InterMat Staff

92 kg World silver medalist Magomed Kurbanov (photos courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) Returning national champion #4 Malik Shavaev shines at 79 KG. #4 Malik Shavaev put together an amazing run to make his second Russian Nationals finals. Repeating his wins from the 2021 Russian National tournament, Shavaev beat 2020 national champion #12 Akhmed Usmanov 7-4 and won the best match of the tournament in his 3-3 quarterfinal thriller against 2021 world bronze medalist #3 Radik Valiev to make the semis, where he walked through Begkhan Misrikhanov 6-1. Shavaev is part of the trio of wrestlers from the Kabardino-Balkar Republic who made the Russian nationals along with the Zakuev brothers having Anzor making the finals at 70 and Azamat at 92 KG. On the bottom half of the bracket, 2021 U23 world champion #13 Magomed Magomaev proved himself to be the cream of the crop with victories over 2020 national runner-up Gadzhimurad Alikhmaev, Nikita Suchkov, Arsan Balyan and Kakhaber Khubezhty to make the finals. Magomaev is an incredibly physical young talent who pushes a brutal pace in his matches and I highly anticipate the contrast between him and the explosive body lock technician Shavaev in their finals match. #1 Abasgadzhi Magomedov rolls into third national final at 61 KG. #7 (57) Akhmed Idrisov looks for first national title. On the top half of the bracket, 2020 57 KG Russian Nationals bronze medalist #7 (57) Akhmed Idrisov survived a close 6-6 criteria victory against returning Russian Nationals bronze medalist Cherman Tavitov to secure his spot in the semis and beat out another returning Russian Nationals bronze medalist in Aldar Balzhinimaev 3-0 to make his first Senior Russian Nationals finals match. On the bottom half of the bracket, reigning world champion #1 Abasgadzhi Magomedov was dominant on his way through to the semis for his much-anticipated match against Russian Junior National champion #5 Bashir Magomedov. Solidifying his superiority over Magomedov, Abasgadzhi made his third straight Russian Nationals finals with a 4-0 victory. While Abasgadzi hasn't tasted defeat since the 2020 Yarygin against Alexander Bogomoev, the dominant 2021 world champion has looked vulnerable at the Yarygin in close matches #8 Fedor Baltuev and #7 Muslim Mekhtikhanov. While this could be chalked up to early-season rust with the Yarygin being in January, don't count out Idrisov as a serious threat to Magomedov's domestic dominance. #7 Israil Kasumov takes back the reigns at 70 KG, #13 Anzor Zakuev breaks through. In what was one of the deepest brackets on day one, returning national champion #7 Israil Kasumov showed himself in top form. After avenging a loss from the Ivan Poddubny tournament to #5 Ruslan Zhendaev by a dominant 13-0 tech fall, Kasumov kept the momentum going all the way through the semifinals where he thumped Yarygin champion #4 Viktor Rassadin 12-3 to make his fifth Russian Nationals finals appearance in pursuit of his second title. Facing Kasumov in the finals will be the breakthrough of the tournament, #13 Anzor Zakuev. Zakuev, an age group standout always on the precipice of greatness, with excellent showings at the 2016 Russian Nationals, 2017 Junior European championships, 2019 Dan Kolov and 2021 Russian Nationals, finally put it all together domestically to place for the first time at Senior Russian Nationals and make his first finals appearance in the process. Zakuev notched the biggest win of his career when he blanked two-time Russian Nationals champion and title favorite #6 Kurban Shiraev in the quarterfinals and followed it with a 9-6 victory over 2021 Russian Nationals bronze medalist Abdulla Akhmedov in the semis. Zakuev's offensive diversity and impressive pace make him a handful and I am excited to see what challenges he brings to the dangerous veteran Kasumov in the finals. #2 Magomed Kurbanov dominant on path to third national finals at 92 KG, #13 Azamat Zakuev returns to form. After twice finishing as a Russian Nationals runner-up in 2019 and 2020 to #8 (97) Alikhan Zhabrailov, 2021 world runner-up #2 Magomed Kurbanov is poised to win his second national title after a strong showing on day one to secure his spot in the finals. In the semifinals, Kurbanov dominated Russian Junior National champion #14 Magomed Sharipov 10-0 in the semifinals to go with a 9-0 victory over Yarygin runner-up #17 Tamerlan Tapsiev and a 4-0 win over Khabib Gadzhiev. In contrast to the dominance of Kurbanov, returning Russian Nationals bronze medalist #13 Azamat Zakuev made his way to the finals on the strength of close wins. Taking a tight 3-1 win over Yarygin champion #15 Guram Chertkoev, to set up a pivotal semifinal bout against #5 Vladislav Valiev, Zakuev returned to his top form and beat out the former 2017 86 KG world bronze medalist Valiev 2-1 to make his first national finals. This is a great return for Zakuev who showed himself to be a consensus top-five talent at the end of 2021 by beating 14x Russian Nationals medalist Anzor Urishev to make the finals of the Russian World Team Trials wrestle-off where he fell to #2 Magomed Kurbanov. I'm interested to see if Zakuev can tap into the impressive offensive arsenal he has or if he will try to continue his trend of close matches into the finals and hold on for the win against the stingy Kurbanov.

World and Olympic champion Zavur Uguev (photos courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) Following up on the incredible action from day one of Russian Nationals, day two of Russian Nationals will see athletes in the 57, 65, 74, 86, 97, and 125 KG weight classes toe the line for a chance to win gold. Headlined by Russia's marquee weights of 57, 65, and 74 KG, day two will see some serious Senior level hardware on display as the following athletes will compete for national titles: Three-time World/Olympic champion #1 Zavur Uguev (RUS) at 57 KG, 2019 world champion #2 Gadzhimurad Rashidov and 2021 world champion #6 Zagir Shakhiev at 65 KG, 2019 70 KG world champion #5 David Baev, two time 70 KG world champion ('15,'18) #10 Magomedrasul Gazimagomedov and U-23 world champions #6 Razambek Zhamalov and #7 Cherman Valiev competing at 74 KG, and 2021 World and Olympic bronze medalist #3 Artur Naifonov at 86 KG. These domestic standouts and more will be covered for this preview of day two of Russian Nationals. 57 KG Who to Watch Out For #1 Zavur Uguev- 3x World/Olympic champion ('18,'19,'21), 4x Russian Nationals champion ('17,'18,'20,'21), 2020 Individual World Cup champion 4 Azamat Tuskaev- 2020 Yarygin champion, 2020 European champion, 2020 Russian Nationals runner-up, 2022 Ivan Poddubny Tournament champion #5 Nachyn Mongush- 2021 Russian Nationals runner-up, 2021 European runner-up, 2022 Ivan Poddubny Tournament runner-up #6 Ramiz Gamzatov- 2019 Russian Nationals champion, 2021 Ali Aliyev champion, 2021 61 KG Umakhanov tournament runner-up, 2022 Yarygin champion, 2022 Ivan Poddubny Tournament bronze medalist. On the top half of the bracket, expect to see reigning national champion #1 Zavur Uguev have a comfortable path through to the semifinals, with his best match beforehand coming against 2021 Yarygin runner-up Musa Mekhtikhanov. In the semifinals, Uguev will face a major test in the form of #4 Azamat Tuskaev in a rematch of the 2020 national finals narrowly won by the Tokyo Olympic champion. By the absolute thinnest of margins, I expect to see Uguev come out on top of Tuskaev and make his fifth Russian Nationals finals. For reference of how highly you should regard the skill of Tuskaev, he is the only man to beat Uguev domestically in the past five years and that was a lopsided drubbing in the 2017 Alans finals. Add in Tuskaev's excellent 2020 that saw him win the Yarygin and European championships and beat out the likes of 61 KG Russian Nationals finalist #7 Akhmed Idrisov, #6 Ramiz Gamzatov and 2019 world runner-up Suleyman Atli (TUR) and the North Ossetian is a very, very serious threat for gold. On the bottom half of the bracket, expect to see returning national runner-up #6 Nachyn Mongush have a close match in the round of 16 against 2019 national runner-up Muslim Sadulaev followed up with a tough match against 2018 national runner-up Donduk-Ool Khuresh-Ool in the quarters. While this is a winnable bottom half bracket for Mongush, his reliance on his length and upper body finesse can come back to hurt him against people who deny him his ties and can keep him busy with handfighting and finish clean on him. The other half of the bottom bracket should be highlighted by a marquee quarterfinal match between 2019 national champion #6 Ramiz Gamzatov and 2021 world team member Abubakar Mutaliev. Mutaliev had an excellent 2021 with a bronze medal finish at the national tournament and made the world team last year by Tuskaev and Gamzatov in last year's wrestle-offs before taking fifth at the world championships. I feel that even with as dangerous as Mutaliev can be and the domestic wins he's had plus his two victories form 2019 over #2 Thomas Gilman (USA), his current trend points towards a sustained inconsistency that means he will fall to a surging Gamzatov who's coming off a Yarygin title over 61 KG national finalist #7 Akhmed Idrisov. In the semis, I expect to see Gamzatov continue his hot streak and beat Mongush to make his second national finals. An important point of interest here will be that Gamzatov is a primary training partner of Uguev and will that familiarity be enough to potentially give him an edge over the pound for pound standout? For the finals, I see it Uguev vs. Gamzatov and for bronze I take #4 Azamat Tuskaev and #5 Nachyn Mongush. 65 KG Who to Watch Out For #2 Gadzhimurad Rashidov- 2x 61 KG World runner-up ('17, '18), 2019 65 KG world champion, 2021 Olympic bronze medalist, 4x Russian nationals champion ('17,'19, '20, '21). 5 Shamil Mamedov- 2021 Junior World champion, 2021 Umakhanov Tournament champion, 2022 Yarygin champion, 2022 Yasar Dogu champion. #6 Zagir Shakhiev- 2020 Russian Nationals bronze medalist, 2021 Russian Nationals runner-up, 2021 world champion #10 Alik Khadartsev- 2019 60 KG Junior world bronze medalist, 2021 Yarygin champion, 2022 Poddubny Tournament champion #11 Ramazan Ferzaliev- 2x Russian Nationals runner-up ('19,'20), 2018 Alans champion, 2022 Yarygin runner-up. #13 Ibragim Abdurakhmanov- 2019 61 KG Intercontinental Cup champion, 2021 U23 world runner-up, 2022 Ivan Poddubny Tournament bronze medalist. #14 Ibragim Ibragimov- 2022 Yarygin bronze medalist. #19 Murshid Mutalimov- 2017 Russian Nationals runner-up, 2017 Alans runner-up, 2019 Russian Nationals bronze medalist. Muslim Saidulaev- 2018 Alans champion, 2019 Junior European runner-up, 2020 Russian Nationals 5th. Dasha Sharastepanov- 2018 Russian Nationals bronze medalist, 2020 Yarygin bronze medalist, 2021 Yarygin runner-up. Chaiaan Mongush- 2020 Russian Junior National champ, 2021 Yarygin bronze medalist. The top half of the bracket sees reigning national champion and Tokyo Olympic bronze medalist #2 Gadzhimurad Rashidov face Yarygin runner-up #11 Ramazan Ferzaliev in the round of 16 and 2021 U23 world runner-up #13 Ibragim Abdurakhmanov in the quarterfinals. Rashidov is so positionally solid and such a strong finisher, I don't see him having a real issue here save for a closeish match against Ferzaliev in the round of 16 and he should take out returning 5th place finisher Gadzhimurad Omarov in the semis to lock up his fifth national finals appearance. Keep an eye out for that round of 16 match between 2017 national runner-up #19 Murshid Mutalimov and 2020 61 KG Russian Nationals bronze medalist #13 Ibragim Abdurakhmanov as I would say confidently it is the best match of the top half. While the top half of the bracket is relatively clear cut, the bottom half is a posterchild for the depth that Russia fields in its lighter weight classes. On the top side of the bracket, expect to see the surging #5 Shamil Mamedov continue to tear through the weight on his way to the semis. Keep an eye on Mamedov's round of 16 match against 2020 Russian Junior national champion Chaiaan Mongush, as Mongush has a past win over Mamedov from the 2020 Junior national tournament. The bottom half of the bracket will be fireworks, starting off with 2018 Russian Nationals bronze medalist Dasha Sharastepanov taking on Yarygin bronze medalist #14 Ibragim Ibragimov in the round of 32. While Ibragimov is the one with the higher ranking and better current wins, I expect to see the savvy veteran Sharastepanov take the win and make his way through to the quarterfinals. Reigning world champion #6 Zagir Shakhiev has a brutal draw and while he's shown himself to be a beast when it comes time for national tournament, he will have his hands full starting off with 2018 Alans champion Muslim Saidulaev in his first match and taking on Ivan Poddubny Tournament champion #10 Alik Khadartsev in the round of 16. That Khadartsev match is a big highlight to me as if there's anyone with huge upset potential in this bracket, it's Khadartsev. Given that Zagir can fight his way through to the quarters, I see him matching up favorably against Sharastepanov and then taking on Mamedov in the semis. While Mamedov won their Yasar Dogu finals match in spectacular fashion with a counter throw into a spladle, I expect to see a more controlled match out of both men and see Mamedov come out on top with his excellent low level attacks and finishing prowess against the upper body finesse of Shakhiev. Shakhiev is an excellent scrambler and lethal with his transitional leg lace game but I just think Mamedov is too hot right now and I'm going to with a finals match between #1 Gadzhimurad Rashidov and #5 Shamil Mamedov. For bronze, I see #11 Ramazan Ferzaliev and #6 Zagir Shakhiev securing the hardware. 74 KG Who to Watch Out For #5 David Baev- 2x Russian Nationals bronze medalist ('17,'18), 2019 70 KG world champion, 2020 70 KG Russian Nationals runner-up, 2022 Ivan Poddubny Tournament runner-up. #6 Razambek Zhamalov- 2x Russian Nationals runner-up ('19, '21), 2020 Russian Nationals champion, 2019 U23 world champion, 2020 Individual World Cup champion. #7 Cherman Valiev- 2x 70 KG Russian Nationals bronze medalist ('19,'21), 2020 70 KG Russian Nationals champion, 2021 U23 world champion, 2022 Yarygin champion, 2022 Ivan Poddubny Tournament runner-up. #10 Magomedrasul Gazimagomedov- Two-time 70 KG world champion ('15, '18), 2020 European runner-up, 2x Yarygin champion ('19, '20) This is a very top-heavy weight which makes the brackets relatively straightforward to follow. #6 Razambek Zhamalov is the man with the highest placing in the field, winning gold in 2020 but having just came back with injuries and coming off a 4-3 semifinal loss from the Poddubny tournament to #5 David Baev, I expect to see the same result repeat itself with Baev making his third national finals with a win over Zhamalov. On the bottom side of the bracket, #7 Cherman Valiev should be expected to win a rematch of his Yarygin finals match against #10 Magomedrasul Gazimagomedov to set up his second national finals match against #5 David Baev. Baev and Valiev have an extensive rivalry, with Valiev dating back to the 2019 Ali Aliyev where he upset Baev and pushed his career record to 2-0 in the Russian National finals in 2020. Baev took his first victory over Valiev last year in the Russian National team wrestle-offs before losing to #3 Evgheni Zherbaev. Either Valiev can continue to build his lead or Baev can show he's jumped levels at 74 and take the series hold over Valiev. I trend towards Baev's improvements in this case but being that I historically am biased against Cherman Valiev on the grounds that he is one of the most offensively talented but persistent stallers in the sport, never count his high percentage style out. Still, I'll go with Baev. If Zhamalov upsets Baev in the semis, I take Zhamalov over Valiev in the finals. Straight line pick first time I say Baev over Valiev in the finals, Zhamalov and Gazimagomedov take bronze. 86 KG Who to Watch Out For #3 Artur Naifonov- 3x European champion ('18,'20,'21), 2019 world bronze medalist, 2021 Olympic bronze medalist, 2021 world bronze medalist, 2022 Ivan Poddubny Tournament champion. #4 Dauren Kurugliev-2017 European champion, 2018 Russian Nationals champion, 2019 European Games champion, 2020 Russian nationals champion, 2021 Russian Nationals runner-up, 2020 Individual World Cup champion, 3x Yarygin champion ('17,'19,'22), 2022 Ivan Poddubny Tournament runner-up #5 Magomed Ramazanov- 3x Russian Nationals bronze medalist ('19,'20,'21), 2020 79 KG Yarygin champion, 2020 79 KG European runner-up, 2021 Henri Deglane Grand Prix champ. #6 Ada Bagomedov- 2021 Medved runner-up, 2022 Yarygin bronze medalist, 2022 Ivan Poddubny Tournament bronze medalist. #7 Amanulla Rasulov- 2021 U23 European champion, 2022 Yarygin runner-up, 2022 Ivan Poddubny Tournament bronze medalist. #10 Khabil Khashpakov- 2021 Umakhanov tournament champion, 2 #13 Arsenali Musalaliev- 2016 Junior world champion, 3x Russian Nationals bronze medalist ('17,'19,'20), 2x U23 European champion ('18, '19). #15 Magomedsharif Biyakaev- 2021 Yarygin champion, 2020 Yarygin bronze medalist, 2020 Russian Nationals 5th place finisher, 2018 Alans runner-up, 2021 Ali Aliev runner-up, 2019 Alans bronze medalist. Don't let the huge influx of ranked wrestlers here distract you from the fact that 86KG is essentially a two-man weight between #3 Artur Naifonov and #4 Dauren Kurugliev. The men have met a total of eight times with the most recent coming in the finals of the Ivan Poddubny tournament won by Naifonov. Overall, Naifonov leads the series 6-2 and I expect to see a continuation of that here. From the top half of the bracket, expect to see Naifonov breeze through to the semis where he'll take out three time Russian Nationals bronze medalist #13 Arsenali Musalaliev for bronze. The bottom half of the bracket features three-time Russian Nationals bronze medalist #5 Magomed Ramazanov and #4 Dauren Kurugliev facing off in the first round. While Ramazanov has torn through the international scene and established himself as one of the premiere talents in the world, he has historically proven himself incapable of overcoming the duo of Naifonov and Kurugliev. While Ramazanov is slated to compete to transfer and compete for Romania, the fact that he holds legionnaires status means that he can still compete at the Russian National tournament. Even with this being said, expect to see him take a tough loss to Kurugliev in the round of 16 and bounce for back as Kurugliev makes the finals after a semifinals victory over #15 Magomedsharif Biyakaev. In the finals I see #3 Artur Naifonov beating #4 Dauren Kurugliev for the seventh time for his third national title, and I see #5 Magomed Ramazanov and #13 Arsenali Musalaliev taking bronze. 97 KG Who to Watch Out For #7 Akhmed Tazhudinov- 2022 Junior Russian Nationals runner-up, 2022 Ivan Poddubny Tournament champion. #10 Shamil Musaev- 2019 Yarygin champion, 2019 U23 world runner-up, 2022 Yarygin runner-up, 2019 Russian Nationals bronze medalist. #15 Sergey Kozyrev- 2022 U23 Russian Nationals champion, 2021 125 KG Russian Nationals champion, 2021 125 KG European runner-up, 2021 125 KG European Olympic Qualifier runner-up. #19 Abulla Kurbanov- 2022 Junior Russian Nationals champion, 2022 Ivan Poddubny Tournament bronze medalist. The top half of the bracket should be a clear showing for #7 Akhmed Tazhudinov who is coming off an excellent title run at the Ivan Poddubny tournament where he beat #15 Sergey Kozyrev, #19 Abdulla Kurbanov and #8 Alikhan Zhabrailov. His match with Kurbanov in the quarterfinals will be his toughest test and I'm excited to see how he outdoes 2020 national runner-up Aslanbek Sotiev in the semifinals. Tazhudinov is a young commodity and still not proven outside of his one excellent tournament with the Poddubny but I feel confident in his performance here. On the bottom half of the bracket, expect to see 2021 125 KG national champion and Olympian #15 Sergey Kozyrev power and excellent outside step single series take him through to the finals after what I expect to be a heart pounding semifinal match against #10 Shamil Musaev. In the finals I have #7 Akhmed Tazhudinov vs. #15 Sergey Kozyrev and for the bronze medalists I have #19 Abdulla Kurbanov and #10 Shamil Musaev. 125 KG Who to Watch Out For #4 Zelimkhan Khizriev- 2021 Yarygin champion, 2021 world rep, 2021 Ali Aliyev champion, 2021 Russian World Team Trials wrestle-off winner, 2022 Ivan Poddubny Tournament champion, 2019 Russian Nationals bronze medalist. #5 Anzor Khizriev-2022 Yarygin champ, 2x World 5th place finisher ('17, '18), 2019 European Games champion. #7 Ostap Pasenok- 2021 Yarygin bronze, 2017 Korkin bronze, 2x Maccabi Games champ (''09, '13), 2009 MaccabI Games Greco champ. #8 Baldan Tsyzhipov- 2020 European bronze medalist, 2020 Yarygin champ, 2019 Alans runner-up, 2016 Russian Nationals bronze medalist. #11 Erik Dzhioev- 2020 97 KG Russian Nationals bronze medalist, 2018 97 KG Alans 5th place finisher, 2022 Ivan Poddubny bronze medalist. #13 Vitali Goloev- 2019 U23 world runner-up, 2020 Russian Nationals bronze medalist, 2022 Yarygin runner-up, 2021 Yarygin bronze medalist Alan Khugaev- 2014 European runner-up, 2014 Russian Nationals runner-up, 2019 Russian Nationals champion, 2020 Russian Nationals champion. #19 Alen Khubulov- 2019 Junior world bronze medalist, 2022 Yarygin bronze medalist. Soslan Khinchagov- 2018 Junior world champion, 2019 Medved champ. Khamzat Khizriev- 2021 Yarygin runner-up Pavel Krivtsov- 2020 Yarygin runner-up, 2019 Ali Aliyev runner-up, 2019 Russian Nationals bronze medalist Saypudin Magomedov- 2021 Russian Nationals bronze medalist, 2021 U23 world bronze medalist, 2019 Junior European champion. Heavyweight will be a story of the brother Khizriev, with reigning world team member #4 Zelimkhan Khizriev on the bottom half and older brother #5 Anzor Khizriev on the top half. Anzor, a two time national champion with two world fifth place finishers to his name in 2017 and 2018 should have his best competition on his bracket come in the quarterfinals against #8 Baldan Tsyzhipov and in the semis against 2019 national champion Alan Khugaev. I expect to see the elder Khizriev come through to his third Russian Nationals finals match. On the top half, keep an eye out for the Khugaev/Pasenok qualification round match and Khugaev's quarterfinal against former Junior world champion Soslan Khinchagov. The bottom half of the bracket should be won confidently by #4 Zelimkhan Khizriev. My top match to keep an eye on is quarterfinal between #11 Erik Dzhioev and #13 Vitali Goloev. As it stands now, I'm leaning towards Dzhioev to take the nod over Goloev and lose a tight one to Khizriev in the semifinals. Goloev's issues with his gas tank and in match decision making just seal the deal for me in favor of Dzhioev. In the finals I see it #4 Zelimkhan Khizriev vs. #5 Anzor Khizriev but it's hard to say if they'll actually wrestle as historically, they forfeit to each other. For bronze, give me Alan Khugaev and #11 Erik Dzhioev.

