InterMat Staff

2022 NCAA Finalist Jacob Warner (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) The #MatScoutsDynasty League Draft is set for Wednesday October 12, 2022. To get not only the 10 members of this Dynasty League set for the draft, we thought we would share some insights to our rosters for the general public. Assessments, Critiques, and Opinions welcomed. Next Up - Team Upson Team Manager: Jeff Upson (@PApowerwrestling) 2022 Regular Season Standings: Dual Record: 3-12 Points For: 615.5 , Points Against: 895.5 (-280 Difference) Total Points: 615.5 NCAA Championship: 119 Team Points (T-5th Place) Going against the reigning champ in the first dual of the season rarely bodes well, and that's what happened here for the start of the 2022 campaign. The final score was 141 to Team Upson's 38 which put his team in a deep hole from the get-go. Team Upson would bookend the dual season with four losses to start and four losses to end the regular season, but while the regular season may not have been a success, the postseason team on paper looked extremely competitive. Nine of his starters were seeded #10 or better and six of those nine wrestled to their seed or better. It was the others that unfortunately were unable to make that All-American hurdle and anchored the team down. Leading up to the draft, Team Upson agreed to trade the #5 Overall Pick to Cael Chips for 157 Josh Humphreys (LEH) and the #10 Overall Pick. As it currently sits, Team Upson has 7 open roster spots (30 max per team). Roster Analysis: It is the “oldest” this season (with 10 seniors), but Team Upson returns a formidable lineup with some youth in the wings. Flynn will be contending for the starting spot in Blacksburg, and Lachlan McNeil and Luca Augustine will most certainly be the starters for their teams. Both 125 and 133 have Seniors with Juniors backing them up who, should one of the Sun Devils go down, would be more than capable to step into starting duties. While 141 and 149 have plenty of time to plan for the future, every weight from 157 up needs immediate attention. Humphreys made the bloodround last season and the trade with Cael Chips shores up the weight this season (though Zapf is no Fantasy Wrestling slouch either). Same goes for 197 with returning finalist Warner and former finalist Bonaccorsi and for both of his heavyweights. With Wittlake moving up to 184, it leaves Josh Ogunsanya as the lone 165-er. And while Ogunsanya was the #10 Fantasy Wrestler last season at 165, the tougher Columbia schedule this coming season might make it tougher to reach that watermark (let alone the top-25).

2021 NCAA All-American Killian Cardinale (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Welcome to a new, regular feature for InterMat! Every day, for the next few months, we'll look into the recent history of a DI wrestling program with our "Ten Years of…" feature. Even if you're a die-hard supporter of a particular school, there will be good information you may have forgotten. For others, it's a quick way to learn about a program you may not be familiar with. We're going in alphabetical order for this one, so next up is...West Virginia! NCAA Qualifiers (33) 2022 #5 Killian Cardinale (125 lbs), #9 Peyton Hall (165 lbs), #31 Dennis Robin (174 lbs), #27 Michael Wolfgram (285 lbs) 2021 #17 Killian Cardinale (125 lbs), #20 Ryan Sullivan (133 lbs), #21 Peyton Hall (165 lbs), #9 Noah Adams (197 lbs) 2020 #2 Noah Adams (197 lbs) 2019 #16 Matt Schmitt (133 lbs), #17 Christian Monserrat (149 lbs), #29 Nick Kiussis (165 lbs), #20 Noah Adams (197 lbs), #32 Brandon Ngati (285 lbs) 2018 #13 Zeke Moisey (125 lbs), Matt Schmitt (133 lbs), Jake Smith (197 lbs) 2017 #8 Dylan Cottrell (165 lbs), Jake Smith (197 lbs) 2016 Zeke Moisey (125 lbs), Dylan Cottrell (157 lbs), Bubba Scheffel (184 lbs), #13 Jake Smith (197 lbs) 2015 Zeke Moisey (125 lbs), #16 Mike Morales (141 lbs), Bubba Scheffel (184 lbs), Jake Smith (197 lbs) 2014 Cory Stainbrook (125 lbs), Colin Johnston (141 lbs), Mike Morales (149 lbs), Bubba Scheffel (174 lbs), AJ Vizcarrando (285 lbs) 2013 Nathan Pennesi (141 lbs) NCAA Champions None NCAA All-Americans 2022: Peyton Hall (165 - 8th) 2021: Killian Cardinale (125 - 7th) 2018: Zeke Moisey (125 - 8th) 2015: Zeke Moisey (125 - 2nd) NWCA All-Americans Noah Adams (197 - First Team) NCAA Round of 12 Finishers Killian Cardinale (2022 - 125) Peyton Hall (2021 - 165) Dylan Cottrell (2016 - 157) Big 12 Champions 2022: Killian Cardinale (125) 2020: Noah Adams (197) 2017: Dylan Cottrell (165) Dual Record 2021-22: 6-8 2021: 7-3 2019-20: 4-12 2018-19: 4-14 2017-18: 6-7 2016-17: 4-13 2015-16: 8-10 2014-15: 9-9 2013-14: 11-4 2012-13: 2-13 Big 12 Tournament Placement 2021-22: 7th 2021: 9th 2019-20: 10th 2018-19: 9th 2017-18: 9th 2016-17: 7th 2015-16: 6th 2014-15: 4th 2013-14: 4th 2012-13: 4th NCAA Tournament Team Placement 2021-22: 32nd (8.5 points) 2021: 31st (11.5 points) 2019-20: No Tournament 2018-19: 43rd (4.5 points) 2017-18: 30th (11.5 points) 2016-17: 57th (1 point) 2015-16: 47th (4 points) 2014-15: 20th (23.5 points) 2013-14: 61st (1.5 points) 2012-13: 63rd (0.5 points) Head Coaching History Tim Flynn (2018 - Present) Sammie Henson (2014 - 2018) Craig Turnbull (1978 - 2014) Best Lineup (Comprised of wrestlers from 2013-22) 125 - Zeke Moisey: 3x NCAA Qualifier (#13 seed), 2x NCAA All-American (2nd, 8th), 2x Big 12 Runner-Up 133 - Matt Schmitt: 2x NCAA Qualifier (#16 seed) 141 - Mike Morales: 2x NCAA Qualifier (#16 seed), 2014 Big 12 3rd Place 149 - Christian Monserrat: 2019 NCAA Qualifier (#17 seed) 157 - Dylan Cottrell: 2x NCAA Qualifier (#8 seed), 2017 Big 12 Champion, 2016 NCAA Round of 12 Finisher, 2x NCAA Qualifier for Appalachian State 165 - Peyton Hall: 2x NCAA Qualifier (#9 seed), 2022 NCAA 8th Place, 2022 Big 12 Runner-Up, 2021 NCAA Round of 12 Finisher 174 - Dennis Robin: 2022 NCAA Qualifier 184 - Bubba Scheffel: 3x NCAA Qualifier, 2016 Big 12 3rd Place 197 - Noah Adams: 3x NCAA Qualifier (#2, #9 and #20 seeds), 2020 NWCA First Team All-American, 2020 Big 12 Champion 285 - AJ Vizcarrando: 2014 NCAA Qualifier, 2014 Big 12 Runner-Up Recruiting Number of Big Boarder's Per Year 2022: #27 Brody Conley (OH), #197 Brayden Ivy (TN) 2021: #41 Jordan Titus (NY), #109 Davin Rhodes (OH), #114 Garett Lautzenheiser (OH) 2020: #68 Peyton Hall (WV), #97 Jack Blumer (PA), #116 Brayden Roberts (WV), #117 Caleb Downing (PA), #138 Anthony D'Alesio (OH), #152 Colton Drousias (IN) 2018: #98 Josh Ramirez (IA) 2017: #27 Noah Adams (WV), #85 Nick Kiussis (OH) 2016: #74 Matt Schmitt (MO), #87 Tucker Levitt (ID), #106 Kyler Rea (MO) 2015: #23 Keegan Moore (OK), #30 Patrick Duggan (PA), #40 Devin Brown (PA), #41 Connor Flynn (MO), #74 Austin Myers (KY), #107 Zach Moore (OK) 2014: #34 Zeke Moisey (PA) 2013: #179 Ryder Newman (NV) For past teams: Air Force American Appalachian State Arizona State Army West Point Binghamton Bloomsburg Brown Bucknell Buffalo Cal Poly Campbell Central Michigan Chattanooga Clarion Cleveland State Columbia Cornell CSU Bakersfield Davidson Drexel Duke Edinboro Franklin & Marshall Gardner-Webb George Mason Harvard Hofstra Illinois Indiana Iowa Iowa State Kent State Lehigh Lock Haven Maryland Michigan Michigan State Minnesota Missouri Navy NC State Nebraska North Carolina North Dakota State Northern Colorado Northern Illinois Northern Iowa Northwestern Ohio Ohio State Oklahoma Oklahoma State Oregon State Penn Penn State Pittsburgh Princeton Purdue Rider Rutgers Sacred Heart SIU Edwardsville South Dakota State Stanford The Citadel Utah Valley Virginia Virginia Tech VMI

2022 NCAA Finalist Quincy Monday (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) The #MatScoutsDynasty League Draft is set for Wednesday October 12, 2022. To get not only the 10 members of this Dynasty League set for the draft, we thought we would share some insights to our rosters for the general public. Assessments, Critiques, and Opinions welcomed. Next Up- The Ninnie's Propaganda Team Manager: Earl Smith (@EarlBSmith20) 2022 Regular Season Standings: Dual Record: 9-6 Points For: 999 , Points Against: 809.5 (+189.5 Difference) Total Points: 999 NCAA Championship: 115 Team Points (7th Place) Earl's Propaganda Machine was able to string together a four dual win streak, but was up and down for the rest of the season. His wins came when they mattered against just the right competition which helped propel him to fourth place in the dual standings. Unlike the other teams to this point, The Ninnie's Propaganda has decided to stay put with the #4 Overall Pick. As it currently sits, The Ninnie's Propaganda has 4 (maybe 5, depending on if Gable Steveson decides to return) open roster spots (30 max per team). Roster Analysis Here Earl thought that last season was the final ride with his star heavyweight as he left his shoes in the center of the NCAA Championship mat, despite the additional year of eligibility Steveson had left. It was clear, since ESPN used 5-10 minutes of airtime to film those white Nikes, that this was the end. But hold up now, all is not lost for the Ninnie's Propaganda. Rumor is that maybe the big man will/might/possibly be returning. I guess we shall see, but that puts Earl in a draft time bind. Does he look for a heavyweight or take his chances? A chain reaction of weight changes actually helps Earl's team this year spread out the talent as Brock Mauller moves back down to 149, Bryce Andonian moves up to 157, and National Finalist Quincy Monday moves up to 165. The lower weights at 125 and 133 look set for the foreseeable future with more than capable youth to take over after next season in the middle weights. 141 could be a concern for the postseason, and same goes for the upper weights with 197 and 285 if Steveson does not return.

Arizona State's 2x All-American Michael McGee (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) During the 2021-22 preseason, InterMat debuted our top-50 wrestlers list and revealed all 50 day-by-day in the lead up to the regular season. Our second iteration of this feature will spotlight five wrestlers at a time, going from 50 to number one. For each wrestler, we'll have some basic information along with career highlights, a brief analysis of their collegiate career (with a focus on last season), along with their outlook for the upcoming season. For earlier wrestlers #46 - 50 #41 - 45 40) Jacori Teemer (Arizona State) Arizona State's 2x All-American Jacori Teemer (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Weight: 157 lbs Year: Junior Career Record: 52-11 Hometown: Long Beach, New York Collegiate Accomplishments: 2x NCAA All-American (4th, 6th), 2020 NWCA Second Team All-American, 3x Pac-12 Champion 2021 Top 50 Ranking: #35 The first member of our top-50 list that returns from the 2021 edition, Jacori Teemer did so after collecting All-American honors for a second time. Teemer successfully navigated the regular season and Pac-12 tournament without a loss, heading into Detroit. With David Carr (Iowa State) and Ryan Deakin (Northwestern) also unbeaten, Teemer had to settle for the third seed. For the full article, Subscribe to InterMat's Rokfin Page

Gable Steveson (left) and Greg Kerkvliet in the 2022 NCAA semifinals "Heavyweights in wrestling are like kickers in the NFL. Where they're playing the same sport, but it's a completely different skillset" This quote by the great Yianni D was tweeted out by the aptly named "The Quoter" and it started a bit of a firestorm in the Twitterverse. What exactly does it mean? Was the idea correct, but the positional analogy just wrong? Did I just say positional analogy? Yes and yes. I get the point of it all. It's the same sport but the athletes have to do two completely different things. A big man simply can't wrestle like a lightweight. But kicker just isn't the correct position to use. I'm not sure you can compare a kicker to any other position in sports. It's just such a unique quirk in a sport filled with the biggest, fastest, and strongest athletes the country has produced. Somehow a guy with the ability to kick a ball straight for fifty yards fits into the equation. And many times with the most pressure on them. In that sense, I get it that they both come up with the final result on the line more than any of their teammates. But that's not what we're discussing here. I'll agree that you can compare the two sports here. Wrestlers coming in all shapes and sizes means they have to train and tailor their skills to their strengths. Evan Wick and Chance Marstellar competed at the same weight. But their shapes meant they had to wrestle different styles. It's just the way it is. Just like Derrick Henry and Darren Sproles are both running backs with completely different styles. The thing is that they both still have to go out there and achieve the same goal which is to move the football. A heavyweight still has to go out there and beat his opponent just like his little buddy at 125. The biggest and smallest guys on every team are always best friends. Everyone knows this. So what's the correct analogy? I would guess it's something like wide receiver to lineman. Two positions that are out there at the same time, working towards the same goal, but doing two different things to get there while using their strength and speed to the styles that suit them. Until we decide a dual meet with seeing which coach can kick the challenge brick the furthest, (imagine coaches hiring assistants based on their foam brick kicking skills) let's leave the kickers out of it. Now, let's get to the mailbag before I ramble on even further. U amped? Pelikan Head Pretty fired up, dog. How will you be preparing for the Matscouts league draft, which is one week away from today? Dan Seifring Is that next week? Oh lord. How am I supposed to win a league where two guys in the league provide the content for all my research? Here's some advice for you fantasy players out there. If you're in a league with Dan Seifring or Tony DiMarco and they offer you a trade, don't take it. It's a scam. They know more than you. Personally, I'm holding out for October of 2026 and drafting Bo Bassett first overall. I should be able to get my team firmly in last place by then and I'm sure Daton Fix will have some eligibility left. If you could face any real wrestler in a fake match who would it be? Richard Mann I'd love to work a match with Chris Foca. Back when I strapped on the headgear, my best offense was always counters and reversals until I finally got the guy on his back or lost by something like 16-11. Every time. Never failed. Foca also loves to roll around into pinning positions. I think the two of us can really put on a show by just hitting headlocks where you reach back, sitting out of cradles and turning them into cradles, flippy sh*t as they say in the industry. Just seven minutes of furious reversals and backpoints until I finally lose by the score of 27-18. Then we shake hands and I hit him with a stunner before celebrating with beers for an hour. DTA. Don't trust anybody. Jagger 7:12 says I just whooped your ass! Who is your biggest dark horse this year? YaBoyBready I think I answered this awhile back, but I have no idea who I picked, so I'll pick a new guy. Vince Cornella of Cornell. Imagine being named Cornella and then going to Cornell. It's crazy. I can't wrap my head around it. Fresh off a U20 World fifth place finish, the Corndog enters a wide open weight with the advantage of training with the aforementioned Yianni D, who only won it twice already at 141. Buy stock in Vince Cornella. Why is Spencer Lee the third most handsome Irishman you know? Fred Bear Is he Irish? I know he's French on his mother's side. I assume you're the most handsome of all who came from Ireland, but I've never seen your face. I do remember you flexing on a guy from Twitter so hard that he fully deleted his profile. That's power that I do not possess. That's it for this week my friends. The season is right around the corner and I'm sure we will have more to talk about other than kickers and handsome Irish guys. Also, this mailbag goes great with pumpkin spice.

