InterMat Staff

Appalachian State's Randall Diabe defeated Oklahoma's Jake Woodley 5-3 on Dec. 16 (Photo/Tim Cowie) I can assure you that my dad wasn't the only wrestling parent that referred to the first-round match as the "most important match of the tournament." That first-round matchup is oftentimes overlooked and underplayed. It's frequently looked at as one of those "gimme matches." If not taken seriously, it can be used as a kick-starter for one of those unforeseen runs that creates a household name out of someone who wasn't known heading into the national tournament. Take it from Oklahoma State's former All-American Kyle Crutchmer, who offered some first-round match suggestions earlier this week on Twitter. Crutchmer's message will most likely be echoed by every coach cornering one of 330 wrestlers who will be competing in Pittsburgh's PPG Paints Arena at the 2019 NCAA Championships. With such high importance being placed on the opening round, I took some time to breakdown some of the must-watch first-round matches at each of the ten weight classes. 125: No. 8 Vito Arujau (Cornell) vs. No. 25 Malik Heinselman (Ohio State) There will be three first-round bouts at 125 pounds with ranked wrestlers facing off, but the second meeting of the year between freshman Vito Arujau and Malik Heinselman is the match to keep an eye on. Cornell's Arujau opened up the season wrestling at 133 pounds, but dropped to 125 pounds in mid-December and went on a 23-match win streak before falling to Princeton's Pat Glory in the EIWA finals. That finals loss was Arujau's second defeat of the season, as he brings a 26-2 record into Pitt. His only other loss came in early November at the Jonathan Kaloust Bearcat Open to teammate Chas Tucker. But that match was at 133 pounds His opponent Malik Heinselman is coming off a ninth-place finish at the Big Ten Championships and is 23-9 this season. Arujau and Heinselman's Thursday morning meeting will be the second time these two have wrestled this season. Arujau holds the one-match advantage after scoring a 6-0 victory over Heinselman in the Cornell-Ohio State dual meet, which was less than a month ago. 133: No. 2 Stevan Micic (Michigan) vs. No. 31 Mason Pengilly (Stanford) This is arguably the most important opening-round match in the deepest weight class, 133 pounds. The question coming into this match: "Is Micic healthy enough to improve on his second-place finish from a season ago?" He brings a perfect 14-0 record into Pitt, but there are rumors swirling around the health of the Wolverine. Late last year, Micic was forced to pull out of the 2018 World Championships with a knee injury, and that knee is rumored to be hurt again. There weren't questions heading into the Big Ten Championships, but they arose when Micic didn't finish out the conference tournament. The Wolverine defeated Illinois' Dylan Duncan 9-4 in the opening round, and injury defaulted to Luke Pletcher (Ohio State), Ethan Lizak (Minnesota), and Roman Bravo-Young (Penn State) to finish in sixth place. The winner of this match gets either Purdue's Ben Thornton or North Carolina's Gary Wayne Harding. 141: No. 16 Chad Red (Nebraska) vs. No. 17 Ian Parker (Iowa State) Nebraska's sophomore returning All-American Red came into the Big Ten tournament as the eighth seed and "knocked off" the first and fifth-seeded wrestlers to make the conference championships match. Red ended up losing to the second-seeded Joey McKenna (Ohio State), but proved that even with 11 losses this season, he can still compete with the best 141-pounders in the country. He will look to keep his postseason hot streak alive when he takes on Iowa State's Ian Parker in the opening round. Parker is 23-7 on the season but comes into the NCAA Championships splitting his last ten matches. Parker fell twice at the Big 12 tournament, dropping his matches to eventual champion Dom Demas (Oklahoma) and Josh Alber (Northern Iowa) to place fourth. Whoever wins this bout will most likely take on Cornell's defending undefeated (24-0) NCAA champion Yianni Diakomihalis. Also at 141 pounds ... 141: No. 14 Jamel Morris (NC State) vs. No. 19 Sa'Derian Perry (Old Dominion) There are always one or two wrestlers who have breakout NCAA tournaments. Last year it was Kent State's Kyle Connell and Eastern Michigan's Sa'Derian Perry. Perry was 18-19 last year, but picked up three upset victories and finished in eighth place. This season, Perry transferred to Old Dominion after EMU dropped its program, and has compiled a 23-8 record. Perry's run to a second consecutive trip to the podium begins against North Carolina State's Jamal Morris. The Wolfpack redshirt senior is 22-3 on the season and is coming off a title-winning performance at the ACC Championships. Morris is riding a nine-match win streak into Pittsburgh and has won 16 of his last 17 matches. The winner of this bout will meet whoever wins the Nick Lee (Penn State) vs. Nate Limmex (Purdue) match. 149: No. 15 Max Thomsen (Northern Iowa) vs. No. 18 Jared Prince (Navy) Northern Iowa's Max Thomsen will wrestle Navy's Jared Prince in a battle of three-time NCAA qualifiers. Thomsen is looking to claim All-American honors for the second time in his career. Two seasons ago, Thomsen made it to the semifinals before falling to Missouri's Lavion Mayes. Thomsen ultimately went on to take fifth place. Last year, the Panther lost in the second round, then ended his hopes of becoming an All-American with a blood-round loss to Missouri's Grant Leeth. For Thomsen to bounce back from a disappointing seventh-place finish at the Big 12 Championships, he'll have to stop Navy's Jared Prince, who is 19-9 this season. Prince is coming off a runner-up finish at the EIWA Championships, where took down Princeton's second-ranked Matt Kolodzik in the semifinals. Whoever comes out on top of this match will wrestle the winner of Ohio State's Micah Jordan vs. Northwestern's Shayne Oster. *Another great first-round matchup on this lower quad of the bracket will be between Iowa's No. 10 Pat Lugo and Arizona State's Josh Maruca. 157: No. 11 Ke-Shawn Hayes (Ohio State) vs. No. 22 Zac Carson (Ohio) Ohio State or Ohio University? In a battle of in-state rivals that are flipping weight classes, the Buckeye Ke-Shawn Hayes will take on Bobcat Zac Carson in the opening round. Hayes, who is up from 149 pounds last season, finished seventh at the Big Ten Championships and owns a 20-9 record this season. The 2019 NCAA Championships will be Hayes' second trip to the national tournament. He was a round-of-12 finisher last season. The 19-9 Bobcat Carson will be wrestling down from his 2018 weight class of 165. pounds He, too, similar to Old Dominion's Sa'Derian Perry, wrestled for Eastern Michigan last year but has since transferred after the Eagles dropped their program. Carson will be making his second consecutive trip to the NCAA Championships. Last year, he drew into Illinois' top-seeded Isaiah Martinez then fell to Virginia's Andrew Atkinson, ending his season. The winner will wrestle either Iowa's Kaleb Young or Columbia's Dan Reed in the second round. Whoever comes out on top of this match will scrap against the winner of North Carolina State's Thomas Bullard vs. Brown's Jonathan Viruet. 165: No. 1 Alex Marinelli (Iowa) vs. No. 33 Joe Smith (Oklahoma State) Iowa's returning All-American and undefeated (23-0) Alex Marinelli was awarded the top seed at 165 pounds but may have drawn into one of the toughest first-round matches. The Hawkeye will take on Oklahoma State's two-time All-American Joe Smith (if the Cowboy wins his pigtail match). You may be asking how is this happening so early? The Cowboy, who is 18-6 on the season, has only wrestled at 165 pounds at the Big 12 Championships, where he finished in fifth place with a 4-2 record. The recent fluctuation of the Cowboy lineup brought Smith down from 174 pounds to 165 pounds, and for his lack of competition against the 165-pound field, Smith was given the 33rd seed. 174: No. 16 Brandon Womack (Cornell) vs. No. 17 Neal Richards (VMI) For Cornell's Brandon Womack to become an All-American, he'll have to end Neal Richards' 21-match win streak in the opening round. Womack, who holds a 20-8 record this season, was an All-American two seasons ago but went 0-2 last year in Cleveland. He'll wrestle against VMI's Neal Richards, who is riding a 21-match win streak into Pitt. Richards started the season 1-3, but won 27 of his next 28 matches and only lost to Penn State's NCAA champion and top-ranked Mark Hall. Whoever wins will most likely meet Penn State's top-seeded Mark Hall in the second round. 174: No. 7 Jacobe Smith (Oklahoma State) vs. No. 26 Drew Hughes (Michigan State) Oklahoma State's Jacobe Smith's run to a second All-America honor will have to go through Michigan State's Drew Hughes, who made the round of 12 two years ago. Smith, the 174-pound Big 12 champion, is 27-3 on the season and has only faced defeat three times this season. His losses came to Hunter Bolen (Virginia Tech), Lou DePrez (Binghamton) and Ryan Preisch (Lehigh). Hughes will make his return to the NCAA Championships after sitting out last season with a shoulder injury. During his true freshman campaign, Hughes made it to the round of 12 before losing to Rider's Chad Walsh. Hughes is 26-13 on the season and finished the Big Ten Championships in seventh place. Whoever wins this match takes on the victor of Nebraska's Mikey Labriola and North Carolina State's Daniel Bullard. 184: No. 7 Nick Reenan (NC State) vs. No. 26 Dakota Geer (Oklahoma State) It's not very often that you get two guys wrestling in the opening round that combine for single-digit losses. Reenan and Geer have nine combined losses between the two of them this season. Reenen, the seventh-seed at this weight class, has only lost four times this season. Two of those losses came from Nino Bonaccorsi (Pittsburgh), and the others came to Myles Martin (Ohio State), and Zack Zavatsky (Virginia Tech). Martin, Zavatsky, and Bonaccorsi are ranked first, third, and eighth respectively in InterMat's latest rankings. Geer, who is 25-5 on the season, has split time between 184 pounds and 197 pounds, but with the recent shift in Oklahoma State's lineup, ends the season down at 184 pounds. While at 184 pounds, Geer is 10-1, with that only loss coming to No. 10 Drew Foster in the finals of the Big 12 Championships. Whoever comes out on top will take on Iowa State's Samuel Colbray SU) or Fresno State's Jackson Hemauer. 197: No. 15 Randall Diabe (Appalachian State) vs. No. 18 Jake Woodley (Oklahoma) This first-round matchup between Appalachian State's Randall Diabe and Oklahoma's Jake Woodley will be a rematch from December's dual meet. Diabe edged Woodley in that match 5-3. Diabe, who is ranked No. 13 by InterMat, is 26-5 on the season and is coming off a title-winning performance at the SoCon Championships. He has also picked up 11 straight wins. The Sooner Woodley has a 21-8 record on the season and finished in third place at the Big 12 Championships after falling to eventual champion Preson Weigel (Oklahoma State) in the semifinals. The winner will wrestle Ohio State's returning All-American Kollin Moore or Buffalo's Brett Perry. 285: No. 11 Thomas Haines (Lock Haven) vs. No. 22 Billy Miller (Virginia Tech) Lock Haven's Thomas Haines and Virginia Tech's Billy Miller will meet for the fifth time in their careers for an opportunity to continue to wrestle in the winner's bracket on Thursday night at the NCAAs. The pair have split their four meetings. Haines was on the winning end of the first two meetings, but Miller has come out of the top of their last two meetings. Haines, who is 23-4 on the year, holds the better seed and comes into Pitt as the 11th-seeded wrestler at heavyweight, while Miller, who is 16-7, is the 22nd-seeded wrestler in this bracket. The Lock Haven wrestler sits in the eighth spot in the latest InterMat rankings, and the Hokie slides in at No. 19. Whoever wins this match will take on Oregon State's two-time All-American Amar Dhesi (Oregon State) or Brown's Ian Butterbrodt.

