InterMat Staff

History was made in Cleveland, Ohio, tonight as Real American Freestyle (RAF) held its first card, RAF 01. Eight champions were crowned in an electric atmosphere, with a star-studded list of participants. Local star Nathan Tomasello will go down in history as the first wrestler to win a RAF bout and the first bantamweight champion. The former Ohio State national champion was a crowd favorite as he used his impressive build and strength to keep Matt Ramos at bay for most of the bout. Tomasello’s four points were all scored off of step-out points. In the second period, Tomasello was close to a pair of takedowns when he earned his stepouts. Ramos nearly shocked the crowd with a late takedown during a sequence that started with a flying squirrel attempt. The third installment of Yianni Diakomihalis versus Indian world/Olympic medalist Bajrang Punia ended the same way as the first two - with the four-time national champion from Cornell getting his hand raised. It was in the third period when Diakomihalis used a low leg attack to become the first RAF wrestler to register a takedown. That maneuver iced a 5-1 victory for Diakomihalis. The third bout of the evening featured a current star against a former great and it established a pattern for matches of this ilk. Generally, it was the younger wrestler who got their hand raised. In this instance, Mexican Olympian Austin Gomez needed less than a minute to roll against another hometown hero, Lance Palmer of St. Ed’s and Ohio State fame. This bout did not have a title on the line, but it appears we could have a Diakomihalis-Gomez clash in the future. Some of the biggest fireworks of the evening came from the combination of Evan Wick and Jason Nolf in the middleweight championship. Wick jumped out to the lead, surprising Nolf on a low, reshot attempt. Nolf would answer by getting a takedown of his own. These were no ordinary two points. Nolf had Wick above his head, sitting on his shoulders for a moment, before finishing the takedown. The second period provides the fans with plenty of action as Wick notched three takedowns and extended his lead to 8-2. Just as it appeared that Nolf’s wrestling layoff might catch up to him, the former Penn State great responded with a takedown of his own to trail 8-4 at the break. The third period featured more from Nolf, who won a scramble for two points and then turned Wick to knot the score at eight (although Nolf had criteria). With around :20 remaining, Wick responded with a low, misdirection shot to retake the lead, 10-8. The Cal Poly assistant coach nearly got another takedown in the closing seconds, but Nolf flipped out of the hold. The crowd gave both wrestlers a standing ovation as Wick received his belt. The final result in the women’s strawweight championship was a tech fall for 2024 Olympic gold medalist Sarah Hildebrandt; however, it doesn’t necessarily tell the entire story of the bout. Zeltzin Hernandez shocked Hildebrandt in the first period, nearly scoring on a double leg. Later in the first period, Hildebrandt earned a takedown and added two gut wrenches to take a commanding 7-0 lead. There was no scoring in the second period as Hernandez was able to limit the damage. Hildebrandt was close to scoring on multiple occasions, but Hernandez trapped Hildebrandt’s arm and prevented her from fully taking control. :36 into the third period, Hildebrandt was finally able to break through Hernandez’s defense and scored off of a double leg and a leg lace - ending the match via tech, 11-0. It was another current star (2025 World Team member Real Woods) against a past hero (2009 NCAA champion Darrion Caldwell) in the bantamweight championship bout. The 37 year old Caldwell actually got on the scoreboard first with a step out point. Later in the opening stanza, Woods completed a takedown and was looking for a gut wrench. Caldwell momentarily kept Woods on his back for two points and only trailed 4-3 at the break. Caldwell has always been known for his big moves and tried a super duck; however, Woods was ready and countered for a takedown. Two gut wrenches opened his lead to 10-3. On the second gut wrench, Woods was able to keep Caldwell on his back for a fall - :36 into the second period. It was the only fall of the card. The next bout featured two-time Olympic gold medalist Kyle Dake, taking on 2025 NCAA champion Dean Hamiti. Hamiti was a replacement for Missouri’s Aeoden Sinclair, who was held out of the competition because of compliance concerns. Dake got the crowd excited in the first period as he used a high-amplitude finish for four points, giving him a 5-0 lead after one period. Dake turned up the head in the second period and dominated his way to an 11-0 tech. Speaking of replacements. Kennedy Blades was scheduled to take on Mexico’s Alejandra Rivera in a championship bout in the women’s middleweight division. Just a day before the event, the NCAA ruled that Blades would not be allowed to compete. Rather than scrap the bout, RAF found an interesting replacement. Combat sports legend Holly Holm filled in for Blades. Holm has won world championships in boxing, kickboxing and mixed martial arts. This was her first official wrestling match….ever! It was nearly a storybook finish for Holm as Rivera quickly shot in on her. Rivera telegraphed the double leg attempt and got pancaked to her back and nearly surrendered a fall. The second period featured Rivera scoring twice on four-point headlocks. In both instances, Holm was able to add points of her own to trail, 9-7. Neither woman was able to score in the final period and Rivera was crowned the victor, 9-7. In the penultimate bout of the evening, branded the co-main event, 2019 Hodge Trophy winner Bo Nickal returned to the wrestling mat for the first time in four years. He squared off with three-time All-American Jacob Cardenas, who just wrapped up his collegiate career earlier this year. Maybe there was some rust for Nickal, but not enough to prevent him from winning. During his post-match interview, Nickal stated that he was conscious of the side Cardenas tends to try his gut wrench from. The key sequence in the bout saw Nickal step over the gut wrench and nearly pin Cardenas. Nickal wasn’t able to secure a fall, but did keep Cardenas on his back for the final :20 seconds of the contest and ensure a 6-4 victory. The main event of the evening featured 2025 NCAA champion Wyatt Hendrickson taking on 2024 Egyptian Olympian Mostafa Elders. The crowd was hoping to see Hendrickson display his arsenal of offensive attacks and he gave them what they wanted. Hendrickson put an exclamation mark on his match and the RAF 01 debut as he used a big, four-point double leg to down Elders, 14-1. After the match, during Hendrickson’s interview, 2023 Hodge Trophy winner Mason Parris jumped on the stage to challenge Hendrickson. Parris was an Olympian in 2024, but did not participate in the world team process in 2025 as he was pursuing an NFL career. Now back on the mat, this will be an interesting matchup to anticipate for future RAF events. We’ll revisit RAF in the coming days to discuss the event as a whole. Results Bantamweight Championship (135 lbs) - Nathan Tomasello over Matt Ramos 4-3 Lightweight Championship (155 lbs) - Yianni Diakomihalis over Bajrang Punia 5-1 Lightweight bout (155 lbs) - Austin Gomez over Lance Palmer 11-0 Middleweight Championship (175 lbs) - Evan Wick over Jason Nolf 10-8 Women’s Strawweight Championship (120 lbs) - Sarah Hildebrandt over Zeltzin Hernandez 11-0 Featherweight Championship (145 lbs) - Real Woods over Darrion Caldwell Fall 2:31 Cruiserweight Championship (190 lbs) - Kyle Dake over Dean Hamiti 11-0 Women’s Middleweight bout (150 lbs) - Alejandra Rivera over Holly Holm 9-7 Light Heavyweight championship (205 lbs) - Bo Nickal over Jacob Cardenas 6-4 Heavyweight championship (Unlimited) - Wyatt Hendrickson over Mostafa Elders 14-1