2010 NCAA champion Bubba Jenkins (photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) Friday night is jam-packed with MMA action featuring former wrestling stars. Across the Bellator, Professional Fighters League and Xtreme Fight Night, wrestlers will be in action across Showtime, ESPN and UFC Fight Pass. The following is a preview of the bouts going down. Friday: Bellator 282 Johnny Eblen vs. Gegard Mousasi Eblen has earned a shot at the Bellator middleweight title thanks to an undefeated 11-0 record. During his time at Missouri, he spent several years in the starting lineup. As a senior in 2015, he won the MAC championship to qualify for the NCAA tournament. He will be facing a tough challenge in Mousasi. The UFC veteran and current Bellator champion has been competing professionally since 2003 and has defeated several former wrestlers such as Mark Munoz, Dan Henderson and Chris Weidman. Danny Sabatello vs. Leandro Higo Sabatello got a late invite to the Bellator bantamweight tournament and made the most of it with a first-round victory over Jornel Lugo. The former Purdue wrestler has not been afraid to show his brash personality in the cage and has been dominant on the ground. During his time with the Boilermakers, he was a three-time NCAA qualifier. Higo will have an experience edge in this contest and has knocked off wrestlers Darrion Caldwell and Shawn Bunch in the last few years. Brennan Ward vs. Kassius Kayne Ward was a Division III All-American during his time at Johnson & Wales. Interestingly enough, he was prevented from reaching the podium a second time by multiple-time Greco world team member Joe Rau. He returned to action earlier this year from an extensive layoff and picked up a second-round stoppage over Brandon Bell. Kayne has mostly struggled when he has stepped up in competition, so Ward should be the favorite here. Cody Law vs. James Gonzalez Law spent time at Penn State before finding a home at Pitt-Johnstown. At the Division II school, he became a three-time NCAA champion. Law has certainly looked like a prospect during his time with Bellator. He made his professional debut with the promotion in 2020 and has gone a perfect 6-0 in their cage. Gonzalez has gone 8-5 mostly on the Northeast circuit. Law should be the favorite, but this is a modest step up in competition. Eblen, Sabatello and Ward are all part of the main card, which airs live on Showtime at 9:00pm ET. The undercard, which will feature Law, starts on YouTube at 6:00pm ET. Friday: PFL 5 2022 Bubba Jenkins vs. Reinaldo Ekson After leaving Bellator in 2016, it looked like Jenkins might be done with top promotions, but he has found new life with the PFL. The former Penn State and Arizona State wrestler has gone 3-1 with the PFL after joining the promotion last year. During his collegiate days, Jenkins was an NCAA finalist for Penn State before transferring to Arizona State for his final year. With the new school, he returned to the finals and scored a legendary upset over David Taylor. Ekson holds an 18-5 record and made his U.S. debut earlier this year on the PFL Challengers show. Lance Palmer vs. Sheymon Moraes Palmer long dominated the PFL/WSOF featherweight division, but that has not been the case recently. He is riding a three-fight losing streak and in desperate need of a win. Back in his Ohio State days, Palmer was a four-time All-American. As a senior in 2010, he made the finals before coming up short against Brent Metcalf. Moraes went 2-4 with the UFC between 2017 and 2021. He joined PFL after leaving the UFC and has won three-straight fights. Juan Adams vs. Sam Kei Adams signed with the UFC in 2018 after winning only four fights. He won his first fight in the Octagon before dropping three-straight fights and being released by the company. Since leaving the UFC, the former VMI wrestler has bounced back with a 3-1 record for Fury FC. As a senior in 2015, Adams went 22-12 for VMI. Kei has an 8-5 record and will be making a big step up in competition. All of these former wrestlers will be part of the PFL preliminary card, which will air live on ESPN+ at 5:30pm ET. Friday: Xtreme Fight Night 381 Nick Piccininni vs. Shawn Gustafson Piccininni has been training with fellow Oklahoma State veteran Daniel Cormier at American Kickboxing Academy. He made his professional MMA debut last June and has won both of his fights in a combined time of under three minutes. During his time with the Cowboys, Piccininni won well over 100 matches and was a multiple-time All-American. Gustafson went 3-3 as an amateur before winning his professional debut last October. It will be interesting to see if he can become the first fighter to last a round with the Cowboy. Jacobe Smith vs. Zachariah Kelley Smith is also part of the Oklahoma State contingent training at AKA. He moved to 2-0 as a professional in February with a 23-second victory over William Florentino. Smith spent three years with Oklahoma State after transferring from Northeastern Oklahoma and finished eighth in 2018 to become an All-American. Per Tapology, Kelley has a 5-33-1 professional boxing record and in the last two years fought in boxing, kickboxing, bare-knuckle boxing and MMA. Bella Mir vs. Jessica Link Mir is the daughter of former UFC heavyweight champion Frank Mir. She already holds a 2-0 professional MMA record despite only recently graduating from college. Mir was originally scheduled to compete at the Pittsburgh Wrestling Classic, but dropped out due to an injury. The promotion for that event said she was going to attend college at Iowa. Mir finished fifth at the 2020 U20 women's nationals. Link has a 1-3 amateur MMA record, but she is also coming off a bare-knuckle boxing victory this past April. XFN 381 will air live on UFC Fight Pass at 8:00pm ET. Sunday: Fury FC 65 Mo Miller vs. Joshua Weems The main event of Fury FC 65 features Miller's return. Miller was a three-time Division II All-American for Notre Dame College. He earned a shot on Dana White's Contender Series but did not receive a UFC contract even after winning. Following the show, he picked up his first loss against Jose Johnson. However, since then, he turned things around with a first-round finish over Evers Anderson. Weems holds a 9-2 record with some impressive wins. A win here could signal Miller is ready for the UFC. The main card of Fury FC 65 airs live on UFC Fight Pass at 5:30pm ET.

Stalemates returns with their third Street League event. The cards, which are always a mix of current and former wrestlers as well as MMA fighters and grappling competitors, have delivered up to this point. The following is a preview of the key matches from the event, which can be purchased via Patreon . Richie Lewis vs. Ian Miller The original main event of this card was Lewis against former Iowa wrestler Alex Marinelli. The two had a history, and it would have been a marquee match, especially in Iowa. However, the bout failed to materialize. The promoter was able to put together a suitable alternative on late notice. Lewis burst into the national spotlight with a somewhat surprising gold medal performance at the 2017 U23 World Championships. He had previously earned NJCAA All-American honors at Iowa Central and qualified for the 2016 NCAA tournament for Rutgers. At the time, he had one more season of eligibility for the Scarlet Knights. During the year, he scored impressive victories over the likes of Anthony Valencia, Isaiah White, Branson Ashworth, and Evan Wick. In the end, he came up just short of All-American status as he fell against Chance Marsteller in the round of 12. He continued to compete on the freestyle circuit following college. In 2019, Lewis won the Dave Schultz tournament and finished fourth at the World Team Trials Challenge Tournament. Last year, Lewis made his professional MMA debut. He is now 3-0 in the sport after picking up a second-round stoppage over Kelvin Bowen at Titan FC 76 this past May. Miller was a four-time NCAA qualifier and a three-time All-American for Kent State. He exhausted his eligibility in 2016 with a sixth-place finish at the NCAA tournament. Miller made the semifinals before dropping a sudden-victory match against eventual champion Isaiah Martinez, before defaulting out with an injury. Unfortunately for Miller, he is remembered for an unfortunate situation at the 2015 NCAA tournament. He went to overtime and ultimately lost an 11-9 match. However, Miller should have won the bout 10-9 in regulation, but an escape from the Kent State wrestler was missed by the official scorer. Despite the controversy, he bounced back to finish fifth. Since finishing college, Miller has focused on coaching and is currently the head assistant for Appalachian State. He certainly had the better results at the collegiate level, but he has been less active recently. That is one of the many factors that make this bout intriguing. Lewis spent his college career at 165 pounds, while Miller was down a weight. The former Rutgers wrestler has also been working on his budding MMA career instead of working solely on wrestling. Even though Lewis has not been focused on wrestling recently, he has been the more active competitor recently. On top of that, Miller took this bout on short notice. Lewis is the favorite, but Miller still has the go-for-broke style to pull the upset and/or make this an exciting contest. Prediction: Lewis by decision Jesse Dellavecchia vs. Kennedy Monday Dellavecchia started his college career at Binghamton but eventually transferred to Rider. After a redshirt year, he joined the Broncs lineup as a sophomore and qualified for the NCAA tournament. Dellavecchia returned the following season and qualified for the canceled tournament. As a senior, he entered the tournament after wrestling only seven matches during the shortened season. Dellavecchia had a tournament run for the ages that took him all the way to the finals and a second-place finish. Along the way, he knocked off Penn State's Brady Berge and upset Ryan Deakin with a fall in the semifinals. Monday was a three-time NCAA qualifier for North Carolina. He finished one match short of All-American status as a redshirt freshman in 2018. After this past season, Monday appeared to be done with college wrestling and was scheduled to make his MMA debut over the summer. However, that bout fell through, and he entered the transfer portal to use his final year of eligibility. It remains to be seen if he will return for one final run at All-American status. The matches at Street League are only five minutes long, and that really plays into Monday's game. He has been able to put points on the board early in matches against some top wrestlers, but he can fade down the stretch. However, Dellavecchia should remain the favorite. In preparation for this article, I asked in-house InterMat guru Jagger about the match. After a long drag from his Marlboro menthol light, he looked to the stars for guidance. As if possessed by the spirit of Chris Taylor, he looked me dead in the eyes and said, "one wrestler recently competed in an NCAA final. The other sat mat-side during an NCAA final." We then sat in silence for 35 minutes before my Lyft arrived and drove me back to DC. Prediction: Dellavecchia by decision Colton McCrystal vs. Grant Leeth McCrystal was a two-time NCAA qualifier for Nebraska who exhausted his eligibility in 2018. He made the round of 12 as a junior and scored victories over the likes of Luke Pletcher, Chad Red, and Bryce Meredith during his collegiate career. McCrystal has performed quite well on Street League cards. He has won both of his matches including a victory over Joey Lazor by fall last October. Leeth started his collegiate career at Duke. He redshirted his first season there and eventually transferred to Missouri. Leeth consistently dealt with injuries during his time with the Tigers, but he managed to qualify for two NCAA tournaments and finished sixth in 2018 to become an All-American. Leeth recently has been training with Rob Koll and Stanford. McCrystal will be looking for his third-straight victory over an All-American at Street League. At this point, it would be hard to pick against him. He had an up-and-down performance at the past U.S. Open, but he should be able to get it done here. Prediction: McCrystal by decision Mikey England vs. Quentin Perez England was a multiple-time NCAA qualifier for Missouri and was part of the legendary 2015 National Duals final match where the Tigers defeated Iowa. He made his professional MMA debut in 2020 and has built a 6-1 record. Despite making the transition to the new sport, he has been a fixture on Street League cards. On the second card, he scored a victory over fellow MMA fighter and former Cleveland State wrestler Gerald Harris. England is scheduled to return to the MMA cage on July 29 against Lucas Batista. Perez was a three-time NCAA qualifier for Campbell. Unfortunately, he never got one final run at the All-American podium as his senior season ended with the canceled tournament. That year, Perez went 26-6, won the SoCon tournament and picked up wins over the likes of Dazjon Casto, Phillip Conigliaro and Kennedy Monday. Perez also went to sudden victory with Evan Wick. England will be the crowd favorite for sure, but Perez is an underrated competitor. He had a very strong senior season and has remained active on the freestyle circuit. Last April, he scored an upset over Isaiah White at the Bill Farrell. Look for the former Campbell wrestler to pull this one out. Prediction: Perez by decision Billy Higgins vs. Zach Goldrosen Higgins redshirted in 2019 for Northern Colorado. After two more seasons with the Bears, he transferred to Division II powerhouse Nebraska Kearney. In his first season with the new squad, he finished third at the NCAA tournament to become an All-American. He is expected to return to the team once again next year. Goldrosen was a Division III wrestler for Muhlenberg. He has been a revelation on these Street League cards. His teacher persona has drawn in fans and gotten under the skin of his opponents. Goldrosen will be the underdog here. However, he is a technically strong wrestler who holds positions well and can take advantage of an opponent's mistakes. If he can keep it low scoring, he could give himself a shot. His original opponent pulled out, and he gladly accepted a step up in competition. Prediction: Higgins by decision Josh Portillo vs. Cole Baumgartner Portillo was teammates with Higgins at Nebraska Kearney. For the Lopers, he was a four-time NCAA qualifier and two-time finalist. This past season, he went 22-6 and made the finals before coming up short against Cole Laya. Baumgartner spent three years with Missouri before transferring to Duke for the 2017 season. In his lone season with the Blue Devils, he went 18-12 and picked up some impressive victories over the likes of Devan Turner, Alex Madrigal and Micky Phillippi. This should be an interesting contest. Portillo has been much more active recently, but Baumgartner is dangerous in the top position. If he gets a decent chance on the mat, he should be able to do enough to take this bout. Prediction: Baumgartner The rest of the card: Moises Guillen vs. Nathan Ryan Alex Schmitz vs. Jake Nieman Dillion Cox vs. Josh Kristensen Blake Harris vs. Tommy Even Brody Beck vs. Brady Milder Sam White vs. Joshua Stephenson Matt Wonderlin vs. Cody Jenkins Zachary Owens vs. Nathen Thomsen