3x NCAA finalist Daton Fix (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) The #MatScoutsDynasty League Draft is set for Wednesday October 12, 2022. To get not only the 10 members of this Dynasty League set for the draft, we thought we would share some insights to our rosters for the general public. Assessments, Critiques, and Opinions welcomed. Next Up - Fresh Cakes Team Manager: Jagger Noir (@Jagger712) 2022 Regular Season Standings: Dual Record: 3-12 Points For: 594.5 , Points Against: 785 (-190.5 Difference) Total Points: 594.5 NCAA Championship: 108 Team Points (8th Place) New Year New Name for the team formerly known as JHagger. Fresh Cakes was dealt a tough blow halfway through the season when one of the top Fantasy Wrestlers in the game and returning National Champion AJ Ferrari was involved in a car accident at the end of January 2022. Adding to that, during the offseason AJ left Oklahoma State. You may have heard about that… Fresh Cakes wasn't able to string together a win streak more than two weeks during the regular season, and actually hit a skid at the end of the season losing six weeks in a row. That streak led to his unfortunate dual and total point standing which snowballed into the postseason, despite having three finalists and a third placer. Looking to improve his roster immediately, Jagger712 had made a trade with Danny B Mobbin' to replace a National Champion with a National Champion: Fresh Cakes trades 133 Vito Arujau (COR) and the #3 Overall Pick to Danny B Mobbin' for 197 Max Dean and the #7 Overall Pick. As it currently sits, Fresh Cakes has 7 (maybe 8, depending on AJ Ferrari availability) open roster spots (30 max per team). Roster Analysis: While other teams might just “flip” their team, Jagger712 keeps it fresh with the team he has… which is pretty good on paper. Daton Fix has two more years of eligibility and is almost a lock as a finalist, and same could be said of Mekhi Lewis at 174. High AA = high amount of team points. The addition of Max Dean is an influx of 18.5 team points if using last year's results (which would have put him at fourth place). Coach Bono has been on record saying he is impressed with Hillger's offseason, which bodes well for Fresh Cakes. But that aside, if Jagger wants to break into the top three at NCAAs he is going to have to make some immediate additions either through the Draft, Transfer Portal, or via trade. While Richie Figueroa is a great prospect, he's likely going to be the backup to Brandon Coutrney and is the only roster 125 on Fresh Cakes' team. Same could be said for 141, where Joel Vandervere and Henry Porter are more than likely going to be backups as well. That doesn't mean all three wont score points at opens and such, but would equate to zero points for the postseason. 197 and Heavyweight will need a youth injection as well and 165 could use some backups as well since it is unclear if Condomitti (who Jagger712 was drawn to in last year's draft) will be starting or a backup.

Ed Scott (left) and Peyton Robb (photos courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) The college wrestling season is right around the corner. This year, in particular, it seems like there are some solid early-season dual matches between top teams. The following looks at the top duals in the month of November and some potential individual bouts that could make the duals special. 11/5/2022 No. 13 Iowa State vs. No. 10 Wisconsin The inaugural Battle in the River City event will bring several top dual matches to the early season schedule. The event, which features Iowa State, Wisconsin, Chattanooga, Campbell, Little Rock and Buffalo, will be a one-date round-robin series of duals with each team getting three matches. Headlining the Jacksonville event will be a dual between Iowa State and Wisconsin. The Cyclones return to action after a very impressive dual campaign in 2022. The squad went 15-1 with victories over Northern Iowa, Oklahoma and Oklahoma State. Their only blemish on the season was an 11-point loss to Iowa in the annual Cy-Hawk match. The Badgers were also a strong dual team in 2022. Wisconsin went 12-2 and picked up wins over the likes of North Carolina, Rutgers, Minnesota and Cornell. The dual could feature a pair of bouts that could have a major impact on the rankings. After winning an NCAA title at 157 pounds in 2021, No. 3 David Carr finished third at last season's tournament. He is expected to move up 165 pounds this year. That sets up a potential match against No. 6 Dean Hamiti. As a true freshman last season, Hamiti went 28-4 and finished sixth at the NCAA tournament. For the full article, Subscribe to InterMat Rokfin

Marc-Anthony McGowan at the 2021 Walsh Ironman (photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) Today, the Princeton staff got huge news on the recruiting front. Marc-Anthony McGowan (Blair Academy, NJ/FL), the number three overall recruit in the Class of 2023, announced his commitment to the Tigers via social media. McGowan was previously the highest-ranked uncommitted senior in the class. In the latest national rankings from MatScouts, McGowan was ranked fifth in the nation at 126 lbs. The current national ranking for McGowan isn't indicative of his actual talent, he just has not competed nationally as much as others around him. In 2019, McGowan was a Cadet World Champion in freestyle at 45 kg. The previous year, Marc-Anthony was a gold medalist at the Pan-American U15 Championships in both freestyle and Greco-Roman. On the domestic front, McGowan captured a pair of National Prep titles for Blair Academy on the scholastic front. Last school year, McGowan won the Beast of the East after claiming his second National Prep championship. In 2021, McGowan came up a bit short in an attempt to make a second Cadet World team, settling for third at 51 kg. McGowan is now the second top-100 and fifth Big Board'er to give Chris Ayres' team a verbal commitment in the Class of 2023. He joins #76 Eligh Rivera (FL), #111 Zander Silva (NJ), #138 Holden Garcia (PA), and #149 Drew Heethuis (MI) to head up an impressive recruiting class for the Tigers. At the next level, McGowan projects as a 125/133 lber. Princeton doesn't have much in the pipeline behind 2022 NCAA finalist Patrick Glory at 125 lbs, but does have plenty of possible options at 133 lbs. Even so, getting a recruit of McGowan's caliber negates any "team needs." McGowan is also the highest-ranked recruit to commit to Princeton during the Ayres-era. Previously, Matt Kolodzik (#6 in 2015) held that distinction. Kolodzik is also a Blair graduate and went on to earn NCAA All-American honors four times for the Tigers. For more recruiting information, check out InterMat's Commitment Page

National champion Mekhi Lewis at the 2022 NCAA Tournament (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) The Hokies are coming off a top-10 finish in Detroit at the NCAA Championships and they have put together a strong lineup to make a run at ACC and NCAA titles this season. While they only lose two starters to graduation, the lineup will have a different look with weight changes and redshirts. They will be anchored by NCAA Champion and two-time finalist Mekhi Lewis and Bryce Andonian is coming off a third-place finish in Detroit. Coach Robie and company are building a top-tier program in Blacksburg and will be challenging the returning ACC Champions NC State for their place atop the conference. TOP RETURNERS The Hokies return four wrestlers who have earned All-American honors--the team added a ninth straight season of having three or more All-Americans last year. Sam Latona was an All-American at 125 in 2021 and dropped in the bloodround last year; he will look to add another podium finish up a weight class at 133. I expect a lot of firepower out of Latona at a more comfortable weight. Bryce Andonian will also be moving up a weight to 157. He made a huge impression on the national audience last year at the NCAA tournament showcasing his big-move ability in matches against Austin Gomez and Jon Millner. Andonian lost a heartbreaker to Ridge Lovett in the semifinals 5-4, but came back to place third in a second wild match against Gomez. Like Latona, weight management took up a lot of time for Andonian last season and he should be able to be even more wide open--kinda scary--at the higher weight. Mekhi Lewis has competed in three NCAA tournaments and only has one loss in matches he actually wrestled. Lewis ran through the gauntlet of Alex Marinelli, Evan Wick and Vincenzo Joseph to win the NCAA Championship in 2019. His 2021 tournament was shortened by injury; he gutted out two wins before medically defaulting. Last season he put together another impressive postseason performance. He beat Hayden Hidlay and Clay Lautt to win the ACC championship before making a run at the NCAA tournament. He beat Lautt again in the quarterfinals and pinned Logan Massa in the semifinals to create the much-anticipated matchup with Carter Starocci in the finals. This match was one of the best of the entire tournament, unfortunately, Mekhi fell short losing 6-5 in TB1. Lewis will have an opportunity to avenge this loss early this season, as he faces Starocci in an exhibition match at the All-Star Classic. Hunter Bolen decided this summer to return for one last ride at 184. Bolen is a four-time NCAA qualifier and earned All-American status in 2021 with a 7th place finish. While Bolen put together a good season last year, he is returning with a hunger to end his career on a higher note and has high expectations for himself this year. KEY DEPARTURES While the Hokies only lose two starters to graduation, Korbin Myers and Nathan Traxler, they are big shoes to fill. Myers was a five-time NCAA qualifier and a two-time All-American while winning two ACC titles for the Hokies. Traxler, and his luxurious head of hair, was a one-year starter for the Hokies after transferring from Stanford. He won an ACC title while putting together an impressive 21-4 season, falling in the round of 16 at the NCAA tournament. NEWCOMERS Cooper Flynn and Eddie Ventresca are both redshirt freshmen and will be in a battle for the starting spot at 125. Both had 15 wins in their redshirt campaign and won at least one open tournament. It is very possible that both will get time in the starting lineup and the final decision will be made based on their performance in competition. Hunter Catka returns to the starting spot at 285 after taking a redshirt year while Traxler manned the spot. Catka was an NCAA qualifier in 2021 and had a solid 10-6 redshirt year with two close losses to NCAA qualifier Taye Ghadiali of Campbell and split matches with NCAA qualifier Tyrie Houghton of NC State. Drew Nicholson is a grad transfer from Chattanooga where he was a SoCon Champ and two-time NCAA qualifier. He will be fighting for the starting spot at 165 with Connor Brady--the final decision at this weight will impact the redshirt status of Brady. WRESTLER TO WATCH Caleb Henson comes into Blacksburg with high expectations and an impressive resume that includes being a 3-time Georgia State Champion, Fargo Junior Freestyle Champion and Super32 Champion. He will immediately be thrown into the fire in Blacksburg. Henson is set to be the starter at 149 as a true freshman and will face an incredible run of talent in out-of-conference duals. Henson will face four top-10 wrestlers in out-of-conference action. He is set to face #3 Sammy Sasso, #1 Yianni Diakomihalis, #5 Brock Mauller and #10 Jaden Abas. Henson doesn't enter the year in the rankings as a true freshman, but he will certainly have the chance to make himself a household name quickly. REDSHIRT REPORT The Hokies brought in a small but very talented recruiting class this year with three wrestlers ranked in the top 100. #16 Caleb Henson will be starting from day one, but #8 TJ Stewart and #81 Tom Crook will likely take a redshirt year. I'm very interested to see how they are used with the five “free dates” that they can compete attached. Both Stewart and Crook have the skills to compete for a starting spot, but will benefit from a year of growth in the room. TOP OUT-OF-CONFERENCE DUAL The Hokies have set up an incredibly challenging out-of-conference slate that will see them facing #3 Missouri, #4 Ohio State and #6 Cornell before ACC action begins in mid-January. All three of these duals will be amazing and feature ranked-versus-ranked matchups up and down the lineup. While all three of these duals should be fire, I'm most looking forward to seeing the first dual of the year with #4 Ohio State. Their matchup last year ended 17-13 in favor of the Buckeyes in a back-and-forth dual in Blacksburg. This year's event will potentially showcase these matches and will be a must-watch dual. 125: #28 Ventresca/Flynn vs #11 Malik Heinselman 149: Henson vs #3 Sammy Sasso 157: #5 Andonian vs #22 Paddy Gallagher 174: #2 Lewis vs #6 Ethan Smith 184: #11 Bolen vs #4 Kaleb Romero POTENTIAL LINEUP 125: #28 Eddie Ventresca (15-6) 1st Southeast Open 8th Southern Scuffle Cooper Flynn (15-3) 2nd Southeast Open 1st Wolfpack Open 1st David Lehman Open 133: #14 Sam Latona (14-6) NCAA All-American (6th in 2021) ACC Champ 2x ACC Finalist 141: #25 Collin Gerardi (12-11) 2x NCAA Qualifier 149: Caleb Henson (4-0) True freshman-won Southeast Open as a high school senior 157: #5 Bryce Andonian (13-4) NCAA 3rd Place 3x NCAA Qualifier Clayton Ulrey (13-11) 2x NCAA Qualifier 165: #33 Drew Nicholson (17-8) SOCON Champ 2x NCAA Qualifier at UTC Connor Brady (16-14 at 157) 174: #2 Mekhi Lewis (24-2) NCAA Champ 2x NCAA Finalist 2x ACC Champ Jr. World Champ 184: #11 Hunter Bolen (23-7) NCAA All-American (7th in 2021) 4x NCAA Qualifier Sam Fisher (6-3) 197: #30 Dakota Howard (13-10) NCAA Qualifier Andy Smith (9-4) 285: #19 Hunter Catka (10-6) NCAA Qualifier in 2021