June 15th was New Year’s Day for those college coaches recruiting the Class of 2027 and the student-athletes waiting to plan out their futures. The 15th was the first day that collegiate coaches could officially contact rising juniors and there has been plenty of activity on the recruiting front. Since the 15th, some of the nation’s top prospects have released lists of their top schools. Rather than trying to dig through social media or click through a bunch of state sites, we have compiled this list of these top recruits and their potential future homes. Remember recruiting is a fluid process, so another school, currently unlisted, could jump into the picture for a recruit. Conversely, the recruits could trim their list at any time. This is a feature that will be revisited as needed throughout the recruitment process. Since our first version of this feature the following wrestlers have been added: #28 Cam Sontz, #35 Greyson Music, #126 Jackson Weller, and #135 Justin Williamson. #1 Melvin Miller (Bishop McCort, PA) - Michigan, Nebraska, Ohio State, Oklahoma State, Penn State, Virginia Tech #3 Sonny Amato (Rumson-Fair Haven, NJ) - Arizona State, Iowa, Iowa State, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Rutgers, Virginia Tech #4 Landon Sidun (Norwin, Pennsylvania) - Buffalo, Cornell, Iowa, Minnesota, NC State, Nebraska, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Penn State, Pittsburgh, Virginia Tech, West Virginia #10 Dean Anderson (Valiant Prep, AZ) - Arizona State, Minnesota, Missouri, NC State, Nebraska, Northern Iowa, Penn State #11 Clinton Shepherd (Crown Point, IN) - Cornell, Indiana, Michigan, NC State, Nebraska, Ohio State, Virginia Tech #14 Max Konopka (Simsbury, CT) -Cornell, Lehigh, NC State, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Penn State, Princeton, Rutgers, Stanford, Virginia Tech, Wisconsin #15 Hayden Schwab (Don Bosco, IA) - Cornell, Iowa, Nebraska, Northern Iowa, Oklahoma State, Stanford, Virginia Tech #17 Arseni Kikiniou (Poway, CA) - Arizona State, Cal Poly, Cornell, Harvard, Illinois, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Carolina, Purdue, Stanford, Virginia Tech #20 Brock Rothermel (Line Mountain, PA) - Bucknell, Lehigh, Maryland, Pittsburgh, Princeton, Rutgers, Virginia Tech #24 Caleb Noble (Warren, IL) - Appalachian State, Arizona State, Cornell, George Mason, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa State, Little Rock, Michigan, Michigan State, Missouri, Morgan State, Navy, NC State, North Carolina, Ohio State, Penn, SIU Edwardsville, South Dakota State, Wisconsin #28 Cam Sontz (Delbarton, NJ) - Cornell, Lehigh, Michigan, North Carolina, Penn, Penn State, Princeton, Virginia Tech #30 Jimmy Mastny (Marian Central, IL) - Air Force, Arizona State, Army, Cornell, George Mason, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Iowa State, Little Rock, Michigan, NC State, Nebraska, North Carolina, Northern Iowa, Ohio State, Oklahoma State, Oregon State, Penn, Purdue, Princeton, SIU Edwardsville, Stanford, Virginia Tech, Wisconsin #34 Maximus Fortier (East Fairmont, WV) - Air Force, Brown, Bucknell, Cornell, George Mason, Harvard, Maryland, Navy, NC State, Pittsburgh, Princeton, SIU Edwardsville, Stanford, Virginia, Virginia Tech, West Virginia, Wisconsin #35 Greyson Music (Bishop McDevitt, PA) - Bucknell, Franklin & Marshall, Lehigh, Northwestern, Penn, Pittsburgh, Princeton, Stanford, Virginia Tech, West Virginia #38 Dawson Youngblut (Don Bosco, IA) - Cornell, Iowa, Iowa State, NC State, Nebraska, Northern Iowa #39 Gage Lohr (Watertown, SD) - Cornell, Indiana, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Dakota State, Wisconsin, Wyoming #41 Dale Corbin (Wyoming Seminary, PA) - Army West Point, Cornell, Lehigh, Maryland, Minnesota, NC State, North Carolina, Northwestern, Oklahoma, Rutgers, Utah Valley, Virginia Tech, Wisconsin #52 Luke Hayden (Hickman, MO) - Air Force, Cornell, Missouri, North Dakota State, Northern Iowa, Northwestern, Oregon State, Princeton, Purdue, South Dakota State, Virginia, Virginia Tech, Wisconsin #54 Steel Meyers (Allen, TX) - Air Force, Brown, California Baptist, Cornell, Harvard, Little Rock, Missouri, NC State, North Carolina, Northwestern, Oklahoma State, Oregon State, Penn, Princeton, Stanford, Virginia, Virginia Tech, Wyoming #77 Cayden Rios (Allen, TX) - Arizona State, George Mason, Lehigh, Little Rock, Missouri, Northwestern, Virginia, Wyoming #89 Evan Stanley (Lowell, IN) - Air Force, Brown, Cornell, Indiana, Michigan State, Princeton, Purdue, Stanford, Wisconsin #106 Caleb Tyler (Delone Catholic, PA) - Clarion, Duke, Franklin & Marshall, Virginia, Wisconsin #126 Jackson Weller (Delran, NJ) - Brown, Cornell, Penn, Princeton, Stanford, Virginia, Virginia Tech #132 Legend Ellis (Coweta, OK) - Air Force, Augustana, Brown, Bucknell, California Baptist, Central Oklahoma, Hofstra, Minnesota, North Carolina, North Dakota State, Northwestern, Oklahoma, Princeton, Purdue, Stanford, Utah Valley, Wyoming #134 Brock Armstrong (Coeur d’Alene, ID) - Brown, Kent State, North Dakota State, Oregon State, Stanford, Utah Valley, Wyoming #135 Justin Williamson (Mount Carmel, IL) - Air Force, Brown, Buffalo, Indiana, Navy, Northwestern, Princeton, Stanford, West Virginia, Wisconsin

We’re less than 48 hours away from the debut of Real American Wrestling and the RAF 01 card. The ten-match event has to be one of the most star-studded standalone cards our sport has ever seen. Don’t agree? Below, we have some impressive numbers to help demonstrate that assertion. Remember, RAF 01 takes place Saturday at 7pm (eastern) on the Fox Nation app. 2 = # of four-time NCAA champions on this card: Dake and Diakomihalis 3 = # of Dan Hodge Trophy winners competing on Saturday: Dake, Nickal, Hendrickson 3 = # of RAF 01 competitors who made the 2025 US Senior World Team: Blades, Hendrickson, Woods 5 = # of Senior World/Olympic medalists in action: Blades, Dake, Diakomihalis, Hildebrandt, Punia 6 = # of Olympians on the mat in Cleveland: Blades, Dake, Elders, Gomez, Hildebrandt, Punia 6 = # of RAF 01 participants who qualified for Final X 2025: Blades, Dake, Diakomihalis, Hendrickson Wick, Woods 18 = # of NCAA Championships won by wrestlers on this card: Dake (4), Diakomihalis (4), Nickal (3), Nolf (3), Caldwell (1), Hamiti (1), Hendrickson (1), Tomasello (1)* 24 = # of NCAA finals appearances combined from this card: Dake (4), Diakomihalis (4), Nickal (4), Nolf (4), Caldwell (1), Gomez (1), Hamiti (1), Hendrickson (1), Palmer (1), Ramos (1), Tomasello (1), Woods (1)* 45 = # of NCAA All-American honors for wrestlers on this card: Dake (4), Diakomihalis (4), Nickal (4), Nolf (4), Palmer (4), Tomasello (4), Cardenas (3), Hamiti (3), Hendrickson (3), Wick (3), Woods (3),Caldwell (2), Gomez (2), Ramos (2)* *Blades won NCWWC national titles at Iowa in each of the last two years. Hildebrandt was a two-time WCWA national champion at King University

Earlier this week, the University of Wyoming released its 2025-26 schedule. It’s one that is packed full of conference duals, big events, and a home dual against the four-time defending champions. As usual, Wyoming could have a sneaky-good team in 2025-26. They will be very stout at the back end of the lineup with stud transfer Christian Carroll anchoring the squad. Before him is a national qualifier and an All-American. The Cowboys also have two others who have qualified for the NCAA Tournament in the middle of the lineup. Typically, Mark Branch’s staff also has a surprise or two from existing wrestlers who developed and improved in the offseason. Frankly, Wyoming will need to be tough, as they have entered two of the most difficult regular-season events before taking on Penn State. We’ll start with the actual schedule itself. Rather than reposting it in order, we’ve broken it into three parts. The non-conference duals, conference duals, and special events. These are the schedules that we’ve already previewed: Cornell, Little Rock, and Oklahoma Non Conference November 1st: Western Wyoming (away) December 13th: Penn State (home) January 31st: Oregon State (home) Conference November 22nd: California Baptist (home) January 10th: Utah Valley (away January 18th: South Dakota State (home) January 24th: West Virginia (away) February 6th: Air Force (home) February 8th: North Dakota State (home) February 13th: Northern Colorado (away) February 15th: Oklahoma (home) Special Events November 15/16th: National Dual Invitational (Tulsa, Oklahoma) December 5/6th: Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational (Las Vegas, Nevada) December 21st: Reno Tournament of Champions (Reno, Nevada) January 3/4th: Soldier Salute (Coralville, Iowa) February 21st: Cowboy Shootout (home) Number of Top 20 teams from the 2025 NCAA Championships: #1 Penn State, #18(t) West Virginia Wyoming starts the year with an intrastate dual against an NJCAA school in Western Wyoming. After that, they jump in the deep end of the pool. The National Duals Invitational! Most of the top finishing teams from the 2025 NCAA Tournament have entered the tournament and Wyoming will certainly get multiple duals against high-quality opponents. It doesn’t get any easier in December as Wyoming will attend the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational, which is what they typically do early in the month. CKLV has established itself as the best individual bracketed tournament in the regular season. That should be the case again in 2025 and they will get tested by some of the best in the B1G and ACC - among others. After Vegas, the national champion Penn State Nittany Lions fulfill the back half of their home-and-home dual series. This dual is scheduled to take place in Wyoming’s Arena-Auditorium rather than the SportsComplex that hosts the majority of their duals. The Arena-Auditorium has a seating capacity of just under 12k. I’d expect the Cowboys to have a huge crowd to watch them take on Penn State. Wyoming closes out 2025 with the Reno Tournament of Champions. This tournament can be a bit of a crapshoot these days. A handful of DI programs attend, but many just send redshirts or non-starters. Depending on the weight, there could be some good matchups. Just a few days into 2026, Wyoming will ring in the new year at the Soldier Salute in Iowa. The host, Iowa Hawkeyes, typically have their starters at the event and there are other quality teams in attendance. After the Salute, it’s basically all duals from there on out. And most conference duals. A visit from Oregon State represents the only non-conference dual of 2026. Without many DI programs in the western portion of the country, a dual against the Beavers makes sense. The scheduling in the second half isn’t particularly grueling in terms of travel or back-to-back Friday/Sunday duals against contending teams. Three of their four toughest duals in this period will take place at home (SDSU, NDSU, Oklahoma). Notable Potential Matchups for Wyoming’s Stars Gabe Willochell (149) November 22nd: Jesse Vasquez (California Baptist) December 13th: Shane Van Ness (Penn State) January 10th: David Evans (Utah Valley) January 18th: Alek Martin (South Dakota State) January 24th: Willie McDougald (West Virginia) February 15th: Jack Gioffre (Oklahoma) Eddie Neitenbach (184) December 13th: Rocco Welsh (Penn State) January 24th: Ian Bush (West Virginia) January 31st: TJ McDonnell (Oregon State) February 8th: Aidan Brenot (North Dakota State) February 15th: Brian Soldano (Oklahoma) Joey Novak (197) December 13th: Josh Barr (Penn State) January 18th: Bennett Berge (South Dakota State) January 31st: Justin Rademacher (Oregon State) February 6th: Brian Burburjia (Air Force) February 15th: DJ Parker (Oklahoma) Christian Carroll (285) December 13th: Cole Mirasola (Penn State) January 18th: Luke Rasmussen (South Dakota State) January 31st: Aden Attao (Oregon State) February 8th: Andrew Blackburn-Forst (North Dakota State) February 15th: Juan Mora (Oklahoma) As you look at the individual matchups, you have to remember that the Cowboy wrestlers will get a handful of matches against quality competition at the National Duals Invitational and the CKLV. If you get deep into the Soldier Salute, you’re probably facing an opponent or two from Iowa. I’d like to highlight the potential schedule for Wyoming’s returning All-American Joey Novak. When Penn State comes to town, they’ll feature NCAA runner-up Josh Barr. That could be the type of match we could see in the NCAA quarters/semis/finals. Another highlight for Novak is the Oregon State dual. He’ll get to face newly minted U20 world champion Justin Rademacher. The pair met as true freshmen in 2023-24 and Novak prevailed, 7-2. At 149 lbs, Gabe Willochell’s dual schedule is another that stands out. He doesn’t necessarily have All-Americans every time out, but he’s got wrestlers who will regularly test him.

