InterMat Staff

STILLWATER -- Oklahoma State wrestling great Alex Dieringer has been nominated for an ESPY in the category of Best Male College Athlete, the ESPYs announced today. The 2016 ESPYS, hosted by John Cena, are live on ABC Wednesday, July 13th at the Microsoft Theater in downtown Los Angeles. The flagship event is the one night where the sports world joins together to celebrate the best moments of the year. Alex Dieringer gets in on a shot against Isaac Jordan in the NCAA finals (Photo/John Sachs, Tech-Fall.com)"It's a great honor to be nominated for best male college athlete," Dieringer said. "I didn't see this coming. This continues to show that my hard work has paid off. It feels good to know that what I accomplished in my career is not going unnoticed, even outside the wrestling world. It's exciting to think that my nomination might expose people to wrestling." The three-time NCAA champion and 2016 Hodge Trophy recipient served up a 33-0 record during the 2015-16 season, recording bonus points in all but six matches. His 27 bonus-point wins included 12 falls -- 10 of which came in the first period -- eight major decisions and seven technical falls. He proved his dominance even more as he allowed only one takedown this season and just three takedowns the past two seasons. In 2014, he won his first NCAA title at 157 pounds before moving up to 165 pounds, where he dominated the last two years, going 66-0 and cruising his way to two more national titles. Dieringer wrapped his career with an impressive 133-4 overall record and an 82-match win streak, dating back to January 2014. He leaves behind an impressive legacy, becoming the 14th four-time All-American and the seventh four-time conference champion at OSU, in addition to the 16th three-time NCAA champion after a convincing 6-2 win over Wisconsin's Isaac Jordan in this year's NCAA finals. Fans will have the chance to select the winners by voting online or via mobile at ESPN.com/ESPYS. Follow the official @ESPYS Twitter page and Tweet about your nomination and the ESPYS leading up to and during the live show. When you tweet, be sure to tag @ESPYS so that your tweets connect to the show. Then on the day of the show, Wednesday, July 13th, use #ESPYS in your tweets to join the conversation. The ESPYS and related events benefit the V Foundation for Cancer Research in memory of the late Jim Valvano. At the first annual ESPYS back in 1993, Jimmy V accepted the Arthur Ashe Courage award, reminded us to live each day to the fullest, and asked for our help in raising money for cancer research. Keep his dream alive by telling fans to be #BeInspired.

The body of Adlan Varayev, winner of a silver medal in men's freestyle wrestling for the Soviet Union at the 1988 Seoul Olympics, was found this week after the former wrestler and coach who became vice-president of the Russian Wrestling Federation fell into a river in his native Chechnya in early May. He was 54. Adlan Varayev"Varayev's body was found today," three-time Olympic champion wrestler Buvaisar Saitiyez told the Russian TASS news agency on Sunday. "He has identified by relatives. The search has not stopped since the day when it happened. Many people have been involved in the search, in difficult weather conditions, in a landslide-prone area. Many have been hoping to find him alive." One news source indicated that Varayev had been posing for a photo in the mountains of Chechnya, and fell off a 50-meter cliff into a chasm into the Argun River on May 3. According to the North Caucasian Regional Emergency Center, the body was found on June 19, 25 kilometers away from the place where Varayev had fallen. Born January 2, 1962, Adlan Abuevich Varayev had a successful career as a freestyle wrestler. He earned a silver medal at 74 kilograms/163 pounds for the Soviet Union at the 1988 Olympics, falling to USA's Kenny Monday in overtime in the gold medal match. With that silver medal, Varayev became the first ethnic Chechen to win an Olympic medal in any sport. Varayev was also a two-time medalist at the World Championships. He won the gold medal by defeating USA's Dave Schultz at the 1987 Worlds at Clermont-Ferrand, France. The previous year, Varayev claimed silver at the 1986 Worlds in Budapest. Varayev also earned three gold medals at the European Championships from 1986-1988. After retiring from competition, Varayev worked as a wrestling coach, helping to train the Russian national freestyle team. In 2013, he was elected vice-president of the Russian Wrestling Federation.

The 2016 InterMat JJ Classic, a premier preseason high school wrestling tournament, will take place on Saturday, Oct. 22, 2016, at the UCR Regional Sports Center in Rochester, Minn. The event is open to wrestlers in grades 7 through 12. More information about the 2016 InterMat JJ Classic will be released in the coming weeks. Last year Mark Hall (Apple Valley, Minn.) was named Outstanding Wrestler of the event after claiming his fifth straight InterMat JJ Classic title.

Dennis Hastert, former college wrestler, high school wrestling coach and past U.S. Speaker of the House, must surrender to a federal prison hospital on Wednesday to begin serving his 15 month-sentence. Hastert will report to the Federal Medical Center in Rochester, Minn. for evading federal banking rules in an apparent scheme to pay hush money to an unidentified individual regarding sexual assaults to members of his wrestling program which took place in the 1960s and 70s. The prison hospital is affiliated with the world-renowned Mayo Clinic -- also located in Rochester -- with doctors and nurses on site, and is known for providing high-level services to the 700-plus male inmates who require long-term physical and mental health care, the Chicago Tribune reported. The 74-year-old Hastert has dealt with a number of health issues in recent months, including a stroke, blood infection and a spinal infection, hence his assignment to a prison medical facility. Dennis HastertArticles in the Chicago Tribune and New York Times describe the facilities and rules that Hastert can expect, including a set schedule that starts at 7 a.m., frequent checks, and regulations that dictate what he wears, and when he eats, sleeps and showers. He will be allowed personal family photographs, and up to 300 minutes per month phone time to keep in touch with his family. In addition, the former Wheaton College wrestler and wrestling coach at Yorkville High School outside Chicago will have access to exercise facilities as well as a library. Once he is released from prison, Hastert also faces two years of supervised release, which will bar him from communicating with the former wrestling team members in the case and from possessing a firearm. In addition, he will be required to participate in a treatment program for sex offenders as he is now a convicted sex offender. Originally a Minnesota state mental hospital, the U.S. Bureau of Prisons opened the Federal Medical Center in the mid-1980s. The facility is described as eleven hospital-style buildings on 65 "secured" acres outside the city of Rochester, in southeastern Minnesota, about 90 miles south of the Twin Cities. The facility was once home to former U.S. Rep. Dan Rostenkowski of Illinois, television evangelist Jim Bakker, and past presidential candidate Lyndon LaRouche. Currently, Jared Loughner, convicted in the 2011 Tucson shooting that killed six people and severely wounded then-U.S. Rep.Gabrielle Giffords, is assigned to the Rochester facility. J. Dennis Hastert was first investigated by the FBI and IRS for making sizeable withdrawals from his bank account in 2013; federal officials were concerned that he might be the victim of an extortion plot. In May 2015, Hastert was indicted on one count of seeking to skirt bank reporting requirements and one count of lying to the FBI about the reason for his cash withdrawals. (The accusation about lying was later dropped.) In October 2015, Hastert pleaded guilty in federal court in Chicago to withdrawing funds from several bank accounts in increments less than $10,000 to evade bank reporting rules. The money -- approximately $1.7 million -- was paid to someone from his Hastert's hometown of Yorkville, Ill., identified in federal documents only as "Individual A" but widely reported to be a former student at Yorkville High School. The school, located about 50 miles southwest of Chicago, is where Hastert taught history and coached wrestling from 1965 to 1981 before entering politics. In April 2016, Hastert learned his sentence. A total of five individuals came forward to state that they were molested by Hastert while he was coach at Yorkville High; one now-53-year-old victim, a former wrestler, testified in person at the sentencing. Since the indictment and subsequent events, Hastert has suffered a fall from grace as a widely respected political leader and major figure in U.S. amateur wrestling. In addition to having his name stripped from a local high school wrestling tournament, just last month Hastert was removed from the National Wrestling Hall of Fame in Stillwater, Okla.

St. Cloud State University wrestling, winners of the team title at the 2016 NCAA Division II Wrestling Championships in March, will be honored by the Minnesota Twins at their game on Thursday, June 23. The pre-game ceremony will include an on-field introduction of the SCSU wrestling team at the Twins' ballpark, Target Field, in downtown Minneapolis. In addition, Huskies' head wrestling coach Steve Costanzo will throw out the honorary first pitch of the game. The festivities will precede the Twins-Philadelphia Phillies game scheduled to start at 12:10 p.m. Thursday afternoon. St. Cloud State won its second consecutive NCAA Division II national title in March, led by Brad Velasquez who won the 125-pound individual title, along with seven Huskies earning All-American honors. SCSU racked up an overall record of 16-1 in 2015-16, with a perfect 8-0 mark in the Northern States Intercollegiate Conference, taking their fifth consecutive NSIC title. Steve Costanzo was named the DII Coach of the Year in 2016.

Nico Megaludis, 2016 NCAA wrestling champion, is one of two Penn State athletes to be named Big Ten Medal of Honor recipients for 2015-16. Britt Eckerstrom of the Nittany Lions' women's soccer team is also receiving the award, established by the Big Ten more than a century ago to recognize both academic and athletic excellence. Nico Megaludis celebrates after winning the NCAA title on Saturday night (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com)Nico Megaludis capped off his Penn State wrestling career by winning the 125-pound title at the 2016 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships in March, becoming the 24th Nittany Lion wrestler to have won an individual national title. His first individual title helped Penn State wrestling to its fifth NCAA team title in the last six years. With that championship, Megaludis became a four-time NCAA All-American, becoming only the ninth Nittany Lion to earn that distinction in more than a century of Penn State wrestling. Megaludis concluded his collegiate mat career with a 119-19 overall record. Megaludis earned additional honors beyond the mat. The finance major was selected a 2016 first-team CoSIDA Academic All-American, earned three Academic All-Big Ten honors and is a three-time first team NWCA National All-Academic selection. First presented in 1915 to one student from the graduating class of each university who had "attained the greatest proficiency in athletics and scholastic work," the Big Ten Medal of Honor has been presented to nearly 1,400 students in the 102-year history of the award. However, of the more than 9,500 student-athletes competing in intercollegiate sports within the 14-school conference during the 2015-16 season, only 28 have earned this prestigious award this year ... including Megaludis and Eckerstrom. Megaludis is the second consecutive Penn State wrestler to earn the Big Ten Medal of Honor. Last year, Matt Brown -- 2015 NCAA 174-pound champion -- received the award.