Penn State's Bo Nickal will look to capture his third NCAA title (Photo/Mark Lundy, Lutte-Lens.com) Is it a race for second place at the 2019 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships? It definitely looks like it could end up that way. On paper, the top-ranked Penn State Nittany Lions are the clear favorite to repeat as national team champions. Penn State has won the last three team titles and seven of the last eight. And the Nittany Lions are coming off a dominant performance at the Big Ten tournament. They are a loaded and stacked team with talented and proven performers once again. PSU also is wrestling close to home with the tournament being held in nearby Pittsburgh this season. No doubt, the Nittany Lions will have plenty of crowd support at this event. But there are a handful of teams with strong lineups who will have their opportunity as well during the NCAA tournament on March 21-23. The top contenders to knocking off Penn State appear to be Ohio State, Oklahoma State, Iowa and Michigan. Why are the Nittany Lions such a big favorite? That's an answer most wrestling fans already know. They feature a deep and experienced roster with standout wrestlers who have delivered on the big stage. Penn State features arguably the two best wrestlers in the field in two-time national champions Jason Nolf (157 pounds) and Bo Nickal (197). Both are seeded No. 1 and heavily favored to capture their third titles. Nolf and Nickal also are bonus-point scoring machines and the Nittany Lions have traditionally excelled in that area in this tournament. Big Ten champion Mark Hall is one of three PSU wrestlers seeded No. 1 (Photo/Mark Lundy, Lutte-Lens.com) PSU also features two-time national champion Vincenzo Joseph (165) and national champion Mark Hall (174). Joseph is seeded second after losing to Iowa's Alex Marinell in the Big Ten finals. Hall is the No. 1 seed after avenging his 2018 national finals loss to Arizona State's Zahid Valencia this season. The Nittany Lions also have strong title contenders in Shakur Rasheed at 184 and Anthony Cassar at heavyweight. Rasheed is seeded second in his weight class while Cassar, coming off a win over then-No. 1 Gable Steveson of Minnesota, also is seeded second. All-American Nick Lee is back at 141 for Penn State and he is seeded third for nationals. The Nittany Lions also have top young wrestlers Roman Bravo-Young (No. 10 at 133) and Brady Berge (No. 12 at 149) in their lineup. With so much firepower in the PSU lineup, it will take a tremendous team effort to overtake them for the championship. Ohio State's Myles Martin won the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational and enters the NCAAs ranked No. 1 (Photo/John Sachs, Tech-Fall.com) Ohio State has battled the Nittany Lions close in recent years after winning the NCAA team title in 2015. The Buckeyes may have the best shot of anybody to defeat Penn State this year. Ohio State is led by national champion Myles Martin and two-time third-place finisher Joey McKenna. Martin is seeded No. 1 at 184 and McKenna is the 2 seed at 141. The Buckeyes also feature highly seeded wrestlers in Kollin Moore (No. 2 at 197), Micah Jordan (No. 2 at 149), Luke Pletcher (No. 5 at 133) and Ke-Shawn Hayes (No. 11 at 157). Oklahoma State's Kaden Gfeller after winning the Southern Scuffle (Photo/Sam Janicki, SJanickiPhoto.com) Oklahoma State also features a deep squad with the potential to be in contention in Pittsburgh. The Cowboys, the winningest program in NCAA history, are led by No. 1 seeds Daton Fix (133) and Derek White (285). Oklahoma State also has highly seeded wrestlers in Nick Piccininni (No. 2 at 125), Preston Weigel (No. 3 at 197), Kaden Gfeller (No. 7 at 149) and Jacobe Smith (No. 7 at 174). Iowa's Austin DeSanto is seeded No. 7 at 133 pounds (Photo/Mark Lundy, Lutte-Lens.com) The Iowa Hawkeyes also are highly ranked, and they feature a strong squad capable of scoring their share of team points. The Hawkeyes are led by returning national champion Spencer Lee (125) and No. 1 seed Alex Marinelli (165 pounds). Lee is seeded third after finishing second at the Big Ten tournament. Iowa also has highly seeded wrestlers in Jacob Warner (No. 5 at 197), Kaleb Young (No. 6 at 157), Austin DeSanto (No. 7 at 133), Pat Lugo (No. 10 at 149) and Cash Wilcke (No. 12 at 184). Marinelli is seeded No. 1, but his draw is far from favorable. He could have a tough first match against Oklahoma State's Joe Smith, a two-time All-American who is the No. 33 seed at 165. Smith competed at 174 during the regular season and was ranked in the top five in that class. He moved down to 165 and beat two-time All-American Chandler Rogers in a wrestle-off before the postseason. Iowa heavyweight Sam Stoll is a returning All-American, but he has competed only sparingly this season while not being 100 percent physically. Stoll was ranked No. 1 in the preseason. Stoll is seeded just 29th with a 9-5 record. He will face No. 4 seed Jordan Wood of Lehigh in an intriguing first-round match. Michigan's Stevan Micic is undefeated and seeded No. 2 (Photo/Sam Janicki, SJanickiPhoto.com) Michigan also has its share of standouts, led by returning NCAA runner-up and No. 2 seed Stevan Micic at 133. The teams chasing the Nittany Lions obviously will need to score as many bonus points as they can to try and keep pace. It may be a race for second place at the 2019 NCAAs, but there certainly is the potential for a close race for the gold trophy. Plenty of wild and crazy developments can occur when the stakes are highest during three highly competitive days of wrestling. But it would definitely take an impressive all-around performance for anyone to knock off Penn State.

Ryan Millhof battles Ronnie Bresser of Oregon State in the Pac-12 finals (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com) Arizona State's Ryan Millhof will not compete at the NCAAs this week. The 2016 All-American and three-time NCAA qualifier suffered a career-ending injury between the Pac-12 Championships and NCAAs, forcing him to withdraw from the competition. Millhof qualified for the tournament by finishing runner-up to Ronnie Bresser of Oregon State at the Pac-12 Championships. Millhof was the No. 14 seed, so wrestlers seeded between 15-33 will move up one seed line and Trey Chalifoux of Army West Point is the alternate and will be placed in the bracket as the No. 33 seed. Updated brackets are below. Link: Brackets

The 2020 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships will take place at U.S. Bank Stadium, home of the Minnesota Vikings The University of Minnesota wrestling program is excited to begin selling tickets for the 2020 NCAA Division I Wrestling National Championships at U.S. Bank Stadium. The event, marking the first time the wrestling championships will be held in an indoor professional football stadium, will run from March 19-21, 2020. Presale access for Gopher Score members will begin on Monday, March 18, 2019 at 9am. Public sale will begin on Wednesday, March 20, 2019, at 9 a.m. Tickets will begin at $170. If you have any questions, please contact the Gopher Ticket Sales & Service Office at fans@gopherfanrelations.com or call 612-624-8080 (Option 1). The Ticket Sales & Service Office is open Monday - Friday 9am-5pm and is located at the 3M Arena at Mariucci Ticket Office. The Gophers travel to Pittsburgh for the 2019 Division I Wrestling Championships on March 21-23 at PPG Paints Arena where they have six wrestlers seeded in the top-ten of their respective weight class.

Kyle Conel celebrates after pinning Kollin Moore in the NCAA quarterfinals (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com) Penn State will be losing 197-pounder Bo Nickal, a multiple-time NCAA champion, to graduation after the season, but could be replacing him with an All-American. Kent State's Kyle Conel, an NCAA third-place finisher in 2018, announced on Twitter that he will be attending Penn State to pursue a master's degree and complete his final year of eligibility if he is granted a medical hardship waiver by the NCAA. Conel announced in December that he would be undergoing surgery on his shoulder, ending his season. He wrestled only two matches this season, going 2-0, earning a 9-8 victory over Kent State's Mark Penyacsek and a 20-4 technical fall over Lucas Miozza of Lindsey Wilson. He was ranked No. 2 at 197 pounds behind Nickal before his season ended. Last season Conel compiled a record of 28-8 and placed third at the NCAA Championships. He was an NCAA qualifier in 2016.

At least one unseeded wrestler always breaks through and becomes an All-American at the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships. However, that will certainly not happen this year. All wrestlers were seeded into the tournament this year. That does not mean that there are still not some dark-horse candidates out there. The following is a look at the top dark-horse candidates to become an All-American seeded 15th or lower. 125: No. 15 Sean Fausz (NC State) Fausz qualified for his fourth NCAAs after making the ACC finals before falling against No. 5 Jack Mueller (Virginia). In his previous three trips to the big dance, Fausz has come up short of becoming an All-American, and this will be his last chance. He wrestled sparingly this season, since 125 pounds is a big pull for him. In limited action, he went 11-2 with wins over No. 23 Cole Verner (Wyoming) and No. 19 Zeke Moisey (Nebraska). He certainly has the experience to finish in the top eight, but his weight struggles have always seemed to hold him back. The Wolfpack wrestler will be favored in his first match against No. 18 Devin Schroder (Purdue). However, things quickly become tougher as he will then likely face No. 2 Nick Piccininni (Oklahoma State). Fausz will have to make a run on the backside if he falls in the second round, but he may just finish his career as an All-American. 133: No. 19 Josh Terao (American) Four of Terao's five losses on the season came in a 15-day span covering the end of December and the beginning on January. Since Jan. 4, he has gone 11-1 and made the finals of the EIWA Championships. This is his third straight year qualifying for the NCAAs, but he is still looking for his first All-America finish. He does not really have a signature win this year outside of a major decision over Brandon Paetzell (Lehigh). However, he has notable wins on his resume throughout his career. Terao's NCAA tournament campaign gets off to a tough start against former Edinboro wrestler Korbin Myers (Virginia Tech), and he could then quickly run into Nick Suriano (Rutgers). 141: No. 15 Kaid Brock (Oklahoma State) This is probably not the way a lot of people pictured the season going for Brock after moving up in weight. He set a new career high for losses in a season with seven after only dropping nine matches the previous two years. Despite the tough regular season, he could still make some noise in this tournament. He is coming off back-to-back fifth-places finishes, and he has defeated the likes of No. 23 Sam Turner (Wyoming) and No. 22 Mac Murin (Iowa) this season. Brock gets started against another dark-horse candidate in Bryan Lantry (Buffalo), and if things go according to chalk he will then face the second seed Joey McKenna (Ohio State). Things are rarely easy for a double-digit seed. 149: No. 18 Jared Prince (Navy) Since the Southern Scuffle, Prince has gone 10-2 with both of his losses coming in overtime. At the EIWA Championships, he picked up one of the biggest wins of his career as he knocked off No. 5 Matt Kolodzik (Princeton). He lost some momentum when he fell to No. 13 Anthony Artalona (Penn) in the finals. However, he still clearly has the talent to put together a run, and it would be fitting after all of the internal strife he had to overcome prior to the postseason last year. Things get off to a challenging start for Price as he faces no. 15 Max Thomsen (UNI) in the opening round. Since he is in the bottom half of the bracket he will likely run into No. 2 Micah Jordan (Ohio State) if he advances. Freshman Quincy Monday enters the postseason with a 24-11 record (Photo/Princeton Athletics) 157: No. 26 Quincy Monday (Princeton) In his very first collegiate tournament, Monday dropped an 8-5 decision against No. 20 Luke Weiland (Army). At the EIWA Championships, he was able to reverse that result and take the decision in sudden victory. Also in that season opening tournament, Monday dropped a match against No. 7 Larry Early (Old Dominion). In the first round of the NCAA tournament, he will get the chance to reverse that loss as well. Monday finished his freshman season 24-11 and has the potential to finish as an All-American. 165: No. 33 Joe Smith (Oklahoma State) Smith defeated teammate and fellow All-American Chandler Rogers in a wrestle-off for the chance to represent the Cowboys at 165 pounds in the postseason. He entered the Big 12 Championships as the seventh seed and ended up finishing fifth. Along the way, he dropped a pair of matches against eventual Big 12 champion No. 9 Demetrius Romero (Utah Valley) and No. 10 Branson Ashworth (Wyoming). Due mostly to his lack of action this year at 165 pounds, Smith enters the NCAA tournament as the last seed, No. 33. If he wins his pigtail against No. 32 Tyler Morland (Northwestern), he will face off against No. 1 Alex Marinelli (Iowa). Facing off against the top seed in the first round could make his quest to become an All-American difficult, but Smith certainly has the talent and definitely has the pedigree. 174: No. 17 Neal Richards (VMI) One of the most exciting aspects of the basketball version of the NCAA tournament is seeing how some of the smaller programs who dominated their competition do against the major conference teams. For wrestling, that is really embodied in Richards. The VMI wrestler started his season with a 7-4 record, but he then broke off a 21-match winning streak that finished with a major decision over No. 18 Andrew Morgan (Campbell) in the finals of the SoCon Championships. Richards has not faced the toughest schedule this season, but he certainly has momentum in his favor. His tournament starts with a first-round match against No. 16 Brandon Womack (Cornell) Michigan State freshman Cameron Caffey enters the NCAAs as the No. 19 seed at 184 pounds (Photo/Michigan State Athletics) 184: No. 19 Cameron Caffey (Michigan State) In his redshirt freshman season, Caffey won three tournaments before Christmas, including the Reno Tournament of Champions. He spent the majority of the season in the rankings. However, he had a tough Big Ten tournament. He entered the field as the 10th seed and dropped his first two matches to No. 2 Shakur Rasheed (Penn State) and Nick Gravina (Rutgers). Luckily for him, he was able to get it together and ended up winning the mini tournament for ninth place. Caffey has been an integral part of the Michigan State rebuild, and he has the offense to compete with almost anyone. Despite facing the a higher seed in the first round, Dylan Wisman (Missouri), he will likely be a popular pick in many fan brackets. 197: No. 16 Josh Hokit (Fresno State) Hokit is one of the few two-sport Division I athletes competing at a high level. In addition to being one of the top-20 197-pound wrestlers, he is also a running back on the Bulldogs football team. This past season, he played in 13 games and made one start on the gridiron before reporting for wrestling duty. On the mats, he went 21-6 and picked up wins over No. 6 Willie Miklus (Iowa State) and No. 19 Tanner Orndorff (Utah Valley). Hokit will need his athletic ability and explosion at the NCAA tournament this year. He starts off against Stephen Loiseau (Drexel) in the first round before meeting up with No. 1 Bo Nickal (Penn State). 285: No. 27 Ian Butterbrodt (Brown) In his last season of his collegiate wrestling career, Butterbrodt has finally qualified for the NCAA tournament. He went 3-1 at the EIWA Championships, losing only to champion No. 4 Jordan Wood (Lehigh) via medical forfeit. For the season, he went 18-6. He has not faced the toughest schedule, but heavyweight always seems to be somewhat wide open this time of year. In his first-round match, he faces off against No. 6 Amar Dhesi (Oregon State). The Canadian international wrestler has the edge in skill and experience. However, he has not really looked like himself this year, and Butterbrodt has a solid shot at an upset.