2021 World champion at 61 kg Abasgadzhi Magomedov (photos courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) With loaded fields across the board, the 2022 Russian Nationals promises to welcome in the first year of the new quad with a bang. With an impressive mixture of seasoned Senior-level talents with world and domestic titles to their name, to a new influx of Junior age stars and everyone in between, Russian Nationals has something to watch for everybody. Day one will see athletes in the 61, 70, 79, and 92 KG weight classes compete and we'll be looking at who stands out in the field and what to watch out for. 61 KG Who To Watch Out For #1 Abasgadzhi Magomedov- 2021 World champion, 2021 European champion, 2021 Russian Nationals champion. #7 (57) Akhmed Idrisov- 2019 57 KG Alans champion, 2021 Umakhanov tournament champion, 2021 57 KG Yarygin runner-up #5 Bashir Magomedov- 2021 Umakhanov tournament bronze medalist, 2022 Junior Russian Nationals champion. #7 Muslim Mekhtikhanov- 2021 Russian Nationals runner-up, 2021 Ali Aliyev champion. Currently held down by reigning world champion #1 Abasgadzhi Magomedov, 61 KG in Russia has seen an explosion of talent develop to usher in the new quad. 57 KG Yarygin runner-up #7 (57) Akhmed Idrisov looks to be the man with the best chances of pushing Magomedov in the finals from the top side. Keep an eye out for Idrisov's quarterfinal against the winner of 2021 57 KG Junior world champ Ramazan Bagavudinov and 2021 61 KG U23 World runner-up Artur Chebodaev, as both men should prove to be Idrisov's toughest match on the top side of the bracket. The bottom side of the bracket lays claim to the top-ranked Russian 61's in the world with #1 Abasgadzhi Magomedov and #5 Bashir Magomedov. The battle of the Magomedov's should be anticipated for a semifinal rematch of their Ivan Poddubny tournament finals won by Abasgadzhi. Now two men between Bashir and Abasgadzhi could potentially derail the semifinal showdown and they are 2019 57 KG Alans bronze medalist Alexander Sabanov for Bashir in the round of 16 and a rematch of last year's national finals match in the quarterfinals against #7 Muslim Mekhtikhanov for Abasgadzhi. While I'm very convinced of both men's abilities, if anything, Bashir is at a higher risk of being upset than Abasgadzhi, who has a history of being able to pull out close domestic matches, like he has against Mekhtikhanov at the Yarygin and last year's national finals and in the Yarygin finals against #8 Fedor Baltuev. In the semis, I see it being a controlling win for Abasgadzhi to set up a finals match against #7 (57) Akhmed Idrisov and taking gold. For bronze, I expect to see Ramazan Bagavudinov finish in bronze on the top half and #7 Muslim Mekthikhanov take bronze on the bottom half. There's a couple of under-the-radar guys here, who, while not having the same level of credentials as the top-end of the weight class, are tough opponents with upset potential. On the topside, two-time Ali Aliyev finalist Dzhabrail Gairbekov is an explosive counter-oriented wrestler with a past win over #7 (57) Akhmed Idrisov and potential medal ability. On the bottom side, Alexander Sabanov began his Senior career off with a bang in 2019 by taking bronze at the 57 KG Alans with a win in the bronze medal match over 2019 57 KG Russian Nationals champion #6 (57) Ramiz Gamzatov. While Sabanov hasn't lived up to the early potential he showed in Vladikavkaz back in 2019, his high offense style could pose problems for the rest of the field if he is on. 70 KG Who to Watch Out For #4 Viktor Rassadin - 2022 Yarygin champion, 2022 Ivan Poddubny tournament champion, 2x Russian Nationals medalist (‘16, ‘17) #5 Ruslan Zhendaev - 2022 Ivan Poddubny tournament runner-up, 2020 Russian Nationals bronze medalist, 2022 Yarygin bronze medalist #6 Kurban Shiraev - Two-time Russian Nationals bronze medalist (‘20 & ‘21), 2020 65 KG European champion, 2x Yarygin champion (‘20, ‘21) #7 Israil Kasumov - 2021 Russian Nationals champion, 2021 European champion, 4x Yarygin champion (‘14, ‘16, ‘17, ‘20). #12 Ruslan Bogatyrev - 2021 Yarygin bronze medalist, 2022 Ivan Poddubny Tournament bronze medalist. #13 Anzor Zakuev - 2022 Yarygin runner-up, 2019 Dan Kolov runner-up, 2017 66 KG Junior European champion In what is a recurring trend, the depth at the non-Olympic year weights this year for Russian Nationals have been incredible. 70 KG is the poster boy for this as it boasts 12 Russian Nationals medals and three past European champions. #4 Viktor Rassadin is the highest-ranked in the field and has had an excellent start to 2022 with a Yarygin title and wins over #6 Kurban Shiraev and #13 Anzor Zakuev to his name but the preemptive favorite looks to be #6 Kurban Shiraev who tech falled Rassadin in December at the Umakhanov tournament and has past wins over Russian Nationals champions #5 (74) David Baev and #16 (65) Akhmed Chakaev. On the top half of the bracket, Rassadin shouldn't be tested until his quarterfinal match where he will either face #12 Ruslan Bogatyrev or 2021 74 KG Yarygin champion Aznaur Tavaev. While Bogatyrev is the higher-ranked of the two, Tavaev is the more dangerous and almost tech falled Rassadin at last year's Russian Nationals championships, before being pinned off a poorly executed scramble. Tavaev is one of the most dangerous men in the field and while he has struggled with weight and injury issues, if he is dialed in he can make a run to the finals. In the semifinals, expect to see the winner of Tavaev/Rassadin take on either #5 Ruslan Zhendaev or #7 Israil Kasumov who face off in the qualifying round. While Kasumov is the Chechen boogeyman, who's been a constant presence at the weight since 2014 and racked up three finals appearances in that time, Zhendaev is coming off a dominant win over Kasumov and #6 Kurban Shiraev at the Ivan Poddubny tournament, so while I do highly factor Kasumov's experience and veteran status at the weight, I think Zhendaev is too hot right now and makes a run to the semis. If Rassadin can make it through a top half against Tavaev and face Zhendaev, I think he can break through to his third finals match, but if Kasumov makes his run through to the finals beating Zhendaev I see Rassadin struggling against him and falling to the returning national champion. And that's not even factoring in Aznaur Tavaev, who's the current top-ranked Russian 2021 world bronze medalist #1 Evgheni Zherbaev! It's absolutely disgustingly stacked on the top side and I cannot wait to see what happens. The bottom half of the bracket is a lot more cut and dry with #6 Kurban Shiraev having a clear path to the semis after a quarterfinal win over #13 Anzor Zakuev and taking on the winner of 2019 61 KG Russian Nationals bronze medalist Dinislam Takhtarov and 2021 70 KG Russian Nationals bronze medalist Abdulla Akhmedov. I see Shiraev beating a streaking Takhtarov in the semis and making a confident run to the finals. My safest bet for the bronze medalist on the top half would be #4 Viktor Rassadin but you could sub out #5 Ruslan Zhendaev, #7 Israil Kasumov, or Aznaur Tavaev and have just as good of a bet. And just like on the championships preview, the bottom half is much clearer to pick with #13 Anzor Zakuev being my choice to take bronze. 79 KG Who to Watch For #3 Radik Valiev - 2021 Russian Nationals bronze medalist, 2021 World bronze medalist, 2022 Yarygin champion, 2022 Ivan Poddubny Tournament runner-up #4 Malik Shavaev - 2021 Russian Nationals champion, 2022 Yarygin runner-up. #12 Akhmed Usmanov - 2020 Russian Nationals champion, 2020 Individual World Cup champion, 2021 Russian Nationals runner-up. #13 Magomed Magomaev - 2021 U23 world champion, 2021 Medved bronze medalist. Nikita Suchkov - Two-time Russian Nationals bronze medalist (‘17, ‘18), 2019 74 KG U23 European champion, 2018 74 KG Korkin tournament champ. #16 Amanulla Gadzhimagomedov - 2020 Russian nationals bronze medalist, 2021 Medved champion, 2022 Ivan Poddubny tournament bronze medalist. Gadzhimurad Alikhmaev - 2020 Russian Nationals runner-up, 2019 74 KG Alans bronze medalist. #20 Dmitri Zainidinov - 2022 Yarygin bronze medalist, 2019 President Cup of Buryatia runner-up. With the returning world bronze medalist #3 Radik Valiev and the past two national champions of #4 Malik Shavaev and #12 Akhmed Usmanov all in the top half quarterfinal, 79 KG is the runaway winner of the most lopsided bracket. With that being said, let's break down how the top half goes. I have #12 Akhmed Usmanov evening his series 2-2 against returning national champion #4 Malik Shavaev and making the quarterfinals where he'll fall to #3 Radik Valiev. In the semifinal, expect to see Valiev go over German Ustinov and make the finals. My sleeper pick for the top half is 2019 Junior world champion Akhmad Tashukhadzhiev who has great strength and a fantastic inside control throwby that could catch Shavaev in his round of 32 match over Usmanov in his round of 16 match and with momentum he could potentially push Valiev. The best match of the bottom half of the bracket takes place in the quarterfinals between reigning U23 world champion #13 Magomed Magomaev and two-time Russian Nationals bronze medalist Nikita Suchkov. Suchkov started off the 2016-2021 quad on fire with two straight Russian Nationals bronze medal finishes in 2017 and 2018 at 74 KG, but has stagnated a bit since then so the move up in weight could be a much-needed change for him. Magomaev has been on an absolute tear through the age group scene and beat reigning Asian champion #14 Ali Savadkouhi (IRI) at the U23 world championships on his way to gold. Savadkouhi would finish off the year with a victory over 2021 74 KG Olympic runner-up #2 Magomedkhabib Kadimagomedov (BLR) in the Iranian Pro League, making Magomaev's win all the more impressive. While Suchkov has the more efficient offense between the two with an excellent knee pull single and ankle pick, I expect to see the pace and physicality of Magomaev take him through to the semifinals. I expect to see Gadzhimurad Alikhmaev repeat his win over #16 Amanulla Gadzhimagomedov from 2020 Russian Nationals and make a strong run through to the semis, where he'll fall to Magomaev. My predicted finals match is #3 Radik Valiev vs. #13 Magomed Magomaev with my bronze medalists being #12 Akhmed Usmanov and Nikita Suchkov. 92 KG Who to Watch Out For #2 Magomed Kurbanov - 2021 European champion, 2021 Russian Nationals champion, 2021 World silver medalist #5 Vladislav Valiev - 2017 86 KG World bronze medalist, 2019 86 KG European champion, 2019 86 KG Russian Nationals runner-up #13 Azamat Zakuev - 2021 Russian World Team Trials wrestle-off runner-up, 2021 U23 world runner-up, 2021 Umakhanov Tournament runner-up #14 Magomed Sharipov - 2021 Poddubny Tournament runner-up. #15 Guram Chertkoev - 2019 Korkin champion, Two time Yarygin champion (‘21, ‘22) #16 Alan Bagaev - 2019 Junior world champion, 2021 Umakhanov Tournament champion. #17 Tamerlan Tapsiev - Two Time Yarygin runner-up (‘21, ‘22), 2019 86 KG Ugra Cup runner-up, 2019 86 KG Ugra Cup runner-up. Reigning world silver medalist #2 Magomed Kurbanov should expect to be a clear favorite into the finals on the top half, beating 2021 Umakhanov Tournament champion #16 Alan Bagaev in the quarters and winning a rematch of his Poddubny Tournament finals match against Junior national champion #14 Magomed Sharipov in the semifinals. Expect a minor upset from #16 Alan Bagaev over #17 Tamerlan Tapsiev in the round of 16 to avenge his 3-3 semifinal loss to Tapsiev from the Yarygin semis in January. On the bottom half of the bracket, expect to see 2017 86 KG World bronze medalist #5 Vladislav Valiev as the favorite to come through to the finals, beating 2021 U23 world runner-up #13 Azamat Zakuev in the semifinals after Zakuev avenges his Yarygin semifinals loss to #15 Guram Chertkoev in the quarterfinals. My finals pick is #2 Magomed Kurbanov vs. #5 Vladislav Valiev and for bronze medalists, I have #16 Alan Bagaev and #13 Azamat Zakuev.

Yianni Diakomihalis and Zain Retherford at Final X Rutgers in 2019 (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Tonight, the crew at Stalemates presents their third edition of Street League. Once again, proving to be a force in the industry, Zach and the gang continue to evolve in an industry that can be a tough nut to crack. The previous shows have brought a ton of energy, great fans, and most importantly, great matches. My good buddy and Mikey England superfan, Ed Gallo of The Fight Site, went ballistic when The Maniac won in overtime against Gerald Harris before chugging a beer in his shoe. When you're eliciting that kind of reaction from fans with folkstyle matches with absolutely no stakes or affiliation, you know you're doing something right. I can only anticipate more cards in the future with more crazy matches. Here's a few dream matches I'd like to see go down in Stalemates Arena. Zain-Yianni The two best upper-lightweights of the past half-decade have met plenty of times in freestyle but never in a folk match. Six title-winning seasons and counting. One loss combined in those six seasons. I realize this is shooting for the stars but a man can dream. Kyle Dake-Kamal Bey Fight expert and resident Maryland Terps fan Richard Mann is dying to see this take place in Greco and I happen to agree with him. Put some extra padding around the mat and let's see who the best thrower in America really is. Speaking of Richard, he will be previewing the entire Street League 3 card with picks, if you care to make some friendly wagers. By the way, whatever happened to Wrestling Bookie? Vincenzo Joseph-Alex Marinelli The Bull owes us a match here and who better than everyone's favorite wrestler, the great Cenzo, to step up to the plate. After four battles between these two, we were robbed of one more potential battle with the loss of the 2020 tournament. Imagine what these two might do where they can just let it fly with no consequences. Tom Brands-Terry Brands Why the hell not? Tell me this can't happen. There's no doubt in my mind that these two can still go for the duration of one match. It's the Holy Grail of dream matches! It belongs in Iowa for Iowa fans. Slip into those denim and gold chain Street league singlets and let's do this already. Ok, by now you're probably finishing up your morning bathroom business so let's get to the questions. With all the upsets at FInal X, are we sending our best team? @pbr54321 Well, Mr. 54321, (also my luggage combination in reverse) I get what you're saying. And mostly this pertains to Seth Gross and Daton Fix. Look, the best-of-three format is there to prevent flukes and make sure the right person wins. Gross won the matches. He earned the spot. In my eyes, he's the best guy this year. Seth doesn't have that certain sex appeal that others do, because he doesn't always dominate and will drop the random matches. But what he does do is consistently improve his game and find success. So while he doesn't portray that dominant and elite persona that others do, he's reaching his freestyle prime and I wouldn't put it past him to come back with a medal. The man is crazy out there and the world is about to find out. I was just looking at the Intermat rankings that just dropped, Max Murin still has eligibility? Can you explain that to me? It feels like he graduated in the 1980's. @jkos11 Believe it or not, he's on the proper grade trajectory if you add in the free year. He redshirted in 2018, then wrestled the next four years. Consider this the bonus year and you have a proper 21st-century college career. The problem is that you're combining him with Vince Turk and thinking of them as one guy. With Turk's freshman year in 2016, it can seem like it's been a while. If there was a legit college wrestling video game, and you could play as any character in history, who would you pick and why? Also, why did you not pick Kellen Russell? @RichardAMann If someone makes a legit good game, I'll pick up Kellen, drive to you, get beers, huff Bogey's, lose our ladies, and live our dream of being King Sandoval pinning our way to an NCAA title. Was Courtney Love responsible for Kurt Cobain's death? Baby Grajales Two fun facts: I roped a single to right field for my first hit in high school baseball the day Kurt left us and spent the night writing this mailbag while listening to Lithium Deep Cuts on SXM. That's really all I can offer to the investigation. Can Rutgers finish third in the Big Ten this year? @Mopeman That's asking a lot. But that's no reason to mope, man. Take a look at the roster and there's something you won't find much of and that's seniors. This team is young and talented while building up the depth that has been a problem in recent years. I like where this team is going. Also, still undefeated with Jagger in the arena so time to get to some more duals. Where does Iowa end and Hell begin? ILLINI Wrestling Blog Well, that would clearly be Kansas City. Go Raiders! What's the best seafood to leave in your car and how do you feel about the influx of Italian-American transfers competing internationally? @SethPetar First off, all seafood is best left in the ocean. Gross. The Italians? I love it! New Jersey probably leads the league in Italian-American wrestlers and there's only so many world team spots. Keep an eye out for Jersey stud Alex Nini competing for Italy at Cadet Worlds. Now here's a question for you, Mr. Petarra. When are you going to lace 'em up for the old country? Move to Venice, your stank fish car will fit right in but you may not find any roads. Before we go I'd like to make an amendment to last week's question on entrance music. I'll totally rock the entirety of Uptown Funk on my way down the aisle. See ya next week!