The hosts from Oklahoma seek a three-peat in the freestyle portion of the Junior National Duals that start on Friday at the Cox Business Center in Tulsa, Okla. The Greco-Roman portion of the event starts today, and concludes with the championship pools and finals tomorrow (Thursday 6/23). Illinois is the defending champions in Greco-Roman, and were runners-up to Oklahoma in freestyle. In today's preliminary pools of Greco-Roman, Minnesota is the top overall seed of the tournament, and anchors Pool A. Illinois is the second overall seed, top of Pool B; California tops Pool C, and Iowa tops pool D. The four seeded teams in each pool are as follows: Pool A: Minnesota, Missouri, Washington, and Tennessee Pool B: Illinois, Utah, Kansas, and Florida Pool C: California, Ohio, Arizona, and Michigan Pool D: Iowa, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, and Nebraska As with the freestyle competition, the preliminary pool is actually a double-elimination bracket that competes back to true second. The top two teams in each preliminary pool move to the championship pools, which are truly a pair of four-team round-robins with a cross-match for placement at the end. Championship pools are contained of the following: A1, B2, C2, D1 and A2, B1, C1, D2. Looking ahead to the freestyle competition, it will be a star-studded showcase event. Even with the proliferation of dual team events onto the out-of-scholastic-season wrestling calendar, the Junior Freestyle Duals still present a unique opportunity to see the best of the best from each state match up with bragging rights and supremacy on the line. Based on the lineups posted to Trackwrestling, the defending champions from the host state of Oklahoma will have a solid squad, one that could feature a state finalist starting at every single weight class but for 100 pounds. Eleven of the fifteen weight classes have a state champion present. The anchor figures on the Sooner State team would be Daton Fix (126), Kaden Gfeller (138), and Wyatt Sheets (152). As the host team, they'll obviously have the advantage of depth and being able to rotate wrestlers through matches in both the Greco-Roman and freestyle competitions. While the squad from traditional power New Jersey isn't going to have the roster quantity of the hosts, the Garden State group will have the advantage of not having to grind through the Greco-Roman competition. As is their normal practice, they will not participate in the Greco-Roman event today and tomorrow. Their roster is likewise loaded with 13 of 15 weight classes featuring a top three or better finisher from either the National Prep tournament of the single-class New Jersey state tournament (nine were state champions). Roster anchors include back-end hammers in Brandon Dallavia (170), Joe Grello (182), Kevin Mulligan (195), and Chase Singletary (220). Runners-up last year to Oklahoma in the Junior National freestyle team point race in Fargo, Ohio will bring a most excellent squad to the freestyle competition this weekend. While the freestyle roster is not entered in Track, if the Buckeye State has the same group as in Greco-Roman, twelve weight classes will feature a wrestler that finished top three or better in this year's scholastic state tournament. Even though starters at 100 and 106 were not top three placers, each is talented, which will provide opportunity to steal wins in many of the core dual meets; Lucas Byrd (100) placed at state, and was a Cadet double All-American last year, while Oscar Sanchez (106) backed up a state champion and went undefeated at the Cadet Duals last week. Overall roster anchors on the Ohio squad include Dylan D'Emilio (113) and Drew Mattin (120) down low, Dom Demas (145) in the middle, with Ben Darmstadt (195) and Jared Campbell (220) up top. Perennial powers Illinois do not have their freestyle roster in Track Wrestling. The Land of Lincoln is also notorious for having a number of "freestyle only" participants. From the Greco-Roman group, look for Joey Melendez (113), Louie Hayes (120), Austin O'Connor (152), and Anthony Cassioppi (285) to play key roles in the freestyle team. Another pair of teams looking pretty strong from top-to-bottom are Iowa and Minnesota. The Iowa squad features state champions as starters in eleven of the fifteen weight classes, with another manned by a state third. Anchor wrestlers include Kyle Biscoglia (113), Carter Happel (138), Marcus Coleman (170), and Carter Isley (220); Colton Clingenpeel (160) and Wyatt Wriedt (220) also ended the scholastic season in the national weight-class rankings. Minnesota has nine weight classes occupied by a state champion from this past season, a number that could be stretched by one depending on how the Gopher State coaches align their lineup on a match-to-match basis. Also key is that the opening two weight classes have state medalists present, which can be a "hidden points" opportunity. Of the remaining four weight classes, three have a top three state medalist listed to compete. Anchor wrestlers for Minnesota include Patrick McKee (113), Mitch McKee (138), Lucas Jeske (170), Owen Webster (182), and Keegan Moore (195). Finally, the Golden State of California is bringing it strong to the Junior Freestyle Duals. Five state champions from this scholastic season are present: David Campbell (126), Trence Gillem (145), Zander Wick (152), Evan Wick (160), and Jeremy Thomas (170). Five other weight classes have a state medalist present. Their susceptibility against elite squads will come in the opening couple weight classes and the back weight classes (though three of those back four weight classes do have state medalists present, other power states have nationally ranked competitors). Some of the other individuals to watch in freestyle, listed by team: Arizona: Jason Holmes (106), Danny Vega (113), Brandon Courtney (120), Quentin Hovis (152) Florida: Anthony Artalona (145), Max Wohlabaugh (160), Kyron Taylor (285) Georgia: Codi Russell (126), Justin Ruffin (145) Indiana: Paul Konrath (126), Andrew Davison (195) Iowa (2nd): Ryan Leisure (138) Kansas: Clay Lautt (170), Kayne Hutchison (285) Michigan: Rayvon Foley (106), Ben Freeman (138), Jelani Embree (182), Brandon Whitman (195), Trent Hillger (285) Missouri: Malik Johnson/Cody Phippen (113), Colin Valdiviez (126), Ethan Karsten (145), Daniel Filipek (160) Nebraska: Joseph Harrison (113) Oklahoma (2nd): Paxton Rosen (120) Pennsylvania: Jaret Lane (106), Sammy Sasso (145), Trent Hidlay (160), Eric Hong (170), Zane Black (220) Tennessee: Knox Fuller (138), Sammy Evans/Nick Boykin (285) Texas: Dylanger Potter (152), Braedin Redlin (160), Brian Andrews (285) Utah: Taylor LaMont (132), Brock Hardy (138), Wyatt Koelling (195)

EAST LANSING, Mich. -- Former Central Michigan All-American and U.S. Senior Nationals Champion Wynn Michalak has been named assistant wrestling coach, first-year head coach Roger Chandler announced on Tuesday. One of the most successful wrestlers in Central Michigan history, Michalak was a four-time Mid-American Conference Champion (2005-08), three-time MAC Wrestler of the Year (2006-08), and a three-time NCAA All-American (2005, 2006, 2008), including a runner-up finish at 197 pounds in 2008. He won the 2015 U.S. Senior Nationals title at 97 kg/213 pounds on Dec. 19, 2015, in Las Vegas, and competed in the past two U.S. Olympic wrestling trials. His coaching experience includes four seasons as a volunteer assistant at Illinois (2012-16), where he helped train two-time NCAA Champion Isaiah Martinez, and two seasons (2009-10) as a graduate assistant at CMU. "Wynn brings with him the success that we expect from our Spartan wrestlers," said Chandler. "He has not only competed at the highest levels in our sport but he has also been very successful. He was a three-time All-American and NCAA finalist, and became U.S. Nationals Champion this past year. He comes from a program (Illinois) where he has coached All-Americans and National Champions each year. His knowledge and experiences will have a huge impact on our program as we begin a new era of Spartan wrestling." Michalak ranks second all-time at Central Michigan in winning percentage (.842, 128-24 record), third in pins (50) and fourth in victories (128). The two-time team MVP (2006, 2008) was named the MAC Freshman of the Year in 2005 and MAC Wrestler of the Year three times (2006-08). The first Chippewa to win four MAC Championships, all at 197 pounds, Michalak was also a three-time All-American, placing sixth at the NCAA Championships in 2005, eighth in 2006 and second in 2008. He also helped lead the Chippewas to team conference championships all four of his seasons in Mount Pleasant. Michalak owns two of the best seasons (winning percentage) in CMU history, going 30-2 (.938) in 2007-08 and 33-4 (.892) in 2005-06, and also has two of the Top 10 single-season pin totals (15 in 2005-06 is tied for fifth; 13 in 2007-08 is tied for ninth). Not only was Michalak successful on the mat at CMU, he was a four-time Academic All-MAC and NWCA All-Academic team selection and earned Academic All-America honors in 2008. He received both the NCAA post-graduate scholarship and Bob James Memorial Scholarship in 2008. Michalak graduated with a 3.8 grade-point average and earned a bachelor's degree in secondary mathematics education and physical education from Central Michigan. He is currently pursuing a master's degree in athletic administration from CMU. Post collegiately, Michalak was the 2010 Hargobind International champion and was runner-up at the 2011 Shaheed Bhagat Singh International Open and Sunkist Kids International Open. Wrestling for the Titan Mercury Wrestling Club, Michalak won the 2015 U.S. Senior Nationals title at 97 kg/213 pounds over Scott Schiller in the finals, 12-4, on Dec. 19 in Las Vegas. Michalak was a two-time state champion, three-time all-state honoree, and four-time conference champion at Caro (Mich.) High School. He helped lead his team to the Division III state title in senior season and finished his career with a 232-8 record. He lettered four times in wrestling and three in football, and received all-state honors twice as a quarterback. Michalak married Jessica Davis on Jan. 1, 2016.

