fall of the year. 197 Nino Bonaccorsi (Pittsburgh) Replacement: Mac Stout - Pittsburgh’s first national champion since 2008, local product Nino Bonaccorsi, will be replaced by another 197 lber who grew up in the shadows of campus, Mac Stout. The third Stout brother to wrestle DI, Mac could be the best of the bunch. While redshirting in 2022-23, Stout put together an 8-4 record that is misleading because of two losses via injury default. Stout was a champion at the Clarion Open and took fourth at the Midlands. Along the way, he defeated four past national qualifiers. Jacob Warner (Iowa) Replacement: Kolby Franklin/Zach Glazier/Other - Like the majority of the Iowa lineup right now, 197 lbs is unclear for the Hawkeyes. Kolby Franklin was a top-50 recruit for the Hawkeyes who redshirted last season and put together a respectable 15-6 record. One of those wins came against teammate Zach Glazier at the Soldier Salute. Glazier is entering his fifth year in the program and has seen action in four dual meets during his time in Iowa City. Both would likely hold their own as Iowa’s starter. The elephant in the room could be 2021 NCAA champion AJ Ferrari. Younger brother Anthony has moved to Iowa City with the intention of enrolling, while his other brother, Angelo, has committed to Iowa. While Ferrari’s high-profile sexual assault has been dropped, there is still some red tape needed to work through before he could wrestle at Iowa (or anywhere else). Should he come to Iowa (or anywhere else) he’ll be considered an instant title threat. Ethan Laird (Rider) Replacement: Asa Terrell/Azeem Bell - Rider’s NCAA semifinalist Ethan Laird has finished up and moved on to an RTC position with the University of Maryland. There will be a pair of big men for the Broncs attempting to replace him in Asa Terrell and Azeem Bell. Terrell went 2-10 last season and lost both duals in which he appeared. Bell was 5-6 but did not see any action in duals. He did get to compete in six duals in 2021-22, but managed only one win. The other option for Rider at this weight, Steyn De Lange, is slated to take an Olympic redshirt. Max Dean (Penn State) Replacement: Aaron Brooks - It’s hard to top replacing one NCAA champion with another. Actually a three-time champion in Aaron Brooks’ case. Brooks has had an eventful offseason as he won the US Open and appeared opposite former Nittany Lion great, David Taylor, in Final X. Earlier today, Brooks captured a title at the U23 World Champions. That gold medal also qualified Brooks for the 2024 Olympic Trials. It’ll be interesting to see how Brooks fares up at 197 lbs, particularly against a loaded contingent from the Big 12. 285 Mason Parris (Michigan) Replacement: Lucas Davison - You don’t “really” replace a Hodge Trophy winner, do you? It would be hard for anyone to replicate the kind of year that Mason Parris put together for the Wolverines in 2023. Parris went 33-0 with a bonus point percentage over 60% and 11 falls. The Michigan staff was able to get one of the best possible options to replace Parris as they’ve added two-time All-American Lucas Davison. Davison graduated from Northwestern and was part of a trio of former Wildcats who made their way to Ann Arbor in the offseason. Davison has finished fifth and sixth at the last two NCAA Tournaments while being seeded ninth at both. With the opportunity to work out with Parris and other partners at the Cliff Keen Wrestling Club, I’d expect those numbers to rise in 2023-24. Trent Hillger (Wisconsin) Replacement: Peter Christensen/Brooks Empey/Isaac Klarkowski Last week, Wisconsin head coach Chris Bono sat down with one of our Big Ten correspondents Ryan Holmes. Bono ran through the lineup but wasn’t able to give any definitive answers about who would start for the Badgers at heavyweight. Peter Christensen is a former top recruit from the Class of 2019 who has grown into the weight over time. Brooks Empey was also a notable recruit who had a winning record in 2022-23, but didn’t wrestle in any duals. Most intriguing is Isaac Klarkowski, a former DI football player from Rice. He’s knocked the rust off and is starting to look tough. Others on the Wisconsin roster are Gannon Rosenfeld and Jonah Schmidtke. With so many options and no clear-cut favorite, I’d expect this battle to go into the first couple months of the season.