Birmingham

Earlier this offseason, in one of our coaching carousel updates, we mentioned how Nate Engel had stepped down from his position on the Oregon State staff. Engel’s next move is public now as he’ll assume a role on the Army WCAP women’s coaching staff. Engel had been an integral part of the women’s program at Oregon State’s Dam RTC. At various times, they have had Adeline Gray, Alex Glaude, Alyssa Lampe, Dom Parrish, Mallory Velte, and Skylar Grote training in Corvallis and working closely with Engel. Before coming to Oregon State, Engel was on staff at Stanford and the Naval Academy. The 2025 Senior World Team will feature one of the members of the Army WCAP program - Adaugo Nwachukwo along with one of Engel’s former pupils, Glaude. In 2021, Engel was named USA Wrestling’s Women’s Coach of the Year. Two years earlier, Engel was named USAW’s Greco-Roman Coach of the Year. Engel has extensive experience coaching women’s freestyle overseas at various age group levels at continental and world championships.

St. Peters Prep

Saturday night is opening night for Real American Freestyle Wrestling (RAF)! The organization’s first offering will be a ten-match card (RAF 01) held at Cleveland State’s Wolstein Center. This card is a star-studded offering that features five wrestlers who have won Senior World/Olympic medals, plus some up-and-coming stars who could make that list increase in the future. In addition, we have some wrestling legends who have turned their focus to other athletic ventures but have now returned to the mat to compete at RAF 01. So let’s look at the card itself, match-by-match in our preview. The bouts have been listed in the order they are scheduled to take place. Bantamweight (135 lbs) - Nathan Tomasello vs. Matt Ramos The evening will get underway with this scrap between a pair of former national finalists at 125 lbs. Nathan Tomasello was a national champion as a freshman on Ohio State’s NCAA title-winning team in 2015. He would go on to capture four Big Ten titles, making him the second Buckeye wrestler to accomplish the feat. In four NCAA appearances, Tomasello never finished lower than third. Ramos recently concluded a successful career at Purdue, during which he earned two NCAA podium finishes, placing second and fourth. He is best remembered for his colossal upset of three-time national champion Spencer Lee in the 2023 NCAA semifinals. Ramos is a former U17 world champion in freestyle will continue his career on the international circuit representing the Philippines. Both wrestlers are capable of some fireworks and could get the Cleveland crowd on their feet from the opening whistle. You have the hungry Ramos coming off an excellent collegiate career against a Tomasello who has been on the domestic freestyle scene for a while, but is waiting to take that next step. Lightweight (155 lbs) - Yianni Diakomihalis vs. Bajrang Punia This is a matchup we’ve seen before but both times it’s taken place, it has been highly entertaining for wrestling fans. Both wrestlers are fan favorites and like to put points on the scoreboard. Yianni Diakomihalis is looking to get back on the winning track after a stunning loss at Final X. Diakomihalis was shocked by high school senior PJ Duke when attempting to make his third senior world team. Back in 2022, Diakomihalis snapped the American medal-less streak at 65/66 kg when he made the world finals. That also accounts for his most recent world team appearance. Diakomihalis is the first of two four-time national champions from Cornell slated to compete on this card. The familiar foe for Diakomihalis is Indian star Bajrang Punia. Punia is a four-time world medalist and a 2020 Olympic bronze medal winner. His best showing at the world championships came in 2018 when he claimed the silver medal. Truthfully, I don’t think anyone really knows what to expect from Punia. His last major competition was the 2022 World Championships (he took bronze). When at his peak, Punia was able to push the pace and had a gas tank that was more like American wrestlers compared to many foreign counterparts. Lightweight (155 lbs) - Austin Gomez vs. Lance Palmer Speaking of not sure what to expect - that’s the case in the other lightweight contest as hometown hero Lance Palmer returns to the Resilite to take on Mexican Olympic representative Austin Gomez. Palmer was a four-time All-American on Tom Ryan’s first Ohio State teams. As a senior, he defeated Brent Metcalf in the Big Ten finals, but lost to him at NCAA’s. Since then, Palmer has focused primarily on MMA. In the months leading up to this match, there have been lots of Palmer sightings in the Buckeye wrestling room. Gomez established himself as one of the most exciting collegiate wrestlers of his era. He capped his career with a 2024 NCAA finals appearance for Michigan. Gomez has had a breakthrough 2025 on the international scene. He claimed a Pan-American title and bronze at the Zagreb Open Ranking Series event, but that doesn’t account for his best win of the year. In Hungary, Gomez dominated 2023 world champion Iszmail Muszukajev, 10-0. He didn’t place at that event because he pulled out for precautionary reasons, but that win established him as a key contender in the 2025 medal hunt at the World Championships. This should be an interesting clash of styles. Gomez is generally pretty wide open offensively and can throw the kitchen sink at an opponent. Palmer is a physical grinder who can overwhelm his opponents with physicality. Middleweight (175 lbs) - Jason Nolf vs. Evan Wick This might be the most interesting bout of the evening. Evan Wick is another competitor who is fresh off a loss at Final X. In doing so, Wick established himself as someone at the top of the pecking order at 79 kg. To advance to Final X, Wick had to down Cornell All-American and then had a surprisingly one-sided win over 2025 NCAA champion Dean Hamiti. Now he’ll face Jason Nolf, who has taken some time off to focus on a career in grappling. Nolf was one of the most dominant collegiate wrestlers of the past decade. He made four NCAA finals and claimed three titles. Over the last three years of his career, Nolf’s only loss came via injury default. His lowest bonus point percentage saw him earn an extra point in 80% of his matches. His highest mark was 92%. If not for some incredible teammates, Nolf would have a Hodge Trophy or two. He has also been on the cusp of making a Senior World or Olympic Team. In 2023, Nolf lost in Final X to Kyle Dake. A year later, Dake beat him in the Olympic Trials finals. Wick had a decorated career at Wisconsin and Cal Poly that saw him finish third in the nation on two occasions. As a senior, Wick defeated returning national champion Shane Griffith in the Pac-12 finals to earn the #1 seed at the NCAA Championships. So, after about a year removed from high-level wrestling competition, can Nolf jump in and take out the second wrestler on our domestic ladder at 79 kg? It seems like a tall task, but we don’t have many examples of Nolf losing. Women’s Strawweight (120 lbs) - Sarah Hildebrandt vs. Zeltzin Hernandez Earlier this year, it looked like we might have seen the last of Sarah Hildebrandt in a competitive atmosphere as she took a position on USA Wrestling’s staff coaching the women’s freestyle team. Not so fast, my friends! The 2024 Olympic champion is back! Hildebrandt’s Olympic gold medal was the icing on the cake of a career that might have otherwise been overlooked a bit because of some of her teammates' success. The gold medal should ensure that Hildebrandt’s place in US women’s wrestling is secure as one of the all-time greats. The numbers are staggering. Eight world/Olympic appearances. Two Olympic medals (gold/bronze). Four world medals (two silver and two bronze). From 2018 to 2024, Hildebrandt made every World/Olympic team. The tall task of taking on Hildebrandt belongs to Mexico’s Zeltzin Hernandez. In 2024, Hernandez was a silver medalist at the U23 World Championships. Earlier that year, she won a Pan-American U23 title by defeating American Montana Delawder. Because of Hildebrandt’s current job, we’re not sure exactly what kind of fighting shape she’ll come into Cleveland with. That being said, she’s likely on the mat a lot. If she’s close to top form, this could be a rout. Featherweight (145 lbs) - Real Woods vs. Darrion Caldwell Another transition to a competitor whose status is unknown. 2009 NCAA champion Darrion Caldwell moves from the MMA cage to the wrestling mat as he faces our Senior World representative, Real Woods. Caldwell was one of the most electric wrestlers of his generation. That was evident in his 2009 finals upset of Brent Metcalf. Since then, Caldwell has focused on MMA and even won a world title in Bellator. Could lightning strike twice and Caldwell take out another former Hawkeye? Woods is in the middle of the best stretch of his Senior level (and collegiate career). He finished fourth at the US Open, but a few weeks later, he knocked off Aden Valencia, Jesse Mendez, and Brock Hardy to earn a spot in Final X. At Final X, Woods swept Joey McKenna in a pair of close, physical matches to earn a spot on the world team. It’s an excellent accomplishment for a wrestler who didn’t win a college national title. I don’t think I’m going out on a limb stating that Darrion Caldwell taking out our world team representative is highly unlikely at 37 years old and being away from wrestling competition for so long. That being said, I do think Caldwell can put together some moments that remind us of how he was one of the must-watch wrestlers of his era. Cruiserweight (190 lbs) - Kyle Dake vs. Dean Hamiti This was initially supposed to be Kyle Dake against Missouri redshirt freshman Aeoden Sinclair. Compliance concerns from Missouri led to the bout being scrapped and Dean Hamiti was added. I might like this matchup more. Dake is another wrestler who comes to Cleveland after losing at Final X. There, he was knocked off by Zahid Valencia. Before 2025, Dake had made seven straight world/Olympic teams - medaling in each one of them. Dake has four world titles and a pair of Olympic bronze medals to his name. Combined with his unique collegiate career that saw him win four national titles at four different weights (without a redshirt), Dake is one of the all-time greats of USA Wrestling. But, judging by his eagerness to participate in RAF, Dake isn’t worried about accomplishments and calling it a career. Hamiti capped off his collegiate career with a national title at 174 lbs earlier this year. He had to run through a gauntlet that included past nationals champions Keegan O’Toole and Levi Haines (current Senior World Team member). Hamiti then went to the US Open and fell to Evan Wick in the finals. Again, this matchup is interesting stylistically for me. Dake is typically measured in his attacks and is the ultimate high-IQ wrestler. At times in his career, Hamiti has been a high-volume shooter. If that’s the case, he could get exposed by Dake. You also have to consider Hamiti’s corner. It includes Dake’s longtime rival and friend, David Taylor. Taylor coached Valencia to a win over Dake at Final X. Some might look at the weight as a factor that favors Dake. That’s probably true, but I don’t know that he was quite as big as a typical 86 kg wrestler. Women’s Middleweight (150 lbs) - Kennedy Blades vs. Alejandra Rivera One of the first wrestlers signed by RAF and one of the “faces of the franchise” is Kennedy Blades. The 2024 Olympic silver medalist moved down from 76 kg to 68 kg and has been as good as ever. Maybe better? Blades has been undefeated at her new weight class - winning gold at the Croatian and Hungarian Ranking Series event, along with the Pan-Am’s. To make the 2025 world team, Blades crushed the competition at the US Open and then cruised to a pair of wins over Brooklyn Hays at Final X. Blades’ opponent will be Alejandra Rivera of Team Mexico. Rivera has competed at the Senior World Championships on two occasions, but has yet to medal. Perhaps her best international performances have come at the age group level, where she was a Pan-American bronze medalist at the Cadet and Junior levels. With the organization unofficially tabbing Blades as the torchbearer for the women’s division, I think that Blades will be ready to dazzle as one of the night’s featured bouts. Light Heavyweight (205 lbs) - Bo Nickal vs. Jacob Cardenas The co-main event pits former Hodge Trophy winner and current UFC fighter Bo Nickal against three-time All-American Jacob Cardenas. This is another instance of a talented wrestler who just finished his collegiate career against one who is more decorated, but has had his focus elsewhere. Nickal was the 2019 Hodge Trophy winner after pinning 18 of 30 opponents and earning bonus points in 27 of those bouts. Before making the move to the MMA cage, Nickal won a U23 world championship and advanced to the finals of the 2020 Olympic Trials. Speaking of U23’s, Cardenas is the only American wrestler to medal three times at the event. He was a silver medalist in both 2022 and 2024. Cardenas got on the NCAA podium twice for Cornell before finishing his career at Michigan earlier this year. With the Wolverines, Cardenas won a Big Ten title and earned the #1 seed at the 2025 NCAA Tournament. Although Nickal’s primary focus has been MMA, he hasn’t strayed far from his wrestling roots and probably isn’t that rusty. Cardenas, on the other hand, has been training out of Michigan’s Cliff Keen Wrestling Club, which has been one of the best of its kind in the country. Cardenas should enjoy a size advantage, but I don’t know if it’s enough to swing the pendulum in his favor. Heavyweight (UNL) - Wyatt Hendrickson vs. Mostafa Elders The 2025 NCAA Championships finished with Wyatt Hendrickson in the main event - so will RAF 01. It will be a role reversal for Hendrickson, as he’ll be the heavy favorite here after coming into Philly as a sizeable underdog against Olympic gold medalist Gable Steveson. Since his NCAA finals win, Hendrickson has been on a rampage throughout the heavyweight class. He crushed the field at the US Open and swept Trent Hillger at Final X. His second bout with Hillger ended up being the highest-scoring match in the history of the event (34 total points). That means Hendrickson will be able to put up points against anyone, but might be susceptible to giving up a few points here and there. Hendrickson’s opponent will be Egyptian Olympian Mostafa Elders. Elders is a two-time African champion and actually won the 2025 Bill Farrell in Greco-Roman. Like Blades, it seems as if Hendrickson is someone that RAF wants to put front and center in their promotion. He’s in this spot to cap this card with a memorable match. I think he’ll have RAF, and the fans, what they’re looking for!