Kamal Bey lifts Aaron Brooks in their AWL exhibition (Photo/Mark Lundy, Lutte-Lens.com) KANSAS CITY -- The American Wrestling League (AWL) hosted two freestyle matches, along with a freestyle/Greco-Roman exhibition match, after the Missouri Border Brawl on Sunday. Below are the results from the AWL matches and Missouri Border Brawl. AWL Freestyle: 70: Joey Lavallee tech. fall Lavion Mayes, 10-0 61: Joe Colon dec. Alan Waters, 7-6 Freestyle/Greco-Roman Exhibition: 79: Aaron Brooks def. Kamal Bey 1st period Greco-Roman: Bey dec. Brooks, 7-0 2nd period freestyle: Brooks dec. Bey, 6-1 3rd period only 4 and 5 point moves: Brooks dec. Bey, 4-4 criteria Rocky Elam defeated Steve Elwell at the Missouri Border Brawl (Photo/Mark Lundy, Lutte-Lens.com) Missouri Border Brawl HS 145: Kyle Prewitt, Christian Brothers College High School pinned Dillon Nichols, Mexico High School, 3:25 HS 106: Eli Ashcroft, Kearney High School dec. Evan Binder, Whitfield High School, 4-2 HS 106: Easton Hilton, Liberty High School maj. dec. Owen Uhls, Fulton High School, 11-0 Youth 90 -Jackson Tucker, Thoroughbred W.A. maj. dec. David Gleason, Grindhouse, 15-7 HS 152: Sam Frankowski, Rockwood Summit High School dec. Aidan Johnson, Staley High School, 3-1 HS 120: Jayden Carson, Lafayette High School dec. Korbin Shepherd, Blue Springs High School, 10-8, SV HS 132: Vincent Zerban, Christian Brothers College High School dec. Nathan Pulliam Rolla High School, 10-5 Youth 140: Peyton Westphal, Victory WC dec. Rylan Kuhn, Greater Heights WC, 12-4 HS Girls 103: Faith Cole, Lafayette High School dec. Emalie Olsen, Kearney High School, 8-4 HS 126: Teague Travis, Father Tolton High School dec. Ethen Miller, Park Hill High School, 13-6 HS 138: Joshua Saunders, Christian Brothers College High School maj. dec. Braxton Barnes, Neosho High School, 15-7 HS 160: Cory Peterson, Desmet High School inj dft. Tyler Ross, Lawson High School, 3:56 HS 195: Rocky Elam, Staley High School maj. dec. Steve Elwell, Knob Noster High School, 8-0 Youth 110: Carter McAllister, Greater Heights WC dec. Kyshen Isringhausen, Terminator WC, 12-6 HS 170: Greyden Penner, Liberty High School pinned Jacob Boumans, Nequa Valley High School IL, 4:09 HS 113: Noah Surtin, Edwardsville High School IL tech. fall Jeremiah Reno, Liberty High School, 16-0

Greg Wojciechowski, University of Toledo wrestler who won an NCAA heavyweight title and a place on the 1980 U.S. Olympic men's freestyle team, will be inducted into the Mid-American Conference Hall of Fame, the Ohio-based school announced Friday. Wojciechowski -- along three other non-wrestling athletes from other schools -- will be welcomed in to the conference Hall of Fame at the MAC Honors Dinner at the Cleveland Renaissance Hotel on Wednesday, May 29, 2019. Greg WojciechowskiA native of Toledo, Wojciechowski won back-to-back Ohio high school state titles at heavyweight for Toledo Whitmer in 1967 and 1968. The 6', 260-pound wrestler affectionately known as "Wojo" continued his academic and athletic career at University of Toledo, where he was a three-time MAC heavyweight champ (1970-1972) and three-time NCAA championships finalist, winning the unlimited title at the 1971 NCAAs at Auburn University in Alabama by defeating Penn State's Dave Joyner, 5-3, in the finals. (Wojo was runner-up at the 1970 NCAAs, losing to Oregon State's Jess Lewis in the title match, 11-2 ... and came in second at the 1972 Nationals, falling to Chris Taylor, Iowa State's "Gentle Giant" who outweighed the defending champ by 150 pounds, 6-1, in the finals.) Wojciechowski finished his collegiate career at Toledo with a record of 55-2. (Sadly, the school eliminated its wrestling program 25 years ago.) Wojciechowski also made his presence known in wrestling beyond folkstyle. He was runner-up at the Olympic Trials and was named an alternate for the U.S. Olympic teams in Greco-Roman wrestling in 1968, 1972 and 1976, and in freestyle in 1972 and 1976 before earning a place on the freestyle team for the 1980 Olympics. However, the U.S. boycott of the 1980 Moscow Olympics kept Wojciechowski from participating. Wojciechowski had a long career as a teacher and wrestling coach at high schools in northwest Ohio ... then was a professional wrestler for a dozen years as "The Great Wojo." Prior to being announced as a Class of 2019 honoree into the MAC Hall of Fame, Wojciechowski was inducted into the UT Varsity T Hall of Fame in 1978 and the George Tragos and Lou Thesz Pro National Wrestling Hall of Fame at the National Wrestling Hall of Fame Dan Gable Museum in Waterloo, Iowa in 2015. To participate in the 2019 MAC Honors Dinner in downtown Cleveland on Wednesday, May 29 at 6:00 p.m. Eastern, contact Julie Kachner at the Mid-American Conference office at (216) 566-4622. Individual tickets are $100 each; a table for ten is available for $950. Want to know how big the best big men of college wrestling were? Check out this InterMat feature: "Size matters: Heights, weights for NCAA heavyweight champs."

Joe Corso, Gary Steffensmeier, Jessie Whitmer and the late Don Buzzard have been announced as inductees for the Iowa Wrestling Hall of Fame Class of 2019, the facility which honors individuals who have contributed to the sport of wrestling within the state of Iowa announced Friday. In addition, Dale Bahr, who was actually announced in 1988 but unable to participate in that induction ceremony three decades ago, will also take part in this year's Annual Awards Banquet and Induction Ceremony. This year's ceremony will take place Monday evening, April 8, 2019 at the Cresco Country Club south of Cresco, hometown for the Iowa Wrestling Hall of Fame. The 50th Annual Awards Banquet and Induction Ceremony will begin with a social hour at 5:30 p.m. Central, followed by a banquet at 6:30. Banquet tickets are available at the Cresco Chamber of Commerce at 563-547-3434 or CIA Insurance in Cresco at 563-547-2382. Tickets are $25 and advance registration is required. This year's honorees: Don Buzzard was a two-time state champion for Waterloo East High School, winning back-to-back titles in 1963 and 1964. Buzzard went on to Iowa State University where he was a two-time NCAA runner-up at 191 pounds. As a sophomore Buzzard won the 191-pound title at the Midlands, the annual Christmastime tournament held in suburban Chicago. Buzzard coached at Jesup before becoming an assistant coach at the University of Iowa (1973-1974). During his competitive career Buzzard only lost a total of nine matches. Buzzard passed away in 2016. Joe Corso won a state title for West Des Moines Valley at 113 pounds in 1971. After winning a bronze medal in the NCAA championships for Purdue, Corso continued his career in freestyle wrestling where he excelled. Corso went on to become a ten-time national freestyle champion, placed third in the World Championships of 1978 and was the 1979 Pan-American Games champion. Corso was also on the 1980 Olympic team and an alternate in 1984. Corso is still coaching and has had a long history with the Sunkist Wrestling Club. Gary Steffensmeier wrestled at Fort Madison High for Hall of Fame coach Mick Pickford. Steffensmeier was the Bloodhounds' first two-time state champion and their first four-time state tournament medalist. Steffensmeier won titles in 1986 at 112 pounds, then the following year at 119. He capped his senior year with a perfect 32-0 record. Steffensmeier went to the University of Northern Iowa where he was a three-time Division I All-American with a runner-up and two fourth-place finishes. He finished with a collegiate record of 115-29-3. Jesse Whitmer (right) with Dan Gable in 2017Jessie Whitmer was a four-time medalist and a one-time state champion for Eagle Grove High School. Whitmer then went to the University of Iowa where he was able to break into the starting line up as a 118-pound senior. Whitmer was one of five national champions for the storied 1997 squad that broke the record for number of points scored at the tournament (170). Dale Bahr was a two-time state champion for Iowa Falls high school, wrestling for Hall of Fame honoree Gary Kurdelmeier. Under Harold Nichols at Iowa State, Bahr won the 145-pound national championship as a senior. He was a two-time All American before winning his national championship. Bahr went on to a successful coaching career, culminating as head coach for the University of Michigan from 1978-99. The Iowa Wrestling Hall of Fame's purpose is to honor and promote amateur wrestling in Iowa. The IWHOF has a rich history of honoring native Iowans at an annual awards banquet and induction ceremony going back to 1970. At the conclusion of this year's ceremony, the IWHOF will have honored a total of 133 outstanding individuals for their contributions to amateur wrestling. The Iowa Wrestling Hall of Fame is located in the Cresco Welcome Center at the intersection of Highway 9 and Elm Street in downtown Cresco. The Hall of Fame is open 9 a.m.-5 p.m. daily. To learn more about the Iowa Wrestling Hall of Fame and its honorees, visit the official website.

Kevin Dresser coaching at the Southern Scuffle in Chattanooga, Tenn. (Photo/Sam Janicki, SJanickiPhoto.com) MANHEIM, Pa. -- The National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA) is pleased to announce its finalist for the 2019 NWCA Division I National Coach of the Year presented by Defense Soap. To be eligible to be a finalist for the National Coach of the Year honor, a coach must have been named coach of the year in their respective conference. This year's finalists include: ACC: Pat Popolizio (NC State) Big Ten: Cael Sanderson (Penn State) Big 12: Kevin Dresser (Iowa State) EWL: Scott Moore (Lock Haven) EIWA: Kevin Ward (Army West Point) MAC: John Stutzman (Buffalo) Pac 12: Jason Borrelli (Stanford) SoCon: Cary Kolat (Campbell) The National winner will be announced at the NWCA Coaches Social on Tuesday, March 19. The winner will be determined by a vote of all NWCA Division I Member Coaches. The National Coach of the Year award presented by Defense Soap is in its second year of existence and is intended to honor the coach who has had the most outstanding season up to the NCAA Championship which includes dual meet success and conference tournament placement.