New Oklahoma assistant coach Teyon Ware (right) (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Throughout the collegiate offseason, InterMat kept close tabs on all of the coaching movement. As usual, there were plenty of moves to track. As head coaches were hired, we wrote about how they were good fits at their new gigs and conducted some interviews. While a head coach is essential to a wrestling program's success, their assistant coaches are almost as important. Oftentimes, they have more direct contact with the wrestlers, be it from a recruiting standpoint or day-to-day, in the wrestling room. With that being said, it's time to look at some of the top assistant coaching hires nationwide during the 2022 offseason. This group of eight is an eclectic mix of up-and-coming coaching stars, familiar faces, and unsung studs. Dom Abounader (Cleveland State) When the springtime comes and the coaching carousel begins spinning, the media can get an idea of some moves that may happen or that might “make sense” based on past relationships between coaches. One that we didn't see coming was Dom Abounader hitting the coaching scene. Abounader was a contender at Michigan from day one and never was seeded lower than ninth at his four NCAA Tournaments. Entering his senior year, Abounader had the unwanted title of “Best Senior Who Never AA'ed.” Abounader shredded that image by winning a pair of wild bouts in the 2018 NCAA Round of 16 and Quarterfinals, which put him into the semis and clinched a place in the top-six. For the full article, Subscribe to InterMat Rokfin

2021 NCAA Champion David Carr (photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) The #MatScoutsDynasty League Draft is set for Wednesday October 12, 2022. To get not only the 10 members of this Dynasty League set for the draft, we thought we would share some insights to our rosters for the general public. Assessments, Critiques, and Opinions welcomed. Next Up - The Incredible Bulks. Team Manager: John Foster (JohnFosterUSA) 2022 Regular Season Standings: Dual Record: 10-5 Points For: 776 Points Against: 947 (-171 Difference) Total Points: 776 NCAA Championship: 77.5 Team Points (9th Place) The Incredible Bulks strung together four straight dual wins to start the season in 2022 before hitting a couple losses going into our "Bye Week." After that it was a consistent win week followed by a loss week, but came up big winning his last two duals to take the 3rd Place Dual Standings. Now, anything can happen with the draft, but the trade with Team Gould has all the familiar symptoms of the man behind the "Big-Man Breakdown" column for MatScouts taking the #1 overall recruit in 285 Nick Feldman (OHST), but anything can happen at the draft! Leading up to the draft, The Incredible Bulks traded the #2 Overall Pick, 157 Austin O'Connor (UNC), and 157 Andrew Cerniglia (NAVY) to Team Gould for #1 Overall Pick and 197 Luke Surber (OKST). As it currently sits, The Incredible Bulks have 9 open roster spots (30 max per team) Roster Analysis: A pretty well-rounded roster with lots of upside. Only two seniors comprise this team with possibly half the starters being Sophomores. 125, 197, and even heavyweight look good for the next three years, though depth at heavyweight for fantasy would be a welcomed addition (hint hint possibly?). Two years of a perennial title contender with David Carr (and last year's #4 Fantasy Wrestler at 157) with wildcard pinner Tanner Cook behind him look to have that weight on lockdown. That said, there are some immediate needs for the upcoming season that this draft might be able to help with. Immediate attention is needed for 157 and 184. Jason Kraisser will be in a roster battle with the other 11 or so wrestlers on ISU's 157 roster and David Key, at 184 last season, did not qualify for Nationals. A new year and a clean slate… but if The Incredible Bulks stay put, my magic 8 ball reads "outlook not so good."

3x NCAA qualifier Neal Richards (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Welcome to a new, regular feature for InterMat! Every day, for the next few months, we'll look into the recent history of a DI wrestling program with our "Ten Years of…" feature. Even if you're a die-hard supporter of a particular school, there will be good information you may have forgotten. For others, it's a quick way to learn about a program you may not be familiar with. We're going in alphabetical order for this one, so next up is...VMI! NCAA Qualifiers (3) 2020 #11 Neal Richards (174 lbs) 2019 #17 Neal Richards (174 lbs) 2016 Neal Richards (157 lbs) SoCon Champions 2020: Neal Richards (174) 2019: Neal Richards (174) Dual Record 2021-22: 3-10 2021: 4-5 2019-20: 6-13 2018-19: 4-12 2017-18: 2-11 2016-17: 2-13 2015-16: 3-10 2014-15: 6-8 2013-14: 3-16 2012-13: 2-15 Conference Tournament Placement 2021-22: 7th 2021: 6th 2019-20: 6th 2018-19: 7th 2017-18: 7th 2016-17: 7th 2015-16: 7th 2014-15: 7th 2013-14: 8th 2012-13: 8th NCAA Tournament Team Placement 2019-20: No Tournament 2018-19: 63rd-tie (0 points) 2015-16: 69th-tie (0 points) Head Coaching History Jim Gibson (2018 - Present) Chris Skretkowicz (2013 - 2018 John Trudgeon (1985 - 2013) Best Lineup (Comprised of wrestlers from 2013-22) 125 - Dalton Henderson: 2016 SoCon 3rd Place, 2016 All-Academy Champion 133 - Dominick Gallo: 2016 All-Academy 3rd Place 141 - Ryan Goodsell 149 - Stevan Smith 157 - Shabaka Johns: 2015 SoCon Runner-Up, 2015 All-Academy Runner-Up 165 - Blake Hohman 174 - Neal Richards: 3x NCAA Qualifier (#11 and #17 seeds), 2x SoCon Champion 184 - Christopher Beck 197 - Tyler Mousaw: 2021 SoCon 3rd Place 285 - Juan Adams: 2014 SoCon 3rd Place, 2014 All-Academy Champion Recruiting Number of Big Boarder's Per Year 2020: #176 Tyler Mousaw (NY) 2015: #70 Neal Richards (VA) For past teams: Air Force American Appalachian State Arizona State Army West Point Binghamton Bloomsburg Brown Bucknell Buffalo Cal Poly Campbell Central Michigan Chattanooga Clarion Cleveland State Columbia Cornell CSU Bakersfield Davidson Drexel Duke Edinboro Franklin & Marshall Gardner-Webb George Mason Harvard Hofstra Illinois Indiana Iowa Iowa State Kent State Lehigh Lock Haven Maryland Michigan Michigan State Minnesota Missouri Navy NC State Nebraska North Carolina North Dakota State Northern Colorado Northern Illinois Northern Iowa Northwestern Ohio Ohio State Oklahoma Oklahoma State Oregon State Penn Penn State Pittsburgh Princeton Purdue Rider Rutgers Sacred Heart SIU Edwardsville South Dakota State Stanford The Citadel Utah Valley Virginia Virginia Tech

57 kg World Champion Zelimkhan Abakarov of Albania (photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) 57 KG Two-time 61 KG Russian Nationals bronze medalist #2 (INT) Zelimkhan Abakarov won the Senior world title for Albania over #3 (INT) Thomas Gilman of the United States. Artem Gobaev won the U23 Russian Nationals over Zhargal Bayanduev. Rustam Zhilyasov and Alexander Kochevoi took bronze. Vladimir Egorov, this year's European champion for North Macedonia, who competed for Russia as part of the Yakutsk Republic, was eliminated in the round of 16 by #20 (INT) Darian Cruz of Puerto Rico. Georgi Okorokov, a 2016 50 KG Junior European champion for Russia originally from the Yakutsk Republic, made the round of 16 of the world championships where he lost to eventual world runner-up Gilman and lost in the second round of repechage to bronze medalist #16 (INT) Zanabazar Zandanbud of Mongolia. 61KG #5 Magomed Baitukaev moved up to 65 KG where he lost in the round of 32 to 2021 Yarygin bronze medalist Chaiian Mongush. Baitukaev has been removed from the rankings. 2017 61 KG Russian Nationals bronze medalist #9 (INT) Islam Dudaev finished in ninth place at the world championships with losses to champion #1 (INT) Rei Higuchi of Japan and bronze medalist #5 (INT) Arsen Harutyunyan of Armenia. Yarygin bronze medalist #10 Abdurakhman Rasulov has been removed from the rankings, as he hasn't competed since January. Alexander Shabanov takes the #9 spot in the rankings after winning U23 Russian Nationals over Gadzhimagomed Gadzhiev. Said Khunkerov and Adam Arkhiev took bronze. Nikolai Okhlopkov, a 2017 Dmitri Korkin champion for Russia while competing for the Yakutsk republic, 13th at the world championships after a 10-0 loss to Suleyman Atli of Turkey in the round of 16. #8 (INT) Eduard Grigoriev, a 2019 Yarygin bronze medalist for Russia competing as part of the Yakutsk republic, finished in 24th place at the world championships competing for Romania after an opening round loss to eventual 5th place finisher #6 Seth Gross. #9 Akhmed Zubairov has been removed from the rankings as he moved up to 65 KG for U23 Russian Nationals where he took fifth. Gadzhiev takes the final spot in the rankings at #10 for his runner-up finish at U23 Russian Nationals. Islam Bazarganov, a Dagestani transfer to Azerbaijan who finished second at the Islamic Solidarity Games, took ninth at the world championships after losses to #4 (INT) Reza Atri of Iran and Georgi Vangelov of Bulgaria 65KG Dzhambulat Kizinov made a major statement in winning U23 Russian Nationals over Senior Russian Nationals #5 Aripgadzhi Abdullaev to enter the rankings at #5. Kizinov also notched an impressive win over returning U23 world runner-up and 2020 61 KG Russian Nationals bronze medalist #9 Ibragim Abdurakhmanov in the round of 16. Bronze medalists at the U23 Russian Nationals championships were Dalgat Abdulkadyrov and Umar Umarov. 2018 61 KG Russian Nationals runner-up #2 (INT) Ismail Musukaev took bronze at the world championships competing for Hungary. 70KG Magomed-Emi Eitemirov won the U23 Russian National championships over Gitin Gazimagomedov to make the rankings at #10. Georgy Sekinaev and Zaurbek Bugulov took bronze at the U23 Russian Nationals championships. #5 Alan Kudzoev moved up to 74 KG where he lost to Bisoltan Arslanov in the round of 16 and has been removed from the rankings. 2019 Alans runner-up Ramazan Ramazanov took 7th at the world championships after a quarterfinal loss to eventual world bronze medalist #10 Ernazar Akmataliev of Kyrgyzstan. 2015 65 KG Russian Nationals champion #14 (INT) Ilyas Bekbulatov of Uzbekistan finished in 27th place after withdrawing from competition after a quarterfinal tech fall loss to eventual world champion #1 Taishi Narikuni of Japan. 74KG Alexander Baltuev won the U23 Russian Nationals over Umar Mutaliev. Bronze medalists at the U23 Russian Nationals were Saipulla Alibulatov and Iman Ganishov. #3 (INT) Taimuraz Salkazanov, a North Ossetian transfer competing for Slovakia, took silver at the world championships to #2 (INT) Kyle Dake. Two-time Russian Nationals winner, Khetag Tsabolov of North Ossetia Alania, took seventh at the world championships competing for Serbia after a quarterfinal loss to bronze medalist #4 Frank Chamizo of Italy. 79KG 2019 Russian Nationals bronze medalist Khalid Yakhiev takes the top spot in the rankings after upsetting #1 Magomed Magomaev 10-8 in the finals of the U23 Russian Nationals championships to take gold. Yakhiev has past wins over 2018 Russian Nationals runner-up Khusey Suyunchev and Ernak Kardanov to bolster his resume to go along with his U23 Russian National title. Bronze medalists at the U23 Russian Nationals championships were Idar Khatanov and Ramazan Abuzagidov. 2016 74 KG Russian Nationals bronze medalist Arsalan Budazhapov won a world bronze medal competing for Kyrgyzstan over Alipasha Umarpashaev of Bulgaria. Umarpashaev, a Chechen transfer to Bulgaria, took fifth at the world championships after a semifinal loss to #1 (INT) Jordan Burroughs and Budazhapov. 2014 74 KG Russian Nationals runner-up Iakub Shikhdzhamalov took 13th at the world championships competing for Romania after losses to #3 (INT) Mohammad Nokhodilarimi of Iran and #20 (INT) Bekzod Abdurakhmanov of Uzbekistan. Akhsarbek Gulaev, a North Ossetian transfer to Slovakia who took gold at the 2021 European championships, took 24th after an opening round loss to Umarpashaev. 86KG Senior Russian Nationals runner-up #3 Amanulla Rasulov won U23 Russian Nationals over Arslan Bagaev. Bronze medalists at the U23 Russian Nationals were Ruslan Chertkoev and Magomednabi Magomedov. Bagaev and Magomedov are new additions to the rankings at #9 and #10 for taking silver and bronze at the U23 Russian Nationals championships after the removal of #6 Khabil Khashpakov and #7 Alan Zaseev due to inactivity. #17 Boris Makoev, a North Ossetian transfer to Slovakia, won bronze at the world championships after a semifinal loss to #2 (INT0 Hassan Yazdani Charati of Iran. Akhmed Magamaev, a Chechen transfer to Bulgaria, took ninth at the world championships with a round of 16 loss to #12 (INT) Sebastian Jezierzanski of Poland. Taimuraz Friev, a two-time Russian Nationals bronze medalist in 2008 and 2009 at 74 KG for North Ossetia, took 10th at the world championships for Spain after a round of 16 loss to eventual bronze medalist #11 (INT) Azamat Dauletbekov of Kazakhstan. #20 (INT) Abubakar Abakarov, a Dagestani transfer competing for Azerbaijan, took 11th at the world championships for Azerbaijan after a round of 16 loss to #18 (INT) Tarsan Maisuradze of Georgia. 92KG Ashkab Saadulaev won the U23 Russian Nationals championships over Shamil Gadzhialiev. Bronze medalists at the U23 Russian Nationals championships were Ivan Kirillov and Ramazan Shabanov. #4 (INT) Osman Nurmagomedov, a Dagestani transfer competing for Azerbaijan, won his second Senior world bronze medal by tech fall over #20 (INT) Radoslaw Marcinkiewicz of Poland. Nurmagomedov's only loss of the world championships was to eventual runner-up #2 (INT) J'den Cox. Akhmed Bataev, a 2015 97 KG Intercontinental Cup champion while competing for Russia under Chechnya, took fifth at the world championships after losses to #1 Kamran Ghasempour (IRI) and #12 (INT) Miriani Maisuradze of Georgia. Georgi Rubaev, a two-time 84 KG Russian Nationals bronze medalist for North Ossetia in 2011 and 2012, took 23rd place at the world championships after forfeiting in the round of 16 to #20 (INT) Radoslaw Marcinkiewicz of Poland. 97KG Soslan Dzhagaev won the U23 Russian Nationals championships over Tamerlan Kotsoev. Bronze medalists at the U23 Russian Nationals championships were Yuri Ivanov and Zhorik Dzhioev. 2018 92 KG Russian Nationals champion #3 (INT) Batyrbek Tsakulov of North Ossetia took silver at the world championships competing for Slovakia. 2021 Yarygin champion #5 (INT) Magomedkhan Magomedov of Dagestan took bronze at the world championships for Azerbaijan after a 10-0 quarterfinal loss to #2 (INT) Kyle Snyder. 2019 Russian Nationals champion #7 Vladislav Baitsaev of North Ossetia took fifth at the world championships for Hungary after losses to #3 (INT) Batyrbek Tsakulov (SVK) and #4 (INT) Givi Matcharashvili (GEO). 2012 Russian Junior National champion Magomedgadzhi Nurov of Dagestan took eighth competing for North Macedonia after a quarterfinal loss to bronze medalist Matcharashvili. Samhan Jabrailov, a Dagestani transfer to Moldova, took tenth at the world championships after a injury loss in the round of 16 to returning world bronze medalist #17 (INT) Magomed Zakariev of Ukraine. 125KG Abdulla Kurbanov won the U23 Russian Nationals championships over Artem Pukhovsky. Bronze medalists at the U23 Russian Nationals championships were 2021 Junior world bronze medalist Andrey Bestaev and Tamerlan Kumyshev. Magomedgadzhi Nurasulov of Dagestan, a 2017 Senior Russian Nationals runner-up, took 14th at the world championships competing for Serbia after a loss in the qualification round to Khasanboy Rakhimov of Uzbekistan. Pound for Pound 79 KG U23 Russian Nationals champion Khalid Yakhiev is back into the rankings at #15 for beating 79 KG Senior Russian Nationals runner-up #15 Magomed Magomaev in the U23 national finals. Dzhambulat Kizinov is in the rankings at #16 for beating Senior Russian Nationals bronze medalist #16 Aripgadzhi Abdulaev in the finals of the U23 Russian Nationals championships.

