JMill

Nolf vs Blaze… 11-2. Nolf says he’s unretired. Not sure if that means just wrestling RAF or if we’ll see him take a shot at world teams.

Gable vs Alexander Romanov at RAF 09.

Khinchegashvili over DiJulius 8-5.. solid match for DiJulius.

Henschel did better against Palmer than I expected, losing 3-2. The broadcast is so much better with Shane Sparks replacing whoever the guy was before him… Chael is a huge asset, but he doesn’t always do his homework or pay attention. The woman (name escapes me) has improved greatly… getting close to “wrestler’s girlfriend” level of knowledge… needs to get to wrestling coach’s wife level, though.

JO 5-0 over Van Brill. Van Brill tried the Poullas approach clubbing, not much else. JO tells Van Brill he’ll settle it outside then calls out Zain.

You’re correct… should’ve said 24-28… Even “traditional” redshirts are a farce now that wrestlers can compete in five varsity dates (which could be 15+ matches). Rosters are smaller now (for many teams) and kids are coming into college ready to compete (many with a semester or two worth of college credits). Those who aren’t ready to start, there is nothing wrong with 18-19 year olds sitting behind 21-23 year olds for a year or two, but they shouldn’t have to sit behind guys who listened to a DiscMan while warming up in high school. The portal is there for those who don’t see a path to the starting line-up, and the opportunities at D-2/D-3 are only growing. Just like reducing the number of weight classes in high school doesn’t reduce opportunities, it strengthens the JV level and gives it more validity, eliminating redshirts could do the same for the other divisions.

Cejudo scratched. Merab not taking an alternate opponent. Bummer. RAF 8 Fight Card (FOX Nation at 8 p.m. ET) Arman Tsarukyan vs. Urijah Faber Kyle Snyder vs. Rizabek Aitmukhan Zahid Valencia vs. Aeoden Sinclair Anthony Cassioppi vs. Shamil Sharipov Helen Maroulis vs. Alexis Janiak Real Woods vs. Anthony Ashnault Jason Nolf vs. Joey Blaze Vladimer Khinchegashvili vs. Johnni DiJulius Lance Palmer vs. Cayden Henschel Jordan Oliver vs. Mike Vanbrill Darian Cruz vs. Lucas Byrd

Medical redshirts need to go. If a high school kid gets hurt, does he get to stick around high school another year? Could you imagine what kind of shady stuff would be going on if they did? Well, that’s what we are seeing in college now. Blame it on those who have abused it, so now nobody gets it. The process is better than it used to be, but Olympic redshirts should only be granted to those who make the National Team (Top 3 on the ladder). Make it a calculated risk, not a free lunch. For every “opportunity” created for these 23-28-year-old grown men, you are taking an opportunity away from an 18-19-year-old young man for which it was intended.

Wisconsin gives all their coaches rolling five-year contracts, so it is really just a one year extension, but it is another $300k the university would have to be willing to burn to terminate his contract early. At this point, it’d take a booster to walk in with about $1.5mm to buy out Bono for a coaching change to be made. The rolling contracts were a decent idea as they allow coaches to tell high school recruits they will be there for their full college career, but that means a lot less now with the portal. I suppose not having to worry about one’s contract would allow them to keep their focus on coaching, but it also takes away the urgency to improve that comes with that uncertainty. Wisconsin Athletics’ motto is “Just wait til next year!” Side note: Fickell turned down his extension after last football season, but that’s more of him betting on himself to have a better year and more bargaining power than it was him admitting he didn’t deserve one.

Wisconsin must’ve heard Iowa State was shaking things up and got scared, so they extended Bono’s contract on Wednesday. Bono was paid a little north of $280k in FY 2024, so it must be creeping up on $300k/year salary. In all seriousness, when an Athletic Director quits on Monday, why not reschedule the Wednesday meeting to extend six coaches’ contracts a little bit, even if they are just rubber stamped? https://uwbadgers.com/news/2026/4/15/general-news-uw-athletic-board-approves-coaches-contracts

Teams are allowed 16 competition dates plus a qualifier. CKLV counts as one date, as do triangular/quads that are on a single day. Paddy wrestled eight dates.