InterMat Staff

2022 70 Russian National Champion Israil Kasumov (Photo/Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) 57 KG Russian Nationals Final Results GOLD: #1 Zavur Uguev over #3 Nachyn Mongush 3-2 BRONZE: #4 Ramiz Gamzatov over Ramazan Abdurakhimov 15-13 BRONZE: Musa Mekhtikhanov over Amir Chamzyn 8-7 #1 Zavur Uguev won his fifth Russian Nationals title with a 3-2 victory over #3 Nachyn Mongush in a rematch of the 2021 Russian Nationals finals. Bronze medalists at Russian Nationals were #4 Ramiz Gamzatov and 2021 Yarygin runner-up Musa Mekhtikhanov. #5 Akhmed Idrisov moved up to 61 KG where he registered a national runner-up finish to #1 Abasgadzhi Magomedov. Important results were Amir Chamzyn upsetting #2 Azamat Tuskaev in the quarterfinals and 2018 Russian Nationals runner-up Donduk-Ool Khuresh-Ool upsetting 2021 world team member #6 Abubakar Mutaliev in the round of 32 and then being beaten by eventual fifth-place finisher Ramazan Abdurakhimov in the round of 16 by 12-2 tech fall. From the aftermath of Russian Nationals, Mongush and Gamzatov both move up one spot to #2 and #3, Musa Mekhtikhanov is back in the rankings for beating Chamzyn for bronze, Chamzyn is in the rankings at #5 for beating Tuskaev who drops to #6, and Abdurakhimov and Khuresh-Ool slot in at #7 and #8. 61 KG Russian Nationals Finals Results GOLD: #1 Abasgadzhi Magomedov over #5 (57) Akhmed Idrisov 4-2 BRONZE: Cherman Tavitov over Aldar Balzhinimaev 2-0 BRONZE: #3 Bashir Magomedov over Zhargal Damdinov by pin #1 Abasgadzhi Magomedov won his third straight Russian Nationals title over 2020 57 KG Russian Nationals bronze medalist #5 (57) Akhmed Idrisov. Save for Idrisov moving up and slotting in at #2, this weight stayed according to numbers with Magomedov beating #3 Bashir Magomedov in the semis and Idrisov beating a pair of returning Russian Nationals bronze medalists in Cherman Tavitov and Aldar Balzhinimaev to make the finals. 65 KG Russian Nationals Final Results GOLD: #7 Ibragim Ibragimov over Gadzhimurad Omarov 5-1 BRONZE: Aripgadzhi Abdulaev over Elbrus Valiev 11-10 BRONZE: Aykhaan Antonov forfeit over #1 Gadzhimurad Rashidov The bracket at 65 KG was absolutely busted through by upsets, culminating in Yarygin bronze medalist #7 Ibragim Ibragimov taking gold. Right from the top, the biggest upset was returning fifth-place finisher Gadzhimurad Omarov upsetting returning national champion and 2021 Olympic bronze medalist #1 Gadzhimurad Rashidov 4-3 in the semifinals. Then into the quarterfinals, Aripgadzhi Abdulaev upset Yarygin champion #2 Shamil Mamedov by 4-4 decision and #7 Ibragim Ibragimov teched Ivan Poddubny tournament champion #4 Alik Khadartsev 12-0. The other final notable upset was #4 Alik Khadartsev upsetting 2021 world champion #3 Zagir Shakhiev 2-0 in the round of 16. From the aftermath of Russian Nationals, Ibragimov rises six spots to #1 and Omarov skyrockets to #2. Rashidov falls two spots to #3. 2019 Cadet world champion Aripgadzhi Abdulaev debuts in the rankings at #4 after beating #2 Shamil Mamedov and Elbrus Valiev to take bronze. Mamedov falls three spots to #5, Khadartsev falls two spots to #6, and Shakhiev drops to #7. 70 KG Russian Nationals Final Results GOLD: #4 Israil Kasumov over #7 Anzor Zakuev 6-3 BRONZE: #2 Viktor Rassadin over #3 Ruslan Zhendaev 7-2 BRONZE: #5 Kurban Shiraev over Kezhik Chimba 4-1 #4 Israil Kasumov won his second consecutive national title 6-3 over the breakthrough star of the tournament #7 Anzor Zakuev. Kasumov, who rebounded from a disappointing showing at the Ivan Poddubny, beat #3 Ruslan Zhendaev and #2 Viktor Rassadin in definitive fashion (13-0 and 12-3) to make his fifth national final. Zakuev upset two-time Russian Nationals bronze medalist #5 Kurban Shiraev in the quarterfinals and avenged his 2021 Russian Nationals bronze medal loss to Abdulla Akhmedov in the semifinals. Other notable results were Alan Kudzoev beating Ivan Poddubny Tournament bronze medalist #6 Ruslan Bogatyrev in the qualification round and being beaten in the round of 32 by 2021 74 KG Yarygin champion Aznaur Tavaev. The changes to the rankings are #1 Evgheni Zherbaev being removed due to inactivity, Kasumov moving up three spots to #1 for winning Russian Nationals, Zakuev moving up four spots to #3, for beating #5 Kurban Shiraev and #9 Abdulla Akhmedov, plus his win from January over #3 Zhendaev at the Yarygin. Tavaev and Kudzoev are back in the rankings at #6 and #7 for Tavaev beating Kudzoev who beat #6 Ruslan Bogatyrev. #8 (70) Magomed Dibirgadzhiev moved up to 74 KG where he got bronze at Russian Nationals. 74KG Russian Nationals Final Results GOLD: #3 Razambek Zhamalov over #4 Cherman Valiev 3-2 BRONZE: #2 David Baev over Semen Tereschenko 4-0 BRONZE: #8 (70) Magomed Dibirgadzhiev over Robert Dzhukaev 3-0 #3 Razambek Zhamalov won his second Russian Nationals title beating 2020 70 KG Russian Nationals champ #4 Cherman Valiev in the finals. In the semis, Zhamalov beat #2 David Baev 9-3 to avenge his loss from the Ivan Poddubny Tournament and #4 Cherman Valiev beat #8 (70) Magomed Dibirgadzhiev. The other major upset from nationals was #8 (70) Magomed Dibirgadzhiev beating #6 Magomedrasul Gazimagomedov 4-4 in the quarterfinals. The changes to the rankings are Zhamalov moving up one spot to #2, and #Dibirgadzhiev taking the #6 spot after taking bronze and beating Gazimagomedov. 79KG Russian Nationals Finals Results GOLD: #2 Malik Shavaev over #8 Magomed Magomaev 6-4 BRONZE: #1 Radik Valiev over Begkhan Misrikhanov 8-0 BRONZE: #10 Nikita Suchkov over #5 Gadzhimurad Alikhmaev 4-2 #2 Malik Shavaev won his second-straight national title with victories over #8 Magomed Magomaev, #1 Radik Valiev and #6 Akhmed Usmanov. Shavaev moves up one spot to #1 for upsetting returning world bronze medalist #1 Radik Valiev in the quarterfinals. Valiev beat returning national runner-up #6 Akhmed Usmanov in the repechage bracket. Magomaev made the finals by beating a trio of Russian Nationals medalists in 2x Russian Nationals bronze medalist #10 Nikita Suchkov, Kakhaber Khubezhty, and 2020 Russian Nationals runner-up #5 Gadzhimurad Alikhmaev. Magomaev moves up five spots to #3 for beating Suchkov and Alikhmaev to make the finals. Suchkov moves up six spots to #4 for beating #5 Gadzhimurad Alikhmaev and his past win over #3 Atsamaz Sanakoev from 2017 Russian Nationals. 2021 Russian Nationals runner-up Usmanov fell two spots in the rankings as his 2022 campaign continues to falter as he didn't placed at the Yarygin or nationals and registered losses to #Valiev, Alikhmaev, and Shavaev. 86 KG Russian Nationals Final Results GOLD: #1 Artur Naifonov over #5 Amanulla Rasulov 3-0 BRONZE: #9 Arsenali Musalaliev over Slavik Naniev 6-2 BRONZE: #3 Ada Bagomedov forfeit over #2 Dauren Kurugliev #1 Artur Naifonov won his third Russian Nationals title over Yarygin runner-up #5 Amanulla Rasulov. Rasulov had a fantastic run at Russian Nationals, beating the likes of #2 Dauren Kurugliev in the semis, #4 Khabil Khashpakov in the quarters, and #3 Ada Bagomedov in the round of 16. Rasulov skyrockets up the rankings to #2. Bagomedov beat Khashpakov in the repechage and then got bronze after Kurugliev forfeited. #9 Arsenali Musalaliev earned his fourth Russian Nationals medal by beating 2018 Alans bronze medalist Slavik Naniev. Musalaliev moves up one spot to #8. 2018 79 KG world bronze medalist #6 Akhmed Gadzhimagomedov was removed from the rankings due to retiring from injuries. Kurugliev and Bagomedov fall one spot to #3 and #4 for losses to Rasulov. 92 KG Russian Nationals Finals Results GOLD: #1 Magomed Kurbanov over #4 Azamat Zakuev 2-0 BRONZE: #2 Vladislav Valiev over #5 Guram Chertkoev 7-0 BRONZE: #3 Magomed Sharipov over #6 Tamerlan Tapsiev 7-0 #1 Magomed Kurbanov won his second national title over 2021 U23 world bronze medalist #4 Azamat Zakuev. #4 Azamat Zakuev moves up two spots to #2 for beating #2 Vladislav Valiev and #5 Guram Chertkoev. #2 Vladislav Valiev falls one spot to #3 for his loss to Zakuev. #1 Magomed Kurbanov beat #4 Magomed Sharipov and #6 Tamerlan Tapsiev. The other notable result was #6 Tamerlan Tapsiev beating #7 Alan Bagaev 8-7 in the round of 16. 97 KG Russian Nationals Final Results GOLD: #9 Aslanbek Sotiev over #4 Shamil Musaev 3-3 BRONZE: #5 Sergey Kozyrev over Igor Ovsyannikov 3-2 BRONZE: #2 Akhmed Tazhudinov over David Dzhugaev 9-3 Two-time Russian Nationals runner-up #9 Aslanbek Sotiev finally won his Russian Nationals title over 2019 Russian Nationals bronze medalist #4 Shamil Musaev. In the semis, Sotiev upset #2 Akhmed Tazhudinov in the semis and #4 Shamil Musaev beat 2021 125 KG Russian Nationals champion #5 Sergey Kozyrev. Other notable upsets were 2021 Russian Nationals bronze medalist Khokh Khugaev beating #7 Abdulla Kurbanov in the qualification round and losing to Maxim Tolmachev in the round of 16. Tolmachev and Khugaev are back in the rankings at #8 and #9 while Kurbanov falls three spots to #10. 125 KG Russian Nationals Final Results GOLD: #8 Alen Khubulov forfeit over Tamerlan Rasuev BRONZE: #5 Baldan Tsyzhipov over Alan Khugaev 3-1 BRONZE: #3 Erik Dzhioev over Gamzat Alizhudinov 8-1 Yarygin bronze medalist #8 Alen Khubulov broke through to win his first Russian National title over Tamerlan Rasuev. Heavyweight, like 65 KG, was a weight highlighted by high-profile upsets. The most notable upsets occurred in the round of 16 against the Khizriev brothers with #1 Zelimkhan Khizriev being upset in the round of 16 by Tamerlan Rasuev and #2 Anzor Khizriev being upset by returning 5th place finisher Saipudin Magomedov. Magomedov was eliminated from competition by #5 Baldan Tsyzhipov in the quarterfinals. The other upset in the round of 16 was Nikita Khabarov beating #7 Vitali Goloev. In the qualification round, 2x Russian Nationals champion #9 Alan Khugaev beat #4 Ostap Pasenok. In the semifinals, #8 Alen Khubulov beat #5 Baldan Tsyzhipov and Rasuev beat #3 Erik Dzhioev. In the aftermath of Russian Nationals, #8 Alen Khubulov moves up seven spots to #1 while Tamerlan Rasuev gets a career-high spot of #2 after beating formerly top-ranked Khizriev. Saipudin Magomedov is in the rankings at #7 for beating Khizriev who falls six spots to #8. #7 Vitali Goloev is out for losing to Nikita Khabarov and #4 Ostap Pasenok falls six spots to #10 for his loss to #9 Khugaev. Pound for Pound The biggest shakeup to the top ten in the pound-for-pound is 65 KG national champion Ibragim Ibragimov and 65 KG national runner-up Gadzhimurad Omarov debuting at #5 and #6. #3 Gadzhimurad Rashidov drops four spots to #7, due to his semifinal loss to #6 Gadzhimurad Omarov. Ibragimov is in for beating #6 Gadzhimurad Omarov, #12 Aripgadzhi Abdulaev and #14 Alik Khadartsev while Omarov gets in for beating #3 Gadzhimurad Rashidov in the semis. Aripgadzhi Abdulaev debuts in the rankings at #12 for beating #11 Shamil Mamedov in the 65 KG Russian Nationals quarterfinals. Alik Khadartsev debuts in the rankings at #14 for beating 2021 65 KG world champion #12 Zagir Shakhiev in the round of 16. Outside of 65 KG, the other new faces in the rankings are a mix of vets and new breakthrough talent. 86 KG Russian Nationals runner-up Amanulla Rasulov slots in at #17 for beating #14 Dauren Kurugliev, who falls four spots to #18. Two-time Russian Nationals champion Malik Shavaev is back in the rankings at #19 after beating #15 Radik Valiev on his way to the 79 KG Russian National title. 70 KG Russian Nationals runner-up Anzor Zakuev returns to the rankings at #23 for beating #22 Kurban Shiraev in the quarterfinals of Russian Nationals and his win over #20 Ruslan Zhendaev from the Yarygin in January. Notable removals from the rankings are as listed: #10 Magomedrasul Gazimagomedov (lost to #6(74) Magomed Dibirgadzhiev in the quarterfinals of 74 KG Russian Nationals, #16 Zelimkhan Khizriev (removed due to round of 16 loss to #2 (125) Tamerlan Rasuev at 125 KG Russian Nationals), #17 Azamat Tuskaev (removed due to quarterfinal loss at 57 KG Russian Nationals to #5 (57) Amir Chamyzn), #18 Evgheni Zherbaev (removed due to inactivity), #20 Ruslan Zhendaev (removed due to losses to #21 Israil Kasumov and #22 Viktor Rassadin at 70 KG Russian Nationals), #22 Kurban Shiraev (removed due to loss to #23 Anzor Zakuev at 70 KG Russian Nationals), and #25 Akhmed Idrisov (head to head loss to #25 Ramiz Gamzatov in 57 KG Yarygin Finals from January).

5x All-American Myles Amine (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Welcome to a new, regular feature for InterMat! Every day, for the next few months, we'll look into the recent history of a DI wrestling program with our "Ten Years of…" feature. Even if you're a die-hard supporter of a particular school, there will be good information you may have forgotten. For others, it's a quick way to learn about a program you may not be familiar with. We're going in alphabetical order for this one, so next up is...Michigan! For past teams: Air Force American Appalachian State Arizona State Army West Point Binghamton Bloomsburg Brown Bucknell Buffalo Cal Poly Campbell Central Michigan Chattanooga Clarion Cleveland State Columbia Cornell CSU Bakersfield Davidson Drexel Duke Edinboro Franklin & Marshall Gardner-Webb George Mason Harvard Hofstra Illinois Indiana Iowa Iowa State Kent State Lehigh Lock Haven Maryland NCAA Qualifiers (80) 2022 125 - Nick Suriano (#1); 133 - Dylan Ragusin (#6); 141 - Stevan Micic (#24); 157 - Will Lewan (#8); 165 - Cameron Amine (#6); 174 - Logan Massa (#3); 184 - Myles Amine (#1); 197 - Patrick Brucki (#4); 285 - Mason Parris (#6) 2021 125 - Dylan Ragusin (#11); 141 - Drew Mattin (#25); 149 - Kanen Storr (#11); 157 - Will Lewan (#14); 165 - Cameron Amine (#11); 174 - Logan Massa (#5); 197 - Myles Amine (#1); 285 - Mason Parris (#2) 2020 125 - Jack Medley (#14); 149 - Kanen Storr (#10); 157 - Will Lewan (#10); 165 - Tyler Meisinger (#33); 184 - Jelani Embree (#26); 197 - Jackson Striggow (#27); 285 - Mason Parris (#3) 2019 125 - Drew Mattin (#16); 133 - Stevan Micic (#2); 141 - Kanen Storr (#8); 149 - Malik Amine (#33); 157 - Alec Pantaleo (#4); 165 - Logan Massa (#6); 174 - Myles Amine (#4); 285 - Mason Parris (#5) 2018 125 - Drew Mattin; 133 - Stevan Micic (#2); 149 - Malik Amine; 157 - Alec Pantaleo (#5); 165 - Logan Massa (#7); 174 - Myles Amine (#5); 184 - Domenic Abounader (#5); 197 - Kevin Beazley; 285 - Adam Coon (#2) 2017 125 - Conor Youtsey; 133 - Stevan Micic (#5); 141 - Sal Profaci; 149 - Zac Hall; 157 - Brian Murphy; 165 - Logan Massa (#2); 174 - Myles Amine (#9) 2016 125 - Conor Youtsey; 133 - Rossi Bruno; 149 - Alec Pantaleo (#5); 157 - Brian Murphy (#12); 184 - Domenic Abounader (#4); 197 - Max Huntley (#10); 285 - Adam Coon (#5) 2015 125 - Conor Youtsey; 133 - Rossi Bruno (#13); 141 - George Fisher; 149 - Alec Pantaleo (#6); 157 - Brian Murphy (#11); 165 - Garrett Sutton; 174 - Taylor Massa; 184 - Domenic Abounader (#8); 197 - Max Huntley (#8); 285 - Adam Coon (#6) 2014 125 - Conor Youtsey; 133 - Rossi Bruno; 141 - Stephen Dutton (#13); 149 - Eric Grajales (#9); 157 - Brian Murphy; 165 - Dan Yates (#13); 184 - Domenic Abounader (#9); 285 - Adam Coon (#4) 2013 125 - Sean Boyle; 133 - Rossi Bruno; 149 - Eric Grajales (#12); 165 - Taylor Massa (#12); 174 - Dan Yates (#10); 197 - Max Huntley; 285 - Ben Apland National Champions NIck Suriano (125 - 2022) NCAA All-Americans 2022: Nick Suriano (125 - 1st); Will Lewan (157 - 5th); Cameron Amine (165 - 4th); Logan Massa (174 - 5th); Myles Amine (184 - 2nd); Mason Parris (285 - 5th) 2021: Cameron Amine (165 - 7th); Logan Massa (174 - 5th); Myles Amine (197 - 3rd); Mason Parris (285 - 2nd) 2019: Stevan Micic (133 - 3rd); Alec Pantaleo (157 - 3rd); Myles Amine (174 - 3rd) 2018: Stevan Micic (133 - 2nd); Alec Pantaleo (157 - 5th); Myles Amine (174 - 3rd); Domenic Abounader (184 - 5th); Adam Coon (285 - 2nd) 2017: Stevan Micic (133 - 4th); Logan Massa (165 - 3rd); Myles Amine (174 - 4th) 2016: Conor Youtsey (125 - 5th); Alec Pantaleo (149 - 6th); Adam Coon (285 - 3rd) 2015: Conor Youtsey (125 - 6th); Rossi Bruno (133 - 8th); Brian Murphy (157 - 7th); Max Huntley (197 - 8th); Adam Coon (285 - 2nd) 2014: Stephen Dutton (141 - 7th); Eric Grajales (149 - 3rd) NWCA All-Americans Kanen Storr (149 - Second Team) Will Lewan (157 - Second Team) Mason Parris (285 - First Team) Round of 12 Finishers Dylan Ragusin (2022 - 133) Stevan Micic (2022 - 141) Logan Massa (2019 - 165) Mason Parris (2019 - 285) Brian Murphy (2016 - 157) Domenic Abounader (2016 - 184) Rossi Bruno (2014 - 133) Adam Coon (2014 - 285) Taylor Massa (2013 - 165) Big Ten Champions 2022: Nick Suriano (125), Myles Amine (184) 2021: Myles Amine (197) 2018: Stevan Micic (133); Alec Pantaleo (157) 2015: Domenic Abounader (184) Big Ten Runner's Up 2022: Will Lewan (157); Cameron Amine (165); Logan Massa (174) 2021: Mason Parris (285) 2020: Mason Parris (285) 2019: Myles Amine (174) 2018: Myles Amine (174); Adam Coon (285) 2017: Logan Massa (165) 2016: Adam Coon (285) Dual Record 2021-22: 12-1 2021: 5-1 2019-20: 7-6 2018-19: 13-1 2017-18: 11-3 2016-17: 8-7 2015-16: 13-3 2014-15: 8-6-1 2013-14: 11-4 2012-13: 10-7 Big Ten Tournament Placement 2021-22: 1st 2021: 4th 2019-20: 7th 2018-19: 6th 2017-18: 3rd 2016-17: 7th 2015-16: 6th 2014-15: 4th 2013-14: 8th 2012-13: 6th NCAA Tournament Team Placement 2021-22: 2nd 2021: 5th 2019-20: No Tournament 2018-19: 5th 2017-18: 4th-tie 2016-17: 10th 2015-16: 9th-tie 2014-15: 11th 2013-14: 17th 2012-13: 33rd-tie Head Coaching History Sean Bormet (2018-Present) Joe McFarland (1999-2018) Best Lineup (Comprised of wrestlers from 2013-22) 125 - Nick Suriano: 2022 NCAA Champion, 2022 Big Ten Champion; 3x NCAA Finalist for Rutgers (2019 NCAA Champion) 133 - Stevan Micic: 4x NCAA Qualifier; 3x NCAA All-American (3rd, 2nd, 4th); 2018 Big Ten Champion 141 - Stephen Dutton: 2014 NCAA All-American (7th); 2x NCAA Qualifier for Lehigh 149 - Alec Pantaleo: 4x NCAA Qualifier; 3x NCAA All-American (3rd, 5th, 6th); 2018 Big Ten Champion 157 - Will Lewan: 3x NCAA Qualifier; 2022 NCAA All-American (5th); 2022 Big Ten Runner-Up 165 - Cameron Amine: 2x NCAA Qualifier; 2x NCAA All-American (4th, 7th); 2022 Big Ten Runner-Up 174 - Logan Massa: 5x NCAA Qualifier, 3x NCAA All-American (3rd, 5th, 5th); 2x Big Ten Runner-Up 184 - Myles Amine: 5x NCAA All-American (2nd, 3rd x3, 4th), 4x Big Ten Finalist, 2x Big Ten Champion 197 - Max Huntley: 3x NCAA Qualifier; 2015 NCAA All-American (8th) 285 - Adam Coon: 4x NCAA Qualifier, 3x NCAA All-American (2nd, 3rd, 2nd); 2x Big Ten Runner-Up Recruiting Big Boarder's Per Year 2022: #11 Rylan Rogers (ID); #100 Ira Jenkins (MI); #246 Nathan Jerore (MI) 2021: #8 Chance Lamer (OR); #195 Zach Mattin (OH) 2020: #34 Gaige Garcia (PA); #59 Dylan Ragusin (IL); #74 Fidel Mayora (IL); #105 Jaden Bullock (VA); #122 Joseph Walker (IN); #184 Brendin Yatooma (MI); 2019: #7 Cameron Amine (MI); #21 Kurt McHenry (VA) 2018: #4 Mason Parris (IN); #7 Joey Silva (FL); #42 Will Lewan (IL) 2017: #28 Jelani Embree (MI); #34 Ben Freeman (MI); #38 Layne Van Anrooy (OR); #57 Andrew Davison (IN) 2016: #94 Dan Perry (MI) 2015: #2 Logan Massa (MI); #32 Myles Amine (MI); #56 Austin Assad (OH); #106 Ben Lamantia (NY) 2014: #27 Zac Hall (MI); #61 Davonte Mahomes (IL); #83 Garrett Sutton (IL); #101 Zehlin Storr (MI)

2014 NCAA Runner-Up Jimmy Sheptock (photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) Welcome to a new, regular feature for InterMat! Every day, for the next few months, we'll look into the recent history of a DI wrestling program with our "Ten Years of…" feature. Even if you're a die-hard supporter of a particular school, there will be good information you may have forgotten. For others, it's a quick way to learn about a program you may not be familiar with. We're going in alphabetical order for this one, so next up is...Maryland! For past teams: Air Force American Appalachian State Arizona State Army West Point Binghamton Bloomsburg Brown Bucknell Buffalo Cal Poly Campbell Central Michigan Chattanooga Clarion Cleveland State Columbia Cornell CSU Bakersfield Davidson Drexel Duke Edinboro Franklin & Marshall Gardner-Webb George Mason Harvard Hofstra Illinois Indiana Iowa Iowa State Kent State Lehigh Lock Haven NCAA Qualifiers (27) 2022 174: Dom Solis (#32); 184: Kyle Cochran (#13); 197: Jaron Smith (#25) 2020 157: Jahi Jones (#32); 174: Phil Spadafora (#33) 2019 285: Youssif Hemida (#10) 2018 141: Ryan Diehl; 149: Baby J Bannister (#16); 285: Youssif Hemida (#12) 2017 133: Billy Rappo; 141: Ryan Diehl; 149: Baby J Bannister (#13); 285: Youssif Hemida 2016 133: Geoff Alexander (#14) 2015 133: Geoff Alexander; 157: Lou Mascola; 285: Spencer Myers 2014 133: Tyler Goodwin; 141: Shyheim Brown; 184: Jimmy Sheptock (#1); 197: Christian Boley (#9); 285: Spencer Myers (#12) 2013 133: Geoff Alexander; 141: Frank Goodwin; 174: Josh Asper (#5); 184: Jimmy Sheptock (#7); 197: Christian Boley NCAA Champions None NCAA All-Americans 2019: Youssif Hemida (285 - 6th) 2018: Youssif Hemida (285 - 8th) 2014: Jimmy Sheptock (184 - 2nd) 2013: Jimmy Sheptock (184 - 6th) NCAA Round of 12 Finishers Youssif Hemida (2017 - 285) Spencer Myers (2015 - 285) Christian Boley (2013, 2014 - 197) Josh Asper (2013 - 174) Conference Champions ACC 2014: Jimmy Sheptock (184) 2013: Josh Asper (174); Jimmy Sheptock (184); Christian Boley (197) Dual Record 2021-22: 7-12 2021: 0-8 2019-20: 2-17 2018-19: 2-12 2017-18: 5-12 2016-17: 2-16 2015-16: 5-13 2014-15: 5-15 2013-14: 9-8 2012-13: 14-8 Conference Tournament Placement Big Ten 2021-22: 13th 2021: 14th 2019-20: 14th 2018-19: 14th 2017-18: 13th 2016-17: 11th 2015-16: 14th 2014-15: 14th ACC 2013-14: 5th 2012-13: 3rd NCAA Tournament Team Placement 2021-22: 48th-tie (2.5 points) 2021: No Qualifiers 2019-20: No Tournament 2018-19: 27th (13 points) 2017-18: 27th (12.5 points) 2016-17: 35th-tie (8.5 points) 2015-16: 64th-tie (1 point) 2014-15: 39th-tie (6 points) 2013-14: 20th (21 points) 2012-13: 27th-tie (16.5 points) Head Coaching History Alex Clemsen (2019-Present) Kerry Mccoy (2008-2019) Best Lineup (Comprised of Wrestlers from 2013-22) 125 - Billy Rappo: 2017 NCAA Qualifier 133 - Geoff Alexander: 4x NCAA Qualifier (#14 seed); 2012 ACC Runner-Up 141 - Ryan Diehl: 2x NCAA Qualifier 149 - Baby J Bannister: 2x NCAA Qualifier (#13 and #16 seeds) 157 - Lou Mascola: 2015 NCAA Qualifier 165 - Kyle Cochran: 2022 NCAA Qualifier (#13 seed) 174 - Josh Asper: 4x NCAA Qualifier (#4, #5, and #7 seeds); 2x NCAA All-American (6th x2); 2x NCAA Round of 12 Finisher; 4x ACC Finalist, 2x ACC Champion 184 - Jimmy Sheptock: 3x NCAA Qualifier (#1, #7, and #12 seeds); 2x NCAA All-American (2nd and 6th); 3x ACC Champion 197 - Christian Boley: 3x NCAA Qualifier (#4 and #9 seeds); 2x NCAA Round of 12 Finisher; 2x ACC Champion 285 - Youssif Hemida: 3x NCAA Qualifier (#10 and #12 seeds); 2x NCAA All-American (6th and 8th) Recruiting Number of Big Boarder's Per Year 2022: #46 Kal Miller (MO) 2021: #36 Jaxon Smith (GA); #43 Ethan Miller (MO); #53 Adrian Cramer (IL); #70 Braxton Brown (TX); #269 Gaven Bell (NY) 2020: #136 Garrett Kappes (MD); #191 Dom Solis (MD) 2019: #61 Michael North (OH) 2017: #41 Kyle Cochran (NJ) 2016: #85 Brandon Cray (NJ); #124 TK Megonigal (VA) 2015: #39 Josh Ugalde (NJ); #109 Youssif Hemida (NY), #112 Jake Restrepo (NY); #121 David-Brian Whisler (OH) 2014: #36 Baby J Bannister (MD); #58 Josh Llopez (MD); #65 Louis Hernandez (NY) 2013: #31 Ryan Diehl (PA)