3x NCAA Champion Spencer Lee (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) 2023 #MatScoutsDynasty Pre-Draft Preview Team Gould The #MatScoutsDynasty League Draft is set for Wednesday October 12, 2022. To get not only the 10 members of this Dynasty League set for the draft, we thought we would share some insights to our rosters for the general public. Assessments, Critiques, and Opinions welcomed. First up, Team Gould. Team Manager: Dysen Gould (@dysgould_2005) 2022 Regular Season Standings: Dual Record: 8-7 Points For: 674.5 Points Against: 900 (-225 Difference) Total Points: 674.5 NCAA Championship: 67.5 Team Points (10th Place) Team Gould enters the 2023 season looking to rebound from last season's postseason struggles. Armed with the #1 overall pick in the 2023 Draft, Team Gould was able to trade back a spot with The Incredible Bulks (John Foster) to #2: Leading up to the draft, Team Gould agreed to trade #1 Overall Pick and 197 Luke Surber (OKST) to The Incredible Bulks for 157 Austin O'Connor (UNC), 157 Andrew Cerniglia (NAVY), and the #2 Overall Pick. As it currently sits, Team Gould has 9 open roster spots (30 max per team). Roster Analysis: Life after Spencer Lee is going to be scary and hard to replace, but it's got to happen. Eddie Ventresca can hold down the fort for the time being but some back-up help wouldn't be bad. At 285, Wyatt Hendrickson has two years of pins left in him and Trent Hidlay will lock down 184 for the next two as well. The trade with The Incredible Bulks sets Team Gould up nicely for the present and future by shifting down one pick and getting a title contender with O'Connor and a proven fantasy placer (Cerniglia) in return. While 141 and 165 look to be pretty well set, 133 might need some looking into as well as 197 as these two weights did not perform that well at Nationals last year. 149 is an immediate need as Austin Gomez is the only wrestler rostered, and all of 174 will be graduating after this season leaving both weights unmanned. While this year he should get good points at Nationals from these weights, it would behoove Team Gould to look sooner rather than later for the next starters.

Central Michigan's national qualifier Corbyn Munson (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Every year there are wrestlers that have "breakout" seasons. Whether it's wrestlers that are coming off a strong redshirt season, or young wrestlers who have a big jump from experience in the next season, it is always fun to see which athletes separate and improve from year to year In this article series, I am going to highlight a wrestler from every school in each of the seven different conferences that have the potential to breakout. That could mean anything from making a surprising splash at the national tournament, to qualifying for the first time, or even getting some important dual wins for a school. Next up are the thirteen schools that make up the MAC Conference. Past Conference Breakout Candidates SoCon Buffalo - #26 Jay Nivison, 174lbs (So) Nivison already had a bit of a breakout after qualifying at 174lbs for Buffalo last season, but looks like he could have the potential to jump another level. He started the year at 165lbs and had a 5-4 record before bumping up to 174lbs and placed 2nd at the MAC tournament. That's despite wrestling a match down at 165lbs just two weeks before. If he is committed to 174lbs for the entire year, then he could be a much bigger factor. Bloomsburg - Kevon Freeman, 165lbs (Jr) A name that could be familiar to some, Freeman is a transfer to Bloomsburg from Ohio State. A three-time Ohio state champ, he was a top 100 recruit in 2018. Freeman has bounced around in weight with matches at 157lbs and 165lbs. He only has 12 college matches in his career with a 4-8 record. With his pedigree and a chance to establish himself in the lineup for the first time, he could be a contender this season for the Huskies. Central Michigan - #26 Corbyn Munson, 157 (Jr) After qualifying for his first NCAA's last season, CMU will be looking for Munson to take another jump and start getting bigger wins. Munson had multiple ranked wins last season, including matches against Manzona Bryant, Cory Crooks, and Shannon Hanna. He placed 3rd at the MAC conference and was the 25 seed at NCAA's. It was recently announced that he would be bumping up to 157lbs this year. Clarion - Joseph Fischer, 125 (So) After graduating as the #66 overall recruit in 2021, true freshman Fischer had a 23-11 record and made the MAC finals. While he did not get any significant wins, he had overtime losses to Anthony Noto of Lock Haven twice and tight losses to Dylan Shawver and Brandon Kaylor. He may not be able to turn all the close losses into wins, but more consistency and a handful of flipped results make him a name to watch. Cleveland State - DeAndre Nassar, 184lbs (Jr) A 2021 qualifier, Nassar came close to doing it again in 2022 but missed out on an at-large bid. He had an up-and-down season but had wins over multiple qualifiers. Nassar beat Max Lyon and Matthew Waddel in duals, who were both ranked at times throughout the season. Both of his losses at the MAC tournament came in sudden victory matches. Nassar tends to wrestle close matches, but will need some more quality wins and a higher conference finish this season to qualify again. Edinboro - Luke Kemerer, 157lbs (Jr) After spending four years at Pittsburgh at 149lbs, Luke Kemerer hit the transfer portal and is now at Edinboro up at 157lbs. In four years, he had a record of 29-29 and has only started occasional duals for the Panthers. Time will tell what he can do, but the possibility of a change of scenery and a new weight class could allow Kemerer to improve. George-Mason - #31 Logan Messer, 174lbs (So) Logan Messer was a true freshman starter for George Mason and had a very solid season, with a 27-9 record and 4th place finish at the MAC tournament. His biggest win was Thomas Flitz of App State, a three-time qualifier. Both of Messer's losses at the MAC tournament came to the earlier mentioned, Jay Nivison of Buffalo, a 4-3 decision and an overtime loss. If Messer develops like most true freshmen, he could find himself in Tulsa come March. Kent State - #21 Kody Komara, 149lbs (Sr) After qualifying in 2021 and 2022, Komara will be looking to make it three in a row and get his first NCAA tournament win. Komara had a strong MAC tournament, pinning Marcus Robinson in the finals to get his first MAC title. He also had a decision win over Corbyn Munson. Komara has had an inconsistent career, so far, but has shown the ability to win at the conference tournament. Lock Haven - #20 Ashton Eyler, 157lbs (Jr) Last year, Eyler qualified and made the MAC finals in his first year starting for Lock Haven. After wrestling at 174lbs at Iowa Central CC, he dropped to 165lbs and got a 31-11 record. It now sounds like he is planning on continuing his descent and starting at 157lbs. Eyler had multiple ranked wins including matches against Caleb Fish, Riley Smucker, and Joe Grello. If he can continue both his success and improvement, he could potentially find himself in the finals once again. Northern Illinois - Blake West, 125lbs (Fr) Blake West is coming off a great redshirt season with a 25-2 record. The #63 recruit of 2021 had a 67% bonus rate and will be looking to hit the ground running as a starter this season. He hasn't hit top competition yet, but with such a strong record and bonus rate, he will be someone to keep an eye on. Ohio - Kyran Hagan, 141lbs (Sr), #25 Alec Hagan, 149lbs (Sr) Last year, Kyran Hagan started for the first time in his career and had bonus point wins over qualifiers Josh Mason of Bloomsburg and Gabe Willochell of Edinboro. He had an inconsistent season and finished 0-2 at the MAC tournament, but if he can put it together as a senior could find himself at nationals. Also, keep an eye on his twin Alec Hagan at 149lbs, who is also a senior. He was the 21 seed at the 2020 NCAA's, but missed 2021 due to injury and had a 26-8 record last season. Rider - #30 George Walton, 184lbs (Sr) Last year, Walton was on his way to a very solid season before getting injured. He had a dominant 12-5 win over two-time qualifier Bryan McLaughlin of Drexel, while winning the Keystone Classic tournament. If he is able to come back to this season on a similar level, he should find himself at the national tournament for the first time. SIUE - #32 Saul Ervin, 141lbs (Jr) A 2021 qualifier, Ervin is a wrestler that could go on a run in the season. He is a stingy wrestler and all his losses, save for one, were by a margin of three points or less. He's taken wrestlers like Dresden Simon, Ian Parker, and Allan Hart to overtime matches. If he can find more offense this season with his stellar defense, some of those close losses are sure to flip.

Cal Poly's 2x All-American Bernie Truax (photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) During the 2021-22 preseason, InterMat debuted our top-50 wrestlers list and revealed all 50 day-by-day in the lead up to the regular season. Our second iteration of this feature will spotlight five wrestlers at a time, going from 50 to number one. For each wrestler, we'll have some basic information along with career highlights, a brief analysis of their collegiate career (with a focus on last season), along with their outlook for the upcoming season. 46) Kaleb Romero (Ohio State) 2022 NCAA All-American Kaleb Romero (photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) Weight: 184 lbs Year: Senior Career Record: 59-25 Hometown: Mechanicsburg, Ohio Collegiate Accomplishments: 2022 NCAA 6th Place, 2x Big Ten 4th Place, 2020 NWCA First Team All-American 2021 Top 50 Ranking: Not Ranked At the beginning of the 2021-22 season, Ohio State did some shuffling around in their lineup and it appeared that maybe Kaleb Romero was the odd-man out. Those notions were dispelled at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational as Romero made his season debut and won the whole thing. Romero downed past All-American Taylor Venz (Nebraska) and announced himself as a key player in a crowded 184 lb weight class. A fourth-place finish at the Big Ten Championships resulted in a seventh seed for Romero at nationals. That was the same bracket placement as in 2021 when Romero came up a match shy of All-American honors at 174 lbs. After a loss in the quarters to the eventual champion, Aaron Brooks (Penn State), Romero left no doubt in the Round of 12, by majoring Big Ten foe Max Lyon. A match later he turned in his third major of the tournament and downed Marcus Coleman to secure a top-six finish. For the full article, Subscribe to InterMat's Rokfin Page

