Last year Andrew Howe captured a U.S. Open title after his sophomore season at Wisconsin. Howe, a three-time All-American, will not compete at this year's U.S. Open, but is expected to wrestle at the U.S. World Team Trials in June. The 2010 U.S. Open saw 13 collegiate wrestlers place.
Which collegiate wrestlers will shine this year at the U.S. Open? Below is a list of 10 collegiate wrestlers who could make an impact this weekend at the U.S. Open in Cleveland.
Two-time NCAA champion Jordan Burroughs is the No. 5 seed (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com)College: Nebraska
Weight Class: 74 kg
Outlook: Burroughs is coming off a dominant collegiate season. He went 36-0 and finished his collegiate wrestling career with his second NCAA title. Burroughs also won the Dan Hodge Trophy and was voted InterMat Wrestler of the Year. Expectations are very high for Burroughs in freestyle. Many believe he is the future for the U.S. in this weight class ... and some believe that future is now. He possess a rare combination of speed, power, and athleticism. As a collegiate competitor, Burroughs had wins over Andrew Howe, a 2010 U.S. Open champion, and Dustin Schlatter, a 2009 U.S. World Team Trials champion. Burroughs, the fifth seed, will have to navigate through a field that includes U.S. World Team members Schlatter and Trent Paulson.
Dom Bradley
College: Missouri
Weight Class: 120 kg
Outlook: Bradley finally cracked the Mizzou lineup for the postseason as a junior, after sitting behind NCAA champion Mark Ellis the previous two seasons, and finished third at the NCAAs. Bradley was a 2009 Junior World champion in freestyle. He has fared well on the senior level and is a member of the U.S. National Team. He has finished third at the U.S. World Team Trials the past two years. Last year he notched a victory over past U.S. World Team member Tommy Rowlands. Bradley, the third seed, is competing in a heavyweight class this is loaded with talent. It includes four past U.S. World or Olympic Team members.
2011 NCAA champion Dustin Kilgore is the No. 8 seed (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com)College: Kent State
Weight Class: 96 kg
Outlook: "Killer" became Kent State's first NCAA champion in wrestling last month by winning the crown at 197 pounds with a pin over then-undefeated Clayton Foster of Oklahoma State. Kilgore has been successful in age group events throughout his career ... and last year he began making waves on the senior level by placing fourth at the U.S. World Team Trials. Kilgore grew up just outside Cleveland in Berea, Ohio, so having the U.S. Open in Cleveland might prove to be an advantage for him. He comes in as the No. 8 seed and will likely see 2009 U.S. World Team member Jake Varner in the quarterfinals.
Sonny Yohn
College: Minnesota
Weight Class: 96 kg
Outlook: Yohn earned his second straight All-American honor at Minnesota this past season by placing seventh at 197 pounds. He has a strong freestyle pedigree with success in age group events and on the senior level. Yohn placed fifth at the 2010 University World Championships last October in Turin, Italy. He was also fifth at the U.S. Open a year ago. If that's not enough fifths ... Yohn is the fifth seed at 96 kg.
Jarod Trice is a two-time All-American at Central Michigan (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com)College: Central Michigan
Weight Class: 120 kg
Outlook: "Doughboy" became a two-time All-American (with one season remaining) by placing fourth at the NCAAs last month. He has been very successful in age group events in both freestyle and Greco-Roman. Trice was a University Nationals double champion last spring. He competed at the 2010 University World Championships in Greco-Roman and placed eighth. if the seeds hold true at 120 kg, Trice, the seventh seed, will face 2009 World bronze medalist Tervel Dlagnev in the quarterfinals.
Ryan Tomei
College: Pittsburgh
Weight Class: 120 kg
Outlook: Tomei was the sixth-seeded heavyweight at the NCAAs last month, but was upset in the opening round. He came back to win two matches in the consolation bracket, but fell short of All-American honors. Tomei placed fifth at the U.S. Open in 2009. He earned the eighth seed at 120 kg.
Mario Mason
College: Rutgers
Weight Class: 66 kg
Outlook: Mason, a two-time NCAA qualifier, was ranked in the top 10 most of the season, even climbing to as high as third in the nation at 149 pounds. He entered the NCAAs as the No. 7 seed, but failed to earn All-American honors, going 2-2 and losing in the round of 12. Mason is a freestyle-first wrestler. He not only enjoys it more, but his style is better suited for freestyle than collegiate wrestling. He was inactive last spring, but in 2009 competed in both the U.S. World Team Trials and the FILA Junior World Team Trials. He went 1-2 at the U.S. World Teams Trials, but opened some eyes at that event by wrestling a competitive match against 2008 U.S. Olympian Dough Schwab. He was runner-up to Jason Chamberlain at the 2009 FILA Junior World Team Trials. Mason is unseeded at 66 kg.
Frank Perrelli
College: Cornell
Weight Class: 55 kg
Outlook: Perrelli had a strong season at Cornell, winning over 30 matches, but had a disappointing NCAAs, going 1-2 at 125 pounds. He was a University Nationals champion last spring, which qualified him for the 2010 U.S. World Team Trials, but chose not to compete. Perrelli is seeded eighth at 55 kg.
Chris Honeycutt earned All-Americans honors at 184 (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com)College: Edinboro
Weight Class: 84 kg
Outlook: Honeycutt entered the NCAAs last month undefeated and as the top seed at 184 pounds. He wound up placing fifth to earn his first All-American honor. Honeycutt has been successful in freestyle age group events (fourth at the 2008 FILA Junior Nationals), but is still looking to make his mark on the senior level.
P.J. Gillespie
College: Hofstra
Weight Class: 74 kg
Outlook: Gillespie, a junior, earned his first All-American honor by placing eighth at 165 pounds after entering the NCAAs unseeded. He was a fifth-place finisher at University Nationals in freestyle in 2008. Gillespie is unseeded at 74 kg.
Other collegiate wrestlers to watch at the U.S. Open: Jarrod Garnett (60 kg), Erik Spjut (60 kg), Billy Ashnault (66 kg), Frank Hickman (74 kg), Jake Salazar (74 kg), Nick Heflin (84 kg), C.J. Magrum (84 kg), Blake Rosholt (96 kg), Elijah Madison (120 kg), and Mike McClure (120 kg).
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