The Big 12 Championships at the BOK Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma Last week, UCLA and USC announced they are heading to the Big Ten. This struck up a lot of conversation in the wrestling world about whether or not those schools would add wrestling but this week some more dominoes started to shake that could result in more shake-ups in the wrestling world. Dennis Dodd from CBS has reported that the Big 12 started talks with Arizona, Arizona State, Utah, Colorado, Oregon, and Washington to possibly join the conference. With that, I thought I'd look at some hypothetical scenarios that could play out in all this in regard to wrestling. Arizona State could join the Big 12 This one seems most likely. The perennial power of the conference and 21-time Pac 12 Champion Arizona State Sun Devils could move to the Big 12. Dodd's and others reporting indicates the four specific schools the Big 12 is most heavily targeting are Arizona, Arizona State, Colorado, and Utah. Arizona State is the only school of those four with wrestling. This would be a massive blow to PAC 12 wrestling but a huge boost for the Big 12 which just brought back Missouri last season. Big 12 and PAC 12 could merge I should probably preface this entire article by saying no one really knows what's going to happen here. Both conferences could stay the same or there could be massive changes. But one rumored possibility is some merger of both conferences. I personally don't think this is that likely, but if it did there would be a sudden super wrestling conference with Oregon State, Arizona State, Stanford, and potentially some affiliates merging with the Big 12. If this did happen, and the powers that be put some energy into it, I think it could work as a wrestling conference. Geographically there are a lot of affiliate schools in each conference that could and should schedule each other anyway. And if schools like Arizona State and Oklahoma State get out to some of these schools from time to time, it would bolster their attendance and give them some much-needed publicity. The PAC 12 could poach some Big 12 Wrestling Schools It doesn't sound like there is any realistic chance that the PAC 12 could snatch up any of the core Big 12 schools. For example, Oklahoma State or Iowa State are not joining the PAC 12. There's just no added value for them to do that. But there are reports of schools that the PAC 12 could grab to replace UCLA and others. One here mentions Boise State, San Diego State, and Fresno State. If the Big 12 did grab the four schools they're reportedly pursuing, the PAC 12 would need to replace them. And the PAC 12 could go after schools like Air Force and Wyoming to fill the gaps left by losing those other schools. The PAC 12 could dissolve A few months ago, we were talking about this potentially happening with the Big 12. Ultimately, they came together and saved it. That result from the Big 12 may have been really well-timed as the PAC 12 is now on their heels and the Big 12 has a chance to capitalize. But if they grab all six of the schools mentioned there are only four left. And there's naturally a possibility that they could all go somewhere else as well. If they do, that will almost certainly spell the end of the PAC 12. At the end of the day, I think the PAC 12 will stay together in some capacity. Even if they just keep a handful of their core schools, the conference brand name does have some value and in a worse-case scenario they could pull in a bunch of schools from the Mountain West to keep going. It would just look very different. Even if they lose Arizona State,but can hang on to Oregon State and bring in Air Force and Wyoming, it could result in a still relatively stable wrestling conference. Nothing Could Happen Like I mentioned earlier, no one really knows what's going to happen here. And if everything stays as it currently is, wrestling won't be impacted at all. USC and UCLA don't have wrestling, so their move doesn't change anything. And if all other schools stay put, then literally nothing will change in the wrestling world. But given all the recent changes in college sports, I would say this might be the least likely scenario.

125 kg Final X winner Hayden Zillmer (Photo/Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) 57 KG #11 Reza Atri (IRI), #12 Alireza Sarlak (IRI), #14 Yuki Takahashi (JPN) and #15 Nurislam Sanayev (KAZ) have been removed from the rankings due to inactivity as they have not wrestled since the 2021 World/Olympic championships. #2 Thomas Gilman earned his chance to compete at his fifth World/Olympic championships with two shutout victories over Vito Arujau at Final X. 2021 U23 world champion Aliabbas Rzazade (AZE) is back in the rankings at #16 after beating 2021 world bronze medalist #17 Horst Lehr (GER) in the finals of the Matteo Pellicone. Bronze medalists at the Pellicone were Kamil Kerymov (UKR) and Saban Kiziltas (TUR). Aman Aman (IND) returns to the rankings at #20 after winning the U23 Asian championships and the Bolat Turlykhanov Cup. 2021 61 KG world bronze medalist #13 Toshihiro Hasegawa (JPN) won the Meiji Cup over 2019 Junior world champ Toshiya Abe (JPN). Yudai Fujita (JPN) beat Rikuto Arai (JPN) for bronze. Muhammed Karavus (TUR) won the Mediterranean Games over Levan Metrevelli Vartanov (ESP) with Morris Obispado (ITA) taking bronze. Simone Piroddu (ITA) won the Junior European championships over Harutyun Hovhannisyan (ARM) with Luka Gvinjilia (GEO) and Ahmet Karavus (TUR) taking bronze. #1 Zavur Uguev (RUS) won his fifth Russian Nationals title with a 3-2 victory over #5 Nachyn Mongush (RUS) in a rematch of the 2021 Russian Nationals finals. Bronze medalists at Russian Nationals were #6 Ramiz Gamzatov (RUS) and 2021 Yarygin runner-up Musa Mekhtikhanov. #7 Akhmed Idrisov (RUS) moved up to 61 KG, where he registered a national runner-up finish to #1 Abasgadzhi Magomedov (RUS). Important results were Amir Chamzyn upsetting #4 Azamat Tuskaev in the quarterfinals and 2018 Russian Nationals runner-up Donduk-Ool Khuresh-Ool upsetting 2021 world team member #18 Abubakar Mutaliev in the round of 32 and then being beaten by eventual fifth place finisher Ramazan Abdurakhimov in the round of 16 by 12-2 tech fall. From the aftermath of Russian Nationals, Uguev keeps his top spot, Mongush and Gamzatov (RUS) move up one spot to #4 and #5, Mekhtikhanov is back in the rankings at #6 for beating Amir Chamzyn, who debuts in the rankings at #7 after beating Tuskaev in the Russian Nationals quarterfinals. Tuskaev falls four spots to #8 in the rankings for his quarterfinal loss at Russian Nationals to #7 Amir Chamzyn. Abdurakhimov debuts in the rankings at #17 for beating 2018 Russian Nationals runner-up #18 Khuresh-Ool, who beat returning Russian world rep #19 Abubakar Mutalev (RUS). 61 KG #13 Seth Gross (USA) moved up nine spots in the rankings to #4 after beating 2021 world runner-up #2 Daton FIx (USA) in a three-match series at Final X to secure the U.S. world team spot. Fix dropped three spots to #5 after his loss to Gross. #2 Rei Higuchi (JPN) made the world team for Japan after winning the Meiji Cup over Kodai Ogawa (JPN) 4-0. The bronze medalist at the Meiji Cup was Kaito Morikawa (JPN) over Hayato Fujita (JPN). Taiyrbek Zhumashbek Uulu (KGZ) won the U23 Asian championships over Assylzhan Yessengeldi (KAZ) with Alibeg Alibegov (BRN) taking bronze. Davit Abaladze (GEO) won the Junior European championships over Khamzat Arsamerzouev (FRA), with Hyak Abrahamyan (ARM) and Ramik Heybatov (AZE) taking bronze. Recep Topal (TUR) beat 2021 European runner-up Andrey Dzhelep (UKR) to win the Matteo Pellicone and both men return to the rankings at #15 and #16 respectively. Taking bronze at the Matteo Pellicone was Taimuraz Vanishvili (GEO) and Ahmet Tas (TUR). #1 Abasgadzhi Magomedov (RUS) won his third straight Russian Nationals title over 2020 57 KG Russian Nationals bronze medalist #7 (57) Akhmed Idrisov. Bronze medalists at Russian Nationals were #7 Bashir Magomedov (RUS) and Cherman Tavitov (RUS). Save for Idrisov moving up and slotting in at #3, Russia didn't see much shakeup with Magomedov beating #7 Bashir Magomedov (RUS) in the semis and Idrisov beating a pair of returning Russian Nationals bronze medalists in Cherman Tavitov (RUS) and Aldar Balzhinimaev (RUS) to make the finals. Bekbolot Myrzanazar Uulu (KGZ) won the Bolat Turlykhanov Cup over Zhassulan Taskul (KAZ). Taking bronze at the Turlykhanov Cup was Yeldos Membekov of Kazakhstan. 65 KG #1 Takuto Otoguro (JPN) has been removed from the rankings due to inactivity. Otoguro has not competed since the Tokyo Olympics last August, where he won gold over #4 Haji Aliyev (AZE). The #1 number one wrestler in the world is European champion #3 Ismail Musukaev (HUN). #11 Yianni Diakomihalis (USA) made his second consecutive U.S. world team with two wins over Evan Henderson (USA) at Final X. With reigning Olympic champion, Otoguro, still out of competition, Kaiki Yamaguchi (JPN) won the world team spot for Japan at the Meiji cup, beating Ryoma Anraku (JPN) in the finals 4-3. Kotaro Kiyooka (JPN) took bronze at the Meiji Cup with a 17-6 win over Shinnosuke Suwama (JPN). The bracket for Russian Nationals at 65 KG was absolutely busted through by upsets, culminating in Yarygin bronze medalist #14 Ibragim Ibragimov (RUS) taking gold. Bronze medalists at Russian Nationals were Aripgadzhi Abdulaev (RUS) and Aykhaan Antonov (RUS). Right from the top, the biggest upset was returning 5th place finisher Gadzhimurad Omarov (RUS) upsetting returning national champion and 2021 Olympic bronze medalist #2 Gadzhimurad Rashidov (RUS) 4-3 in the semifinals. Then into the quarterfinals, Abdulaev upset Yarygin champion #5 Shamil Mamedov (RUS) by 4-4 decision and #14 Ibragim Ibragimov (RUS) teched Ivan Poddubny tournament champion #10 Alik Khadartsev (RUS) 12-0. The other final notable upset was #10 Alik Khadartsev (RUS) upsetting 2021 world champion #6 Zagir Shakhiev (RUS) 2-0 in the round of 16. From the aftermath of Russian Nationals, Ibragimov rises up elevent spots to #3 and Omarov skyrockets from unranked to #4. Rashidov falls three spots to #5. 2019 Cadet world champion Abdulaev debuts in the rankings at #6 after beating Mamedov and Elbrus Valiev (RUS) to take bronze. Mamedov falls down one spot to #6, Khadartsev goes up two spots to #8 for beating #6 Zagir Shakhiev (RUS), and Shakhiev drops three spots to #9 #12 (61) Zelimkhan Abakarov (ALB) won the Mediterranean Games over Yehia Hafez (EGY) with #14 Vladimir Egorov (MKD) and Stevan Micic (SRB) taking bronze. Mykyta Zubal (UKR) beat Ayub Musaev (BEL) to win the Junior European championships with Luka Janezashvili (GEO) and Constantin Chirilov (MDA) taking bronze. Sujeet Sujeet (IND) won the U23 Asian championships over Adlan Askarov (KAZ) with Ikromzhon Khadzhimurodov (KGZ) taking bronze. 2021 world bronze medalist Tulga Tumur Ochir (MGL) returns to the rankings at #13 after winning the Bolat Turlykhanov Cup over Abbos Rakhmonov (UZB). Tumur Ochir avenged his loss from the Yasar Dogu to Umidjon Jalolov (UZB) 5-1 and Rakhmonov notched the biggest win of his career by beating four-time World/Olympic medalist #8 Bajrang Punia (IND) 6-2 in the semifinals. Rakhmonov debuts in the 65 KG rankings at #15 while Punia drops eight spots to #16 for his loss to Rakhmonov. Sebastian Rivera (PUR) debuts in the rankings at #20 after winning the Matteo Pellicone with victories over 2021 U23 European champion Erik Arushanian (UKR), 2019 61 KG Alans bronze medalist Shamil Omarov (ITA), and 2018 60 KG cadet world champion Hamza Alaca (TUR). 70 KG #1 Magomedmurad Gadzhiev (POL) and #3 Evgheni Zhebraev (RUS) have been removed from the rankings due to inactivity. Neither man has competed since the 2021 World Championships, where Gadzhiev took gold and Zherbaev took bronze. #7 Israil Kasumov (RUS) won his second consecutive Russian National national title 6-3 over breakthrough star of the tournament #13 Anzor Zakuev (RUS). Kasumov, who rebounded from a disappointing showing at the Ivan Poddubny, beat #5 Ruslan Zhendaev (RUS) and #4 Viktor Rassadin in definitive fashion (13-0 and 12-3) to make his fifth national final (RUS). Zakuev upset two-time Russian Nationals bronze medalist #6 Kurban Shiraev (RUS) in the quarterfinals and avenged his 2021 Russian Nationals bronze medal loss to Abdulla Akhmedov (RUS) in the semifinals. Bronze medalists at Russian Nationals were #4 Viktor Rassadin and #6 Kurban Shiraev (RUS). Other notable results were Alan Kudzoev (RUS) beating Ivan Poddubny Tournament bronze medalist #12 Ruslan Bogatyrev (RUS) in the qualification round and was beaten in the round of 32 by 2021 74 KG Yarygin champion Aznaur Tavaev (RUS). From the aftermath of Russian Nationals, Kasumov goes up six spots in the rankings to #1, Zakuev goes up nine spots to #4 for beating Shiraev and for his win over Zhendaev at the Yarygin in January. Tavaev and AKudzoev slot back in the rankings at #14 and #15 after Tavaev beat Kudzoev, who beat Poddubny Tournament bronze medalist Bogatyrev at Russian Nationals. 2021 Russian Nationals bronze medalist Akhmedov is back in the rankings at #18 because he has a better resume (win over #4 Anzor Zakuev from 2021 Russian Nationals) then the American contingency of Tyler Berger, Ryan Deakin, and Sammy Sasso, who were in for alternating wins over each other and 2021 Ziolkowski champ Alec Pantaleo (USA). #7 Taishi Narikuni (JPN) lost in the semifinals of the Meiji Cup to eventual champ Kota Takahashi (JPN) and then later won a wrestle-off against Takahashi to lock up the world team spot for Japan. Takahashi won the Meiji Cup over Keitaro Ono (JPN) with Narikuni taking bronze over Hiroki Azegami (JPN). Takahashi debuts in the rankings at #19 for his win over #7 Taishi Narikuni (JPN). #13 Zain Retherford (USA) won the 70 KG U.S. world team spot in a three-match series against #14 Jordan Oliver (USA). His victory over Oliver makes it Retherford's third Senior world team with his last two being made in 2017 and 2019. #8 Ernazar Akmataliev (KGZ) won the Bolat Turlykhanov Cup over Rodion Anchugin (KAZ) with bronze medalists being Zafarbek Otakhonov (UZB) and Alibek Osmonov (KGZ). Orozobek Toktomambetov (KGZ) won the U23 Asian Championships over Doszhan Assetov (KAZ) with Mustafo Akhmedov (TJK) taking bronze. Hayk Papikyan (ARM) won the Junior European championships over Sabir Jafarov (AZE) with Muhammad Abdurachmanov (BEL) and Pavel Andrusca (MDA) taking bronze. Joshgun Azimov (AZE) won the Matteo Pellicone over Murad Evloev (AZE), with bronze medalists being #2 (65) Haji Aliyev (AZE) and Cuneyt Budak (TUR). Azimov slots in at the #10 slot for his wins over #8 Zurab Iakobishvili (GEO) and Servet Coskun (TUR). Coskun fills in at the #11 spot after beating #8 Zurab Iakobishvili (GEO) 10-5 in the repechage bracket. #2 (65) Haji Aliyev (AZE) forfeited in the semis to #10 Joshgun Azimov (AZE) and there is no change in his ranking at 65. 74 KG Reigning world champion #2 Kyle Dake (USA) won Final X in two matches over #8 Jason Nolf (USA) to secure his fourth world team spot. Daichi Takatani (JPN) won the Meiji Cup over Kirin Kinoshita (JPN) with Yuto Fukada (JPN) taking bronze. #1 Zaurbek Sidakov (RUS) didn't compete at Russian Nationals due to an ankle injury he suffered in his Ivan Poddubny Tournament finals match in May against #5 David Baev (RUS). #6 Razambek Zhamalov won his second Russian Nationals title beating 2020 70 KG Russian Nationals champ #7 Cherman Valiev in the finals. Bronze medalists at Russian Nationals were Baev and Magomed Dibirgadzhiev (RUS). In the semis, Zhamalov beat Baev 9-3 to avenge his loss from the Ivan Poddubny Tournament and #7 Valiev beat Magomed Dibirgadzhiev. The other major upset from nationals was Dibirgadzhiev beating #10 Magomedrasul Gazimagomedov (RUS) 4-4 in the quarterfinals. The changes to the rankings are Zhamalov moving up one spot to #5, and Dibirgadzhiev taking the #10 spot after taking bronze and beating Gazimagomedov. #3 Taimuraz Salkazanov (SVK) won both the Bolat Turlykhanov Cup and the Matteo Pellicone in impressive fashion. At the Turlykhanov Cup, Salkazanov beat a pair of past world medalists in #16 Nurkhoza Kaipanov (KAZ) and Ikhtiyor Navruzov (UZB) to make the finals, where he beat Byambadorj Bat Erdene (MGL). Bronze medalists at the Turlykhanov Cup were #16 Nurkhoza Kaipanov (KAZ) and Amr Hussen (EGY). In the finals of the Matteo Pellicone, #3 Taimuraz Salkazanov (SVK) beat #15 Turan Bayramov (AZE) with bronze medalists being Khadzhimurad Gadzhiev (AZE) and Mitch Finesilver (ISR). Bayramov looks to have wrapped up the world team spot for Azerbaijan, outplacing 2019 world rep Khadzhimurad Gadzhiev (AZE) and 2021 Junior world runner-up #15 Dzhabrail Gadzhiev (AZE) 5-3 in the semis. Finesilver of Israel makes his debut in the rankings at #19 for upsetting Gadzhiev in the bronze medal match, while Gadzhiev falls five spots to #20. Gadzhiev (AZE) won the Junior European championships over Gheorghi Cara (MDA) with Vadym Tsurkan (UKR) and Muhammad Ozmut (TUR) taking bronze. Naveen Naveen (IND) won the U23 Asian championships over Asomiddin Hasanov (UZB) with Alinur Takirov (KGZ) and Shynggys Mukhametkaliyev (KAZ) taking bronze. Amr Hussen (EGY) won the Mediterranean Games over Samet Ak (TUR) with #12 (65) Islam Dudaev (ALB) and Malik Amine (SMR) taking bronze. 79 KG #1 Jordan Burroughs (USA) won Final X in three matches against #5 Chance Marsteller (USA). Marsteller moves up two spots to #3 for beating Burroughs in match two of Final X. Yudai Takahashi (JPN) won the Meiji Cup over Yajuro Yamasaki (JPN) with Takahiro Murayama (JPN) taking bronze. #4 Malik Shavaev (RUS) won his second-straight Russian national title with victories over #13 Magomed Magomaev (RUS), #3 Radik Valiev (RUS) and #12 Akhmed Usmanov (RUS). Bronze medalists at Russian Nationals were Valiev and Nikita Suchkov (RUS). Shavaev moves up one spot to #4 for upsetting returning world bronze medalist Valiev in the quarterfinals. Valiev beat returning national runner-up #12 Akhmed Usmanov in the repechage bracket. #13 Magomed Magomaev made the finals by beating a trio of Russian Nationals medalists in 2x Russian Nationals bronze medalist Suchkov, Kakhaber Khubezhty (RUS), and 2020 Russian Nationals runner-up #13 Gadzhimurad Alikhmaev (RUS). Magomaev moves up three spots to #10 for beating Suchkov (RUS), Khubezhty, and #13 Gadzhimurad Alikhmaev (RUS) to make the finals. Suchkov makes the #11 spot in the rankings for beating #13 Gadzhimurad Alikhmaev (RUS) and his past win over #12 Atsamaz Sanakoev (RUS) from 2017 Russian Nationals. 2021 Russian Nationals runner-up Usmanov fell two spots in the rankings to #14 as his 2022 campaign continues to falter, as he didn't placed at the Yarygin or nationals and registered losses to Valiev, Alikhmaev, and Shavaev. Mushegh Mkrtchyan (ARM) won the Junior European championships over Otari Adeishvili (GEO) with Sabuhi Amiralsanov (AZE) and Radomir Stoyanov (BUL) taking bronze. Mukhammad Abdullaev (KGZ) won the U23 Asian championships over Senior Asian Championships runner-up Baliyan Gourav (IND). Bolat Sakaev (KAZ) won the Bolat Turlykhanov Cup over Saiakbai Usupov (KGZ) with Akhsarbek Gulaev (SVK) and Arsalan Budazhapov (KGZ) taking bronze. Vasyl Mykhailov (UKR) won the Matteo Pellicone over Yakup Shikhdzhamalov (ROU) with Vladimeri Gamkrelidze (GEO) and Akhsarbek Gulaev (SVK) taking bronze. 86 KG #12 Akhmed Gadzhimagomedov (RUS) and #17 Taimuraz Friev Naskideava (ESP) have been removed from the rankings. Gadzhimagomedov due to retiring from injuries and Friev because he hasn't competed since the 2021 World Championships. #2 David Taylor (USA) made his third World/Olympic team by winning a two-match series against #7 Zahid Valencia (USA). Mao Okui (JPN) won the Meiji Cup over Shota Shirai (JPN) with Tatsuya Shirai (JPN) taking bronze, but Shirai won the wrestle-off against Mao Okui so he will represent Japan at the world championships. #3 Artur Naifonov won his third Russian Nationals title over Yarygin runner-up #7 Amanulla Rasulov (RUS). Bronze medalists at Russian Nationals were #13 Arsenali Musalaliev (RUS) and #6 Ada Bagomedov (RUS). Rasulov had a fantastic run at Russian Nationals, beating the likes of #4 Dauren Kurugliev (RUS) in the semis, #11 Khabil Khashpakov (RUS) in the quarters, and #6 Ada Bagomedov in the round of 16. Rasulov moves up the rankings to #4. Bagomedov beat Khashpakov in the repechage and then got bronze after Kurugliev forfeited. #1 Hassan Yazdani Charati (IRI) won the Bolat Turlykhanov Cup over Boris Makoev (SVK) with #19 Fatih Erdin (TUR) and Bobur Islomov (UZB) took bronze. #19 Fatih Erdin jumps up ten spots in the rankings to #9 for beating #9 Azamat Dauletbekov (KAZ) in the bronze medal match of the Turlykhanov, but can't climb higher due to his loss in the Mediterranean Games finals to #16 Myles Amine (SMR), who moved up eight spots to #8 for beating Erdin. On the subject of the Mediterranean Games, Choiras Charlambos (CYP) and Akhmed Aibuev (FRA) took bronze. 2021 Junior world runner-up Rakhim Magamadov (FRA) won the Junior European championships over Daviti Koguashvili (GEO) with Fatih Altunbas (TUR) and Nazar Dod (UKR) taking bronze. Azizbek Fayzullaev (UZB) debuts in the rankings at #20 for winning the U23 Asian championships with a 3-0 record that saw him beat 2019 Senior world runner-up Deepak Punia (IND). 2021 world bronze medalist #17 Abubakar Abakarov (AZE) won the Matteo Pellicone over Tarsan Maisuradze (GEO). Bronze medalists at the Matteo Pellicone were Zaur Beradze (GEO) and Boris Makoev (SVK). Maisuradze (GEO) debuts in the rankings at #18 for beating 2021 U23 world champion Mukhammed Aliiev (UKR) in the semifinals. Ivars Samosonoks (LAT) debuts in the rankings at #19 for beating 2019 92 KG Alans runner-up Georgi Rubaev (MDA) in the repechage bracket of the Alans. 92 KG #4 Javad Ebrahimi (IRI) was removed from the rankings due to inactivity, as he has not competed since winning the Ali Aliyev last June. Reigning world champion #1 Kamran Ghasempour (IRI) won the Bolat Turlykhanov Cup over #20 Adilet Davlumbaev (KAZ) with Abdimanap Baigenzheyev (KAZ) taking bronze. Viky Viky (IND) won the U23 Asian championships. Ion Demian (MDA) won the Junior European championships over Andro Margishvili (GEO) with Adlan Viskhanov (FRA) and Denys Sahaliuk (UKR) taking bronze. #2 Magomed Kurbanov (RUS) won his second Russian national title over 2021 U23 world bronze medalist #13 Azamat Zakuev (RUS). Bronze medalists at Russian Nationals were #14 Magomed Sharipov (RUS) and #5 Vladislav Valiev (RUS). Zakuev moves up nine spots to #4 for beating Valiev and #15 Guram Chertkoev (RUS). 2021 world bronze medalist #3 J'den Cox (USA) made his sixth World/Olympic team winning a three match series against Nate Jackson (USA). Nate Jackson (USA) makes his debut in the rankings at #6 for beating #3 J'den Cox (USA) at Final X. Sosuke Takatani (JPN) won the Meiji Cup over Hikaru Abe (JPN) with Satoshi Miura (JPN) taking bronze. 2021 world bronze medalist #10 Osman Nurmagomedov (AZE) won the Matteo Pellicone by forfeit over #19 Miriani Maisuradze (GEO) with #11 Erhan Yaylaci (TUR) taking bronze. Maisuradze moves up seven spots in the rankings to #12 for beating #11 Erhan Yaylaci (TUR) in the semis. Yaylaci falls two spots from #11 to #13. 97 KG #18 Batyrbek Tsakulov (SVK) made the biggest improvement this month to climb up fourteen spots in the rankings to #4 after winning the Bolat Turlykhanov Cup and the Matteo Pellicone. At the Turlykhanov Cup, Tsakulov tech falled and pinned his way through the competition highlighted by a semifinal pin over 2016 Olympic bronze medalist Magomed Ibragimov (UZB) before tech falling 2021 Junior world champion Amirhossein Firouzpourbandpei (IRi) in the finals. Akzhen Aitbekov (KAZ) and Ibragimov took bronze at the Turlykhanov The Matteo Pellicone was a major breakthrough for Tsakulov and Givi Matcharashvili as both men notched impressive ranked wins. In the finals of the Matteo Pellicone, Tsakulov would be in control throughout taking a 10-4 victory over Matcharashvili. Bronze medalists at the Matteo Pellicone were #12 Elizbar Odikadze (GEO) and #6 Vladislav Baitsaev (HUN). Highlighting the great performances from the Matteo Pellicone, Matcharashvili made his presence known defeating #5 Magomedkhan Magomedov (AZE) and #6 Vladislav Baitsaev (HUN) to make the finals. Tsakulov's path to the finals saw him notch two ranked wins over #12 Elizbar Odikadze (GEO) and #11 Zbigniew Baranowski (POL). Givi returns to the rankings at #5 for his wins over #5 Magomedkhan Magomedov (AZE) and #6 Vladislav Baitsaev (HUN) while Tsakulov moves up from #18 to #4 for his wins over Matcharashvili, Odikadze and Baranowski plus his title at the Bolat Turlykhanov Cup. Deepak Deepak (IND) won the U23 Asian championships. 2021 Olympic bronze medalist #4 Reineris Salas Perez (CUB) was eliminated from the rankings due to inactivity, having not competed since last August where he took bronze in Tokyo. Mucahit Celik (TUR) won the Junior European championships over Ivan Prymachenko (UKR) with Luka Khutchua (GEO) and Georgian Tripon (ROU) taking bronze. 2019 world bronze medalist Magomedgadzhi Nurov (MKD) won the Mediterranean Games over #7 (92) Feyzullah Akturk (TUR) with Mohamad Saadoui (TUN) taking bronze. Two-time Russian Nationals runner-up Aslanbek Sotiev (RUS) finally won his first Russian Nationals title over 2019 Russian Nationals bronze medalist #10 Shamil Musaev (RUS). Bronze medalists were #16 Sergey Kozyrev (RUS) and #9 Akhmed Tazhudinov (RUS), In the semis, Sotiev upset #7 Akhmed Tazhudinov (RUS) in the semis and #10 Shamil Musaev (RUS) beat 2021 125 KG Russian Nationals champion Kozyrev. Sotiev returns to the rankings at #8 for his wins over Tazhudinov and Musaev. Other notable upsets were 2021 Russian Nationals bronze medalist Khokh Khugaev (RUS) beating #19 Abdulla Kurbanov (RUS) in the qualification round and losing to Maxim Tolmachev (RUS) in the round of 16. Tolmachev and Khugaev are back in the rankings at #17 and #18 while Kurbanov falls two spots to #19. #2 Kyle Snyder (USA) won Final X in two matches over Kollin Moore (USA). Takashi Ishiguro (JPN) won the Meiji Cup over Hibiki Ito (JPN) with Taira Sonoda (JPN) taking bronze. 125 KG #1 Amir Zare (IRI) made his return to competition by winning the Bolat Turlykhanov Cup with over #9 Yusup Batirmurzaev (KAZ). Bronze medalists were #8 Lkhagvagerel Munkhtur (MGL) and Mohit Mohit (IND). Alisher Yergali (KAZ) won the U23 Asian championships. Taiki Yamamoto (JPN) won the Meiji Cup over Hiruto Ninomiya (JPN) with Yuji Fukui (JPN) taking bronze. Yarygin bronze medalist #19 Alen Khubulov (RUS) broke through to win his first Russian National title over Tamerlan Rasuev (RUS). Bronze medalists at Russian Nationals were #8 Baldan Tsyzhipov (RUS) and #10 Erik Dzhioev (RUS). Heavyweight, like 65 KG, was a weight highlighted by high-profile upsets. The most notable upsets occurred in the round of 16 against the Khizriev brothers with #4 Zelimkhan Khizriev being upset in the round of 16 by Tamerlan Rasuev (RUS) and #5 Anzor Khizriev (RUS) being upset by returning 5th place finisher Saipudin Magomedov (RUS). Magomedov was eliminated from competition by #8 Baldan Tsyzhipov (RUS) in the quarterfinals, while Rasuev made the finals and Zelimkhan forfeited out. The other upset in the round of 16 was Nikita Khabarov (RUS) beating #13 Vitali Goloev (RUS). The other upset was 2x Russian Nationals champion Khugaev (RUS) beating #7 Ostap Pasenok (RUS) in the qualification round. In the semifinals, Khubulov (RUS) beat Tsyzhipov (RUS) and Rasuev beat Dzhioev (RUS). In the aftermath of Russian Nationals, Khubulov moves up fifteen spots to #4 while Rasuev gets a career-high spot of #5 after beating formerly fourth ranked Zelimkhan Khizriev. Saipudin Magomedov is in the rankings at #11 for beating Khizriev, who falls seven spots to #12. Nikita Khabarov (RUS) is in the rankings at #16 for beating Goloev (RUS) who falls to #17 and Pasenok falls seven spots to #14 for his loss to #13 Alan Khugaev (RUS). Lyova Gevorgyan (ARM) won the Junior European championships over Merab Suleimanashvili (GEO) with Adil Misirci (TUR) and Giorgi Ivanov (BUL) taking bronze. Magomedgadzhi Nurasulov (SRB) won the Mediterranean Games over 2021 97 KG Olympic bronze medalist Abraham Conyedo Ruano (CUB) with Youssif Hemida (EGY) and Salim Ercan (TUR) taking bronze. #3 Geno Petriashvili (GEO) won the Matteo Pellicone over 2021 U23 European champion Anil Killicsallyan (TUR) with Kamil Kosciolek (POL) and Oleksandr Khotsianivski (UKR) taking bronze. Hayden Zillmer (USA) debuts in the rankings at #20 for winning a three-match series at Final X over two time world bronze medalist Nick Gwiazdowski (USA). Pound for Pound Removed this month from the pound for pound rankings are #4 Takuto Otoguro (inactivity), #19 Timur Bizhoev (resume doesn't hold up against breakthrough of 65 and 74 KG talent), #20 Magomedrasul Gazimagomedov (loss to #10 (74) Magomed Dibirgadzhiev in the quarterfinals of 74 KG Russian Nationals), and #21 Magomedmurad Gadzhiev (hasn't competed since 2021 worlds). Otoguro has been removed due to inactivity as he has not competed since winning the 2021 65 KG Olympics last August. #6 Magomedkhabib Kadimagomedov (BLR), #7 Kyle Dake (USA) and #8 Hassan Yazdani (IRI) all got bumped up two spots in the pound-for-pound due to Otoguro's removal plus #5 Gadzhimurad Rashidov (RUS) falling to #7 after his semifinal loss at 65 KG Russian Nationals. On the subject of 65 KG Russian Nationals, as previously mentioned Rashidov fell two spots to #7 due to his loss in the semifinals to eventual runner-up Gadzhimurad Omarov (RUS). 65 KG Russian Nationals champion Ibragim Ibragimov (RUS) debuts in the rankings at #18, while Russian Nationals runner-up Gadzhimurad Omarov (RUS) debuts at #19. 70 KG Russian Nationals champion Israil Kasumov (RUS) is back in the rankings at #21 due to his wins at Russian Nationals over Ruslan Zhendaev, Anzor Zakuev, and Viktor Rassadin plus pound-for-pound wins over #1 Zaurbek Sidakov (RUS), #15 David Baev (RUS), and #16 Cherman Valiev (RUS). Chance Marsteller (USA) debuts in the pound-for-pound rankings at #24 after taking a match against #10 Jordan Burroughs (USA) on his way to a runner-up finish at the 79 KG Final X. 65 KG Russian Nationals bronze medalist Aripgadzhi Abdulaev (RUS) takes the final spot in the rankings at #25 for his win over Yarygin and Yasar Dogu champion #24 Shamil Mamedov (RUS) in the quarterfinals of Russian Nationals.