David Taylor in the 2022 World finals (photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) 57 KG #5 Zelimkhan Abakarov (ALB) won the Senior World championships over #3 Thomas Gilman (USA). Bronze medalists at the Senior World championships were Zanabazar Zandanbud (MGL) and Stevan Micic. Abakarov moves up three spots in the rankings to #2 for winning the Senior world championships with victories over Gilman, Micic, #5 Reineri Andreu Ortega (CUB) and #6 Gulomjon Abdullaev (UZB). Micic makes the biggest jump in the rankings after his performance in Belgrade, returning at #4 for his victories over Andreu Ortega, 2021 61 KG world bronze medalist #16 Toshihiro Hasegawa (JPN) and Asian championships runner-up #8 Rakhat Kalzhan (KAZ). Reineri Andreu Ortega returns to the rankings at #5 for beating Abdullaev in repechage to make the bronze medal match where he lost to Micic. 2021 Olympic runner-up #2 Ravi Kumar (IND) drops five spots in the rankings to #7 after a round of 16 loss to Abdullaev. Zandanbud is in the rankings at #16 for beating Wanhao Zou (CHN) for bronze. Zou is in the rankings at #17 for victories over #12 Alireza Sarlak (IRI), #18 Aliabbas Rzazade (AZE), and #20 Darian Cruz (PUR). Cruz is into the rankings at #20 for beating European champion #17 Vladimir Egorov (MKD) in the round of 16. Artem Gobaev won the U23 Russian Nationals over Zhargal Bayanduev. Rustam Zhilyasov and Alexander Kochevoi took bronze. 61KG #3 Rei Higuchi (JPN) won the Senior World Championships over #4 Reza Atri (IRI). Bronze medalists at the Senior World championships were Narankhuu Narmandakh (MGL) and #5 Arsen Harutyunyan (ARM). Higuchi takes the number one spot in the rankings for victories at the world championships over Harutyunyan, #6 Seth Gross (USA), #9 Islam Dudaev (ALB), and Atri. Narmandakh is back into the rankings at #12 for beating #14 Ulukbek Zholdoshbekov (KGZ) and Georgi Vangelov (BUL) on his way to world bronze. Alexander Sabanov (RUS) takes the #20 spot in the rankings after winning U23 Russian Nationals over Gadzhimagomed Gadzhiev (RUS). Said Khunkerov (RUS) and Adam Arkhiev (RUS) took bronze at the U23 Russian Nationals championships. 65KG #16 Rahman Amouzad took gold at the Senior world championships over #15 Yianni Diakomihalis (USA). Bronze medalists at the Senior World championships were #1 Ismail Musuakev (HUN) and #18 Bajrang Punia (IND). Amouzad skyrockets up the rankings to #1 for his victories over #1 Musukaev, #2 Haji Aliyev (AZE), and Diakomihalis. Diakomihalis moves up ten spots in the rankings to #5 for his runner-up finish, where he notched impressive victories over #11 Vazgen Tevanyan (ARM), #18 Punia, #19 Sebastian Rivera (PUR), and Vladimir Dubov (BUL). Punia made a strong return to form at the world championships with wins over two-time world bronze medalist Alejandro Valdes Tobier (CUB), #11 Tevanyan and #19 Rivera to win his fifth World/Olympic medal and move up seven spots in the rankings at #11. Rivera is back in the rankings at #19 for taking fifth at the world championships and beating Ziolkowski champion Tsogbadrakh Tseevensuren (MGL) in the quarterfinals. Rivera won the Matteo Pellicone and Grand Prix of Spain tournaments this year. Dzhambulat Kizinov (RUS) makes his debut in the rankings at #9 for upsetting Senior Russian Nationals bronze medalist #7 Aripgadzhi Abdulaev (RUS) in the U23 Russian Nationals finals. Bronze medalists at the U23 Russian Nationals were Dalgat Abdulkadyrov (RUS) and Umar Umarov (RUS). 70KG #10 Taishi Narikuni (JPN) won the Senior World Championships over #12 Zain Retherford (USA). Bronze medalists were #11 Ernazar Akmataliev (KGZ) and #19 Zurab Iakobishvili (GEO). Narikuni takes the number one spot in the rankings after victories over Akmataliev, Retherford, and #14 Ilyas Bekbulatov (UZB). While a trio of wins over guys in the lower half of the top twenty seems like an odd justification to warrant a number one spot in the rankings, remember that Akmataliev beat Evgheni Zherbaev (RUS) at last year's world championships and Zherbaev is the top-ranked man in Russia and beat former top-ranked #1 Israil Kasumov (RUS) to make the team and Narikuni beat Akmataliev twice this calendar year. #19 Zurab Iakobishvili (GEO) moved up four spots for winning a world bronze medal by notching victories over #18 Servet Coskun (TUR) and #15 Arman Andreasyan (ARM). Bekbulatov returns to the rankings at #14 after making his world championships debut for Uzbekistan where he lost by tech fall to #1 Taishi Narikuni (JPN) and withdrew from the competition afterward. Bekbulatov has beaten world champions Soslan Ramonov, Frank Chamizo, Magomed Kurbanaliev, Nachyn Kuular, Haji Aliyev, and Logan Stieber and has top ten 70 KG wins over #4 Viktor Rassadin (RUS) and #7 Anzor Zakuev (RUS) but the thing with Bekbulatov that limits him is his frequent history of injuries plus choking in big international matches so 14 is the best he can do after coming off a year-long layoff and getting crushed in the world quarterfinals. #6 Alan Kudzoev (RUS) has been removed from the rankings after moving up to 74 KG for the U23 Russian nationals championships where he was eliminated in the round 16 to Bisoltan Arslanov (RUS). Magomed-Emi Eitemeirov (RUS) won the U23 Russian Nationals championships over Gitin Gazimagomedov (RUS). Bronze medalists at the U23 Russian Nationals championships were Georgy Sekinaev (RUS) and Zaurbek Bugolov (RUS). 74KG #2 Kyle Dake (USA) won his fourth world title over #3 Taimuraz Salkazanov (SVK). Bronze medalists at the world championships were #4 Frank Chamizo (ITA) and #16 Younes Emami (IRI). Emami makes a jump three spots up in the rankings to #13 for beating Islamic Solidarity Games champion #14 Turan Bayramov (AZE) in the quarterfinals. Daichi Takatani (JPN) makes his debut in the 74 KG rankings at #17 for beating #18 Nurkhoza Kaipanov (KAZ) in the qualification round. Salkazanov had ranked wins at the world championships over Chamizo (ITA), #12 Soner Demirtas (TUR), and Takatani (JPN). Dake's ranked wins were over Salkazanov and Emami. Alexander Baltuev (RUS) won the U23 Russian Nationals over Umar Mutaliev (RUS). Bronze medalists at the U23 Russian Nationals were Saipulla Alibulatov (RUS) and Iman Ganishov (RUS) 79KG #1 Jordan Burroughs (USA) won his eighth World/Olympic title over #3 Mohammad Nokhodilarimi (IRI). Bronze medalists at the world championships were #14 Vasyl Mykhailov (UKR) and Arsalan Budazhapov (KGZ). Mykhailov moves up eight spots in the rankings to #6 after an impressive run at the world championships that culminated with a world bronze medal after victories over #4 Bolat Sakaev (KAZ), #20 Bekzod Abdurakhmanov (UZB), Georgios Kougiomtsidis (GRE) and Ashraf Ashirov (AZE). Abdurakhmanov is back in the rankings at #20 for beating Iakub Shikhdzhamalov (ROU) and Muhammet Akdeniz (TUR). Khalid Yakhiev (RUS) returns to the rankings at #4 for upsetting Senior Russian Nationals runner-up #6 Magomed Magomaev (RUS) in the finals of the U23 Russian Nationals championships. Bronze medalists at the U23 Russian Nationals championships were Idar Khatanov (RUS) and Ramazan Abuzagidov (RUS). 86KG #2 David Taylor (USA) won his third World/Olympic title with a victory over #1 Hassan Yazdani Charati (IRI) in the finals of the Senior World Championships. Bronze medalists at the Senior World Championships were #12 Azamat Dauletbekov (KAZ) and Boris Makoev (SVK). Dauletbekov (KAZ) had an incredibly impressive world championships performance with wins over standout talents the likes of 2021 Olympic bronze medalist #10 Myles Amine (SMR), 2018 Yarygin bronze medalist Yurieski Torreblanca (CUB), 2018 world bronze medalist Taimuraz Friev (ESP) and Ethan Ramos (PUR). Due to the depth of the top half of 86 KG, Dauletbekov is only able to move up two spots to #10 but he absolutely put himself in the conversation of one of the most dangerous guys in the world outside of the trio of Taylor, Yazdani, and Naifonov. Boris Makoev (SVK) made a strong return to the rankings at #12 after taking bronze at the world championships with a victory over #13 Sebastian Jezierzanski (POL). The reason for his strong return is his victory over #13 Sebastian Jezierzanski (POL) after Jezierzanski had upset #11 Fatih Erdin (TUR) in the qualification round. Tarsan Maisuradze (GEO) is in the rankings at #18 for beating 2021 world bronze medalist #20 Abubakr Abakarov (AZE) in the round of 16. Maisuradze was eliminated in the quarterfinals by Makoev. Senior Russian Nationals runner-up #5 Amanulla Rasulov (RUS) won U23 Russian Nationals over Arslan Bagaev (RUS). Bronze medalists at the U23 Russian Nationals were Ruslan Chertkoev (RUS) and Magomednabi Magomedov (RUS) 92KG #1 Kamran Ghasempour (IRI) won his second 92 KG Senior World Championships title with a victory over #3 J'den Cox (USA). Bronze medalists at the Senior World championships were #13 Osman Nurmagomedov (AZE) and #14 Akhmed Bataev (BUL). Nurmagomedov moves up nine spots in the rankings to #4 for taking bronze at the world championships where he beat #8 Feyzullah Akturk (TUR) and #20 Radoslaw Marcinkiewicz (POL) and earns his #4 spot for his win finals win in the 2021 U23 world championships over #4 Azamat Zakuev (RUS). #14 Miriani Maisuradze (GEO) moves up two spots in the rankings to #12 for beating Bataev (BUL) to win world bronze. Ashkab Saadulaev (RUS) won the U23 Russian Nationals championships over Shamil Gadzhialiev (RUS). Bronze medalists at the U23 Russian Nationals championships were Ivan Kirillov (RUS) and Ramazan Shabanov (RUS). 97KG #2 Kyle Snyder (USA) won his fourth World/Olympic title by beating #4 Batyrbek Tsakulov (SVK) in the Senior World Championships finals. Bronze medalists were #5 Givi Matcharashvili (GEO) and #6 Magomedkhan Magomedov (AZE). Magomedov notched a small upset in the bronze medal match when he pinned #3 Mohammad Mohammadian (IRI). #5 Givi Matcharashvili (GEO) came back after trailing late to use a big four-point counter to beat #7 Vladislav Baitsaev (HUN). Tsakulov moves up one spot to #3 in the rankings for beating Matcharashvili and Baitsaev while #4 Mohammadian falls two spots to #6 for his loss to Magomedov. Matcharashvili ( moves up one spot to #4 for his world bronze medal win over #7 Baitsae along with his victory this year over fellow world bronze Magomedov at the Matteo Pellicone. Soslan Dzhagaev (RUS) won the U23 Russian Nationals championships over Tamerlan Kotsoev (RUS). Bronze medalists at the U23 Russian Nationals championships were Yuri Ivanov (RUS) and Zhorik Dzhioev (RUS). 125KG #2 Taha Akgul (TUR) won his fourth World/Olympic title by beating #12 Lkhagvagerel Munkhtur (MGL) in the Senior World Championships finals. Bronze medalists were #1 Amir Zare (IRI) and #3 Geno Petriashvili (GEO). Akgul moves up to the #1 spot for beating Zare in the semifinals and beating #12 Munkhtur in the finals. Munkhtur moves up nine spots in the rankings to #3 for beating Petriashvili in the semifinals of the Senior World Championships. Abdulla Kurbanov (RUS) won the U23 Russian Nationals championships over Artem Pukhovsky (RUS). Bronze medalists at the U23 Russian Nationals championships were 2021 Junior world bronze medalists Andrey Bestaev (RUS) and Tamerlan Kumyshev (RUS). Pound for Pound Rei Higuchi (JPN) makes his return to the pound-for-pound rankings at #13 for winning the 61 KG world title and his 2016 57 KG Olympic silver medal. Higuchi has pound-for-pound wins over the likes of 2021 65 KG Olympic champion Takuto Otoguro (JPN) and past world champions Yowlys Bonne Rodriguez (CUB), Hassan Rahimi (IRI), and Kyong Il Yang (PRK). 65 KG world champion Rahman Amouzad (IRI) makes his debut in the pound-for-pound rankings at #14 for beating #13 Ismail Musukaev (HUN) and #16 Haji Aliyev (AZE) at the 65 KG Senior World Championships. Kyle Snyder (USA) is back in the rankings at #23 for his fourth World/Olympic championships at 97 KG. Zelimkhan Abakarov (ALB) is back in the rankings at #24 for winning the 57 KG world title over 2021 world champion #3 (57) Thomas Gilman (USA). Abakarov was a pound-for-pound staple in 2018 when he was the top-ranked 61 KG wrestler in the world going into the Russian National championships. The final entry into the pound-for-pound rankings is Taishi Narikuni (JPN) who gets in off the strength of winning the 70 KG world title.

West Virginia head coach Tim Flynn (right) (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) 1). Can Air Force's Wyatt Hendrickson breakthrough and All-American next season? Wyatt Hendrickson did it all last season for Air Force. Made a U20 World Team in the summer, had an undefeated regular season, then won a Big 12 title, and was named OW for the conference. He fell at the NCAA tournament, though and ultimately did not finish as an All-American. Heavyweight right now in college wrestling is arguably the toughest it's ever been. It will be something to watch this season to see if Hendrickson can navigate that gauntlet and finish as an All-American. 2). How will Cal Baptist fare in year one? Cal Baptist will compete in their first season in Division one and the Big 12 this year. That's a tall task for any program, but they'll have some talent on the roster in their first year including U20 World Silver Medalist Mitchell Mesenbrink. It's tough to know what to expect from a new program, but it will certainly be entertaining to follow. Here's a chat I had with Coach Moore recently about their transition to D1 and expectations for next season. Derek Moore Interview 3). David Carr at 165 Arguably the most surprising result in the Big 12 last season was David Carr losing in the second round of the NCAA tournament to Hunter Willits of Oregon State. The 2021 NCAA champion came in as the #1 seed and a heavy favorite to win a title again at 157. He bounced back and finished third but this year will move up to 165. This could create a really intriguing matchup in the Big 12 as Mizzou's Keegan O'Toole was the NCAA champion at that weight last season. 4). Can anyone beat Missouri? O'Toole, the Elam brothers, Allan Hart, Peyton Mocco, and the rest of the Tiger squad came back into the Big 12 last season and walked away with a Big 12 conference title. Iowa State was able to knock them off in the regular season, Oklahoma State will return most of their roster from last season(with a few expected lineup tweaks after the departure of AJ Ferrari), and OU has some returning starters and did a great job in the transfer market last season. Can they or any other teams in the conference emerge and compete with Mizzou? 5). How can Stephen Buchanan add to his legacy at Wyoming? I wrote a bit more in-depth piece on this recently. Stephen Buchanan could go down as one of the all-time greats in Wyoming history. But he's still writing that story. What will the ending be? Stephen Buchanan Feature 6). What will Utah Valley get with a healthy Demetrius Romero? Romero was a Big 12 champion and All-American in 2021. In 2022, his season was cut short due to injury. He applied for a medical redshirt and should be back here again at 174 for the Wolverines. If he can stay healthy it will be interesting to see what he does at what will likely be the Big 12's best weight class next season. 7). Can South Dakota State get an All-American? Clay Carlson was one match away from being an All-American last season. Cade DeVos and AJ Nevills were NCAA qualifiers, Tanner Sloan made a U23 World Team this summer and Bennett Berge won a U20 World Medal. There are a host of guys on this roster who could potentially be the guy that breaks through and finishes in the top 8. Will one do it and who will it be? 8). What does Oklahoma have in their transfers? OU did well in the transfer portal in the last year. Wyatt Henson, Mosha Schwartz, and Gerrit Nijenhuis were all big pickups this offseason for the Sooners. Where do they fit into the lineup and how will they perform? That's a solid influx of talent on the OU roster. Let's see what they're able to do in Norman. 9). Can this be Tim Flynn's best dual team at West Virginia? Tim Flynn has been building and developing his program at West Virginia since 2018. In his first four seasons, his teams went 4-14, 4-12, 7-3, and 6-8. Their best record, the 7-3 season, came during the shortened 2020-21 campaign. This season they've certainly developed the most depth they've had on their roster to this point, including All-Americans Killian Cardinale and Peyton Hall. It feels like this could be the year they get Flynn's best dual record and tops that 7-3 season. They open things up with three very winnable duals at home with Northern Colorado, Glenville State, and Edinboro. Then later they have Fairmont State, Ohio, and Chattanooga along with Air Force, Clarion, and Lock Haven. All of those you would argue they'll be favored in which would give them nine wins. On the road at Missouri, Pitt, Oklahoma State and Oklahoma along with tough tests vs. Iowa State and Northern Iowa at home make up the rest of the slate for the Mountaineers. Wins in two of those would give Flynn his best dual record % since arriving at WVU. 10). Can Fix beat Bravo-Young and win an NCAA title at Oklahoma State? Daton Fix has done it all for OSU. Three NCAA finals appearances and two World Teams and a World Medal while still in college. There are few that have resumes comparable. The one mark he's yet to get though, is an NCAA title. He'll have a shot to do that and avenge his two losses to Bravo-Young near his hometown in Tulsa this year. It will be one of the biggest storylines surrounding the entire NCAA tournament in March. 11). What giants can Northern Iowa slay? Last year they knocked off Oklahoma State in Stillwater and nearly beat Iowa State at home. Their win at Oklahoma State will be something their program will talk about for some time and will likely go down as one of the defining dual wins of the program. Can they get another one? 12). Does North Dakota State get an All-American this season? North Dakota State has had a strong dual team nearly every year they've been in the Big 12. They've only had two losing dual seasons since 2016 and one was their first year in the conference. But they've yet to get an All-American or top eight finish at the NCAA tournament since entering the Big 12 in the 2015-16 season. Jared Franek got a tough draw at the NCAA tournament last season, but certainly has the talent to do it. Other NCAA qualifiers Dylan Droegemueller and Owen Pentz return to the Bison lineup as well.