Menlo claimed the first-ever NAIA Women's Wrestling Invitational title JAMESTOWN, N.D. -- Menlo College women's wrestling has been rewriting the women's collegiate wrestling history book all season long and Saturday was one more chapter in what is becoming a lengthy novel. With a dominant 12 All-Americans, five National Champions and eight competitors in the finals, the Oaks cruised to the first ever National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) Invitational Championship with a team score of 230.5 -- 76 points better than second place Oklahoma City University. The title marks the second National Title for this team in six weeks as the Oaks also won the WCWA National Championship in Atlanta, Ga. on Feb. 9. Menlo is now the only collegiate women's wrestling program in the sport's history to win both tournaments. A dozen All-Americans It was a day to remember for the Oaks. The NAIA awards All-American status to the top four finisher and Honorable Mention All-American Status for finishers in the top eight. Menlo had nine wrestlers finish fourth our better and three more claim eighth or better. All-Americans included: Alleida Martinez (1st), Angela Peralta (2nd), Gracie Figueroa (2nd), Hiba Salem (4th), Iman Kazem (1st), Marilyn Garcia (1st), Precious Bell (2nd), Solin Piearcy (1st) and Tiana Jackson(1st). Brittany Woods-Orrison (7th), Emily Sandoval (7th) and Taryn Ichimura (6th) each earned Honorable Mention All-Americans. Eight finalists, Five Champs Eight different Oaks earned the right to wrestle for an individual national title on Saturday, including two in the same weight class. Alleida Martinez (109 lbs) and Solin Piearcy (136 lbs) did the unthinkable, pulling off a clean sweep at their weight class winning both the WCWA and NAIA titles. Iman Kazem (155 lbs), Marilyn Garcia (143 lbs) and Tiana Jackson (123) each won their first ever national titles to round out the five Menlo champions. Gracie Figueroa and Angela Peralta battled to second place finishes. How it happened Alleida Martinez claimed her second national title of the year by once again defeating Mckayla Campbell of Campbellsville. Martinez won via 10-0 technical fall on Saturday and had previously pinned Campbell at WCWA. Tiana Jackson, the fourth seed in the tournament, upset #2 seed Koral Sugiyama of Campbellsville, 5-2. Iman Kazem had maybe the most impressive performance in the finals, claiming her first national title by pinning Anna Naylor of Cumberlands in just 39 seconds. She finished the tournament with three pins and a technical fall victory. Marilyn Garcia won her title by edging teammate Angela Peralta 2-0 and Solin Piearcy won her second title by defeating Erica Sotelo of Life, 8-1. Two is better than one Very few teams are ever given the opportunity to claim two national titles in the same season. Menlo was not only given the opportunity this season, they won both in remarkable, albeit differing, fashion. The WCWA title featured a movie script-like crescendo that saw Menlo win the necessary three of four individual titles to claim the team crown. The NAIA championship saw fewer dramatics, but an equal amount of pride and dominance. The Oaks were so successful that they wrapped up the NAIA title before the finals matches were even wrestled - a true testament to the overall team effort put forth on Saturday afternoon in snowy North Dakota. The two national titles serve as the first two of the 92-year history of Menlo College. More hardware In addition to all of the hardware won by the wrestlers themselves, Coach Joey Bareng added another trophy to his collection, garnering NAIA Coach of the Year Honors. He previously was named the WCWA Coach of the Year in April. Not even a blizzard can bring down the Oaks The Jamestown, North Dakota area was hit with a massive winter storm late Wednesday night through Thursday that wreaked havoc on the tournament. Originally scheduled as a two-day event concluding on Saturday, the storm forced the NAIA's hand and the tournament was condensed to just Saturday to allow additional time for team travel. The Oaks struggled to leave the hotel to practice, forcing improvised practices inside their hotel in the days leading up to the event. Focus was not lost and the Oaks clearly were ready to make their mark. History in the making The NAIA Invitational was historic for a number of reasons, namely that it was the first officially recognized women's college wrestling tournament by a national multi-sport collegiate organizing body. Women's Wrestling was granted "emerging sport" status by the NAIA prior to the 2018-19 season; the first governing body to launch the sport. 25 NAIA institutions fielded women's wrestling programs in 2018-19, up from 19 the year prior. Women's Wrestling will be eligible for championship status after two year of competition as an invitational sport, and 40 institutions sponsor a varsity women's wrestling team. Final team standings (top 15): 1 Menlo College 230.5 2 Oklahoma City University 154.5 3 University of Jamestown 137.5 4 Campbellsville University 126.5 5 University of Cumberlands 106.5 6 Wayland Baptist University 105 7 Life University 102.5 8 Southern Oregon 66.5 9 Midland University 45 10 Missouri Baptist University 43 11 Lyon College 40.5 12 Missouri Valley College 39 13 Eastern Oregon University 36.5 14 Waldorf University 22.5 15 Ottawa University 18

YAKUTSK, Russia -- The United States took third at the 2019 Men's Freestyle World Cup, claiming a 6-4 win over Japan in the bronze-medal bout on Sunday in Yakutsk, Russia. The whole dual was a back-and-forth battle with the USA prevailing in the end. The U.S. won by forfeit at 57 kilograms, but Japan snagged the win at 61 kilograms as National Team member Nico Megaludis suffered his first loss of the tournament, falling to 2018 University world champion Yudai Fujita on criteria, 4-4. At 65 kilograms, 2017 Senior World Team member and 2012 Cadet world champion Zain Retherford finished the weekend undefeated, producing a 10-0 tech fall against 2014 Junior World bronze medalist and 2011 Cadet world bronze medalist Daichi Takatani. Read complete story on TheMat.com ...

Andrew Nicola, with nearly a decade of high school and collegiate coaching experience, has been promoted to be head wrestling coach at Brother Martin High School, the New Orleans-based Catholic school announced Thursday. Andrew NicolaNicola, who had served as varsity assistant coach at the Louisiana prep powerhouse during the 2018-19 season, was selected to replace Rob Dauterive who had announced his retirement last month. A graduate of Indiana University and native of Fort Wayne, Ind., Nicola takes the helm of one of the most successful high school mat programs in Louisiana. Brother Martin can claim 19 state team titles -- including seven in the past eight years -- along with 117 individual state champions since 1972, including six crowned just two weeks ago. "I have been fortunate to know of the rich tradition that Brother Martin wrestling has had for many years now," Nicola said in a release from the school. "Words cannot describe how excited I am to carry on this tradition of excellence that encompasses so much more than just winning wrestling matches. "Our staff is already diligently working together to take this program to a level it's never seen before, which is no easy feat." Nicola launched his coaching career at the prep level in Indiana -- at Bloomington South High, and Culver Academies -- then progressed to the collegiate level, serving as an assistant at Cumberland University in Tennessee, University of Central Missouri, and at California Baptist University. His most recent assignment prior to joining the staff at Brother Martin was as head coach at Concordia University in Nebraska for two seasons. Among Nicola's coaching honors: named Great Plains Athletic Conference Coach of the Year and the NAIA (National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics) North Region Coach of the Year in 2017 ... and Indiana State Wrestling Association (ISAW) Coach of the Year in 2012. Over the years, Nicola has coached a number of top scholar-athletes, including seven NCAA National Qualifiers, and 16 NCAA Academic All-Americans. In addition, Nicola has coached 33 NAIA National Qualifiers and ten who have earned All-American honors. So how did a Hoosier who had coached from Tennessee to California land the head coaching position at one of the top high school wrestling programs in the South? Nicola had conducted wrestling camps in Louisiana for a number of years. But here's what he told Nathan Brown, wrestling writer for The Advocate of New Orleans: "He (Brother Martin head coach Rob Dauterive) asked several years ago 'When are you coming down here?' And I think he was serious then, but maybe joking too," Nicola said. "But when I lost my job in Nebraska (at Concordia). ... I came here for my camp in July, and coach said 'I'm ready to retire. Are you ready to come take over?' "I've only been here about six months, but finally the discussions he and I had are coming to fruition." Nicola's first season as head coach at Brother Martin will begin this fall. Established in 1869, Brother Martin High School is a private, all-male Catholic school located within the city of New Orleans. Brother Martin has approximately 1,200 students in grades 8-12.

Messiah College wrestling is conducting an online fundraiser for an Athletes in Action sports ministry trip to central America this summer, the Pennsylvania-based school announced this week. "As we prepare for next season, we have an awesome opportunity," according to a message posted at Messiah College Wrestling's Facebook page . "We will be taking 29 wrestlers, 2 coaches and an athletic trainer on a sports ministry trip to Guatemala with Athletes in Action this May 22-June 2." To make a donation online, click the link and then select the AROMA International drop down box. On the next page you'll be able to select Guatemala wrestling trip. Located in Mechanicsburg, Penn., Messiah College is a four-year, private school with the motto "Christ Preeminent." Founded in 1909, Messiah has approximately 3,300 students. Messiah's Falcon wrestlers -- and other intercollegiate sports teams -- compete in NCAA Division III.

YAKUTSK, Russia -- The United States fell in its second-round matchup in pool play action of the 2019 World Cup, losing to Iran on criteria, 5-5. Iran held the edge on classification points, 21-18. After a strong second period, Zach Sanders dropped a close 4-3 match against Alirez Sarlak to start the dual at 57 kilograms. However, National Team member Nico Megaludis put up a strong showing at 61 kilograms, blanking two-time Junior world champion Iman Sadeghikoukandeh, 12-0. It was Megaludis' second technical fall victory of the day. 2017 Senior World Team member and 2012 Cadet world champion Zain Retherford gave the USA a boost with a solid 6-1 win against Morteza Ghiasi Cheka in the 65-kilogram match. Read complete story on TheMat.com … Iran def. USA, 5-5 (21-18) 57 kg: Alireza Sarlak (Iran) dec. Zach Sanders (USA), 4-3 61 kg: Nico Megaludis (USA) TF Iman Sadeghikoukandeh (Iran), 12-0 65 kg: Zain Retherford (USA) dec. Morteza Ghiasi Cheka (Iran), 6-1 70 kg: Meisam Nasiri (Iran) dec. Jason Chamberlain (USA), 3-0 74 kg: Isaiah Martinez (USA) dec. Reza Afzalipaemami (Iran), 8-2 79 kg: Tommy Gantt (USA) dec. Mojtaba Asghari Osmavandani (Iran), 11-6 86 kg: Mersad Marghzari (Iran) fall Sam Brooks (USA) 92 kg: Hayden Zillmer (USA) dec. Mohammadjavad Ebrahimizivlaei (Iran), 6-4 97 kg: Alireza Goodarzi (Iran) dec. Kyven Gadson (USA), 4-0 125 kg: Komeil Ghasemi (Iran) dec. Tony Nelson (USA), 6-2

PITTSBURGH -- Team USA jumped rolled to a 29-18 win over Pennsylvania's all-stars at the Pittsburgh Wrestling Classic on Friday night. USA raced out to a 20-0 lead after six weight classes before No. 7 Julian Chlebove (Northampton) at 132 pounds stopped the bleeding by pinning Luke Baughman (Wadsworth, Ohio). Pennsylvania also picked up wins from No. 1 Ryan Anderson (Bethlehem Catholic) at 145 pounds, Daniel Mancini (Owen J. Roberts) at 160 pounds and No. 2 Carter Starocci (Erie Cathedral Prep) at 182 pounds. Results: 195: Devin Winston (Park Hill, Mo.) maj. dec. Donovon Ball (Cedar Cliff), 10-1 220: Owen Trephan (Blair Academy, N.J.) dec. Jacob McMaster (Greenville) 285: John Birchmeier (Broad Run, Va.) dec. Kawaun DeBoe (Erie Cathedral Prep), 8-4 113: Kurt McHenry (St. Paul's, Md.) maj. dec. Beau Bayless (Reynolds), 15-5 120: Eric Barnett (Hortonville, Wisc.) dec. Sean Pierson (Nazareth), 7-5 126: Mike Colaiocco (Blair Academy, N.J.) dec. Darren Miller (Kiski Area), 7-5 132: Julian Chlebove (Northampton) pinnned Luke Baughman (Wadsworth, Ohio) 138: JoJo Aragona (Pope John Paul XXIII, N.J.) dec. Jacob Ealy (Hopewell), 5-1 145: Ryan Anderson (Bethlehem Catholic) dec. Kevon Davenport (Detroit Catholic, Mich.), 3-2 152: Cameron Amine (Detroit Catholic, Mich.) dec. Ryan Vulakh (Pope John Paul II), 6-1 OT 160: Daniel Mancini (Owen J. Roberts) pinned Zach Lawrence (Duanesburg, N.Y.) 170: Julian Ramirez (Blair Academy, N.J.) dec. Edmond Ruth (Susquehanna Twp.), 8-3 182: Carter Starocci (Erie Cathedral Prep) dec. Abe Assad (Glenbard North, Ill.), 3-1