2022 Matteo Pellicone champion Yelena Makoyed (photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) 72 kg Greco-Roman Gold Medal Match Kristupas Sleiva (Lithuania) over Ulvi Ganizade (Azerbaijan) Injury Default Bronze Medal Matches Valentin Petic (Moldova) over Haavard Joergensen (Norway) 3-1 Selcuk Can (Turkey) over Matias Lipasti (Finland) 9-0 77 kg Greco-Roman Gold Medal Match Zoltan Levai (Hungary) over Amin Kaviyaninejad (Iran) 4-0 Bronze Medal Matches Robert Fritsch (Hungary) over Joilson De Brito Ramos (Brazil) 9-0 Per Olofsson (Sweden) over Luca Dariozzi (Italy) 6-2 USA Results Robert Fritsch (Hungary) over Kamal Bey (USA) 5-1 82 kg Greco-Roman Gold Medal Match Mihail Bradu (Moldova) over Rasoul Garmsiri (Iran) 2-1 Bronze Medal Matches Exauce Mukubu (Norway) over Oldrich Varga (Czech Republic) 2-1 Daniel Cataraga (Moldova) over Matteo Maffezzoli (Italy) 3-0 USA Results Matteo Maffezzoli (Italy) over Spencer Woods (USA) 5-4 57 kg Women's Freestyle Gold Medal Match Alina Hrushyna Akobiia (Ukraine) over Elvira Kamaloglu (Turkey) 11-1 Bronze Medal Matches Patrycja Gil (Poland) over Tamara Dollak (Hungary) Fall Giullia Rodrigues Penalber de Oliveira (Brazil) over Erika Bognar (Hungary) Fall USA Results Patrycja Gil (Poland) over Amanda Martinez (USA) 10-1 68 kg Women's Freestyle Gold Medal Match Alla Belinska (Ukraine) over Irina Ringaci (Moldova) Fall Bronze Medal Matches Wiktoria Choluj (Poland) over Noemi Szabados (Hungary) 4-2 Blessing Oborududu (Nigeria) over Grabiela Pedro da Rocha (Brazil) 11-0 76 kg Women's Freestyle Gold Medal Match Yelena Makoyed (USA) over Anastasiya Alpyeyeva (Ukraine) 10-0 Bronze Medal Matches Martina Kuenz (Austria) over Catalina Axente (Romania) 5-2 USA Results Yelena Makoyed (USA) over Martina Kuenz (Austria) 10-2 Yelena Makoyed (USA) over Epp Mae (Estonia) 8-7 Yelena Makoyed (USA) over Francy Raedelt (Germany) Fall Yelena Makoyed (USA) over Catalina Axente (Romania) Fall

Minnesota All-American Brayton Lee (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Summer rankings have dropped! As you may expect, with it being over four months away from the beginning of the 2022-23 season, plenty can change between now and then. We have done the best research possible to get information that is accurate (as you can get in June), in terms of weight changes and such. In compiling these rankings, we've also obtained information that doesn't quite fit into a table. That's what we have this article for. Below you'll find notes about each of the ten weight classes and the wrestler in each weight. After that, there are more tidbits of information that don't necessarily fit within the weight classes. Remember!! No true freshmen have been included in the rankings. 125 Notes: #1 Spencer Lee (Iowa): The three-time NCAA champion is expected back to shoot for four titles. #13 Matt Ramos (Purdue): A 2022 NCAA Round of 12 finisher at 133 lbs who has dropped down with the graduation of Devin Schroder. #18 Robbie Howard (Penn State): He's here for now, though he may have been injured competing in freestyle. #19 Jack Medley (Michigan): The veteran is back to finish his career after Nick Suriano took the weight last season. #22 Liam Cronin (Nebraska): An injury disrupted Cronin's 2021-22 season and he's back for a final run. #23 Jaret Lane (Lehigh): Lane was having a promising 2021-22 campaign before he was injured. #28 Stevo Poulin (Northern Colorado): Poulin was potentially blocked at 125 lbs by #10 Jakob Camacho at NC State. He'll have a chance to shine in Greeley this year. #30 Eddie Ventresca (Virginia Tech): One of the best weight battles to monitor is between the Hokies lightweights, Ventresca and Cooper Flynn. The two met twice in open competition last year with Ventresca getting two 2-1 wins. I'd expect both to get opportunities in the early going. 133 Notes: #10 Jaime Hernandez (North Carolina): Suffered through an injury-plagued 2021-22 season, but is now the guy for UNC. #12 Taylor LaMont (Wisconsin): The 2021 All-American transferred from Utah Valley and is expected to move up a weight for the Badgers. #13 Sam Latona (Virginia Tech): One of the biggest 125 lbers in the country finally moves up to 133 after Korbin Myers finished up. #17 Joe Heilmann (Rutgers): Heilmann transferred back home to New Jersey after qualifying for UNC last season. #21 Tony Madrigal (Oklahoma): The veteran is back, but will have to fend off a challenge from redshirt freshman Wyatt Henson. #24 Boo Dryden (Nebraska): The former national qualifier for Minnesota will attempt to solidify this weight for the Huskers in 2022-23. #25 Aaron Nagao (Minnesota): We gave the early edge to Nagao in the Gopher battle between him and Kyle Gliva. #27 Connor Brown (Missouri): Competition should be heavy in the Mizzou room, but for now we're taking the veteran Brown. #33 Jace Koelzer (Northern Colorado): With Stevo Poulin in the fold, Koelzer is expected to move up in 2022-23. 141 Notes: #2 Real Woods (Iowa): In one of the biggest moves of the offseason, the Hawkeyes picked up 2022 All-American Real Woods from Stanford. #9 Drew Mattin (Michigan): After Stevan Micic has finished his eligibility, the Wolverines can turn to three-time NCAA qualifier Drew Mattin, who picked up wins over five NCAA qualifiers in spot-starting duties last year. #16 Sammy Alvarez (Rutgers): Finally, we should get a chance to see what Sammy Alvarez can do at his more ideal weight. #17 Beau Bartlett (Penn State): Ditto for Bartlett, who moves down with the graduation of Nick Lee. #18 Jesse Vasquez (Arizona State): An injury cut short a promising first year for Vasquez in a Sun Devil singlet. #21 Lachlan McNeil (North Carolina): The Canadian Senior world team member finally gets a shot to compete for UNC. #26 Mosha Schwartz (Oklahoma): Schwartz is the first of a handful of talented transfers taking the mat for the Sooners. #29 Brock Hardy (Nebraska): The highly regarded Hardy is finally getting the opportunity to start for the Huskers. 149 Notes: #5 Brock Mauller (Missouri): The two-time NCAA All-American is back and down at 149 lbs and will be an immediate title threat. #13 Dom Demas (Cal Poly): The former All-American for Nebraska will use his final year of eligibility out west and moves up to 149. It's been a while since we've seen him compete for an extended period, so he could be underranked. #17 Quinn Kinner (Rider): 2021 NCAA Qualifier McKenzie Bell comes off redshirt for Rider and takes 141 lbs, moving Quinn Kinner up to 149. #19 Manzona Bryant (Lehigh): Off-the-mat issues ended Bryant's 2021-22 season prematurely, but he was headed for an NCAA berth beforehand. #28 Ryan Anderson (Binghamton): Anderson moves up a weight, but likely won't be available until the second semester. #31 Sam Hillegas (West Virginia): After transferring from Virginia Tech, Hillegas is expected to move up a weight for his Mountaineer debut. 157 Notes: #1 Brayton Lee (Minnesota): This one may spark some debate. The top-three finishers at 157 lbs are not expected back at the weight in 2022-23. Ryan Deakin (Northwestern) has graduated, while runner-up Quincy Monday and 2021 champ David Carr are expected to move up to 165 lbs. Lee has never lost an attached match to any of the three wrestlers that slot in behind him (he did lose in his redshirt season to Jacori Teemer). Lee missed the end of the 2021-22 season with an ugly elbow injury. #5 Bryce Andonian (Virginia Tech): The explosive All-American from Virginia Tech moves up to join a meatgrinder of an ACC weight class. He, Ed Scott and Austin O'Connor were all in the same 149 lb bracket in 2021. While O'Connor reigned supreme over the group. Even so, we're starting off of last year's results where Scott downed a noticeably hobbled O'Connor. #11 Dazjon Casto (Pittsburgh): One of the stories from day one at the 2022 NCAA Championships was Casto defeating NCAA champion O'Connor. The two may meet multiple times this year as Casto is in the ACC. #14 Wyatt Sheets (Oklahoma State): We've received word recently that Wyatt Sheets intends on using his final year of eligibility for the Cowboys. #21 Justin Ruffin (SIU Edwardsville): An injury knocked three-time NCAA qualifier Justin Ruffin out for the entire 2021-22 season. #25 Colton Yapoujian (Cornell): Yapoujian showed some promise last season before suffering an injury. #27 Luka Wick (Cal Poly): The talented redshirt freshman will be at 157 lbs with Demas in the mix. #28 Isaiah Crosby (Oregon State): Neither of the All-American Willits twins are expected back at Oregon State, so two-time NJCAA national champion Crosby steps in. #30 Munkhtulga Zuunbayan (Northern Illinois): Keep an eye on the positional battle between Zuunbayan and Anthony Gibson. Both are worthy of a spot in the top 33. #33 Bretli Reyna (Iowa): As of now, Reyna may be the guy for the Hawkeyes, but don't count out Caleb Rathjen. 165 Notes: #3 David Carr (Iowa State): The 2021 NCAA Champion moves up to a weight that already includes two past champions! #4 Quincy Monday (Princeton): This one isn't totally settled just yet, but if nothing else, expect Monday to start the year at 165. #17 Patrick Kennedy (Iowa): A huge recruit for Iowa finally gets in the lineup regularly. I'd be shocked if he finishes this low. #18 Gerrit Nijenhuis (Oklahoma): Not only did Nijenhuis move on from Purdue, but he's also expected to drop down to 165 lbs for the Sooners. #19 Holden Heller (Pittsburgh): The 2021 EIWA champion had wins over five NCAA qualifiers while redshirting for Hofstra in 2021-22. #22 Mikey Caliendo (North Dakota State): Had an overlooked, but excellent redshirt campaign for the Bison in 2021-22. #24 Alex Facundo (Penn State): I'll echo my sentiments for Patrick Kennedy here. Facundo should make a huge jump between years one and two in the PSU room. #28 Legend Lamer (Cal Poly): The addition of Demas sparks a chain of "bump-ups" for the Mustangs. #33 Drew Nicholson (Virginia Tech): The Hokies added an NCAA qualifier from Chattanooga last season. 174 Notes: #7 Demetrius Romero (Utah Valley): Romero is back for the Wolverines after missing 2021-22 due to injury. We're probably conservative with his rankings. If healthy, he can challenge for a place in the top three. #9 Phil Conigliaro (Harvard): The 2022 EIWA champion should move up from a brutal 165 lb weight class. #12 Matt Finesilver (Michigan): These Wolverines have a new face at 174. The veteran has been in the mix at this weight for awhile, maybe a change of scenery will help Finesilver get over the hump and onto the NCAA podium. #17 Edmond Ruth (Illinois): We only got a few glimpses of Ruth wrestling unattached last year. He was excellent in those small doses and could finish higher than this. #18 Rocky Jordan (Chattanooga): The former NCAA Round of 12 finisher for Ohio State is expected to finish his career at a more manageable weight. He competed as high as 197 for the Buckeyes. #24 Jackson Turley (Rutgers): The 2021 All-American had a rough, injury-filled November in 2021 and couldn't finish the year for Rutgers. He'll be back here in the fall. #27 Jay Nivison (Buffalo): Nivison is expected to miss the first semester for Buffalo. #33 Jake Null (Purdue): Null competed at two weights for NC State, while redshirting in 2021-22. His best work came at 174 lbs. 184 Notes: #15 Tate Samuelson (Lehigh): The addition of Samuelson from Wyoming really solidifies Lehigh's dual lineup. #17 Sean Harman (Missouri): Two-time conference runner-up Jeremiah Kent is now expected to return for Missouri leaving Sean Harman and Colton Hawks to fight for the slot at 184. Harman had some huge flashes at 174 last season. #18 Anthony Montalvo (Arizona State): It's been a while since we've seen Montalvo on the mat. He was excellent for Oklahoma State in 2019-20 and could be worthy of a higher ranking. He'll fill a possible hole for ASU here. #19 Adam Kemp (Cal Poly): More movement from Cal Poly! #23 Will Feldkamp (Clarion): The 2022 NCAA qualifier at 197 lbs is expected to drop for Clarion in 2022-23. #25 Jacob Nolan (Binghamton): After making the big dance twice at 174 lbs, Jacob Nolan will move up to 184 this year. #26 Neil Antrassian (Virginia): A recent graduate transfer announcement for UVA. #28 Matthew Waddell (Chattanooga): After winning the SoCon at 197 lbs last year, Waddell plan to move back to 184 for his final year. #29 Reece Heller (Pittsburgh): A strong showing at the MatMen Open was front and center for Heller as he redshirted for Hofstra and went 12-4 in 2021-22. #33 Jacob Ferreira (Hofstra): The Pride lost Heller, but have added a strong replacement with the NC State transfer Ferreira. 197 Notes: #2 AJ Ferrari (Oklahoma State): The 2021 NCAA champion is back, right? #6 Bernie Truax (Cal Poly): Could the Cal Poly star AA at three different weights, in three consecutive years? #9 Michael Beard (Lehigh): Expect Beard to finish closer to the #1 spot than #10 when it's all said and done. Some expected him to come out of Penn State's positional battle with Max Dean last year. #14 Ethan Laird (Rider): In 2021, Laird finished in the NCAA Round of 12 at 285 lbs. Last year, he redshirted and went 11-1 with a finals appearance at the MatMen Open. #31 Michael Battista (Virginia): Battista moves up and hopes to parlay success in the freestyle ranks into his last year of collegiate competition. 285 Notes: #5 Yaraslau Slavikouski (Harvard): At one point, Slavikouski was not expected back at Harvard, but he'll suit up for the Crimson again in 2022-23. He gets such an impressive ranking after wins over AA's Lucas Davison and Tate Orndorff at the 2021 Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational. #29 Jaron Smith (Maryland): The Terps attempt to maximize their strengths in the upperweights as Junior World Team member Jaxon Smith is at 197, with 2022 national qualifier Jaron Smith moving up to 285 for his final go-round. Miscellaneous Notes: The following notable wrestlers have eligibility for the 2021-22 season, but are not expected to use it (at this time). Their potential replacements are listed next to them: Gable Steveson (Minnesota) - Keaton Kluever/Bennett Tabor Jake Woodley (Oklahoma) - ? Kordell Norfleet (Arizona State) - Jonathon Fagen Matt Schmitt (Missouri) - Connor Brown/Trey Crawford Jeremiah Kent (Missouri) - Sean Harman/Colton Hawks Joe Doyle (Binghamton) - Cory Day Colin McCracken (Kent State) - Tyler Bates Brit Wilson (Northern Illinois) - Matt Zuber Mason Kauffman (Northern Illinois) - Hayden Pummel Alex Carida (Bloomsburg) - Will Morrow Brian Courtney (Virginia) - Erik Roggie/Garrett Grice Quinn Miller (Virginia) - Gabe Christensen Grant Willits (Oregon State) - Cleveland Belton Hunter Willits (Oregon State) - Isaiah Crosby Josh Finesilver (Duke) - ? Other notable weight changes (not mentioned in rankings) 133 - Beau Bayless (Harvard) 141 - Zach Price (Gardner-Webb) 149 - Kellyn March (North Dakota State) 157 - Andy Clark (Rutgers) 157 - Luke Kemerer (Edinboro) 157 - Colt Yinger (Ohio) 165 - Jordan Slivka (Ohio) 165 - Connor O'Neill (Rutgers) 165 - Josh Kim (Harvard) 165 - Enrique Mungaia (Kent State) 174 - Sammy DePrez (Binghamton) 174 - Darrien Roberts (Oklahoma) 197 - Tyler Bagoly (Clarion) 285 - Logan Andrew (Chattanooga)

New Northern Colorado assistant coach Justin Oliver (middle) (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Today, the University of Northern Colorado announced the hiring of a new member of their coaching staff, assistant coach Justin Oliver. Oliver comes to the Bears after spending a year on the Michigan State staff as a volunteer assistant. Previously, Oliver coached at Buffalo for two seasons. Oliver is a Davison, Michigan native that competed for Central Michigan for three seasons, before moving on to NC State as a graduate transfer. As a redshirt freshman, Oliver earned All-American honors for the Chippewas, taking seventh at 149 lbs. In each of the next two years, Oliver's season ended in the NCAA Round of 12. During all four seasons of competition, Oliver earned a top-ten seed at the NCAA Championships. During his year at Michigan State, Oliver saw two middleweights earn NCAA berths, as 157 lber Chase Saldate and 165 lber Caleb Fish, both competed in Detroit. Northern Colorado head coach Troy Nickerson had this to say about Oliver's hire. “We are very excited to add Justin to our staff. Justin has found success at every level as a competitor and a coach. He will add a ton of value to our program in everything from running the practice room to recruiting and developing student-athletes. We are excited to welcome him and his fiance to Greeley!” The Bears saw 141 lber Andrew Alirez win the program's first Big 12 crown in 2022 and came up a match shy of All-American status. Needless to say, the addition of Oliver will impact UNC's leading wrestler, along with plenty of others up and down the lineup. Oliver joins a Northern Colorado staff that already has Garret Kiley as the associate head coach and Earl Hall as the volunteer assistant and is led by Nickerson.

