2023-24 Wisconsin Preview

The backend of the Badgers lineup is going to look a bit different in 2023-24. We’ll get to it in the meat of this preview, but there will be some new big boys anchoring Coach Bono’s lineup this year. Listen to what Coach Bono had to say about this year’s team here. Top Returners A pair of multiple-time All-Americans are returning for Wisconsin this season. At 125, Eric Barnett, who claimed spots on the podium in both 2021 and ’22, comes back after falling short in the Round of 12 in Tulsa, OK. He will be joined by Dean Hamiti who finished in 6th place in each of the last two seasons at NCAAs. Also, two-time qualifier Joey Zargo is back again this year looking for his first AA finish. The Junior from Bergen Catholic, New Jersey will be making the move up to 149 this year after going 0-2 last year to end his season. Key Departures As I said in the open, the backend of the Badgers lineup is going to look different this year. First off, Braxton Amos, who had a horrible injury that ended his season last year, will be taking an Olympic redshirt to focus on his Greco training. I got a chance to talk with Amos about his decision and you can listen to that here. Secondly, the presence that the Badgers had for six straight seasons at heavyweight has moved on. Trent Hillger finished his career as the first Wisconsin heavyweight in school history to become a four-time AA. Then at 133 and 149, there will be some holes left by All-American Taylor LaMont, who qualified at 133 last year, and Austin Gomez, who was also an AA during his career that we had thought had come to an end, but seems to have new life at Michigan. Gomez also had one of the biggest wins of the year a season ago when he defeated eventual four-time NCAA Champ Yianni Diakomihalis. Newcomers As Coach Bono mentioned when we spoke, this year’s recruiting class is one of the best that he’s been around. In the offseason, 11 new Badgers joined the team with 7 freshmen and 4 transfers coming in. Looking to fill the void left by Hillger, there are a few guys vying for the spot. They have six heavyweights listed on the roster, but Coach Bono specifically mentioned Peter Christensen, Brooks Empey, Gannon Rosenfeld, and Isaac Klarkowski. Christensen, who has the most experience of these guys and was Hillger’s main training partner, was the #2-ranked 195-pounder in the country coming out of high school in 2019. Now he’s put on some size and will be looking to fill that spot at HWT. An interesting storyline here is Klarkowski, the transfer from Rice. After walking on to the football team there, he worked his way up to become a starter. He comes back to wrestling after donning a helmet for the last few years. The last time he was on a wrestling mat he finished third at the Wisconsin state tournament. Rosenfeld is a guy that we could see emerge to take the reins here. Coach Bono described him as a “raw athlete” that can “surprise some people.” The HWT spot will probably come down to Christensen and Rosenfeld. Two other weights that will need to be filled are 133 and 197. At 133, Nicolar Rivera will be the guy stepping in. As a true freshman, he got some good experience with 15 matches on the year and notched an 8-7 record. At 197, with Amos taking an Olympic Redshirt, it will come down to Dylan Russo and Michael Tal-Shahar. Of the two, Tal-Shahar has more experience, but truly, it’s anyone’s game here. Wrestlers to Watch A pair of transfers that Coach Bono mentioned during our conversation are Max Maylor and Shane Liegel. Maylor, a graduate transfer, is coming back to his home state of Wisconsin after spending a few years at Michigan where he was in the lineup at 174 last season for the Wolverines. Liegel, who is also a grad transfer, will come in at 184. He was a four-time AA and 2021 National Champion for Loras College before joining Bono and Readers’ squad. Top out-of-conference dual An early season test is coming on Nov. 19th when Wisconsin heads to Ames, IA to take on #10-ranked Iowa State. Last year these two met in Jacksonville, FL where the Cyclones dominated, 26-6. This year there’s no neutral site so they will have to deal with a hostile environment and the tall task of taking on a very experienced squad.

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2023-24 Wisconsin Preview

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