Initially, this was going to be a ranking of the Big 12’s top wrestlers, but with so many returning All-Americans, it felt too easy. To add some intrigue and discussion, I decided to rank the weight classes by how strong they were. While some of the weight classes have multiple title contenders, others appear to be a little more open and harder to predict. With that, let’s see how the Big 12 is looking this season. #10) 157 lbs 2023 All-Americans: None Ranked Wrestlers: #12 Cael Swensen (SDSU), #13 Vinny Zerban (UNC), #17 Cody Chittum (ISU), #20 Jalin Harper (OKST), #22 Jared Hill (OU), #29 RJ Weston (UNI), #30 Caleb Dowling (WVU), #31 Cam Steed (MIZ) This weight class’ strength took a big hit with the transfer of All-American Jared Franek. The top returning wrestlers Swensen and Zerban both had impressive NCAA tournaments, as they made the bloodround after first-round losses. They’ll have a chance to prove it wasn’t just one good showing this season. Jared Hill is the only other returning qualifier after a solid Big 12 tournament last season. Harper, Weston, and Steed are the projected starters after their respective schools graduated ranked starters. All three have had solid wins in the past, but will have a chance to climb the rankings. Dowling actually earned a qualifying spot last season, but saw Alex Hornfeck get the start in the postseason. Cody Chittum comes in as one of the top recruits and will battle returning starter Jason Kraisser for a chance to be an impact true freshman. While the weight class doesn’t have any All-Americans returning, it does leave the opportunity for a number of wrestlers to break out this season. #9) 125 lbs 2023 All-Americans: None Ranked Wrestlers: #9 Stevo Poulin (UNC), #16 Jore Volk (WYO), #17 Noah Surtin (MIZ), #18 Kysen Terukina (ISU), #23 Troy Spratley (OKST), #24 Tucker Owens (AF), #27 Tanner Jordan (SDSU), #28 Eli Griffin (CBU), #31 Antonio Lorenzo (OU) In one of the most volatile weight classes last season, 125 lbs saw only one Big 12 All-American in Killian Cardinale, who has since graduated. There is a surplus of talent, however, with many wrestlers appearing to be podium contenders. Poulin and Surtin are the returning Big 12 finalists, while Jore Volk was the second seed coming into the tournament. Add in the return of Kysen Terukina, and no one would be shocked to see these four on the podium. Spratley, Owens, and Griffin add to the youth and strength of this weight class. Spratley redshirted last season but has the background and flashes to quickly climb the rankings. Owens had a win over Anthony Noto last season, and Griffin majored both Nico Provo and Jore Volk. If the two can build off strong freshman seasons, they could quickly enter the All-American discussion. Similarly, Jordan and Lorenzo are returning qualifiers that are tough matches for anyone in the rankings. 125 lbs appears to be wide open from top to bottom, the only question is which Big 12 wrestlers will rise to the top in March. #8) 133 lbs 2023 All-Americans: #2 Daton Fix (OKST) Ranked Wrestlers: #17 Garrett Grice (ISU), #18 Haiden Drury (UVU), #25 Zeke Seltzer (MIZ), #26 Jace Koelzer (OU) Since Daton Fix has come onto the scene for Oklahoma State, it’s been him at the top and then a bunch of tough wrestlers typically ranked in the teens. It looks similar this season, as all of the Big 12 placers last season have either graduated, transferred, or are changing weights. Fix joins David Carr as being the potential first 5x Big 12 champs. After Daton Fix, the only returning ranked wrestler who competed last season is Jace Koelzer. He spent five years at Northern Colorado before hitting the portal to join new head coach Roger Kish at OU. Koelzer qualified in 2022 at 125 lbs. A fellow transfer, Garrett Grice was originally at UVA. Grice and Seltzer both redshirted last season and showed enough flashes last season to be in the rankings. Drury may not be a name every fan remembers, but he was a 2022 qualifier for Utah Valley after starting in 2021 for Fresno State. Drury wrestled in six matches in 2023, before ending the year due to injury. If he’s healthy, he could certainly finish higher than 18th in the rankings. While Daton Fix seems penciled in to win his fifth Big 12 title, there is still plenty of intrigue as to who else will join him there and make a name for themselves this year. #7) 149 lbs 2023 All-Americans: #5 Brock Mauller (MIZ) Ranked Wrestlers: #12 Kellyn March (NDSU), #15 Casey Swiderski (ISU), #16 Willie McDougald (OU), #28 Jordan Williams (OKST) This is another weight that looks like it could have some chaos throughout the year. Mauller returns after making the Big 12 finals and finishing 7th at NCAA’s for his third All-American finish. Big 12 champ Paniro Johnson’s season is currently in question with the ongoing gambling investigation. That opens up a spot for Casey Swiderski to bump up after a true freshman