Senior World Team member Cohlton Schultz (photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) 55 kg Greco-Roman Round 1 Mohammad Hosseinvand Panahisani (Iran) over Florin Tita (Romania) 11-7 Round 2 Max Nowry (USA) over Mohammad Hosseinvand Panahisani (Iran) 5-4 Round 3 Florin Tita (Romania) over Max Nowry (USA) 2-0 60 kg Greco-Roman Gold Medal Match Murad Mammadov (Azerbaijan) over Eldaniz Azizli (Azerbaijan) 9-1 Bronze Medal Match Nihat Mammadli (Azerbaijan) over Helary Maegisalu (Estonia) 10-0 US Results Nihat Mammadli (Azerbaijan) over Max Nowry (USA) 9-4 Ekrem Ozturk (Turkey) over Max Nowry (USA) 5-2 Murad Mammadov (Azerbaijan) over Max Nowry (USA) 9-0 63 kg Greco-Roman Gold Medal Match Taleh Mammadov (Azerbaijan) over Victor Ciobanu (Moldova) 4-2 Bronze Medal Match Razvan Arnaut (Romania) over Justas Petravicius (Lithuania) Injury Default US Results Taleh Mammadov (Azerbaijan) over Jesse Thielke (USA) 10-0 Victor Ciobanu (Moldova) over Jesse Thielke 9-0 67 kg Greco-Roman Gold Medal Match Hasrat Jafarov (Azerbaijan) over Furkan Yildiz (Turkey) 9-0 Bronze Medal Matches Mohammad Rezaei (Iran) over Niklas Oehlen (Sweden) 7-2 Tigran Galustyan (France) over Mihai Mihut (Romania) 3-1 US Results Tigran Galustyan (France) over Alex Sancho (USA) 8-0 87 kg Greco-Roman Gold Medal Match Islam Abbasov (Azerbaijan) over Erik Szilvassy (Hungary) 1-1 Bronze Medal Matches Istvan Takacs (Hungary) over Alex Kessidis (Sweden) Injury Default Tamas Levai (Hungary) over Kristoffer Berg (Sweden) 9-1 US Results Istvan Takacs (Hungary) over Alan Vera (USA) 4-0 97 kg Greco-Roman Gold Medal Match David Losonczi (Hungary) over Nikoloz Kakhelashvili (Italy) 2-1 Bronze Medal Matches Alex Szoke (Hungary) over Mehdi Balimhamzehdeh (Iran) 7-4 Arvi Savolainen (Finland) over Aleksandr Stjepanetic (Sweden) 8-0 130 kg Greco-Roman Gold Medal Match Riza Kayaalp (Turkey) over Sabah Shariati (Azerbaijan) 4-0 Bronze Medal Matches Mantas Knystautas (Lithuania) over Oskar Marvik (Norway) 6-3 Beka Kandelaki (Azerbaijan) over Cohlton Schultz (USA) 4-2 US Results Sabah Shariati (Azerbaijan) over Cohlton Schultz (USA) 10-0 Cohlton Schultz (USA) over Dariusz Vitek (Hungary) 4-2

Austin O'Connor at the 2022 NCAA Championships (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) In 2022, the Tar Heels capped off a fourth straight top-20 finish at NCAA's and brought home three All-American finishes--their most since 1995. Kizhan Clarke highlighted the tournament with an incredible run to the NCAA finals. Clarke entered the tournament with an at-large berth after an 0-2 day at the ACC tournament. He avenged a loss to NC State's Ryan Jack to start the tournament, then upset second-seeded Jaydin Eierman in sudden victory. He continued his impressive performance with a decision over Jake Bergeland and a win by riding time in SV3 against ACC foe Cole Matthews; avenging his only regular-season loss. Clarke came out shooting in the finals, but ultimately fell to Nick Lee who picked up his second NCAA title. Austin O'Connor also put on an impressive performance to end his weekend on the podium. He came into the tournament with an evident knee injury; after being upset in the opening round by Dazjon Casto of The Citadel (now at Pittsburgh). He won four straight matches to earn All-American honors, before medically defaulting out of the tournament. Clay Lautt was the final All-American for the Tar Heels, bringing home an eighth-place finish in a tough174 pound weight class. Coming into the new season, the Tar Heels will return the bulk of their lineup. They are only losing one full-time starter in NCAA finalist Kizhan Clarke. Joe Heilmann, who split time at 133 with Jaime Hernandez, transferred in the offseason. Coleman Scott and company are also bringing in a solid recruiting class--ranked #11 by Matscouts and #16 by Intermat--that contains four top-100 recruits and another at #110. With the announcement that the nucleus of the lineup will return, this class will have a year to adjust to the college grind before entering the lineup. Recruiting Class: #42 Danny Nini: Lake Highland, FL 141/149 #50 Jayden Scott: Henrietta, NY 157 #53 Cole Hunt: Dalton, GA 125/133 #66 Noah Pettigrew: Valdosta (GA) 197/285 #110 Nick Fea: Bergen Catholic (NY) 165 NR Max Martin: Great Bridge, VA 125 NR Cade Tenold: Don Bosco, IA 184 NR Carson Tenold: Don Bosco, IA 197 The Tar Heels challenged themselves with a tough dual slate last season, and I expect the schedule to be as challenging, if not more so this year. There will be a couple non-typical dual setups this year that will be announced soon and they will be awesome. With the experience in this lineup, they will be poised to make a run at the ACC title and make a splash on the national scene. 125: Jack Wagner-Transfer from Northern Iowa Wagner will fill the 125 spot for his grad year while last year's starter Spencer Moore takes a redshirt year. Moore was one win away (one takedown call, really) from qualifying for NCAAs last year. He was the youngest wrestler in the country, but still put up a fight in every match, and improved throughout the year. I think he will leave a mark on the ACC before his time in Chapel Hill is up. Wagner is an experienced starter from UNI that has seen time at 125, 133 and 141. He is above .500 for his career and the staff seems to be very excited about him joining the lineup for a season. 133: Jaime Hernandez Hernandez was sidelined with a pretty serious injury that occurred during the duals against Rutgers and Wisconsin. Hernandez attempted to come back against UVA, but was clearly still struggling due to the injury. He was undefeated at 5-0 before then and lost three matches after trying to return to the lineup. Hernandez has a lot of upside and has a potent offensive arsenal, I'm looking forward to seeing him make another run and hopefully staying healthy. 141: Lachlan McNeil McNeil is the wrestler I am most excited to see next year. He has a very high ceiling and will immediately make an impact for the Tar Heels. McNeil was a major recruit for the Tar Heels--he was ranked #9 PFP, and earned titles at National Preps, Ironman, and Super 32. He is a native of Canada and competed in high school at Wyoming Seminary; he is on the Canadian National Team and will compete at 65kg for Team Canada at the World Championships. McNeil was 6-1 in his redshirt year, including a win over NCAA qualifier Ryan Jack of NC State. The UNC coaches were happy to get McNeil a redshirt year behind Kizhan Clarke and have high praise for the growth he made in his first year in Chapel Hill. Keep him on your radar, he has the potential to make a lot of noise nationally. 149: Zach Sherman After earning All-American status at 141 in 2021, Sherman moved up to 149 where he faced one of the most difficult schedules in the nation. Sherman faced seven of the eight All-Americans this season; he was 0-8 in these matches, though, 7 of the 8 were decision losses, several by 2 or fewer points. After a difficult start in the first half of the season, Sherman adjusted well and had a much stronger second half, culminating in his 4th trip to the NCAA tournament. Sherman will be returning for his final season and I expect him to be much more comfortable at the weight--I think it was a difficult transition to a new weight, especially with his schedule and a loaded ACC field at 149. He will provide a consistent presence and leadership in the middle of the lineup, along with AOC. 157: Austin O'Connor In the past two seasons, we have seen O'Connor battle his way to an NCAA championship and fight through the pain of a serious knee injury to stand on the All-American podium again this season in Detroit. He is a leader that speaks through his actions, and will be in the thick of the national champion talks again this season. With the way his season ended, I wasn't sure that we would see O'Connor back on the mat for the Tar Heels, but we will get to enjoy the show for another season after all. O'Connor is a three-time All-American (3,1,8) and was an NWCA All-American during the COVID season. I have no doubt that he will add another trophy to his collection this season. 165: Sonny Santiago/Isaias Estrada This is the weight that has the least consistency and experience for UNC. Both Santiago and Estrada saw starting time last season, with Santiago getting the nod for the ACC tournament. Santiago finished 9-12. Estrada had his redshirt pulled late in the season and was the starter for the duals against Virginia Tech and NC State. This will be a competitive battle for the starting spot, and should see improved results over last season with another year of experience for both wrestlers. 174: Clay Lautt Lautt had quite the run last season. He was the ACC champ at 174 in 2021 and made the bloodround at the NCAA tournament; he was then upset by Gavin Kane in the wrestle-off and started the season at 184. As the weights stabilized Lautt solidified his spot at 174, and Kane made his mark at 184, and both went on to have great seasons. Lautt had big wins over ACC foes Matt Finesilver and got national attention with his pin over Hayden Hidlay. He made the ACC finals where he fell to Mekhi Lewis 4-2. Lautt placed eighth and made his first podium at the NCAA tournament with a bloodround win over Peyton Mocco (Missouri). Lautt has improved his NCAA performance every year as a starter, with the leaps he has made, I expect that streak to continue in his final season. 184: Gavin Kane Kane had an outstanding season, especially after solidifying his spot at 184. He was undefeated at 184, until dropping his final regular-season ACC match against Trent Hidlay. Kane was 11-1 going into the ACC tournament, where he lost in the finals to Hidlay. Kane had a poor showing at the NCAA tournament, unexpectedly going 0-2, but I believe this will drive him to a better finish next year. Kane showed tremendous growth last season, and a lot of maturity on the mat for a younger wrestler. With three more years ahead of him, Kane has a lot of time to make his mark on UNC wrestling--and I think he will. He has a lot of potential and showed this in two wins over All-American Hunter Bolen--these matches also showcased his ability to be creative in scoring against a stingy defensive wrestler. 197: Max Shaw Max has been a quietly consistent wrestler since arriving in Chapel Hill. He was an NCAA qualifier in 2021, and narrowly missed out on qualifying again this season. He showed improvement and closed the scoring gap in his second match against conference opponents at the ACC tournament. Shaw has shown the ability to put up points in bunches, but has struggled to get his offense going against higher-level wrestlers; he will need to improve in this area to help the Tar Heels to be in contention for a team title. 285: Brandon Whitman Whitman enters the season as the prohibitive favorite for Mustache of the Year for the ACC; he was runner-up to Quinn Miller last season. I expect him to step up his game on the mat and with his mustache. Whitman had an up and down season last year; he was in a lot of close matches that didn't fall his way. The first half of the season was a struggle against some top-tier B1G heavyweights, but it helped prepare him for a strong second-half run. He went 2-2 at the ACC tournament and was one win away from qualifying for his second NCAA tournament. With the graduation of Nathan Traxler and Quinn Miller, Whitman is now the senior of the ACC heavyweight class and has wins over three likely starters. The Tar Heels need a solid anchor at the top of the lineup and will be looking to Whitman to fill this role.

Illinois head coach Mike Poeta (left) and Isaiah Martinez (right) (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) On Friday, June 10th, the University of Illinois turned the wrestling world on its head as the school announced it had brought back one of its most notable wrestling alums for a slot on the coaching staff. Isaiah Martinez, one of only two multi-time NCAA champions and the only four-time Big Ten champion in school history will return to fortify second-year head coach Mike Poeta's coaching staff. Martinez will assume the volunteer assistant position, alongside longtime stalwart Jeremy Hunter and second-year coach Ed Ruth. Since Martinez's announcement, much has been made about the accolades of the new Illini staff. We'll get into the actual accomplishments of each of Illinois' four staff members later, but suffice to say, they stack up incredibly well against anyone else in the country. Now is the time to mention that wrestling is one of the few sports where the most accomplished coaches tend to be legendary wrestlers. There are certainly exceptions to the rule, but look at the NCAA title-winning teams since 2000. Iowa, Minnesota, Ohio State, Oklahoma State, and Penn State. Three-time NCAA champions Jim Zalesky and Tom Brands have both led Iowa to national titles. Brands is also an Olympic gold medalist, while Zalesky finished second at the Trials in 1988. Minnesota's J Robinson was a 1972 Olympian and twice finished in the top five at the World Championships. The one of the bunch with the smallest competitive resume is Ohio State's Tom Ryan, who was "only" a one-time NCAA runner-up. Both Oklahoma State's John Smith and Penn State's Cael Sanderson are among the best to ever do it. Smith's six-straight World/Olympic titles are not matched domestically, while Sanderson is the only DI wrestler to finish undefeated with four national titles. Wrestling can be different than other sports in that aspiring athletes can actually go head-to-head with a coach, somewhere in the midst of, or shortly after their prime. Another big factor in the success of elite athletes in the coaching ranks, is their name-brand recognition. In recruiting, any little advantage is used. Having a name and reputation like Brands, Smith, or Sanderson speaks for and recruits itself. So, while wrestling is a sport where the accomplishments of a coaching staff can be important, it's not the be-all, end-all. Even with Illinois' excellent staff, they'll still have to recruit in a powerful midwestern state that other rivals have cherry-picked for decades, develop high-caliber student-athletes, and compete in a meat grinder of a conference. In 2022, at the NCAA Championships, five of the top-six teams in Detroit were from the Big Ten. Those hurdles aside, they are in an excellent position with some excellent wrestling minds/competitors on staff. Head Coach: Mike Poeta - 3x NCAA All-American (2nd, 2nd, 3rd); 2x Big Ten Champion Assistant Coach: Ed Ruth - 4x NCAA All-American (1st, 1st, 1st, 3rd); 4x Big Ten Champion Assistant Coach: Jeremy Hunter - 3x NCAA All-American (5th, 2nd, 1st); 1999 Big Ten Champion Volunteer Assistant: Isaiah Martinez - 4x NCAA All-American (2nd, 2nd, 1st, 1st); 4x Big Ten Champion Total: 14 All-American honors, 11 NCAA Finals Appearances, 6 NCAA Championships, 11 Big Ten Titles While these four got it done in March, they were also among the most consistently successful wrestlers to ever take the mat at their respective programs. Martinez and Poeta rank first and third, respectively, in all-time winning percentage for Illinois wrestling. (.975 to .882). Ruth is Penn State's all-time leader in winning percentage. He narrowly edged teammate David Taylor, .9784 to 9781. In addition to their collegiate accolades, all four members of this staff were incredibly highly-regarded recruits. Poeta was generally considered the top wrestler in the Class of 2004, though there wasn't much in terms of recruiting rankings at the time. The same can be said about Hunter, a four-time Pennsylvania state champion and Dave Schultz HS Excellent Award winner. Martinez and Ruth were both top-five recruits in their respective classes. The Illini staff also hails from three of the most talent-rich states in the country, Illinois, California, and Pennsylvania. Hunter and Ruth are from PA, Hunter from the western part of the state and Ruth from the center. Poeta is the homegrown guy from Illinois, while Martinez maintained a long tradition of successful Illini from California. If this group can bring in wrestlers from each of their home states, plus a couple others, here and there, they should be set up for success. It'll be fun to see where Illinois fits in, in regards to the upper echelon of the Big Ten in the future. This staff already has verbal commitments from a pair of top-50 recruits from the Class of 2023. Both (#20 Kannon Webster and #44 Will Baysingar) happen to be in-state kids, which is a positive sign of things to come.

2x NCAA Champion Jesse Delgado (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...Illinois! 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 NCAA Qualifiers (66) 2022 125 - Justin Cardani (#27); 133 - Lucas Byrd (#7); 184 - Zac Braunagel (#9); 285 - Luke Luffman (#14) 2021 133 - Lucas Byrd (#7); 141 - Dylan Duncan (#14); 165 - Danny Braunagel (#15); 184 - Zac Braunagel (#19); 285 - Luke Luffman (#16) 2020 125 - Justin Cardani (#21); 133 - Travis Piotrowski (#7); 141 - Dylan Duncan (#19); 157 - Eric Barone (#26); 165 - Danny Braunagel (#15); 174 - Joey Gunther (#17); 184 - Zac Braunagel (#15); 285 - Luke Luffman 2019 125 - Travis Piotrowski (#11); 133 - Dylan Duncan (#30); 141 - Mike Carr (#6); 157 - Eric Barone (#15); 165 - Joey Gunther (#26); 184 - Emery Parker (#4) 2018 125 - Travis Piotrowski; 133 - Dylan Duncan; 141 - Mike Carr (#11); 165 - Isaiah Martinez (#1); 184 - Emery Parker (#10) 2017 125 - Travis Piotrowski; 133 - Zane Richards (#8); 149 - Eric Barone; 157 - Kyle Langendefer; 165 - Isaiah Martinez (#1); 174 - Zac Brunson (#10); 184 - Emery Parker (#11) 2016 133 - Zane Richards (#3); 157 - Isaiah Martinez (#1); 165 - Steven Rodrigues (#6); 174 - Zac Brunson (#5); 184 - Jeff Koepke; 285 - Brooks Black 2015 125 - Jesse Delgado; 133 - Zane Richards (#5); 141 - Steven Rodrigues; 149 - Kyle Langenderfer; 157 - Isaiah Martinez (#1); 165 - Jackson Morse (#9); 174 - Zac Brunson (#11); 184 - Nikko Reyes; 197 - Jeff Koepke; 285 - Brooks Black 2014 125 - Jesse Delgado (#1); 133 - Zane Richards (#14); 141 - Steven Rodrigues; 157 - Zac Brunson (#16); 165 - Jackson Morse (#12); 174 - Tony Dallago; 184 - Nikko Reyes; 197 - Mario Gonzalez 2013 125 - Jesse Delgado (#2); 133 - Daryl Thomas; 149 - Caleb Ervin; 165 - Conrad Polz (#7); 174 - Jordan Blanton (#7); 184 - Tony Dallago; 197 - Mario Gonzalez NCAA Champions Isaiah Martinez: 2015 (157); 2016 (157) Jesse Delgado: 2013 (125); 2014 (125) NCAA All-Americans Lucas Byrd (2022 - 5th; 2021 - 5th) Dylan Duncan (2021 - 5th) Emery Parker (2019 - 5th; 2018 - 3rd) Isaiah Martinez (2018 - 2nd; 2017 - 2nd; 2016 - 1st; 2015 - 1st) Zane Richards (2017 - 7th; 2016 - 4th) Zac Brunson (2017 - 6th) Steven Rodrigues (2016 - 5th) Jackson Morse (2015 - 4th) Conrad Polz (2013 - 5th) Jordan Blanton (2013 - 7th) NWCA All-Americans Travis Piotrowski (133 - 1st Team) NCAA Round of 12 Finishers Zac Braunagel - 184 (2022) Mike Carr - 141 (2018) Emery Parker - 184 (2017) Brooks Black - 285 (2016) Zac Brunson - 174 (2015) Tony Dallago - 174 (2014) Mario Gonzalez - 197 (2013, 2014) Big Ten Champions 2018: Isaiah Martinez (165) 2017: Isaiah Martinez (165) 2016: Isaiah Martinez (157) 2015: Isaiah Martinez (157) 2014: Jesse Delgado (125) 2013: Jesse Delgado (125) Big Ten Runner's-Up 2018: Mike Carr (141) 2016: Zane Richards (133); Zac Brunson (174) 2013: Conrad Polz (165) Dual Record 2021-22: 3-7 2021: 5-3 2019-20: 10-4 2018-19: 2-9 2017-18: 7-4 2016-17: 9-3 2015-16: 13-5 2014-15: 13-5 2013-14: 11-8 2012-13: 7-6-1 Big Ten Tournament Placement 2021-22: 11th 2021: 11th 2019-20: 11th 2018-19: 11th 2017-18: 8th 2016-17: 6th 2015-16: 7th 2014-15: 6th 2013-14: 6th 2012-13: 5th NCAA Tournament Team Placement 2021-22: 25th 2021: 18th 2019-20: No Tournament 2018-19: 26th 2017-18: 13th-tie 2016-17: 11th 2015-16: 10th-tie 2014-15: 12th 2013-14: 13th 2012-13: 9th Head Coaching History Mike Poeta (2021-Present) Jim Heffernan (2009-2021) Best Lineup (Comprised of wrestlers from 2013-22) 125 - Jesse Delgado: 4x NCAA Qualifier (#1, #2, and #4 seeds); 2x NCAA Champion; 3x All-American (1st, 1st, 7th); 2x Big Ten Champion 133 - Lucas Byrd: 2x NCAA Qualifier (#7 seed x2); 2x All-American (5th x2); 2021 Big Ten Third Place 141 - Steven Rodrigues: 3x NCAA Qualifier (#6 seed); 2016 All-American (5th); 2016 Big Ten Third Place 149 - Kyle Langenderfer: 2x NCAA Qualifier; 2015 Big Ten Third Place 157 - Isaiah Martinez: 4x NCAA Finalist (1st 2x; 2nd 2x); 4x Big Ten Champion; 4x NCAA #1 seed 165 - Conrad Polz: 2x NCAA Qualifier (#7 and #9 seeds); 2x All-American (5th, 8th); 2013 Big Ten Runner-Up 174 - Jordan Blanton: 4x NCAA Qualifier (#7 x2 and #10 seeds); 3x All-American (4th, 5th, 7th); 2010 Big Ten Third Place 184 - Emery Parker: 3x NCAA Qualifier (#4, #10, and #11 seeds); 2x All-American (3rd, 5th); 2019 Big Ten Third Place 197 - Mario Gonzalez: 3x NCAA Qualifier (#7 seed); 2x NCAA Round of 12 finisher; 2013 Big Ten Third Place 285 - Luke Luffman: 3x NCAA Qualifier (#14 and #16 seeds) Recruiting Big Boarder's Per Year 2022: #235 Kole Brower (IL) 2021: #29 Maximo Renteria (CA); #129 Dylan Connell (IL); #293 Caden Ernd (IL); #299 Joey Braunagel (IL) 2020: #70 Luke Odom (IL); #88 Danny Pucino (IL); #134 E'Lan Heard (IL) 2019: #25 Lucas Byrd (OH); #41 Luke Luffman (IL) 2017: #42 Justin Mejia (CA) 2016: #40 Dylan Duncan (IL); #55 Mike Carr (PA); #59 Travis Piotrowski (IL) 2015: #19 Xavier Montalvo (IL); #90 Eric Barone (IL); #124 Carver James (IL) 2014: #12 Jered Cortez (IL); #79 Brock Ervin (KY) 2013: #5 Isaiah Martinez (CA); #9 Brooks Black (PA); #62 Kyle Langenderfer (IL) International Accolades (Active Team Members and Alumni) Isaiah Martinez - 2017 U23 Freestyle World Team Member (5th Place) Luke Luffman - 2021 Junior Greco-Roman World Team Member (14th Place)