Adeline Gray, three-time world champion who will be wrestling for the U.S. women's freestyle team at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro in August, is the only wrestler to be among the 19 athletes to be featured in ESPN The Magazine's annual Body Issue for 2016, the publication's website revealed Tuesday morning. Adeline Gray with an American flag after winning a world title in Las Vegas (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com)In addition, Gray is the first Olympic wrestler -- male or female -- to be featured in the history of Body Issue since its debut in 2009. (Two former amateur wrestlers -- Jon Jones and Randy Couture -- were featured as mixed martial arts professionals. In addition, a professional sumo wrestler was featured in that inaugural issue.) Last month, Jordan Burroughs -- 2012 Olympic gold medalist, and member of the U.S. Olympic men's freestyle team for this summer's Games -- was named one of Sports Illustrated's Fittest 50 male athletes; no female amateur wrestlers made that list. Ten men and nine women will appear in the eighth annual Body Issue. Gray is one of seven Olympic athletes to appear in the upcoming issue which the publication describes as an "annual celebration of athletes' amazing bodies, where we stop to admire the vast potential of the human form ..." Among the other Olympians: Nathan Adrian (swimming); Emma Coburn (steeplechase); Greg Louganis (diving); Nzingha Prescod (fencing); April Ross (beach volleyball); and Claressa Shields (boxing). Other athletes to be featured in the 2016 Body Issue include Miami Heat star Dwayne Wade, UFC fighter Conor McGregor, Super Bowl MVP Von Miller, and Chicago Cubs pitcher Jake Arrieta. Adeline Gray began wrestling at age 6. "Dad had been a wrestler, but he ended up with four daughters," Gray told InterMat in a 2012 feature . "He taught me a single leg at an early age." "Wrestling was something I did as cross-training for soccer." She later gave up soccer to focus on wrestling, and, in fact became a captain of the varsity wrestling team at her high school in Colorado. Adeline Gray with her gold medal at the 2015 Worlds in Las Vegas (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com)The 25-year-old Gray has achieved much in her wrestling career. Just this year, she earned a place on the U.S. women's freestyle Olympic wrestling team, competing at 75 kilograms/165 pounds. Before that, Gray won the world championship, the Pan American Games, the U.S. World Team Trials, the U.S. Open and the World Cup. She did not lose a match all year. In a USA Today interview in March for Women's Sports Month, Gray shared how she came to focus on wrestling. "When I was a kid, soccer was my No. 1 sport and wrestling was No. 2," said Gray. "Wrestling was fun and something I did, but I never called myself a wrestler. That changed in middle school and early in high school when I saw the opportunities in women's wrestling and I phased out of team sports. I saw that I could get my education paid for and I just graduated debt free thanks to wrestling and I had the opportunity to travel on national teams and Olympic teams and world teams and meet so many amazing people." When USA Today asked about body-image issues for female athletes, Gray responded, "I think all girls go through body image issues. There's a stigma that girls to be pretty need to be petite. That's changing with strength being looked at as beauty and power being looked at as something to honor. If you go in and put in the work and have a more muscular boy, people realize that means health. Girls need to see beauty as more than am I skinny or am I fat. They can describe themselves as powerful and beautiful in the same sentence. Those are both words to describe female athletes. I'm a 175-pound female. I am considered a super heavyweight by international wrestling standards, but not by U.S. standards. It's a different image of how you fit in and you develop self-confidence. Sports can teach you that." ESPN The Magazine's Body Issue will be available online July 6 and on newsstands July 8.

Sam Cali, Rutgers wrestler who had just completed his freshman season for the Scarlet Knights, was killed in a one-car accident off I-287 near Mahwah, New Jersey. Also killed was Cali's good friend and fellow former Don Bosco Prep athlete Leo Vagias, who was a kicker at the University of Rhode Island. A state Department of Transportation employee discovered a blue Lexus in the woods off I-287 about 9 a.m. Monday. Cali and Vagias, both 19 years old, apparently were ejected from the car which had left the highway's southbound lanes about four miles south of the New York border. The cause of the accident, which may have occurred overnight Sunday, is still under investigation. Both Samuel Cali and Leonardo Vagias were eulogized by their former school. "The entire Don Bosco Prep community is saddened by the tragic news we received this afternoon," said Don Bosco Prep Athletic Director Brian McAleer said of the two 2015 graduates from the college preparatory school. "Both of our young men were taken from us way too soon. Don Bosco Prep sends its deepest condolences to the Cali and Vagias families. May they rest in peace." Don Bosco Prep Principal John Stanczak released a statement on the school's website Monday. "We are heartbroken by the tragic death of our former students, Sam Cali and Leo Vagias. Both young men represented the heart and soul of Don Bosco Prep -- men of character and joy, kindness and goodness. They were gifted student athletes, whose great promise was yet unrealized. Each had a passion for making the community around them better, and did so with love and happiness. "While the loss of any life is tragic, the loss of young lives is even more so. Our community has been changed because of their presence in it, and will be changed because of their absence from it. This is a profoundly sad day for Don Bosco Prep. We offer our deepest condolences and prayers to their families and friends. The school community and the Salesian community will offer whatever solace we can to our entire family throughout this tragedy," said Stanczak. The loss of Samuel Cali was felt deeply at Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey. "We are extremely saddened by the unexpected passing of Sam Cali," said Rutgers Director of Intercollegiate Athletics Patrick Hobbs in a prepared statement. "This terrible tragedy will be deeply felt by the Rutgers community. Our thoughts and prayers go out to the family, friends and classmates of both Sam and Leo Vagias at this very difficult time." "Sam was a great young man who everyone on the team truly loved being around," said head wrestling coach Scott Goodale. "He loved wrestling and being part of our Rutgers family. Anytime you lose a teammate it hurts, and this hurts really bad. We send our prayers to the families and will keep Sam a part of everything that we do." Prior to arriving at Rutgers last fall, Sam Cali crafted a successful wrestling career at Don Bosco Prep. Cali compiled an 89-28 overall record, where he was a two-time district champ. He concluded his prep career by placing third in the state in the 132-pound weight class at the 2015 NJSIAA (New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association) wrestling championships in Atlantic City last spring. As a freshman at Rutgers, Cali competed at the National Collegiate Open, the 83rd Annual Wilkes University Open and the Nittany Lion Open at Penn State University. Vagias, a placekicker at University of Rhode Island, did not play football as a redshirt during his freshman year of college. He was voted New Jersey's best high school kicker in 2014 and was an all-state and all-Bergen County selection as a senior at Don Bosco, according to the URI football website. He was ranked among the nation's top 50 kickers coming out of high school, where he made all 37 extra points he attempted, and once kicked a 49-yard field goal. Zach Chakonis, Northwestern University wrestler who knew both Cali and Vagias as a wrestler and football player at Don Bosco, paid tribute to his former teammates. "They were great competitors," Chakonis told the Bergen Record. "They were even better people. They always had your back." Chakonis went on to say that Cali had a way of smiling and telling jokes that put his teammates at ease during even the most stressful wrestling matches.