Episode 19 of The MatBoss Podcast with Chad Dennis brings the return of college roommate Jason Laflin to talk about the recently drawn NCAA Division I college pairings. About MatBoss: Created by coaches for coaches, MatBoss for iPad® integrates wrestling stats directly into the video you record for each match, completely replacing the need for labor-intensive pencil and paper scoring systems. It's the wrestling stats app our sport has been waiting for. Focus on coaching, not busy work Improve through video analysis Make data an advantage Eliminate scoring errors Increase exposure Become a digital coach For more information, visit MatBossApp.com. Follow MatBoss on Twitter and subscribe to the show @MatBossApp | Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | Spreaker | Google Play Music | RSS

Kurt Angle after winning a gold medal at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta (Photo/Photo/Michel Lipchitz, AP) Kurt Angle, 1996 Olympic gold medalist and two-time NCAA heavyweight wrestling champ for Clarion University who has been a major figure in professional wrestling for two decades, has revealed his plans to retire from the squared circle next month. Angle said he will have his last pro match at WrestleMania 35 on Sunday, April 7 at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J. just outside New York City. Angle made the announcement on Monday Night Raw in his hometown of Pittsburgh. "At WrestleMania, I will compete in my farewell match," Angle said prior to his victory over Apollo Crews. "I'd like to thank WWE. I'd like to thank every WWE Superstar I've shared a locker room with. And most importantly, I wanna thank each and every one of you," he told the WWE Universe. "You made it so much for me. I literally had the time of my life." A final opponent has yet to be announced. Angle signed with WWF (World Wrestling Federation, predecessor to today's World Wrestling Entertainment) in 1998. Prior to that, Angle crafted a career of significant accomplishments in amateur wrestling spanning more than two decades. One indicator of that greatness: he is just one of four wrestlers in American history to ever win a Junior World Championship, an NCAA Championship, a World Championship and an Olympic gold medal. He achieved all four of these milestones by age 26 ... joining Dave Schultz, John Smith and Kenny Monday. Kurt Steven Angle started wrestling at age seven. As a wrestler at Mt. Lebanon High School in Pittsburgh, Angle was a three-time PIAA (Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association) state wrestling championships qualifier, placing third as a junior, and winning the state title as a senior in 1987. After graduating from Mt. Lebanon, Angle enrolled at Clarion University in western Pennsylvania. Wrestling for coach Bob Bubb, Angle compiled an impressive 116-11-2 record for a 91 percent winning percentage. Among Angle's accomplishments: three-time Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) titles, four Eastern Wrestling League (EWL) championships, and a three-time NCAA All-American, winning the heavyweight title in 1990 and 1992. For all these achievements, Angle was named PSAC Wrestler of the Year three consecutive years (1990-92). During his high school and college career, Angle also made a name for himself in freestyle competition. Angle was the 1987 USA Junior Freestyle champion, a two-time USA Senior Freestyle champion, and the 1988 USA International Federation of Associated Wrestling Styles Junior World Freestyle champion. Kurt Angle raises his arms in triumph after his win in the Olympic finals over Abbas Jadidi of Iran After college, Angle continued his freestyle mat career. In 1995, he won a gold medal at the World Championships. One year later, Angle returned to Atlanta to earn freestyle gold at 200 pounds the 1996 Olympics in thrilling style. He dedicated his medal to his late father as well as Dave Schultz, his murdered mentor/coach. Kurt Angle has received a number of honors for his amateur wrestling accomplishments. In 1997, he was presented with the PSAC Award of Merit (only the third recipient of this award). He has also been honored by the Pennsylvania Classic Hall of Fame, the Clarion University Athletic Hall of Fame and the Southwestern Pennsylvania Hall of Fame. In 2001, Angle was welcomed into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame in Stillwater, Okla. as a Distinguished Member.

I've covered the Olympic Games, the World Championships, the Pan American Games and the World Cup. But the NCAA Championships are still my favorite wrestling event. The three-day collegiate extravaganza offers so much in terms of excellent wrestling with compelling drama as individuals and teams battle for championships. The event is wrestled in front of sellout crowds and the atmosphere for this year's event will be electric once again with it being held in the wrestling hotbed of Pittsburgh. There are so many interesting storylines to follow again at this year's tournament on March 21-23. Here is a look at some top storylines to watch, in no particular order, at this year's NCAA tournament. Jason Nolf and Bo Nickal shared Big Ten Wrestler of the Year honors (Photo/Mark Lundy, Lutte-Lens.com) The greatness of Nolf and Nickal What a treat it has been over the past four years to watch Penn State superstars Jason Nolf and Bo Nickal. They are two of the most dynamic and dominating wrestlers we've seen at the collegiate level. They go out and wrestle like you're supposed to. They open up, score points and put on a show. The biggest question mark surrounding them is which of those two will win the Hodge Trophy this year as the best collegiate wrestler. Both wrestlers are certainly deserving. Will Spencer Lee do it again? Iowa's Spencer Lee lost in the Big Ten tournament last year before winning a national title as a freshman. Lee lost at Big Tens again, in overtime to Northwestern's Sebastian Rivera in the finals. He also also suffered a late season loss by fall to Oklahoma State's Nick Piccininni. Lee looked good at Big Tens and had the lead late in his finals bout before falling. He obviously knows how to excel on the big stage as a Cadet and Junior world champion. I definitely wouldn't count him out at NCAAs in the 125-pound class. Lee is a Pennsylvania native who also will be wrestling close to home. He will be the No. 3 seed at 125. Yianni vs. McKenna This is one of the matchups most wrestling observers can't wait to see. Cornell's Yianni Diakomihalis won nationals last year as a freshman even after severely injuring his knee during the tournament. Yianni is a stud who won two Cadet world titles. Ohio State's Joey McKenna is down to his last shot in college. He won a Junior world silver medal before losing to Logan Stieber in the Final X last year. McKenna is wrestling at a high level. No doubt, this could be a very entertaining match between two really good wrestlers. It would be entertaining for fans to watch if they meet at 141 pounds. Diakomihalis and McKenna are seeded 1-2 for the NCAAs at 141. Gable Steveson will look to bounce back from his Big Ten finals loss to Anthony Cassar of PSU (Photo/Mark Lundy, Lutte-Lens.com) How will Fix and Gable do? It is the first NCAA tournament for freshman studs Daton Fix of Oklahoma State and Gable Steveson of Minnesota. Both wrestlers have been ranked No. 1 and the two age-group world champions certainly have a shot at contending for national titles. Opponents have slowed these guys down and they've been involved in some low-scoring matches. I would love to see both guys open it up more at nationals. That could be the key for both of them in Pittsburgh. They are two of my favorite guys to watch. Fix is seeded No. 1 at 133 and Steveson is seeded third at heavyweight. Who will prevail in loaded 133 division? Fix is the favorite here, but this incredibly loaded weight class also features three wrestlers who have placed second in this tournament. That list includes Nick Suriano of Rutgers, Stevan Micic of Michigan and Ethan Lizak of Minnesota. All three of those guys are ranked in the top five. Plus, you throw in Iowa's Austin DeSanto, who has had an excellent season. Pitt freshman Micky Phillippi is another guy to watch in addition to numerous others like North Carolina State's Tariq Wilson, Wyoming's Montorie Bridges, Ohio State's Luke Pletcher, Iowa State's Austin Gomez and Penn State's Roman Bravo-Young. That weight class alone will be worth the price of admission this year. There will be some great battles in this division. Hall vs. Valencia No doubt, this would be another highly anticipated match. Arizona State's Zahid Valencia defeated Penn State's Mark Hall, a 2017 NCAA champion, with an impressive performance in last year's 174-pound finals. Hall came back with a solid showing to beat Valencia in their nationally televised dual meet this season. Hall is an age-group world champion who is very skilled on his feet, but he's also very good in folkstyle in the top position. The key for Valencia, a Junior world silver medalist, will be to stay off bottom and score the first takedown. These are two accomplished wrestlers and it should be another great matchup if they meet at nationals. Hall is seeded No. 1 and Valencia No. 3 for NCAAs. Alex Marinelli defeated two-time NCAA champ Vincenzo Joseph of PSU to win a Big Ten title (Photo/Mark Lundy, Lutte-Lens.com) Bull on a mission Iowa's Alex "Bull" Marinelli has climbed to the top spot at 165 pounds after his impressive Big Ten finals win over two-time NCAA champion Vincenzo Joseph of Penn State. Marinelli beat Joseph for the second time by throwing him to his back with a six-point move. Now can he do it again? Joseph obviously knows how to peak when it counts most and you can bet that he will come back strong from that setback. Both wrestlers face tough roads in a strong weight class, but it would be fun to see these two standouts match up again on Saturday night. Marianelli and Joseph are seeded 1-2 for NCAAs at 165. Marianelli is the 1 seed, but he has a tough draw that could start with a first-round match against two-time All-American Joe Smith of Oklahoma State. Martin's quest for bookend titles Ohio State's Myles Martin won an NCAA title as a freshman. Now he's looking to cap his collegiate career with a second title. Martin reached the finals last year before falling to long-time rival Bo Nickal of Penn State. Martin is the top seed and the favorite at 184 pounds and he is looking very good. He may also need to put up some bonus points if the Buckeyes hope to challenge the Nittany Lions for the title. Micic vs. DeSanto There is no secret there is some bad blood between some of the competitors at 133 pounds. No. 2 seed Stevan Micic of Michigan and No. 7 Austin DeSanto of Iowa are on course to battle in the 133 quarterfinals. DeSanto beat Micic handily early last season while competing for Drexel before falling to him in a one-sided match in the national quarterfinals where DeSanto lost his cool in the closing seconds. If DeSanto beats Micic, he could face another wrestler he had two hard-fought battles with this season in No. 3 seed Nick Suriano of Rutgers. DeSanto beat Suriano in the dual before Suriano returned the favor at Big Tens. Both bouts were intense, physical and emotional matches. DeSanto likely will need to defeat No. 10 seed Roman Bravo-Young of Penn State in the second round to earn a shot at Micic. Will Penn State's run continue? The Nittany Lions are ranked No. 1 and loaded from top to bottom. But crazy things can happen in this three-day tournament. Ohio State, Oklahoma State, Iowa and Michigan are among the teams who will have to be at their absolute peak to knock off Penn State. Coach Cael Sanderson's teams have been so good in March and they're coming off a superb showing at the Big Ten tournament. The Nittany Lions have won the last three national titles and seven of the last eight. It will be interesting to see how it plays out. Wrestling close to home, in Pittsburgh, probably won't hurt the Nittany Lions either. Penn State started its run of titles in 2011 in Philadelphia and its run may continue again this year in its home state of Pennsylvania. It would take something remarkable for someone other than the Nittany Lions to win the team title this year.