season at 141 lbs. He struggled with health and consistency in the season but made a run at NCAA’s to make the bloodround. March was a breakout wrestler for NDSU last season, and he returns as a senior leader on a team in transition. A Southern Scuffle title showed that he can compete with the best of them and will be looking to build off last season. McDougald returns after a redshirt year and was a 2022 Big 12 finalist. He may need to battle blue chipper John Wiley, who took Paniro Johnson out last year while redshirting. Williams will be looking to make a splash after a 9-7 redshirt year that included a win over #13 Ethen Miller. This weight feels pretty open in the Big 12, but any of these names could make a run through the season and late in the year. Keep an eye out for some lineup battles as well, even with ranked wrestlers. #6) 174 lbs 2023 All-Americans: #6 Peyton Mocco (MIZ) Ranked Wrestlers: #8 Cade DeVos (SDSU), #13 Tate Picklo (OU), #21 Sam Wolf (AF), #26 Brady Conley (WVU), #29 MJ Gaitan (ISU), #31 Lance Runyon (UNI) With 2x Big 12 Champ Dustin Plott moving up to 184 lbs, there is an opportunity for multiple wrestlers to fill that space. Mocco has been a 4x conference finalist between the Big 12 and the MAC and has a chance to get his first title after finishing as an All-American last season. DeVos and Picklo may have something to say about that first after solid seasons last year.DeVos made the bloodround last year, and has wins over All-Americans in his career including Plott and Mocco. DeVos will be looking to be a 4x qualifier this season. Picklo had trouble finding his weight class last year, bouncing between 174 and 184. Once he settled into 174 though, he notched multiple ranked wins. Wolf had a breakout season last year, qualifying for the first time while injured. Conley and Gaitan both had solid redshirt seasons and will be stepping into their lineups with expectations higher than their current rankings. Runyon struggled with injuries last year and missed out on qualifying, but was a round of 16 finisher in 2022 and a 2x qualifier. It may sound like a broken record, but a number of these wrestlers could finish on the podium. Another name to look out for is Brayden Thompson. The #5 overall recruit, he’s expected to potentially be an immediate starter for Oklahoma State. #5) 141 lbs 2023 All-Americans: #9 Clay Carlson (SDSU) Ranked Wrestlers: #11 Mosha Schwartz (OU), #12 Cael Happel (UNI), #18 Zach Redding (ISU), #19 Josh Edmond (MIZ), #20 Sammy Alvarez (OKST), #25 Jordan Titus (WVU) With NCAA Champ Andrew Alirez officially taking an Olympic redshirt, this weight looks wide open. Clay Carlson had an inconsistent regular season, but turned it on late in the year to finish 5th for his second All-American finish. Schwartz struggled with injury in the postseason, but was one of the top 141lbers in the regular season. Similarly, Happel went from missing out on an At-Large bid in 2022 to a round of 16 finish in a strong 2023. All three are likely to be Big 12 title contenders and popular podium picks. Redding, Edmond, and Alvarez are both popular dark horse picks. Redding made the Big 12 finals at 133 last year and made the bloodround at NCAA’s in his second time qualifying. He had a win over #22 Cleveland Belton at 141 last year, showing that he is definitely able to compete at this weight. Edmond was a qualifier in 2022 while up at 149 lbs, but redshirted to come back to his more natural weight. He had an odd redshirt season with some losses, but made the Midlands finals to show his potential. Alvarez transferred mid-season from Rutgers, and if everything comes together for him, is absolutely a podium contender in his final year. Titus entered WVU’s lineup after a redshirt year that had me highlighting him as someone to watch. Not only did he qualify for NCAA’s, but he also had a big win over #1 (at the time) Cole Matthews. Even without Andrew Alirez, there is significant talent. The top wrestlers might spend the season trading wins/losses, but there are a number of them who could finish on the podium. #4) 184 lbs 2023 All-Americans: #1 Parker Keckeisen (UNI), #4 Dustin Plott (OKST), #5 Will Feldkamp (ISU) Ranked Wrestlers: #15 Bennett Berge (SDSU), #16 Colton Hawks (MIZ), #19 Giuseppe Hoose (OU), #25 Dennis Robin (WVU) This weight has the potential to get a title for the Big 12, with Parker Keckeisen looking to climb the top of the podium after finishing 3rd, 3rd, and 2nd. The UNI wrestler only has six losses in his career and has beaten nearly everyone not named Aaron Brooks. Plott moving up is an intriguing move, and could be related to making a run at 86kg. The 2x All-American is expected to be an immediate contender. Feldkamp finished a breakout season at Clarion with an All-American finish before hitting the portal to finish his career at ISU. If he can stay consistent, he has the skills to finish on the podium