"Every picture tells a story, don't it?" -- Rod Stewart Alex Lloyd gets his hand raised after winning the state championship as a sophomore at 145 pounds this past February (Photo/Mark Beshey, The Guillotine)Sorry Rod. It only tells part of it. Many times in life I find myself thinking I know what's going on only to say later, "Who knew?" Once I asked a young gentleman if the woman next to him was his mother only to find out later it was his wife. Oops! There is always something deeper going on than what we see. There is a young man wrestling for Shakopee (Minn.) High School where the picture doesn't tell the story. If you know much about the high school wrestling scene in Minnesota, you know Alex Lloyd is a one of the stars. I have him listed as one of the top 10 overall wrestlers in Minnesota in a previous column. He belongs. He's the reigning Cadet National (Fargo) Greco-Roman champion. Of the three styles, it's his weakest. The kid is talented. That part is not debatable. What's not told is ten years ago Alex couldn't speak a word of English. It's not that he was having trouble with it. He had never heard a word of it. Alex was spending that part of his life in a Russian orphanage. I first heard about this a few seasons ago while Alex was in eighth grade. I was talking to former Gopher and NCAA champion Jared Lawrence at his PINnacle Wrestling Club. I asked him who the future stars are in Minnesota. He told me about Brent Jones, Aaron Cashman, Patrick Kennedy and Alex Lloyd. He said, "Now there's a story for you." He pointed to Lloyd, who was in a little war with Mitch McKee on the far mat. A few months later, Alex Lloyd and Mitch McKee would meet in the semifinals of the state tournament. McKee won that matchup and Lloyd would take home the bronze medal. Later that summer I watched Alex go on a nice tear and become an All-American in Fargo. Alex Lloyd defeated Iowa State signee Kanen Storr to win a title at the InterMat JJ Classic (Photo/Mark Beshey, The Guillotine)I had the pleasure of meeting his father Bill Lloyd at the InterMat JJ Classic a month later. I asked him a little about the Russian background and out comes this short and wild story. He got choked up and couldn't finish. This week Bill and his wife Karen, along with Alex told the long version. Bill and Karen Lloyd had produced a son Jackson 17 years ago. The pregnancy was especially difficult for Karen, and their newborn boy came into the world much earlier than most kids. He arrived ten weeks ahead of schedule and spent a long period of time at the hospital in an incubator. When little Jackson was 4, he started begging his parents for a brother, and he didn't stop asking. The parents knew they wouldn't be able to go through another grueling pregnancy, and through their church, they heard of "Reaching Arms International." Another family was looking to adopt, and the Lloyds thought this would be the right strategy. As you might suspect, the parents were put through a rigorous background check that included fingerprinting, criminal background checks and mandatory parenting classes. In the end, they were determined as a fit and loving couple. They would be eligible for one child. This led them to a young African boy named Ronny. They started receiving pictures and naturally became overly excited about this little fella. This adoption fell through as fast as it started. Though heartbroken, they kept on. They stayed with the same agency and were soon told they were eligible for a child from Russia … except it came with a strong caveat. They would have to take two boys. These two kids would turn out to be brothers Alex (6) and Jacob (3). These two little guys were being raised along with roughly 100 other young kids in an orphanage based in a village in Bryansk. Kids end up in these rough conditions usually as a result of forcible removal from their home. Alex has a clear memory of two men showing up, and for reasons he couldn't comprehend, would leave with them. He hasn't seen his mom since. She was a single mother with a drinking problem. Bill and Karen took their first trip to Moscow followed by a six-hour train ride to meet their new little boys. They were told to bring an envelope with $100 bills. In spite of not being able to communicate with words, they bonded quickly. They tossed a football in the yard and fell in love fast. This trip to and from Russia lasted six days. Next came the agonizing and painful long wait. Eight months later Bill and Karen would take that return trip and this time weren't leaving without those boys. Alex (Denis Alexandrovic) was there, but Jacob (Yury) was nowhere to be found. He was in a sanitor (Russian name for hospital) for malnourishment and Tuberculosis. Karen couldn't stay for this unexpected news as this delay was playing out. She would have to take a flight back alone to care for their son and could only hope things would turn out well. Bill rented an apartment and spent his days picking up Alex on a bicycle and visiting his younger brother. Once Jacob was healthy, the trip to the United States began. It started with the long train ride to Moscow. These two little guys had never heard of or seen an airplane. At the airport, they were introduced to automatic doors and escalators. There wasn't an interpreter, and Bill had his hands full with these two little guys. They were bouncing all over the place like the man in the yellow hat looking after Curious George. Except there were two! When they arrived in the U.S. there was a large group at the airport ready to greet these two new little Minnesotans. At first it was really hard. Alex and Jacob were used to fighting for and hoarding food like squirrels. Once Karen saw Alex eating an orange like an apple with the peeling still on. He wasn't aware an orange needed peeling before eating. They also had never celebrated a birthday and had no idea what it meant. Their first Christmas was like going to Disneyworld for the first time. Everyone communicated with hand signals and the boys only knew Russian. Alex Lloyd celebrates after winning a Cadet National Greco-Roman title in Fargo (Photo/Jeff Beshey, The Guillotine)Alex entered first grade a year older than his classmates and, fortunately, there was a small group of Russians in Shakopee the Lloyds could rely on as liaisons and interpreters. But that language issue would soon come to an end. At first the boys were not allowed to speak Russian at the dinner table. Then, and from then on, they started to learn English. If you ask Alex to talk Russian today, he won't be able to. It's completely gone from his memory. Nine years ago it was all he knew. Today he speaks English as well as any 16-year-old teenager without any sign of an accent. While attending a wedding, The Lloyds noticed Alex dancing like crazy. He was doing cartwheels and flips, and it became evident this little guy was an athlete. They enrolled him in gymnastics. This helped burn off some of that boundless energy and shortly after that he found youth wrestling. Bill had a background in the sport and was happy to see both boys take right to it. It helped that Alex has a personality that attracts other kids. He soon made lifelong friends with wrestling families in Shakopee like the Crowes, Jones,' Websters and the list keeps growing. Mark Neu was coaching the young guys back then and was immediately smitten by Alex. He was a freak athlete and had that spunky and mischievous personality some little boys have. Neu remembers Alex with an amazing amount of energy and a never-ending gas tank. If there was a problem, it was just keeping him focused. The language barrier did not cause problems in the wrestling room. He was able to quickly pick-up the sport through example, and he found his passion. Alex was a natural and Neu has never had a wrestler like him in all his 27 years coaching. Lloyd has no fear, and it was proven as a seventh-grader when he faced No. 1-ranked sophomore Austin Anderly and won 7-6. He would finish fifth in the state that year. Alex Lloyd was a Northern Plains double champion this past spring (Photo/David Peterson)The following season was the third-place finish behind good friend Mitch McKee. Just to prove the kid is not perfect, we all found out he missed weight at the state tournament as a freshman and couldn't compete. He talks about this with deep shame and regret. He was connected to a young girl at the time and didn't discipline himself like he normally would. It's his cross to bear, and I'm sure he'll be able to tell this story without guilt someday. This past season, as a sophomore, he won a state championship, finishing the season with a 42-1 record. Alex Lloyd has plenty of goals. Like a lot of Minnesota wrestlers, he dreams of being a national champion and maybe wrestling for the University of Minnesota or another prestigious collegiate program. But for now, he's a nice and very friendly young man from Russia, who happens to be one of our future stars. This story was originally published in The Guillotine. The Guillotine has been covering wrestling in Minnesota since 1971. Its mission is to report and promote wrestling at all levels -- from youth and high school wrestling to college and international level wrestling. Subscribe to The Guillotine.

MatBoss is hiring commission-based Sales Representatives in the following states: Iowa Michigan Pennsylvania New York New Jersey California Texas Florida MatBoss Sales Representative Responsibilities: Identify potential collegiate, high school, and youth MatBoss wrestling customers in territory Obtains orders and establishes new accounts by planning and organizing daily work schedule to call on existing or potential sales targets within sales territory Work with MatBoss marketing resources to adjust content of sales presentations to match local sales messages Provide MatBoss demonstrations as required Inform MatBoss customer service managers of potential user training or other service related issues Keep MatBoss sales management informed by submitting activity and results reports Recommends changes in products, service, and policy by evaluating results and competitive developments Desired Skills and Qualifications: Wrestling coaching experience (strongly desired) Strong understanding of area wrestling teams and opportunities (required) Ability to conduct MatBoss product demonstrations (as needed) Prior sales and/or marketing experience (desired) Ownership of and experience utilizing an iPad Compensation: This is a commission-based opportunity with incentives for sales of new accounts and renewal of existing accounts Please send resumes and questions to John Peterson: john@matbossapp.com MatBoss is based in Minneapolis, Minnesota and is owned and operated by RevWrestling/InterMatWrestle.com and JP Chaos, LLC. To learn more about MatBoss, click here »

Scot Davis, described as "the winningest prep wrestling coach in the nation with more than 1,000 dual victories" mostly in high schools in Minnesota, is heading south to Iowa to try his magic at Bishop Heelan High School in Sioux City, the Sioux City Journal reported Sunday. Scot DavisDavis replaces Pete Di Pol, who was named head coach at the newly resurrected wrestling program at MacMurray College in central Illinois after turning around the once-struggling Heelan program with a record 24 dual-meet wins last season. Davis, 65, who is entering his 39th year as a high school coach and 45th as a wrestling coach, has been the head coach at Eden Prairie (Minn.) since 2012. Prior to that -- after a season as coach Kalispell, Montana -- he headed up the successful mat program at Owatonna (Minn.) for a quarter-century. Originally, Davis had been approached by Heelan administrators to see if he could help find a coach available for the open coaching position. However, as he learned more about the Crusaders mat program, the more interested he became in the opening himself. In addition to bringing extensive experience and a tradition of success to Heelan, Davis also offers an impressive roster of honors, including as a 2013 inductee into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame, as a 2009 Master of Wrestling Award winner, numerous coach-of-the-year honors, and several others honors. Upon learning he would be the new wrestling coach at Bishop Heelan, Scot Davis said, "I always liked a challenge and I guess wrestling is the one sport that hasn't lived up to the other sports. The commitment that Heelan has made with a new wrestling room, which will be one of the biggest ones in the state ... they are willing to make that commitment to do that." "We are extremely excited to continue to build the wrestling program and all activities at Bishop Heelan," Heelan principal Chris Bork said. "It is exciting to bring in the winningest coach in the United States. Pete did a great job and we are excited to bring Scot in and have him build on that success. We are expecting great things from Scot and his program." Bishop Heelan is a Catholic high school serving grades 9-12 located in Sioux City in western Iowa.