This week the NCAA wrestling committee released the at-large bids, seeds, and brackets for the 2019 Division I Wrestling Championships in Pittsburgh. Put mildly, the response has been less than positive. From Shakur Rasheed earning a No. 2 seed after he medically forfeited in the Big Ten finals … to Big Ten eighth-place finisher Mike Carr earning a No. 6 seed, and the improper balancing of the 133-pound bracket, the week was messy for the NCAA. The debacle has reignited the debate around who should oversee the selection of seeds for the NCAAs, but also sheds light on the larger institutional deficiencies facing the NCAA administration of the sport in general. First, this is the process for selecting seeds as it is presented to the coaches, fans, media, and institutions. As I said last year and the year before, there is some amount of subjectivity involved in this formula. For example, there is a human deciding which categories to create and how much weight should be placed on each Coaches know this in advance, which means that they (and fans) can calculate for this subjective input. The more troublesome aspect of the committee's structure is that they are allowed to move wrestlers up and down based on … well, that apart isn't quite clear. When and where the coaches on the committee; Tom Ryan, Rob Hjerling, Brian Smith -- or the administrators; Andy Noel (Cornell), Phil Wile (Wyoming), and Karen Langston (CSUB) find need to adjust the seeds of top wrestlers isn't explicitly stated. I've learned (as have fans of international wrestling) that the moment there is even a golf ball size of grayness in a process there is truck-sized amount of doubt inserted into the process. After seeing what was generated from the formula (was this made available?), the committee then chose areas to adjust. I'm sure that there were some outputs that didn't stand to reason and fans would agree on the outcome, but as we saw there were many (MANY!) that defied explanation. So, when there isn't an objective A+B=C explanation there are questions, and room left to build theories. Fans of wrestling are already susceptible to a good conspiracy theory, which means that a minor one about seeding wouldn't be difficult to create. As such, I won't play out why these particular admins and coaches would want the outcomes we see in the seeds, because it's not provable and highly doubtful. Still, what biases six people hold and what motivations any one of them may have for creating a matchup or outcome is not known. That's why there was a move to a very objective measuring system for seeding. To eliminate that objectivity behind closed doors is to eliminate all those initial efforts. At the core of the NCAA's issues with wrestling and other sports are issues of fairness to athletes and a transparency in decision making. When looking at athlete pay, freedom of transfer, all the way down to seeding of the wrestling tournament, the main theme is that the NCAA keeps its fans, coaches, and stakeholders searching for reason. There is no cat-stroking villain at the helm of the NCAA, but it seems that there is little consideration for the diversity of experience across sports (more on this later) and an attitude that tells those interested that they want our money and our eyeballs, just not our opinions. To your questions … Q: NCAA seeds seem awful this year. What needs to be done? Was seeding every wrestler the right decision? -- Mike C. Foley: Wrestlers 1-33 are outputted by a computer and then movement between 1-16 can be done by the six-member committee (3 coaches, 3 admins) to adjust for head-to-head and other factors. The remaining 16 are in the order the formula dictates. The problem in "seeding" 16-33 is that it gives the perception that there is an appreciable difference in the talent of those wrestlers and that their seed was weighted and considered as much as the top 16 -- which they aren't. There needs to be significantly more pressure put on the NCAA to not use the antiquated processes of other sports lazily and transpose onto the wrestling model. The IOC-IF model is far from perfect, but it appreciates that no central body can properly oversee and administer the minutia of member federations. The NCAA model for sports like wrestling is not healthy, because it's not responsive to the needs of its member bodies. The sport of wrestling, as well as many similar sports, deserve a more knowledgeable, full-time independent body capable of making decisions that provide the most accurate outcomes for seeding, competition structure, seasonality, and more. Coordination with the NCAA would be a centerpiece of that organizational structure, but would always come secondary to the primary needs of the sport. A single rotating six-member committee could never possess enough time, context, or experience to effectively run a sport via a handful of meetings. There are more full-time staff at each of the Division I programs than there are full-time employees running NCAA wrestling. The time is coming for large changes, and while more administration is a costly undertaking it could provide better oversight and help our sport continue its record growth. Q: Is the medical forfeiting at conference tournaments a problem that needs to be addressed when it comes to NCAA seeding? It seems like many wrestlers benefited from medical forfeiting. Any suggestions on what can be done? Should they count as losses? -- Mike C. Foley: No, it shouldn't be a win or a loss. The idea of counting the medical forfeit as a loss is only an issue because there was a negative effect from the action in terms of seeding at the NCAA tournament. If and when the system is improved the medical forfeit issue won't be a factor, because those types of action will be accommodated for in the formula and/or in the seeding room. I hope. Q: I'd like to hear your take on the medical forfeits that seemed to cheapen the Big Ten Championships. I know people will probably focus on Shakur Rasheed, but five other guys medically forfeited their way to an NCAA appearance, including a top-ranked wrestler and second-place finisher from last season. Personally, I think it's bad for the sport and unfair to fans that paid to watch the tournament. I think there is an easy fix. 1. Don't announce the NCAA tournament allocation numbers until after the conference championships. Not knowing if your conference is getting 1 or 8 slots will make all matches matter. 2. If you medically forfeit any match you are no longer eligible for an automatic bid. Your only way to the tournament is through an at-large bid. Your fate is then placed in the hands of the selection committee. The conference also loses that allocation so that it doesn't reward conferences who have guys forfeit. The weight class simply gets one extra at-large bid. -- Matt W. Foley: Again, I think it would be a mistake to overhaul working systems (like pre-conference allocation) in order to eliminate the gamesmanship of the conference medical forfeits. And putting massive penalties in place for all medical forfeits could further hurt wrestlers who are seriously injured at their conference tournament. Would be unfortunate to see them held accountable for the actions of a few bad actors. Q: Nice job on the ESPN broadcast of the ACC Championships. I enjoyed watching. Which wrestler impressed you the most? -- Mike C. Foley: Thank you! I wouldn't normally include a compliment, but I felt proud of the team's work. Having now been on the production side for so many international championships, I appreciate the work that goes into the events and the effort put in by the broadcast team. Just one guy's opinion, but Shawn Kenny is the best play-by-play guy in the sport! Most impressive wrestler from the ACC was Jack Mueller. The OW went to Micky Phillippi, who deserved the praise, but nobody dominated like Mueller. Call it homerism if you like, but he was wrestling at an entirely different level than his opponents and earned more than a few ooh's and ahh's from the crowd. Mueller aside, my heart is now with Pittsburgh heavyweight Demetrius Thomas. He is the most entertaining wrestler at the college level who doesn't wrestle for Penn State and he will become an All-American in Pittsburgh. Constant attacks, great cardio, and just a ton of fun to watch compete. An incredible display of what big man wrestling can and should be! Demetrius Thomas (Photo/Pitt Athletics) Q: Who is this year's big bracket buster and why? -- Ryan P. Foley: Demetrius Thomas. He's the No. 8 seed at heavyweight and will be in the national finals. Q: Our in-state wrestling go-to website Michigan Grappler has our "home state" NCAA qualifier count at 19 which puts us in a respectable fifth place against other traditional wrestling states. If you look at the distribution of NCAA qualifiers' home states, Pennsylvania dominates all the other states by more than double (54). I have a few ideas why that is the case, but would love to read your detailed analysis on the reasons why Pennsylvania is the hotbed of folkstyle wrestling and how it produces such tough wrestlers year after year. -- Brad A. Foley: Why are the Brazilians so good in jiu-jitsu, Russians in freestyle wrestling, and Norway in winter sports? Product knowledge. They've been doing it the best for a long time and that means the correct knowledge is being transmitted to larger local audiences more effectively than in the other competitive markets. The effective communication of technique and strategy as well as high-level testing of that combination will always result in improved outcomes for specific regions. Population density of the East Coast also helps Pennsylvania (and New Jersey) athletes find more competition for less money. A more minor point, but the American rust belt has a number of lower to middle income families, which we know are the most likely to wrestle. Add in a dash of heritage and local pride and voila the recipe is complete for Pennsylvania (and really Western PA) to have the best wrestlers in the nation. Kerry McCoy spent 11 seasons as Maryland's head wrestling coach (Photo/Maryland Athletics) Q: Kerry McCoy seems like a great person, but obviously his results at Maryland weren't where they needed to be. Is it too early to start talking potential candidates to replace McCoy? What are some names you would like to see interview for the job? -- Mike C. Foley: Kerry is the man! About 15 years ago I was in a one-stoplight town in Central Pennsylvania en route to a wedding and the gas station we stopped at was selling Kerry McCoy bobbleheads. From what I understand my friend still has it in her car. McCoy is a great guy and has given his life to our sport. Whatever his next role I know that he'll be successful. Although the coaching side seems to be coming to an end there is a lot for him to do both inside the sport or using lessons from our sport make an impact in the business world, and his community. Were I on the hiring committee or a powerful alumnus, I'd focus on established Division I head coaches. There are a lot of talented assistants, but this is a Big Ten job that requires someone with CEO capabilities along with plenty of mat savvy. I think Chris Ayres, Scott Moore, Jason Borrelli, Matt Storniolo and Coleman Scott should all receive consideration. Were the school to reach for an assistant coach there are plenty that would perform well: Donny Pritzlaff, Jordan Leen, Mark Perry, and J Jaggers, among many more. Q: I read this beautifully written article. And, I couldn't help but draw correlations to wrestling and what helps make the sport so important. The best coaches today are fathering their athletes so nicely. And, that's why we see one story after another of great caring, sportsmanship, comradery, love, and true masculinity. So, uncharacteristically, I thought I'd reach out and share. By the way, I was raised to "act like you've been there before" … hand the ball to the ref, shake the other coaches' hand, and respect the opponent. I do not usually appreciate victory displays. But Chandler Rogers' celebration after his victory over Iowa was brilliant, charismatic, and heartfelt. I think deep down, he knew his fate, and wanted to go out his way. He made me a fan. -- James H. Foley: I really enjoyed that article. Though Medium says it wasn't the most highlighted portion, I found that "People are chronically lonely even though they're more connected than ever" is a sentiment I find more and more writers and thinkers discussing. Like when I first moved to NYC in 2005 I remembered someone telling me how incredible it was to live in a city of 8 million people and still feel totally, completely, and helplessly alone. For many people the internet is starting to create that same effect -- healthy bubbling life all around, and only misery and loneliness in their own sphere. The article also touches (a lot) on the idea of these warriors and balancing that against emotional intelligence and vulnerability. In my experience, wrestlers are more often like this than most any other sport. There is a deep sensitivity among most high-level wrestlers often because like soldiers they can see the rational limit of their strength, most have been disabused of the notion that they are the toughest on the planet, leaving them to realize there are a number of similar notions that are likely also untrue. I've seen it in Turkey, Russia, Mongolia, Iran … everywhere. The wrestler who works hard not because they are infallible, or immune to pain, but because they realize the only way they can be a good father, brother, wrestler is to explore those deficiencies and improve upon them -- whether physical, intellectual, or emotional. Anyway, great read. Chandler Rogers after picking up a fall in his final match at Oklahoma State (Photo/Oklahoma State Athletics) Loved the Chandler Rogers celebration, and if that is true I think that moment become even more genuine and awesome. Q: If the numbers are correct, according to the National Federation of State High School Associations, the number of girls that wrestle in high school is roughly 6.74 percent of all the total number of high school participants. With roughly 31 percent girl participants coming from one state (California). Is the expansion at the college level for women's wrestling outpacing the high school participants? And what can we do as the U.S. wrestling community to help grow girls wrestling at the youth and high school level to create healthy sustainable college opportunities for girls who would like to wrestle in college? -- Rob M. Foley: That's a thoughtful question. The growth of women's wrestling is probably growing at a faster pace if you consider it only against previous women-only wrestling opportunities for women at both levels. The women's programs being added could also be seen as just playing "market catch-up" in giving an acceptable percent of women wrestlers a chance to compete in college. The growth at the high school level is also in its infancy, since many programs need validation from their state federations who are the ones sanctioning women's-only state tournaments. When state and local tournaments are better established more girls will experience the sport at their school and that in turn will drive further engagement with the sport. Also, the success of #WrestleLikeAGirl indicates that there are going to be more and more state federations getting on board with the concept of a state tournament. The process is no longer being handled alone in each state, there is a database of knowledge and organizational skill at their back.

Big Ten champion Bo Nickal tops the Most Dominant Wrestler category (Photo/Mark Lundy, Lutte-Lens.com) INDIANAPOLIS -- The NCAA has released updated standings for the 2019 NCAA Wrestling Awards that will be awarded March 23 at the Division I Wrestling Championships. The inaugural NCAA Wrestling Awards were presented at the 2012 wrestling championships. The three awards honor the Most Dominant Wrestler as well as the student-athletes that have accumulated the most falls and the most technical falls throughout the course of the regular and postseasons. For results to be counted they must come against opponents in the same division (i.e. Division I vs. Division I). Ties in the falls and tech falls categories are broken based on the aggregate time. Bo Nickal (5.24 average team points) and Jason Nolf (5.15) of Penn State will enter the NCAA Championships ranked as the top two in the race for most dominant. Both wrestlers won Big Ten Championships over the weekend and will be No. 1 seeds at nationals. Virginia 125- pounder Jack Mueller reached the 17-match minimum by winning the ACC championship and has compiled 4.94 team points per match while going 17-0 to rank third. Vincenzo Joseph of Penn State and Daniel Lewis of Missouri round out the top five. The Most Dominant Wrestler standings are calculated by adding the total number of points awarded through match results and dividing that number by the total number of matches wrestled. Points per match are awarded as follows: * Fall, forfeit, injury default or DQ = 6 points (-6 points for a loss) * Tech falls = 5 points (-5 points for a loss) * Major decision = 4 points (-4 points for a loss) * Decision = 3 points (-3 points for a loss) Central Michigan heavyweight Matt Stencel earned a fall in the semifinals on his way to a Mid-American Conference championship and enters the NCAA Championships leading Division I with 18 falls. George Mason 165-pounder Colston DiBlasi also had a fall at the Eastern Wrestling League Championships to stay within one of Stencel with 17. Missouri 141-pounder Jaydin Eierman tallied falls in the semis and final to win the MAC championship and is third with 16 falls. Lock Haven 141-pounder Kyle Shoop increased his lead to three in the race for most tech falls with 15 this season, three more than Daton Fix of Oklahoma State with 12, while Nicolas Piccininni of the Cowboys has 11 and Quentin Perez (Campbell) and Ethan Lizak (Minnesota) each have 10.

The NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships are just around the corner, and this year Pittsburgh (Pa.) is hosting the biggest event in the sport of wrestling on March 21-23. As one of the largest wrestling hot spots in the U.S., the southwestern Pennsylvania area is accustomed large wrestling events, such as the Pittsburgh Wrestling Classic and WPIAL tournament. With the elevated level of competition amongst the top guys in the country, there are sure to be some incredible matches. But, as any wrestling fan knows, there can be a lot of downtime between sessions (check out the full daily schedule here). That's why you need a list of the best things to do in Pittsburgh during the NCAA Wrestling Championships, including fan fest, dining, nightlife, and attractions. Fan Fest If you're a fan of college wrestling, then you need to attend the Fan Festival. When you're not watching wrestling at PPG Paints Arena, then head over to the David L. Lawrence Convention Center for a fully immersive college wrestling experience. Participate in fan events such as the WIN Magazine Memorabilia Show, Team USA wrestling practices, NWCA Coaches Clinic featuring Kyle Dake, and all-star autograph sessions. You'll see wrestling greats like Dan Gable, Bruce Baumgartner, and Jordan Burroughs. You can also check out the Hodge Trophy, known as the Heisman Trophy of the college wrestling world. Fan Fest is a great place to check out wrestling off-the-mat, but it's also a nice area to meet friends, grab a drink, and relax. There will also be big screens to view all of the action with replays. The best part? It's free to the public! Get the full Fan Festival schedule here. Dining Pittsburgh was named the 2019 Food City of the Year by the San Francisco firm af&co., and there's a reason for that. The food scene is Pittsburgh is vibrant to say the least. And food is important to most wrestling fans since the majority of us are former participants of the sport who had to cut weight for many years. So, here's the lowdown on where you should eat in between every session. Before the morning rounds, you will want to grab something to eat for breakfast so that you can enjoy all of the early-afternoon action. If you're by the arena, then Buford's Kitchen is the go-to place for BBQ pulled pork bowls and fried green tomatoes. Just an Uber-ride down the road are Pamela's Dinner and DeLuca's Diner, two breakfast joints in the Strip District made famous by celebrity visitors. Former President Obama visited Pamela's in 2008 to eat their delicious crepes, while Man V Food's Adam Richman took on the massive pancake at DeLuca's. While you're in the Strip District also visit the Pennsylvania Macaroni Company for all sorts of Italian meats and cheeses to take home to your family, or grab a sweet donut treat at Peace, Love, and Little Donuts. Photo/Primanti Bros. As for lunch and dinner, there are plenty of options. Your No. 1 stop must be Primanti Bro's, Pittsburgh's almost famous sandwich. After you've had the sandwich with fries, coleslaw, and meat, you can check out the other destinations around Market Square. Stop into The Yard for gourmet grilled cheese or head to NOLA for New Orleans style food. Just a short walk down the road, you can eat at Sienna Mercato, a three story building with a different dining experience on each level. Emporio is a meatball joint, Mezzo offers gourmet Italian, and Il Tetto is a rooftop bar garden. Further away from the arena you can head to the North Shore or Station Square. One of the North Shore's best restaurants is Burgatory, which offers make-your-own burgers and thick, heavenly milkshakes. Steelers fans may also want to eat at the Jerome Bettis' Grille 36 for a hearty burger. Walk across the Smithfield Bridge to find Station Square's full culinary offerings. Though Italian restaurant Buca di Beppo, original fondue Melting Pot, and Brazilian steakhouse Texas de Brazil aren't native to Pittsburgh, they are all solid choices for dinner plans. If you're trying to stay away from meat due to the Lenten season, check out this article on Pittsburgh's Fish Fry-Days. Bonus: If you have a car, check out one of Pittsburgh's best pizza restaurants, Beto's Pizza, which serves pizza like no other. Order a slice of pizza with cold cheese on top and your mind will be blown! Nightlife The National Wrestling Championships are not just a place to watch the best-of-the-best in college wrestling, it's also a time to catch up with your closest wrestling buddies. After the action is finished each day, head out to a bar to grab a drink. There are bars all over Pittsburgh, including those close to PPG Paints Arena like Red Beard's and Primanti's. Both places are great sports bars that will have fun atmospheres full of wrestling talk. If you're staying on the North Shore, you can visit Tequila Cowboy or McFadden's for a quick drink and some appetizers. The younger wrestling fans may want to head over the the Pittsburgh South Side for bars like Mario's, Jack's, The Flats, Carson City Saloon, or Jimmy D's that offer more music and entertainment. Another fun place to go for German-style food, drinks, and music is the Hofbrauhaus. Other activities So you've check out Fan Fest, eaten for the day, and are tired from last night's nightlife. Now what? For fans of the high school wrestling as well as other sports, visit the Heinz History Center, which hosts the Western Pennsylvania Sports Museum. Tickets are about $20, but you'll see the best of the Pens, Pirates, Steelers, and other Pittsburgh sports, including legends like Jim Kelly, Bill Cowher, and Dan Marino. You can also find high school programs like Canon-McMillan wrestling, which has a singlet in the museum. Because you are probably full from the Primanti's Sandwich you ate for lunch, feel free to walk off the carbs around the Point Park University fountain or on the North Shore River Trail. Both are great spots to sightsee in the city. However, the best spot to see Pittsburgh's skyline is at the top of Mount Washington. For $5, you can take the Duquesne Incline to the city's overlook locations for a perfect Instagram picture. Other notable attractions are the Andy Warhol Museum, The Mattress Factory, Pitt's Cathedral of Learning, Heinz Field, and PNC Park. The best part about Pittsburgh is that it is full of things to do. Wherever you end up after each session, you're sure to have a great time with fellow wrestling fans!

Photo/VisitPittsburgh.com Pittsburgh: Home to the Steelers ... the Pirates ... the Penguins ... and, for three days this March, home to the biggest college wrestling event of the year, the 2019 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships. The 2019 NCAAs will start Thursday morning, March 21 and conclude Saturday evening, March 23 at PPG Paints Arena in downtown Pittsburgh. The greater Pittsburgh area has a rich tradition of wrestling success at all levels, going back decades. However, it's been more than six decades since the Nationals had been last hosted in what was then known as Steel City ... the 1957 NCAAs at the University of Pittsburgh. (More about that later.) Whether you've never been to Pittsburgh -- or the last time was driving your brand-new '57 Chevy to the Nationals at Pitt -- InterMat thought you might appreciate a little help to make your trip even more of a winner. Getting there Pittsburgh is in far western Pennsylvania, within a day's drive of millions of amateur wrestling fans. The city is just off the Pennsylvania Turnpike -- one of the nation's main east-west routes -- as well as major highways such as I-70, I-76 and I-79. Pittsburgh International Airport is about 20 miles west of downtown. To get from the airport to the city, just take I-376 East through the Fort Pitt Tunnel and over the Monongahela River into the heart of downtown. Once you arrive downtown, two places where you'll find fellow college wrestling fans in Pittsburgh are the PPG Paints Arena ... and the NCAA Fan Fest at the David H. Lawrence Convention Center. Both are located in downtown Pittsburgh, just a few blocks apart. PPG Paints Arena: Home to mat action The venue for the 2019 NCAAs is PPG Paints Arena at 1001 Fifth Ave. on the east side of downtown. First opened in 2010 as Consol Energy Center, this facility which is normally the home of the NHL Pittsburgh Penguins -- along with everything from rock concerts to WWE events -- has a seating capacity of approximately 19,700 fans. Check out the arena before you arrive by visiting the venue's official website which includes info on food and beverage choices, parking and more. NCAA Fan Fest at the convention center When you're not taking in the wrestling action at the 2019 NCAAs at PPG Paints Arena, you'll want to be sure to drop by NCAA Fan Fest. Located at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center at 1000 Fort Duquesne Blvd. -- an easy walk from the arena -- NCAA Fan Fest has plenty of attractions of interest to real wrestling fans. Plus it's an unbeatable place to relax, meet friends, grab a drink, a bite to eat and be entertained by wrestling presentations, exhibits, clinics, match replays and other live sports in between championship sessions. Best of all, it's all free. One of the main attractions at NCAA Fan Fest is the WIN Magazine Memorabilia Show. An NCAA championships tradition for nearly 30 years, the WIN Magazine Memorabilia Show features a superstore of wrestling gear and other items, along with memorabilia and historical items. Plus you might just run into some all-time great wrestling legends. The National Wrestling Hall of Fame will also set up shop at NCAA Fan Fest. This year, the Hall will have an exhibit featuring three-time NCAA champions from Pennsylvania colleges ... along with Keystone State natives Nate Carr and Greg Jones who won their national titles at Iowa State and West Virginia, respectively. While in Pennsylvania's second-largest city, might as well meet some of the Keystone State's all-time mat greats. Catch the presentation on the Main Stage at Fan Fest which pays tribute to some of the greatest wrestlers from Pennsylvania. Panelists include NCAA champs Nate Carr and David Taylor, along with Erin Tomeo Vandiver, head women's wrestling coach at Pennsylvania's Wyoming Seminary. That presentation, moderated by Pennsylvania wrestling historian Tom Elling, will be followed by an autograph session featuring these panelists as well as other mat greats from the Keystone State. And, while at Fan Fest, check out the must-see, in-person demonstration of the Resilite ShotSled ... a unique new tool for your wrestling room to help wrestlers focus on enhancing their initial power and penetration habits -- and break right through an opponent on the way to scoring a takedown. Thursday, March 21 3:00-7:00 p.m.: NCAA Fan Fest 3:00-7:00 p.m.: WIN Magazine Memorabilia Show 3:45-4:30 p.m.: National Wrestling Hall of Fame Pennsylvania Wrestling Greats -- Panel Discussion 4:30-5:00 p.m.: National Wrestling Hall of Fame Pennsylvania Wrestling Greats -- Autograph Session 4:30-5:45 p.m.: USA Wrestling Practice Friday, March 22 2:00-7:30 p.m.: NCAA Fan Fest 2:00-7:30 p.m.: WIN Magazine Memorabilia Show 3:15-3:25 p.m.: Resilite ShotShed Demonstration 3:30-4:15 p.m.: All-Star Autograph Session -- Dan Gable, Bruce Baumgartner, Carlton Haselrig 3:30-4:45 p.m.: USA Wrestling Practice 4:45-5:25 p.m.: NWCA Coaches Clinic featuring Kyle Dake 5:30-6:30 p,m.: Semifinals Preview Show featuring Jordan Burroughs Saturday, March 23 1:00-6:30 p.m.: NCAA Fan Fest 1:00-6:30 p.m.: WIN Magazine Memorabilia Show 2:30-3:45 p.m.: USA Wrestling Practice 3:45-4:15 p.m.: USA Wrestling Autograph Session 4:15-5:15 p.m.: USA Wrestling vs. Wyoming Seminary -- Women's Dual Note: All times Eastern (local). Times, participants and other aspects subject to change without notice. Beyond the NCAAs and Fan Fest ... Arriving in Pittsburgh early ... or staying in the city after the 2019 NCAAs are history? Here are some uniquely Pittsburgh area attractions you may want to check out: The Inclines: Pittsburgh is a city of hills. One old-school way to see the city and its three rivers from up high is by riding one of the city's two historic inclines which offer spectacular views. Duquesne Incline: 1197 Carson Street. (412) 381-1665. Monongahela Incline: 8 Grandview Avenue, near the Station Square hotel/shopping/entertainment complex. Roberto Clemente Museum: A native of Puerto Rico, Clemente played 18 seasons for the Pittsburgh Pirates. He was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1973, becoming both the first Latin American and Caribbean player to be enshrined. He was killed in a plane crash on his way to deliver humanitarian aid to earthquake victims in Nicaragua in December 1972. 3339 Penn Ave. To schedule a tour, call (412) 621-1268 or email info@clementemuseum.com. Andy Warhol Museum: Bet you didn't know that one of the leading artists of the mid-20th century -- that guy that gave us paintings of Campbell Soup cans, Marilyn Monroe and other pop art -- was a Pittsburgh native. The largest collection of Warhol's work in the world. 117 Sandusky St. (412) 237-8300. Go-to resources to get more from your Pittsburgh trip Here are some unbeatable sources for more information about the host city of the 2019 NCAAs: VisitPittsburgh.com: Has just about everything you could want, including a digital version of their traditional printed Visitors' Guide with info on eateries and entertainment, attractions, more. Port Authority: Get info on the public transit system for Greater Pittsburgh including buses and the T, the light-rail transit system. The website features a handy trip planner to show you the smartest way to get from Point A to Point B. Pittsburgh International Airport: Website has a wealth of info to help speed you through the airport and into the city, including TSA security wait times, parking information, and airport maps. Visitor Centers: There are two in downtown Pittsburgh where you can visit to pick up brochures and maps, and talk to someone who has the answers to your questions. Fifth Avenue Place: 120 Fifth Avenue | David L. Lawrence Convention Center/East Lobby: 1000 Fort Duquesne Blvd. Then and now: 1957 vs. 2019 The last time the NCAA Wrestling Championships were in Pittsburgh was more than six decades ago. The 1957 NCAAs were held at Fitzgerald Field House on the campus of University of Pittsburgh. Let's compare then -- and now -- by the numbers. The Field House could seat 4,100; the PPG Paints Arena has a seating capacity nearly five times greater. Back in '57, 213 wrestlers took to the mats at the Nationals ... compared to 330 this year. Today's fans will enjoy three big days of action, compared to just two days 62 years ago. What were the big stories to come out of the 1957 NCAAs? For local color, you couldn't beat the Peery family: Pitt head coach Rex Peery, and sons Hugh and Ed who wrestled for dear old dad. Ed won the 123-pound title in his home gym -- his third NCAA crown, joining brother Hugh (115-pound champ for Pitt, 1952-54) and dad Rex (118-pound titlewinner for Oklahoma State, 1933-35) as the first and only family to have won a total of nine national mat titles. More history was made at the 147-pound finals, as Simon Roberts of the University of Iowa became the first African-American to win an NCAA title. And a truly historic collegiate career concluded in Pittsburgh when "Dangerous" Dan Hodge won his third 177-pound title for the Oklahoma Sooners, wrapping up a perfect 46-0 overall record, with an incredible 36 falls. Hodge was named Outstanding Wrestler of the tournament for the second straight year ... then, a couple weeks later, appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated, the only time an amateur wrestler has been featured on the cover of the iconic sports weekly as a wrestler in its more than 65-year history. (And, yes, this is the same Dan Hodge whose name graces the Hodge Trophy given each year to the nation's most dominant college wrestler.)

