wrestle87

These are some very valid points. I think they may be the front runners in adopting the Deon Sanders recruiting guidelines, let guys prove themselves elsewhere then recruit them in the transfer portal once they have proven themselves. They've got a consistent enough track record of eligibility swiping that they may just be bleeding edge front-runners in this practice. They know that good guys at small programs want to be respected and paid better. Carver does that big time. I don't know how long they'll be able to do it for, but this is sort of where we have to see ho NIL continues to shake out long term.

Scrolled all the way waiting for somebody to remember this guy. If you tech somebody in the NCAA finals by riding legs, you're pretty darn good at it. My knowledge only extends to around 2000, but Mitch Clark, Derek Moore and the brothers Perry were both incredible leg riders, Derek Moore from what I recall was a total cross-body monster, the brothers Perry were almost exclusively short boots. I'd also like to throw out a question about best weight-cutters of all time. Mitch Clark might be amongst them. I remember reading from his book way back in the day that even though he wrestled at 177, he stepped on the scale at over 200 pounds just before that match.

I really approached this incorrectly from a linguistic perspective, the Brands are a collective and you won't have nearly the success within the program without having both of them there. I think they're the #2 GM(s), probably #5 coaches from a development standpoint. They're the #1 coaches for 125-133, but for the rest of the weights I put them around #10. Board enthusiasm aside, I don't think any of us have the connections or experience to run that program for a day. We would also have to come up with capable doppelgangers while staying away from a bizarro-superman type outcome.

Highly underrated comment right here...

Manning definitely is in the conversation for the #2. Brands brothers are definitely #2 if not #1 in program management, which is a perpetually dismissed portion of a successful franchise. In football terms, they may not be in the conversation for being the best athlete developers, but they definitely are when it comes to the General Manager side of managing the program. At this point, a part of keeping your program relevant is simply being continuously talked about. It keeps butts in seats and dollars in your wallet. And dollars are oxygen.

What hallucination are you living in where the brands that stepped on the mat a few days ago was qualitatively the same wrestler who got those big wins? Those wins happened how many years ago? Did you ever spend time in a college room and notice what happens to ~50% of the guys in there, peaking around year 2-3 and then falling off because their joints can’t keep up with the mileage? ”And if reasonably healthy” is the biggest mickey’s magic kingdom fairy dust add-on, brands had tape from his ankle to his hip, he didn’t hit his knee offensively until the last second of the match. Kennedy is at least mobile, can use both his legs and is capable of scoring points besides an escape. I’ll take the wrestler who put pinto on his back and had him on the ropes over the guy whose big moment was a 3rd period escape against hamiti. Cast your wishes in your own mirror, I just want to watch interesting matches with wrestlers who can actually still wrestler. Brands is no longer in that category.

This is likely true, and would be john smith levels of home cooking to the detriment of the team. The Brands we saw last night is not going to get more than two wins at ncaa's, and likely won't get higher than 7th at big tens. Kennedy has a much higher ceiling than that. Brands is clearly very beat up, you can just tell when a guy has multiple joints giving out, they get hesitant and don't want to commit because something is already broken and they don't want it to get worse. I highly suspect this is what Cam Amine is facing. He doesn't wrestle freely anymore. Even if he was always conservative, wrestling clearly physically hurts in a way it didn't use to. Arnold belongs at 174, and is missing out because he likely agreed to be the team player even though he is clearly better than both 174 options. Absolute strength is a level-setter, and he has more horsepower than anyone else on the team can bring at 174. Too bad he got the royal screw job. If they really wanted, would they be allowed to start Gabe and just let him hack his way through Big 10's with no wins? Or does he not qualify because he didn't have enough matches at that weight?

I don't disagree. The rubber only meets the road from here. It's gotta be a pretty hearty assault on the ego too, coming into college with some legit credentials, having to let go of football (intelligently) in pursuit of wrestling, but then just getting big brothered. How he finishes this year will be very impactful for how the next two years go for him. I hope he is able to recenter, but he's up against one of the toughest cohorts of heavies I can remember since the early 2000's.

The only rejoinder that iowa fans have had for the past 15 years since the front row on the outside become the expected standard for where their team race starts and finishes each year.

It's because it is their predominant form of offense...

The poetic symmetry would be undeniable.

I feel bad for Kueter. He is the epitome of a dude who is just bodytype screwed by the weight class divisions. Just doesn't have the horsepower to do anything about it when the big dudes decide to make a move.

65-74-84 in particular looked like they were stuck in molasses. Love the attempted heavyweight mouse trap by hendrickson.

Stalling calls just falling from the sky like christmas snow for Iowa. The Hawkeye credit union must be giving this guy an amazing rate on his car and mortgage.

That's why mrs senior is storing inflatable life rafts masquerading as lips.

Ferrari will be top 3 this year if he wrestles. He should start. Injuries are such a fickle part of the sport, he's the closest match that Starocci has had in years, just proved his level in that match with Plott. Don't love the act but you can't deny the ability.

To Ferrari's credit, he is very good and hands down their best option at 184. This would have been a major against arnold.

Bought and paid for, brought to you by a stall call with action going out of bounds.

How tf does brands not get a single stall call that match. Carver fans, this is why people say you are a purchased clown car of officiating.

Love a good iowa style push and hang. No stalling on brands is really fantastic duplicity.

Stalling on bottom. What's he doing?

Love an official arbitrarily using stalling to dictate outcomes of a dual. That dude did not wrestle a major decision match.

double thy pry definitely not stalling though...

Teemer with the booboo brace, hope he has enough mileage left on his arm to make a good run in the postseason.