The biggest coaching related news of the last couple of weeks came on Monday when Binghamton announced that Ryan LeBlanc will be the Bearcats next head coach. We wrote a bit about LeBlanc’s background here. With LeBlanc’s hire, it opens up the head coaching position at The Citadel very late in the game - so we have another head coaching vacancy. Related to the Bulldogs, InterMat was recently told that they were looking to hire an assistant coach, as well. This will be a new position. One might assume that this would get pushed to the backburner until the head coaching job is filled. In other coaching news, Teyon Ware rounded out his first coaching staff at the University of Northern Colorado by hiring Charles Jones Jr. Jones Jr. wrestled collegiately at Oklahoma and Fresno State and served in the United States Army from 2010 to 2022. He comes to Greeley after leading the girls high school program at Edmond North in Oklahoma. Troy Nickerson also completed his first coaching staff at Army West Point with the hiring of Alan Clothier. The two are very familiar with each other as Clothier qualified for the NCAA Tournament three times under Nickerson at Northern Colorado. Since then, Clothier has coached collegiately at Buffalo and Davidson. Finally, Gardner-Webb also added to their coaching staff with the hiring of Vincent Scollo as a graduate assistant. Scollo was a 2023 NCAA sixth place finisher for DII West Liberty. He comes to Gardner-Webb after holding the same position at his alma mater. Coaching Changes Army West Point: Alan Clothier (Assistant Coach) Army West Point: Troy Nickerson (Head Coach) Bellarmine: Brayton Lee (Assistant Coach) Binghamton: Brevin Cassella (Assistant Coach) Binghamton: Ryan LeBlanc (Head Coach) Brown: Tyler Grayson (Assistant Coach) Campbell: TJ Dudley (Head Coach) Gardner-Webb: Vincent Scollo (Graduate Assistant) Illinois: Eric Schultz (Assistant Coach) Kent State: Fred Garcia (Assistant Coach) Kent State: Josh Moore (Head Coach) Kent State: Devin Schroder (Assistant Coach) Lock Haven: Gavin Hoffman (Assistant Coach) Lock Haven: Brock Mauller (Assistant Coach) Long Island: Jay Nivison (Assistant Coach) Mercyhurst: Jimmy Overhiser (Head Coach) Missouri: Keegan O’Toole (Assistant Coach) NC State: Malik McDonald (Assistant Coach) North Dakota State: Willie Miklus (Assistant Coach) Northern Colorado: Charles Jones Jr. (Assistant Coach) Northern Colorado: Teyon Ware (Head Coach) Northern Iowa: Ian Parker (Assistant Coach) Oklahoma State: Kevin Ward (Assistant Coach) Penn: Matt Valenti (Head Coach) Penn: Lennox Wolak (Assistant Coach) Princeton: Ryan Wolfe (Assistant Coach) Purdue: Matt Ramos (Assistant Coach) RTC/Club Lee Roper (Cowboy RTC) Open Appalachian State: Assistant Coach Binghamton: Assistant Coach California Baptist: Assistant Coach Campbell: Assistant Coach (x2) Central Michigan: Assistant Coach Drexel: Assistant Coach George Mason: Assistant Coach Lehigh: Assistant Coach Little Rock: Assistant Coach Maryland: Assistant Coach Mercyhurst: Assistant Coach Michigan State: Assistant Coach Oklahoma: Assistant Coach Oregon State: Assistant Coach The Citadel: Head Coach The Citadel: Assistant Coach Virginia: Assistant Coach VMI: Assistant Coach