Iowa recruit Nate Jesuroga was undefeated at the Junior freestyle duals (photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) Over the weekend the Junior National Duals took place in Tulsa, Oklahoma. The Junior Duals have long been one of the most notable high school-aged events of the spring/summer. With the current bracketing system in Fargo, there could be an argument that you see more significant matchups at the Junior Duals compared to Fargo. As you probably know by now, Team Iowa went back-to-back and captured their second consecutive Junior freestyle championship. They also won in Greco, as well. With the success of the high schoolers from Iowa, you'd guess that the Iowa Hawkeyes recruits probably cleaned up at the event. You probably would have guessed right then. In addition to the Hawkeyes, we've outlined five other schools that had recruits shine at the Duals. Bucknell 170: Noah Mulvaney - Wisconsin (8-0) - Class of 2023 285: Logan Shephard - Ohio (6-1) The Bison had a pair of recruits combine to go 14-1 with Noah Mulvaney, who is from the Class of 2023 and Logan Shephard, who will be arriving on campus this year. Mulvaney grabbed a 17-9 victory over #234 Bradley Gillum (IL), a graduated senior, and his biggest win came via tech over #69 Tyler Lillard (OH), also from the Class of 2022. Shepherd posted a shutout win over Daniel Herrera (CA), who is currently ranked 11th in the nation and is a top-50 recruit from the Class of 2024. Cornell 195: Michael Dellagatta - New Jersey (8-0) - Class of 2023 I tried to keep it to schools with multiple recruits that shined, but Michael Dellagatta was so good, that he deserves to be recognized alone. Dellagatta registered a pair of dominating wins over Class of 2023 Big Board'er, Adam Haselius (MI) amongst his eight victories. The win that will help propel Dellagatta up the rankings was a 12-1 tech of #4 Sawyer Bartelt, currently a top-ten wrestler in the Class of 2024. Bartelt was the only one of Dellagatta's opponents to manage a point against the future Big Red big man. Iowa 120: Nate Jesuroga - Iowa (8-0) - Class of 2023 145: Joel Jesuroga - Iowa (6-0) 138: Ryder Block - Iowa (5-1) - Class of 2023 160: Aiden Riggins - Iowa (8-0) 195/220: Kolby Franklin - Iowa (7-0) The back-to-back champions from Team Iowa were led by a handful of future Hawkeyes (maybe more in the future). Starting at the lower weights, Nate Jesuroga did not surrender a point in his eight contests and outscored the opposition 76-0. The top-ranked 126 lber in the nation was responsible for the only losses of the tournament for Alan Koehler (MN) and Marcus Blaze (OH), both top-eight ranked wrestlers. Older brother Joel was almost as efficient, giving up just two points in six matches. His most significant win was 10-1 over #11 Jace Roller. After losing by fall in his opening bout, Ryder Block reeled off five straight wins, one of which was a 14-4 tech over #1 (132) Nasir Bailey (IL). Aiden Riggins, ranked #38 on the 2022 Big Board, edged #10 Jordan Williams (OK) by a point, then did the same against Thor Michaelson (WA), currently ranked #11 at 160 lbs. Kolby Franklin teched his way through the tournament and tallied wins over #7 Jersey Robb (OK), #16 Dylan Bravo-Packer (CO), #5 Carter Neves (OH). Nebraska 120: Alan Koehler - Minnesota (6-1) - Class of 2023 120: Kael Lauridsen - Nebraska (9-0) - Class of 2023 138: Ismael Ayoub - Ohio (6-1) It was a good day for the future Huskers, as these big three combined to win 21 of 23 bouts in freestyle. Alan Koehler teched dangerous Greco-specialist, Ray Ray Harris (CA), 18-8. Later he downed 2024 Big Board'er, Gage Walker (OK), 7-2. Kael Lauridsen went unbeaten for the home team with a 10-0 tech over #10 Leo DeLuca (NJ) the highlight of his tournament. Lauridsen had a tech or fall in all nine of his matches and was only scored upon, by one opponent. Late commit, Ismael Ayoub, defeated Cal Poly-signee #174 Johnny Lopez (CA) 8-2, before teching Cael Erickson (WI), in the last match before the gold medal dual. Stanford 145: Zach Hanson - Minnesota (7-0) - Class of 2023 152: Hunter Garvin - Iowa (8-0) The future is bright in Palo Alto, not just because of the beautiful weather, but because of the young talent on the horizon for Rob Koll's team. Zach Hanson was pushed a bit by #20 Collin Guffey (CA), but prevailed with an 11-8 decision. After that, he turned it up by teching #11 Jace Roller (CA) and notching a 6-4 win over #224 (Class of 2022) Jacob Frost (IA). The only thing that broke up Hunter Garvin's tech streak was a forfeit sandwiched in the middle. Garvin teched former Cadet Greco World Team member Braden Stauffenberg (IL), along with #4 Kael Voinovich (OK), and #12 Wynton Denkins (OH). Wyoming 126: Brayden Sonnentag - Wisconsin (7-1) - Class of 2023 145: Cole Brooks - Oklahoma (5-0) - Class of 2023 The Wyoming Cowboys had a breakout recruiting year in 2022 and look to be headed towards another strong signing class after the exploits of two commits, Brayden Sonnentag and Cole Brooks. Sonnentag edged #5 Drew Gorman (GA) on criteria, in his first bout of the tournament. He'd later major Ray Ray Harris (CA) and picked up a win from an injury default over JJ McComas-Rogers (OK). Cole Brooks didn't seem to break a sweat with four wins via tech and another by fall. One of those 10-0 techs came at the expense of Brennan Van Hoecke (FL), the #54 overall wrestler from the Class of 2022.

2018 NCAA All-American Michael Hughes (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...Hofstra! 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 NCAA Qualifiers (22) 2022: 285 - Zachary Knighton-Ward (#31st) 2021: 141 - Vinny Vespa (#33); 149 - Greg Gaxiola (#32); 157 - Holden Heller (#19); 165 - Ricky Stamm (#32); 184 - Charles Small (#23); 197 - Trey Rogers (#30); 285 - Zachary Knighton-Ward (#27) 2020: 165 - Ricky Stamm (#27); Zachary Knighton-Ward (#29) 2018: 285 - Michael Hughes (#11) 2016: 141 - Jamel Hudson; 285 - Michael Hughes 2015: 141 - Jamel Hudson (#15); 149: Cody Ruggirello (#14) 2014: 125 - Jamie Franco; 141 - Luke Vaith (#8); 149 - Cody Ruggirello; 165 - Joe Booth (#9) 2013: 125 - Steve Bonanno; 133 - Jamie Franco; 141 - Luke Vaith NCAA Champions None NCAA All-Americans Michael Hughes (2018 - 6th) NCAA Round of 12 Finishers 2015: Cody Ruggirello (149 lbs) 2014: Luke Vaith (141 lbs) Conference Champions EIWA 2021: Holden Heller (157) 2014: Joe Booth (165) CAA 2013: Stephen Bonnano (125); Jamie Franco (133) Dual Record 2021-22: 4-11 2021: 2-1 2019-20: 11-5 2018-19: 6-14 2017-18: 10-10 2016-17: 6-11 2015-16: 5-13 2014-15: 5-11 2013-14: 6-10 2012-13: 6-15 Conference Tournament Placement EIWA 2021-22: 12th 2021: 4th 2019-20: 10th 2018-19: 15th 2017-18: 13th 2016-17: 14th 2015-16: 13th 2014-15: 13th 2013-14: 4th CAA 2012-13: 1st NCAA Tournament Team Placement 2021-22: 61st 2021: 44th (5.5 points) 2019-20: No Tournament 2018-19: No Qualifiers 2017-18: 28th (12 points) 2016-17: No Qualifiers 2015-16: 58th (2.5 points) 2014-15: 35th (8 points) 2013-14: 40th (7 points) 2012-13: 46th (3.5 points) Head Coaching History Dennis Papadatos (2014-2021) Rob Anspach (2011-14) Best Lineup (Consisting of wrestlers from 2013-22) 125 - Steve Bonanno: 4x NCAA Qualifier; 2012 NCAA All-American (8th); 4x CAA Finalist, 2x CAA Champion 133 - Jamie Franco: 3x NCAA Qualifier; 2x CAA Finalist, 2013 CAA Champion 141 - Luke Vaith: 3x NCAA Qualifier (8th seed); 2014 NCAA Round of 12 finisher; 2012 CAA Champion 149 - Justin Accordino: 2x NCAA Qualifier; 2012 NCAA All-American (6th); 2012 CAA Runner-Up 157 - Holden Heller: 2021 NCAA Qualifier; 2021 EIWA Champion 165 - Joe Booth: 2014 NCAA Qualifier (9th seed); 2014 EIWA Champion; 2014 NCAA Round of 12 finisher; 3x NCAA Qualifier for Drexel 174 - Ricky Stamm: 2x NCAA Qualifier 184 - Charles Small: 2021 NCAA Qualifier; 2021 EIWA 3rd place 197 - Trey Rogers: 2021 NCAA Qualifier 285 - Michael Hughes: 2x NCAA Qualifier (11th seed), 2018 NCAA All-American (6th); 2018 EIWA Runner-Up Recruiting Big Boarder's Per Year 2021: #184 Jacob Moon (OH); #298 Joel Mylin (IL) 2018: #93 Trey Rogers (MN) 2014: #100 Travis Passaro (NY) 2013: #108 Michael Hughes (NY)

Mark Churella embracing his son, Josh, after his final collegiate match in 2008 (photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) Wrestling is a family sport. Teammates become brothers, the families in the stands become extensions of your own. Some mom adopts the team and becomes the team mom. The long car rides, cramped hotel rooms, early morning workouts, late-night weight cuts, and weekends camping out in the bleachers bond families, blood or otherwise. Some wrestlers get to have their dad as their first coach and you can watch these relationships build and flourish at youth tournaments. One of the best things to witness is a child growing up with the same love of wrestling as their dad, but what about the wrestlers who grew up with legendary wrestlers as fathers? One wrestling household name from the 80s that has come back around is Carr. Nate Carr Sr. spent four years at Iowa State University, where he became the first Cyclone to win 3 NCAA Championships from 1981-1983. His contribution helped them achieve four top-three finishes as a team. With an impressive 117-20-1 career record at Iowa, he decided to keep wrestling and made a transition to freestyle after college. From making the world team in 1983 and being an Olympic alternate in 1984, Nate quickly found success internationally. In 1986, he won a gold medal at the World Cup and the Pan-American Championships. He returned to the Olympics in 1988 where this time he not only competed, but returned from Seoul with a bronze medal. Making the world team again in 1990, he added another gold medal to his collection at the Goodwill Games. Nate Carr Sr. spent 12 years coaching at West Virginia University during the peak of his training into his retirement from 1986-1998. During his time as an assistant coach, he sent 64 wrestlers to NCAAs where ten of them became All Americans and two became National Champions. In 1991, his coaching efforts were honored when he was named the NWCA Assistant Coach of the Year. Nate was inducted into the Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2003 as a distinguished member for his contribution to wrestling as a competitor and a coach. He is back in Ames as the Associate Director and a coach for the Cyclone RTC where he gets to work closely with his son, David. David just finished his redshirt junior year at his dad's Alma Mater, Iowa State University. The young wrestler has already achieved great things in college, one of them being making the Carr name popular among a younger generation. He is a three-time Big 12 Champion, three-time All-American, and won the national tournament in 2021, making him a Hodge Trophy finalist. Following in his dad's footsteps, David has found success through freestyle wrestling as well. Outdoing his 2017 Junior Worlds bronze medal, he won the gold in 2019 in Tallinn, Estonia. David recently made the US Senior National Team at 74 kg, which qualified him for competition in Spain in October on the U23 World Team. Now is when the world waits to see if David is going to outdo his dad on the big stage one day. While David is following in his dad's wrestling footsteps, Nate Carr Jr. is taking a note from his dad on coaching. Nate Jr. has been able to coach with some great coaches during his time with Virginia, Maryland, and the Finger Lakes Wrestling Club where he got to work with the Cornell team frequently. All of this, combined with his college wrestling experience led him to his Assistant Coaching position at Lock Haven University in 2016. Since his time there, the team has had 14 NCAA qualifiers, 3 All Americans, 7 EWL Champions, 2 team EWL Championships, and since their transition to the MAC conference in 2020, 3 Champions and a team Championship this past year. Nate Jr. is also getting his freestyle coaching practice in as Lock Haven just had a wrestler win the U23 World Team Trials. Unfortunately, this was at a different weight so we don't get to see him coach against his dad and brother quite yet, but it is a future possibility. The University of Michigan wrestling team prides itself on tradition. An integral part of this tradition can be attributed to Mark Churella. The four-time All-American was a three-time NCAA Champion for the Wolverines in 1977-1979. In 1978, he won Most Outstanding Wrestler in his third appearance at NCAAs and the following year was awarded the Big 10 Medal of Honor for his proficiency in scholarship, athletics, and community. Going 132-13 during his college career, Mark has the third-highest career winning percentage in Michigan history at .910 along with countless other top ten appearances in other Michigan records. After his graduation from the Big 10 University in 1979, Mark went on to coach at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas until the school cut the wrestling program in 1984. In the short time Mark was with the program, he left a big legacy in the form of the Las Vegas Collegiate Invitational Tournament, or as we know it today: The Cliff Keen Invitational. Mark started this tournament in 1981 and it is still one of the largest college tournaments and a fan favorite due to the talent it brings in. The tournament could stay in Vegas after UNLV wrestling was no more, but Mark came back to his Alma Mater to be an assistant coach from 1985-1987. He then stepped away from the sport to take care of his family and family business. One thing all wrestlers discover is when they step away from the sport, it's usually temporary. Mark had three sons all follow in his footsteps loving wrestling so the family man didn't stay away long. His oldest, Mark Jr., joined the Wolverine's wrestling team in 1998, earning his varsity letter in 2001. Mark Jr.'s younger brothers, Ryan and Josh, followed suit and became University of Michigan wrestlers in 2001 and 2003, respectively. Ryan, a four-year letter winner, was a three-time Big 10 Champion in 2004-2006 and placed top-four at NCAAs in those same three years. His 117-18 record put him on the record list with his dad with a .867 winning percentage to give him 8th in school history. In 2003, at the end of Ryan's redshirt freshman season, he was awarded the Mark Churella award. This award was first given out in 1984 and is given to the team's most outstanding freshman annually. Josh Churella was a four-time letter winner and a three-time captain for the Wolverines. He was a Big 10 Champion in 2005 and a three-time All-American including making the 2007 NCAA finals. Being the third Churella to join Michigan's 100 wins club, Josh posted a 124-11 career record, putting him 15th in school history between Mark Sr.'s 11th and Ryan's 19th placement. Josh went on from college to wrestle freestyle for a few years, but ultimately came back to his roots to join the coaching staff in 2013. Since his time with the Wolverines, he has coached five Big 10 Champions, 16 All Americans, and one NCAA Champion, as well as a Big 10 team title this past season. Throughout his coaching career, the Churella family has always been a staple in the stands, which begs the question, is there going to be a third generation of Churella wrestlers at the University of Michigan? We have some time before we'll find out the answer to that one. One of the more interesting father-son duos in wrestling, is also one that's not really talked about. This would be Dan Chaid and his son's Danny and Mark. Dan, a four-time All-American for Oklahoma won a National title in 1985 for the Sooners hasn't left his shoes on the mat yet. Dan won a gold medal in freestyle at Veteran Worlds this past October. His son, Danny wrestled for Oklahoma for two years before transferring to the University of North Carolina where he qualified for the NCAA tournament twice and in 2017, he finished one round shy of All-American status. Danny is now in Stanford, California as an athlete with the California RTC. It's not very often we get to see fathers wrestling at the same time as their sons. Danny's young brother, Mark, also wrestled at North Carolina, amassing a 28-34 record in Chapel Hill. Mark is expected to finish his eligibility in 2022-23 at The Citadel. With so many Senior National Team Members starting families of their own, it's easy to look forward to the future and predict who the next big father-son duo will be. Will it be one of Jordan Burroughs's kids since they can never have enough time on the mat with the National Team? Will David Taylor's daughters be lacing up wrestling shoes for a Taylor father-daughter duo? It doesn't really matter who the next big family legacy will be because young wrestlers will always look to their dads who gave them the love of the sport and be able to thank them for passing on the sport and the community. Thank you to all of the wrestling dads for all you do for the athletes and the sport! Happy Father's Day!