2022 MAC champion Anthony Noto (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Welcome to a new, regular feature for InterMat! Every day, for the next few months, we'll look into the recent history of a DI wrestling program with our "Ten Years of…" feature. Even if you're a die-hard supporter of a particular school, there will be good information you may have forgotten. For others, it's a quick way to learn about a program you may not be familiar with. We're going in alphabetical order for this one, so next up is...Lock Haven! For past teams: Air Force American Appalachian State Arizona State Army West Point Binghamton Bloomsburg Brown Bucknell Buffalo Cal Poly Campbell Central Michigan Chattanooga Clarion Cleveland State Columbia Cornell CSU Bakersfield Davidson Drexel Duke Edinboro Franklin & Marshall Gardner-Webb George Mason Harvard Hofstra Illinois Indiana Iowa Iowa State Kent State Lehigh NCAA Qualifiers (37) 2022 125 - Anthony Noto (#17); 149 - DaShawn Farber (#33); 157 - Ben Barton (#26); 165 - Ashton Eyler (#23); 285 - Isaac Reid (#25) 2020 125 - Luke Werner (#13); 133 - DJ Fehlman (#30); 141 - Kyle Shoop (#20); 157 - Alex Klucker (#30); 174 - Jared Siegrist (#27) 2019 133 - DJ Fehlman (#24); 141 - Kyle Shoop (#13); 157 - Alex Klucker (#32); 165 - Chance Marsteller (#5); 184 - Corey Hazel (#16); 285 - Thomas Haines (#11) 2018 141 - Kyle Shoop; 149 - Ronnie Perry (#15); 157 - Alex Klucker; 165 - Chance Marsteller (#9); 184 - Corey Hazel; 285 - Thomas Haines (#15) 2017 133 - DJ Fehlman; 141 - Ronnie Perry; 149 - Kyle Shoop; 285 - Thomas Haines (#14) 2016 149 - Dan Neff (#15); 197 - Phil Sprenkle 2015 133 - Ronnie Perry; 149 - Dan Neff; 184 - Fred Garcia 2014 141 - Dan Neff; 149 - Mac Maldarelli; 165 - Jake Kemerer; 184 - Fred Garcia 2013 141 - Dan Neff; 184 - Fred Garcia National Champions None NCAA All-Americans 2019: Kyle Shoop (141 - 7th); Chance Marsteller (165 - 3rd) 2018: Ronnie Perry (149 - 2nd); Chance Marsteller (165 - 4th) 2015: Dan Neff (149 - 8th) NWCA All-Americans Luke Werner (125 - Honorable Mention) NCAA Round of 12 Finishers None Conference Champions MAC 2022: Anthony Noto (125); Ben Barton (157) 2020: Jared Siegrist (174) EWL 2019: DJ Fehlman (133); Kyle Shoop (141); Alex Klucker (157); Chance Marsteller (165); Corey Hazel (184); Thomas Haines (285) 2018: Ronnie Perry (149); Alex Klucker (157); Corey Hazel (184) 2017: Ronnie Perry (141) 2016: Dan Neff (149) Dual Records 2021-22: 10-5 2021: No Duals 2019-20: 7-7 2018-19: 10-3 2017-18: 12-4 2016-17: 8-8 2015-16: 9-9 2014-15: 7-12 2013-14: 3-10 2012-13: 7-6 Conference Tournament Placement MAC 2021-22: 1st 2021: 14th 2019-20: 5th EWL 2018-19: 1st 2017-18: 1st 2016-17: 3rd 2015-16: 3rd 2014-15: 3rd 2013-14: 3rd 2012-13: 5th NCAA Tournament Team Placement 2021-22: 37th 2021: No Qualifiers 2019-20: No Tournament 2018-19: 18th 2017-18: 16th 2016-17: 44th-tie 2015-16: 50th-tie 2014-15: 37th 2013-14: 56th-tie 2012-13: 57th-tie Head Coaching History Scott Moore (2013-Present) Best Lineup (Comprised of wrestlers from 2013-22) 125 - Anthony Noto: 2022 NCAA Qualifier (#17), 2022 MAC Champion 133 - Ronnie Perry: 3x NCAA Qualifier (#15 seed), 2018 NCAA Runner-Up, 2x EWL Champion 141 - Kyle Shoop: 3x NCAA Qualifier (#13 and #20 seed), 2019 NCAA All-American (7th place), 2019 EWL Champion 149 - Dan Neff: 4x NCAA Qualifier (#15 seed), 2015 NCAA All-American (8th place), 2016 EWL Champion 157 - Alex Klucker: 3x NCAA Qualifier, 2x EWL Champion 165 - Chance Marsteller: 2x NCAA Qualifier (#5 and #9 seeds), 2x NCAA All-American (3rd and 4th place), 2019 EWL Champion 174 - Jared Siegrist: 2020 NCAA Qualifier, 2020 MAC Champion 184 - Fred Garcia: 3x NCAA Qualifier, 3x EWL Runner-Up 197 - Phil Sprenkle: 2016 NCAA Qualifier 285 - Thomas Haines: 3x NCAA Qualifier (#11 and #15 seeds), 2019 EWL Champion, 3x EWL Finalist Recruiting Number of Big Boarder's Per Year 2021: #225 Tommy Dressler (PA); #292 Gable Strickland (PA) 2020: #35 Tyler Stoltzfus (PA); #163 Will Betancourt (PA); #178 Nick Stonecheck (GA); #199 DaShawn Farber (PA) 2018: #68 Isaac Reid (PA) 2016: #73 Tyshawn White (PA) 2014: #106 Kyle Bova (PA); #131 Tristan Sponseller (PA) 2013: #184 Mauro Correnti (NJ)

Kevin Jackson coaching J'den Cox at Final X Stillwater (photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) For the Fourth of July, we had the idea to reach out to several athletes who had the honor and responsibility to represent Team USA. We wanted to keep this simple, but profound, if that makes sense. We asked two main questions of several notable characters from Team USA lore. Question number 1) What athletic moment comes to mind when you think about your experiences representing the United States? Question number 2) Is there a moment off of the mat that you think of when you reflect on your experiences representing USA Wrestling? Some of the answers that came back didn't match the questions exactly, but nobody really cares. This is just an exercise to get some fun answers from the best the USA has had to offer the world. Here, Kevin Claunch and Lauren Muther compile the answers and experiences shared by some greats. We hope you enjoy and have a great Fourth of July! Randy Lewis - 2 time Olympian, Junior World Champion, 1984 Olympic Gold Medalist 1. I made two Junior World Teams, two Pan Am Teams, two World Teams, and two Olympic Teams, and I won a Junior World Title and 2 Pan Am Titles, as well as an Olympic Title. I also had my shot at a World Title robbed from me in 1982 by a protest similar to what happened 3 times to Cary Kolat. The highlight of my career was obviously winning the Gold Medal in 1984. Besides the Olympics, the best moment of my career came in a USA v Russia dual meet in Rapid City, SD in 1980. Check out my article I wrote called "The Toughest Kid on the Block" - 2. The one thing I loved the most after winning the Olympics was wrestling in USA vs Russia dual meets in front of big crowds. I wrestled in four dual meets against two Russian World Champions and the 1988 Olympic silver medalist. I won all 4 dual meets and put on a good show. In 1990, I wrestled against the defending World Champion from Russia at 149.5 pounds in a USA v Russia dual meet in Wisconsin and my Dad was there. He told me "Randy, you don't have to put on a show, you just have to win the match." I said, "Dad, I'M GONNA win the match, but I'm also gonna PUT ON A SHOW. Lee Roy Smith was our coach during that meet, and he gave our first 3 wrestlers good technical advice against their opponents. When I got ready to step on the mat, he just smiled and said loudly, "Lewboo, ok let's show the crowd what wrestling is all about. Against the World Champion from Russia, I was ahead 13-4 before I pinned him. I loved representing the USA v Russia in dual meets. Stephen Neal - 1999 World Champion and 1999 Pan Am Champion 1. Competing for the United States of America was such an honor. Every singlet and warmup we received during that time of competition had the flag and letters USA printed on them. What was missing from those uniforms were the athletes' names, for good reason. When I think about wrestling in those tournaments, I remember the pride I had, and still have, for the best country in the world, and trying to show what we stand for. Hard work. Never give up. Compete with Honor. 2. Every time I hear the National Anthem I remember October 10th, 1999 when Old Glory was raised in Ankara, Turkey. Everyone in that arena stood in silence listening to The Star-Spangled Banner until our flag was raised and the song was over! Never gets old hearing that song and having that memory. Kendall Cross - Two-time Olympian, Olympic Gold Medalist 1996 1. This is an obvious one - the moment our National Anthem began to play after I stood atop the podium at the '96 Atlanta Games and accepted my Gold Medal. It was a magical experience; one I played over and over in my mind. To actually live it, was surreal! I remember just shaking my head, kind of in disbelief that it was happening. A proud moment to hear our National Anthem play. 2. My first Olympics - '92 Barcelona Games. I'll never forget walking out onto the field in Barcelona Olympic Stadium during the Opening Ceremonies, with the entire US contingent of athletes. Of all the countries that marched onto the field that evening, Team USA drew the absolute loudest roar from the crowd. It was a noise I felt deep in my chest. Unforgettable! For that moment, I had this overwhelming sense of pride - for being an American! It was like the Goliath of teams stepped onto that field, and for that moment, no other team existed. Kevin Jackson - Olympic Gold Medalist 1992, World Champion 1991 and 1995, Pan Am Champ 1991 and 1995. 1. When standing on the award stand receiving the gold medal, every American in the arena began to sing the National Anthem! My heart filled with joy and pride for representing the United States of America. 2. It really hit me at the closing ceremonies. They were the day after I won the Olympic Gold. Standing in the stadium, I felt the most patriotic I've ever felt. It was the greatest sense of achievement I had ever experienced. Upon entering the Olympic stadium, I noticed how well dressed the officials were; coats, hats, and ties. You could feel the energy and all its great history. I then noticed runners warming up on the track, a woman high jumps over the high bar, and a javelin came flying through the air. That's when the reality of the moment hit me like a ton of bricks… This is the Olympic Games! The OLYMPIC GAMES!!! The great ancient games that Jesse Owens, Jim Thorpe, Muhammad Ali, Mary Lou Retton, and other greats had competed in, and I, Kevin Jackson, was now a part of that history. It was the greatest sense of achievement I ever experienced. It was an overwhelming feeling of pride and patriotism. Kerry McCoy - 2-time Olympian (2000, 2004), World Silver Medalist 2003, Pan Am Champion 2003 1. Making my first Olympic Team always jumps to the top of the list, but another is my Cadet World Team experience. It was my first time out of the U.S. and it was my first exposure to elite wrestlers from all over the country as teammates. 2. The opening ceremonies of the Olympic Games were the most incredible experiences. Being around so many incredible athletes representing their countries was amazing. During that time, the only thing that mattered was being a part of the Olympic family and being united under the Olympic flag. Donny Pritzlaff - World Bronze Medalist 2006, World Cup Bronze Medalist (2007), Pan Am Silver Medalist 2006, 2-time Dave Schultz Gold Medalist (2002, 2005), Junior World Champ 1998 1. Winning the bronze medal at the 2006 World Championships for the U.S. against an opponent from Belarus who beat me twice previously. 2. There isn't one off-the-mat moment in particular but I think often of all the people, relationships and lifelong friendships that I built traveling overseas with the U.S. team and the many stories of all these trips.

