2021 NCAA runner-up Brandon Courtney (Photo/Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com)Arizona State Sun Devils
“It [has] been a lot of elbow grease over the last several years. … I think we're now starting to stabilize this program where we can start to really, truly do some good things on the wrestling mat, classroom, and life.†--Head Coach Zeke Jones
The reigning Pac-12 champions and NCAA fourth-place team, Arizona State, is set to make another run at the national championships this coming year. Coach Zeke Jones and company enter the year with seven wrestlers ranked in the Top 9 of their respective weights, including six NCAA qualifiers from 2021, among them five 2021 All-Americans and one Round of 12 finisher. The Sun Devils are the team to beat in the conference, ranked the preseason #3 tournament, #8 dual team by InterMat.
With the entire conference feeling energized and reloaded after the truncated season in 2021, Arizona State will get the best from their in-conference competitors as they pursue the highest distinction at the national level. The staff has put together a diverse list of competitors for the 2021-2022 season, laying out a persistent schedule ahead for the wrestlers. The Sun Devils wrestle a brief open tournament schedule in November, with a mid-month dual-meet against UR/#12 Oklahoma sandwiched between the Mountaineer (Appalachian State) Open and Cowboy (Wyoming) Open, and end their first semester at the inaugural Collegiate Duals just before Christmas. They then run an eleven-dual strong second-semester schedule of non-conference duals bookending the brief-but-spicy Pac-12 dual-season, including #5/#5 Michigan in early January and #6/#2 Missouri mid-February. Considering the Pac-12 conference tournament is a one-day event, it appears the Sun Devils are banking their tournament wrestling for NCAAs.
TOP RETURNERS
The highest, preseason ranked Sun Devils enter the year at #4 in their respective weight classes. These three wrestlers are evenly distributed in the Arizona State line-up (125, lightweight; 157, middle-weight; 285, heavyweight), forming a balanced pitchfork with which Coach Jones and staff can combat a strong national field.
Brandon Courtney is the returning NCAA Runner-up at 125lbs, falling to Spencer Lee at the conclusion of an outstanding, one-loss season for the 2x Pac-12 Champion. With the return of the Ivy League competitors, the necessity for Courtney to jump a level is imminent as he will be an instrumental piece to any team-trophy bid for Arizona State.
At 157lbs, returning All-American and fellow 2x Pac-12 Champion Jacori Teemer is a proven factor at the weight, having won six(!) matches at NCAAs to finish 4th in 2021, leaving the NCAA mat in a 1-0 loss to preseason #3 Ryan Deakin (Northwestern) for third place. Teemer is expected to be in a tight-race at a dynamic weight-class, with last year's 149lbs NCAA Champion, #2 Austin O'Connor (North Carolina), moving up to face defending NCAA Champion, #1 David Carr (Iowa State), a move that undoubtedly further complicates claims to the national crown.
Cohlton Schultz made himself a known force at heavyweight, finishing 4th at a loaded 285lbs class in 2021 -- all while continuing to pursue a budding senior-level Greco career for himself, already a 2019 Junior World Silver. After NCAAs, Schultz made the 2021 Senior World Team and now returns to the collegiate mat with invaluable international experience in tow -- not to mention four more years of collegiate eligibility. Schultz is on a path to be a serious contender for the national title now and for the foreseeable future.
KEY DEPARTURES
From the 2021 NCAA squad, the Sun Devils have seen two wrestlers depart via transfer. National qualifier Cory Crooks (149) completed his undergraduate studies and is now a graduate student at Oregon State. Pac-12 runner-up and national qualifier Trey Munoz (174) transferred out after a strong freshman season, also landing at in-conference Oregon State. At 184lbs, Cade Belshay's graduation leaves 184lbs open for a new starter.
TOP NEWCOMERS
Cael Valencia, InterMat's Preseason Pac-12 Newcomer of the Year, draws our attention with his potential. The youngest Valencia, Cael follows his brothers in wrestling for the Sun Devils and was the #13 (MatScouts) recruit from the high school class of 2021. Twice a California State runner-up before losing his senior year to COVID, Valencia nonetheless brings his own reputation to Arizona State. With Stanford's #31 Tyler Eischens the only Pac-12 wrestler ranked in the preseason, 174lbs may be ripe for a new face to make their mark. It'll be up to Valencia to establish himself as a force this early into his collegiate career.
Additionally, two transfers provide immediate quality in the Arizona State line-up, with Jonathan Fagen (184, Cornell) and returning All-American, #6 Kyle Parco (149, Fresno State) now training in Tempe. Fagen is projected to help shore up the 184lbs class, where the graduation of Cade Belshay has left a void in experience for the Sun Devils. Similarly, with the aforementioned Crooks graduating and transferring, Parco's transfer into the Arizona State room immediately fills the void at 149lbs with an All-American caliber wrestler.
WRESTLERS TO WATCH
To reiterate, the Sun Devils will field a line-up with potentially seven Top 9 wrestlers, of which three are ranked in the Top 4 of their weight class. Sun Devil faithful should relish any opportunity to get eyes on the Arizona State squad this season, if only for the intrigue.
Of particular intrigue is the conclusion of the collegiate career of All-American, #7 Anthony Valencia (165). Will Valencia, the Sun Devil's most seasoned and senior member, be able to cap his career with an unprecedented fifth Pac-12 title and an elusive national championship? Will he be able to spur his young Sun Devil teammates to another team-trophy performance? Such questions of a team's senior and team are themselves strong indicators of what is yet to come, and Valencia and his fellow Sun Devils are sure to enter the year with lofty expectations.
POTENTIAL LINEUP
125: #4 Brandon Courtney (RS-Jr), Pac-12 Champion (2020, 2021), NWCA All-American (2020), NCAA Runner-up (2021)
133: #9 Michael McGee (RS-Jr), MAC Champion (2018-2019), NCAA All-American (2021)
141: Jesse Vasquez (Fr) / Julian Chlebove (RS-Fr)
149: #6 Kyle Parco (RS-Fr), NCAA All-American (2021)
157: #4 Jacori Teemer (RS-So), Pac-12 Champion (2020, 2021), NWCA All-American (2020), NCAA All-American (2021)
165: #7 Anthony Valencia (RS-Sr), Pac-12 Champion (2017, 2018, 2020, 2021), NWCA All-American (2020), NCAA All-American (2021)
174: Cael Valencia (Fr)
184: Josh Nummer (RS-Fr) / Jonathan Fagen (So-Tr)
197: #8 Kordell Norfleet (RS-Jr), Pac-12 Champion (2018, 2020-2021), NCAA Round of 12 (2021), NWCA All-American (2020)
285: #4 Cohlton Schultz (RS-Fr), Pac-12 Champion (2021), NCAA All-American (2021)
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