Championship Saturday Night: ESPN Airs All Championship Matches; ESPN3 Offers Complementary Coverage in Addition to Pregame and Postgame Shows Icons Tim Johnson, Anthony Robles, Jim Gibbons, and Lee Kemp Return; Mike Couzens, Shawn Kenney and Quint Kessenich Anchor the Telecast; Billy Baldwin Back as Guest Analyst ESPN's unprecedented coverage of the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships returns this month, with the annual event's three prime-time sessions airing on ESPN, its early sessions on ESPNU and every one of the 640 matches available on ESPN3 via the ESPN App. The nearly 20 hours of competition from PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh begins Thursday, March 21, continues Friday, March 22, and concludes with the sport's final day on Saturday, March 23. This year, ESPN3 will add a postgame show to its previously existing pregame show and complementary Championship night coverage, serving fans with even more content on the sport's pinnacle night. Penn State's Dynasty Headlines NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships Storylines Penn State seeks its fourth consecutive national championship and its eighth since 2011, as the squad competes in its home state this year. During their championship run, the Nittany Lions have helped elevate the Big Ten, the conference which has won every national championship since 2006. Additional Championships storylines: Three-Peat: In addition to their team accomplishments, a trio of Nittany Lions are vying for their third individual national championships: Jason Nolf (157 pounds), Vincenzo Joseph (165 pounds), and Bo Nickal (197 pounds). Head of the Class: Five wrestlers are going for their second national championship: Iowa's Spencer Lee (125 pounds), Cornell's Yianni Diakomihalis (141 pounds) Penn State's Mark Hall (174 pounds), Arizona State's Zahid Valencia (174 pound), and Ohio State's Myles Martin (184 pounds) Return to the Steel City: The NCAA Championships return to Pittsburgh for the first time in more than 60 years, as the city last held the event in 1957. Championship Saturday Night to Offer Prime-time Coverage on ESPN; Pregame, Postgame and Complementary Live Coverage on ESPN3 ESPN's Championship Saturday night coverage will conclude the three-day event, with the network airing each national championship match beginning at 7 p.m. ET. Simultaneously, ESPN3 will offer Off the Mat, a special program providing a combination of live matches, highlights and interviews with newly crowned champions. Off the Mat programming will also surround Championship Saturday night, as ESPN3 debuts the program as a postgame show (approximately 10 p.m.), and the it returns as a pregame show (6:30 p.m.). Earlier in the day, ESPNU and ESPN3 will begin the final day of competition with coverage of the Medal Round at 11 a.m. ESPN Airs Second Round and Semifinals in Prime Time; ESPNU Presents First Round and Quarterfinals ESPN prime-time coverage begins with the Second Round on March 21, at 7 p.m., and continues with the Semifinals on March 22, at 8 p.m. On the same two days, ESPNU will air the First Round at noon and the Quarterfinals at 11 a.m.. As with all sessions, ESPN3 will offer individual feeds of each mat, including all eight mats for the first three sessions and all six mats for the semifinals. Coverage Highlights Include: One Screen, Multiple Mats: TV coverage will often show multiple mats at one time, with a scroll of both individual results and team standings continuously updating in real time: Eye-Popping Graphics: High-energy graphics for multiple wrestlers: Stay Up-to-Date: Standing updates will be provided throughout the telecasts and ESPN3 will have a standings streaming option for the most up-to-date scoring. Also, scoreboard updates will show which wrestlers are competing on which mats: Spotlighting Pittsburgh: ESPN will spotlight the Championships' return to Pittsburgh through both video teases and still photography throughout the telecasts, capturing the most iconic elements of the city. Reporters at Every Mat: ESPN3 will have a reporter stationed at each mat providing commentary for each specific feed to enhance the streaming experience Join the Conversation: Fans can follow the action on Twitter through @NCAAWrestling and join the conversation by tagging their tweets #NCAAWrestling ESPN Analysts among Most Recognized Names in the Sport Tim Johnson: The "voice of college wrestling" returns once again to ESPN's coverage, having been a part of it for more than a decade. Johnson was named the 2007 broadcaster of the year by the National Wrestling Media Association. His broadcasting and leadership roles in the sport of wrestling span more than 30 years, including being the director of wrestling for the Los Angeles Olympic Games in 1984. He was inducted into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame as the recipient of the prestigious Order of Merit award honoring a lifetime of contributions to the sport of wrestling. Anthony Robles: Now in his eighth year as an ESPN analyst, the Arizona State graduate is a three-time All-American and a 2011 NCAA National Champion. He was inducted into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2012 and was a Medal of Courage honoree in 2012. Jim Gibbons: A former NCAA Wrestling Coach of the Year, he won an NCAA National Championship as the Cyclones head coach following a collegiate wrestling career where he was a three-time All-American and two-time Big Eight winner at Iowa State. He was inducted in the Iowa Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2003. Lee Kemp: Won three NCAA National Championships as a wrestler at Wisconsin and three gold medals in the World Championships. He was inducted into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame in 1990. Billy Baldwin: The actor, a former standout wrestler at Binghamton University, will be a guest analyst throughout the three days for the third straight year. He was a leader in keeping the sport in the Olympic Games having joined USA Wrestling's Committee to Preserve Olympic Wrestling. For the third consecutive year, Mike Couzens will call the action at the wrestling championships, handling all the prime-time sessions, as well as Thursday's opening round. Shawn Kenney returns to the coverage and will handle the play-by-play for the Quarterfinals and Medal Round. Quint Kessenich will be the reporter on all telecasts. For more information on the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships: http://www.ncaa.com/wrestling.

Mike Carr is seeded No. 6 despite placing eighth at the Big Ten Championships (Photo/Sam Janicki, SJanickiPhoto.com) The brackets were released for the 2019 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships on Wednesday. For the first time, the NCAA committee seeded all 33 wrestlers in the 10 weight classes. The committee examines head-to-head competition (25 percent), quality wins (20 percent), coaches ranking (15 percent), results against common opponents (10 percent), RPI (10 percent), qualifying event placement (10 percent) and win percentage (10 percent). While the committee did well with many seeds, there are some head-scratching seeds. Let's examine some over-seeded wrestlers at this year's NCAAs. Mike Carr (Illinois, 141) NCAA seed: No. 6 InterMat rank: No. 9 Carr has received some generous seeds in the postseason. His best wins during the regular season came over Minnesota's Mitchell McKee and Michigan's Kanen Storr. However, Carr was given the No. 1 seed at the Big Ten Championships over returning All-Americans Nick Lee of Penn State and Joey McKenna of Ohio State. Both Lee and McKenna had far superior regular seasons. At the Big Tens, Carr not only failed to live up to his seed, but he had a disastrous tournament, finishing eighth. He took losses to Chad Red of Nebraska, Tristan Moran of Wisconsin and Max Murin of Iowa. It was almost like the committee gave Carr a mulligan on his performance at the Big Tens. An eighth-place finish in the conference tournament -- with losses to three wrestlers seeded below him -- should not given him a No. 6 seed, especially without any wins this season over wrestlers seeded in the top five. Mason Parris gets his hand raised after a victory against Clarion (Photo/Sam Janicki, SJanickiPhoto.com) Mason Parris (Michigan, 285) NCAA seed: No. 5 InterMat rank: No. 11 The true freshman heavyweight showed flashes of greatness this season. In his first match out of redshirt, Parris hammered returning All-American Amar Dhesi of Oregon State 11-4. He picked up several ranked wins this season, including a 6-2 victory over All-American Youssif Hemida of Maryland. However, Parris battled inconstancy. He was 0-3 against Northwestern heavyweight Conan Jennings (No. 12 seed) and was split with No. 9 seed Matt Stencel (Central Michigan), but was pinned in the most recent meeting. However, it was his Big Ten performance that makes his No. 5 seed a head-scratcher. Parris opened with a victory over Hemida before losing to Jennings for the third time this season. In the consolation bracket, Parris was pinned by David Jensen of Nebraska, before rebounding to finish seventh. The fact that his NCAA seed (5) is two spots higher than his Big Ten finish (7) seems strange. Ryan Deakin (Northwestern, 157) NCAA seed: No. 3 InterMat rank: No. 5 Deakin had a strong first half of his season and solidified himself as a top-four wrestler at 157 pounds. He won a Midlands title and cruised through the first half of the season undefeated. After Midlands, he dropped matches to Nebraska's Tyler Berger and Penn State's Jason Nolf. While those losses were not unexpected, he took an unexpected loss at the Big Ten Championships to Minnesota's Steve Bleise (which he avenged) and lost by six points Michigan's Alec Pantaleo, who was seeded lower at No. 4. Deakin being seeded over Pantaleo doesn't seem right based on recent results. Larry Early's season highlight was his win over NC State's Hayden Hidlay (Photo/ODU Athletics) Larry Early (Old Dominion, 157) NCAA seed: No. 7 InterMat rank: No. 14 Early's shining moment this season came in late November when he defeated Hayden Hidlay of NC State. At the time, it was Hidlay's first-ever regular season loss. The win catapulted Early up the rankings. However, as the season went on, the victory appeared to be an aberration. Early was blanked (4-0) by Logan Parks of Central Michigan (unranked by InterMat, seeded No. 18). He also fell to Virginia Tech's B.C. LaPrade (No. 17 seed). He entered the MAC Championships as the top seed at 157 pounds. He picked up a couple wins, including avenging the loss to Parks, to reach the finals before losing to Jarrett Jacques of Missouri in the finals. The fact that Early is seeded six spots ahead of Jacques after losing a head-to-head match just a few days ago doesn't make a whole lot of sense. While Jacques' seed (No. 13) seems appropriate, Early's seed seems about seven spots too high. Jamel Morris (NC State, 141) NCAA seed: No. 14 InterMat rank: No. 20 Morris has not lost a match since the calendar turned to 2019 and recently won the ACC title. He's red-hot heading into the NCAAs. So on the surface, a top-15 seed seems reasonable, right? However, a close examination of his results reveals that he lacks quality wins and has some questionable losses. His best wins this season are over the No. 24 seed Mitch Moore of Virginia Tech and the No. 25 seed Josh Finesilver of Duke. His losses have come against Kyle Schoop of Lock Haven (unranked by InterMat, seeded No. 13), No. 30 Nate Limmex, as well as Division II wrestler Jonathan Miller of UNC Pembroke, a wrestler that went 0-2 at the NCAA Division II Championships. While I like the idea of rewarding a wrestler who performed well at his conference tournament, a No. 14 seed seems a bit generous.