Tom and Terry Brands at the 2022 Collegiate Duals (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) We're in a meeting of the Intermat conference correspondents, and we are going over some things coming up, what we should be aware of, updates on when things will be posted, etc… Business as usual. I always enjoy these meetings because you can learn about what other people are working on, bounce ideas off of each other, and people offer to help network to get information or stories for other people. A generally pleasant collaborative environment. This particular week Earl Smith - Editor at Intermat, casually mentioned how we should come up with ideas for the Fourth of July. I had one! I'll ask World Champion and Olympians, Tom and Terry Brands, to talk about their experiences representing the United States. It'll give them a chance to talk about their accomplishments through their career, we can talk Iowa and Gable. Everyone wins! Sure enough, they were interested in the idea and I got my first chance to speak with these two legends of the sport. I started with Terry. It was a Thursday. I was nervous, but prepared. Let's go. Kevin Claunch I am very honored to be joined by Terry Brands, Associate Head Coach at the University of Iowa. I appreciate the opportunity today to speak with you, Terry. Terry Brands Thank you for having me. Kevin Claunch This piece is really around patriotism. I thought it would be really cool to talk with you and your brother about what it's like having the experiences you've had to represent the United States against the world. So is there a specific first moment, whether it's winning a match or, or getting over a hump or anything like that that comes to mind with your wrestling experience and representing the United States that, that, is top of mind for you? Terry Brands I think, you know, growing up and being an American, just the way that this country was founded or formed, was God and Country and everything that we were raised, everything that Gable taught. So it was kind of like a natural transition in about that. It was about representing yourself at the highest level, because it's not just about you. It's about God, it's about Country. It's about your family. And so it goes back really to fifth grade when I started wrestling and we kind of figured out that the Olympics was the top level and we get to wrestle for the United States of America and put those warmups on, or those singlets on and go out and compete for the country. And it was about God and country going back. As far as I can remember in the sport. Kevin Claunch That's awesome. I mean, is there a particular win or anything that comes to mind where you felt like you "did it", and you really represented the United States in the way that you had imagined? Terry Brands Probably the best or biggest victory was Gable, you know, seeing Gable on the podium. I was four years old and didn't really know anything about it until, you know, five years, six years, seven years later. But when you start investigating the sport, his name comes up and you see that picture. That's really the moment. And you put yourself where Gable was. You put that gold medal around your neck. You know, so it's kind of like a visualization thing, it was kind of hatched or manufactured or manifested in my mind before it was a reality, or really in my mind and my heart. And again, like I said, it's just one of those things that's the highest level in the sport of wrestling is to wrestle for your country in the Olympic Games. And. You know, that's what you aspire to do. Kevin Claunch Well, it's funny, you mentioned that I literally, in my office here have the picture of him with the, the gold medal around his neck and the, the quote at the bottom you know, gold medals aren't really made of gold. They're made of, you know, sweat determination and a hard-to-find alloy called guts. I bought that in 2012 in Iowa. When I was there for the Olympic trials, just watching obviously. But it's funny that that happens to be the, the moment you mentioned too. Terry Brands Yeah, exactly. It's a classic picture. It's a classic, it's an iconic picture of success. And you know, anybody that's got a brain can, can put themselves in that spot and, and they can aspire to be that. And they can become that even though I never did. You know, it was something that, that, that image was, is, and was imprinted in my head for forever. Kevin Claunch You got into coaching as well, and you had a lot of success coaching at the collegiate level, but also internationally as well. Is there a specific coaching moment, you know, where somebody got a big win or anything along those lines that really stands out to you that fills you with, with patriotic pride? Terry Brands Probably Henry Cejudo. You know, he was an immigrant. I don't know if he was first generation or second generation, you know, he was born in Mexico and then his mom brought him across the border. And so for him to be able to fulfill his goal of winning an Olympic gold medal and doing it at a very, very young age was really, really satisfying for him. And that was a very patriotic moment for himself as he named, his daughter America. So, you know, he has a lot of American pride and that was so cool to see him be able to stand on top of that podium, you know, with that gold medal around his neck as an American. Kevin Claunch Oh, it was, it was awesome in, in the moment too. I actually read his book and, and obviously have been following his MMA career after the fact as well. Traveling with team USA and everything that you've done throughout the years, you know, whether as an athlete or as a coach, I mean, are there any specific or fun experiences that come to mind when you look back on everything? Terry Brands I think that I'll give you two there right away that comes to mind. When I was coaching, I remember we wrestled in Iran in a little community called Bander Abbas, and we were the first wrestling team over there in a while. And Mo Lawal captured the heart of the Iranian people and, you know, it was one of those deals. And then we were going right from there to Krasnoyarsk, and we were staying in the UAE, the United Arab Emirates. And they didn't have any mats. And so we were gonna be there for a week without any mats. And so I called up Bender (Rich) and I was like, Rich, "We gotta get to fricking Moscow man, there aren't any mats here." And he's like, "Are you freaking crazy? You're in the greatest resort city in the world. And you wanna go to Moscow in January? What's wrong with you?" And, and our guys, you know, they, they were all in on it, , I remember Mo kind of raised his eyebrows at me a little bit. That was one which is, which is kind of hilarious, but hey, we had to do it. We had to get ready. We were going to one of the biggest, they called 'em Grand Prix's back then, one of the top Grand Prix in the world in Krasnoyarsk. So, we had to get ready. That was one, and then the other one, which is hilarious, is the Dave Schultz story. We had just won the World Cup team gold medal. He had won the individual and, you know, a lot of us had, I think seven or eight of us had won the individual gold medal, too. And we were marching to the podium and we just got done wrestling Turkey, and we were going to the top stand for the team podium. And this Turk is just screaming at Schultz and he's like is (insert incoherent yelling in Turkish here) Schultz is bowing, and he's folding his hands, in a thankful gesture. And he's saying stuff back to him in Turkish, and then we got done and he's just giving him business. And I go "Schultz, what's he saying?" And Schultz goes, "oh, he's pissed. Because he says that I didn't wrestle him. I ran, I was passive towards him." So I go, "well, what'd you say back to him?" He said, "I said, I told him that 'you're right. I was passive, you're way too tough for me to have to wrestle you so hard. So I had to wrestle you passively in order to win the match. You're such a great wrestler." And he just killed him with kindness in classic Schultz fashion. That was a great witness to sportsmanship, you know? Kevin Claunch Oh, without a doubt. That's unbelievable. I hadn't never heard that story. So great. I wanted to ask you about Clarissa Chun joining the program, as the Iowa Women's Wrestling Coach. I was just reading the Sports Illustrated piece that they put out on her this morning and it occurred to that it must be such a cool thing to have somebody who, who has that shared experience of, of winning a World Championship and, and representing the United States coming into the program there at Iowa that, that has such support from, the athletic directors and, and everybody with pursuing those international. Terry Brands Yeah, I mean, you have like-minded people there and that's why it's a good hire and it's a good fit. And you know, it remains to be seen that we can get our program back to where we want it, and then they get their program where they want it and we run the table, but there's a lot of work to be done on both ends. She's steering that ship over there. We do our thing here and we're in a really, really great relationship from a partnership point of view and any help that they need and any help that they have needed. We have offered our hands to them. And it's just awesome to have an administration that foresees the future. And this isn't an easy decision, you know, you can say, "Oh, Women's Wrestling is here to stay." Yeah, it is. But to invest this kind of time, money and resources to a Division One women's program at, at this level right now, at this point in time in history, tells you what the University of Iowa is about. And that's always what we've been about. It's always been about pushing the boundaries, wrestling's number one, wrestlings important. That's not a knock on our basketball or our football programs at all, because they are awesome people that run those programs and awesome programs that we have there. But, wrestling is number one in our hearts and minds and a general Iowan and they know when you talk about Iowa, anywhere in the world, I've been to Denmark in a grocery store and a little farm community. And my wife had a Hawkeye shirt on it. A guy came up and was like, "Hawkeye Hawkeye I know, I know. Hawkeye" You know, I mean, that's out in the middle of nowhere, you know, and that's everywhere. Yeah. You know, you go to Russia and they say, "You wrestled for Gable, Gable, Gable, Gable was a hammer. He was a hammer." They know Hawkeye, Hawkeye. They know that word. They know that brand and its worldwide. Kevin Claunch And you guys have done a lot to get to that point. Right. It's awesome. So when, when coaching athletes, right, I wanna get to some of the, the guys you've got competing right now and are gonna be representing you know, in U23's and some of the recent success there, but when talking to the athletes and, and preparing and training and everything, how much of the conversation is around, you know, what it means to represent the United States in a world championship? Terry Brands To represent yourself first, get ready to go and represent yourself at the highest level and everything else falls into that. And that's kind of what I was talking about earlier. We talked about timeless principles or biblical principles that are timeless, you could say. And the, the biggest thing is we had one of our coach's talk about this the other day at a meeting and he was saying that when you say timeless, a lot of these guys, they think like it's old fashioned and that's not the case. Timeless is old-fashioned, modern day and futuristic and it never will be outdated. It never has been outdated. It never, it never will not be relevant. And that's what we talk to these guys about. It's about God, it's about Country. It's about your program. It's about our administration. It's about your family. It's about your siblings. It's about your teammates. And, and most importantly, it's about yourself. But if you, if you're struggling and you need to find a little tiny piece of something that can get you through that struggle, get you to persevere, then maybe it is something, you know, with. More with God, more with country, more with team, more with family that can really make that importance and make that desire go to that level where you're ready to compete, to win at all costs. Kevin Claunch Very, very well said. Now more specifically Patrick Kennedy just won the U 23 spot as well as Anthony Cassioppi. You know, Patrick, unfortunately, the way that they've got the system set up right now with Carr (David Carr) accepting his spot there, doesn't get the chance to compete for that. But, you know, he obviously had an excellent showing at U23s and, and beat a lot of really tough competitors out. Terry Brands Yeah. And he's getting ready to go for that world championship. And just because Carr accepted doesn't mean that he's gonna, you know, let his guard down, right? You never know what's gonna happen. And, he's the next man in. And he knows that. So we'll, we'll be ready to go and we'll see Carr down the road. And if Carr's the guy, then we wish him well. The ultimate best in representing the US. You know, I remember the most recent thing was when Gable Steveson won that gold medal. And he let the guy up, in a sense, and took him down again to win that gold. That's a thing where, you know, you look at that and it's somebody that you compete against several times a year. You're so excited for him though. You know, because it's not the Gopher anymore. It's not the Hawkeye versus the Gopher anymore. It's Gable Stevenson, Team USA, baby! And you know, I just remember the elation that I had, and the chills, and the goosebumps that I got when he won that match. My wife was outside, blowing off the deck or whatever. And she's like, "what happened? What happened?" She thought like I got hurt or something, you know, because I was just going crazy. Cause I was so fired up for him. Oh yeah. It's the same thing with Carr, you know, if Carr's the guy, if he decides to go, then we wish him the best, but we're getting ready. We're getting ready for the next time or for this time. Right now it's this time. Kevin Claunch I woke up my whole family, I think, celebrating when Gable won that match in dramatic fashion too, obviously. But Anthony Cassioppi gets the spot to go defend his World Championship there. Has anything changed as far as how he was preparing for the first trip versus going to this title defense? Terry Brands I think the reigning champ is a reigning champ and he knows how to do it. Really like the first time you can say, but you spend so much time in your head and in your heart, you know, wrestling those matches and I know for, me and for Tony, he works hard at being a student of the sport. So he knows where he is going in Spain. He knows what the community is. He knows the population, he knows the climate. You know, and that's how you do it. And then you put yourself there and your brain and in your heart, you connect your brain and your heart, and you get that mental toughest routine working for you. And it doesn't really matter if he's a reigning champ or not. It doesn't really matter if he's never wrestled there before, or if he has, or if he's been on a world team or not, because you get yourself, you have the pieces that are, that are touchable, that are available to you. To make sure that you are ready to go and compete at the highest level. It does not matter. And, and he's that way. He's just an awesome leader of this program and, and we're fired up. We're fired up to go to Spain in October. Kevin Claunch Well, and the last thing here, I can't talk to you and Tom about, Iowa wrestling and representing the United States without asking about coach Gable as well. When you guys were competing and, and he was working with you, what was some of his messaging around what it meant to represent the United States and preparing you guys for your international careers. Terry Brands I think that your question is really awesome. Also, with that, he, it's kind of with the way the program is now, and maybe that's our fault, but you know, with Gable he didn't have to say it. When you look at him, when you look at him, you see excellence. You know, when you look at him, you see Iowa, you see Team USA, you see World and Olympic, NCAA, Big 10, Midlands. You see undefeated dual meet seasons. You see things that are just that are just around him, that are in him, that come out of him. You know, like, like moon beams coming out of his fingertips. It's something that these guys understand and that we understood when we were wrestling for Gable, that it is about the highest level. And by gosh, all mighty. You better be ready to compete at the highest level. And if you are, you will have what you want at the end of the day. Kevin Claunch Yeah. That's an unbelievable answer. It's funny, you, you know it, but it doesn't get talked about, you look at coach Gable and you're just like, that's the guy who's done everything that people talk about wanting to do. Got everything started for where the expectations of excellence should be set. Perfect answer. Terry Brands And his example, and, you know, the way is just everything you ask, any one of our current guys about that. They're probably gonna say the same thing, that we don't necessarily talk about, representing your country, like those World War II banners or something. And so that's, that's kind of where we're at with it. And our guys have a very, very clear understanding of what's expected in this program. No question. That was the end of my conversation with Terry Brands for that day. Hearing Terry laugh when telling stories was really interesting. Clearly it's insane to think that Terry Brands isn't able to laugh, or even think that it doesn't happen with regularity, but in the context that we usually see Terry Brands it is infrequent. He was really forthcoming with his stories and easy to talk to. Another piece I thought was interesting was how he sort of steered the interview away from his own accomplishments, and really focused a lot on the preparation aspect of competing. I had expected to get a story about standing on a podium, or winning Pan Ams, or making the Olympic Team, but that was not the case. This theme will continue as we continue our journey with the Brands Brothers. Monday morning, I got to speak with Tom. Here is that interview; Kevin Claunch I am lucky to be joined here by Head Coach of the Iowa Hawkeyes Tom brands. Thank you for joining me today, Tom. Tom Brands Awesome. Fired up. Kevin Claunch I'm really excited to talk with you and obviously I spoke with your brother last week about what it meant to represent the United States and, and everything that goes along with that. Is there a moment specifically from your athletic career that comes to mind when you think about your wrestling experiences representing the United States? Tom Brands Well, I think the biggest thing is, as a competitor, you're so zoned in that there's not a lot of noise that you hear. I remember environments where the crowd got into it. I remember the environments where the temperature was maybe off and very unusual. 1993 Toronto, there were record highs there. The mats were soaking wet. They wouldn't dry, record humidity in Toronto. And remember that environment. I remember being in Russia wrestling and what I call it a money challenge, where it's a money match. You know, you make more money than if you don't win you, you get paid to show up. But when you win, you get paid the big bucks. And I remember. Those crowds were so gracious to the foreigners. It surprised me, especially the first time I went. I mean, actually the first time I went, I went with Dave Schultz. And so I saw how revered he was. It's different from a tournament when you're in a money challenge or a money dual. It's different from a tournament. It's more intimate. There's, there's maybe only, you know, 10 matches and maybe up to two matches. So maybe there's only 20 matches for the whole event. And you see how that crowd's right on top of you, but they, they really are gracious. They're a lot more gracious than you know, I would be to foreigners coming into our domain to compete. I wanna win everything. Those are the things that you remember. Wrestling's a big deal overseas. So the environment with pageantry with the high-powered politicians, and I'm not even talking about mayors and governor's level, I'm talking about, you know, big ambassadors for little countries, but they're the President. It was a big deal. So that's a general overview of, of what I've seen, you know, Atlanta was packed. But you don't remember those things. I remember Travis Fiser, , having a big win at Carver Hawkeye Arena in the 1991 national tournament. Then my match was over. And I had gone back to the hotel and I listened to it on the radio and the radio announcer…you couldn't even hear him because the crowd was so loud. When Fiser got that take down, I believe it was against an Arizona State wrestler. And that was a big, big match for Fiser, a big win. And obviously in terms of the team race. So that covers a lot there. Kevin Claunch It certainly does, but it's cool because I didn't really realize that they were still doing those big money matches, back then. Obviously, they've gotten a lot more of those going now. Tom Brands Well, the first one I went to was in Vladikavkaz. That's in a city that's in the Southern Russian Caucasus mountain region. I remember one of the people that was with us, I wanna call 'em a native, but the people that were our hosts that lived there, they pointed over the mountain and they said "the war in Georgia, right there Tbilisi war right there." So, you know, 40 miles over that mountain was the war going on in Tbilisi and that was in the mid-90's there, maybe 94, but great people, great experiences. The fanfare is incredible over there. The fanfare here is incredible. It's just different. It's really different because you know that wrestling is so important over there and so popular. So that's where the difference is in the United States, wrestling is kind of a niche crowd, the spectators. You know, when you're in Iran or Russia or those old Russian republics you know, wrestling is the sport, along with soccer. So it's different, you know, I mean, you're, you're really heralded as an important figure I guess, would be how to describe it. Kevin Claunch Is there a specific moment off the map that you look back fondly on as like, 'Hey, this is so great. And, such an awesome experience representing the United States in this way?' Tom Brands I remember in Toronto winning the World Championship, and then Terry had to wrestle, I wrestled for two days. Then on day three of the tournament, Terry had to wrestle and I remember he was wrestling the Cuban. And you talk about off the mat. I watched that whole chaotic scene take place where stuff was being thrown out on the mat. It was bloody, when I say bloody, not literally, but it was a very hotly contested match and an important match. And the reason why the stuff was coming out in the mat, the bottles and the trash was because the Cuban had beaten the Iranian and the Cuban needed to win to bring the Iranian back in. And Terry was wrestling the Cuban and the Iranian crowd was very, it was very numerous, there was a lot of 'em, and they were very boisterous, I guess, is the word. It was an off the mat thing. And Terry had to persevere through that and I look back on it. It's no big deal. I mean, we wrestled like that in our basement for, you know, 15 years prior to that. I mean, things getting thrown and you have to overcome a lot wrestling a twin brother. (Side note on this match, if you haven't watched it before, it's crazy. Singlet pulling, crazy cheering from the crowd, and ball grabbing… This was not the ball grab era of International Wrestling.) When you talk about off the mat stuff off the mat is coaching off the mat. If coaching's off the mat you know, then there's, there's a lot of moments. I remember the Penn State dual a couple of years ago where we got ourselves in a little bit of trouble. Marinelli lost a match to (Vincenzo) Joseph, and then our back was against the wall and Kemerer had to go out there and wrestle Mark Hall and he ended up winning a tough match. He got a take down late to go ahead. I believe it was a one point match and he got a takedown late to go ahead 7-4, and then kept him down and ended up getting riding time to win that match 8-4. But I remember Assad was up next, Abe Assad. So I didn't even see the end of the match. I took him back into the training room, which is in the tunnel of Carver Hawkeye Arena to get away from the noise because he was a true freshman. We went into that room and there was no difference. I mean, right through the concrete and the walls. The noise of that crowd was coming through, that's an off-the-mat moment where you try to do best by the athlete that's coming up next. I could see that he was getting a little wrapped up in it, coming up and all that crowd. And so I tried to get him away and there was no getting away. I mean, you could have walked him four blocks down the street, it would've been the same. I mean, the roof in Carver Hawkeye Arena literally came off in that match with Kemerer and Mark Hall. Kevin Claunch I remember exactly where I was watching that match. I was down here in my basement and, and going nuts as well, but well. Speaking of coaching too, because obviously you've coached a lot of athletes to World Teams and Olympic teams and everything along those lines. Is there a coaching moment from, you know, coaching on the freestyle or, or Greco scene that stands out to you or, or a moment where somebody, you know, got over the hump and, and made that team that, that, you know, you really look back on fondly? Tom Brands I mean, all of 'em, you know, they're, they're all fond. The fanfare, if you're talking about crowds and fanfare you know, that's a little bit of a different question. When you're in the moment, whether you're coaching or competing for the most part, I'm not sure that you really, really notice the crowd unless it's just over the top deafening or something just crazy happens. So you know, I remember, as a coach, probably the one I remember the most, I was in the corner and a lot of times when you're, when you have memories, it's when, when your other staff is in the corner and you're watching from afar. But, this one in particular, I was in the corner and Dan Erekson went out and had a big match and the consolation round and our backs were against the wall in the 2009 National Tournament. It was us and Ohio State. And we were neck and neck. And it was the first match of the consolation round for Dan Erekson. And he ended up getting a big fall. He got a big pin in that match, it was huge bonus points moving on, All-American status. And it was literally a shot heard round the world. I remember our crowd was very loud and they, you know, there was, maybe 2,500 - 3000 people in that 20,000 seat arena. It was as loud as I've ever heard. Danny Erekson from Idaho, a very big heavyweight and he was dangerous. He was one of those guys that could get you, but this was a tough match and he was ready to go. He was as good a heavyweight as far as low level attacks go. He ended up having a pretty good attack and the guy tried something a little bit funky on the counter, like a roll, and Erekson caught him. It was big for the team race implications. So I remember that one that was 2009. You're talking international more you know, international crowds and trials crowds. Like I said, it's a niche crowd, and you know, a lot of times there's not 10, 12, 15,000 people. So yeah. The World Cup in Iowa City, that was a big crowd, the Olympic trials in 2012 and 2016, those were both sold out. It was a loud crowd. The Dennis v Ramos match, you know, there's a lot of polarized emotions in that one. Two stablemates going at it, but anyway, it was one of those things where, when you reflect, it's not really about the crowd, until someone asks you, then you look at it like from what people's experience and their experience is the crowd. I mean, the experience at Carver Hawkeye Arena is the crowd. Kevin Claunch Are there any specific experiences that come to mind or fun stories that come to mind just from traveling with team USA? Tom Brands You know, you get off the plane in Russia in January. And it was cold and snowy. And they had literally, the red carpet rolled out for you and they had a band playing and they greeted you very well. And they gave you an escort to the hotel from the airport. So the fanfare was big. It was important there. That was in Russia. That was my first time in Russia. My first time in Iran. Very similar except the entourage was visibly armed. There was visibly more of 'em and, and our protection was paramount when we were there. Nothing but great things to say about them. Those places, Iran, Russia and, you know, you get into all the politics of the world. People aren't politics. So, that's what I remember. The fanfare of the environment. The fanfare of the cities you went to, the countries you went to, and how important wrestling was. Their fans would openly embrace you. You know, you'd get kissed on both cheeks, or one cheek being greeted by total strangers. All good man. It's all good stuff. Kevin Claunch Speaking of traveling and representing the United States, I did wanna make sure we highlighted Clarissa Chan joining Iowa as the Head Women's coach. Just talk to me a little bit about how cool it is to have somebody who has those shared experiences of wrestling in the Olympics and winning a World Championship to, to join the, the Iowa wrestling community. Tom Brands I think that it has hit the ground running. When we announced that we were gonna add women's wrestling there were plans for a two-to-five year plan in the works anyway. It got sped up. That's a great thing. I'm a huge proponent; we've had women in our room for five years now. You know, and we had some really, really high powered Women in our room with (Forrest) Molinari and (Alli) Ragan and (Kayla) Miracle. Michaela Beck came as well. You know, and we continued that and we had three women in our room this year, Jordan Nelson, Victoria Francis, Rachel Watters, this year and last year. It's important to us. It was important to us, back when it wasn't cool to have it important. We really were trailblazers in having 'em in our college room. And, then the stipends that we gave them and that money match that we had in Coralville in that COVID year. We had two women's matches. We paid 'em the exact same as the men, I'm proud of that, you know? And so we continue that with our administration; adding intercollegiate women's wrestling to our athletic department. I mean, this is a big, big deal. We're excited. Kevin Claunch When you have athletes making World Teams and getting ready to go travel overseas, or get ready for international matches. How much of that in the conversation is around what it means to represent the United States, or is it mostly focused on just the wrestling piece, and the rest works itself out. Tom Brands It's focused on winning National, World, and Olympic Championships. You don't recruit the caliber of athletes without mentioning those three things. In addition to the education part. The hard part for me is that the world is changing every day and it's changing very quickly. But the easy part is, the standards of excellence, the importance of discipline and work ethic, and attitude, and hustle. Those haven't changed. So it's easy. I mean, you can talk about all the things that you wanna talk about and complain about it. NIL, and this and that, and, you know, the transfer portal. The bottom line is, the world's gonna change. But there's the standards of winning, what it takes to win at the highest level, how important those ingredients are, that does not change. The conversation is about the attitude, the hustle, the work ethic. How important it is at the University of Iowa to be a student athlete. But the athlete part of that is the international piece of it. That's important that that gets communicated from both ends. I mean, I know that Larry Lee and Kathy Lee, forget about Spencer, I know where his mind was, but Larry and Kathy Lee, it was important to them; the international aspect. What we could give their son. But you look at the other side of it. We have to communicate that to the parents. We have to communicate that for our own self as well, because wrestling is very serious here. It's very different here. There is a great, great commitment that comes with wrestling here. And you know, some of the guys that we recruit might not be quite up to that so they have to have an understanding. So it really goes both ways. Having that detailed conversation. And like I said, it's easy because the standards in being the very best, they, they have it changed. Kevin Claunch Speaking of chasing down Gold Medals, you've got Patrick Kennedy and Anthony Cassioppi winning the U23 spot. Obviously Kennedy is in the number two spot there, but Cassioppi going to defend his title. Talk to me a little bit about Patrick Kennedy and his mindset right now, and, and having a, a really impressive U23s as well as Anthony Cassioppi and you know, how he's preparing to, to defend his title. Tom Brands Start with Cassioppi number one. What a great thing to be able to go defend, the highest honor at the U23 level. And, it's an age group tournament. You don't take anything away from that. It's a World Championship and absolutely. And now, "Hey, go, go do it again, stud. What have you done for me lately?" type of mentality, you know, and yep, that's where his focus is. He's a super disciplined guy. He has great morale, like he's upbeat. He's great and even when he doesn't have success, he can move forward. Because of his attitude and, and things that doesn't mean that he, just brushes it off, but it does mean that he gets back to work and he analyzes and self analyzes in a healthy way. Those are important things to be able to do. So we're excited about that. We didn't really know what he was gonna do, he wrestled in Coralville, he qualified for that event and he was planning on being in Final X, I'm sure. It probably would've put the U23, off the schedule, but the Coralville results were final. We talked and right away, it was about looking for maybe going U23 and he made the call, we had a conversation and left it open-minded. You know, that conversation for him was easy it seems like. So that's important to me, as well, that guys wanna get right back into it. So all really, really good stuff there. Kennedy, he's getting ready to go, , we don't know, I don't know that it's been official, official. I saw some posts that a couple of our guys put in front of me that he wasn't gonna be able to wrestle because the other guy had accepted or whatever, but I haven't heard anything official from USA Wrestling. Doesn't mean that anything isn't official, Kennedy's training. Like he's the guy and he'll be in camp on, up on July 3rd with Bill Zadick and Joe Russell. He'll go to that camp and he'll get ready like he's the guy and if he's not the guy, then he'll be the best alternate he can be. And that's all you can ask. And those are the things that are important to me. Earlier I talked about the fanfare and stuff, and it's funny because that's foreign to me, you know I'm a little bit single-minded in my focus, when it comes to competition. So it's a little bit hard to embrace the foreign crowds and you know, how much they respect and love you and they roll out the red carpet, they roll out for you. But that's hard for me because to me, it's like, "Hey, we're competing here and it's, it's serious." and, you know, that's just how I am. And then, you go back to what your grandma said, you know, "it's not whether you won or lost, it's how you played the game." And I say hog wash, so, being embraced and celebrated as a retired athlete, I'm not there, it's foreign to me, because it's not important that my past be celebrated. What's important is that we're getting ready to go, and when you have guys like Cassioppi, and Kennedy, and Assad. Obviously Spencer Lee and you can go all the way up down our lineup, 149 Murin, we got a transfer coming in at 141 Real Woods, the way these guys operate. We're gonna need a 157 pounder, Nelson Brands, Jacob Warner's a national runner up our highest returning placer, and he took it really hard. You've got all this going on and when you have guys that are, moving forward, like Cassioppi and Kennedy and then all the other guys kind of more behind the scenes, cuz you know, Assad he gets third place in a tournament that, after getting beat semis, he could have folded up his tent. Those are all signs that our fans are about to flock to Carver Hawkeye Arena, and there's gonna be a high powered lineup in place for them to be entertained. And, you talked earlier about what your agenda was gonna be and, that's one thing that Gable talked about a lot. He talked about, "go out there and be an entertainer you know, go out there and be a point score." And when you do that, it takes great commitment to be able to do that. It takes great commitment in your training. And great commitment to a philosophy, commitment to a mindset where it is about scoring points and kind of the Randy Lewis mentality. The Royce Alger mentality, where those guys were true warriors and they did it for the crowd, they did it for themselves, but they loved to perform on a great stage. Some of those matches, where guys would come into Carver Hawkeye Arena. It was a heavily billed match. And he ended up having two Titans going at it and the crowd kind of favored the home guy and the home guy persevered and then scarred him down the road, for the future. And that's what Gable used to talk about. Kevin Claunch And that's, it's funny, you mentioned those two guys. That's how I was gonna position the question, was, you know, you and Terry making World Teams and representing the United States, but I was gonna throw Randy and Royce in there as well. But that was the messaging from, from Coach Gable? "Hey, go, go put on a show for the fans?" Tom Brands Yeah. And when you train the way you train, it makes total sense. I mean, you did that as a youngster, before you were even in Gable's room, just because you were such a competitor and it was so important for you to represent. And so when you talk about Gable's philosophy, it was a real natural, but the other piece of it is, and the hard piece is, is that you gotta have commitment to a lifestyle, and lifestyle is not seven months a year. And that's the difference. You can look at it where Randy Lewis was born to be this guy or Royce Alger was born to be this guy that was going out to compete in front of packed arenas, but look at Brooks Simpson. I mean, he seized the moment in a huge match against the number one ranked National Champion in a big dual meet and ended up getting the fall. And then Mark Sindlinger followed that up with another fall, and it was more of a mismatch, but we had to win the 197 pound match. And not only did we win it, we caught the guy in his back and didn't let him off and pinned him. And then the rest is history. We win a huge number one versus number two dual meet. I was a true freshman on the bench. Watching that with Reiland, and Chelesvig, and Terry and Doug Streicher. Those were the freshmen, that was that recruiting class, Don Finch was my roommate. We were all on the bench watching that happen. You feel the energy coming out of that crowd. I didn't even know if you hear it, , it's more, you feel it. Kevin Claunch Wow. No, that's unbelievable. And, and you know, it's funny cuz like when I think of coach Gable, I don't necessarily think of showmanship. But, the way you put it is perfect. If you're training and living the lifestyle that it takes to get there, then putting on a show is just a byproduct of those ingredients. Tom Brands Well, you want people to pay attention? This is not a sport where you get to be anonymous. I mean, especially back then when the sport started, there was a bracket drawn up and the winner brought everybody's name on that bracket home and put it on their wall and he owned everybody on that bracket. And that could be in 1910. Now all of a sudden, you get VHS. So now somebody gets to bring home a VHS. You know, do you wanna be the guy that you know is basically shamed? That's how I looked at it. And then nowadays, hell it's it's eternity. You're on fricking YouTube, 10 seconds after the match is over for eternity. I mean, which guy do you wanna be? You wanna be the guy that got your ass whooped or do you wanna be the guy doing the ass whooping? That's a hard, stark reality, that's a hard question right there. And if, if you answer it the way that everybody's gonna answer it. The other things in your life have to line up, and then that's where, you know, you lose guys. Kevin Claunch There's a bill to pay at that point. Tom Brands And Gable was that way himself, he, he just was more committed than anybody else. He was willing to suffer more, to endure more behind the scenes, so that when it was open to everybody's eyeballs, he was the guy that was, not scored-on the Olympic Games in 1972 and the Russian searched high and low and far and wide and East to West and North to South to find a guy to beat him. And he ended up winning that match 3-0. Kevin Claunch I love it. Coach Brands, I truly appreciate the opportunity to speak with you today. I very much look forward to covering the Iowa Hawkeyes for Intermat this year and, and moving forward. I really appreciate it. Tom Brands All right. You're freaking awesome. I love it. Now it makes sense. The whole premise of my project had a fatal flaw to begin with. These guys aren't focused on looking into the past. They don't have time for that. They are focused on the task at hand, which is preparing their teams and individuals for their matches. Even when they did look back, it was either about someone else's successes, or about environmental aspects that they experienced. Schultz talking with the Turk at the end of the World Cup, getting off the plane in Russia, having to move because there weren't any mats for them to train with. These are the things that stand out. I remember standing on the podium for a JV tournament that I won, and I am more than happy to share that story, but I guess that's what makes us different. These two guys were the best on planet Earth as representatives of the United States of America, but when asked about their accomplishments it's credited to seeing Gable on the podium for the first time. It's about the environment they were in at that time, not their personal accomplishments. You know why? Because the next fight is more important than the last one. Making sure that they are on the right side of history in the future is what matters, not what happened in the past. That's the mentality that has helped these two brothers achieve all that they have as athletes and coaches. So this year on the Fourth of July, instead of honoring a Bald Eagle, I will choose to honor two Hawkeyes with tremendous heads of hair.