New Army West Point volunteer assistant Taylor Venz (photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) One of the staples of the college wrestling offseason is the movement on the coaching front. Normally, a few head coaching positions open up, which leads to a game of musical chairs, as new jobs are filled, others come open. The summer of 2022 has been kind of quiet in that respect. This week things picked up a bit as four coaching hires were announced. With that type of movement, it felt like the right time to post all of the new hires since the end of the 2021-22 season. These are only ones that have been made public by the respective schools. There are probably other coaches who have started new jobs, or are in the process of doing so, but they have not been announced. Expect more updates as the summer progresses and even into fall.

UFC fighter Deron Winn in Fargo in 2021 (photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) The Wrestling Fan's Guide to MMA is back. This week we focus on Friday's offer from the Professional Fighters League as well as a UFC show that will air live on ESPN. The two shows feature multiple former collegiate wrestlers as well as some international competitors in both freestyle and Greco Roman. Friday: PFL 4 Josh Silveira vs Marthin Hamlet During his collegiate days, Silveira won a Pac 12 title for Arizona State at 197 pounds in 2016 to qualify for the NCAA tournament. Considering his father fought in the UFC in the 90s and is a respected coach, it is no surprise that Silveira made his MMA debut in 2019. He has already built an undefeated 8-0 record and won his last fight on the PFL Challengers Series. Hamlet was regular on the Greco-Roman circuit for Norway from 2011 to 2016. He won multiple Nordic Championships at 98 kg, but his best finish was a bronze medal at the 2014 European Championships. Hamlet finished fifth at the Olympic Qualification Tournament for the 2016 Olympics and then decided to focus on MMA. He made his professional debut the following year and has gone 9-3 in the sport. He signed with the PFL last year and has gone 3-2 with the promotion. The Silveira vs. Hamlet fight will be the second bout in the preliminary card of PFL 4. The event is scheduled to begin at 7:00pm ET on ESPN+. Saturday: UFC Austin Josh Emmett vs. Calvin Kattar In the main event of the UFC's trip to Austin, Calvin Kattar will take on Josh Emmett in a featherweight contest. Both fighters are ranked in the top 10, and a win here could put them in position to challenge for a title shot down the road. During his high school days, Kattar was a wrestler for Methuen High School. As a senior in 2006, he finished fifth in the state of Massachusetts. After graduation, he chose to start training for MMA instead of continuing to wrestle in college. Emmett spent his prep days in Arizona before continuing on the collegiate level. He spent two years at Sacramento City College in the California Community College division, before moving up to the NAIA level to wrestle for Menlo. Despite their wrestling backgrounds, these two will likely slug it out on the feet. Many expect this one to be a fan favorite. You can read more about the fight in this humble writer's stats-based newsletter. Julian Marquez vs. Gregory Rodrigues Marquez came up wrestling in Missouri before continuing his wrestling career at Missouri Valley. However, he reportedly left the team and school after getting into a fight with a teammate. Marquez joined the UFC in 2017 and has gone 3-1 in the promotion. Rodrigues actually started out in capoeira and jiu-jitsu before giving wrestling a shot. In 2014, he entered the Cadet Pan American Championships in both styles. Rodrigues finished fifth in Greco but made the finals on the freestyle side. In the finals, he lost against Kaleb Friedley who went on to be an NCAA qualifier for Northwestern. Rodrigues turned to professional MMA in 2014 and signed with the UFC last year. He won his first two fights in the promotion but is coming off a loss against Armen Petrosyan in February. Jasmine Jasudavicius vs. Natalia Silva Jasudavicius was a regular on the Canadian ladder and placed at Nationals multiple times. She turned to professional MMA in 2019 and made it to the UFC in under three years. After earning a contract via Dana White's Contender Series, she has gone 2-0 in the Octagon and is coming off an impressive win over prospect Kay Hansen. Her opponent on Saturday holds a 12-5-1 record as a professional, but will be making her UFC debut. Court McGee vs. Jeremiah Wells McGee was a two-time state placer in Utah. His best finish came in 2003 when he finished third in the state 5A division. McGee won the 11th season of "The Ultimate Fighter" in 2010 and has fought exclusively for the promotion since. From 2017 to 2020, he lost five of six fights. However, he turned things around last year and has picked up back-to-back wins. Wells has gone 10-2-1 overall as a professional and has won a pair of UFC fights since joining the promotion last year. Cody Stamann vs. Eddie Wineland While in college, Stamann was part of the Grand Valley NCWA team that also helped produce fellow MMA fighters Kevin Lee and Tony Ferguson. The Michigan native made the transition to MMA in 2011 and signed with the UFC in 2017. He won five of his first seven fights with the promotion. However, Stamann is currently riding a three-fight losing streak. He will likely need to pick up a victory here to keep his job with the promotion. Wineland held the WEC bantamweight title back in 2006 and is still competing today. Recently the 37-year-old fighter has struggled and gone 1-4 in his last five fights. Phil Hawes vs. Deron Winn This fight is probably the main event as far as wrestling fans are concerned. Hawes won an NJCAA title at Iowa Central in 2010 before transferring to Iowa State. He spent a year with the Cyclones before finishing his career with traditional Division III power Wartburg. After multiple stints on Dana White's Contenders Series, Hawes finally made his UFC debut in 2020. He won his first three fights with the promotion but dropped his last fight against Chris Curtis last November. Winn was also an NJCAA champion during his collegiate days. He won that title for Meramec before continuing his career at Lindenwood. Winn also found success there finishing third at the NAIA tournament to become an All-American. He continued wrestling on the freestyle circuit where he won multiple medals and finished second at the 2018 World Team Trials Challenge Tournament. Winn dropped his first two fights in the UFC, but bounced back in 2020 with a victory over Antonio Arroyo. Emmett, Kattar, Marquez and Rodrigues will all be part of the main card, which airs live on ESPN at 7:00pm ET. The rest will be on the under that is scheduled to begin at 4:00pm ET on the same network.

0222 Junior World Team member Alex Facundo (photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) I admit I was wrong. I had my doubts about the turnout for FInal X New York. I didn't think timing and location would persuade many fans to travel to the center of Metropolis for something they could watch at home. Then I realized that it was the biggest city in the world. It was on a gorgeous summer day. We did spend a year locked inside our houses not knowing if the world would ever be the same. Not everyone works a nine-to-five day job like me. I doubted my fellow East Coast brothers and sisters. And I messed up. I should've been there with you. I don't have any excuses for it. Sure, I had a busy week last week. Could I have made plans to get there if I really wanted to? Of course, I could. But I didn't and I'll always regret that. I admit I was jealous seeing all the pictures of people I've come to know over the years having a great time and meeting up. The truth is I might have been scared to go. Growing up I never felt like I never fit in with the rest of my wrestling peers. I could hold my own on the mat and had my moments, but I didn't go to clubs, didn't really make friends with guys from other schools, and was mostly shy at tournaments. Before this, none of my real-life friends were wrestling fans at all. My buddies Jeff and Gianfranco, along with my cousin Freddie, do not want to go to Region 1 finals with me. They are not interested in who's coming out on top at 125 and 133 for Rutgers. So going to random events and just sitting there never seemed to be an ideal thing to do. Perhaps a little bit of imposter syndrome has something to do with it. I'm not an expert on the sport. I'm not a professional writer. Not even close to a professional comedian. I'm not even sure how I got here. Perhaps the sum of Jagger is greater than his parts. All I know is you've all graciously welcomed me into your community and I keep trying to convince myself that I'm not a part of it. I need to do better. And I will, but first, let's get to some questions. How good do you think Illinois will be with one of the most loaded coaching staffs? Seth Petarra Interesting question. It's funny that in most sports it's not always the best competitors who make the best coaches. That's not so much in wrestling, as some of the most elite on the mat have become the most elite in the corner. But it's not always the case. There's more to it than just teaching moves. It's the relationship with the athlete. It's being able to communicate and understand what makes each individual tick. That being said, bringing back arguably your school's greatest wrestler ever in Isaiah Martinez is another feather in the cap for head coach Mike Poeta. Aside from his wealth of knowledge, he's a symbol of what can be accomplished by going to school in Champaign. And what about Ed Ruth! The Penn State legend has returned to his roots on the mat and has just started getting his feet wet in the coaching game. Personally, I expect big things out of the Poeta-Hunter-Ruth-Martinez foursome. Been traveling but I assume you got some on the new rules? @LMRMock The redshirt rules? They certainly have their pros and cons. I think we're all happy about redshirts being able to wrestle a few duals without consequences. Now what I'm seeing is that the rule only actually applies to freshmen and that actually makes sense. Not that duals really matter much, but we can't have Iowa putting a redshirt on Spencer Lee, but rolling him out there for two or three of the biggest duals of the year. It just doesn't seem fair to me. But it does let a coach get a chance to see if a true frosh is ready without risking losing a year from him. Last year, we could've got a glimpse at an Alex Facundo or a Paddy Gallagher during the dual season to see where they're at. Especially since the second semester is mostly dormant on the open tournament front. Which leads me to the next big news to come out of this. True freshmen can't wrestle opens unattached in the first semester! That's one of the most enjoyable things about the first two months! Just completely asinine if you ask me. What is an NIL summit? Richard Mann Probably something that wasn't as cool as the Apalachin Summit of 1957. You can google it, it's worth a google. Hypothetically, if you were to wrestle on a card, what would your walk-out music be? Earl "JR" Smith I think about this almost daily and would need about 25 matches to satisfy my urge of having intro music. So many options. Lately, I've been digging Cult of Personality by Living Colour. If You Want Blood (You Got It) by AC/DC has long been a jam I'm dying to walk out to. I could pay homage to my real name Ian and come out to Locomotive Breath by Jethro Tull. I could also pay homage to my fake name and dance my way out to Start Me Up by The Rolling Stones. So many options. One thing I can guarantee is the intro will be longer than the match. I can tell you one song it won't be. Friggin' Baby Shark. This isn't Romper Room out here. You ever woken up in an alley? Pelikan Head Hmm, can't say that I have. I will say that I've slept (passed out) in some strange places. Ended my 21st birthday asleep in the crew cab of my Ford Ranger. I once ended a night in Montana out cold in the back of a Ford Explorer. Maybe it's a Ford thing. My most notorious zonk was having too many adult sodas while watching the 2000 World Series before a Stone Temple Pilots concert. As soon as the lights went down I knew I was done and proceeded to make my way into a phone booth at the rotunda below the arena and made that my bed for the next two hours while Weiland and the boys tore it up above me. Jagger used to party and when he went down he went down hard. Alright, this mailbag was way too personal, see ya next week. Happy Father's Day to all you crazy dads out there and especially to new dad Austin Sommer! Drexel's Class of 2040 just got their first commit. Hammer!

New Army West Point Volunteer Assistant Taylor Venz WEST POINT, N.Y. – Army West Point Wrestling's Head Coach Kevin Ward has announced the addition of Taylor Venz to his staff for the upcoming season. Venz, who is coming off an extremely successful career with Big Ten powerhouse Nebraska, will serve as the Black Knights' volunteer assistant coach. "Taylor Venz is an incredible addition to our staff and will make an immediate impact on our upper-weight wrestlers through his ability to train alongside them and will influence the entire team in a positive way though his passion for excellence, humble-warrior type attitude, and desire to help others reach their potential," Ward said. "As an elite wrestler and NCAA All-American who trained at one of the nation's best programs in Nebraska, he was able to learn from some of the top coaches and athletes in the country. We can't wait for him to bring his experiences to West Point to help grow America's Team." Venz was a highly-decorated Husker as a five-time NCAA qualifier (2018-22) and an NCAA All-American (2018). The Farmington, Minn. native's accolades also include an NWCA First Team All-American selection (2020) and a pair of NWCA Scholar All-American nods (2020-21). The 2018 Most Valuable Wrestler for Nebraska, Venz finished fourth at that season's NCAA Championship as a redshirt freshman, going 6-2 in the tournament. He finished his career with a 14-8 mark at the event to go along with an overall career record of 41-18 in dual action. Nebraska's Lifter of the Year in 2018 turned in 28 career pins, 16 technical falls and 16 major decisions for a total of 60 bonus point victories. In total, he was 101-40 while suiting up for the Huskers and placed within the top-five at the Big Ten Championship in five different campaigns. "I'm thrilled to be joining the wrestling program at West Point," Venz said. "It is an honor to be able to work with an exceptional group of individuals, and I can't wait to help these men achieve their goals on the mat."