Oklahoma State 149 lber Victor Voinovich (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) The abridged 2020-21 season was one that took place amongst many Covid-relations regulations and concerns. As a result, the NCAA granted an extra year of eligibility to all active student-athletes during that season. What happened was that coaches used freshmen as needed, rather than in the past where they were either competing or redshirting. Last year we saw a sense of normalcy return to wrestling and many wrestlers from the Class of 2021 were redshirted and had varying degrees of success. Here are the freshmen who redshirted during the 2021-22 season and look to be in the mix for a starting role this year. Each redshirt freshman is listed with their 21-22 record, notable wins they may have racked up, and their ranking coming out of high school. 125 #26 Stevo Poulin (Northern Colorado) 2021-22 Record: 6-0 #30 in the Class of 2021 Notable Wins: (W) over Anthony Molton (Campbell) 7-1 NR Cooper Flynn (Virginia Tech) 2021-22 Record: 15-3 #20 in the Class of 2021 Notable Wins: (W) over Korbin Meink (Campbell) 6-5TB (W) over Zurich Storm (Campbell) 8-2 (W) over Braxton Brown (Maryland) 4-1 (W) over Jacob Allen (Navy) 12-3 #29 Braxton Brown (Maryland) 2021-22 Record: 16-5 #70 in the Class of 2021 Notable Wins: (W) over Gary Steen (Penn State) 14-4 (W) over Jacob Allen (Navy) 2-0 (W) over Jace Koelzer (Northern Colorado) Fall 1:10 (W) over Logan Ashton (Chattanooga) 7-0 133 NR Wyatt Henson (Oklahoma) 2021-22 Record: 18-2 #16 in the Class of 2021 Notable Wins: (W) over Angelo Martinoni (CSU Bakersfield) 10-2 (W) over Quinn Kinner (Rider) 7-3 (W) over Heath Gonyer (Appalachian State) 6-2 141 #21 Lachlan McNeil (North Carolina) 2021-22 Record: 6-1 #7 in the Class of 2020 Notable Wins: (W) over Ryan Jack (NC State) 3-1 149 #18 Victor Voinovich (Oklahoma State) 2021-22 Record: 16-1 #15 in the Class of 2021 Notable Wins: (W) over Chris Sandoval (Northern Colorado) 4-1 (W) over Noah Castillo (Chattanooga) 3-2 (W) over Zach Price (South Dakota State) 5-3 #23 Chance Lamer (Michigan) 2021-22 Record: 17-2 #8 in the Class of 2021 Notable Wins: (W) over Lawrence Saenz (Cal Poly) 10-4 (W) over Marcus Robinson (Cleveland State) 10-7 (W) over Graham Rooks (Indiana) 8-6 (W) over Brock McMillen (Pittsburgh) 7-1 #24 Paniro Johnson (Iowa State) 2021-22 Record: 19-6 #45 in the Class of 2021 Notable Wins: (W) over Zach Price (South Dakota State) 12-4 (W) over Matthew Williams (Army West Point) 15-5 (W) over Kanen Storr (Michigan) 9-5 #27 Shayne Van Ness (Penn State) 2021-22 Record: 2-0 #5 in the Class of 2021 #28 Brock McMillen (Pittsburgh) 2021-22 Record: 6-1 #75 in the Class of 2021 Notable Wins: (W) over Matthew Williams (Army West Point) 10-2 (W) over Kanen Storr (Michigan) 6-5 #32 Ethen Miller (Maryland) 2021-22 Record: 26-6 #43 in the Class of 2021 Notable Wins: (W) over Anthony Brito (Appalachian State) 17-0 (W) over Anthony White (Rutgers) 3-1 #33 Anthony White (Rutgers) 2021-22 Record: 21-4 #69 in the Class of 2021 Notable Wins: (W) over Brent Moore (Clarion) 3-1SV (W) over Marshall Keller (Princeton) 10-0 (W) over Max Brignola (Lehigh) 4-2SV (W) over DaShawn Farber (Lock Haven) 4-1 157 #22 Paddy Gallagher (Ohio State) 2021-22 Record: 17-2 #1 in the Class of 2021 Notable Wins: (W) over Cameron Robinson (Iowa State) 7-6 #27 Luka Wick (Cal Poly) 2021-22 Record: 12-0 #33 in the Class of 2021 165 #22 Mikey Caliendo (North Dakota State) 2021-22 Record: 14-2 #73 in the Class of 2021 Notable Wins: (W) over Austin Kraisser (Iowa State) 8-6 (W) over Austin Yant (Northern Iowa) 5-2 (W) over Tanner Cook (South Dakota State) 8-4 #23 Alex Facundo (Penn State) 2021-22 Record: 12-3 #2 in the Class of 2021 Notable Wins: (W) over Evan Barczak (Drexel) 3-1SV (W) over Matt Lee (Penn State) 3-2 174 #30 Joey Milano (NC State) 2021-22 Record: 25-6 #23 in the Class of 2021 Notable Wins: (W) over DeAndre Nassar (Cleveland State) 7-3 #33 Jake Null (Purdue) 2021-22 Record: 21-8 #42 in the Class of 2021 Notable Wins: (W) over Gavin Kane (North Carolina) 8-5 (W) over Drew Nicholson (Chattanooga) 12-5 NR Cael Valencia (Arizona State) 2021-22 Record: 12-4 #13 in the Class of 2021 Notable Wins: (W) over Hayden Hastings (Wyoming) 3-2 (W) over Tyler Eischens (Stanford) 10-8SV NR Luca Augustine (Pittsburgh) 2021-22 Record: 12-5 #35 in the Class of 2021 Notable Wins: (W) over Jaden Fisher (Buckenll) 10-9 197 #28 Jaxon Smith (Maryland) 2021-22 Record: 23-6 #36 in the Class of 2021 Notable Wins: (W) over Matt Correnti (Rider) 4-2 (W) over Garrett Joles (Minnesota) 8-5 (W) over Bobby Striggow (Michigan) 9-5 285 #26 Nathan Taylor (Lehigh) 2021-22 Record: 27-10 #177 in the Class of 2021 Notable Wins: (W) over Riley Smith (Navy) 9-5 (W) over Ryan Catka (Navy) x3 (W) over Ben Goldin (Penn) 6-1 (W) over Jake Slinger (Pittsburgh) Fall 3:52 (W) over Brandon Whitman (North Carolina) 2-0

Ronnie Perry at the 2018 NCAA Tournament (photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) Little more than a decade ago, Ronnie Perry was a rising senior at Solanco High School with a 66-26 career record, zero appearances (let alone medals) at Pennsylvania's high school state tournament, and perhaps little reason to expect an onslaught of calls from college wrestling coaches. But what he did have was a renewed sense of focus, uncommon urgency to get better, and a belief that his best wrestling was still ahead of him. Perry went 26-8 that season and capped it with a seventh-place finish at the state tournament, which included an 8-0 loss to eventual two-time NCAA champion Vincenzo Joseph in the first round. That finish was a strong indication of growth for Perry and a good early example of what would become a trend for him: that he could keep beating the odds to win bigger and bigger events. Perry's only concrete offer to wrestle at the next level came in a conversation with Lock Haven coach Scott Moore, and it was a modest one. Moore knew how Perry was being trained by legendary Solanco coach John Little and saw enough in his motor and attitude to believe he and his staff could develop him. "He's like, 'Hey, listen, 500 bucks is what I can do for you," Perry said. "At that point, I was so naive, I didn't even realize that guys were getting recruited. I didn't know the whole situation or even how it worked. I was just excited to come to school and get to work." Perry arrived at Lock Haven as a wide-eyed 125-pounder and left as a 149-pound NCAA finalist. He was a near-perfect portrait of Lock Haven's "The Rise" philosophy as well as the Bald Eagles' ability to mine deep for unheralded talent and transform it. Perry finished his career with a 136-43 record, three appearances at the NCAA tournament and that magical run to the 2018 finals. Perry was, in fact, the first-ever No. 15 seed to reach an NCAA championship match, which he lost by a 6-2 decision to Penn State's Zain Retherford. Perry beat higher-seeded wrestlers in the Round of 16, quarterfinals and semifinals to get that shot at Retherford, including a major upset over No. 2 seed Brandon Sorensen of Iowa in the Round of 16. Ronnie Perry at the 2018 NCAA Tournament (photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) Ever since then, Perry has been on a fast track to where he is now as Moore's official right-hand man. Lock Haven recently announced Perry's promotion to head assistant coach, taking the place of Nate Carr, who departed to take the head job at Davidson. Perry started his coaching career as a volunteer assistant and was most recently the head women's coach and a men's assistant. "Ronnie has been with me from all stages, as a recruited athlete, more of a recruited walk-on, to a wrestler who overachieved, who bought into the system and the process and became a huge leader in our room," Moore said. "He came in as a volunteer coach, and then moved into the head women's coach and men's assistant. "He's kind of been all the way through the journey and been here eight or nine years and has been big in our program with, I think, a lot of stages, just proving that you can win at this level, and then proving that he's committed and he's loyal to our program." As part of Perry's transition to a bigger role in Lock Haven's men's program, he is going to leave his post as the first head of the Bald Eagles' women's program. Lock Haven is at the beginning of the process to hire for that job, but Perry said he expects the process to move quickly with the season on the horizon. Both he and Moore also note that the core staff of coaches at a small program will always have their hands on everything, anyway. Perry will be a key piece of the puzzle for both men's and women's teams as the embodiment of what Lock Haven hopes its wrestlers can achieve as a small fish in Division 1's big pond. "He has a story to tell," Moore said. "And I think that's the power and the message is that he has a story to talk about his experience and how he adapted and overcame the challenge of being a Division 1 wrestler, and then how he made that next step in becoming a national finalist. "Now, it's exciting for him and for me to have him full force and on the men's side, and to be able to give back. I think he's a loyal guy. He's a worker. He's a servant. And now for him to be able to give back 100% to the university and to the program, we're going to see a lot of success. He's going to continue to build and progress into being a head coach one day." The modest beginnings of Perry's wrestling career, which didn't always mesh well with the dangers of his hobby of motocross racing, are now an asset in his ability to connect with the struggles of his wrestlers. Perry has been where many of Lock Haven's wrestlers are coming out of high school and where they hope to go. Perry knows better than most that being underappreciated by other schools or flat-out written off is far from a death sentence to wrestling goals. In fact, Perry looks back with a little gratitude that he hadn't pushed himself too far, too quickly in the sport, and that he left so much room for growth when he got to college. "I'll tell you what, I think that played a big role," he said. "Some of my experiences in high school and maybe not wrestling all the time played a big role in how motivated I was when I got to school. You know, I wasn't burnt out from doing too much. I was hungry, excited to learn and excited to continue the hard work." Perry just happened to fall into an ideal situation, which was a silver lining behind all the tumbles he took on his bike that cost him mat time. He linked up with a mentor in Moore who made Perry's development a personal mission of his, with a little help toward the end when he had Chance Marsteller and Dan Neff as training partners who pushed him to another level. Now, Perry is in a position to try and help a very good Lock Haven team find its collective spark and make the same ascent he did. Meanwhile, life has come full circle for him. Perry is spending a little more time on the bike that indirectly funneled him to wrestle at Lock Haven a decade ago, only this time he's got no time for the falls and broken bones. "I raced a couple of times this summer," he said. "I'm a little slower than I used to be, a little more timid. I get that itch every now and again to get after it, but I'm a little smarter nowadays, for sure."