Our All-Quarter Century team takes us out big into the Big Ten to highlight the program at the University of Michigan. Michigan started this quarter century with eight straight top ten finishes and ended with eight-in-a-row between 2016-24, before missing out in 2025. Michigan is a program consistently in the hunt - individually and as a team. They regularly bring in highly ranked recruiting classes. Their wrestlers are annually in the mix for high Big Ten finishes and All-American honors. The most recent Olympic Games featured Michigan grads wrestling heavyweight in both the freestyle and Greco-Roman tournaments. Additionally, two other former Wolverines represented other nations in Paris. In constructing our first, second, and third teams for Wolverine wrestling this quarter century, we had to get creative from 149-157 lbs. Since Eric Tannenbaum spent the first half of his career at 149 lbs, he was inserted there and it provided the flexibility to include both Ryan Bertin and Ryan Churella on the first team. One wrinkle that impacted Michigan more than any other program we’ve highlighted thus far is the transfer portal. They’ve had some great wrestlers join the program - two that won NCAA titles elsewhere. Generally, I’ve tried to give the benefit of the doubt to someone who spent more time in the Michigan singlet; however, in a case like 125 lbs, resumes weren’t equal. You have to marvel at the depth at a few weights for the Wolverines. Heavyweight with the two Olympians and a three-time AA from a loaded weight. 149, 157, and 174 are also excellent and three-deep with multi-time AA’s. As always, if you have thoughts or your version of the team, leave them in the comments or InterMat’s forums. Wrestlers considered for the three teams had to compete from 2001 to 2025. For the wrestlers early in this timeframe, their entire collegiate body of work was considered. Only collegiate results were taken into consideration. Even if a wrestler was successful at multiple weights, they were only selected for one weight - typically, it was based on the strongest possible first team. After the three All-Century teams, there are some fun facts about Iowa State’s results over the past 25 years. Here are the programs we’ve already covered Arizona State Cornell Illinois Iowa State Lehigh Minnesota Missouri NC State First Team 125 lbs - Nick Suriano: Paramus, New Jersey - 3x AA (1,1,2), 2x NCAA champion, 3x NCAA finalist, 2x Big Ten champion 133 lbs - Stevan Micic: Cedar Lake, Indiana - 3x AA (3,2,4), 2018 NCAA runner-up, 2018 Big Ten champion, 2x NCAA #2 seed 141 lbs - Kellen Russell: High Bridge, New Jersey - 3x AA (1,1,7), 2x NCAA champion, 4x Big Ten champion, 3x NCAA #1 seed 149 lbs - Eric Tannenbaum: Naperville, Illinois - 4x AA (2,4,6,4), 2008 NCAA runner-up, 2x Big Ten champion, NCAA #1 seed 157 lbs - Ryan Bertin: North Royalton, Ohio - 4x AA (1,3,1,6), 2x NCAA champion, 3x Big Ten runner-up 165 lbs - Ryan Churella: Northville, Michigan - 3x AA (2,4,3), 3x Big Ten champion, NCAA #1 seed 174 lbs - Steve Luke: Massillon, Ohio - 3x AA (1,2,6), 2009 NCAA Champion, 2x NCAA finalist, 3x Big Ten champion 184 lbs - Myles Amine: Brighton, Michigan - 5x AA (2,3,3,3,4), 2x Big Ten champion, 2x NCAA #1 seed 197 lbs - Tyrel Todd: Bozeman, Montana - 3x AA (4,3,5), 2009 Big Ten champion, NCAA #3 seed 285 lbs - Mason Parris: Lawrenceburg, Indiana - 3x AA (1,5,2), 2023 Big Ten champion, 2023 Hodge Trophy winner Second Team 125 lbs - AJ Grant: Clarkston, Michigan - 2x AA (4,4), Big Ten runner-up, NCAA #4 seed 133 lbs - Dylan Ragusin: Elk Grove Village, Illinois - 1x AA (5), 2024 Big Ten runner-up 141 lbs - Stephen Dutton: Miller Place, New York - 1x AA (7), NCAA Round of 12 finisher 149 lbs - Josh Churella: Northville, Michigan - 3x AA (4,2,8), 2007 NCAA runner-up, 2005 Big Ten champion 157 lbs - Alec Pantaleo: Canton, Michigan - 3x AA (3,5,6), 2018 Big Ten champion, NCAA #4 seed 165 lbs - Cam Amine: Brighton, Michigan - 4x AA (8,4,4,7), 2022 Big Ten runner-up, NCAA Round of 12 finisher 174 lbs - Shane Griffith: Westwood, New Jersey - 4x AA (3,5,2,1), 2021 NCAA champion, 2020 Pac-12 champion, 2024 Big Ten runner-up 184 lbs - Andy Hrovat: Gates Mills, Ohio - 3x AA (7,4,8), 2022 Big Ten runner-up, NCAA #3 seed 197 lbs - Jacob Cardenas: Kearny, New Jersey - 3x AA (4,4,8), 2x conference champion (1x Big Ten, 1x EIWA), NCAA #1 seed 285 lbs - Adam Coon: Fowlerville, Michigan - 3x AA (2,3,2), 2x Big Ten runner-up, NCAA Round of 12 finisher, NCAA #2 seed Third Team 125 lbs - Conor Youtsey: Parma, Michigan - 2x AA (5,6) 133 lbs - Foley Dowd: Howell, New Jersey - 1x AA (6), 2004 Big Ten runner-up, NCAA #4 seed 141 lbs - Sergio Lemley: Chesterton, Indiana - 2x NCAA qualifier, NCAA Round of 12 finisher 149 lbs - Austin Gomez: Carol Stream, Illinois - 2x AA (2,4), 2x Big Ten finalist, 2022 Big Ten champion 157 lbs - Will Lewan: Chicago, Illinois - 2x AA (8,5), 2x Big Ten runner-up, NWCA 2nd Team All-American 165 lbs - Logan Massa: St. John’s, Michigan - 3x AA (5,5,3), 2x Big Ten runner-up, NCAA #2 seed 174 lbs - Otto Olson: Everett, Washington - 3x AA (5,3,2), 2x Big Ten champion, NCAA #1 seed 184 lbs - Domenic Abounader: Gates Mills, Ohio - 1x AA (5), 2015 Big Ten champion, NCAA Round of 12 finisher 197 lbs - Kyle Smith: Butte, Montana - 2x AA (7,7), 2x Big Ten 3rd place 285 lbs - Greg Wagner: Fort Wayne, Indiana - 3x AA (3,4,6), 2006 Big Ten runner-up, NCAA #3 seed Fun Facts During the last quarter century, Michigan has had five wrestlers combine to win seven national championships. Two wrestlers captured multiple national titles (for Michigan) during this span - Bertin and Russell. Suriano won his second title at Michigan, but his first at Rutgers. Michigan wrestlers have combined to make the NCAA finals 18 times since 2001 Since 2001, there have been 12 occasions where a Wolverine has earned the #1 seed at the NCAA Tournament - led by Russell who did it three times. Michigan has finished in the top 20 at the NCAA Championships 22 of 25 times during this quarter century They have finished in the top ten 16 times since 2001 Michigan has earned four NCAA team trophies during this time - highlighted by two runner-up finishes (2005 and 2022). 2022 saw Michigan post their highest point total in this quarter century (95 points). It was also the only time they’ve had six All-Americans in the last 25 years. Three Michigan wrestlers earned All-American honors four times (Bertin, Tannenbaum, M. Amine). Additionally, Cam Amine was a three-time AA for the Wolverines and once for Oklahoma State. Shane Griffith was a three-time AA at Stanford and added a fourth at Michigan. Michigan wrestlers have gotten on the NCAA podiums 79 times during this time period. Additionally, one wrestler was named to the NWCA First Team and two more to the Second Team in 2020. Individually Wolverine wrestlers have captured 24 Big Ten championships during this span. Michigan won the 2022 Big Ten title, as a team, and it was their first since 1973. Only two men have led the Michigan program during the last 25 years and both (Joe McFarland and Sean Bormet) are alums. 2023 saw Mason Parris become Michigan’s first Hodge Trophy winner. In 2012, Kellen Russell became the first Michigan wrestler to capture four Big Ten titles. At the time, he was the 11th wrestler to achieve the feat.