Bo Nickal at the 2019 Southern Scuffle (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) As part of the International Fight Week festivities, the UFC will host its second annual Fight Pass Invitational grappling event on Sunday. When the four teams were recently announced, there was one key name that many wrestling fans recognized right away. Former Penn State national champion Bo Nickal will represent Jorge Masvidal's iKon MMA team. The following looks at Nickal's top five potential opponents. The somewhat unusual style of the event provides for many potential matches. Each team will have four competitors. In the first round, the teams will face off in dual-meet style matches with the winning teams advancing to the finals. However, there is a bit of a twist. At the start of the dual, each team will send out one competitor. Once the individual match is complete, the winning grappler will stay on the mat and face the next member of the opposing team, while the loser is eliminated. If the bout ends in a draw, both competitors are eliminated, and both teams send out new representatives. The mat continues until one team runs out of competitors. Professional wrestling aficionados might be reminded of the WWE's annual Survivor Series match. The individual bouts will be eight-minute submission-only grappling matches. For the uninitiated, imagine an MMA fight without any striking. The bouts are not scored. If neither competitor is able to score a submission, the match is ruled a draw and both are eliminated. If the dual ends with a draw, the final match is judged to determine a team winner. Earlier this month, Nickal made his professional MMA debut with a 33-second knockout of John Noland. He did not show very much grappling in that contest, but he previously faced off in a submission contest against Gordon Ryan. Ryan, who is considered one of the best competitive grapplers on the planet, won via submission, but Nickal managed to last over 13 minutes in the contest. What kind of opposition will he be facing off against on Sunday? Top Five Potential Opponents Ryan Loder Loder will be part of Urijah Faber's A1 Combat team. He made his professional MMA debut last October and has quickly moved to 3-0 in the sport. The middleweight is scheduled to return to action on a show promoted by Faber on July 31. During his college days, Loder was a four-year starter for Northern Iowa. As a junior, he finished seventh to become an All-American. The following year, he lost in the Round of 12, but he managed to claim victories over the likes of Lelund Weatherspoon, Dan Chaid, and recently crowned Bellator champion Johnny Eblen. Nickal obviously trumps Loder in terms of collegiate wrestling credentials, but it would be interesting to see how he performs against a fellow wrestling convert who is a little bit further into his MMA career. Andy Varela After starting his professional MMA career in 2015, Varela went 3-2 in the sport before shifting his focus to competitive grappling. He has not fought since 2018, but he has been a regular for the Submission Underground grappling promotion. During his run with the company, he has scored victories over former Olympic gold medalist in judo Satoshi Ishii, UFC veteran Kevin Casey and current UFC middleweight contender Sean Strickland. Varela will be part of the Fighting Alliance Championship team led by current UFC fighter and coach James Krause. Joe Solecki Despite being a UFC-sponsored event, there are relatively few active UFC fighters competing. One of those fighters is Solecki. The lightweight has been fighting exclusively for the promotion since earning a contract via Dana White's Contender Series in 2019. He has gone 4-1 in the promotion with an impressive victory over veteran Jim Miller. Last year, Solecki took a pair of grappling matches outside the promotion. He went to a draw against current UFC middleweight Gregory Rodrigues on last year's Fight Pass Invitational show. Rodrigues is an accomplished grappler and medaled at the Cadet Pan American Championships back in the day. He recently scored a devastating first-round knockout over Julian Marquez earlier this month. Solecki followed that up with a rear-naked choke submission over fan-favorite Donald Cerrone. In a potential match against Solecki, the former Penn State wrestler will have a pretty clear size advantage. Despite that fact, it will be interesting to see how he matches up against a current UFC competitor even if the bout is under a different ruleset. Dan Manasoiu While Nickal will have a size advantage over Solecki in their potential match, that will certainly not be the case against Manasoui. The 20-year-old grappler stands 6'7” tall and has weighed in as high as 275 pounds. He will be a part of the Anthony Pettis FC team for this event, but he has been training with John Danaher for the past three years. Manasoiu recently qualified for the ADCC Submission Wrestling World Championships via the European Trials. Nickal should have the wrestling advantage over many of the competitors in this event, but the size difference here might level that playing field a little bit. Urijah Faber These are the type of matches that can only really happen in grappling events like this. Faber is a retired former WEC champion and member of the UFC Hall of Fame. He began fighting in the UFC in 2011 after the WEC was absorbed by the promotion. Faber spent the majority of his UFC career down at 135 pounds and fought for the bantamweight title on multiple occasions. He retired in 2017 but returned to action in 2019 and split a pair of fights. Faber has not fought MMA since dropping a fight against Petr Yan in December 2019. Faber appears to be ostensibly retired from MMA at this point, but he has remained active. He has competed in several grappling events and recently entered the U.S. Open in a Masters division. The former UC Davis wrestler made the finals of his bracket before coming up short against Glenn Garrison in the finals. Nickal's professional MMA debut came up at 185 pounds, so he should tower over Faber who has fought as low as 135. However, smaller competitors routinely win grappling bouts like this one, and it is certainly the rare type of match that makes this somewhat odd event worth watching.

/Files/image/articles/osurecruiting740.jpgOhio State's Covelli Center (photos courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) One by one, Ohio State's "Savages" group text grew over the course of the 2022 recruiting cycle. Each new commitment was added to the thread, which pushed coach Tom Ryan and his staff to higher and higher levels of excitement. The Buckeyes were tactical and detail-oriented throughout the recruiting process, fully understanding just how important this class would be to the program's future. They made genuine connections with every prospect at the top of their board, yet they still had to work through that all-too-familiar point of powerlessness when the eventual decision was entirely out of their hands. So, Ryan and his staff didn't hold back as they got that steady diet of good news. "We're doing backflips in the hallway," Ryan said with a laugh. "Every time we got another one, it was like, 'It's going to come together. It's going to happen.'" Fortunately for Ryan, it did come together and it did happen, perhaps even better than he could have reasonably expected at the beginning of the cycle. The end result was the nation's No. 1 recruiting class and a group that features three of the top-five prospects in the country, in Malvern Prep (Pa.) heavyweight Nick Feldman, Wyoming Seminary (Pa.) 133-pounder Nic Bouzakis and Crown Point (Ind.) 141-pounder Jesse Mendez. MatScouts ranked Feldman No. 1, Mendez No. 4 and Bouzakis No. 5 in its final 2022 big board. Ohio State also laid claim to No. 22 on the MatScouts list in 184-pounder Luke Geog and No. 51 in 197-pounder Seth Shumate. The class has a ridiculous amount of talent, but Ryan also views this group as being full of compatible kids who are like-minded and driven toward greatness. The class has all the potential to take Ohio State from a team that was swept by Iowa, Michigan and Penn State last season to one that can become a true Big Ten contender for years to come. The Buckeyes saw the collection of talent across the country in the '22 class and managed their roster to make a run like this one. Ryan said they competed with 5 ½ scholarships during the 2021-'22 season to save money for just such a recruiting spree, though few saw anything quite like this barrage coming. Ohio State took a calculated risk to take its best shot and was rewarded for it. "I think there are so many good wrestlers in the country right now, and we happened to get 1-2-3 in the country," Ryan said. "I don't care how good your coaching system is, you need to get talented people who are willing to give so much of themselves in order to make gains. This group gives us that, so we should be back in the fight. "It was, I guess you could say, a little risky if we didn't get some real horses." Ohio State DID get some real horses, and they all have big plans for the years ahead. GREAT EXPECTATIONS /Files/image/articles/buckeyestaff740.jpgOhio State's coaching staff; from left, Tom Ryan, Bo Jordan, Logan Stieber, and J Jaggers(photos courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Everyone involved in putting this class together has a firm foothold on what it takes to go from backflips over recruiting wins to actual Big Ten titles, so nobody is celebrating anything just yet. One of the first orders of business when the class arrived on campus on June 20 was to immerse the newcomers in basic principles of success at this level. Most of these kids have lived and breathed a championship lifestyle their entire wrestling careers, but Ryan said the staff will preach expectations versus actions. The desire to win NCAA titles or Olympic gold medals is great, so long as the right work is being done to get them there. That process will be ongoing throughout their Ohio State careers. "We have constant communication about that," Ryan said. "We start with the fundamentals and believe wisdom ends when you believe you've arrived. A lot of people sign the scholarship and believe they've arrived. You're starting over. You have to do exactly what you did in high school only with a higher rate of tension. It does not get any easier. It needs to be harder. "It's really important to keep them on edge." What excites Ryan the most is that he believes the top dogs in this class all walk around with that edge and don't need to learn how to acquire it. The competitive character is high in Feldman and Bouzakis, who are both set to compete in the U20 World Championships this summer, and with Mendez, a four-time Indiana state champ who lost to Bouzakis in the U20 World Team Trials finals. All three of them are clinical in their approaches to get better and they know how to check their egos at the door. Mendez was the last of that trio to commit, and the Buckeyes got to the finish line, in part, because of the competition in the room. Just as they squared off in the U20's, Bouzakis and Mendez have a chance to be elite training partners for each other, which Ryan said was part of the appeal to Mendez. And as that iron sharpens iron, they have all subscribed to the belief that they can band together and help lift Ohio State to new heights. "We all want it," Bouzakis said. "Not one of those kids is just coming to Ohio State to have a good time. We're all here for one purpose, and that's just to be the best Big Ten wrestling school in the next three, four, and five years. We want to own the wrestling world for the next 4-5 years." By Feldman's estimation, nobody in college wrestling is going to want success more than this young group of Buckeyes. They're setting goals in the realm of national titles and lifting Ohio State back into the national team title conversation. This group built a bond around those goals and doing what it takes to reach them. "I think all the guys coming in, we want to be the best," Feldman said. "We want to be national champs, and we will do whatever it takes to get to that point. We want it more than anybody else wants it, and we'll do whatever it takes to get there. I think that's really special, and it's something I'm excited to be around." Ryan likes to describe the wrestlers in this class as "self-aware" and willing to do what it takes to be successful, but they're also bound by the same sense of purpose. They're there to work, sure, but they also know what they want ... which is everything. "I just feel like it's our time," Bouzakis said. "It's Ohio State's time. I think we're going to take the Big Ten by storm. We're going into NCAAs to just dominate in the next couple of years. I'm just so ready to be part of this, to go in there, start grinding and take what's ours." SEAL THE DEAL /Files/image/articles/feldmanohiostate740.jpgThe top recruit in the Class of 2022 Nick Feldman (photos courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) The truth was on Ohio State's side in its pursuit of Feldman, who was serious about Navy SEAL training as part of the next phase of his life. And the reality, as Ryan searched and found out, was that the prospect of Feldman adding SEAL prep to high-level wrestling training simply wasn't a compatible venture. That goal did send Ryan down a road to learn about the process and figure out where Ohio State best fits into that picture. Ryan put in some calls and said he spoke directly with the admiral of the Navy SEALs. He also got Ohio State swimming coach Bill Dorenkott involved to address Feldman's questions about that part of SEAL training. The search for answers started with the admiral, who happened to be a wrestling fan and a friend of one of the Buckeyes' biggest supporters. "I told him I want the truth on being a SEAL," Ryan said. "I'm not lying to this kid. Is it hard being able to do it from Ohio State? I shared that truth with Nick, and the truth was good for Ohio State. It was good for us. It's just two completely different focuses. "Our swimming coach promised Nick, 'When the time comes, if you trust me, I'll have you ready for the swim.' It just helped widen a young kid's lens of opportunity. I think going the extra mile and talking to the swim coach went a long way with them." In terms of Feldman's goal of becoming a Navy SEAL, Ryan wasn't surprised by it at all. At the time Ohio State really started pursuing him, Feldman was a high-level prospect but not quite the aspiring Olympic champ that he is today. But when Ryan and the Ohio State coaches got on a Zoom with Feldman and his family for the first time - something that Ryan insists on doing with top prospects - he said he was blown away. Feldman had obvious potential on the wrestling mat that has since come to look like a near-limitless ceiling in the 285-pound weight class. Even more impressive, Ryan said, was the way he spoke, carried himself and interacted with his own family. From that call forward, Feldman became THE target for the Buckeyes in this cycle. "I knew he was it when I talked to him," Ryan said. "He blew us away. We got off that Zoom call, and I talked to the other coaches like, 'Are you kidding me? That's the guy.' We rarely jump like that." Feldman wasn't quite in that can't-miss category as a sophomore who went 47-3 and won the first of his three straight national prep titles at Malvern Prep. That run came at 195 pounds, but the evidence was there to suggest Feldman could not only keep improving but continue growing into his now-massive 235-pound frame. He won national preps as a junior at 215 pounds and truly became a national recruit as he further ascended to 285 as a senior. Feldman beat Indiana's Christian Carroll, the top-ranked 220-pounder in the nation at the time, at Who's Number One last fall. He then dominated his way to Ironman, Powerade and Escape the Rock titles and even toppled the second-best heavyweight in the country in New Jersey's Jimmy Mullen with major decision wins at Powerade and Escape the Rock. Feldman made the leap from great to special and committed to the Buckeyes along the way. "You don't need to be coaching at Ohio State to recognize that his foot speed is ridiculous and his power is unbelievable," Ryan said. "And then we knew his character. As time went on, it became, 'OK, you actually have world champion, Olympic champion potential, and you need to be in a place where you can really harness that talent.'" A DEEP CONNECTION /Files/image/articles/bouzakisohiostate740.jpgNic Bouzakis after winning his third straight Super 32 title (photos courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Ohio State was the first official visit that Bouzakis and his family took, and the whole experience blew them away from start to finish. His relationship with the Buckeyes went all the way back to eighth grade when Ryan said he first identified him as a target of interest, but there was still the matter of "surviving" four more trips to other schools. The hope, of course, was that a powerful first impression and their long-standing relationship would be enough for Ohio State to emerge as Bouzakis' school of choice. But in terms of strategy, Ryan and his assistants weren't just sitting back, waiting and hoping for the best. They got the family's travel calendar and were sure to not let them drift too far away. "Touchpoints were critical," Ryan said. "It's not just going to be this one visit. We never let him go too long without experiencing a touch from Ohio State. After every visit, we set things up. We put a plan together that would never allow him to go on too many dates with somebody else before taking us out." Bouzakis announced his commitment to Ohio State in September, and in doing so he praised Ryan and their common bond to "overcome challenges and persevere in the face of tragedy." That connection was part of the fabric of the relationship that the whole family shared with Ryan because they endured similar tragedies in their lives. The Bouzakis family lost their youngest son, Greco, when he was just six years old after a three-year battle with a cancerous tumor on his brainstem. Nic and his younger siblings watched their brother fight for his life and found inspiration through his battle, though it forced them all to see tragedy and grow up far quicker than their parents, Troy and Toni, would have liked. Ryan also lost a son at a very young age when his then-5-year-old, Teague, died without warning of a heart attack at the dinner table. "I didn't shy from it," Ryan said. "Some people don't know what to say. What do you say to a family with that loss? I know what people said to help me or not help me. I think I had a good sense of that relationship. We connected over that and had some really cool conversations." Growing up in New York, Ryan also knew of Troy Bouzakis, who was a multi-time state champion and a nationally ranked freshman at Clemson before he suffered a career-ending neck injury, so the connections ran deep with the entire family. Ryan also loved that the Bouzakis family was all about wrestling and competition, and it reflected in the way they raised their kids. Nothing was given, everything was earned. "Nic Bouzakis told me early on, 'We fight for everything in our house. We fight for food. We fight for love,'" Ryan said laughing. "There was this accountability everywhere in that house. It wasn't, 'You're a superstar so we're going to look the other way on things.'" THE LAST DOMINO /Files/image/articles/mendezohiostate740.jpgJesse Mendez at Who's Number One (photos courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) The blossoming group of young Buckeyes all participated in a big visit weekend in October, which was a small gamble on the part of Ryan and his staff. Instead of directing all their attention at them individually, they brought them all together and they saw a crew that could be greater than the sum of its individual parts. That collective feeling was palpable for Mendez, whose family also connected with Ohio State assistants J Jagger and Logan Stieber. So, he bought in and the Buckeyes got an incredible finishing touch to its power trio and a group that also includes a wrestler in Geog that Ryan believed was the best 184-pounder in the country. That's exactly where this Ohio State class aims to be while getting back to challenging for Big Ten and NCAA titles. Now, comes the hard part: Doing it. "They wanted to be part of a winning team," Ryan said. "And you look at the college landscape, like, 'This team has these guys and that team has those guys. Those teams are going to be hard to beat. It's going to be hard to beat Penn State with that group.' Mendez wanted to be part of something really special. "Penn State wanted all these guys, and we got them. It's not easy to go something-and-0 against them. I think the unity and the desire to bring Ohio State to the top - we've been second six times, first once - they want to be first six times. They want to win it together."

The Ogunsanya brothers, PJ (left) and Josh (photos courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Wrestling was not always in the cards for the Ogunsanya brothers. Thankfully, they found their way into our sport. Because of it, they have had incredible opportunities after high school that any parent would salivate over. PJ (Peter Jr.) Ogunsanya recently graduated from Army West Point. While younger brother, Josh, is studying political science at Columbia University and planning to enter law school in the upcoming years. Growing up with Nigerian backgrounds, and a father who was the first generation born in the United States, some would say PJ and Josh are perfect examples of living “The American Dream.” They made it seem so easy, due to work ethic and determination. Growing up outside of Chicago, the brothers started with jiu-jitsu at an early age. This eventually led to wrestling – all while doing baseball, football, and soccer. Other athletic endeavors included gymnastics, boxing, and even track. They seemed to succeed at every sport they tried. It's no surprise they dabbled in almost every sport growing up and turned out to be very successful – no matter the sport. Winning came easy to them, in all aspects of life. They even laughed when they said they had “so many trophies and medals (growing up), we would just dump them in a box.” If you have seen either of them wrestle, athleticism is one of the first characteristics you notice. They had bigger dreams when it came to education too. Both excelled in the classroom while winning at whatever sport they were doing at the time. However, with all the achievements, tough decisions had to be made. Between jiu-jitsu and wrestling, they had to choose their path forward in life. With a balancing act of success in athletics and in the classroom, there was simply not enough time in the day to do it all. Ultimately, once high school came around, the brothers decided to focus full-time on wrestling. PJ's desire to also keep playing football was crushed, as he only weighed 94lbs entering high school. This speaks to PJ's ability to do what he loved without fear. Looking at high school accomplishments, it is safe to say the correct choice was made. Both brothers found success in all styles of wrestling - folkstyle, freestyle, and Greco. They won numerous state championships between them and earned All-American honors in both styles at Fargo while in high school. This is when the interest from college wrestling coaches started to flood in. PJ received a handful of offers from many various schools, including some from the Big Ten Conference. PJ never had any intentions of attending Army West Point, until his father started nudging him in that direction, little by little. Once PJ took a visit, he fell in love with the school. He loved Coach Ward and the staff; he liked the rigorous academics. He didn't really care that West Point is not a party school. The thing he fell in love with the most was the mindset of the entire campus. “You focus on developing yourself, developing your character, and on top of that, after you graduate, you have a guaranteed job.” He knew it would be tough, but he loved the challenge. Josh had different intentions. He wanted to “create his own path” in lieu of (in the words of PJ) “just being PJ's younger brother. He wanted to be Josh.” Josh was dead set on highly sought-after academic schools from the start. Admittedly, he had to thank his older brother, PJ, for “being the guinea pig for the family when it came to college recruiting.” This was brand new to the entire family. His awareness and understanding of PJ's recruiting process tremendously helped him understand what he wanted for his near future. Academics came first for Josh. Many of the Ivy League schools reached out, along with schools like Northwestern and Chicago University. Josh gave the current coaching staff much of the props for him choosing to attend Columbia University in New York City. “They really had a vision for me within their program, and really thought I had a role in that overall vision” was how Josh described the feeling. So much so, that Coach Tanelli took a flight from New York to Chicago to do an at-home visit. This made Josh feel comfortable around Coach, believing he was truly invested in him. Once Josh went on his official visit, he fell in love with the school knowing a location like New York City was such a great opportunity for his future career after wrestling. Where did PJ and Josh get their drive to be great? The answer is a unique one. Peter Senior (father of PJ and Josh) constantly reminded the boys from a young age to have pride in their last name. Ogunsanya, as previously mentioned, is a Nigerian family name. More specifically, Peter Senior's family came from a local Nigerian royal family before he was born in the U.S. This is that sense of pride both Josh and PJ discussed. Josh then laughed and joked that “some people are turned off (by the royal family connection), especially about the scams and stuff” regarding the infamous fraudulent emails we have most likely come across in our lifetime. The surname is a big deal in parts of Nigeria. Even their middle names show homage to their family's Nigerian roots. PJ's middle name is “Tiwalade” and Josh's is “Adesegun.” Coincidentally (or not?) “Ogunsanya” translates to “the crown is with us.” PJ piggy-backed on Josh's point “…we come from royalty, so we should have a high expectation and high regard for each other when it comes to education and anything we do.” In addition to their ancestry, the family also uses their identity with their Christian faith to help motivate. The boys' grandfather was a pastor, so this played a large role in their lives. Using this form of guidance, helped contribute to the success they have too. When asked about future plans, PJ was excited to stay involved with the team now that he has graduated. He'll serve as a mentor and help the coaching staff in any way possible. One of the attributes Coach Ward mentioned about PJ was his “infectious positivity” and “relentless positive attitude.” Speaking from a personal experience, PJ had an ankle injury that was preventing him from competing at his highest level at the EIWA Championships. He was still walking around with a smile, excited to just wrestle. That type of attitude is what Coach Ward hopes will be contagious for all his wrestlers during PJ's tenure. That's when PJ will head to BOLC's (Basic Officer Leadership Course). In this course of, essentially, basic training for officers he'll go in-depth on his specific branch, which is Air Defense Artillery. During the six-month duration, he'll be taking a deep dive into this branch that specializes in anti-aircraft weapons. After that short stint, he will be training with the U.S. Army WCAP. This World Class Athlete Program allows athletes, who are currently serving, to improve their athletic skills in a variety of Olympic sports. PJ qualifies for this program, as he was the champion at the U23 Team Trials, winning the 72kg Greco bracket. His plan is to train for the 2024 Olympics. I asked him if he plans to wrestle after that, he smiled and said “I'm just going to keep wrestling until I'm done having fun with it, and I'm not done having fun.” I know I speak for a lot of people that we are excited to see him continue wrestling. Now, onto Josh's future plans. He is currently a political science major, with a concentration in history. He plans on attending law school after his eligibility is complete. However, another tough decision will need to be made. He has lofty aspirations of staying within the Ivy League for law school to further his education. Unfortunately, his eligibility would be limited to a non-Ivy school if he wishes to use his last year of eligibility (due to the COVID year, and Ivy League eligibility rules). With an individual like Josh, who puts his education at the top level of priorities, this will not be an easy decision. Should he live out his dream of attending an Ivy League law school and forego one last year of competing, or venture outside the Ivies for law school so he can compete one last year? “Honestly, that really sucks because going to law school at an Ivy League school would be a dream come true” was how Josh described this pickle. He will have another year to ponder this decision. No matter the choice he makes, Columbia's Head Coach, Zach Tanelli, is confident in Josh's ability to succeed. He stated, “Josh is a full contributor in everything he does; to wrestling, his team, his studies, and his family… He trusts the people around him and is committed to making daily improvements to help him achieve his goals.” For next season's wrestling plans, Josh did mention he would stay at the 165lb weight class, which may be the most competitive weight in the conference – even with some talented wrestlers graduating or moving up in weight. Last season, the EIWA had 8 qualifiers to the NCAA Championships from this weight. Josh earned a spot in the conference finals but fell to the champion, Philip Conigliaro of Harvard. He then went 1-2 at NCAAs, ending his season. I know I am excited to see him improve on that finish, Josh has been leaning towards his main focus being somewhere in the avenue of constitutional law. He is fascinated by American politics and the Constitution. PJ uninterruptedly chimed in with a smile “Fascination is an understatement!” The passion Josh shows towards the subject is refreshing. I feel we could have talked all day about politics, history, and anything else on the subject if the opportunity arose. This hot topic is a tough one to navigate in the current political climate, so we did not dive too deep. We all laughed, as if it was the correct choice. Also, with PJ's apolitical military status, it was best to move on. In the end, it's safe to say Josh will be great at what he does due to his vast understanding of the issues at hand and unique perspectives. We need more people like Josh in this line of work, with clearly thought-out reasoning behind his beliefs. Since July 4th is quickly approaching, I thought it would be interesting to get both brothers' perspectives on July 4th and America, in general. With older brother, PJ, being a graduate of West Point and continuing to serve this country, I raised the simple question “What does July 4th mean to you?” PJ mentioned they were a typical family growing up, celebrating July 4th like everyone else; barbecues, picnics, hanging out with friends and family, etc. Since he arrived at West Point, it meant “a little more to me.” He continued, “it really hit home with me my freshman year” as he continued to tell the story of his close family friend and West Point teammate, CJ Morgan, who passed away after an unfortunate summer training accident on June 6th, 2019. He was the lone fatality in an accident that left 21 injured. PJ gave a lot of credit to CJ for helping to convince him Army West Point was the place to be ever since his recruiting visit. Coincidentally, PJ and CJ's fathers were fraternity brothers. It gave PJ “a new perspective on how people are actually giving up their lives.” It is a terrible situation that really hits home when it happens to someone so close to you. “We practically called each other cousins.” He ended by saying “It makes me more proud to do the things I'm doing, and help out others.” I posed a slightly different question to Josh, I wanted to know what July 4th meant to him and his family, with PJ serving in the military. “We had a grandfather who served, but he never really talked about it. (PJ's service) really opened my eyes to the amount of sacrifice and dedication to upholding our nation.” He continued, “The lack of free time, the lack of ability to visit his family, we see the sacrifice it takes to make the American Dream a reality. It is something very impressive.” I was curious to see his thoughts on the holiday, as a person who loves history. His view on it was exactly what I was looking for, “(From a historical perspective), America has the second oldest constitution in the world.” He raised some great points about how almost crazy it was for these men to make this commitment, and sign this Declaration of Independence, knowing damn well that if they lost the war, they'd be tried for treason and put to death immediately. “To believe in their ideas so much, that you are willing to sacrifice your life. That is something that is hard to wrap my head around – to be able to stand for values so strongly that I am willing to put my life on the line.” Josh called this aspect inspiring. The thing that stuck out to me was Josh's explanation of the term “Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness” and how it is a moral foundation of what the nation was originally designed to achieve. Before our conversation, I knew PJ and Josh had different personalities. After our half-hour talk, my expectations were not changed too much. PJ seems to be the more outgoing one with a huge smile on his face. Being the older brother, he was never afraid to try something new and lead the way. When he did, he put his full effort forward. One can see why Army is the perfect place for him; he gets to lead by example and have confidence in himself to make others around him better in the process. Josh is more laid back. He seems to be more analytical with his decision-making while trying to stay out of the limelight. This makes his future career as a lawyer very practical as he will need to analyze various aspects of law and strategize a different approach that may not have been done before. According to their respective coaches, it is an honor to have an Ogunsanya on their roster. Personally, it was a pleasure to have had the opportunity to watch both young men wrestle in the EIWA, and even more so to be able to pick their brains and have a nice discussion with them. I am in agreeance with Coach Ward and Coach Tanelli that these guys will be successful once they decide to move on from the sport of wrestling.