Alma, Mich. -- Alma College Athletic Director Steven Rackley announced today (Monday, June 20, 2016) that Jeremiah Tobias has been named the head coach of the Scots' wrestling program. Tobias, who has served as the associate head coach since May 2011, replaces Todd Hibbs, who resigned after five years at the helm of the program. Tobias becomes the seventh head coach in the history of the program, which resumed competition in 2011 after being dormant for 27 years. "Jeremiah has been an important part of the success that the wrestling program has had over the last five seasons and I have full confidence that he will continue to improve upon the foundation that he has helped to build," Rackley said. "With our new training facility and the success we've had the past few seasons, I look forward to supporting him as he continues to build Alma College into a contender for a national title." Over the last five seasons, Alma College has become a consistent presence among the top-20 teams in NCAA Division III and peaked at sixth place in the National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA) and d3wrestle.com polls during the 2015-16 season. Tobias also helped mentor three All-American wrestlers last year, marking the first time in the history of the program that the Scots had more than one student-athlete earn All-America status at the NCAA III Championships. "It is an honor to be the next head wrestling coach for Alma College," Tobias said. "I want to thank Coach Hibbs for preparing me for this position and Steven Rackley for giving me this opportunity. I am excited to work with the wrestlers within the program, those in the community and all future Scots. I look forward to building upon the success of the program both academically and athletically." As a wrestler, Tobias was a four-time Michigan High School Athletic Association champion, the seventh in state history, and finished his collegiate career at the University of Michigan as the Wolverines' leader in both career and single-season pins. Tobias is a 2000 graduate of Manchester High School, where he won four state championships and never lost a match after his freshman year. He earned the Dave Schultz Excellence Award for the state of Michigan in 2000, a national award taking into account excellence in wrestling, scholastic achievement, character, citizenship and community service. Tobias continued his success on the mat at the University of Michigan, where he was a three-year letterwinner and set both the single-season (17) and career (57) pin records. During his time as a Wolverine, he was the champion of various college tournaments, including the Michigan State Open, Eastern Michigan Open and Cleveland State Open. Following college, Tobias collected experience as a coach in several settings. He served as a NCAA Division I assistant coach at the University of Wyoming and as a a full-time NCAA Division II coach at Belmont Abbey College. He also has extensive experience as a private coach and clinic instructor across the eastern United States, including two years as club coach for the Port City Wrestling Club in Wilmington, N.C. Tobias holds a bachelor's degree in sports management and his currently pursing his master's degree in coaching and sports administration. He is married to Katie Tobias and the two of them have a two-year-old son, Jude.

Chad Smith, long associated with Lindenwood University as a wrestler and coach, announced that he is leaving his job as head wrestling coach of the Lions, effective immediately. Chad SmithThe statement issued by the school located just outside St. Louis said Smith was leaving "to pursue other opportunities." Jimmy Rollins, assistant coach for the past five seasons, has been named interim head coach. Lindenwood announced it is mounting a national search for Smith's replacement. Smith had been part of the Lindenwood Lions mat program as an athlete and coach for most of the millennium (except for one season when he accepted a high school coaching job in Virginia). A native of the St. Louis area, Smith was a two-time Missouri high school state champ at Oakville High who came to Lindenwood after wrestling at St. Louis Community College-Meramec. Smith earned All-American honors on the 2002 Lindenwood team which won the program's first NAIA (National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics) National Championship. The following season, Smith not only won an individual NAIA national championship, but was also named a NAIA Scholar-Athlete, and was Lindenwood's Male Scholar-Athlete of the Year in 2003. Smith stayed with the program as a graduate assistant coach, and helped the team win another national title in 2005. After coaching high school wrestling for one season in 2006-07, he returned to Lindenwood as a full-time assistant coach in 2007. He won two more national titles as a member of the coaching staff in 2008 and 2009. In 2010, Smith was named the head coach of the program and the program continued its success. In its final season at the NAIA level, the Lions finished second at nationals, nine wrestlers earned All-American honors, and one captured an individual title. During the 2011-12 season, Smith helped transition the program from the NAIA to the NCAA Division II level. This past season, Smith coached one of the top wrestlers in program history in Terrell Wilbourn. Wilbourn finished the year with a perfect 25-0 record, and he won Lindenwood's first individual NCAA national championship in the sport of wrestling. "I would like to thank the administration and staff at Lindenwood for allowing me the opportunity to do what I love and the resources to be successful," said Smith. "The memories I have gained as an athlete and coach at Lindenwood are something I will cherish and thank everyone involved in making those possible." "We are sad to see Chad leaving the Lindenwood athletics family," said athletics director John Creer. "Chad has been a valuable part of the wrestling program as a student-athlete and a coach, and has been a part in some of the biggest victories in the school's athletics history. He is leaving the program in very good shape, and we expect his successor to continue that winning tradition." Located in St. Charles, Missouri just west of St. Louis, Lindenwood University is a four-year, private university. Founded in 1827, Lindenwood now has a total enrollment of approximately 12,000 students. The Lions wrestling program now competes in NCAA Division II.

Joe Fagiano capped off an incredible year on the mat by winning the 2016 NCAA Division II heavyweight title, and a number of honors, including NCAA D2 West Region Wrestler of the Year, and Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Wrestler of the Year. Now he has been named Male Athlete of the Year at California Baptist University. Pretty impressive for a guy known affectionately in the Lancers wrestling program as "Uncle Joe" who just turned 27. Joe Fagiano (Photo/Tim Tushla)A Chicago native, Fagiano came to CBU in Riverside, Calif. by way of Indiana University, then Hofstra University, then back to Indiana. Here's how Allan Steele of the Press-Enterprise, the local newspaper, described Fagiano's mat career before coming to California Baptist last year: "Fagiano won an Illinois high school state title 10 years ago [St. Patrick's High School, Chicago], but his collegiate experience had been rocky at best. He wrestled at Indiana University for a year and was an NCAA tournament qualifier. He transferred to Hofstra, and again qualified for the Division I championships, but said the situation wasn't ideal. After a year at Hofstra, Fagiano transferred back to Indiana, but did not compete for two years, sitting out a year due to transfer rules and then not starting the following season. He graduated from IU in 2012 and figured his collegiate career was finished. "But during a visit last summer with friend and former teammate Andrew Nicola, the two joked about Fagiano having eligibility left," the Press-Enterprise continued. "Nicola, now an assistant coach at CBU, decided to check and found Fagiano was eligible for one season at the Division II level." Fagiano saw an opportunity to not only earn a graduate degree, but also take care of some unfinished business on the mat, and end his collegiate wrestling career on a high note. What a high note it was. This past season, Fagiano finished 29-6, and claimed the 2016 NCAA D2 title at 285 by defeating Malcolm Allen of Minnesota State-Mankato in a come-from-behind 6-3 victory in the championship match to not only become Cal Baptist's first national champ ... but also propel the CBU Lancers to a sixth-place finish in the team standings, the program's highest team placement ever at Nationals. If that weren't enough, Fagiano received all the other honors mentioned above ... along with being named the Press-Enterprise Area Male College Athlete of the Year. "He's one of best technicians on the team," Coach Lennie Zalesky told the Press-Enterprise in a recent interview, adding he had no concerns about Fagiano being rusty after not competing for a couple of years. "I thought he was primed for this year, actually," Zalesky said. "I liked the circumstance; I liked his mentality coming in." CBU assistant coach Andrew Nicola had predicted great things for his long-time friend when Fagiola arrived on campus, as he disclosed in a July 2015 interview with California-based wrestling writer Pablo DiMaria: "I have known Joe for many years; as a friend and now as his coach. I truly believe Fagiano can and will win the NCAA title next season. He has very high expectations for himself. He's already working out with World Team guys in preparation for next season so he can put his stamp on collegiate wrestling." Fagiano winning an NCAA championship at age 26 is rare ... which makes it all the more special. While most college wrestlers complete their on-the-mat careers in their early twenties, it's not unprecedented for some to be a bit older. InterMat profiled two past wrestlers who returned to the mat when they learned they had additional eligibility: Justin Decker, 33 at the time the former University of Iowa wrestler returned to the mat a season at Upper Iowa University where he had been a coach, and Rick Chipman, a 44-year-old who wrestled at University of Southern Maine. What's more, in the decade or so after World War II, a number of wrestlers completed their college athletic careers well into their twenties, even pushing 30. Some wrestler careers were interrupted by WW2; two veterans who became NCAA champs -- Iowa's Joe Scarpello, and Oklahoma State's Dick Hutton -- were well into their late 20s when they stepped off the mat for the last time. Dan Hodge was a 25-year-old married man with an infant son when he won his third title for the Oklahoma Sooners in 1957. Even into the early 1960s, there was three-time NCAA finalist and 1961 champ Phil Kinyon who some called "the ancient Marine" because he was in his late 20s when wrestling at Oklahoma State after he had wrestled a number of years for the Navy after high school.

Colby CovingtonFormer college wrestlers Colby Covington and Joe Soto shared a few things in common at UFC Fight Night 89. Both former Iowa Central Community College wrestlers (and teammates) won their bouts at the UFC event at TD Place Arena in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada Saturday night, both using rear-naked choke submissions in the third round of their respective matches. Covington, who, after wrestling at Iowa Central went on to find success at Oregon State, submitted Jonathan Meunier with a rear-naked choke at 56 seconds of the third round of their three-round middleweight (170 pound) bout, while Soto, a fellow ICCC mat alum, applied the rear-naked choke on Chris Beal at 3:39 of the third stanza of their bantamweight (135 pound) fight. Both BloodyElbow.com and Sherdog.com mixed martial arts websites had Covington winning the first two rounds of his bout. For the final round, Bloody Elbow wrote in its real-time reporting, "Covington drops Meunier early with a spinning back fist, then returns to the back ride as Meunier's recovering. This time Covington gets both hooks in and the rear-naked choke follows shortly after. Meunier taps." Covington, 2007 NJCAA (National Junior College Athletic Association) champ at Iowa Central who went on to earn NCAA Division I All-American honors at Oregon State, is now 9-1 overall in MMA, while Meunier falls to 7-1. As for Soto vs. Beal ... in its live, play-by-play coverage, Sherdog.com had Beal winning the first round, citing the Canadian's "fast hands and speedy strikes." The MMA website has Beal as the dominant force through the first minute of the second round, until "the Real Deal" started to tire, having to fight off two submission attempts in that round. In the final round, Soto remains the aggressor; in the last half of round three, Soto shoots on Beal at the fence, dragging him to the ground. Soto mounts him immediately, applies a rear naked choke, and forces Beal to tap out. With the win, Soto, a two-time NJCAA placer (placing third at the 2006 NJCAA championships, runner-up the following year), breaks a three-bout losing streak and is now 16-5 in his professional MMA career, while Beal drops to 10-3.