Wray

Saegertown

Joe Bachmann photo courtesy of Ulug Bugra Han/UWW The fall semester has begun at most collegiate campuses’ which means the on-campus recruiting efforts get turned up by wrestling coaches. Typically, big recruiting weekends coincide with a home football game to showcase recruits the most exciting atmosphere possible. Since last weekend was “Week 0” for college football, there were some games, but not a full slate. That’s about how I’d classify the recruiting weekend, as well. Even though it wasn’t a full recruiting weekend nationwide, there were plenty of high-profile wrestlers on campus taking official visits. One of the things that makes following recruiting fun is the cloak-and-dagger secrecy surrounding parts of the process. For every Bo Bassett who routinely keeps the public informed on recruiting decisions, there are plenty of others who don’t discuss it as much. Therefore, it can be difficult to follow which recruit is interested in which school and vice versa. I suppose it’s fun, but you’re left wanting more! In order to try and help our fanbase feel more knowledgeable about the process, we’ll have a weekly column that recaps the recruiting weekend. Who has visited where? Maybe some background information on the recruits or the process from the school. If we've missed a recruit or you'd like to provide info on future visits please let me know: earl@matscouts.com Cornell #2 Joe Bachmann (Faith Christian, Pennsylvania) #7 Mario Carini (Poway, California) #15 Hayden Schwab (Don Bosco, Iowa) #17 Arseni Kikiniou (Poway, California) #38 Dawson Youngblut (Don Bosco, Iowa) The big class of the weekend belonged to Cornell! They had four of the top 20 juniors in the country on campus and five of the top 50. Cornell has always been able to recruit at a national level, so it isn’t too unusual seeing recruits from California and Iowa flying in. Cornell’s Class of 2025 has the Cortez twins from California incoming and they already have a Cali verbal from the Class of 2026 in Joe Toscano. Those guys could make the Poway duo of Mario Carini and Arseni Kikiniou feel comfortable. Kikiniou’s stock has been rising after a U17 World Championship effort that saw him medal in both freestyle and Greco-Roman. Carini was a Junior Greco-Roman finalist this summer, in Fargo, and shocked Super 32 champion Joseph Antonio to win a California title as a sophomore. Another pair of teammates were in the building with Don Bosco, Iowa’s Hayden Schwab and Dawson Youngblut. Being the son of Northern Iowa head coach, Doug, you’d assume it will be difficult to get Schwab out of Cedar Falls, but who knows. Schwab won his first Iowa state title this year and has made the UWW U17 freestyle finals since. Youngblut is a two-time Iowa state champion and earned All-American honors in both styles in 2024 at Fargo. His college list includes all three DI Iowa schools, so it might be difficult to get him out of state, as well. The wrestler that had to travel the least amount of distance to Ithaca was two-time Pennsylvania state champion, Joe Bachmann. Bachmann has earned a pair of U17 world medals (silver and bronze) competing for Team Puerto Rico. Last school year, he was a champion at the Ironman, a runner-up at the Beast and fourth at the Super 32. Cornell has had success reeling in the blue-est of the blue-chip recruits (Anthony Knox/Meyer Shapiro, of late), so they’ll be a strong contender for Bachmann’s services. Little Rock #119 Cason Craft (Coweta, Oklahoma) #250 (‘26) DJ Clarke (Buford, Georgia) The bulk of our article will focus on wrestlers from the Class of 2027; however, there is still plenty of talent available from the senior class, if you know where to look. Little Rock had a Big Boarder from the Class of 2026 in the building with DJ Clarke’s visit. A Georgia state champ, Clarke has had a good summer with a Southeast Regional title, followed by a 7-1 showing in freestyle at the Junior Duals, and six Junior freestyle wins in Fargo - despite not placing. Speaking of Fargo placements, Cason Craft already has six under his belt with the potential for two more years of competition in the FargoDome. Craft was a Junior freestyle finalist this year and a Junior Greco champion in 2024. His most recent Fargo AA honor came at 106 lbs, so he could be a career 125 lber at the next level. Lock Haven #115 Bradley Wagner (Mifflinburg, Pennsylvania) Lock Haven had a semi-local Big Boarder in town with a visit from Bradley Wagner. Wagner is a two-time Pennsylvania state placewinner. In 2024, he was a finalist at NHSCA Freshman Nationals. NC State #16 Jesse Grajeda (St. John Bosco, California) #30 Jimmy Mastny (Marian Central, Illinois) #54 Steel Meyers (Allen, Texas) #58 Slater Hicks (Valencia, California) The centerpiece of NC State’s sixth-ranked Class of 2025 was #8 overall Daniel Zepeda from California. Pat Popolizio’s team had some stud recruits from California in the house as they hosted Jesse Grajeda and Slater Hicks. Grajeda is a two-time California state runner-up, two-time Doc B runner-up, and a Fargo Junior freestyle All-American this summer. Hicks was sixth in the state as a sophomore. He was fourth in Junior freestyle this year and placed in both styles at the U17 UWW Trials in 2024. Both Grajeda and Hicks have already taken visits to Arizona State this year. The NC State staff also had the upperweight tandem of Jimmy Mastny and Steel Meyers on campus. Last summer, Mastny was an All-American at the 16U division in both styles in Fargo. This year, he was fourth in Junior Greco. During the high school season, Mastny was third at the Ironman before winning his second Illinois state title. Meyers was a 2024 Texas state champion and has placed twice at the NHSCA grade-level tournament - seventh as a freshman and second as a sophomore.

Final Greco-Roman Results at the 2025 U20 World Championships 55 kg Gold Medal Match: Payam Ahmadi (Iran) over Turan Dashdamirov (Azerbaijan) 5-3 Bronze Medal Match: Arsen Zhuma (Kazakhstan) over Omur Yntyak Uulu (Kyrgyzstan) 10-0 Bronze Medal Match: Daisuke Morishita (Japan) over Anil Mor (India) 10-7 60 kg Gold Medal Match: Aykhan Javadov (Azerbaijan) over Yurik Mkhitaryan (Armenia) 12-5 Bronze Medal Match: Suraj (India) over Lucas LoGrasso (France) 1-1 Bronze Medal Match: Vakhtang Lolua (Georgia) over Omer Altas (Turkiye) Cautions 63 kg Gold Medal Match: Aytjan Khalmakhanov (Uzbekistan) over Aleks Margaryan (Armenia) 12-2 Bronze Medal Match: Mohammad Aboutalebi (Iran) over Kristiyan Milenkov (Bulgaria) 9-0 Bronze Medal Match: Igor Punchenko (Russia) over Damir Ibrashov (Kazakhstan) 5-1 67 kg Gold Medal Match: Zhantoro Mirzaliev (Kyrgyzstan) over Erzu Zakriev (Russia) 4-2 Bronze Medal Match: Faraim Mustafayev (Azerbaijan) over Takaku Suzuki (Japan) 5-4 Bronze Medal Match: Fayozbek Eshimirzaev (Uzbekistan) over Gholamreza Abdovali (Iran) 5-1 72 kg Gold Medal Match: Gaspar Terteryan (Armenia) over Ahmad Kodirov (Uzbekistan) 1-1 Bronze Medal Match: Oliver Pada (Finland) over Ruben Straakeved (Sweden) 14-5 Bronze Medal Match: Yussuf Ashrapov (Kazakhstan) over Arionas Kolitsopoulos (Greece) 2-0 77 kg Gold Medal Match: Anri Putkaradze (Georgia) over Ahoura Bouveiri Piani (Iran) 10-1 Bronze Medal Match: Zaur Beslekoev (Russia) over Raatbek Paiazbekkov (Kyrgyzstan) 8-0 Bronze Medal Match: Kiryl Valeuski (Belarus) over Leister Bowling (USA) 9-0 82 kg Gold Medal Match: Mikhail Shkarin (Russia) over Dias Seitkailyev (Kazakhstan) 4-1 Bronze Medal Match: Azimjon Soatullaev (Uzbekistan) over Martik Petrosyan (Armenia) 8-0 Bronze Medal Match: Taizo Yoshida (Japan) over Prince (India) 11-0 87 kg Gold Medal Match: Luka Kochalidze (Georgia) over Abdurakhman Abdulkadyrov (Russia) Fall 2:03 Bronze Medal Match: Erik Ter Matevosyan (Armenia) over Elias Lyyski (Finland) 1-1 Bronze Medal Match: Temirlan Turdakyn (Kazakhstan) over Orkhan Hajiyev (Azerbaijan) 4-4 97 kg Gold Medal Match: Yehor Yakushenko (Ukraine) over Mohammad Seydi Avendi (Iran) 5-2 Bronze Medal Match: Darius Kiefer (Germany) over Amirkhon Berdikulov (Uzbekistan) 8-0 Bronze Medal Match: Ilia Komarov (Russia) over Andrej Rodin (Croatia) 8-0 130 kg Gold Medal Match: Ali Iliasov (Russia) over Cemal Bakir (Turkiye) 9-0 Bronze Medal Match: Ivan Yankovskyi (Ukraine) over Mazaim Mardanov (Azerbaijan) 8-0 Bronze Medal Match: Abolfazl Fathitazangi (Iran) over Viachaslau Fedaryna (Belarus) 9-1

St. Joseph's Metuchen

Binghamton has got their guy! This afternoon, the Bearcat athletic department announced that Ryan LeBlanc will be the next head coach for Binghamton wrestling. The position has been vacant since Kyle Borshoff stepped down in early July, after leading the program for eight years. LeBlanc comes to Binghamton after spending the last five years as the head coach at The Citadel. During his run, LeBlanc had eight NCAA qualifiers. He’s fresh off of the best season in over a decade at The Citadel. In the 2024-25 season, the Bulldogs finished second in the SoCon and crowned three conference champions. Four of their wrestlers qualified for the national tournament. All four were either sophomores or freshmen. LeBlanc was able to have that success without a team that was loaded with big-name recruits, which speaks to the development after working with LeBlanc and his staff. Prior to his head coaching debut at The Citadel, LeBlanc spent time as an assistant coach at Appalachian State and SUNY-Cortland. LeBlanc is no stranger to New York. He was a two-time New York state champion at Morrisville-Eaton High School which is less than 70 miles away from Binghamton. After high school, LeBlanc starred for Indiana, where he was a three-time national qualifier and an NCAA Round of 12 finisher as a senior. Binghamton is coming off a 10-9 season in which they sent a pair of wrestlers to the NCAA Tournament. As of now, the Bearcats do not have anyone on the roster with prior NCAA experience.