Peyton Omania (left) and Kyle Parco (photos courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) This afternoon social media exploded with rumors of Pac-12 stalwarts UCLA and USC exploring a possible move to the Big Ten. A move of this magnitude wouldn't be totally out of the blue after having Oklahoma and Texas moving to the SEC last year. More conference shifting was inevitable. If this comes to fruition, I'd expect more moves on the horizon. Some are mentioning rumors of two mega-conferences led by the Big Ten and SEC (ones that could include more than 20 schools apiece). Hearing UCLA and USC possibly to the Big Ten has captured wrestling fans' imaginations. With all 14 current Big Ten schools sponsoring wrestling, the possibility of these two schools adding wrestling is at least something to think about. Remember, though the entire Big Ten sponsors wrestling, it isn't required for the conference's member schools. We, like many wrestling fans, have imagined the possibility of wrestling at both of these schools. In fact, we'll take it a step further and look at a hypothetical dual between the two schools. For this exercise, we have taken current collegiate wrestlers from California and divided them into either UCLA or USC, with little else factored in. We also did not poach any California natives from other California schools that sponsor DI wrestling and we didn't pick any true freshmen. Now if either school had wrestling, I'd doubt that they would "only" sign in-state wrestlers, so their potential lineups could be even more stacked. As it stands, both lineups are pretty solid, as it is. Which one do you like better? Below you'll find our hypothetical lineups for each school, followed by a comparison courtesy of our friends at WrestleStat : UCLA 125 - Richard Figueroa (Arizona State) 133 - Carter Bailey (Lehigh) 141 - Chase Zollman (Wyoming) 149 - Kyle Parco (Arizona State) 157 - Jacob Wright (Wyoming) 165 - Matt Olguin (Oregon State) 174 - Aaron Olmos (Oregon State) 184 - Trey Munoz (Oregon State) 197 - Jadon Martin (Northwestern) 285 - Seth Nevills (Penn State) USC 125 - Liam Cronin (Nebraska) 133 - Aaron Nagao (Minnesota) 141 - Marcos Polano (Minnesota) 149 - Peyton Omania (Michigan State) 157 - Chase Saldate (Michigan State) 165 - Izzak Olejnik (Northern Illinois) 174 - Rocco Contino (Virginia) 184 - Nathan Haas (Nebraska) 197 - Ryan Reyes (Oregon State) 285 - AJ Nevills (South Dakota State) 125 lbs WrestleStat Projection: Liam Cronin over Richard Figueroa by decision (3-0 USC) 133 lbs WrestleStat Projection: Carter Bailey over Aaron Nagao by decision (3-3 Tie) 141 lbs WrestleStat Projection: Chase Zollman over Marcos Polanco by decision (6-3 UCLA) 149 lbs WrestleStat Projection: Kyle Parco over Peyton Omania by major decision (10-3 UCLA) 157 lbs WrestleStat Projection: Jacob Wright over Chase Saldate by decision (13-3 UCLA) 165 lbs WrestleStat Projection: Izzak Olejnik over Matt Olguin by decision (13-6 UCLA) 174 lbs WrestleStat Projection: Rocco Contino over Aaron Olmos by decision (13-9 UCLA) 184 lbs WrestleStat Projection: Trey Munoz over Nathan Haas (16-9 UCLA) 197 lbs WrestleStat Projection: Ryan Reyes over Jadon Martin (16-13 UCLA) 285 lbs WrestleStat Projection: AJ Nevills over Seth Nevills (16-16 Tie) One could only imagine! Let's hope that if indeed this move goes through, both schools will come to their senses and add wrestling (for men and women). Remember this is only for fun and games! I'm sure each of these wrestlers are happy with their current institutions and coaches.

2x NCAA All-American Jordan Wood (photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) Welcome to a new, regular feature for InterMat! Every day, for the next few months, we'll look into the recent history of a DI wrestling program with our "Ten Years of…" feature. Even if you're a die-hard supporter of a particular school, there will be good information you may have forgotten. For others, it's a quick way to learn about a program you may not be familiar with. We're going in alphabetical order for this one, so next up is...Lehigh! For past teams: Air Force American Appalachian State Arizona State Army West Point Binghamton Bloomsburg Brown Bucknell Buffalo Cal Poly Campbell Central Michigan Chattanooga Clarion Cleveland State Columbia Cornell CSU Bakersfield Davidson Drexel Duke Edinboro Franklin & Marshall Gardner-Webb George Mason Harvard Hofstra Illinois Indiana Iowa Iowa State Kent State NCAA Qualifiers (81) 2022 133 - Malyke Hines (#27); 141 - Connor McGonagle (#29); 149 - Max Brignola (#22); 157 - Josh Humphreys (#7); 165 - Brian Meyer (#17); 184 - AJ Burkhart (#31); 285 - Jordan Wood (#7) 2021 125 - Jaret Lane (#14); 133 - Malyke Hines (#17); 141 - Connor McGonagle (#24); 149 - Jimmy Hoffman (#22); 157 - Luca Frinzi (#32); 165 - Brian Meyer (#29); 174 - Jake Logan (#31); 184 - Dylan Ammerman (#28); 197 - Jake Jakobsen (#16); 285 - Jordan Wood (#8) 2020 125 - Brandon Paetzell (#7); 133 - Nick Farro (#18); 141 - Ryan Pomrinca (#31); 149 - Jimmy Hoffman (#28); 157 - Josh Humphreys (#7); 174 - Jordan Kutler (#3); 184 - Chris Weiler (#13); 197 - Jake Jakobsen (#22); 285 - Jordan Wood (#9) 2019 133 - Brandon Paetzell (#20); 149 - Cortlandt Schuyler (#24); 157 - Josh Humphreys (#8); 165 - Gordon Wolf (#18); 174 - Jordan Kutler (#5); 184 - Ryan Preisch (#8); 197 - Jake Jakobsen (#24); 285 - Jordan Wood (#4) 2018 125 - Darian Cruz (#1); 133 - Scott Parker (#6); 141 - Luke Karam (#13); 149 - Cortlandt Schuyler; 157 - Ian Brown; 165 - Gordon Wolf; 174 - Jordan Kutler (#4); 184 - Ryan Preisch (#3); 197 - Chris Weiler; 285 - Jordan Wood (#10) 2017 125 - Darian Cruz (#4); 133 - Scott Parker (#9); 141 - Randy Cruz (#11); 149 - Laike Gardner (#10); 165 - Cole Walter; 174 - Ryan Preisch (#6); 285 - Doug Vollaro 2016 125 - Darian Cruz (#7); 133 - Mason Beckman; 141 - Randy Cruz (#16); 149 - Laike Gardner; 165 - Ryan Preisch; 174 - Gordon Wolf; 184 - Nathaniel Brown (#10); 197 - John Bolich; 285 - Max Wessell (#8) 2015 125 - Scott Parker; 133 - Mason Beckman (#10); 141 - Randy Cruz (#13); 157 - Mitch Minotti (#12); 174 - Santiago Martinez (#15); 184 - Nathaniel Brown (#7); 197 - Elliott Riddick; 285 - Doug Vollaro 2014 125 - Darian Cruz; 133 - Mason Beckman (#6); 141 - Laike Gardner; 149 - Mitch Minotti (#15); 157 - Joey Napoli; 174 - Elliott Riddick (#9); 197 - John Bolich; 285 - Max Wessell 2013 133 - Randy Cruz; 141 - Anthony Salupo; 157 - Joey Napoli (#3); 174 - Nathaniel Brown (#9); 184 - Robert Hamlin (#3) NCAA Champions Darian Cruz (125 - 2017) NCAA All-Americans 2022: Jordan Wood (285 - 3rd) 2019: Jordan Kutler (174 - 7th); Ryan Preisch (184 - 4th); Jordan Wood (285 - 4th) 2018: Darian Cruz (125 - 5th); Scott Parker (133 - 7th); Jordan Kutler (174 - 6th) 2017: Darian Cruz (125 - 1st); Scott Parker (133 - 8th) 2016: Randy Cruz (141 - 8th); Nathaniel Brown (184 - 7th); Max Wessell (285 - 8th) 2015: Mason Beckman (133 - 6th); Mitch Minotti (157 - 8th); Nathaniel Brown (184 - 2nd) 2014: Darian Cruz (125 - 7th); Mason Beckman (133 - 6th); Mitch Minotti (149 - 6th) 2013: Robert Hamlin (184 - 2nd) NWCA All-Americans Brandon Paetzell (125 - 1st Team) Josh Humphreys (157 - 1st Team) Jordan Kutler (174 - 1st Team) Chris Weiler (184 - Honorable Mention) Jordan Wood (285 - 2nd Team) NCAA Round of 12 Finishers Josh Humphreys (2019, 2022 - 157) Gordon Wolf (2019 - 165) Ryan Preisch (2017/174, 2018/184) Chris Weiler (2018 - 197) Jordan Wood (2018 - 285) Laike Gardner (2017 - 149) Doug Vollaro (2017 - 285) Darian Cruz (2016 - 125) Mason Beckman (2016 - 133) Randy Cruz (2015 - 141) Elliott Riddick (2014 - 174) EIWA Champions 2022: Jordan Wood (285) 2021: Jaret Lane (125); Malyke Hines (133); Jake Jakobsen (197); Jordan Wood (285) 2020: Josh Humphreys (157); Jordan Kutler (174); Jordan Wood (285) 2019: Josh Humphreys (157); Jordan Kutler (174); Jordan Wood (285) 2018: Darian Cruz (125); Scott Parker (133); Jordan Kutler (174); Ryan Preisch (184); Jordan Wood (285) 2017: Darian Cruz (125): Scott Parker (133) 2016: Darian Cruz (125); Max Wessell (285) 2015: Randy Cruz (141) 2014: Mason Beckman (133) 2013: Randy Cruz (133); Joey Napoli (157); Nathaniel Brown (174) Dual Record 2021-22: 9-9 2021: 3-4 2019-20: 12-3 2018-19: 9-9 2017-18: 12-3 2016-17: 10-4 2015-16: 13-3 2014-15: 14-6 2013-14: 10-6 2012-13: 10-7 EIWA Tournament Placement 2021-22: 4th 2021: 1st 2019-20: 1st 2018-19: 1st 2017-18: 1st 2016-17: 2nd 2015-16: 2nd 2014-15: 2nd 2013-14: 2nd 2012-13: 4th NCAA Tournament Team Placement 2021-22: 25th-tie (17.5 points) 2021: 31st-tie (11.5 points) 2019-20: No Tournament 2018-19: 13th-tie (40.5 points) 2017-18: 15th (36.5 points) 2016-17: 12th (40 points) 2015-16: 14th (31 points) 2014-15: 13th (39.5 points) 2013-14: 18th (29.5 points) 2012-13: 25th (18.5 points) Head Coaching History Pat Santoro (2008-Present) Best Lineup (comprised of wrestlers from 2013-22) 125 - Darian Cruz: 4x NCAA Qualifier (#1, #4, and #7 seeds); 2017 NCAA Champion, 3x NCAA All-American (5th, 1st, 7th) 133 - Mason Beckman: 4x NCAA Qualifier (#6 and #10 seeds); 2x NCAA All-American (6th, 6th); 3x EIWA Finalist, 2014 EIWA Champion 141 - Randy Cruz: 4x NCAA Qualifier (#11, #13, and #16 seeds); 2016 NCAA All-American (6th); 2x EIWA Champion 149 - Mitch Minotti: 2x NCAA Qualifier; 2x NCAA All-American (6th, 8th); 2014 EIWA Runner-Up 157 - Josh Humphreys: 3x NCAA Qualifier (#7 x2 and #8 seeds); 2x NCAA Round of 12 Finisher; 2x EIWA Champion 165 - Ryan Preisch: 4x NCAA Qualifier (#3, #6, and #8 seeds); 2019 NCAA All-American (4th); 2018 EIWA Champion, 2x NCAA Round of 12 Finisher 174 - Jordan Kutler: 3x NCAA Qualifier (#3, #4, and #5 seeds); 2x NCAA All-American (6th, 7th); 2020 NWCA First Team All-American; 3x EIWA Champion 184 - Robert Hamlin: 4x NCAA Qualifier (#2 x2 and #3 seeds); 3x NCAA All-American (2nd, 4th, 2nd); 2x EIWA Champion 197 - Jake Jakobsen: 3x NCAA Qualifier (#16 seed); 2021 EIWA Champion 285 - Jordan Wood: 5x NCAA Qualifier, 5x EIWA Champion, 2x NCAA All-American (3rd, 4th); 2020 NWCA Second Team All-American Recruiting Number of Big Boarder's Per Year 2022: #20 Ryan Crookham (PA); #68 Caden Rogers (PA); #103 Kimo Leia (CA); #133 Kelvin Griffin (ME) 2021: #78 Carter Bailey (CA); #177 Nathan Taylor (PA) 2020: #52 Thayne Lawrence (PA); #55 Manzona Bryant (OH); #91 Chris Barnabae (MD); #93 Sheldon Seymour (PA); #100 Drew Munch (PA); #192 Connor Herceg (PA) 2019: #35 Connor McGonagle (NH); #62 Jake Logan (NY); #68 Malyke Hines (FL); #99 Edmond Ruth (PA) 2018: #87 Josh Humphreys (WV) 2017: #87 Matt Parker (PA) 2016: #14 Luke Karam (PA); #20 Jordan Wood (PA); #50 Jake Jakobsen (PA); #142 Nick Farro (NJ) 2015: #28 Jordan Kutler (NJ); #60 Cole Walter (PA); #113 Kent Lane (PA); #125 Ryan Pomrinca (NJ) 2014: #24 Dylan Milonas (NJ); #54 Scott Parker (PA); #88 Ian Brown (PA); #147 Ryan Preisch (PA) 2013: #46 Darian Cruz (PA)

New Arizona State transfer Tony Negron (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) While general news has been slow as June comes to a close, there are still plenty of wrestlers transferring into DI institutions. While none are past All-Americans like in some of our latest updates, there are still some high-quality student-athletes on the move. Arizona State gets a boost from part-time Penn State starter Tony Negron. If Negron is up at 165, he could possibly be the answer at a weight that may have looked like an issue for the back-to-back trophy-winning Sun Devils. As ASU adds a wrestler, they also lose one in Cleveland Belton. He'll head north to rival Oregon State and attempt to fill the void left by 2022 141 lb All-American, Grant Willits. Gardner-Webb picks up another quality transfer, originally from Iowa, in Drew West. He and Zach Price should have an immediate impact for the Bulldogs. Speaking of Iowa preps, Jack Wagner will use his final year of eligibility at North Carolina. Wagner has competed in the past at 133 lbs for Northern Iowa, but is expected at 125 for the Tar Heels. His addition will allow the UNC staff to redshirt 2021-22 starter Spencer Moore next year. Another grad transfer heading into the ACC is Neil Antrassian. He makes the move from Penn to Virginia and will be the early leader to start at 184 lbs. Last year, Antrassian picked up 16 wins against 10 losses at Penn. Sticking with the ACC, Pitt adds a quality lightweight in Vince Santaniello. The 2021 New Jersey state champion and four-time placewinner Santaniello spent the 2021-22 campaign at the Naval Academy Prep School. He'll contribute at either 125 or 133. A pair of grad transfers will give a boost to EIWA schools with Brian Bonino and Brinton Simington, heading to Drexel and Hofstra, respectively. Bonino was 11-12 last year for Columbia with wins over two returning or future national qualifiers. He'll take over at 184 lbs for Bryan McLaughlin, an opponent who defeated Bonino in the tiebreaker at the EIWA Championships. Simington won 19 matches across three years at Lock Haven and could be the starter at 165 for Hofstra.

2022 Big Ten Male Athlete of the Year Gable Steveson (photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) ROSEMONT, Ill. - University of Minnesota wrestling heavyweight Gable Steveson has been named the 2021-22 Big Ten Jesse Owens Male Athlete of the Year, as the conference announced on Wednesday morning. Steveson becomes just the fifth Golden Gopher to be named as the Big Ten's top male athlete in the 41-year history of the award, joining John Roethlisberger (gymnastics, 1993), Jordan Leopold (hockey, 2002), Damion Hahn (wrestling, 2004), and Cole Konrad (wrestling, 2007). He is also the 13th wrestler to ever win the award, as Minnesota joins Iowa for the most Big Ten Male Athlete of the Year award recipients among conference wrestling programs with three (3). Steveson showcased yet another dominant performance throughout the 2021-22 campaign as he captured his third-straight undefeated season with an 18-0 record and won his second NCAA title. Steveson also became a three-time Big Ten champion this past season and was named the Dan Hodge Trophy winner for the second time in his career, becoming the first heavyweight in the history of collegiate wrestling to earn the prestigious honor multiple times. "It is a great honor for Gable to be chosen as Big Ten Male Athlete of the Year among many other remarkable athletes," said Minnesota wrestling head coach Brandon Eggum. "He is such a great representative for the University of Minnesota, our program, and the sport of wrestling. We could not be more proud of his accomplishments." The Apple Valley, Minn., native closed out his career with one of the more decorated careers in the history of the sport, and is perhaps the greatest wrestler to even don the Maroon & Gold. Steveson closed out his career with an 85-2 record (.977), including a 52-match win streak to close out his career, and holds the highest winning percentage in the history of the program. He was the sixth multiple-time NCAA champion and the eighth three-time Big Ten champion in the history of the program. He is the only Gopher to win multiple Dan Hodge Trophies, and also won the 125kg Olympic Gold in Tokyo last summer with a dramatic win over Georgia's Geno Petriashvili. Steveson graduated this past May with a Bachelor's degree in Communications and Business.

3x NCAA All-American Ian Miller (photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) Welcome to a new, regular feature for InterMat! Every day, for the next few months, we'll look into the recent history of a DI wrestling program with our "Ten Years of…" feature. Even if you're a die-hard supporter of a particular school, there will be good information you may have forgotten. For others, it's a quick way to learn about a program you may not be familiar with. We're going in alphabetical order for this one, so next up is...Kent State! For past teams: Air Force American Appalachian State Arizona State Army West Point Binghamton Bloomsburg Brown Bucknell Buffalo Cal Poly Campbell Central Michigan Chattanooga Clarion Cleveland State Columbia Cornell CSU Bakersfield Davidson Drexel Duke Edinboro Franklin & Marshall Gardner-Webb George Mason Harvard Hofstra Illinois Indiana Iowa Iowa State NCAA Qualifiers (36) 2022 149: Kody Komara (#28); 184: Colin McCracken (#32) 2021 125: Jake Ferri (#20); 149: Kody Komara (#29); 174: Andrew McNally (#6); 197: Colin McCracken (#29) 2020 133: Tim Rooney (#13); 174: Andrew McNally (#21) 2019 133: Tim Rooney (#28); 184: Andrew McNally (#17) 2018 133: Anthony Tutolo; 157: Casey Sparkman; 197: Kyle Conel; 285: Stephen Suglio 2017 133: Anthony Tutolo; 157: Casey Sparkman 2016 133: Mackenzie McGuire (#9); 149: Michael DePalma (#10); 157: Ian Miller (#4); 165: Tyler Buckwalter; 197: Kyle Conel (#16) 2015 133: Mackenzie McGuire (#16); 141: Tyler Small; 149: Michael DePalma; 157: Ian Miller (#7); 285: Mimmo Lytle 2014 133: Mackenzie McGuire; 149: Michael DePalma; 157: Ian Miller (#4); 174: Caleb Marsh 2013 125: Steve Mitcheff; 133: Mackenzie McGuire; 165: Caleb Marsh; 174: Sam Wheeler; 184: Casey Newburg; 197: Dustin Kilgore (#1) NCAA Champions None NCAA All-Americans 2018: Kyle Conel (197 - 3rd) 2016: Michael DePalma (149 - 5th); Ian Miller (157 - 6th) 2015: Ian Miller (157 - 5th) 2014: Ian Miller (157 - 4th) 2013: Dustin Kilgore (197 - 2nd) NCAA Round of 12 Finishers 2021: Andrew McNally (174) MAC Champions 2022: Kody Komara (149) 2021: Andrew McNally (174) 2020: Tim Rooney (133) 2016: Michael DePalma (149) 2015: Ian Miller (157) 2014: Ian Miller (157) 2013: Dustin Kilgore (197) Dual Record 2021-22: 7-7 2021: 4-3 2019-20: 6-12 2018-19: 7-15 2017-18: 13-9 2016-17: 2-15 2015-16: 15-3 2014-15: 8-13 2013-14: 11-13 2012-13: 10-6 MAC Tournament Placement 2021-22: 7th 2021: 8th 2019-20: 9th 2018-19: 8th 2017-18: 4th 2016-17: 9th 2015-16: 4th 2014-15: 4th 2013-14: 6th 2012-13: 4th NCAA Tournament Team Placement 2021-22: 56th-tie (1 point) 2021: 44th-tie (5.5 points) 2019-20: No Tournament 2018-19: 56th-tie (0.5 points) 2017-18: 22nd-tie (21 points) 2016-17: 62nd-tie (0.5 points) 2015-16: 16th (28.5 points) 2014-15: 62nd-tie (0.5 points) 2013-14: 29th-tie (13.5 points) 2012-13: 24th (20 points) Head Coaching History Jim Andrassy (2003-Present) Best Lineup (Comprised of wrestlers from 2013-22) 125 - Steve Mitcheff: 2013 NCAA Qualifier; 2013 MAC Runner-Up 133 - Mackenzie McGuire: 4x NCAA Qualifier (#9 and #16 seeds) 141 - Tyler Small: 3x NCAA Qualifier (#12 seed); 2x MAC Finalist; 2012 MAC Champion 149 - Michael DePalma: 3x NCAA Qualifier (#10 seed); 2016 NCAA 5th Place, 2016 MAC Champion 157 - Ian Miller: 4x NCAA Qualifier (#4 x2, #5, #7 seeds); 3x NCAA All-American (4th, 5th, 6th); 3x MAC Champion 165 - Caleb Marsh: 2x NCAA Qualifier 174 - Andrew McNally: 3x NCAA Qualifier (#6 and #17 seeds); 2021 NCAA Round of 12 finisher; 2021 MAC Champion, 3x MAC Finalist 184 - Dustin Kilgore: 4x NCAA Qualifier; 2011 NCAA Champion; 3x NCAA All-American (2nd, 1st, 7th); 4x MAC Champion 197 - Kyle Conel: 2x NCAA Qualifier; 2018 NCAA 3rd Place; 2018 MAC Runner-Up 285 - Stephen Suglio: 2018 NCAA Qualifier; 2018 MAC 3rd Place Recruiting Big Boarder's Per Year 2021: #28 Enrique Munguia (OH); #257 Aidan Faria (RI); #272 Casey Wiles (OH) 2016: #62 Jack Harris (OH) 2015: #129 Jarred Granger (OH); #137 Jake Newhouse (OH) 2014: #67 Anthony Tutolo (OH); #99 Kyle Conel (OH); #111 Casey Sparkman (OH); #148 Sam Breese (PA) 2013: #79 Jonas Guytan (CA); #116 Travis Gusan (OH)

#15 seeded Ronnie Perry in the 2018 NCAA Semifinals (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Every year there are a number of wrestlers that fans look to be potential dark horses to make the podium. While there are sometimes easy choices, such as Cody Brewer in 2015, most of them can be surprising and take some interesting circumstances to get there. I went back and looked at the past ten tournaments and charted every wrestler that became an All-American as a 13 seed or lower. There were a total of 98 wrestlers, which means on average there are nearly ten wrestlers a year that upset the bracket. For some context, of the 98 total wrestlers to accomplish this feat, there are six that did it multiple times. Cody Brewer in 2014/2015, Zeke Moisey in 2015/2018, Conor Youtsey in 2015/2016, Willie Miklus in 2015/2016, Chip Ness in 2018/2019, and Chad Red in 2018/2019. Also, there were some changes to the seeding criteria over the years that I wanted to mention. Up until 2013, the committee seeded the top 12 wrestlers. Then, from 2014-2018, they seeded the top 16. Finally, starting in 2019, all 33 wrestlers were seeded, which is still the system in place right now. On average, the number of dark horses from the 2014-2018 period was much higher than the other periods at 12.4%. With 2019 and 2022 hovering around 5%, (also noting that 2020 NCAA's were canceled and 2021 was a unique year with a shortened season), it appears that the system of seeding all 33 wrestlers makes the path to dark horse finish much harder. 2018 was the most volatile year overall, with surprise AA's at 9 of 10 weights. Below are the totals and percentages for each year. I also wanted to look at the variance in these All-American upsets across the 10 different weight classes. This result actually surprised me somewhat. I expected a lot less of these upsets at the heavier weights compared to the lighter weights. Heavyweight itself had the lowest number of successful dark horses, but 133lbs had the second-lowest number of dark horses. Heavyweight actually had seven years without any surprise All-Americans, with everyone on the podium being seeded 12 or higher. 125lbs, 141lbs, and 149lbs were the most volatile, with all three having more than 13 dark horses make the podium. The most consistently surprising weight was 141lbs, with at least one significant upset every year. There were also a few seasons with surprising pockets of these dark horses. For example, in 2015 at 184lbs half of the AA's were lower than a 13 seed. Another variable I wanted to explore was the eligibility/year in school of the wrestlers. The eligibility spread was surprisingly even outside of freshmen. Juniors had the most success in making these upsets. This really shows that making the podium as a freshman is rare, especially when combining it with the redshirt data. Only six true freshmen made the podium as a 13 seed or lower in 10 years. That doesn't change a ton with a redshirt, however, as only 13 freshmen were able to AA after their redshirt year. Career long though redshirts had much more success, with 83% of dark horses having taken a redshirt at some point in their career. Next, I wanted to explore which conferences had the most of these dark horses. Somewhat unsurprisingly, the Big 10 had the most dark horse All-Americans. The Big 12 was close though, with both conferences having a significant lead over the rest. The ACC, in third with 14, was closely followed by the MAC and EIWA both having eight each. There were nine wrestlers that made it from conferences that no longer exist. Additionally, Eastern Michigan, Old Dominion, and Fresno State all had a surprise All-American before their programs were cut. It is hard to tell if any of this data points to a magic formula that can predict success for underdogs in future tournaments. Many of the statistics could be predicted such as the conferences that had the most and the eligibility year as well. These may just point to common trends in the success we see from both experience and more competitive conferences. However, seeing the breakdown by weight and tournament year begs the question if there are trends in the data that point to a way more of these upsets could occur in the future. Because of some continued COVID effects on the 2022 season, I am curious to see which wrestlers in lower seeds end up making the podium in 2023. Having all 33 wrestlers seeded by the committee seems to really make an impact on the data and the number of dark horse guys able to accomplish AA status. I plan to look at more of this data closer to tournament time to try and find some dark horse AA's for 2023.