again. Berge and Hawks are two wrestlers that have big expectations this season. Berge was a top recruit and a 2x Junior World medalist. He redshirted last season with an 11-5 record but did have a win over Hawks. After winning the starting role, Hawks had a strong finish to the year by making the round of 16 at NCAA’s with a win over All-American Gavin Kane. If he can wrestle to his potential, Hawks is someone that could surprise many. Hoose and Robin are veteran wrestlers looking to make an impact for their schools this year. Hoose was at Buffalo, but after qualifying for the first time last season is expected to start for the Sooners in his senior year. Robin qualified for WVU in 2022 at 174, and had a solid redshirt season last year with a 24-9 record at 184. Similar to 133, there seems to be an obvious pick to win the Big 12 and make the NCAA podium. But with multiple returning All-Americans, there are multiple names that could surprise people throughout the season. #3) 285 lbs 2023 All-Americans: #2 Wyatt Hendrickson (AF), #5 Zach Elam (MIZ) Ranked Wrestlers: #7 Yonger Bastida (ISU), #12 Tyrell Gordon (UNI), #14 Josh Heindselman (OU), #18 Konner Doucet (OKST), #24 Michael Wolfgram (WVU) One of the Big 12’s more underrated weights, it’s led by one of the most exciting Division I wrestlers in Wyatt Hendrickson. After finishing 3rd last season, he’s one of the top title contenders in 2024. He had his best season last year with an 85% bonus rate that included 17 falls. Elam returns after making the podium for the first time as well after multiple bloodround finishes. He and Hendrickson had a barnburner match in the NCAA quarterfinals. Bastida is moving up to heavyweight after an injury-marred 2023. He was an All-American at 197 in 2022, and has the athleticism that could translate very well to heavyweight. He showed that last year with a 4-2 decision over Cornell’s #11 Lewis Fernandes at National Duals in a huge match for Iowa State. Gordon, Heindselman, Doucet, and Wolfgram appear to be in a group of wrestlers that can compete with top wrestlers but haven’t gotten a big win just yet. That could definitely change this season. Another true freshman could make an impact here, as #2 overall recruit Christian Carroll could force himself into the Oklahoma State lineup. If he is able to beat out Konner Doucet, then he is likely putting his name into the podium conversation immediately. #2) 197 lbs 2023 All-Americans: #3 Tanner Sloan (SDSU), #4 Rocky Elam (MIZ) Ranked Wrestlers: #2 Stephen Buchanan (OU), #13 Luke Surber (OKST), #17 Evan Bockman (UVU), #23 Wyatt Voelker (UNI), #26 Julien Broderson (ISU), #28 Austin Cooley (WVU) One of the Big 12’s best weights is only getting better with former Wyoming wrestler Stephen Buchanan returning. After placing 3rd in 2022 he redshirted with a transfer to OU last season. With wins over 2023’s Big 12 finalists Sloan and Elam, Buchanan is an immediate title contender this season. Luke Surber made the round of 16 last season, but a regular season win over Rocky Elam showed that he can compete with the best. With another season at 197lbs, he is a dark horse to make a big jump to the podium. Bockman, Broderson, and Cooley represent some veterans from their respective schools who will be looking to make a big impact. On the other end, Voelker is coming off a redshirt year that saw a 15-4 record and a U20 World Championships 5th place finish in Greco. With the amount of talent distribution here, the Big 12 is sure to make a serious national impact. Aaron Brooks moving up could be one of the most impactful weight changes in the NCAA this year, but the Big 12 looks like it could have several wrestlers looking to challenge him. #1) 165 lbs 2023 All-Americans: #1 Keegan O’Toole (MIZ), #2 David Carr (ISU), #6 Izzak Olejnik (OKST) Ranked Wrestlers: #9 Peyton Hall (WVU), #17 Gerrit Nijenhuis (OU), #20 Tanner Cook (SDSU), #28 Giano Petrucelli (AF), #32 Jack Thomsen (UNI) One of the top weight classes in the country is reflected in the Big 12, with the duo of O’Toole and Carr expected to be battling for the national title again. The weight class lost Mikey Caliendo to the Big Ten, but brought in returning All-American Izzak Olejnik. Add in a healthy 2022 All-American Peyton Hall and there is definite strength at the top. The weight class is rounded out by wrestlers Nijenhuis and Cook, two wrestlers who will be looking to make the jump this season after solid years. Petrucelli and Thomsen are new faces to the rankings this season, but will be looking to make an impact throughout the year as well. O’Toole and Carr are the jewels of this weight class nationally and in the conference in one of the best rivalries in years. If some of the other wrestlers can take jumps as well, this weight should be well represented by Big 12 wrestlers at NCAA’s.

Greeneville

Houston Westside

St. Plus X

Millard South

St. John Vianney