CHROMEBIRD

Like six months ago people were saying what a great coach and mentor Ryan was after getting Sammy Sasso back on the mat. Then tOSU finishes in the top 5 (2nd behind the big 3) and a bunch of folks start freaking out. Fans need to take a deep breath.

Amazing.

It's an embarrassment of riches for sure, but Cael will probably rationalize it as merely a business decision in the same way wrestlers these days look out for their own individual interests first, and then sprinkle on some guru-speak about it not mattering if you start or not, because it's about learning to be a champion in life or whatever.

Is Rocco getting an NIL bump from PSU? It's wild that he would give up whatever he's getting at tOSU plus his choice of starting at 174 or 184 to go to Penn State and maybe (probably) not crack the starting lineup just because he's a PA guy who loves Cael & Co. Like what is even happening?

Agreed. A lot of folks mistake the Hodge criteria as hard metrics when they're really guidelines and guardrails. If we really wanted to adhere strictly to the stated criteria, WIN magazine could simply assign weights and indices to record, dominance/bonus, quality of competition, and sportsmanship and have an algorithm say who the Hodge winner is.

Bit of a big qualifier at the front and end there, but I think I would take that bet.

Athletic Department employees at public universities are public employees. You can look up the salaries of coaches and staff at state schools right now. I expect with the adoption of pay-to-play that athletes' salaries will become public in the future.

Although equivalency scholarships will still be allowed, it sounded early on like the opt-in schools were thinking about paying rostered athletes but not offering schollies, as though it was a one-or-the-other business decision. At the time, I thought it could screw over kids who receive a salary that is less than an equivalent athletic scholarship, since the money will be taxable. A pretty interesting thing about the House Settlement is that if athletes will become salaried employees of their schools, then their pay and NIL collective contracts should all become publicly available information, at least for public schools. Theoretically, anyone will be able to look this stuff up online or request the info.

O shiii, is that where he went?

Alter-ego fronting as an Iowa wrestling fan... Better Call Stall... very clever misdirection away from his PSU criminal enterprise!!

Must be nice to be so freaking good that you can just go out and do your thing, no matter who it is. Spencer is the same way, doesn't game plan or look at tape. I think for folkstyle, it might be helpful for Ono to watch tape and be strategic.

No love for Sasso? Here are my picks, off the top of my head: 125 - Ramos 133 - Byrd 141 - Bartlett/Hardy (tie) 149 - Lovett 157 - Sasso/Teemer (tie) 165 - MM 174 - KOT 184 - Allred 197 - AJ 285 - Hendrickson

Is it too soon to joke about AJ going to UALR and competing even though he's out of eligibility?

One difference is that in this case, the NIL sponsors said they wanted to reward Khan for his rizz and for "embodying the fun and enjoyment you have watching the tournament." We've got plenty of that.

Is it weird that AJ doesn't seem to know how much eligibility he has left? Does anyone even know? I thought his clock was supposed to run out this season but he just sort of invited himself back into college wrestling and kept saying he has all kinds of eligibility remaining and we're like yeah, sounds good...

Amir Khan, student manager for McNeese State basketball, landed NIL deals north of six figures from brands like Buffalo Wild Wings Turbo Tax, and Fortnite last week after his pregame rap video went viral. Now there's rumors that he might transfer to NC State to become their bball manager I'm honestly happy for the kid, but wish wrestling could tap into this kind of money that's flying around. We've got hypefans just on this board that could match his aura. https://www.forbes.com/sites/markjburns/2025/03/21/mcneese-state-student-manager-amir-khan-cashes-in-on-nil-deals/

Ugh. Ferrari factor?

Back to IC?

They're exercising their 1A right to peacefully assemble as a group that knows what this is all about but won't say

I believe RBY mentored Davis and was his primary training partner before moving on to CRTC, so there's also that

Spill the tea, bro. What's up

Is Vigil big enough to go 133?

Exactly, and relevant. SFU is having a great year, but they actually did the math and said hell naw, we're not going to attempt to fund a battle that we can't even afford to enter. Going D3 was a smart choice, and I'm sure we'll see further attrition in D1 sports, as you say.

Kennedy should absolutely stand his ground and defend his spot at 174 but it seems that the general opinion is that Arnold beats him in the room. OTOH, Gabe's dad, who says a lot of things, mentioned previously that the cut to 174 was pretty tough on him. So who knows. If it comes to it, I could see Kennedy having a lot of success if he can make the cut to 157... but why should he? He's the returning AA and has the leverage here. Arnold and Brands will face some serious scrutiny if PK, a high-AA with a legit shot to be a finalist next year, ends up sitting and Gabe doesn't finish the season near the middle of the podium. Also, Kenned has upped his NIL stock and could (maybe should) test the transfer portal waters, even if to only secure more $$$, and a greater likelihood of starting, from Nichols and the Swarm.

Typo: whatever-will-replace-NLI agreement