BruceyB

It was a joke lol.

He's a fringe AA contender at this point.. why wouldn't you just have him RS this year (his points aren't going to matter in a rebuild) and then have 4 years following when he is more ready? Either way he is going to cover the same time frame, and this year seems like the year where a few extra team points that he might provide are probably the least important given the makeup of this roster.

I did not say the cousins count. I said they meet the criteria of the original question more so than naming two brothers that went to the same school. The Dean's wrestled at Cornell, the Schultz' wrestled at OU. Are those the same schools? Oh, I guess so. If you want to try to circumvent the intent behind the question, just say so. If you want to get semantic about "different schools" then have at it.

You start your best two guys.

I can only assume this is a sad attempt at rage bait. Shame, shame.

Sinclair at 84 and Elam at 197 isn't a bad combo. Aedon looks like he could probably spend at least a couple of years at 184 before maturing into a true 197.

I agree that OTT isn't the right tournament to use. Without a doubt many college wrestlers that are seeking to compete at their best weight during the collegiate season where there are 10 weights, and then that is shrunk to 6 just weeks later, aren't going to be in their best for having to make a completely different weight just weeks later. I think the lack of college competitors at either OTT or WTT comes from the fact that the event comes so close after a long, grueling college season and most guys just want or need a break, whether fatigue, tired of holding the weight, injuries, whatever the reason. Not to mention that there are very few college guys at each weight who probably truly believe they could be USA's rep.

If that's the case, that's too bad. I love Smith and Missouri and especially after KOT and Rocky won Jr Worlds, I was hoping they would bring home a trophy to MIZZ. I don't pay that much attention to the 2nd through 4th each year, but I'm assuming the tigers haven't brought home a trophy during the KOT and Rocky years?

Ben has a business mind. If they made it 10m, he would likely encourage the transaction and suggest young Keegan invest in bitcoin immediately. Then we could all watch as they ride the ship to the moon.

They would be fools because..?

A fools mistake to commit to soon. We could have had Dee Bachelor sweepstakes along side the Bo Bachelor. Anyone who is in the know understands that Lockett is individually, as big of a recruit as anyone in high school right now. If you're reading this and haven't seen it, watch Lockett vs Mesenbrink at the trials last year. He's going to be a problem.

Many who need to humble brag do so out of a feeling of inferiority. I would go on but I'm losing my breath as I suck in my gut typing this response.

Get this man his bread. Unfortunately, Ben has made his thoughts on Iowa clear, and I don't know that KOT would cross the picket line, even for the right amount of dough.

Ah, that's better at least. Like you said, No KOT in the matchup would really take the wind out of the sails. Mizz is down pretty hard this year compared to normal.

Arnold cannot RS. He was a RS last year and this season is a year of eligibility whether he is the starter or not.

Another bad take, mate. He literally committed to John Smith. Maybe in hindsight he is happy DT is there, but regardless.. he committed to OKST and John Smith before DT was ever even a consideration..

This is to the point of my previous post. The point of initiating a "dry" season isn't even necessarily to have athletes completely abstain from alcohol or marijuana, but if anything occurs due to substance use, it is a firm grounds for discipline. It's not the drinks or substance that are inherently the problem, it's over indulgence that leads to bad decisions. A dry season is to eliminate young men from making bad decisions more than to eliminate the use of any substance. It's more of a "it's not a problem unless it becomes a problem" kind of thing.

I'm just waiting for your counterpoints. I'd love it if you could share with the rest of us the "raw numbers" of the athletes that you speak for.

If you listen to FRL, Ben Askren has said for the last three years that once Peyton Mocco graduates (one of KOT's best friends) that KOT was planning to go 174 all along. Askren even hyped the potential of KOT going up into Starocci's weight before it was known that Starocci would be moving to 184. So I would assume everyone in college wrestling knew that last year was Keegan's last year at 165.