The 2022 NCAA Championships at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit, Michigan (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Division: I Proposal Number: 2021-25 Title: ACADEMIC AND ATHLETICS ELIGIBILITY -- MEN'S WRESTLING ACADEMIC ENHANCEMENT PACKAGE Status: Adopted by Council Intent: In men's wrestling, to revise legislation related to seasons of competition, progress-toward-degree requirements, financial aid minimums, and outside competition, as specified. Category: Amendment A. Bylaws: Amend 12.8, as follows: (August 1, 2022) 12.8 Seasons of Competition: Five-Year Rule. A student-athlete shall not engage in more than four seasons of intercollegiate competition in any one sport (see Bylaws 12.02.6 and 14.3.3). An institution shall not permit a student-athlete to represent it in intercollegiate competition unless the individual completes all seasons of participation in all sports within the time periods specified below: [12.8.1 through 12.8.2 unchanged.] 12.8.3 Criteria for Determining Season of Competition. 12.8.3.1 Minimum Amount of Competition. Any competition, regardless of time, during a season in an intercollegiate sport shall be counted as a season of competition in that sport, except as provided in Bylaws 12.8.3.1.1, 12.8.3.1.2, 12.8.3.1.3, 12.8.3.1.4, 12.8.3.1.5 and 12.8.3.1.6. This provision is applicable to intercollegiate athletics competition conducted by a two-year or four-year collegiate institution at the varsity or subvarsity level. [12.8.3.1.1 through 12.8.3.1.6 unchanged.] 12.8.3.1.7 Exception -- Men's Wrestling. In men's wrestling, a student-athlete representing a Division I institution may compete in up to five dates of competition during the student-athlete's initial year of collegiate enrollment without using a season of competition. Competition in a conference championship tournament, the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships, or any other season-ending championship event shall not be exempted from counting as a season of competition. [12.8.3.2 through 12.8.3.7 unchanged.] [12.8.4 through 12.8.6 unchanged.] B. Bylaws: Amend 14.4, as follows: (August 1, 2022) 14.4 Progress-Toward-Degree Requirements. [14.4.1 through 14.4.2 unchanged.] 14.4.3 Eligibility for Competition. [14.4.3.1 through 14.4.3.2 unchanged.] 14.4.3.3 Fulfillment of Minimum Grade-Point Average Requirements. A student-athlete who is entering the second year of collegiate enrollment shall present a cumulative minimum grade-point average (based on a maximum 4.000) that equals at least 90 percent of the institution's overall cumulative grade point average required for graduation. A student-athlete who is entering the third year of collegiate enrollment shall present a cumulative minimum grade-point average (based on a maximum of 4.000) that equals 95 percent of the institution's overall cumulative minimum grade-point average required for graduation. A student-athlete who is entering the fourth or later year of collegiate enrollment shall present a cumulative minimum grade-point average (based on a maximum of 4.000) that equals 100 percent of the institution's overall cumulative grade-point average required for graduation. If the institution does not have an overall grade-point average required for graduation, it is permissible to use the lowest grade-point average required for any of the institution's degree programs in determining the cumulative minimum grade-point average. The minimum grade-point average must be computed pursuant to institutional policies applicable to all students. [14.4.3.3.1 unchanged.] 14.4.3.3.2 Timing of Certification -- Sports Other Than Men's Wrestling. A In sports other than men's wrestling, a student-athlete's eligibility under this provision shall be certified by the first date of competition or contest of each regular term of an academic year beginning with that student's second or later academic year (third semester or fourth quarter) of full-time enrollment (see Bylaw 14.02.12). The certification shall be based on the student-athlete's academic record in existence at the beginning of the applicable term. [14.4.3.3.2.1 unchanged.] 14.4.3.3.3 Exception -- Men's Wrestling. In men's wrestling, a student-athlete who has completed an academic term in residence at the certifying institution shall present either a cumulative minimum grade-point average or a term minimum grade point average of at least 2.000. A student-athlete's eligibility under this provision shall be certified by the first date of competition or contest of each regular term of an academic year beginning with that student-athlete's second term of full-time enrollment. The certification shall be based on the student-athlete's record in existence at the beginning of the applicable term. [14.4.3.4 through 14.4.3.10 unchanged.] C. Bylaws: Amend 15.5, as follows: (August 1, 2023; effective for student-athletes who initially enroll full time at any four-year collegiate institution on or after August 1, 2023.) 15.5 Maximum Institutional Grant-in-Aid Limitations by Sport. [15.5.1 through 15.5.2 unchanged.] 15.5.3 Equivalency Sports. 15.5.3.1 Maximum Equivalency Limits. 15.5.3.1.1 Men's Sports. There shall be a limit on the value (equivalency) of financial aid awards (per Bylaw 15.02.5.2) that an institution may provide in any academic year to counters in the following men's sports: Cross Country/Track and Field 12.6 Swimming and Diving 9.9 Fencing 4.5 Tennis 4.5 Golf 4.5 Volleyball 4.5 Gymnastics 6.3 Water Polo 4.5 Lacrosse 12.6 Wrestling 9.9 Rifle 3.6 Skiing 6.3 Soccer 9.9 15.5.3.1.1.1 Minimum Equivalency Value -- Men's Wrestling. In men's wrestling, an institution shall provide each counter athletically related and other countable financial aid that is equal to or greater than 20 percent of an equivalency. 15.5.3.1.1.1.1 Exception -- Need-Based Athletics Aid Only. In men's wrestling, an institution that awards athletically related financial aid based solely on demonstrated financial need, as determined for all students by the institution's financial aid office using methodologies that conform to federal, state and written institutional guidelines (including institutional financial aid that is considered athletically related financial aid based on the intervention of athletics department staff), is not subject to the 20 percent minimum equivalency value per counter. 15.5.3.1.1.1.2 Exception -- Final Two Years of Eligibility and Not Previously Aided. An institution may provide less than 20 percent of an equivalency to a student-athlete, provided the student-athlete is in the final two years of eligibility and has not previously received athletically related financial aid in men's wrestling at any collegiate institution. [15.5.3.1.2 through 15.5.3.1.4 unchanged.] [15.5.3.2 unchanged.] [15.5.4 through 15.5.11 unchanged.] D. Bylaws: Amend 17.33, as follows: (August 1, 2022) 17.33 Outside Competition, Effects on Eligibility. The eligibility of a student-athlete who engages in outside competition (see Bylaw 17.02.11) is affected as set forth in the following regulations. 17.33.1 Outside Competition -- Sports Other Than Basketball. A student-athlete in any sport other than basketball who participates during the academic year as a member of any outside team in any noncollegiate, amateur competition becomes ineligible for intercollegiate competition unless eligibility is restored by the Committee on Student-Athlete Reinstatement. A student-athlete is permitted to practice on such a team. [17.33.1.1 unchanged.] 17.33.1.2 Exception -- Women's Wrestling. In women's wrestling, a student-athlete may compete outside the institution's declared playing and practice season as a member of an outside team in any noncollegiate, amateur competition during any official vacation period, except a vacation period that occurs between the beginning of the institution's academic year and November 1. The number of student-athletes from any one institution shall not exceed the applicable limits set forth in Bylaw 17.31.2. 17.33.1.3 Exception -- Men's Wrestling. In men's wrestling, a student-athlete may compete outside the institution's declared playing and practice season as a member of an outside team in any noncollegiate, amateur competition during any official vacation period, except a vacation period that occurs between the beginning of the institution's academic year and November 1 and any vacation period that occurs during the student-athlete's first academic term of full-time enrollment. A student-athlete must maintain a minimum grade-point average, as specified in Bylaw 14.3.3.3.3, to participate in outside competition. The number of student-athletes from any one institution shall not exceed the applicable limits set forth in Bylaw 17.31.2. [17.33.1.3 through 17.33.1.7 renumbered as 17.33.1.4 through 17.33.1.8, unchanged.] 17.33.1.89 Competition as Individual/Not Representing Institution. It is permissible for a student-athlete to participate in outside competition as an individual during the academic year in the student-athlete's sport, as long as the student-athlete represents only the student-athlete in the competition and does not engage in such competition as a member of or receive expenses from an outside team. [17.33.1.8.1 renumbered as 17.33.1.9.1, unchanged.] 17.33.1.9.2 Exception -- No Competition During First Term -- Men's Wrestling. In men's wrestling, a student-athlete shall not participate in outside competition as an individual during the student athlete's first full-time term of collegiate enrollment. Thereafter, a student-athlete shall meet the minimum grade-point average requirement specified in Bylaw 14.3.3.3.3 in order to be eligible to compete in outside competition as an individual. [17.33.1.9 through 17.33.1.12 renumbered as 17.33.1.10 through 17.33.1.13, unchanged.] [17.33.2 through 17.33.5 unchanged.] Source: NCAA Division I Council (Committee on Academics) Effective Date: Sections A, B, D: August 1, 2022 Section C: August 1, 2023; effective for student-athletes who initially enroll full time at any four-year collegiate institution on or after August 1, 2023. Topical Area: Academic Eligibility Rationale: Recent review of the Division I Academic Progress Rate (APR) data for men's wrestling prompted a detailed examination of the issues impacting the academic success of Division I men's wrestling student athletes, specifically the trends most commonly seen during the first year of college. That study, led by the Division I Wrestling Academic Enhancement Group, resulted in a comprehensive legislative proposal to support the academic success, retention and well-being of Division I men's wrestling student-athletes. Specifically, the proposal raises and standardizes the cumulative grade-point average progress-toward degree requirement for men's wrestling student-athletes, applicable immediately during the first year of college, to incentivize early academic performance and focus. The proposal further requires all counters in men's wrestling to receive at least a 20% equivalency, to decrease the financial pressures historically experienced by some men's wrestling student-athletes. To better position an institution's ability to directly support the health and overall well-being of men's wrestling student-athletes who are redshirted during their first-year, this proposal would allow student-athletes to compete in up to five dates of regular-season competition without using a season of competition. Lastly, providing access to the proposed five contest date exception warrants prohibiting outside competition during a student-athlete's first term of enrollment, and moving forward, requiring all student-athletes to maintain a 2.000 grade-point average to engage in outside competition during the academic year. Estimated Budget Impact: None. Impact on Student-Athlete's Time (Academic and/or Athletics): None. History: Nov 11, 2021 In Progress Feb 7, 2022 Ready for Vote Apr 13, 2022 Tabled Tabled based on the pending work of the Transformation Committee. Jun 15, 2022 Ready for Vote Jun 15, 2022 Adopted by Council Legislative References Legislative Cite Title 12.8 Seasons of Competition: Five-Year Rule. 12.8.3 Criteria for Determining Season of Competition. 12.8.3.1 Minimum Amount of Competition. 14.4 Progress-Toward-Degree Requirements. 14.4.3 Eligibility for Competition. 14.4.3.3 Fulfillment of Minimum Grade-Point Average Requirements. 14.4.3.3.2 Timing of Certification. Legislative Cite Title 15.5 Maximum Institutional Grant-in-Aid Limitations by Sport. 15.5.3 Equivalency Sports. 15.5.3.1 Maximum Equivalency Limits. 15.5.3.1.1 Men's Sports. 17.33 Outside Competition, Effects on Eligibility. 17.33.1 Outside Competition -- Sports Other Than Basketball. 17.33.1.2 Exception -- Wrestling. 17.33.1.8 Competition as Individual/Not Representing Institution. Student-Athlete Success/Well-Being: Yes. The proposed standards and new provisions are intended to help all men's wrestling student-athletes achieve an academic foundation during their initial year of college, while also helping to provide financial and well-being support. Enforceable and Merits Outweigh Monitoring Burdens: Yes. The merits of implementing standards intended to improve the academic success and overall well-being of men's wrestling student-athletes outweigh the monitoring burdens. Consequential or Nationally Significant: Yes. Legislation applicable to all men's wrestling student-athletes is nationally significant. Division I Commitment: The Commitment to Sound Academic Standards.

2020 EIWA runner-up Yaraslau Slavikouski (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...Harvard! 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 NCAA Qualifiers (16) 2022 165: Phil Conigliaro (#8) 2020 165: Phil Conigliaro (#17); 285: Yaraslau Slavikouski (#10) 2018 174: Josef Johnson 2017 133: Jeff Ott; 149: Hunter Ladnier; 174: Josef Johnson 2016 141: Todd Preston (#10); 165: Devon Gobbo (#16); 174: Josef Johnson 2015 285: David Ng 2014 141: Todd Preston (#10); 197: James Fox 2013 141: Steven Keith; 157: Walter Peppelman (#11); 197: James Fox NCAA Champions None NCAA All-Americans None NWCA All-Americans 2020: Yaraslau Slavikouski (285 - 2nd Team) NCAA Round of 12 Finishers 2022: Phil Conigliaro (165 lbs) 2014: Todd Preston (141 lbs) EIWA Champions 2022: Phil Conigliaro (165) 2016: Devon Gobbo (165) 2014: Todd Preston (141) EIWA Runner's Up 2022: Yaraslau Slavikouski (285) 2017: Jeff Ott (133); Hunter Ladnier (149) 2016: Todd Preston (141) 2013: Walter Peppelman (157); James Fox (197) Dual Record 2021-22: 4-5 2021: Season Canceled 2019-20: 3-10 2018-19: 2-9 2017-18: 6-4 2016-17: 3-8 2015-16: 8-4 2014-15: 3-8 2013-14: 4-9 2012-13: 8-5 Conference Tournament Placement 2021-22: 9th 2021: Season Canceled 2019-20: 12th 2018-19: 14th 2017-18: 11th 2016-17: 10th 2015-16: 9th 2014-15: 14th 2013-14: 9th 2012-13: 7th NCAA Tournament Team Placement 2021-22: 52nd-tie 2021: Season Canceled 2019-20: Tournament Canceled 2017-19: No Point Scorers 2017-18: 56th-tie 2016-17: 60th-tie 2015-16: 45th-tie 2014-15: 65th 2013-14: 58th-tie 2012-13: 41st Head Coaching History Jay Weiss (1994-Present) Best Lineup (Comprised of wrestlers from 2013-22) 125 - Beau Bayless: 2022 EIWA fifth-place finisher 133 - Jeff Ott: 2017 NCAA Qualifier; 2017 EIWA runner-up 141 - Todd Preston: 2x NCAA Qualifier (#10 seed x2); 2014 EIWA Champion, 2x EIWA finalist 149 - Hunter Ladnier: 2017 NCAA Qualifier; 2017 EIWA runner-up 157 - Walter Peppelman: 3x NCAA Qualifier (#4 and #11 x2 seeds); 2012 NCAA 8th Place, 2x EIWA runner-up 165 - Phil Congiliaro: 2x NCAA Qualifier (#8 and #17 seeds); 2022 EIWA Champion; 2022 NCAA Round of 12 finisher 174 - Josef Johnson: 3x NCAA Qualifier 184 - Cameron Croy: 2014 EIWA sixth-place finisher 197 - James Fox: 3x NCAA Qualifier; 2013 NCAA Runner-Up 285 - Yaraslau Slavikouski: 2020 NCAA Qualifier (#10 seed); 2020 EIWA runner-up Recruiting Big Boarder's Per Year 2022: #106 Jack Crook (FL); #121 Joe Cangro (NJ); #149 Jimmy Harrington (MA); #203 Dante Frinzi (PA); #237 Mark Bobola (MA) 2021: #98 Diego Sotelo (IL); #108 Alex Whitworth (GA); #187 Cael Berg (MN) 2020: #51 Kenny Herrmann (PA); #57 Dom Mata (CA) 2018: #76 Leonardo Tarantino (FL) 2016: #39 Hunter Ladnier (OH); #52 Kyle Bierdumpfel (NJ); #119 AJ Jaffe (IL) 2015: #104 Thomas Dutton (NY); #114 Nolan Hellickson (IA) 2013: #15 Eric Morris (PA); #51 Brad Perkins (MO); #85 Tyler Grimaldi (NY)

Mason Gibson at the 2022 Cadet Trials (photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) On the first day that DI schools were allowed to contact prospective student-athletes from the Class of 2024, Cornell received a huge commitment. #16 overall Mason Gibson (Bishop McCort, PA) announced via social media that he had given the Big Red a verbal. Gibson was a Pennsylvania AA state runner-up as a freshman for Bishop McCort; however, he and his teammates were not able to compete in the postseason in 2022 (and for the next two seasons) because of punishments handed down by the PIAA regarding transfers and recruiting. Even without a state tournament, Gibson and his teammates have managed to shine on the national level. So far in 2022, Gibson has won NHSCA Sophomore Nationals and took seventh at 55 kg at the Cadet World Team Trials in freestyle. Last year, Gibson was third at the Cadet Trials in the same weight class. He later went on to place top-three in both styles in Fargo at the 16U level, winning Greco and taking third in freestyle. Mason announced his presence in 2019 by winning the 106 lb weight class at the Super 32 despite being in eighth grade. A year later, Gibson was third. Getting Gibson shouldn't be considered a huge surprise as his older brother, Erik, was the #56 recruit in the Class of 2022 and is headed to Ithaca. We still have two full years of competition before the younger Gibson enrolls at Cornell so nailing down his projected weight may be difficult. Seeing as he wrestled 55 kg in April and based on his body type, he may be a 133 lber for Mike Grey's team. For all of the recruiting listings, check out InterMat's College Commitment Page.

New Cleveland State assistant coach Devin Schroder (photo courtesy of Cleveland State athletics) CLEVELAND, Ohio – The Cleveland State Athletic Department and head wrestling coach Josh Moore announced the hiring of Devin Schroder as an assistant coach for the Vikings program. Schroder arrives at Cleveland State after a standout career at Purdue University from 2016-to 2022. He was a four-time NCAA Championships 125-pound qualifier (2019-22), becoming the third wrestler in program history to earn a top 10 national seed at least three times. Schroder was also a four-time Big Ten placer (2019-22). "Devin will make an immediate impact on our program and student-athletes," said Moore. "After a stellar career at Purdue and competing in the Big Ten, he understands what it takes to be successful at this level. His passion for the sport and helping others make him a great fit here at Cleveland State." Schroder earned NWCA First Team All-American honors in 2020 after receiving the fifth seed at the NCAA National Championships, which was canceled due to COVID-19. He was ranked as high as No. 2 in the nation via The Open Mat, TrackWrestling, and WIN Magazine. "I can't describe how excited and grateful I am to be a part of this team and community," said Schroder. "Coach Moore has already laid the groundwork for the program, and I look forward to helping guide and develop the young men on the team into leaders that will succeed on and off the mat." Schroder graduated from Purdue tied for No. 16 in win percentage in program history (96-37), with 49 of those victories coming via bonus points. He also led the Boilermakers in technical falls four times (2018, 2020-22) which combined for 23 in those years, and graduated with 27. In addition, Schroder was named Most Dominant (2020-22) and was named Purdue's Most Outstanding Wrestler in 2021. Schroder was a three-time Michigan High School Division 3 State Champion for Grand Rapids Catholic Central. He was ranked No. 10 by WIN Magazine, No. 11 by FloWrestling, and No. 17 by Intermat and was the No. 99 overall recruit by FloWrestling. Schroder graduated with a record of 189-7. Schroder graduated with a bachelor's degree in industrial engineering and his master's in technology leadership & innovations from Purdue. In 2022, Schroder was named Purdue's Joe Patacsil Leadership award recipient and was named to the All-BIG Ten All-Academic team.

Alex Madrigal at the 2022 Southern Scuffle (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…George Mason! 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 NCAA Qualifiers (13) 2020 149: Colston DiBlasi (#17) 2019 149: Tejon Anthony (#27); 165: Colston DiBlasi (#30); 285: Matt Voss (#13) 2018 125: Ibrahim Bunduka; 141: Tejon Anthony; 285: Matt Voss 2017 125: Ibrahim Bunduka; 149: Sahid Kargbo 2016 157: Greg Flournoy 2015 157: Greg Flournoy; 285: Jake Kettler 2013 285: Jake Kettler NCAA Champions None NCAA All-Americans None NCAA Round of 12 Finishers None EWL Champions 2019: Tejon Anthony (149) Dual Record 2021-22: 9-8 2021: 0-4 2019-20: 9-9 2018-19: 9-7 2017-18: 4-13 2016-17: 7-12 2015-16: 8-15 2014-15: 10-12 2013-14: 6-12 2012-13: 4-16 Conference Tournament Placement MAC 2021-22: 11th 2021: 11th 2019-20: 13th EWL 2018-19: 3rd 2017-18: 7th 2016-17: 5th 2015-16: 6th 2014-15: 5th 2013-14: 7th CAA 2012-13: 6th Head Coaching History Frank Beasley (2017-Present) Joe Russell (2011-17) Best Lineup (Comprised of wrestlers from 2013-22) 125 - Ibrahim Bunduka: 2x NCAA Qualifier; 2018 EWL runner-up 133 - Vince Rodriguez: 2012 NCAA Qualifier 141 - Tejon Anthony: 2x NCAA Qualifier; 2019 EWL Champion 149 - Alex Madrigal: Injured at MAC's in 2022 (20-4 record); 2x NCAA Qualifier at Old Dominion 157 - Greg Flournoy: 2x NCAA Qualifier; 2015 EWL runner-up 165 - Colston DiBlasi: 2x NCAA Qualifier (#17 seed) 174 - Logan Messer 184 - Ryan Hembury 197 - Eli Spencer 285 - Matt Voss: 2x NCAA Qualifier (#13 seed); 2018 EWL runner-up Recruiting Big Boarder's Per Year 2021: #113 Logan Messer (OH); #141 Avery Bassett (PA); #188 Jon List (OH); #251 Nathan Higley (PA) 2020: #173 Eli Dickens (IN); #177 Kaden Cassidy (PA) 2019: #98 Josh Jones (PA)