"Grow the sport," it's a phrase we have all shouted proudly as any wrestler or fan knows, wrestling is truly the greatest sport of all time. The idea of standing alone on a mat with one opponent in front of you, ready to take you down, ready to give everything they have to stop you from stepping foot on that podium you so desperately want to reach; the other opponent within you, that little voice of doubt that attempts to distract, deter and sabotage you before the match even begins countered by a coach standing in your corner, who fully believes in you and your abilities, owner of that single voice that can drown out the doubt when you think your body cannot physically take anymore, a mentor who can allow you to fully see your own potential, pushing you to conquer your fears, your doubts and your opponents. The correlations between the sport and life are pretty obvious, but for those not well versed, I will offer some insight: Wrestling, the very word means to struggle, and struggle is something every single person on this earth will encounter at some point in their life. If we can teach our youth how to struggle, and struggle well, they will be equipped to face life's challenges, taking problems head on and not backing down when things get tough, or situations seem bleak. While the concept may be difficult for our youth to fully understand at a young age, we can use the sport of wrestling to teach some of life's greatest lessons: self-discipline, accountability, hard work, perseverance, and grace. These principles form a strong foundation everyone can benefit from; they set a standard, create strategy, technique, self-awareness, goals and personal growth, as well as build strong communities. It is rare you will ever encounter a wrestling room where an athlete is practicing alone, without a training partner, without someone else who is committed to being the very best version of themself. Another great benefit of this sport, while it teaches self-discipline and self-reliance, it also builds community. In all the wrestling rooms I've wandered in, I've witnessed teammates mentally and physically pushing one another with this idea of, "iron sharpens iron." Despite competing one-on-one, it is the team and the coach who struggle alongside the wrestler, who not only witness, but also live out the day-to-day struggle in an attempt to get better, an attempt to become the best version of yourself. So when I think of wrestling, I think of overcoming with the support of a special kind of community who doesn't just rally behind you on your best days, no, the wrestling community comes alongside you even on your worst day to remind you that you can do it, you can make something of yourself, you can overcome whatever is set before you because you've trained for this, you've sacrificed for this, you've committed to the preparation and you can take on the opponent or obstacle set before you. These concepts made me fall in love with the sport even as an outsider looking in. The idea of starring down our obstacle, embracing the struggle it brings, knowing we will learn and grow from it; I have to ask, who in their right mind would not encourage everyone to experience this type of life-training, this transformational experience? As a community, the wrestling world always talks about growing the sport, increasing visibility, obtaining higher enrollment numbers, and maintaining participation from youth to the high school levels and beyond; while I am well aware of the many obstacles that stand in our way to make this a possibility, I believe we have to start somewhere. With my recent transition as the Director of Development and Communications for Beat the Streets National, I am making it my personal mission to help grow the sport and expose as many youth to wrestling as possible, in order to positively alter their life trajectory while using this great sport as the vehicle to achieve just that. Like everything else in life, this has to start with preparation. Every athlete knows you cannot just sign up for a tournament or take on a challenge without a plan, without a clear goal in mind, without being prepared or having the proper equipment. There is a level of confidence that is achieved just by coming into a situation well-prepared. Beat the Streets recently launched the #GearUp campaign with the objective to better equip the student-athletes we serve, in order for them to enter the wrestling room with confidence, equipped, geared up and ready to wrestle. Statistics show there are clear physical and emotional benefits for youth to participate in sports; however, youth in poverty are 6x more likely to quit sports due to the associated costs. While wrestling is a relatively low-cost sport in comparison to others, shoes, headgear, workout clothing--it all adds up! Beat the Streets National is a non-profit organization that serves 10 chapters reaching 37 cities, with over 8,400 student-athletes, many of which are new to the sport and live in underserved communities stricken by poverty. When families from underserved communities are forced to choose between gas money to get to work or a new pair of wrestling shoes, groceries or headgear, the electric bill or workout clothes for their child, is there really a choice at all? The families involved with Beat the Streets are already overcoming so many obstacles placed in front of them, and they do it with such grit and a relentless determination to be the best versions of themselves. You see, when our youth decide to participate in Beat the Streets programming, they also choose to commit to their goals, to their teams, to their coaches, to the community; they commit to buying into Beat the Streets mission, to positively alter their life trajectory, to apply the principles and lessons learned through the sport to their everyday life and be an example to their siblings, to their peers, to their neighbors. It is our duty as members of the wrestling community, to ensure these youth have the resources they need to be successful on and off the mat, because if we choose to turn a blind eye, we are doing our great sport a disservice, we are stunting its' growth and neglecting the very youth who can change the landscape of wrestling. Thanks to very generous sponsors (Asics, Gear 2 Compete, Resilite and Good Sports), your support can stretch further than ever. For every $50 donation made by supporters to the #GearUp campaign, our sponsors are donating $200 worth of brand-new gear for our student-athletes! Each year, Beat the Streets aims to grow enrollment rates and expose as many children as possible to the sport, to the mentoring and youth development programs BTS has to offer. As programs grow, so does the need for gear. This year Beat the Streets National is asking the wrestling community to get involved, to fill the need and to help grow the sport and change lives as we aim to #GearUp 2,000 youth wrestlers by raising $100k by December. There are two ways wrestling fans can support our efforts: Donate to our general crowdfunding page or create a fundraising team. Every single donation, every dollar helps meet a need, and there is no donation too small. Because the community is at the center of this great sport, Beat the Streets has created a friendly competition you may have seen on social media. We are asking the wrestling community to get involved, to help share Beat the Streets mission with family. friends and followers by becoming Team Leader's and going head-to-head with each other in an attempt to take over the Leaderboard. There are several college programs, podcasts, wrestling advocates, media outlets and coaches' wives who have already stepped up as Team Leaders and are establishing their teams. Every week Team Leaders are recognized for raising the most money, establishing the largest team, acquiring the most donations (no matter the total amount raised) and achieving their fundraising goal in order to earn BTS swag and bragging rights while helping Beat the Streets #GearUp the youth we serve. Together we can create change, we can impact lives and we can work to grow the sport! Join or support #TeamIntermat here: Check out Team Intermat's team fundraising page for Beat the Streets National

2019 NCAA Champion Mekhi Lewis (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Welcome to a new, regular feature for InterMat! Every day, for the next few months, we'll look into the recent history of a DI wrestling program with our "Ten Years of…" feature. Even if you're a die-hard supporter of a particular school, there will be good information you may have forgotten. For others, it's a quick way to learn about a program you may not be familiar with. We're going in alphabetical order for this one, so next up is...Virginia Tech! NCAA Qualifiers (85) 2022 #24 Sam Latona (125 lbs), #4 Korbin Myers (133 lbs), #28 Collin Gerardi (141 lbs), #11 Bryce Andonian (149 lbs), #28 Connor Brady (157 lbs), #2 Mekhi Lewis (174 lbs), #15 Hunter Bolen (184 lbs), #10 Nathan Traxler (285 lbs) 2021 #2 Sam Latona (125 lbs), #3 Korbin Myers (133 lbs), #6 Bryce Andonian (149 lbs), #27 Connor Brady (157 lbs), #4 Mekhi Lewis (165 lbs), #27 Dakota Howard (174 lbs), #5 Hunter Bolen (184 lbs), #18 Hunter Catka (285 lbs) 2020 #18 Joey Prata (125 lbs), #28 Collin Gerardi (133 lbs), #18 Mitch Moore (141 lbs), #20 Bryce Andonian (149 lbs), #28 BC LaPrade (157 lbs), #7 David McFadden (165 lbs), #31 Cody Hughes (174 lbs), #2 Hunter Bolen (197 lbs), #18 John Borst (285 lbs) 2019 #14 Korbin Myers (133 lbs), #24 Mitch Moore (141 lbs), #26 Ryan Blees (149 lbs), #17 BC LaPrade (157 lbs), #8 Mekhi Lewis (165 lbs), #6 David McFadden (174 lbs), #3 Zack Zavatsky (184 lbs), #10 Tom Sleigh (197), #22 Billy Miller (285 lbs) 2018 Kyle Norstrem (125 lbs), #9 Dennis Gustafson (133 lbs), Brent Moore (141 lbs), #12 Ryan Blees (157 lbs), #2 David McFadden (165 lbs), Hunter Bolen (174 lbs), #6 Zack Zavatsky (184 lbs), #3 Jared Haught (197 lbs), Andrew Dunn (285 lbs) 2017 #2 Joey Dance (125 lbs), #6 Solomon Chisko (149 lbs), #14 Sal Masrtiani (157 lbs), #4 Zach Epperly, #5 Zack Zavatsky (184 lbs), #4 Jared Haught (197 lbs), #3 Ty Walz (285 lbs) 2016 #2 Joey Dance (125 lbs), #7 Solomon Chishko (141 lbs), #8 Nick Brascetta (157 lbs), #14 David McFadden (165 lbs), #8 Zach Epperly (174 lbs), #5 Zack Zavatsky (184 lbs), #6 Jared Haught (197 lbs), #3 Ty Walz (285 lbs) 2015 #3 Joey Dance (125 lbs), Kevin Norstrem (133 lbs), #4 Devin Carter (141 lbs), #7 Sal Mastriani (149 lbs), Nick Brascetta (157 lbs), #7 Zach Epperly (174 lbs), Jared Haught (197 lbs), #10 Ty Walz (285 lbs) 2014 #16 Joey Dance (125 lbs), Dennis Gustafson (133 lbs), #4 Devin Carter (141 lbs), #10 Zach Neibert (149 lbs), Chris Moon (165 lbs), Austin Gabel (174 lbs), #16 Nick Vetterlein (184 lbs), #14 Chris Penny (197 lbs), Ty Walz (285 lbs) 2013 #5 Jarrod Garnett (125 lbs), Erik Spjut (133 lbs), Zach Neibert (141 lbs), #8 Nick Brascetta (149 lbs), #7 Jesse Dong (157 lbs), #3 Peter Yates (165 lbs), Austin Gabel (174 lbs), Nick Vetterlein (184 lbs), Derrick Borlie (197 lbs), David Marone (285 lbs) NCAA Champions Mekhi Lewis (2019 - 165 lbs) NCAA All-Americans 2022: Korbin Myers (133 - 6th), Bryce Andonian (149 - 3rd), Mekhi Lewis (174 - 2nd) 2021: Sam Latona (125 - 6th), Korbin Myers (133 - 4th), Hunter Bolen (184 - 7th) 2019: Mekhi Lewis (165 - 1st), David McFadden (174 - 5th), Zack Zavatsky (184 - 8th) 2018: David McFadden (165 - 5th), Zack Zavatsky (184 - 6th), Jared Haught (197 - 2nd) 2017: Joey Dance (125 - 5th), Solomon Chishko (149 - 6th), Sal Mastriani (157 - 8th), Jared Haught (197 - 4th), Ty Walz (285 - 4th) 2016: Solomon Chishko (141 - 6th), Nick Brascetta (157 - 3rd), David McFadden (165 - 6th), Zach Epperly (174 - 3rd), Jared Haught (197 - 6th), Ty Walz (285 - 4th) 2015: Devin Carter (141 - 3rd), Nick Brascetta (157 - 4th), Zach Epperly (174 - 7th), Ty Walz (285 - 7th) 2014: Joey Dance (125 - 4th), Devin Carter (141 - 2nd), Chris Penny (197 - 6th) 2013: Jarrod Garnett (125 - 6th), Zach Neibert (141 - 8th), Nick Brascetta (149 - 8th), Peter Yates (165 - 4th) NWCA All-Americans David McFadden (165 - First Team) Hunter Bolen (184 - First Team) NCAA Round of 12 Finishers Sam Latona (2022 - 125) Bryce Andonian (2021 - 149) Mekhi Lewis (2021 - 165) Tom Sleigh (2019 - 197) Zach Epperly (2017 - 174) Zack Zavatsky (2016 - 184) Joey Dance (2015 - 125) Sal Mastriani (2015 - 149) Zach Neibert (2014 - 149) Jesse Dong (2013 - 157) ACC Champions 2022: Korbin Myers (133), Mekhi Lewis (174), Nathan Traxler (285) 2021: Sam Latona (125), Korbin Myers (133) 2020: Hunter Bolen (184) 2019: Mekhi Lewis (165), David McFadden (174), Zack Zavatsky (184) 2018: Dennis Gustafson (133), Brent Moore (141), David McFadden (165), Jared Haught (197) 2017: Joey Dance (125), Solomon Chishko (149), Zach Epperly (174), Zack Zavatsky (184), Jared Haught (197), Ty Walz (285) 2016: Joey Dance (125), Zack Zavatsky (184) 2015: Joey Dance (125), Devin Carter (141), Nick Brascetta (157) 2014: Dennis Gustafson (133), Devin Carter (141), Zach Neibert (149), Chris Penny (197) 2013: Jarrod Garnett (125), Nick Brascetta (149), Jesse Dong (157), Peter Yates (165), David Marone (285) Dual Record 2021-22: 9-4 2021: 9-0 2019-20: 11-3 2018-19: 9-5 2017-18: 14-3 2016-17: 18-1 2015-16: 16-2 2014-15: 14-2 2013-14: 18-5 2012-13: 16-3 ACC Tournament Placement 2021-22: 2nd 2021: 2nd 2019-20: 5th 2018-19: 2nd 2017-18: 1st 2016-17: 1st 2015-16: 2nd 2014-15: 3rd 2013-14: 1st 2012-13: 1st NCAA Tournament Team Placement 2021-22: 8th (52.5 points) 2021: 15th (36.5 points) 2019-20: No Tournament 2018-19: 11th (50 points) 2017-18: 8th (47.5 points) 2016-17: 6th (63.5 points) 2015-16: 4th (82 points) 2014-15: 10th (54 points) 2013-14: 8th (49 points) 2012-13: 10th (43.5 points) Head Coaching History Tony Robie (2017 - Present) Kevin Dresser (2006 - 2017) Best Lineup (Comprised of Wrestlers between 2013-22) 125 - Joey Dance: 4x NCAA Qualifier (#2 x2, #3, and #16 seeds), 2x NCAA All-American (4th, 5th), 3x ACC Champion 133 - Korbin Myers: 3x NCAA Qualifier (#3, #4, and #14 seeds), 2x NCAA All-American (4th, 6th), 2x ACC Champion, 2x NCAA Qualifier for Edinboro 141 - Devin Carter: 4x NCAA Qualifier (#4 x2, #6 and #9 seeds), 3x NCAA All-American (2nd, 3rd, 5th), 4x ACC Champion 149 - Bryce Andonian: 3x NCAA Qualifier (#6, #11 and #20 seeds), 2022 NCAA All-American (3rd), 2021 NCAA Round of 12 Finisher, 3x ACC Runner-Up 157 - Nick Brascetta: 4x NCAA Qualifier (#8 x2 seed), 3x NCAA All-American (3rd, 4th, 8th), 3x ACC Champion 165 - Peter Yates: 4x NCAA Qualifier (#3 and #6 seeds), 2x NCAA All-American (4th, 5th), 2x ACC Champion 174 - Mekhi Lewis: 3x NCAA Qualifier (#2, #4, and #8 seeds), 2019 NCAA Champion, 2x NCAA All-American (1,2), 2x ACC Champion 184 - Zack Zavatsky: 4x NCAA Qualifier (#3, #5 x2, and #6 seeds), 2x NCAA All-American (6th, 8th), 3x ACC Champion 197 - Jared Haught: 4x NCAA Qualifier (#3, #4 and #6 seeds), 3x NCAA All-American (2nd, 4th, 6th), 2x ACC Champion 285 - Ty Walz: 4x NCAA Qualifier (#3 x2 and #10 seeds), 3x NCAA All-American (4th, 4th, 7th), 2017 ACC Champion Recruiting Number of Big Boarder's Per Year 2022: #8 TJ Stewart (VA), #16 Caleb Henson (GA), #81 Tom Crook (FL), #204 Aiden Lacoma (VA) 2021: #20 Cooper Flynn (TN), #44 Trey Kibe (PA) 2020: #13 Hunter Catka (PA), #26 Sam Hillegas (PA), #32 Clayton Ulrey (PA), #48 Eddie Ventresca (NJ), #113 Sam Fisher (VA), #143 Koby Allred (VA) 2019: #17 Connor Brady (OH), #22 Bryce Andonian (OH), #40 Sam Latona (AL) 2018: #56 Mitch Moore (OH) 2017: #19 Mekhi Lewis (NJ), #24 John Borst (VA), #50 Hunter Bolen (VA) 2016: #47 Brent Moore (OH), #53 Kyle Norstrem (FL), #71 Jarrett Degen (MT) 2015: #17 David McFadden (NJ), #54 Dayton Racer (IA), #62 Andrew Dunn (PA) 2014: #10 Solomon Chishko (PA), #28 Zack Zavatsky (PA) 2013: #6 Joey Dance (VA), #16 Kevin Norstrem (FL), #29 Zach Epperly (VA), #86 Dennis Gustafson (VA), #93 Jared Haught (WV) For past teams: Air Force American Appalachian State Arizona State Army West Point Binghamton Bloomsburg Brown Bucknell Buffalo Cal Poly Campbell Central Michigan Chattanooga Clarion Cleveland State Columbia Cornell CSU Bakersfield Davidson Drexel Duke Edinboro Franklin & Marshall Gardner-Webb George Mason Harvard Hofstra Illinois Indiana Iowa Iowa State Kent State Lehigh Lock Haven Maryland Michigan Michigan State Minnesota Missouri Navy NC State Nebraska North Carolina North Dakota State Northern Colorado Northern Illinois Northern Iowa Northwestern Ohio Ohio State Oklahoma Oklahoma State Oregon State Penn Penn State Pittsburgh Princeton Purdue Rider Rutgers Sacred Heart SIU Edwardsville South Dakota State Stanford The Citadel Utah Valley Virginia

