3x NCAA All-American Sebastian Rivera (Photo/Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com)Rutgers Scarlet Knights
Despite all the challenges that came with the 2021 college wrestling season, Rutgers capped the year on a high note, with three All-Americans, the most in program history.
The Scarlet Knights are looking to build off that success in the upcoming '21-22 campaign. A bunch of talent, plus some new faces, returns this season. They begin the year ranked No. 15 overall by InterMat.
“A lot of talent in this room, so that makes it fun,†Rutgers coach Scott Goodale said in an interview with InterMat last weekend. “We're excited to get back to the RAC. Our guys feed off that energy. That's one thing we missed last year.â€
TOP RETURNERS
Let's start with the returning All-Americans: Sebastian Rivera (141), Jackson Turley (174) and John Poznanski (184).
Rivera is a spark plug near the top of the lineup. Turley won four consecutive wrestleback matches on his way to the NCAA podium and Poznanski capped a breakout freshman campaign with a fourth-place finish at the national tournament.
Behind them, two others qualified for the 2021 NCAA Championships, in Mike Van Brill (149) and Billy Janzer (197). Additionally, Sammy Alvarez, a 2020 NCAA qualifier as a true freshman, will return at 133 pounds, plus Robert Kanniard at 157 and both Alex Esposito and Boone McDermott at heavyweight.
KEY DEPARTURES
The Scarlet Knights will be without two notable wrestlers from last year's postseason team: Shane Metzler, who started at 133 pounds at the Big Ten Championships, and heavyweight Christian Colucci. Rutgers has both experience and new faces ready to fill both spots.
TOP NEWCOMERS
Three notable newcomers could make immediate impacts for Rutgers this season.
The first, Greg Bulsak, a four-time NCAA qualifier for Clarion with a 77-25 career record who opted to spend his final season of eligibility with the Scarlet Knights. He was the 14-seed at the 2021 NCAA Championships, and will battle Janzer to start at 197.
The second, Nick Raimo, who transferred in after spending his first two seasons at Arizona State. He won two New Jersey state titles, and wrestled in just two matches last year for the Sun Devils. He'll battle Alvarez for the starting spot at 133.
The third, Dean Peterson, a true freshman from nearby St. John Vianney who joined as part of Rutgers' 2021 recruiting class. He was a two-time NJ state champ and will be a lightweight fixture for Rutgers moving forward. He is expected to redshirt in '21-22.
WRESTLER TO WATCH
Sebastian Rivera, of course. He's one of college wrestling's most exciting competitors, and has a résumé that's sterling compared to many of his peers.
He is now a three-time All-American, twice at 125 for Northwestern, then at 141 for Rutgers. He's also a two-time Big Ten champion, once at 125, then again at 133. He's got world championship experience, too, representing Puerto Rico and finishing eighth at 65 kilograms at the 2021 Senior men's freestyle world championships in Norway.
There's a lot of reason to be excited about Rutgers this year and into the future. Rivera's final collegiate season is one of them. Catch him while you still can this year.
POTENTIAL LINEUP
125: Dylan Shawver (Dean Peterson (Fr)
133: Sammy Alvarez (So)/Nick Raimo (So)
141: Sebastian Rivera (Sr)
149: Mike Van Brill, Gerard Angelo (So)/JoJo Aragona (So)
157: Robert Kanniard (Fr)/Jake Benner (So)
165: Andrew Clark (Fr)/Connor O'Neill (Fr)
174: Jackson Turley (So)
184: John Poznanski (Fr)
197: Greg Bulsak (Sr)
285: Boone McDermott (So)/ Alex Esposito (Jr)
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