2021 NCAA champion David Carr (photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) Welcome to a new, regular feature for InterMat! Every day, for the next few months, we'll look into the recent history of a DI wrestling program with our "Ten Years of…" feature. Even if you're a die-hard supporter of a particular school, there will be good information you may have forgotten. For others, it's a quick way to learn about a program you may not be familiar with. We're going in alphabetical order for this one, so next up is...Iowa State! For past teams: Air Force American Appalachian State Arizona State Army West Point Binghamton Bloomsburg Brown Bucknell Buffalo Cal Poly Campbell Central Michigan Chattanooga Clarion Cleveland State Columbia Cornell CSU Bakersfield Davidson Drexel Duke Edinboro Franklin & Marshall Gardner-Webb George Mason Harvard Hofstra Illinois Indiana Iowa NCAA Qualifiers (65) 2022 125: Kysen Terukina (#26); 133: Ramazan Attasauov (#24); 141: Ian Parker (#13); 149: Jarrett Degen (#17); 157: David Carr (#1); 174: Joel Devine (#24); 184: Marcus Coleman (#8); 197: Yonger Bastida (#10); 285: Sam Schuyler (#24) 2021 125: Kysen Terukina (#33); 133: Zach Redding (#13); 141: Ian Parker (#7); 149: Jarrett Degen (#18); 157: David Carr (#3); 184: Sam Colbray (#29); 197: Marcus Coleman (#21); 285: Gannon Gremmel (#6) 2020 125: Alex Mackall (#12); 133: Todd Small (#24); 141: Ian Parker (#4); 149: Jarrett Degen (#8); 157: David Carr (#3); 165: Chase Straw (#31); 174: Sam Colbray (#13); 184: Marcus Coleman (#23); 285: Gannon Gremmel (#11) 2019 125: Alex Mackall (#19); 133: Austin Gomez (#13); 141: Ian Parker (#17); 149: Jarrett Degen (#8); 157: Chase Straw (#23); 174: Marcus Coleman (#21); 184: Sam Colbray (#10); 197: Willie Miklus (#6): 285: Gannon Gremmel (#25) 2018 149: Jarrett Degen 2017 133: Earl Hall (#13); 174: Lelund Weatherspoon (#14); 197: Marcus Harrington 2016 125: Kyle Larson; 133: Earl Hall (#8); 165: Tanner Weatherman (#9); 174: Lelund Weatherspoon; 184: Dane Pestano; 197: Patrick Downey 2015 133: Earl Hall (#6): 141: Dante Rodriguez; 149: Gabe Moreno (#9); 165: Michael Moreno (#2); 174: Tanner Weatherman (#13); 184: Lelund Weatherspoon; 197: Kyven Gadson (#3) 2014 125: Earl Hall; 141: Gabe Moreno; 165: Michael Moreno (#8); 174: Tanner Weatherman (#12); 184: Lelund Weatherspoon; 197: Kyven Gadson (#5) 2013 141: Luke Goettl; 149: Max Mayfield; 165: Michael Moreno; 174: Tanner Weatherman; 184: Boaz Beard; 197: Kyven Gadson (#6); 285: Matt Gibson NCAA Champions David Carr (157 - 2021) Kyven Gadson (197 - 2015) NCAA All-Americans 2022: David Carr (157 - 3rd); Marcus Coleman (184 - 7th); Yonger Bastida (197 - 5th) 2021: David Carr (157 - 1st); Gannon Gremmel (285 - 5th) 2019: Jarrett Degen (149 - 7th); Willie Miklus (197 - 6th) 2016: Earl Hall (133 - 7th); Lelund Weatherspoon (174 - 6th); Patrick Downey (197 - 5th) 2015: Kyven Gadson (197 - 1st) 2014: Earl Hall (125 - 8th); Michael Moreno (165 - 5th); Kyven Gadson (197 - 4th) 2013: Michael Moreno (165 - 6th); Kyven Gadson (197 - 6th); Matt Gibson (285 - 8th) NWCA All-Americans Alex Mackall (125 - Second Team) Ian Parker (141 - First Team) Jarrett Degen (149 - First Team) David Carr (157 - First Team) Gannon Gremmel (285 - Second Team) NCAA Round of 12 Finishers Austin Gomez (2019 - 133) Sam Colbray (2019 - 184) Jarrett Degen (2018 - 149) Tanner Weatherman (2013/174, 2014/174, 2016/165) Earl Hall (2015 - 133) Michael Moreno (2015 - 165) Big 12 Champions 2022: David Carr (157) 2021: David Carr (157); Gannon Gremmel (285) 2020: Ian Parker (141); David Carr (157) 2019: Chase Straw (157) 2016: Lelund Weatherspoon (174) 2015: Kyven Gadson (197) 2014: Lelund Weatherspoon (174); Kyven Gadson (197) 2013: Kyven Gadson (197) Dual Record 2021-22: 16-1 2021: 9-3 2019-20: 10-5 2018-19: 10-4 2017-18: 8-10 2016-17: 1-12 2015-16: 10-6 2014-15: 11-2 2013-14: 9-7 2012-13: 11-5 Big 12 Tournament Placement 2021-22: 3rd 2021: 3rd 2019-20: 2nd 2018-19: 2nd 2017-18: 7th 2016-17: 6th 2015-16: 3rd 2014-15: 2nd 2013-14: 3rd 2012-13: 2nd NCAA Tournament Team Placement 2021-22: 17th (37 points) 2021: 13th (37.5 points) 2019-20: No Tournament 2018-19: 16th (32 points) 2017-18: 45th (3 points) 2016-17: 57th (1 point) 2015-16: 12th (35 points) 2014-15: 14th (39 points) 2013-14: 12th (42 points) 2012-13: 11th (41.5 points) Head Coaching History Kevin Dresser (2017-Present) Kevin Jackson (2011-2017) Best Lineup (comprised of wrestlers from 2013-22) 125 - Earl Hall: 4x NCAA Qualifier (#6, #8 and #13th seeds), 2x NCAA All-American (8th, 7th), 2x Big 12 Runner-Up 133 - Austin Gomez: 2019 NCAA Qualifier (#13 seed), 2019 NCAA Round of 12 finisher 141 - Ian Parker: 4x NCAA Qualifier (#4, #7, #13, and #17 seeds), 2020 Big 12 Champion 149 - Jarrett Degen: 5x NCAA Qualifier (#8 x2, #17, and #18 seeds), 2019 NCAA All-American (7th) 157 - David Carr: 3x NCAA Qualifier (#1 and #3x2 seeds), 2021 NCAA Champion, 2x NCAA All-American (3rd, 1st), 3x Big 12 Champion 165 - Michael Moreno: 3x NCAA Qualifier (#2 and #8 seeds), 2x NCAA All-American (5th and 6th), 2x Big 12 Runner-Up 174 - Lelund Weatherspoon: 4x NCAA Qualifier (#14 seed), 2016 NCAA 6th place, 2x Big 12 Champion 184 - Marcus Coleman: 4x NCAA Qualifier (#8 seed), 2022 NCAA 7th Place 197 - Kyven Gadson: 3x NCAA Qualifier (#3, #5, and #6 seeds), 2015 NCAA Champion, 3x NCAA All-American (1st, 4th, 6th), 3x Big 12 Champion 285 - Gannon Gremmel: 3x NCAA Qualifier (#6 and #11 seeds), 2021 NCAA 5th place, 2021 Big 12 Champion Recruiting Number of Big Boarder's Per Year 2022: #3 Casey Swiderski (MI); #14 MJ Gaitan (CA); #19 Manny Rojas (MI); #77 Connor Euton (OH); #85 Ethan Perryman (CA); #206 Evan Frost (IA); #224 Jacob Frost (IA) 2021: #31 Nate Schon (PA); #45 Paniro Johnson (PA); #51 Conor Knopick (NE); #132 Gabe Greenlee (IA); #230 Jack Gaukel (IA); #267 Sam Hrabovsky (MO) 2020: #60 Kysen Terukina (HI); #83 Zach Redding (NY); #86 Cameron Robinson (PA); #99 Cody Fisher (IA) 2019: #52 Aden Reeves (IA) 2018: #2 David Carr (OH); #29 Joel Devine (IA) 2017: #11 Austin Gomez (IL); #78 Marcus Coleman (IA); #95 Ryan Leisure (IA) 2016: #11 Sam Colbray (OR); #35 Kanen Storr (MI); #51 Danny Vega (AZ); #80 Ian Parker (MI); #84 Gannon Gremmel (IA) 2015: #31 Markus Simmons (OK); #80 Colston DiBlasi (MO) 2014: #31 Nathan Boston (KY); #48 Renaldo Rodriguez-Spencer (NY); #56 Marcus Harrington (IA); #143 Logan Brietenbach (MD) 2013: #105 Daniel Woiwor (MN)

New Virginia Tech commit Parker Ferrell at the 2021 Super 32 (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Monday afternoon the Virginia Tech Hokies received a verbal commitment from a top rising junior in their backyard in Parker Ferrell (Christiansburg, VA). Ferrell is the #30 overall wrestler in the Class of 2024 per the latest update from MatScouts. In the latest national rankings from MatScouts, Ferrell comes in at Class of 2024#8 at 220 lbs. A 2022 Virginia state champion in the 3A division, Ferrell recently took third place at the UWW Cadet World Team Trials in freestyle at 110kg. Last summer, Parker placed top-five in both styles in the 16U age group in Fargo. He was third in freestyle and fifth in Greco-Roman. In between those events, Ferrell was third at the Super 32, seventh at the Walsh Ironman, and fourth at the Beast of the East. Ferrell projects as a heavyweight at the next level. He's a throwback to the tall, big-bodied heavyweights we used to see frequently in college at 275 and 285 lbs. The Hokies don't have a pressing need at 285 lbs as former blue-chip recruit and current starter, Hunter Catka, still has four years of eligibility remaining; however, with so much time between now and then it's unclear whether Catka will use all four years. He qualified for nationals in 2021 and redshirted last season. Christiansburg High School, located just a few miles away from Virginia Tech's Blacksburg campus has been a very helpful feeder program for the Hokies over the last 15 years. During that time, some of Virginia Tech's best wrestlers have enrolled after graduating from CHS. Multiple-time All-Americans Devin Carter, Joey Dance, Zach Epperly, and Hunter Bolen are all former stars for the Blue Demons. For more recruiting information, check InterMat's College Commitment Page.

2022 NCAA champion Keegan O'Toole in the NCAA semifinals (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) On Thursday, InterMat released our first DI collegiate rankings of the 2022-23 season, our summer version. It goes without saying, but there will likely be plenty of changes between those rankings and our set for the preseason. But this set will give us a good snapshot of what each weight generally looks like. With that in mind, we've generated some numbers from these summer rankings. Have fun! Returning (past) NCAA All-Americans by weight 125 lbs: (9) Lee, Glory, Arujau, DeAugustino, McKee, Courtney, Barnett, Kaylor, Cardinale 133 lbs: (8) Bravo-Young, Fix, McGee, Byrd, Cannon, Foley, LaMont, Latona 141 lbs: (5) Matthews, Woods, Bergeland, Composto, Carlson 149 lbs: (11) Diakomihalis, Gomez, Sasso, Lovett, Mauller, Millner, Parco, Thomas, Abas, Demas, Sherman 157 lbs: (7) Lee, Lewan, Robb, Teemer, Andonian, O'Connor, Sheets 165 lbs: (9) O'Toole, Griffith, Carr, Monday, Amine, Hamiti, Khachla, Hall, Wittlake 174 lbs: (8) Starocci, Lewis, Labriola, Plott, Smith, Lautt, Romero, Turley 184 lbs: (8) Brooks, Keckeisen, Hidlay, Romero, Coleman, Loew, Poznanski, Bolen 197 lbs: (11) Dean, Ferrari, Warner, Buchanan, Elam, Truax, Bastida, Deprez, Beard, Hoffman, Bonaccorsi 285 lbs: (7) Schultz, Kerkvliet, Parris, Cassioppi, Davison, Orndorff, Hillger Returning (past) NCAA finalists by weight 125 lbs: (3) Lee, Glory, Courtney 133 lbs: (2): Bravo-Young, Fix 141 lbs: (0) 149 lbs: (3) Diakomihalis, Sasso, Lovett 157 lbs: (1) O'Connor 165 lbs: (4) O'Toole, Griffith, Carr, Monday 174 lbs: (2) Starocci, Lewis 184 lbs: (2) Brooks, Hidlay 197 lbs: (4) Dean, Ferrari, Warner, Bonaccorsi 285 lbs: (2) Schultz, Parris 5 - Multiple-time NCAA Champions returning 125: Lee (3); 133 - Bravo-Young (2); 149 - Diakomihalis (3); 174 - Starocci (2); 184 - Brooks (2) 3 - New number ones (or they have never held the #1 ranking before) Cole Matthews (Pittsburgh - 141), Brayton Lee (Minnesota - 157), and Cohlton Schultz (Arizona State - 285) 3 - The number of NCAA champions who appear in the rankings at 165 lbs #1 Keegan O'Toole (Missouri), #2 Shane Griffith (Stanford), #3 David Carr (Iowa State) 3 - The number of weight classes with multiple returning champions 165 - O'Toole/Griffith/Carr 174 - Starocci/Lewis 197 - Dean/Ferrari 5 - The number of teams with all ten projected starters currently in the rankings Iowa, Lehigh, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma State 7 - The number of teams with nine projected starters currently in the rankings Iowa State, Minnesota, Nebraska, Northern Iowa, Ohio State, Penn, Virginia Tech Number one ranked wrestlers by conference: Big Ten (6): S. Lee, Bravo-Young, B. Lee, Starocci, Brooks, Dean ACC (1): Matthews Big 12 (1): O'Toole EIWA (1): Diakomihalis Pac-12 (1): Schultz As you can see, Penn State is the only school with more than one #1 and they have four! 6 - The number of past All-Americans that are projected to change weights in 2022-23 133: LaMont, Latona 157: Andonian 165: Carr, Monday 197: Truax 6 - The number of wrestlers ranked in the top-eight for Ohio State. They are the only school that can make this claim. Arizona State, Iowa, and Penn State all have five. 21 - The number of transfers from the 2022 offseason in the summer rankings 125 - Poulin, Ashton 133 - LaMont, Heilmann 141 - Woods 149 - Demas, Hillegas 157 - Casto 165 - Nijenhuis, H. Heller, Nicholson 174 - Finesilver, Ruth, R. Jordan, Null 184 - Samuelson, Montalvo, Antrassian, R. Heller, Ferreira 197 - Beard 17 - The number of wrestlers from the Class of 2021 that have cracked the rankings for the first time. As we move further away from the Covid year, things will get back to normal from a wrestling standpoint too. That will provide some clarity to the actual years of wrestlers. Below are your typical redshirt freshmen that have a spot in the top 33 at their respective weights. 125: Poulin, Brown 149: Voinovich, Lamer, Johnson, Van Ness, McMillen 157: Gallager, Wick, Reyna 165: Caliendo, Facundo 174: Milano, Null 184: Haas 197: Smith 285: Taylor Number of ranked wrestlers per conference and weight class 125: ACC (2); Big Ten (12); Big 12 (7); EIWA (5); MAC (1); Pac-12 (3); SoCon (3) 133: ACC (4); Big Ten (10); Big 12 (8); EIWA (4); MAC (1); Pac-12 (4); SoCon (2) 141: ACC (4); Big Ten (11); Big 12 (8); EIWA (4); MAC (3); Pac-12 (2); SoCon (1) 149: ACC (3); Big Ten (8); Big 12 (6); EIWA (6); MAC (5); Pac-12 (3); SoCon (2) 157: ACC (5); Big Ten (9); Big 12 (5); EIWA (6); MAC (4); Pac-12 (3); SoCon (1) 165: ACC (3); Big Ten (7); Big 12 (9); EIWA (7); MAC (2); Pac-12 (3); SoCon (2) 174: ACC (3); Big Ten (10); Big 12 (7); EIWA (6); MAC (3); Pac-12 (2); SoCon (2) 184: ACC (5); Big Ten (9); Big 12 (5); EIWA (7); MAC (2); Pac-12 (3); SoCon (2) 197: ACC (5); Big Ten (11); Big 12 (7); EIWA (7); MAC (1); Pac-12 (2); SoCon (-) 285: ACC (2); Big Ten (10); Big 12 (10); EIWA (6); MAC (3); Pac-12 (1); SoCon (1)

3x NCAA Champion Spencer Lee (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Welcome to a new, regular feature for InterMat! Every day, for the next few months, we'll look into the recent history of a DI wrestling program with our "Ten Years of…" feature. Even if you're a die-hard supporter of a particular school, there will be good information you may have forgotten. For others, it's a quick way to learn about a program you may not be familiar with. We're going in alphabetical order for this one, so next up is...Iowa! For past teams: Air Force American Appalachian State Arizona State Army West Point Binghamton Bloomsburg Brown Bucknell Buffalo Cal Poly Campbell Central Michigan Chattanooga Clarion Cleveland State Columbia Cornell CSU Bakersfield Davidson Drexel Duke Edinboro Franklin & Marshall Gardner-Webb George Mason Harvard Hofstra Illinois Indiana National Qualifiers (95) 2022 125: Drake Ayala (#13); 133: Austin DeSanto (#5); 141: Jaydin Eierman (#2); 149: Max Murin (#8); 157: Kaleb Young (#9); 165: Alex Marinelli (#3); 174: Michael Kemerer (#5); 184: Abe Assad (#18); 197: Jacob Warner (#6); 285: Tony Cassioppi (#3) 2021 125: Spencer Lee (#1); 133: Austin DeSanto (#4): 141: Jaydin Eierman (#1); 149: Max Murin (#12); 157: Kaleb Young (#5); 165: Alex Marinelli (#1); 174: Michael Kemerer (#1); 184: Nelson Brands (#12); 197: Jacob Warner (#5): 285: Tony Cassioppi (#5) 2020 125: Spencer Lee (#1); 133: Austin DeSanto (#6); 141: Max Murin (#7); 149: Pat Lugo (#1); 157: Kaleb Young (#8); 165: Alex Marinelli (#1); 174: Michael Kemerer (#2); 184: Abe Assad (#11); 197: Jacob Warner (#5); 285: Tony Cassioppi (#3) 2019 125: Spencer Lee (#3); 133: Austin DeSanto (#7); 141: Max Murin (#22); 149: Pat Lugo (#10); 157: Kaleb Young (#6); 165: Alex Marinelli (#1); 184: Cash Wilcke (#12); 197: Jacob Warner (#5); 285: Sam Stoll (#28) 2018 125: Spencer Lee (#3); 141: Vince Turk; 149: Brandon Sorensen (#2); 157: Michael Kemerer (#6); 165: Alex Marinelli (#5); 174: Joey Gunther; 184: Mitch Bowman; 197: Cash Wilcke (#14); 285: Sam Stoll (#5) 2017 125: Thomas Gilman (#1); 133: Cory Clark (#4); 141: Topher Carton; 149: Brandon Sorensen (#5); 157: Michael Kemerer (#2); 165: Joey Gunther; 174: Alex Meyer (#11); 184: Sam Brooks (#3); 197: Cash Wilcke 2016 125: Thomas Gilman (#4); 133: Cory Clark (#2); 149: Brandon Sorensen (#2); 157: Edwin Cooper (#13); 165: Patrick Rhodes; 174: Alex Meyer (#13); 184: Sam Brooks (#2); 197: Nathan Burak (#4); 285: Sam Stoll (#11) 2015 125: Thomas Gilman (#6); 133: Cory Clark (#3); 141: Josh Dziewa (#5); 149: Brandon Sorensen (#4); 157: Mike Kelly; 165: Nick Moore; 174: Mike Evans (#3); 184: Sam Brooks (#9); 197: Nathan Burak (#6); 285: Bobby Telford (#3) 2014 125: Cory Clark (#8); 133: Tony Ramos (#3); 141: Josh Dziewa; 149: Brody Grothus (#13); 157: Derek St. John (#2); 165: Nick Moore (#5); 174: Mike Evans (#4); 184: Ethan Lofthouse (#5); 197: Nathan Burak (#11); 285: Bobby Telford (#5) 2013 125: Matt McDonough (#3); 133: Tony Ramos (#2); 141: Mark Ballweg (#7); 157: Derek St. John (#2); 165: Nick Moore (#10); 174: Mike Evans (#3); 184: Ethen Lofthouse (#12); 197: Nathan Burak; 285: Bobby Telford (#6) NCAA Champions Spencer Lee (125 - 2018, 2019, 2021) Cory Clark (133 - 2017) Tony Ramos (133 - 2014) Derek St. John (157 - 2013) NCAA All-Americans 2022: Austin DeSanto (133 - 3rd); Alex Marinelli (165 - 5th); Michael Kemerer (174 - 4th); Jacob Warner (197 - 2nd); Tony Cassioppi (285 - 7th) 2021: Spencer Lee (125 - 1st); Austin DeSanto (133 - 3rd); Jaydin Eierman (141 - 2nd); 157 - Kaleb Young (157 - 7th); Michael Kemerer (174 - 2nd); Jacob Warner (197 - 4th); Tony Cassioppi (285 - 3rd) 2019: Spencer Lee (125 - 1st); Austin DeSanto (133 - 5th); Pat Lugo (149 - 8th); Kaleb Young (157 - 5th); Alex Marinelli (165 - 7th); Jacob Warner (197 - 7th) 2018: Spencer Lee (125 - 1st); Brandon Sorensen (149 - 5th); Michael Kemerer (157 - 4th); Alex Marinelli (165 - 6th); Sam Stoll (285 - 5th) 2017: Thomas Gilman (125 - 3rd); Cory Clark (133 - 1st); Brandon Sorensen (149 - 3rd); Michael Kemerer (157 - 3rd); Sam Brooks (184 - 4th) 2016: Thomas Gilman (125 - 2nd); Cory Clark (133 - 2nd); Brandon Sorensen (149 - 2nd); Alex Meyer (174 - 8th); Sam Brooks (184 - 8th); Nathan Burak (197 - 4th) 2015: Thomas Gilman (125 - 4th); Cory Clark (133 - 2nd); Brandon Sorensen (149 - 4th); Mike Evans (174 - 6th); Nathan Burak (197 - 6th); Bobby Telford (285 - 5th) 2014: Cory Clark (125 - 5th); Tony Ramos (133 - 1st); Derek St. John (157 - 5th); Mike Evans (174 - 6th); Nathan Burak (197 - 8th); Bobby Telford (285 - 4th) 2013: Tony Ramos (133 - 2nd); Derek St. John (157 - 1st); Mike Evans (174 - 6th); Ethen Lofthouse (184 - 5th) NWCA All-Americans Spencer Lee (125 - First Team) Austin DeSanto (133 - First Team) Max Murin (141 - First Team) Pat Lugo (149 - First Team) Kaleb Young (157 - First Team) Alex Marinelli (165 - First Team) Michael Kemerer (174 - First Team) Abe Assad (184 - Second Team) Jacob Warner (197 - First Team) Tony Cassioppi (285 - First Team) NCAA Round of 12 Finishers Max Murin (2019, 2021, 2022 - 149) Alex Marinelli (2021 - 165) Sam Stoll (2019 - 285) Cash Wilcke (2017, 2018 - 197) Alex Meyer (2017 - 174) Sam Brooks (2015 - 184) Matt McDonough (2013 - 125) Mark Ballweg (2013 - 141) Nathan Burak (2013 - 197) Big Ten Champions 2022: Alex Marinelli (165) 2021: Spencer Lee (125); Jaydin Eierman (141); Alex Marinelli (165); Michael Kemerer (174) 2020: Spencer Lee (125); Pat Lugo (149); Alex Marinelli (165) 2019: Alex Marinelli (165) 2017: Thomas Gilman (125); Sam Brooks (184) 2016: Cory Clark (133); Sam Brooks (184) 2014: Tony Ramos (133) Big Ten Runner's-Up 2022: Austin DeSanto (133); Jaydin Eierman (141); Tony Cassioppi (285) 2021: Austin DeSanto (133); Kaleb Young (157) 2020: Michael Kemerer (157) 2019: Spencer Lee (125) 2018: Brandon Sorensen (149) 2017: Cory Clark (133); Michael Kemerer (157) 2016: Brandon Sorensen (149); Nathan Burak (197) 2015: Thomas Gilman (125); Josh Dziewa (141); Brandon Sorensen (149); Bobby Telford (285) 2014: Derek St. John (157); Nick Moore (165); Mike Evans (174); Ethen Lofthouse (184) 2013: Matt McDonough (125); Tony Ramos (133); Mark Ballweg (141); Mike Evans (174) Dual Record 2021-22: 14-1 2021: 5-0 2019-20: 13-0 2018-19: 14-1 2017-18: 12-3 2016-17: 13-2 2015-16: 16-1 2014-15: 17-1 2013-14: 15-2 2012-13: 20-3 Big Ten Tournament Placement 2021-22: 3rd 2021: 1st 2019-20: 1st 2018-19: 3rd 2017-18: 4th 2016-17: 3rd 2015-16: 2nd 2014-15: 1st-tie 2013-14: 2nd 2012-13: 3rd NCAA Tournament Team Placement 2021-22: 3rd (74 points) 2021: 1st (129 points) 2019-20: No Tournament 2018-19: 4th (76 points) 2017-18: 3rd (97 points) 2016-17: 4th (97 points) 2015-16: 5th (81 points) 2014-15: 2nd (84 points) 2013-14: 4th (78.5 points) 2012-13: 4th (73 points) Head Coaching History Tom Brands (2006-present) Best Lineup (comprised of wrestlers from 2013-22) 125 - Spencer Lee: 3x NCAA Champion, 2x Hodge Trophy Winner, 2x Big Ten Champion 133 - Cory Clark: 4x NCAA All-American (5th, 2nd, 2nd, 1st), 2017 NCAA Champion, 2016 Big Ten Champion 141 - Jaydin Eierman: 2x NCAA Qualifier, 2021 NCAA Runner-Up, 2021 Big Ten Champion, 3x All-American at Missouri 149 - Brandon Sorensen: 4x NCAA All-American (5th, 3rd, 2nd, 4th); 3x Big Ten Runner-Up 157 - Derek St. John: 4x NCAA All-American (5th, 1st, 2nd, 4th); 2012 Big Ten Champion 165 - Alex Marinelli: 3x NCAA All-American (5th, 7th, 6th); 4x Big Ten Champion 174 - Michael Kemerer: 4x NCAA All-American (3rd, 4th, 2nd, 4th); 2021 Big Ten Champion 184 - Sam Brooks: 2x NCAA All-American (4th, 8th); 2x Big Ten Champion 197 - Jacob Warner: 3x NCAA All-American (2nd, 4th, 7th) 285 - Tony Cassioppi: 2x NCAA All-American (7th, 3rd); 2022 Big Ten Runner-Up Recruiting Big Boarder's Per Year 2022: #38 Aiden Riggins (IA); #48 Kolby Franklin (PA); #112 Bradley Hill (IA); #124 Mickey Griffith (IA); #215 Easton Fleshman (IA); #242 Joel Jesuroga (IA) 2021: #4 Drake Ayala (IA); #16 Wyatt Henson (PA); #49 Caleb Rathjen (IA) 2020: #2 Patrick Kennedy (MN); #27 Cullan Schriever (IA); #28 Jesse Ybarra (AZ); #46 Bretli Reyna (FL); #71 Gabe Christenson (IA) 2019: #14 Abe Assad (IL); #74 Zach Glazier (MN); #82 Cole Siebrecht (IA) 2018: #18 Tony Cassioppi (IL); #50 Nelson Brands (IA) 2017: #2 Spencer Lee (PA); #7 Jacob Warner (IL); #44 Max Murin (PA); #79 Aaron Costello (IA) 2016: #2 Alex Marinelli (OH); #19 Carter Happel (IA); #25 Kaleb Young (PA); #93 Jack Wagner (IA); #115 Brock Rathbun (IA) 2015: #8 Michael Kemerer (PA); #67 Vince Turk (IL); #79 Steven Holloway (IA); #86 Cash Wilcke (IA) 2014: #14 Sam Stoll (MN); #41 Seth Gross (MN); #63 Burke Paddock (NY); #72 Logan Ryan (IA) 2013: #27 Brandon Sorensen (IA); #38 Broc Berge (MN); #40 Aaron Bradley (PA); #53 Jake Marlin (IA); #182 Doug Miner (IA)