We’re less than a week away from the debut of Real American Freestyle Wrestling (RAF) and their RAF 01 card. One of the unique aspects of RAF is that it showcases wrestlers who have transitioned out of the wrestling world and have focused on other ventures, such as MMA. This opens up the possibility of having “dream” matches between wrestlers of different generations. One of the primary examples of this is the bout that pits 2025 world team member Real Woods against Darrion Caldwell. Since Caldwell won his NCAA title in 2009 and completed his collegiate career two years later, I thought it was fitting to provide a primer on the man. We’re more than 15 years removed from Caldwell on the collegiate mats and that’s a couple of generations worth of fans in the wrestling world. There are some high school wrestlers who probably weren’t born when Caldwell was wrestling. Even your college wrestlers are probably not familiar with Caldwell. Also, wrestling media and technology has made huge strides since 2007-10. Were he active a decade later, his matches would be all over Flo and YouTube. So, for those who are not familiar with Caldwell, here’s a primer on his background and accomplishments, along with some videos of him in action. Caldwell was a three-time New Jersey state champion who signed with NC State. He did so under the assumption that he would be allowed to play football and wrestle. I’ve always been fascinated with this. A guy who started his collegiate career wrestling at 141 legitimacy “could” have played football in the ACC? No offense to these guys, but no one ever thought that Jesse Mendez, Yianni, or Nick Lee would play big-time college football. But for Caldwell, it seemed like “why not, maybe he could.” As a true freshman, Caldwell won the first of his four ACC titles at 141 lbs. He advanced to the NCAA quarterfinals (more on that later) and ended up a match shy of the NCAA podium. In 2008, Caldwell moved up to 149 lbs and finished fifth in the greatest NCAA bracket of all time. The remaining All-Americans were (Brent Metcalf/Bubba Jenkins/Jordan Burroughs/Josh Churella/Dustin Schlatter/Lance Palmer). It’s important to note that Caldwell wrestled in a different ACC and NC State program. The Wolfpack are now routinely in the top 10 and crank out AA’s every year. He was the first NC State wrestler to get on the podium since Sylvester Terkay did so in 1993. Caldwell is best remembered for the 2009 NCAA finals when he upset undefeated Brent Metcalf and shocked the wrestling world. The final seconds of the bout are memorable in that Caldwell went to do a series of flips and was pushed mid-air by Metcalf. After winning the NCAA title, Caldwell injured his shoulder in a skateboarding accident and missed the entire 2009-10 season and received a redshirt. Caldwell wrestled for parts of the 2010-11 season and captured his fourth ACC crown; however, he wasn’t totally healthy. Despite the limited match count, Caldwell held the #1 seed at the 149 lb weight class. Caldwell won his first match, but had to default out of his Round of 16 contest against Eric Grajales and didn’t wrestle for the remainder of the tournament. One of my favorite “what ifs” in wrestling is what if Caldwell had been healthy at the NCAA Tournament that season. That was a bracket won by sophomore Kyle Dake. How would that match play out? Does Caldwell prevent Dake from winning a title that year? Dake was coming off a loss to Kevin LeValley two weeks prior. Dake was the #4 seed, so the pair could have met in the semis. Caldwell was active on the freestyle circuit for a few years, but went to MMA full-time in 2012. In 2017, Caldwell won Bellator’s bantamweight title. Now that you have some background information on Caldwell, here are some videos of him in action: 2006 Dapper Dan - Caldwell vs. Andy Rendos (Future 2x AA for Bucknell) This was my first time seeing Caldwell in person. I thought he looked more like a 135 lber than a 152, but he quickly showed his athleticism. We’ll talk about it later, but Caldwell was a master of the spladle and is seen here baiting Rendos to take that leg. 2007 NCAA Quarterfinals - Caldwell vs. Ryan Lang (Northwestern) Two minutes and 29 seconds of the best action you’ll see in an NCAA bout! For context, Lang was the undefeated #1 seed at 141 lbs and coming off a Big Ten title. Caldwell with some stuff you wouldn’t expect to work against a wrestler of Lang’s caliber. This is probably the first time that most fans outside of New Jersey or North Carolina got to see Caldwell in action. 2007-08 Regular Season - Caldwell vs. Brent Metcalf (Iowa) Speaking of spladles. Some more controversy involving Caldwell/Metcalf. Caldwell locks up the spladle, but should it be a pin? This was one of Metcalf’s first official collegiate bouts. He had to sit out the 2006-07 season after transferring from Virginia Tech to Iowa. His debut with Iowa was one of the most highly anticipated over the last 20 years. 2008 NCAA Championships: Quarterfinals - Caldwell vs. Dustin Schlatter (Minnesota) This is not a highlight reel Caldwell match. That being said, I thought it was one of his most impressive wins as he beat the returning champion, Schlatter, at a slower paced match that would typically favor the Minnesota wrestler. 2008 NCAA Championships: Semifinals - Caldwell vs. Bubba Jenkins (Penn State) This is actually a loss for Caldwell, but one of my favorite matches to watch. Both guys bring the action and make for some memorable moments. Jenkins will also be affiliated with RAF as a color commentator. 2009 NCAA Championships: Quarterfinals - Caldwell vs. Jake Patacsil (Purdue) Just Caldwell doing some of the things we’ve been accustomed to seeing from him against a tough competitor in Jake Patacsil. 2009 NCAA Championships: Finals - Caldwell vs. Brent Metcalf (Iowa) This is the match! I hope everyone reading this has seen it a few times. For his exploits in this match, Caldwell was named the Most Outstanding Wrestler at the 2009 NCAA Championships.

2025 U20 World Championships: Men’s Freestyle Final Results Team Standings 1. Japan 165 2. India 140 3. China 104 4. USA 95 Final Medal Round Results 50 kg Gold Medal Match: Rinka Ogawa (Japan) over Audrey Jimenez (USA) 9-3 Bronze Medal Match: Shruti (India) over Josephine Wrensch (Germany) 6-0 Bronze Medal Match: Na Hu (China) over Diana Rysova (Ukraine) 9-5 53 kg Gold Medal Match: Natsumi Masuda (Japan) over Anastasiia Polska (Ukraine) 6-0 Bronze Medal Match: Kseniya Kostsenich (Belarus) over Abbi Cooper (USA) 11-10 Bronze Medal Match: Saarika (India) over Ilona Valchuk (Poland) 11-0 55 kg Gold Medal Match: Everest Leydecker (USA) over Reena Sangwan (India) 10-2 Bronze Medal Match: Gerda Terek (Hungary) over Alexandra Voiculescu (Romania) 6-2 Bronze Medal Match: So Tsutsui (Japan) over Tuba Demir (Turkiye) 5-3 57 kg Gold Medal Match: Tapsya (India) over Felicitas Domajeva (Norway) 5-2 Bronze Medal Match: Anna Stratan (Kazakhstan) over Tindra Dalmyr (Sweden) 9-1 Bronze Medal Match: Dolzhon Tsyngueva (Russia) over Sowaka Uchida (Japan) FFT 59 kg Gold Medal Match: Sakura Onishi (Japan) over Karin Samuelsson (Sweden) 10-0 Bronze Medal Match: Yifan Zhu (China) over Aubre Krazer (USA) 5-3 Bronze Medal Match: Hiunai Hurbanova (Azerbaijan) over Ella Finding (Canada) 4-1 62 kg Gold Medal Match: Yangzhen (China) over Ruzanna Mammadova (Azerbaijan) 6-6 Bronze Medal Match: Niginia Sabirova (Uzbekistan) over Busra Efe (Turkiye) 8-0 Bronze Medal Match: Shirin Takemoto (Japan) over Neevis Rodriguez Cantu (Mexico) 9-7 65 kg Gold Medal Match: Momoko Kitade (Japan) over Margarita Salnazarian (Russia) 9-5 Bronze Medal Match: Beyza Akkus (Turkiye) over Daniella Nugent (USA) 10-0 Bronze Medal Match: Iryna Borysiuk (Ukraine) over Mouda Hamdoun (Egypt) 12-2 68 kg Gold Medal Match: Ray Hoshino (Japan) over Srishti (India) 7-0 Bronze Medal Match: Odzaya Erdenebat (Mongolia) over Oleksandra Rybak (Ukraine) 9-8 Bronze Medal Match: Duda Rodrigues (Brazil) over Laura Koehler (Germany) Fall 4:33 72 kg Gold Medal Match: Kajal (India) over Yuqi Liu (China) 8-6 Bronze Medal Match: Kristina Bratchikova (Russia) over Haticenur Sari (Turkiye) 17-12 Bronze Medal Match: Kairyrkul Sharshebaeva (Kyrgyzstan) over Jasmine Robinson (USA) FFT 76 kg Gold Medal Match: Nadiia Sokolovska (Ukraine) over Priya (India) Fall :46 Bronze Medal Match: Cancan Liu (China) over Tuvshinjargal Tarav (Mongolia) 6-0 Bronze Medal Match: Diana Titova (Russia) over Evelin Ujhelji (Serbia) FFT

2025 U20 World Championships: Men’s Freestyle Final Results Team Standings 1. USA 185 2. Kazakhstan 112 3. Iran 111 4. Azerbaijan 71 5. Georgia 66 6. India 60 7. Japan 57 8. Turkiye 46 9. Moldova 44 10. Armenia 35 57 kg Gold Medal Match: Magomed Ozdamirov (Russia) over Sumit Malik (India) 8-5 Bronze Medal Match: Nurdanat Aitanov (Kazakhstan) over Baiaman Kerimbekov (Kyrgyzstan) 11-0 Bronze Medal Match: Vasif Baghirov (Azerbaijan) over Ion Bulgaru (Moldova) 8-2 61 kg Gold Medal Match: Marcus Blaze (USA) over Ahora Khateri (Iran) 10-0 Bronze Medal Match: Magomedkhan Magamedkhanov (Russia) over Sargis Begoyan (Armenia) 12-11 Bronze Medal Match: Omar Ayoub (Puerto Rico) over Adlan Saitiev (Belarus) 8-6 65 kg Gold Medal Match: Luke Stanich (USA) over Reiji Uchida (Japan) 4-3 Bronze Medal Match: Abdullah Toprak (Turkiye) over Amal Dzhandubaev (Russia) 14-10 Bronze Medal Match: Arman Muskiyan (Armenia) over Viktor Borohan (Ukraine) 4-0 70 kg Gold Medal Match: PJ Duke (USA) over Alexandr Gaidarli (Moldova) 7-5 Bronze Medal Match: Ebrahim Elahichouran (Iran) over Abdoullah Nakaev (France) 6-4 Bronze Medal Match: Nurlan Aghazada (Azerbaijan) over Goga Otinashivili (Georgia) 4-0 74 kg Gold Medal Match: Ismail Khaniev (Russia) over Adilet Akylbekov (Kyrgyzstan) 11-0 Bronze Medal Match: Kanata Yamaguchi (Japan) over Ladarion Lockett (USA) 10-0 Bronze Medal Match: Dosszhan Kul Gaiyp (Kazakhstan) over Raul Caso (Italy) 6-3 79 kg Gold Medal Match: Mahdi Yousefihajiver (Iran) over Will Henckel (USA) 8-6 Bronze Medal Match: Davit Tchetchelashvili (Georgia) over Amit (India) 9-6 Bronze Medal Match: Said Saidulov (Russia) over Ion Marcu (Moldova) 11-0 86 kg Gold Medal Match: Max McEnelly (USA) over Bozigit Islamgereev (Russia) 8-0 Bronze Medal Match: Ahmet Yasgan (Turkiye) over Ryogo Asano (Japan) 9-3 Bronze Medal Match: Abolfazl Rahmani (Iran) over Razmik Yepremyan (Armenia) 4-2 92 kg Gold Medal Match: Sherzod Poyonov (Uzbekistan) over Kamil Kurugliyev (Kazakhstan) 3-2 Bronze Medal Match: Gadzhimurad Gadzhibatyrov (Russia) over Sorato Kanazawa (Japan) 15-5 Bronze Medal Match: Connor Mirasola (USA) over Anar Jafarli (Azerbaijan) 10-0 97 kg Gold Medal Match: Justin Rademacher (USA) over Magomedgadzhi Magomedov (Russia) 4-1 Bronze Medal Match: Samir Dursanov (Kazakhstan) over Vishal (India) Fall 1:22 Bronze Medal Match: Konstantine Petriashvili (Georgia) over Ibrahim Benekli (Turkiye) 8-3 125 kg Gold Medal Match: Yedige Kassimbek (Kazakhstan) over Abolfazl Mohammad Nezhad (Iran) 4-1 Bronze Medal Match: Cole Mirasola (USA) over Narantulga Darmaabazar (Mongolia) 12-2 Bronze Medal Match: Yusif Dursunov (Azerbaijan) over Levan Lagvilava (France) 3-1