Aaron Pico in the 2016 Olympic Team Trials (photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) The UFC event on Saturday is uncharacteristically light on former wrestlers, but that is not the case for the Bellator show on the same night. The card will feature several former college wrestlers and one rather famous world medalist. Another world medalist already fought this week, but the fight proved to be a struggle. Check out the results from that bout as well as a preview of the wrestlers on this weekend's Bellator show. Thursday: ONE Championship 161 Ritu Phogat vs. Tiffany Teo On Thursday in Singapore, ONE Championship got an early start to the weekend. The card featured the return of Ritu Phogat against Tiffany Teo. Phogat was a gold medalist at the 2016 Commonwealth Championships and a silver medalist at the 2017 World U23 Championships, and she is also one of the famous Phogat sisters who represent India on the international scene. Her sister Sangeeta is also married to Olympic medalist Bajrang Punia. While she did have some success with her wrestling in this fight, she was not able to pull out the victory. Teo locked on a rear-naked choke and finished via submission with eight seconds left in the first round. With the loss, Phogat falls to 7-3 in MMA. Saturday: Bellator 286 AJ McKee vs. Spike Carlyle As the son of UFC veteran Antonio McKee, it was expected that AJ would eventually fight MMA, but he still came up through the wrestling ranks. In high school, he was a CIF Southern Sectional champion for Long Beach Poly. He then spent time in college at both Notre Dame College and Cerritos College. While at Cerritos, he won a CCCA state championship. McKee will need that wrestling against Spike Carlyle. Although Carlyle left the UFC in 2020 after going only 1-2 in the promotion, he averaged 3.34 takedowns per 15 minutes of fight time. Since leaving the promotion, he has gone on a five-fight win streak that pushed his record to 14-3. This will be McKee's first fight since losing the Bellator featherweight title back to Patricio “Pitbull” Freire as well as his first fight at lightweight. Aaron Pico vs. Jeremy Kennedy After going 4-3 in his first seven MMA fights, Aaron Pico, the former wrestling phenom, has appeared to hit his stride in the sport. He is currently riding a six-fight winning streak that dates back to 2020. With that being said, Jeremy Kennedy likely represents his toughest test since 2019. Pico skipped college and went directly into his MMA career after excelling in freestyle wrestling. He won a gold medal at the 2013 Cadet World Championships and was a two-time world medalist on the Junior level. In 2016, he made the finals of the U.S. Olympic Team Trials, but came up short against Frank Molinaro in a three-match series. From 2016-2018, Kennedy went 3-1 in the UFC with his only loss coming against current UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski. After leaving the promotion, he signed with Bellator in 2020. So far in his new home, he has split a pair of victories over Matt Bessette and Emmanuel Sanchez around a loss to Adam Borics, who also defeated Pico. Juan Archuleta vs. Enrique Barzola This fight features yet another former wrestler who will likely need to rely on his background to earn a victory. Archuleta was a two-time CCCA champion for Sacramento City College before transferring to Purdue. As a junior for the Boilermakers, he finished fourth in the Big Ten and qualified for the NCAA tournament. He has been fighting exclusively for Bellator since 2018 and has gone 7-3. However, he enters this fight after back-to-back losses. Enrique Barzola did not come up wrestling, but it is a big part of his approach to fighting. He fought 10 times in the UFC from 2015 to 2020. During that time, he averaged 4.20 takedowns per 15 minutes. After leaving the UFC and joining Bellator, he has gone 2-1 with a victory over NCAA champion Darrion Caldwell. Max Rohskopf vs. Mike Hamel After starting his career with five-straight wins, Max Rohskopf took a short-notice fight against Austin Hubbard in the UFC. The former North Carolina State wrestler had a lot of success early, but he faded and bowed out of the fight after two rounds. Following the loss, he was released from the promotion. He has since bounced back with a pair of wins. Rohskopf was a two-time NCAA qualifier for the Wolfpack during his collegiate days. As a junior in 2016, he defeated John Staudenmayer and David McFadden to win the ACC tournament at 165 pounds. Mike Hamels currently holds a 9-5 record as a professional. He signed with Bellator in 2020 and dropped his first two matches with the promotion. However, Hamels has bounced back with wins over Bryce Logan and Killys Mota. Rohskopf's bout will be part of the preliminary card that airs live on YouTube at 7:00pm ET, while the rest of the wrestlers will compete on the main card. That portion of the card is scheduled for Showtime at 10:00pm ET.

2x Minnesota All-American Patrick McKee (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) During the 2021-22 preseason, InterMat debuted our top-50 wrestlers list and revealed all 50 day-by-day in the lead up to the regular season. Our second iteration of this feature will spotlight five wrestlers at a time, going from 50 to number one. For each wrestler, we'll have some basic information along with career highlights, a brief analysis of their collegiate career (with a focus on last season), along with their outlook for the upcoming season. 50) Jonathan Millner (Appalachian State) 2x Appalachian State All-American Jonathan Millner (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Weight: 149 lbs Year: Senior Career Record: 92-21 Hometown: Greensboro, North Carolina Collegiate Accomplishments: 2x NCAA All-American (6th, 8th), 3x SoCon Champion 2021 Top 50 Ranking: Not Ranked In each of the last two years, Jonathan Millner finished the year on the NCAA podium. During that span, five of his eight losses occurred at the NCAA Tournament. Millner became only the second multiple-time All-American in Appalachian State wrestling history. To clinch All-American honors in Detroit, Millner defeated Iowa's Max Murin, 8-1. A match later, he downed Kyle Parco, who was responsible for one of his losses at the 2021 tournament. Millner has also dominated SoCon competition with three titles and he has been unbeaten in conference duals over the last three years. For the full article, Subscribe to InterMat's Rokfin Page

Rutgers Assistant Coach Joe Pollard (left) at the 2022 NCAA Championships (photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) With the fall semester underway, college wrestlers are busy not only acclimating to their new slate of classes but also preparing for the upcoming season, all while trying to fit in time for family and friends. For some athletes, this is their first time away from home or being out on their own. Taking in all of this change at once can be difficult. “Whenever high schoolers are coming into college for wrestling, they're still kids,” said Nick Lee, a two-time national champ who graduated from Penn State in May. “There is some maturing to do there. A lot of kids are ready for that and some kids have a hard time; they haven't been away from home.” It's not only the younger wrestlers who are dealing with a lot. InterMat spoke with Big Ten coaches over the summer and asked them what they believe are the biggest challenges facing college wrestlers today. A constant theme throughout the responses was mental health. While an NCAA survey released in May showed improvements in levels of hopelessness since the fall of 2020, rates of mental exhaustion, anxiety and depression in student-athletes are still 1.5 to 2 times higher than identified before the COVID-19 pandemic. The Big Ten formally announced the launch of its Mental Health and Wellness Cabinet in May 2020. Indiana head wrestling coach Angel Escobedo said overall he believes the Big Ten is doing a great job of putting resources toward mental health but that they could always add more. “I think we've got to continue to add more mental health counselors at schools, just because these kids are going through a lot,” he said. “They went through COVID, they went through not being in school and transitioning back to being in school, all while balancing their college life and balancing their own lives. And, you don't know if they lost somebody along the line.” What are the challenges? There are a lot of different factors that could impact a wrestler's mental health. Some are old challenges such as weight cutting and dealing with injuries, while others are newer such as social media and Name, Image, and Likeness. “There are so many distractions,” Illinois coach Mike Poeta said. “Social media is just out of control with the amount of comments and how judged all the time they are for everything they do. I know social media is really tough. They have a lot of distractions with rumors going around with NIL. You're definitely going beyond wrestling coach and managing a lot of stuff with that.” Rutgers assistant Joe Pollard also has concerns about how NIL is affecting his athletes. While he's overall supportive of athletes being able to make money while in college, he said it's important to help make sure they don't lose sight of their priorities: family, academics and making sure they are set up for future success. Pollard also expressed concern for athletes dealing with injuries. “I think a big part of mental health is kids that get injured. Because everybody who's here is an elite-level athlete and they're not used to being injured,” Pollard said. “So, it's like OK, now I'm not in the lineup, I'm on the side and now my coach is focusing on these guys and I'm not really in the limelight. Then they start to have issues there.” Making sure athletes have proper nutrition and mental health resources while cutting weight is a priority for Escobedo. As the season goes on, he said, maintaining weight wears on the athletes. “We have a sports psychologist that works with our team every day, we have two of them,” he said. “And I think that's huge. I think I'm a big advocate for mental health. I always tell my guys that I see a therapist, and I think it's really important to continue to grow in that aspect.” What are they doing about it? Before practice starts in Champaign, Poeta makes a point to take his wrestlers through some breathing exercises or meditation to block out everything outside of the wrestling room. “We are here for the next hour and a half; our minds are shut off from the outside world,” he said. “So, we do some techniques and strategies to really clear their minds. Now let's really have a good practice where we're growing, getting better, figuring some stuff out. We don't just talk about mental strategies, we do them.” Poeta doesn't just have his wrestlers engage in these techniques, he does them himself. A few years ago, breathing exercise and meditation would have been looked down on as “foofoo,” he said, but now he says there's evidence to support that these strategies help not only with wrestling but also at home and in the workplace. He believes that making these mind-clearing techniques a regular part of his practices is going to benefit his program in the long run. “These guys are really good wrestlers and being in the right mindset is what's going to get them to perform the best and have fun out there,” he said. For Escobedo, the best way to show support for his athletes during a challenging time was by making himself vulnerable. The past year has been tough for the Hoosiers, as Escobedo was dealing with the death of his younger brother. Instead of keeping his emotions to himself, Escobedo opened up to his athletes and was honest about what he was going through. “I don't want to fake it and just act like I'm this big tough guy because to me, that's not right,” he said. “I won't be able to see my athletes and what they're going through if I'm trying to hide it myself. So, I'm just opening up to them so that they can open up to me.” What advice do they have for wrestlers? Despite the challenges, the coaches also spoke about the resources and support systems available to their athletes. Pollard praised the Rutgers athletic department for providing the program with tools to help their student-athletes, including a team sports psychologist and wellness team within the department. One key piece of advice Pollard had for college wrestlers of any age is to set a schedule and stick to it. “Set your schedule then don't negotiate with yourself on what your schedule is,” he said. “My schedule is my schedule, the standard is the standard. How you get to that standard can vary from athlete to athlete. But once you set your schedule, there's no negotiating. If you do that, then your priorities will most likely stay in order.” In his five years of college, Lee went through the lows of losing in the first round of NCAA championships his freshman year and having the NCAA championships canceled his junior year to winning his two individual and three team titles. Over that time, he's developed perspective. His advice for college wrestlers is not to get too caught up in themselves and remember that wrestling is a team sport and that the team aspect is important. It's also important, he said, to be able to take a step back and remember that wrestling is a sport and that “there are a lot more important things in their life.” As for those freshmen still trying to find their footing, Lee encourages keeping an open mind. “Be honest with your support system, your coaches, your parents, your teammates,” he said. “Be really open and be willing to change. If you can do those things, it will be a lot easier to transition. But there will always be a transition period and it's going to be easier for some people than it will be for others. But everyone can make it through that transition period. You've just got to be open, be honest and willing to change.”