YORK, Pa. -- Host Pennsylvania led most of the finals dual meet, but a strong finish by defending champion Illinois led to a tight 40-34 victory at the Cadet National Duals in freestyle on Saturday. Pennsylvania took a 34-22 lead after a 13-0 technical fall win by Keystone state star Mike Lewis over Donnell Washington at 132 pounds with just two bouts to go, but it did not prove to be enough. Back-to-back technical falls by Illinois from Will Lewan at 138 pounds and Baylor Fernandes at 145 pounds gave them the final eight points for the victory. Lewan scored a quick takedown and four ankle laces for a first-period 10-0 win over Carnell Andrews, giving Illinois a 36-34 lead going into the final match. Fernandes opened the final match with a four point move, then methodically added a takedown, a turn and another takedown for his 10-0 technical fall over Alec Sampson, and the Illinois team rushed onto to mat to celebrate the comeback team victory. Read complete story … CADET NATIONAL DUALS At York, Pa. FREESTYLE RESULTS Championship Dual - Illinois 40, Pennsylvania Blue 34 152 Edmond Ruth (Pennsylvania Blue) over Danny Braunagel (Illinois) TF 10-0 160 Josh Stillings (Pennsylvania Blue) over Peter Ferraro (Illinois) Dec 10-6 170 Zach Braunagel (Illinois) over Jake Hendricks (Pennsylvania Blue) Dec 8-6 182 Benjamin Root (Pennsylvania Blue) over Jacob Kaminski (Illinois) TF 13-2 195 Sergio Villalobos (Illinois) over Julian Gorring (Pennsylvania Blue) Dec 9-6 220 Gavin Hoffman (Pennsylvania Blue) over Jace Punke (Illinois) TF 10-0 285 Ronald Tucker (Illinois) over Cody Williams (Pennsylvania Blue) TF 15-2 88 Chris Kim (Pennsylvania Blue) over Brody Norman (Illinois) TF 14-3 94 Christian Goin (Illinois) over Lincoln Heck (Pennsylvania Blue) TF 12-2 100 Joshua Ogunsanya (Illinois) over Dillon Murphy (Pennsylvania Blue) TF 10-0 106 Justin Cardani (Illinois) over Ed Scott (Pennsylvania Blue) Dec 12-6 113 J J Wilson (Pennsylvania Blue) over Jacob Lindsey (Illinois) Fall 1:40 120 Eddie Bolivar (Illinois) over Connor Keivman (Pennsylvania Blue) TF 12-2 126 Tyler Delaware (Illinois) over Josh Jones (Pennsylvania Blue) TF 10-0 132 Mike Lewis (Pennsylvania Blue) over Donnell Washington (Illinois) TF 13-0 138 Will Lewan (Illinois) over Carnell Andrews (Pennsylvania Blue) TF 10-0 145 Baylor Fernandes (Illinois) over Alec Sampson (Pennsylvania Blue) TF 10-0 Third Place - New Jersey Red 44, Minnesota Storm 30 152 Anthony Jackson (Minnesota Storm) over Michael O`Malley (New Jersey Red) Dec 9-2 160 Chris Foca (New Jersey Red) over Cody Dravis (Minnesota Storm) Fall 5:30 170 Billy Janzer (New Jersey Red) over Caden Steffen (Minnesota Storm) Dec 7-3 182 Robert Striggow (Minnesota Storm) over Dimitri Serrano (New Jersey Red) TF 10-0 195 Tyler Buesgens (Minnesota Storm) over Kyle Lightner (New Jersey Red) TF 16-6 220 Zach Delvecchio (New Jersey Red) over Bryce Benhart (Minnesota Storm) TF 10-0 285 Manny Alvarez (Minnesota Storm) over Ahmed Homsi (New Jersey Red) TF 10-0 88 Paxton Creese (Minnesota Storm) over Brett Ungar (New Jersey Red) Dec 8-6 3 94 Joey Thompson (Minnesota Storm) over Wil Guida (New Jersey Red) Dec 13-81 100 Anthony Clark (New Jersey Red) over Andrew Sanders (Minnesota Storm) TF 11-1 106 Mark Montgomery (New Jersey Red) over Jake Svihel (Minnesota Storm) Fall 4:23 113 Joe Heilman (New Jersey Red) over Israel Navarro (Minnesota Storm) Dec 14-13 120 Carmen Ferrante (New Jersey Red) over Cael Carlson (Minnesota Storm) TF 10-0 126 Nick Raimo (New Jersey Red) over Gage Zieske (Minnesota Storm) TF 11-0 132 Pat Glory (New Jersey Red) over Brock Luthens (Minnesota Storm) TF 12-2 138 Jacob Tvinnereim (Minnesota Storm) over Charlie Cunningham (New Jersey Red) TF 13-0 145 Rick Cabanillas (New Jersey Red) over Devin Roberts (Minnesota Storm) TF 12-2 Fifth Place - Iowa Gold 60, Michigan Red 15 152 Shawn Brown (Iowa Gold) over Brian Case (Michigan Red) Fall 0:32 160 Tad Griffith (Iowa Gold) over River Shettler (Michigan Red) TF 12-2 170 Ryan Ringler (Michigan Red) over Nick Milder (Iowa Gold) TF 10-0 182 Logan Schumacher (Iowa Gold) over Easton Turner (Michigan Red) TF 10-0 195 Hunter DeJong (Iowa Gold) over Tyler Moore (Michigan Red) TF 12-2 220 Guy Snow (Iowa Gold) over Trent Sexton (Michigan Red) TF 10-0 285 Spencer Trenary (Iowa Gold) over Austin Emerson (Michigan Red) Dec 6-2 88 Cullan Schriever (Iowa Gold) over Blake Noonan (Michigan Red) TF 10-0 94 Adam Allard (Iowa Gold) over Andrew Chambal (Michigan Red) Fall 2:13 100 Eric Faught (Iowa Gold) over Reese Fry (Michigan Red) TF 10-0 106 Cael Happel (Iowa Gold) over Chayse LaJoie (Michigan Red) Fall 0:54 113 Legend Lamer (Iowa Gold) over Corey Gamet (Michigan Red) TF 10-0 120 Brody Teske (Iowa Gold) over Kaleob Whitford (Michigan Red) TF 10-0 126 Kevon Davenport (Michigan Red) over Gabriel Ruepke (Iowa Gold) Fall 1:33 132 Garret Thompson (Iowa Gold) over Tanner Bryan (Michigan Red) Fall 1:07 138 Cameron Amine (Michigan Red) over Harlan Steffensmeier (Iowa Gold) TF 10-0 145 Zane Mulder (Iowa Gold) over Layne Malczewski (Michigan Red) Fall 1:09 Seventh Place - Washington over California, no match Bronze/Copper Pool Results (Places 9-16) 1st Place - Ohio Red 2nd Place - Oklahoma 3rd Place - Missouri Red 4th Place - Virginia 5th Place - Colorado 6th Place - Kansas Blue 7th Place - Florida 8th Place - Texas 1st Place Match - Ohio Red defeated Oklahoma 44-35. 3rd Place Match - Missouri Red defeated Virginia 42-31. 5th Place Match - Colorado defeated Kansas Blue 40-37. 7th Place Match - Florida defeated Texas 42-38. Red/Blue Pool Results 1st Place - Georgia Red 2nd Place - Iowa Black 3rd Place - Indiana 4th Place - Utah 5th Place - Pennsylvania Red 6th Place - New Jersey Blue 7th Place - Maryland 8th Place - Tennessee 1st Place Match - Georgia Red defeated Iowa Black 43-33. 3rd Place Match - Indiana defeated Utah 40-39. 5th Place Match - Pennsylvania Red defeated New Jersey Blue 39-33. 7th Place Match - Maryland defeated Tennessee 41-33. Green/Yellow Pool Results 1st Place - New York 2nd Place - Ohio Blue 3rd Place - Missouri Blue 4th Place - North Carolina 5th Place - Michigan Blue 6th Place - Kansas Red 7th Place - Georgia Blue 1st Place Match - New York defeated Ohio Blue 33-28. 3rd Place Match - Missouri Blue defeated North Carolina 34-33. 5th Place Match - Michigan Blue defeated Kansas Red 49-21. 7th Place Match - Georgia Blue no match A Pool Results 1st Place - Michigan Red 2nd Place - Washington 3rd Place - Virginia 4th Place - Florida 5th Place - Iowa Black 6th Place - Utah 7th Place - Georgia Blue 8th Place - Kansas Red 1st Place Match - Michigan Red defeated Washington 40-34. 3rd Place Match - Virginia defeated Florida 44-33. 5th Place Match - Iowa Black defeated Utah 41-36. 7th Place Match - Georgia Blue defeated Kansas Red 30-29. B Pool Results 1st Place - New Jersey Red 2nd Place - Pennsylvania Blue 3rd Place - Ohio Red 4th Place - Colorado 5th Place - Maryland 6th Place - Indiana 7th Place - North Carolina 8th Place - Missouri Blue 1st Place Match - New Jersey Red defeated Pennsylvania Blue 44-32. 3rd Place Match - Ohio Red defeated Colorado 47-27. 5th Place Match - Maryland defeated Indiana 42-32. 7th Place Match - North Carolina defeated Missouri Blue 37-26. C Pool Results 1st Place - Illinois 2nd Place - California 3rd Place - Kansas Blue 4th Place - Texas 5th Place - Georgia Red 6th Place - Tennesee 7th Place - New York 8th Place - Michigan Blue 1st Place Match - Illinois defeated Kansas Blue 57-17 2nd Place Wrestleback - California defeated Kansas Blue 44-34. 3rd Place Match - California defeated Texas 42-32. 5th Place Match - Georgia Red defeated Tennesee 56-20. 7th Place Match - New York defeated Michigan Blue 40-23. D Pool Results 1st Place - Minnesota Storm 2nd Place - Iowa Gold 3rd Place - Oklahoma 4th Place - Missouri Red 5th Place - Pennsylvania Red 6th Place - New Jersey Blue 7th Place - Ohio Blue 1st Place Match - Minnesota Storm defeated Iowa Gold 43-30. 3rd Place Match - Oklahoma defeated Missouri Red 52-27. 5th Place Match - Pennsylvania Red defeated New Jersey Blue 44-29. 7th Place Match - Ohio Blue - no match

