2021 NCAA All-American Parker Keckeisen (Photo/Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com; Graphic/Anna-Lee Marie)Welcome to a new recurring feature from InterMat as we lead into the 2021-22 collegiate season. We are about 50 days away from the start of the new season, so what better way to ring in the new year than to use that time to count down the top-50 current collegiate wrestlers. Each day a new wrestler will be released.
These rankings have been compiled by members of the InterMat staff and used a combination of collegiate achievements, with 2021 accomplishments carrying more weight than past years, along with win-loss records and notable wins. While we are counting down the top-50 wrestlers based primarily on collegiate accomplishments, it is impossible to totally ignore achievements in the international settings, so they did factor in slightly, too.
Before getting to the next wrestler on the list, look at the wrestlers previously profiled:
#50 - Greg Kerkvliet (Penn State)
#49 - Ben Darmstadt (Cornell)
#48 - Dakota Geer (Oklahoma State)
#47 - Kaleb Young (Iowa)
#46 - Rocky Elam (Missouri)
#45 - Chad Red Jr. (Nebraska)
#44 - Brandon Courtney (Arizona State)
#43 - Brock Mauller (Missouri)
#42 - Cohlton Schultz (Arizona State)
#41 - John Poznanski (Rutgers)
#40 - Brayton Lee (Minnesota)
#39 - Travis Wittlake (Oklahoma State)
Next is…
Parker Keckeisen (Northern Iowa)
Weight: 184 lbs
Year: Freshman
Career Record: 18-1
Hometown: Glendale, Wisconsin
College Accomplishments: 2021 NCAA 3rd Place, 2021 Big 12 Champion
2021-22 Preseason Ranking: #4 at 184 lbs
It's safe to say that no other wrestler amongst the top-50 had a start to the 2021 season like Parker Keckeisen. The #14 overall recruit in the Class of 2019, Keckeisen was one of the more decorated recruits signed by Northern Iowa in recent years. An 18-1 campaign while redshirting in 2019-20 only reinforced the high expectations for the Wisconsin native. The majority of his wins during that year came against non-DI competition, while his only loss was by a single point to Iowa starter Abe Assad.
Keckeisen's redshirt freshman year got off to a rocky start as he lost a wrestle-off at 184 lbs to Keegan Moore. During Northern Iowa's season-opening duals against North Dakota State and South Dakota State, Moore was in the lineup for the Panthers. Keckeisen saw action in “extra†matches and won twice via bonus points.
A week later, Moore got the nod again versus Missouri. Keckeisen did post a pair of solid wins against returning national qualifier Wyatt Koelling and true freshman Colton Hawks in “extra†competition. Moore dropped his bout via fall.
With both performances against Missouri in mind, Keckeisen was thrown into the Panthers next dual against Oklahoma. He responded with a dominant 21-8 major decision over Darrien Roberts. Keckeisen would be the lineup for the remainder of the season.
In his next outing, Keckeisen not only showed he was capable of starting, but he also proved he was a contender in year one. Keckeisen scored a sudden victory win over Oklahoma State's returning All-American Dakota Geer.
Keckeisen's next win did not appear to be great at the time, but once the smoke cleared in March, an 8-5 victory over eventual NCAA sixth-place finisher Brit Wilson (Northern Illinois) looks pretty strong. He concluded an undefeated regular season with wins over Cade Belshay (Arizona State) and Sam Colbray (Iowa State) on Valentine's Day.
At his first Big 12 Championship, Keckeisen lived up to his top-seed and captured a conference title after wins over eventual NCAA qualifiers Alan Clothier (Northern Colorado) and Tate Samuelson (Wyoming), among others. Keckeisen's victory ensured that UNI would have a conference champion at 184 for the fourth consecutive year (Drew Foster/twice and Taylor Lujan/once).
An undefeated record and a Big 12 win in a conference with five national qualifiers was good enough for the fourth seed in St. Louis. Right off the bat, Keckeisen was challenged by the Iowa State veteran, Colbray, a past NCAA Round of 12 finisher. Keckeisen kept his composure and prevailed 2-1. Next up in the Round of 16 was fellow freshman David Key (Navy). There was no drama associated with this match as Keckeisen posted a 16-5 major decision.
The quarterfinals presented Keckeisen with the fifth-seed Hunter Bolen (Virginia Tech). The two battled back-and-forth, but it was the Panther who got a takedown in sudden victory to win 4-2. Defeating Bolen clinched All-American status for Keckeisen and he had a berth in the semis opposite top-seeded Aaron Brooks (Penn State). While Keckeisen acquitted himself well, he did fall to Brooks, 6-4.
Saturday morning in St. Louis, Keckeisen was able to shrug off the Brooks loss and wrestle back for third place. In the consolation semis, he got by Wilson again and for third place, he survived a scuffle with Rutgers true freshman John Poznanski, 5-4.
Keckeisen's third-place finish was the highest for a Panther freshman since Jim Harman in 1952 (2nd). He also became the 11th freshman to earn All-American honors at UNI and only the third since 1996.
Strengths: Keckeisen has a high motor and an excellent gas tank. He's a high-volume shooter and can still summon the strength to attack late in the third and into extra time. While taking lots of shots, he may find himself in bad positions from time to time. His ability to build up and reset, coupled with great scrambling skills, see him punished for getting into unfavorable situations. A double may be his best attack, but he can score with plenty of leg attacks.
2021-22 Outlook: Keckeisen starts the year ranked fourth behind both 2021 NCAA finalists and Olympic bronze medalist Myles Amine. With another season under his belt, Keckeisen could threaten for a national title. He is one of only two wrestlers that kept national champion, Brooks, to within two points. The Big 12 should present some challenges along the way. Aside from Keckeisen, there are three others currently ranked in the top-15 and three more located in the preseason rankings.
2021 NCAA All-American Parker Keckeisen (Photo/Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com)
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