2022 Russian National champion Zavur Uguev (photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) Clutch superduck wins title number five for #1 Zavur Uguev at 57 KG. Final Results GOLD: #1 Zavur Uguev over #5 Nachyn Mongush 3-2 BRONZE: #6 Ramiz Gamzatov over Ramazan Abdurakhimov 15-13 BRONZE: Musa Mekhtikhanov over Amir Chamzyn 8-7 In a hard-fought rematch of the 2021 national finals against #5 Nachyn Mongush, #1 Zavur Uguev was put on the shot clock tied 1-1, with under 2 minutes left in the match, and immediately scored a beautiful super duck to take the 3-1 lead. A charging Mongush would attempt to rally back, but the composed Uguev held on to win his fifth national title. The other medal matches at 57 KG brought major fireworks as well, with #6 Ramiz Gamzatov overcoming a massive 10-2 deficit in the second period to pull out a 15-13 win over Ramazan Abdurakhimov after a series of last-second chest wraps. 2021 Yarygin runner-up Musa Mekhtikhanov used a last-second takedown to come out on top of Amir Chamzyn 8-7. I am very interested in seeing how Chamzyn grows from here after his win over #4 Azamat Tuskaev from day two and if he can continue to make an impact on the shark tank of 57KG. #14 Ibragim Ibragimov controls Gadzhimurad Omarov for 65 KG national title. Final Results GOLD: #14 Ibragim Ibragimov over Gadzhimurad Omarov 5-1 BRONZE: Aripgadzhi Abdullaev over Elbrus Valiev 11-10 BRONZE: Aykhaan Antonov forfeit over #2 Gadzhimurad Rashidov #14 Ibragim Ibragimov stopped any chances of Gadzhimurad Omarov's chances of a national title, after his sensational upset of #2 Gadzhimurad Rashidov on day two, by shutting out Omarov in a 5-1 win. Two passivity points, a takedown off a go behind and a stepout made for an intelligent win for Ibragimov who came out on top of the chaotic 65KG bracket. Aripgadzhi Abdullaev just barely survived a late comeback from Elbrus Valiev and was put on his back with 20 seconds left in the match but held on for an 11-10 win off the strength of a huge throw in the first period. Aykhaan Antonov won a forfeit over #2 Gadzhimurad Rashidov. #6 Razambek Zhamalov wins second national title at 74 KG with victory over #7 Cherman Valiev. Final Results GOLD: #6 Razambek Zhamalov over #7 Cherman Valiev 3-2 BRONZE: #5 David Baev over Semen Tereschenko 4-0 BRONZE: Magomed Dibirgadzhiev over Robert Dzhukaev 3-0 An underhook throwby in the second period would be the difference-maker for #6 Razambek Zhamalov as he fought off a late charge from 2020 70 KG national champion #7 Cherman Valiev to win his second national title. Zhamalov's return to the top of the podium after being sidelined for a year with shoulder and knee injuries was a major storyline coming into nationals, and it will be interesting to see how he will do against reigning Olympic champion #1 Zaurbek Sidakov as he lost to the North Ossetian great 3-2 in the 2021 national finals. Both #5 David Baev and Magomed Dibirgadzhiev comfortably won their bronze medal matches securing their fifth and second Russian Nationals medals respectively. #3 Artur Naifonov controls #7 Amanulla Rasulov for third national title. #13 Arsenali Musalaliev earns fourth Russian Nationals medal. Final Results GOLD: #3 Artur Naifonov over #7 Amanulla Rasulov 3-0 BRONZE: #13 Arsenali Musalaliev over Slavik Naniev 6-2 BRONZE: #6 Ada Bagomedov forfeit over #4 Dauren Kurugliev #3 Artur Naifonov used a head outside single leg in the first period to score the only takedown of the match and held on to blank #7 Amanulla Rasulov 3-0 and earn his third national title. Naifonov is clearly the #3 man behind #1 Hassan Yazdani Charati (IRI) and #2 David Taylor (USA) and showed that with his performance in Kyzyl. #13 Arsenali Musalaliev used a big takedown late in the match to lock up his fourth Russian Nationals bronze medal over Slavik Naniev. Musalaliev continues to prove his staying power at the weight. Aslanbek Sotiev uses late go-behind to win on first national title on criteria against #10 Shamil Musaev at 97KG Final Results GOLD: Aslanbek Sotiev over #10 Shamil Musaev 3-3 BRONZE: #15 Sergey Kozyrev over Igor Ovsyannikov 3-2 BRONZE: #7 Akhmed Tazhudinov over David Dzhugaev 9-3 In what was a rematch of their incredible 2020 national semifinals match, Aslanbek Sotiev and #10 Shamil Musaev fought tooth and nail for their first national title. Musaev took the lead early with a takedown and held on 3-1 for the majority of the match until a poorly timed shot was stuffed and converted into a go-behind for Sotiev for the 3-3 lead and eventual match win. After having a poor end to the 2021 season and inconsistent performances through 2022, Sotiev coming back to win nationals by beating #7 Akhmed Tazhudinov and #10 Shamil Musaev is huge for him and his growth. On the subject of growth, #10 Shamil Musaev looked far improved with his cardio as he is notorious for fading hard late in matches and he held steady with Sotiev throughout. 2021 125 KG national champion #15 Sergey Kozyrev held onto a close 3-2 win over two-time national bronze medalist Igor Ovsyannikov and Ivan Poddubny Tournament champion #7 Akhmed Tazhudinov cruised for bronze with a 9-3 win over David Dzhugaev. #19 Alen Khubulov wins by forfeit over Tamerlan Rasuev for gold at 125 KG. Final Results GOLD: #19 Alen Khubulov forfeit over Tamerlan Rasuev BRONZE: #8 Baldan Tsyzhipov over Alan Khugaev 3-1 BRONZE; #11 Erik Dzhioev over Gamzat Alizhudinov 8-1 Contrasted to all the action and upsets of day two of Russian Nationals at heavyweight, day three was pretty quiet with #19 Alen Khubulov winning gold by forfeit over Tamerlan Rasuev and established standouts #8 Baldan Tsyzhipov and #11 Erik Dzhioev posted strong wins to secure their second career Russian Nationals bronze medals. I'd like to see Khubulov and Rasuev get some international starts but that's unlikely to happen anytime soon, while sanctions against Russia are still ongoing, so here's hoping they can finally get Russia a medal again since they haven't placed anyone since Bilyal Makhov in 2015.

2022 Russian National finalist Artur Naifonov (photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) #1 Zavur Uguev shines at 57 KG, Tuva Republic puts two in the semis in Kyzyl. Semifinal Results #1 Zavur Uguev over Amir Chamyzn 10-0 #5 Nachyn Mongush over #6 Ramiz Gamzatov 11-2 #1 Zavur Uguev was excellent on day two of Russian Nationals, making his fifth national finals after a 10-0 tech fall win over Tuvan standout Amir Chamzyn. Chamzyn was the talk of the tournament at 57 KG, as the relative unknown Tuvan put on a career-defining performance in the quarterfinals to upset 2020 national runner-up #4 Azamat Tuskaev 8-2. On the bottom half of the bracket, returning national runner-up #6 Nachyn Mongush was sublime in putting on an 11-2 semifinal clinic against Yarygin champion #6 Ramiz Gamzatov to make his second consecutive national finals match. Of note, returning 2021 world rep #18 Abubakar Mutaliev was eliminated from the competition in the round of 32 by 2018 national runner-up Donduk-Ool Khuresh-Ool, who was eliminated in the round of 16 by a 12-2 tech fall to Ramazan Abdurakhmanov. I am very interested to see how the resurgent Mongush looks as he pushed Uguev to the edge in last year's finals and if Uguev can continue to build upon his dominance from yesterday and earn his fifth national title in definitive fashion. 2021 world champion Abasgadzhi Magomedov wins third straight national title at 61 KG. Final Results GOLD: #1 Abasgadzhi Magomedov over #7 (57) Akhmed Idrisov 4-2 BRONZE: Cherman Tavitov over Aldar Balzhinimaev 2-0 BRONZE: #5 Bashir Magomedov over Zhargal Damdinov by pin #1 Abasgadzhi Magomedov was successful in earning his third straight national title and it is yet to be seen if he will be able to defend his 2021 world title this year due to the current sanctions on Russia. Even with that being the case, Magomedov was in top form throughout the competition and has risen to the top of the mountain once again. I was impressed to see #7 (57) Akhmed Idrisov make the full transition up to 61 KG and as he continues to fill out I can see him continue to improve upon what he showed here. Other points of interest are Cherman Tavitov winning his second straight bronze medal at nationals over returning bronze medalist Aldar Balzhinimaev and Junior national champion #5 Bashir Magomedov taking bronze by pin over 2020 bronze medalist Zhargal Damdinov. In upset-filled 65 KG bracket, Gadzhimurad Omarov and #14 Ibragim Ibragimov breakthrough to make their first national finals. Semifinal Results Gadzhimurad Omarov over #2 Gadzhimurad Rashidov 4-3 #14 Ibragim Ibragimov over Aripgadzhi Abdullaev 3-0 65 KG was a weight defined by huge upsets in every round so to understand how we got to the point where an Olympic bronze medalist and a world champion don't make the finals, we have to run it back from the start. The first major upset was 2022 Ivan Poddubny Tournament champion #10 Alik Khadartsev beating reigning world champion #6 Zagir Shakhiev 2-0 in the round of 16. Then the quarterfinal round is where the upsets started to really pile on, with Aripgadzhi Abdullaev upsetting Yarygin champion #5 Shamil Mamedov 4-4 on criteria and #14 Ibragim Ibragimov tech falling #10 Alik Khadartsev 12-0 and eliminating 2021 world champion #6 Zagir Shakhiev from competition. Now we go into the final round of upsets with the biggest of the tournament coming from Gadzhimurad Omarov, who upended reigning national champion and Olympic bronze medalist #2 Gadzhimurad Rashidov after overcoming a 3-0 deficit against the four-time national champion to win 4-3 and improve on his fifth-place finish from last year with a national finals appearance and the biggest win of his career. And on the other end #14 Ibragim Ibragimov beats Aripgadzi Abdullaev 3-0 which eliminates #5 Shamil Mamedov from competition and secures Ibragimov's first Russian Nationals medal. To put into context how shocking Gadzhimurad Omarov's upset over #2 Gadzhimurad Rashidov is, Rashidov hadn't lost at the national tournament in seven years, with his last loss being at the 2015 61 KG national tournament to Alexander Bogomoev. The first year after a quad always brings in some crazy results, but there was no way of predicting how this bracket turned out. I am interested to see if Russia goes to any further steps for qualification if they are allowed to compete at a world-level event between the winner of the national tournament and Rashidov or will they honor the national champion with the top spot. #7 Israil Kasumov wins second straight national title at 70 KG over breakthrough star #13 Anzor Zakuev. Final Results GOLD: #7 Israil Kasumov over #13 Anzor Zakuev 6-3 BRONZE: #4 Viktor Rassadin over #5 Ruslan Zhendaev 7-2 BRONZE: #6 Kurban Shiraev over Kezhik Chimba 4-1 On his fifth finals appearance, #7 Israil Kasumov was successful in capturing his second-straight national title over #13 Anzor Zakuev. Concluding his tournament, #13 Anzor Zakuev really was the breakthrough star even after finishing runner-up to Kasumov. Taking fifth at the Poddubny after disappointing losses to #4 Viktor Rassadin and #12 Ruslan Bogatyrev, Zakuev completely turned that around and notched the best win of his career in the quarterfinals over #6 Kurban Shiraev and earned his first Russian Nationals medal after six trips going back to 2016 with a clutch 9-6 win over returning bronze medalist Abdulla Akhmedov, who teched Zakuev in last year's bronze medal match. Zakuev is top-flight talent and I'm excited to see what his next move is. A small note is even though Kasumov is coming off his second national title and fifth finals appearance, he has never made a world team and unless the sanctions are lifted it looks like that trend will continue. #6 Razambek Zhamalov rebounds against #5 David Baev to make fourth straight Russian Nationals finals match at 74 KG. Semifinal Results #6 Razambek Zhamalov over #5 David Baev 9-3 #7 Cherman Valiev over Magomed Dibirgadzhiev 7-4 #6 Razambek Zhamalov made his fourth-straight Russian Nationals final and made his career series 2-3 against 2019 70 KG world champion #5 David Baev by way of a 9-3 semifinal win. Zhamalov will face off against Yarygin champion #7 Cherman Valiev, who made the finals with a 7-4 victory over 2017 70 KG national runner-up Magomed Dibirgadzhiev, who notched a big 4-4 upset over #10 Magomedrasul Gazimagomedov in the quarterfinals. Zhamalov is 4-0 in his career against Valiev with wins at the 2018 Junior Russian Nationals finals, 2019 Mindiashvili Grand Prix, 2019 Ali Aliyev, and the 2019 Russian Nationals tournament, so I would put my money on Zhamalov earning his second national title with a fifth victory over Valiev. #4 Malik Shavaev earns second national title with close win over 2021 U23 world champion #13 Magomed Magomaev at 79 KG. Finals Results GOLD: #4 Malik Shavaev over #13 Magomed Magomaev 6-4 BRONZE: #3 Radik Valiev over Begkhan Misrikhanov 8-0 BRONZE: Nikita Suchkov over Gadzhimurad Alikhmaev 4-2 Capping off his second national title run, #4 Malik Shavaev followed up his two wins over 2021 world bronze medalist #3 Radik Valiev and 2020 national champion #12 Akhmed Usmanov with a victory over 2021 U23 world champion #13 Magomed Magomaev for gold. Shavaev's peaking for Russian Nationals was incredibly impressive and I cannot wait to see him again in action. 2021 U23 world champion #13 Magomed Magomaev had a great tournament and I see him having a breakthrough by the end of the quad by the least. Both #3 Radik Valiev and Nikita Suchkov secured their third Russian Nationals bronze medals, with Valiev finishing silver in 2016 at 70 and bronze in 2021, and Suchkov taking bronze at 74 KG in 2017 and 2018. #7 Amanulla Rasulov upsets three-time Russian Nationals finalist #4 Dauren Kurugliev to make first national finals. #3 Artur Naifonov into fourth national final. Semifinal Results #3 Artur Naifonov over #13 Arsenali Musalaliev 6-0 #7 Amanulla Rasulov over #4 Dauren Kurugliev 3-2 The story of 86 KG was Yarygin runner-up #7 Amanulla Rasulov's incredible run to the finals. Rasulov handed returning national runner-up #4 Dauren Kurugliev his first loss to a Russian that wasn't 3x World/Olympic medalist #3 Artur Naifonov since his upset loss to #13 Arsenali Musalaliev at 2017 Russian Nationals. Rasulov's path to the finals also saw him notch two other ranked wins on his way to the finals, beating Yarygin bronze medalist #6 Ada Bagomedov and 2021 Umakhanov Tournament champion #10 Khabil Khashpakov. While Rasulov has wrestled an incredible tournament, it is yet to be seen if he can scale up his success against someone the likes of #3 Artur Naifonov who looks better than ever after a comfortable 6-0 win against #13 Arsenali Musalaliev to make his fifth-straight Russian Nationals finals appearance. #2 Magomed Kurbanov wins second national title at 92 KG. Finals Results GOLD: #2 Magomed Kurbanov over #13 Azamat Zakuev 2-0 BRONZE: #5 Vladislav Valiev over #15 Guram Chertkoev 7-0 BRONZE: #14 Magomed Sharipov over #17 Tamerlan Tapsiev 7-0 #2 Magomed Kurbanov shut out #13 Azamat Zakuev 2-0 in a largely strategic match to win his second consecutive Russian Nationals title. Azamat Zakuev's improvements to peak for nationals were evident as he rebounded from a subpar Yarygin and Poddubny tournament to beat #5 Vladislav Valiev and #15 Guram Chertkoev and stake his claim as the second-best man in Russia. Kurbanov has this weight locked down for the foreseeable future this quad and I'd love to see him get another shot at world gold. Aslanbek Sotiev and #10 Shamil Musaev rematch set for 97 KG national finals. Semifinal Results Aslanbek Sotiev over #7 Akhmed Tazhudinov 9-5 #10 Shamil Musaev over #15 Sergey Kozyrev 8-4 Past Russian Nationals medalists Aslanbek Sotiev and #10 Shamil Musaev both made the national finals with impressive victories. Sotiev over Ivan Poddubny Tournament champion #7 Akhmed Tazhudinov and Musaev over 2021 125 KG Olympian #15 Sergey Kozyrev. Their finals match will be a rematch of the 2020 Russian Nationals semifinals won by Sotiev in an absolute barnburner that saw Sotiev rally from an early deficit to break Musaev. Tamerlan Rasuev and #19 Alen Khubulov make finals at 125 KG. National champions #4 Zelimkhan Khizriev and #5 Anzor Khizriev upset Semifinal Results #19 Alen Khubulov over #8 Baldan Tsyzhipov 3-0 Tamerlan Rasuev ovr #11 Erik Dzhioev 5-1 Heavyweight, like 65 KG, was a weight defined by upsets from top to bottom. The two premier upsets of the weight took place against the pair of #4 Zelimkhan and #5 Anzor Khizriev. #5 Anzor Khizriev was eliminated in the round of 16 by 2021 national bronze Saipudin Magomedov, who was eliminated in the quarterfinals by #8 Baldan Tsyzhipov. #4 Zelimkhan Khizriev took a 7-1 loss to eventual finalist Tamerlan Rasuev in the round of 16. Other important upsets were Nikita Khabarov upsetting 2020 Russian Nationals medalist #13 Vitali Goloev and Alan Khugaev upsetting #7 Ostap Pasenok 2-1 in the qualification round. Rasuev is a seasoned veteran at 97 and 125 KG and had a career-best finish of 7th at Russian Nationals in 2020 with a victory over 2019 Alans champion Batraz Gazzaev. Khubulov is a 2019 Junior world bronze medalist, who took bronze at the Yarygin this year and along with beating #8 Tsyzhipov in the semis has two wins over two-time national champion Alan Khugaev. I look forward to seeing how the youth and power of Khubulov vs. the experience and savvy of Rasuev will play out in the finals on the final days of Russian Nationals.

2x NCAA All-American Nate Jackson (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Welcome to a new, regular feature for InterMat! Every day, for the next few months, we'll look into the recent history of a DI wrestling program with our "Ten Years of…" feature. Even if you're a die-hard supporter of a particular school, there will be good information you may have forgotten. For others, it's a quick way to learn about a program you may not be familiar with. We're going in alphabetical order for this one, so next up is...Indiana! For past teams: Air Force American Appalachian State Arizona State Army West Point Binghamton Bloomsburg Brown Bucknell Buffalo Cal Poly Campbell Central Michigan Chattanooga Clarion Cleveland State Columbia Cornell CSU Bakersfield Davidson Drexel Duke Edinboro Franklin & Marshall Gardner-Webb George Mason Harvard Hofstra Illinois NCAA Qualifiers (31) 2022 133: Brock Hudkins (#13); 184: Donnell Washington (#26) 2021 141: Cayden Rooks (#32); 149: Graham Rooks (#21); 174: Donnell Washington (#9) 2020 125: Liam Cronin (#22); 149: Graham Rooks (#23) 2019 125: Elijah Oliver (#19); 165: Bryce Martin (#22); 174: Jake Covaciu (#32) 2018 125: Elijah Oliver; 141: Cole Weaver (#16); 165: Bryce Martin; 174: Devin Skatzka 2017 125: Elijah Oliver; 157: Jake Danishek; 174: Devin Skatzka; 184 - Nate Jackson (#9) 2016 125: Elijah Oliver (#16): 174: Nate Jackson (#12) 2015 165: Taylor Walsh (#6); 174: Nate Jackson 2014 157: Taylor Walsh; 165: Ryan LeBlanc; 184: Luke Sheridan; 285: Adam Chalfant (#3) 2013 125: Joe Duca; 157: Taylor Walsh; 165: Ryan LeBlanc; 184: Luke Sheridan; 285: Adam Chalfant (#12) NCAA Champions None NCAA All-Americans Nate Jackson (2017 - 8th, 2016 - 5th) Taylor Walsh (2016 - 2nd) Adam Chalfant (2014 - 6th) NCAA Round of 12 Finishers Ryan LeBlanc - 165 (2016) Big Ten Champions None Big Ten Runner's Up 2014: Adam Chalfant (285) Dual Record 2021-22: 3-8 2021: 2-6 2019-20: 2-10 2018-19: 6-12 2017-18: 6-10 2016-17: 10-9 2015-16: 6-7 2014-15: 4-10 2013-14: 9-9 2012-13: 9-10 Big Ten Tournament Placement 2021-22: 14th 2021: 13th 2019-20: 13th 2018-19: 12th 2017-18: 13th 2016-17: 11th 2015-16: 11th 2014-15: 12th 2013-14: 10th 2012-13: 11th NCAA Tournament Team Placement 2021-22: 56th-tie (1 point) 2021: 46th (5 points) 2019-20: No Tournament 2018-19: 53rd (1 point) 2017-18: 55th (1.5 points) 2016-17: 35th-tie (8.5 points) 2015-16: 28th (13 points) 2014-15: 24th-tie (18 points) 2013-14: 25th-tie (15.5 points) 2012-13: 41st-tie (4 points) Head Coaching History Angel Escobedo (2018-Present) Duane Goldman (1992-2018) Best Lineup (Comprised of wrestlers from 2013-22) 125 - Elijah Oliver: 4x NCAA Qualifier (#15 and #16 seeds) 133 - Brock Hudkins: 2022 NCAA Qualifier (#13 seed) 141 - Cole Weaver: 2018 NCAA Qualifier (#16 seed) 149 - Graham Rooks: 2x NCAA Qualifier 157 - Jake Danishek: 2017 NCAA Qualifier 165 - Taylor Walsh: 3x NCAA Qualifier (#6 seed), 2015 NCAA Runner-Up, 2015 Big Ten Third Place 174 - Devin Skatzka: 2x NCAA Qualifier; Also 2x NCAA Qualifier for Minnesota; 2019 NCAA All-American (8th); 2020 NWCA All-American 184 - Nate Jackson: 3x NCAA Qualifier (#9 and #12 seed); 2x NCAA All-American (5th and 8th) 197 - Luke Sheridan: 2x NCAA Qualifier 285 - Adam Chalfant: 2x NCAA Qualifier (#3 and #12 seed); 2014 NCAA All-American (6th); 2014 Big Ten Runner-Up Recruiting Big Boarder's Per Year 2022: #69 Tyler Lillard (GA); #123 Gabe Sollars (IN) 2021: #39 Henry Porter (CA); #149 Jake Evans (OH); #253 Noah Gochberg (TX); #260 Robert Major (IN) 2020: #119 Derek Gilcher (MI); #128 Robert Dieters (IN); #130 Santos Cantu (OR) 2019: #66 Matt Ortiz (IL); #88 Asa Garcia (IN); #92 Luke Baughman (OH) 2016: #18 Blake Rypel (IN); #146 Jake Kleimola (IN) 2015: #36 Elijah Oliver (TN); #44 Devin Skatzka (MI); #91 Tommy Cash (IN) 2014: #20 Jake Danishek (OH); #82 Cole Weaver (MI); #130 Bryce Martin (CA) 2013: #35 Neal Malloy (IN); #168 Brant Schafer (MI); #195 Luke Blanton (IN)

2022 Matteo Pellicone champion Skylar Grote (photos courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) 50 kg Women's Freestyle Gold Medal Match - Madison Parks (Canada) over Agatha Walerzak (Poland) 10-8 Bronze Medal Match - Anna Lukasiak (Poland) over Zehra Demirhan (Turkey) 2-1 53 kg Women's Freestyle Gold Medal Match - Lillia Malanchuk (Ukraine) over Mariana Dragutan (Moldova) 6-2 Bronze Medal Match - Samantha Stewart (Canada) over Szimonetta Szeker (Hungary) 10-0 55 kg Women's Freestyle Gold Medal Match - Katarzyna Krawczyk (Poland) over Mariia Vynnyk (Ukraine) 7-2 Bronze Medal Match - Andreea Ana (Romania) over Nina Hemmer (Germany) 4-3 59 kg Women's Freestyle Gold Medal Match - Grace Bullen (Norway) over Jowita Wrzesien (Poland) 12-2 Bronze Medal Match - Odunayo Adekuoroye (Nigeria) over Elena Brugger (Germany) 5-1 Bronze Medal Match - Abby Nette (USA) over Nikolett Szabo (Hungary) 13-2 USA Results Abby Nette (USA) over Kateryna Zhydachevska (Romania) Injury Default Abby Nette (USA) over Magdalena Glodek (Poland) 8-7 Grace Bullen (Norway) over Abby Nette (USA) 10-0 62 kg Women's Freestyle Gold Medal Match - Iryna Koliadenko (Ukraine) over Ilona Prokopevniuk (Ukraine) 6-0 Bronze Medal Match - Lais Nunes de Oliveira (Brazil) over Ana Godinez Gonzalez (Canada) 8-6 65 kg Women's Freestyle USA Results Tetiana Rizhko (Urkraine) over Emma Bruntil (USA) Fall Emma Bruntil (USA) over Veronica Braschi (Italy) Fall Emma Bruntil (USA) over Kateryna Zelenykh (Ukraine) 11-8 Emma Bruntil (USA) over Kriszta Incze (Romania) 2-0 72 kg Women's Freestyle USA Results Alexandra Anghel (Romania) over Marilyn Garcia (USA) 12-2 Skylar Grote (USA) over Marilyn Garcia (USA) 11-0 Marilyn Garcia (USA) over Aysegul Ozbege (Turkey) 5-0 Anna Schell (Germany) over Marilyn Garcia (USA) Fall Skylar Grote (USA) over Marilyn Garcia (USA) 11-0 Skylar Grote (USA) over Alexandra Anghel (Romania) 6-3 Skylar Grote (USA) over Aysegul Ozbege (Turkey) 10-0 Skylar Grote (USA) over Anna Schell (Germany) 6-2