Ched64

Love it…both Schenectady NY guys who wrestled for Joe Demeo’s ATWA program in Albany! Frank wrestled for D3 Brockport and AAd four times winning twice…in addition he AAd twice in tw shots at the D1 tourney as d2 and D3 champs were invited to D1s at that time. He had a great intl career after college finishing 5th at the Olympics along with myriad other accolades. Jeff Blatnick is more familiar to many wrestling fans for winning gold at the 84 Olympics after recovering from non Hodgkins lymphoma the year before. Local lore has it that he was causing some trouble in the halls of Niskayuna High one day. Legendary NYS coach Joe Bena (Gwizs hs coach many years later), a shop teacher at school pulled him aside and talked him into coming to a practice and he was hooked.

he has found his role…let him do it on his terms…dealing with the academics may be beyng his wishes…or should be

no, cael still is

Taylor is doing what any good ceo does…he is letting his experts coach the kids in their area….watch cael…everyone one of his guys have responsibility of the kids in their sphere…i know it sounds strange but Rob Koll has been an unbelievable delegator of responsibility at every stop…his tenure at Cornell was top notch…Cael is amazing in the same way…do you have a similar track record?

Snyders take down was with 12 seconds left no? Sent it to OT?

So you think real $$ changed hands to have another guy do an absolutely clean finish to get a cheap take down for the recipient lose a match on National Tv etc? I have watched the match now three times and the final takedown 6 times…i don’t see it.

carter did a great job as always…his world view should be THE world view of youth sports…excellence in self over results…but wyatt had a huge finish that encapsulated that very thing…he would get my vote

Flo

They are out there by themselves in front of a national TV audience and 20,000 people in the same room putting it on the line. No teammates to blame their foibles on. Every error is owned by them and seen b a huge crowd yet they go and do it at a very young age. Greatest sport there is.

Not an overly religious guy but super proud of our sport for fostering the community around them to draw strength for these kids.

watching tonight, I couldn’t have been more proud of our sport and the smart, insightful young adults doing interviews seconds off the mat in the biggest moments of their lives! One thing that came up multiple times was the process. There is lots to look at here as past, current and future coaches of kids. It isn’t about winning, it is about working hard and getting it right. The outcome is the secondary consideration. Getting the right mindset and work ethic will bring the results not vice versa. Every result tonight was the result of the lifestyle and effort, not the goal. Everyone wants to win, the difference is what you put in.

have you thought this through?

I think the thing that sets Dake apart is that he moved up his senior year not because he grew out of 157 but specifically because Taylor was at 165 and he wanted the challenge. I know one of the Banachs were involved in something like that but really, who does that? Move up to take on arguably the absolute best wrestler in the country at that time? Then he beats him 3 times to nil. I think Cael is the GOAT but Dake is right up there. 4 years straight, no redshirt, no covid. He was never interested in style points…he was just a winner flat out all through that run.

What was particularly egregious was that they then put him at the 9 seed so the guy who got moved from 2 to 1 actually had to beat a 3x Natl Champ in the quarters vs wrestling the 6 seed who actually made the finals!

One of the things I really like about D3 is that there are tournaments throughout the year at which the entire team wrestles. Starters and backups all getting in the mix. If guys are going to commit to wrestling in college, it is nice that they give them ample opportunities to mix it up. I am also surprised by the credentials that some of these kids have. Multiple time State Champs, placers and qualifiers from all over. If you think about it, there are very few kids that have find their way to D1. It is good to know that hundreds of others can continue to do something they really love after high school.

Very well said indeed. In fact, before I jumped on this thread, I was looking at UNI's progression over the last decade. I never paid much notice until Joe Colon grabbed my attention 10+ years ago. Since then, they have done a fantastic job of quietly growing that program into a real contender. Great observations here that got to the heart of the matter.

It seems like just yesterday that a whole slew of folks were bashing the Brands Bros and calling for their heads. Boy, has PSU broken the spirit of so many Big Ten fans or what?

I don't count Messenbrink in that mix as he was doing Grade 13 in Cali...but I will say that Michigan has done a great job with JC. He was never very good from the bottom...a Cornell weakness...I was shocked they put him down vs Buchanan and he was up and out. Super happy for him as he seems like a great kid who knocked off the two guys ranked above him in 24 hours. Who knows what the future holds at Natls but he got his degree from Cornell and now is in grad school at Michigan. I assume he will be just fine regardless.

I don't think Parco is a definite...just have a feeling

Have to disagree here but will be interested to see. He certainly didn't look like the beast he was two or three years ago. No Colorado simply doesn't wrestle anyone tough out of conference and there are a lot of weaker teams in the Big 12 that doesn't help the cause. That said, I wouldn't want him in the quarters if I got the 1 seed.

I am not a big Iowa fan but have to admit, the generational talent is the Penn St team. Their coaches are amazing at getting the best kids and making them better. Watching Kusak, Mess, and Levi chain wrestle through positions is truly unbelievable. Can you imagine what that room is like? If not beating them means you change your coach, who will be left? I understand the frustration but at least Iowa had their run with Gable. What about the rest of the teams? Iowa is still the second best program in the country on average and somebody is coaching that program and bringing in talent.

And you go into his matches knowing he has the talent to beat his opponent no matter who that might be which is fun as a spectator

Great post here…real life considerations

Him making the cut to 57k 4 years from now seems highly unlikely. That said, as others have noted, he is hardly over the hill age wise, has a refreshed training situation and on any given day can go with any of those other guys. The OSU room when he was there had no one at his level and the John Smith mystique was badly tarnished. I certainly wouldn’t be at all surprised to see him make another world team. I love Vito but he didn’t exactly crush Fix in this years ncaa final nor did he crush Blaze in the X matches. All those guys are very close so I think it premature to count Fix out though get it why some have doubts.

At the end of the day, modern sports is entertainment competing against countless other things for eyes. The more exciting you can make it the better.