Bismarck Legacy

Bismarck Legacy

Seton Hall Prep

The final four Greco-Roman wrestlers hit that mat on Saturday morning. As of now, Landon Drury and Leister Bowling have medal hopes as the opponents that defeated them have advanced to the semifinals. Greco-Roman 63 kg Round of 16 - Aleks Margaryan (Armenia) over Landon Drury 8-0 77 kg Round of 16 - Leister Bowling over Azis Atanasov (Bulgaria) 3-1 Quarterfinals - Anri Putkaradze (Georgia) over Leister Bowling 9-0 87 kg Round of 16 - Isshin Onitsuka (Japan) over Nick Nosler 8-0 130 kg Round of 16 - Koppany Laszlo (Hungary) over Shilo Jones 8-1

The women’s freestyle portion of the 2025 U20 World Championships came to a conclusion on Friday afternoon in Bulgaria. It was a rather bittersweet day for the American contingent, as three women were in action in medal round matches, and none were able to come away with a win. One woman did obtain a medal - Audrey Jimenez at 50 kg. Jimenez took the mat in a gold medal match at 50 kg. Jimenez managed the first points of the bout as she notched a takedown on Japan’s Rinka Ogawa early in the first period. Jimenez got in on a beautiful low-leg misdirection shot and scored after Ogawa fought the hold for an extended time, but eventually gave up the takedown. Ogawa quickly rebounded and got on the board with a sweep single for a takedown and then added a second pair of points with a tilt. The first period ended with Jimenez trailing, 4-2. Ogawa continued scoring in the second period as she was able to expose Jimenez while trying to finish a takedown. During the final seconds of the bout, trailing 6-2, Jimenez got in deep on a shot, but was exposed while trying to complete the hold. As the time expired, Jimenez’s corner challenged the sequence, but the call was confirmed and Ogawa was awarded an additional point. That gave the Japanese wrestler a final score of 9-3. Jimenez is now a three-time U20 world silver medalist. She earned silver medals in 2022 and 2023 at this weight class. We’ll see her in action again next month at the Senior World Championships. Team USA also had Abbi Cooper and Jasmine Robinson in bronze medal matches on Friday. The 2024 U20 world champion, Robinson, did not wrestle her bout. She had to take multiple injury timeouts yesterday during her semifinal loss. Cooper and Belarus’ Kseniya Kostsenich squared off for a bronze medal at 53 kg. The American got the scoring started with an arm spin for four points. After the next restart, Cooper went back to the arm spin and earned a takedown and a commanding 6-0 lead. Cooper nearly ended the bout at the end of the first period as she countered a Kostsenich attack with a throw for four points. The Belarusian wrestler was awarded two points in the sequence, which made the score 10-2 at the break. Kostsenich started a second-period rally with a double leg where she finished high and got behind Cooper. She would toss Cooper for four points, which got her back in the match at 10-6. Kostsenich continued to apply pressure and ended up with a stunning 11-10 victory. Of the Greco-Roman wrestlers in action Friday, only Joel Adams was able to log a win. He had repechage hopes until the opponent who defeated him was beaten in the semifinals. Saturday will see the final four members of the Greco-Roman team start their tournaments. Those are the wrestlers at the 63, 77, 87, and 130 kg weight classes. Men’s Greco-Roman 55 kg Round of 32: Nazarii Babinskyi (Ukraine) over Caleb Noble 8-0 67 kg Round of 32: Takaku Suzuki (Japan) over Otto Black 8-4 72 kg Round of 32: Joel Adams over Rabil Askerov (Russia) 12-4 Round of 16: Arionas Kolitsopoulos (Greece) over Joel Adams 4-1 97 kg Round of 16: Vendel Vitai (Hungary) over Soren Herzog 2-1 Women’s Freestyle 50 kg Gold Medal Match: Rinka Ogawa (Japan) over Audrey Jimenez 9-3 53 kg Bronze Medal Match: Kseniya Kostsenich (Belarus) over Abbi Cooper 11-10 72 kg Bronze Medal Match: Kairyrkul Sharshebaeva (Kyrgyzstan) over Jasmine Robinson FFT Final Medal Round Results Women’s Freestyle 50 kg Gold Medal Match: Rinka Ogawa (Japan) over Audrey Jimenez (USA) 9-3 Bronze Medal Match: Shruti (India) over Josephine Wrensch (Germany) 6-0 Bronze Medal Match: Na Hu (China) over Diana Rysova (Ukraine) 9-5 53 kg Gold Medal Match: Natsumi Masuda (Japan) over Anastasiia Polska (Ukraine) 6-0 Bronze Medal Match: Kseniya Kostsenich (Belarus) over Abbi Cooper (USA) 11-10 Bronze Medal Match: Saarika (India) over Ilona Valchuk (Poland) 11-0 72 kg Gold Medal Match: Kajal (India) over Yuqi Liu (China) 8-6 Bronze Medal Match: Kristina Bratchikova (Russia) over Haticenur Sari (Turkiye) 17-12 Bronze Medal Match: Kairyrkul Sharshebaeva (Kyrgyzstan) over Jasmine Robinson (USA) FFT Greco-Roman 60 kg Gold Medal Match: Aykhan Javadov (Azerbaijan) over Yurik Mkhitaryan (Armenia) 12-5 Bronze Medal Match: Suraj (India) over Lucas LoGrasso (France) 1-1 Bronze Medal Match: Vakhtang Lolua (Georgia) over Omer Altas (Turkiye) Cautions 82 kg Gold Medal Match: Mikhail Shkarin (Russia) over Dias Seitkailyev (Kazakhstan) 4-1 Bronze Medal Match: Azimjon Soatullaev (Uzbekistan) over Martik Petrosyan (Armenia) 8-0 Bronze Medal Match: Taizo Yoshida (Japan) over Prince (India) 11-0 Saturday’s Gold Medal Matchups 55 kg: Turan Dashdamirov (Azerbaijan) vs. Payam Balootaki (Iran) 67 kg: Erzu Zakriev (Russia) vs. Zhantoro Mirzaliev (Kyrgyzstan) 72 kg: Gaspar Terteryan (Armenia) vs. Ahmad Kodirov (Uzbekistan) 97 kg: Yehor Yakushenko (Ukraine) vs. Mohammad Seydi Avendi (Iran)

On Friday morning, the Chattanooga athletic department confirmed that two-time NCAA qualifier Cody Chittum has been added to the Mocs roster after transferring from Iowa State. Chittum is a Tennessee native, so this will be a homecoming, of sorts. It is quite the circuitous route to Chattanooga as Chittum initially went to Iowa City and trained with the Hawkeye Wrestling Club with plans to enroll at the University of Iowa. Those never materialized and Chittum ended up across the state wrestling for the Cyclones. Once Chittum went into the transfer portal, he announced he was transferring to Ohio State. Those plans fell through and rumors began to surface that Chattanooga might be Chittum's landing spot. While at Iowa State, Chittum made two trips to the NCAA Championships. As a freshman, he was a Big 12 finalist at 157 lbs. He lost in an epic overtime bout against Northern Iowa's Ryder Downey in the finals. Earlier this year, Chittum was sixth at the Big 12 Championships, but won a pair of bouts at the NCAA Tournament. In both appearances, he was given a top 16 seed. At one point, during his high school career, Chittum was tabbed the number one overall recruit in the Class of 2023. He later reclassified up a year and didn't appear in the final rankings. With Chittum's addition, the Mocs get another jolt in the arm from the transfer portal. Earlier this offseason, Kyle Ruschell's team added two-time national qualifier Cooper Flynn, Class of 2024 top 50 recruit Carter Neves, along with Hunter Mason, Mason Reiniche, and Billy Meiszner. They could head into the 2025-26 campaign as the team to beat in the SoCon.