Cornell head wrestling coach Rob Koll recruited and coached Nahshon Garrett to four All-American honors and a 2016 NCAA title at 133 pounds. Rob Koll coaching Nahshon Garrett in the NCAA finals in New York City (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com)In May, Garrett announced that he would be leaving Cornell after graduating to train at Arizona State in Tempe, Arizona, for the Sunkist Kids. Koll didn't see the move as the best decision for Garrett. "I don't think it was a particularly good decision to leave a place where you've been incredibly successful and you've got people who are going to hold you to a very high standard," Koll told Takedown Radio on Saturday. "I think he'll do well despite being in a different environment, not because of it." Koll believes wrestlers benefit the most from staying in the same training system throughout their careers. He cited the Russians, Kyle Dake and the Smiths as examples of wrestlers who were successful training in the same system throughout their careers. "I actually think it's a big mistake for people to try to jump from ship to ship," said Koll. "It's funny, you see these golfers … They're always looking for a reason why they're failing. They're changing their swing coach, or they're changing this or changing that. At the end of the day, sometimes when you don't reach your goals it's not because of the coaching. It's because it just wasn't in the cards. "Some of these parents I see, they take their kids to every coach and every person across the country and they move from school to school to school, and some will say, 'Well, they're successful.' They would have been successful if they would have stayed where they were. I do think it can be very confusing to have 25 different messages being given to an athlete."

Two former collegiate wrestling champs -- Chris Honeycutt, two-time EWL (Eastern Wrestling League) titlewinner for Edinboro University, and John Salter, NAIA (National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics) champ for Lindenwald University -- both won their bouts at Bellator 156 at Save Mart Center in Fresno, Calif. Friday night. Honeycutt scored a unanimous decision over Mikkel Parlo in a three-round middleweight match, while Salter submitted former Cal State Bakersfield wrestler Brandon Halsey in the first round of their bout. Chris Honeycutt gets his hand raised after picking up a unanimous decision over Mikkel Parlo at Bellator 156 (Photo/Bellator)Judges awarded Honeycutt the victory, scoring the bout 29-28, 30-27 and 30-27. "Parlo started out landing the better combinations on Honeycutt, as well as stuffing all of his takedowns in the opening round," reported BloodyElbow.com. "Honeycutt, who seldom kicked and almost exclusively boxed, started finding his rhythm and scoring with his own punches and backing Parlo up in a closely contested 2nd stanza. The American backed up the Dane with his jab in the 3rd, and Parlo was clearly fading. His punches had no steam on them and Honeycutt was tagging Parlo with several solid punches. Parlo froze Honeycutt with a superman punch and then shot for a takedown in the final minute, only for Honeycutt to stuff it and turn it into a late takedown of his own." "The Cutt" -- who was a two-time NCAA Division I All-American -- and runner-up at 197 pounds at the 2012 NCAAs for Edinboro, is now 7-1 overall, with one match ending in no-contest. Mikkel Parlo of Denmark fell to 13-3 overall. In another middleweight (185-pound) bout at Bellator 156, Ultimate Fighting Championship and Strikeforce veteran John Salter submitted former Bellator middleweight champion Brandon Halsey with a triangle choke at 4:03 of the first round. "Salter cut the HB Ultimate standout below the right eyebrow with a head kick inside the first 30 seconds, permanently altering the direction of the fight," reported Sherdog.com. "Blood poured from the wound and desperation overtook Halsey, who was forced to accelerate his plans. Salter later staggered him with another high kick, surrendered a single-leg takedown and calmly cinched the triangle from the bottom." Salter is now 12-3 in his professional MMA career after tallying his fourth consecutive victory, while Halsey suffered his second straight loss, taking him to 9-2.

J Robinson Intensive Camps -- one of the longest-running, most respected summer wrestling camp organizations in the nation -- which were originally scheduled to take place at the University of Minnesota campus have been relocated to the University of Wisconsin-River Falls, KMSP/Fox 9 reported Friday. Minnesota head wrestling coach J Robinson, who has been on administrative leave since June 1, was told by new Gophers athletics director Mark Coyle "you are not to be on campus." Wrestlers listen to instruction at J Robinson Intensive CampThe school is investigating allegations that some Minnesota wrestlers may have been using and/or selling Xanax, a prescription anti-anxiety drug. Here's how J Robinson Camps announced the move on its Facebook page Friday: "J Robinson Camps will be moving all 2016 Minnesota camps to the University of Wisconsin - River Falls. This includes the 28-Day Intensive Camp, 5-Day Technique Camp, 5-Day Competition Camp, and 10-Day Combo Camp. The new location will not impact anything with respect to the camp daily schedule, training regimen, and our staunch commitment to excellence. All attendees flying to camp will still be picked up at the Minneapolis-St. Paul Airport." The University of Wisconsin-River Falls campus is located about 40 miles east of the University of Minnesota. According to a fact sheet at the official website for J Robinson Camps, over 40,000 wrestlers have participated in the camps since they were first established in 1978. In addition to camps held on the Minnesota campus, other J Rob camps are slated to continue to be conducted this year at locations in California, Georgia, Iowa, Pennsylvania, Texas, and Washington State.

A memorial service for former wrestler and coach Rudi Sabo will be held late Friday afternoon, the Great Falls Tribune reported Thursday. Rudi SaboThe memorial for Sabo, who died at age 90 on April 12 in Billings, Mont., is scheduled for Friday from 3-6 p.m. Mountain at the Columbus Center in Great Falls. Rudolph "Rudi" Jon Sabo was born in August 1925 in Sand Coulee, Mont. He graduated from Great Falls High School in 1943, then joined the Navy, where he served for nearly three years before being honorably discharged as a Seaman 2nd Class with the American Area Campaign Medal and World War II Victory Medal. During his time in the Navy, Sabo began his college career. He attended the University of Dubuque and St. Ambrose University in Iowa. He also attended Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, NY and Carleton College in Minnesota. As a WWII veteran, he participated in the Big Sky Honor Flight to Washington D.C. in April 2014. Sabo returned to Montana in 1946 to complete his degree at Montana State University, where he was a member of the wrestling team as an undergraduate. He obtained his bachelor's degree from MSU in 1952 and a Master of Education in 1955. In 1953, Sabo began his teaching career at Fairfield High School, where he launched a wrestling program even though there were no other schools to compete against. Sabo also taught at Billings Senior High School for one year and took the wrestling team there to the state championship in 1955. In 1956, he returned to his high school alma mater, Great Falls High School, where he served as a teacher for 37 years and as wrestling coach for more than a dozen seasons. During his tenure as Bison coach, Sabo guided his wrestlers to three state team titles, seven second-place finishes, four Divisional Championships and a dual-meet record of 146-42. He coached 26 wrestlers to individual state championships. In 1970, Sabo was honored with the Montana Coaches Association Wrestling Coach of the Year award. He retired from Great Falls High School in 1994.

Former Penn State wrestler Brad Pataky has been named head wrestling coach at Philipsburg-Osceola High School in Pennsylvania. Brad PatakyPataky replaces Tim McCamley, who had been at the helm of the P-O Mounties mat program for the past nine years. A native of Clearfield, Pa., Pataky brings wide-ranging experience to Philipsburg-Osceola, having wrestled at a trio of legendary programs in the Keystone State -- Clearfield High, Penn State, and as a resident athlete at the Nittany Lion Wrestling Club -- as well as served as assistant coach at both Lock Haven University and the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. At Clearfield High, Pataky was a three-time PIAA (Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association) state championships finalist, winning the 112-pound title in 2004. He then went on to wrestle at Penn State under both Troy Sunderland and current Nittany Lion coach Cael Sanderson, where he was a two-time Big Ten conference championships placer and three-time NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships qualifier. Pataky's on-the-mat career extends far beyond the Keystone State to incorporate freestyle success. Among his national and international accomplishments: University Place Winner and Champion (2008), Canada Cup place winner and two-time runner-up, a Guelph Open place winner and champion (2008), and two-time Northwest F/S Regional Champion and U.S. Open place winner, NYAC place winner (2007) and University World Team member (2008). He placed seventh at the 2008 University World Games and was an Olympic Team Trials Qualifier in 2008. Pataky launched his collegiate coaching career as a volunteer assistant coach at Lock Haven in Pennsylvania for two seasons. Most recently, he was on the coaching staff as an assistant for the Army wrestling program at West Point. Philipsburg-Osceola Superintendent Gregg Paladina cited Pataky's wide-ranging experience in his hiring decision. "I know that we've always had an excellent wrestling program, but having someone with the caliber of Brad Pataky will only enhance our program," said Paladina. "He brings Penn State wrestling experience. He coached at the collegiate level and is involved with the Nittany Lion Wrestling Club. Our wrestlers will benefit tremendously by having someone with those attributes." "Obviously, wrestling is wrestling any way you look at it," Pataky said. "Coaching is basically teaching. If you take it the same way you do teaching a classroom, you're trying to mold students and trying to mold athletes and eventually student-athletes. Teaching and coaching go hand in hand."

