Let me set up the Hollywood script. It's late in the third period, Robles is in the top position and has just erased riding time as they roll out of bounds. McDonough gives Robles a hard (but legal) shove as the whistle blows. You can hear Brands yelling in the background as Robles looks up to his mom in the crowd. She whispers "You can do it" as he makes his way back to the center. The camera cuts to an Iowa fan spitting tobacco into a cup. With 15 seconds to go, Robles gets a funky roll for the win as the time runs out. The crowd goes crazy and the camera pans to the crowd as a Kings of Leon rock ballad kicks in.
133: No. 1 Jordan Oliver (Oklahoma State) over No. 3 Andrew Long (Penn State)
A weight with Mike Grey as the No. 8 seed and Scotti Sentes as the No. 11 seed obviously deep. Having said that, Oliver has all of the tools to dominate this weight class. He is fast, physical, and is technically sound. Look for Andrew Long to repeat his finals performance, but be outclassed and majored by Oliver.
141: No. 4 Jimmy Kennedy (Illinois) over No. 6 Andrew Alton (Penn State)
Andrew Alton has had a great true freshman season, and right now he is preparing in the wrestling room with guys that are as talented as the guys at this weight class. Kennedy is a veteran that will work his way through a few sudden death victories to find himself in the finals. This is another very difficult weight class with a ton of talent.
149: No. 5 Jamal Parks (Oklahoma) over No. 2 Frank Molinaro (Penn State)
Hypothesis 1: Caldwell has not gotten enough burn against top competition this year. Hypothesis 2: Parks has the talent and natural ability to hang with DC. The message board questions are going to come up after this tourney on whether Caldwell's 14 matches over two years were the reason why he didn't win it.
157: No. 3 David Taylor (Penn State) over No. 1 Adam Hall (Boise State)
This weight class has a lot of intrigue that has already been discussed at length. To be honest, I am most interested in the results of my boy James Fleming. I am more fixated on his turn than I am on who Kristin Cavallari is dating ... and that is saying a lot.
165: No. 1 Jordan Burroughs (Nebraska) over No. 2 Andrew Howe (Wisconsin)
As my uncle Jim would say, when Burroughs and Howe meet ... you can throw out the record books! My only concern with Burroughs is that he has teched and pinned so many of his opponents that he may not be able to hang with the slow, boring seven-minute pace of Howe. The winner of this weight is the likely OW winner.
174: No. 3 Mack Lewnes (Cornell) over No. 1 Jon Reader (Iowa State)
Lewnes is finally working from an underdog position, which sets up perfectly for him. I expect him to beat Ruth in the semifinals and take down Reader in a 5-2 match in the finals. Experience and my 20+ years of breaking down brackets has taught me that you can't back a No. 1 seed that didn't AA the year before. Count on Reader at your own risk.
184: No. 11 Kirk Smith (Boise State) over No. 8 Kevin Steinhaus (Minnesota)
This weight is the key to Penn State having a chance at the title going into Saturday. Unfortunately, it is likely that Kevin Steinhaus will take down Quentin Wright in the second round. Kirk Smith is very talented and should be able to control this weight class. He has had a tough year that will be quickly made up for in the championship weekend. Look for Smith to pull Boise State into the top four.
197: No. 4 Dustin Kilgore (Kent State) over No. 3 Trevor Brandvold (Wisconsin)
Dustin Kilgore has basically worked over most of the competition this year. 26 of his 33 wins have been major decisions or better. His only losses were Micah Burak, who is on the other side of the bracket, and Cayle Byers who is no longer in the picture (but will be for Iowa next year). Kilgore is a future two-time national champion who will make Kent State proud.
285: No. 1 Zach Rey (Lehigh) over No. 2 Jarod Trice (Central Michigan)
Heavyweights and white singlets are not a good combination. For the sake of all of the fans tuning in for the finals on ESPN, let's hope that Lehigh leaves the "championship singlets" at home. The future TV rating of our sport depends on it.
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