Idk what airline you used, but the NCAA should make a disclaimer where you can be fully reimbursed when the matchup you made an entire trip for is cancelled. I jest, but I don't. It is just a major disappointment and kind of a waste when the feature matchup is cancelled. I really hope KOT is fully healthy come NCAAs though. I think 174 if the top 4 are healthy (I'm now including Norman as a wildcard for a possible upset) is probably the weight I am most looking forward to at NCAAs. I love watching Hamiti, Haines, and KOT wrestle. Without KOT, 174 will feel empty.

Didn't you listen to the Askren plan? If you want to wrestle for Iowa, you have to commit somewhere else first, that way they have to pay you to wear the black and yellow. Aedon was a wise pupil, indeed. He'll have himself a nice little nestegg.

If your point is that teenagers who develop earlier can beat a more skilled but less mature individual, you have me beat. But by the time they both reach college and become "men" who wins? The less skilled man or the late blooming man with superior wrestling ability?

This is such a basic take. Kids develop at different ages. The fact that a 4 timer might have started at 106 doesn't mean he is any less skilled than someone who came in as a freshman at 160.. they were just smaller in their mid teens.. it has nothing to do with trajectory. Sure, it's more impressive for a freshman to win a state title at 140 than 103, but it also says more about where they are maturity and developmentally than their actual wrestling ability. There have been countless wrestlers who were "phenoms" that peaked early in high school due to their early development. Then those that matured later surpassed them once they caught up physically. Judging a high schooler's trajectory is much more than which weight they are wrestling as a freshman/sophomore.

Yes, the 285s that push each other until one falls on their back and is instantly pinned is much higher level wrestling.. But because they were seniors instead of freshmen that means it's a hard weight class..

I want to start by saying that I respect your posts and find your input well thought out and generally insightful. But with your claim that most 149s would go to 157 rather than 141 is irrelevant. Both weight classes are in no man's land when it comes to Olympic weights. Naturally those with 65kg aspirations would prefer to wrestle at 141 which is much closer to 65kg than either 149 or 157.. the reality is that those that end up at 149 more often than not have simply gotten to large to be at their best at 65kg. Most of the problems come from guys having to try to make Olympic weights. If we had 10 weight classes during Olympic years, we wouldn't see Green, Pantaleo, Oliver, Retherford, etc. trying to force themselves into a weight where they are not at there best. Most of these guys are several years removed from college and the weights that they competed at 3, 4, or 5+ years ago isn't their issue at performing at the OTTs. The problem is that we have 15+ pounds difference between Olympic weight classes. The reality is, with the current distribution, 149s are either small for 74 or too big for 65, and 157s are far too large for 65 but still undersized for 74. Zane Retherford is perfect example of someone that isn't large enough to be at his best at 74kg but can't compete at his highest level at 65. James Green is an even better example of someone who can't make 65kg effectively, but isn't large enough to compete at 74kg. If you were talking only about current college athletes, I might agree, but more often than not, we are talking about graduates who have had several years to adjust their bodies to an ideal weight. When we are considering college weights to the 10 world weights, as you stated in your post, outside of the heaviest 4 weight classes, the rest are within a few pounds of the college weights.. which wouldn't be an issue for the athletes to adjust to. The problem is that we have athletes focused on Olympic weights which have huge gaps. If the options were 143 and 154 for Olympics, then you would see a more even split among 149s, but the fact is that 149s really only have 1 option, 143, or non olympic 154 which is an obstacle for their Olympic dreams. Knowing that many of them don't have a hope to get big enough and wrestle well enough to dethrone Dake or Burroughs at 163, they have no choice but to make the brutal cut to 143 instead. An athletes ideal weight is personal, the world weight classes are what they are. If Jordan Oliver's ideal weight was 65kg, he would have gone from 133 to 141.. but the reality is he was too big for 141, and luckily college had a weight for him. He didn't have to choose between 143 and 154. He could wrestle at 149 which was most comfortable.