Alma, Mich. -- Todd Hibbs, who has served as the head coach of the Alma College wrestling program since 2011, has resigned to pursue other opportunities, it was announced today (Friday, June 17, 2016) by Athletic Director Steven Rackley. Todd Hibbs"Todd has taken our wrestling program to national prominence and has set it on a course so that we can consistently compete at a high level," Rackley said. "I am very thankful for all that Todd has done for Alma College through the wrestling program and I wish him and his family all the best in the next chapter of their lives." "I am extremely thankful for all that Coach Hibbs has done for Alma College and for our student-athletes," Alma College President Jeff Abernathy said. "He has built the wrestling program into one of the best in Division III, while insisting on excellence on and off the mats. Proud as I am of the team's accomplishments in competition, I am prouder still of their great success as students." Under Hibbs' guidance, the Scots grew into a consistent top-20 team in NCAA Division III, peaking at sixth in the nation in the National Wrestling Coaches Association and d3wrestle.com polls this past season. With Hibbs at the helm, the Scots compiled a cumulative record of 51-29 in dual meet competition while also finishing among the top 12 teams in three national events - twice at the NWCA National Duals and at the 2016 NCAA Division III Championships in March. At the 2016 NCAA meet, Alma had three All-Americans, marking the first time in the history of the program the Scots had more than one at the national championships. "Five years ago the state of Michigan desperately needed another option for college wrestling, and Alma College stepped up to the plate," Hibbs said. "I'm so grateful for (Alma College trustee and alumnus) Greg Hatcher's vision of bringing wrestling back to Alma, and for President Abernathy's support of that vision. And I cannot thank (Associate Head Coach) Jeremiah Tobias and (Assistant Coach) Fletcher Roberts enough for their tireless work in building this program. Our families are linked forever as Scots." According to Hibbs, the breakthrough moment for the program came in January 2013 when the Scots posted a 16-15 win over ninth-ranked Olivet College at Art Smith Arena. After falling to the Comets by a 49-0 margin the previous year, Alma came back in its second season to upset the top-10 program and continue a home winning streak that has lasted four years. In addition to the success on the mat, Alma has become one of the elite programs academically, as the Scots were recognized three times by the NWCA with a team grade-point average of 3.5 or higher. Over the past five seasons, 21 Scots have been named Scholar All-Americans by the NWCA, including eight in the 2014-15 season, the most across all NCAA divisions. Hibbs also worked with the Alma College Advancement Office to raise nearly $4 million for a new addition to the Hogan Center, which will open later this summer. The project includes a wrestling room, a new weight room, new coaching offices, a coaching locker room, a team locker room, and a new studio for the Scots' cheerleading and STUNT team. Hibbs served as a member of the NCAA Wrestling Rules Committee while he was coaching the Scots and is currently a student in the Ph.D. program for Higher Education Leadership at Central Michigan University with a research focus on first-generation college students. According to the NCAA, wrestling has a higher percentage (37 percent) of first-generation students than any other NCAA-sponsored sport.

The USA men's freestyle wrestling team took fourth last week at the Freestyle World Cup in Los Angeles. The team had a few backups in the lineup, namely the absence of Tervel Dlagnev at 125 kilos and Jordan Burroughs at 74 kilos. The team tied a powerful Iranian squad with four wins a piece, but lost on classification points, and did the same against Georgia's complete lineup in the bronze-medal final. While there are several takeaways from the event, perhaps the most intriguing was what happened off the mats between Jordan Burroughs and the Iranian Wrestling Federation. Burroughs had missed the World Cup due to the birth of his second child, a daughter that he and his wife named Ora. The Iranian Wrestling Federation, though disappointed they couldn't give young stud Hassan Yazdani Charati a spin, sent Burroughs a gift to welcome the birth of his daughter. That's not some next level type of psyche out or intimidation, that gesture is at the soul of what it means to be a wrestler, or any martial artist. Honor and respect among combatants. The federation's actions were simple, but thoughtful in a way you almost never hear of in modern international sports. Family is at the center of life for both Iranians and Jordan Burroughs and it was refreshing to see that mutual interest and respect come to fruition. On a similar note I found the latest musings of jiu-jitsu professor John Danaher equally enlightening. In a social media post the longtime Renzo Gracie NYC-based instructor discusses what it means to be a martial artist. Seeing as how he's an accomplished writer and brilliant human I won't do him the disservice of paraphrasing. To your questions … Q: How successful will Joey Davis be in MMA, in your opinion? Why did he sign with Bellator over UFC? Lastly, why did he not wrestle internationally? -- Gregg Y. Foley: Bellator is offering some of the best financial conditions to young fighters. In addition to developmental money, they are also able to carry more sponsors with them into the cage, which seems to help many of the sport's up-and-coming fighters. If the UFC is sold this week then that might change. New owners might see the possibility of higher paychecks for young fighters, or a change in the way contracts are written. Until then Bellator will likely draw a lot of the young new talent to their promotion with the promise of money now and the hope of a bright and competitive future. Q: What does the future hold for Jake Varner? Is he done competing? Will he move to heavyweight? -- Mike C. Jake Varner gets his hand raised after a victory at the Freestyle World Cup (Photo/John Sachs, Tech-Fall.com)Foley: I think that for now he'll be moving to heavyweight and training with the national team through the 2016 Olympics. There were plenty of rumors swirling around that Varner could replace an injured Tervel Dlagnev at the Olympics. For that to be the case I think Dlagnev would have to become more injured than he is currently and Varner would need enough time to file a motion with USA Wrestling for the right to wrestle for the starting spot against Zack Rey. I don't think that is a realistic possibility, especially considering that it would severely impact training schedules. The other case might be is Dlagnev got to the event and Coach Burnett deemed him unhealthy to compete. There is at least a chance there could be a last-minute replacement, but I'd be shocked if it were anyone but Rey. As for Varner post-2016 … I think that he's hanging them up and moving into another role within the sport. He had an incredible career, but at 30 years old there isn't much wrestling left. Q: Can you explain to me the reasoning why wrestler Joel Bauman lost his eligibility from the NCAA for selling a song using his name while it seems that the wrestlers who don't seem to be facing the same loss of eligibility for a drug offense? Why was J Robinson rightfully allowed to handle the drug matter internally until it became public, whereas the Bauman situation was not given the same institutional courtesy? From my point of view it seems like inconsistency by the NCAA and the University of Minnesota but more so the NCAA. -- Marcus R. Foley: I'm pretty sure this comes down to exposure and optics. Bauman was in the media eye for his works, whereas the discipline associated with a very private -- possibly criminal -- act didn't draw attention. Also, the rules that apply to these situations are vastly different. Bauman took money which is the NCAA's Rule 1.1. The suspension was therefore easy to make at an institutional level. For the Xanax athletes the discipline for their action was probably within a much looser definition. There was much more to consider and, ultimately, to prove. Again, for Bauman it was an open and shut case. Because Bauman performed under his own name and identified himself as a Minnesota wrestler, the NCAA ruled him ineligible for the remainder of the season. J. T. Bruett, Minnesota's compliance director, said Bauman violated an NCAA bylaw prohibiting student-athletes from using their name, image or status as an athlete to promote the sale of a commercial product. MULTIMEDIA HALFTIME Things got awkward in the Octagon a few weeks ago … How the hell did I only now see this? Q: Biggest takeaways from the Freestyle World Cup? -- Mike C. Foley: Dan Dennis has the opportunity to improve and I hope he spends some time with the national team coaches to help him with strategy and match pacing. Tony Ramos is a 61-kilo wrestler with the ability to place at this year's World Championships in Budapest. Frank Molinaro is an absolute machine and a better than 30 percent chance to medal at the Olympic Games. Alex Dieringer is about as good a backup as you can find in the world. He'll get plenty of wrestling in the next four years and is my pick for 2021 and beyond! J'den Cox was exposed a little, but I think that he will adapt and find solutions to some of his weaker areas. The loss was probably a humbling reminder that it's a big world of wrestling and it will never be conquered, much less with something like beginner's luck on his side. Kyle Snyder, Olympic champion. Zack Rey is a really solid heavyweight with a bright future after the 2016 Games. Q: Do you think Logan Storley has what it takes to make it to the UFC and be as successful as other wrestlers like TJ Dillashaw, Frankie Edgar, and Henry Cejudo? -- Gregg Y. Foley: My doppelganger! Sure, like I've written before he's a hammer and has a unique set of skills and intensity that should get him higher profile fights in the immediate future. Q: I get the feeling Coach Lindland isn't making a push to recruit NCAA wrestlers to go Greco after college. It seems as if much more of his focus towards recruiting is to get kids to go Greco full time after/before their high school career ends. This seems odd considering the path he and Brad Vering took to world/Olympic medals. Any idea if recruiting college guys is on his agenda? -- Matt C. Foley: I get the same impression. If he has a plan to pluck high school kids then I can't say that I disagree with his logic. Currently Northern Michigan is the only place for Greco-Roman minded athletes to go train outside of Colorado Springs. If Lindland can get in their ears now then he has the ability to develop their talents without having to correct habits from four more years of folkstyle. Whether or not that is the best option for each athlete is to be determined, but in principle I endorse his recruitment methodology. Q: Could you explain a little about Titan Mercury Wrestling Club, its structure and Reece Humphrey's role? -- @Robbybobbi Foley: The structure will be Reece as their travel coach in charge of all organizational matter. I think he'll also be developing a training program for the team members to use while also creating and coaching at a youth development center in Los Angeles. That center will be built in the next year or so. I think that Reece is a special character within our sport who connects to the younger generation with ease and confidence. He's also accomplished and bright. There is a really good chance that this decision will further help improve the state of the United States freestyle and women's wrestling programs.