Marc-Anthony McGowan at the 2021 Walsh Ironman (photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com)Today, the Princeton staff got huge news on the recruiting front. Marc-Anthony McGowan (Blair Academy, NJ/FL), the number three overall recruit in the Class of 2023, announced his commitment to the Tigers via social media. McGowan was previously the highest-ranked uncommitted senior in the class. In the latest national rankings from MatScouts, McGowan was ranked fifth in the nation at 126 lbs.
The current national ranking for McGowan isn't indicative of his actual talent, he just has not competed nationally as much as others around him. In 2019, McGowan was a Cadet World Champion in freestyle at 45 kg. The previous year, Marc-Anthony was a gold medalist at the Pan-American U15 Championships in both freestyle and Greco-Roman. On the domestic front, McGowan captured a pair of National Prep titles for Blair Academy on the scholastic front. Last school year, McGowan won the Beast of the East after claiming his second National Prep championship. In 2021, McGowan came up a bit short in an attempt to make a second Cadet World team, settling for third at 51 kg.
McGowan is now the second top-100 and fifth Big Board'er to give Chris Ayres' team a verbal commitment in the Class of 2023. He joins #76 Eligh Rivera (FL), #111 Zander Silva (NJ), #138 Holden Garcia (PA), and #149 Drew Heethuis (MI) to head up an impressive recruiting class for the Tigers.
At the next level, McGowan projects as a 125/133 lber. Princeton doesn't have much in the pipeline behind 2022 NCAA finalist Patrick Glory at 125 lbs, but does have plenty of possible options at 133 lbs. Even so, getting a recruit of McGowan's caliber negates any "team needs."
McGowan is also the highest-ranked recruit to commit to Princeton during the Ayres-era. Previously, Matt Kolodzik (#6 in 2015) held that distinction. Kolodzik is also a Blair graduate and went on to earn NCAA All-American honors four times for the Tigers.
For more recruiting information, check out InterMat's Commitment Page
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