InterMat Staff

Iowa Head Coach Tom Brands debating a call at the 2021 NCAA Championships (Photo/Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) It seems like just yesterday that you agreed to join a league and got that @Wrestlestat invite in your email Inbox. Since then, you have been scrolling through rosters, reading our articles (if you're smart), and compiling your shortlists of "need-to-haves" and "deep-dives." Then, comes draft day. You click "Enter Draft," and lo and behold, you come to find that YOU are the number #1 pick. Easy, right? In a season-long format, there are many things to consider. Even though Matthew Berry is primarily a Fantasy Football expert, his pre-season manifesto can be a great foundation for fantasy wrestling as well. All the points are there: minimize risk week to week, getting the most or exceeding value for the pick, do the research, and (in my humble opinion, the most important) know the rules/scoring. His 2019 article may have had one of the most important quotes to remember, regardless of Fantasy Sport: "You can't win your league in the first round, but you can lose it." So, let's run through the pros and cons of each potential #1 wrestler to start the season at each weight. And keep in mind, regular WrestleStat leagues are REGULAR SEASON ONLY, unless you and your league agree to carry the rosters over to NCAAs (personal scoring at that point). Plan and strategize accordingly. Let's get to it. This article is long enough without the witty preface: 125: Spencer Lee (Iowa) Do I really have to type these words? Do you really need someone to recommend taking Spencer FREAKING Lee with the #1 overall pick?! Is this how this article is really going to start? Obviously, Spencer Lee. Three Championships sans two ACLs is pretty impressive. Add to the fact that he has gone 30-0 in the last two seasons (regular and post) with an average of 90% bonus rate and 21 of those victories by way of Tech or Pin. He's basically been the closest thing to a "lock" to win by bonus for two straight seasons, and if your league carries over to the postseason…. Fuggedaboudit. Really, what else do I have to say? However.... All signs point to this season being "back to normal," with a start date of November 1 and a full slate of duals and tournaments. As of the publishing of this article, it is unknown what the status of Spencer's health is (mainly in the knee regions). Chances are, Spencer would be on a "pitch count" during the regular season, regardless. For Fantasy purposes, in the regular season-only leagues, even the most dominant wrestlers can't score points if they're on the bench. There are plenty of wrestlers who will be wrestling every match for their team and will be Add to that the uncertainty of returning wrestlers and newcomers to the lowest weight class. The Ivys return and are arguably the #2 and #3 in the weight class. In 2020, Pat Glory (PRIN) looked as good as any wrestler in the country and seemed destined for the NCAA finals. He finished the 2020 regular season 20-0 with a 75% bonus rate (including one win by injury) and was the #2 Fantasy Wrestler at 125 (#16 across all weights). The other Ivy wrestler who is primed for a stellar Fantasy year is Vito Arujau (COR), if he is down to the weight. We haven't seen him on the Folkstyle mat since 2019, but when he was riding, he took 4th at 2019 Nationals and finished with a 54% bonus rate. Add into that the rumor of Suriano (UNAT) and Fix (OKST, though doubtful) dropping down, and there are A LOT of other viable options which will be available week-in and week-out. 133: Roman Bravo-Young (Penn State) He's finished consistently in the Top 10 in Fantasy points at the weight for the past two seasons (#7 in 2020 and #8 in 2021), with a 50% or better bonus rate in each, despite having an Average Draft Position of 36.26 in 2020 Drafts and 20.72 in 2021. That ADP is going to get a lot lower probably this draft season. He was tied for 4th in Team Points among all 330 wrestlers and the second-highest scorer on the Penn State squad at 2021 Nationals, as well as coming in as the highest Nittany Lion in Fantasy Points for the 2021 season. From being an AA Contender in 2019 (True Freshman season where he placed 8th), to National Champion contender in 2020 (2nd at the Big Ten Championships), to National champion in 2021. He's the front runner until proven otherwise in a very deep and dangerous 133 weight class. Although.... That's the point; the 133 class is dark and full of terrors. Austin DeSanto (IOWA), Sebastian Rivera or Sammy Alvarez (RUT), Stevan Micic (MICH), Lucas Byrd (ILL), and Chris Cannon (NW) in the Big Ten, alone. I'm not saying that they all could beat RBY, but you have to admit that those are some pretty good wrestlers who you would have a lot of confidence in if you had to rely on JUST regular-season results. In the past two seasons, Micky Phillippi (PITT) has scored more Fantasy Points than RBY. Last season in the Big Ten alone, Lucas Byrd and Austin DeSanto were better Fantasy options. With a full season in 2020, and Penn State not having scheduled a bracket tournament in the regular season, it may come to solely an opportunity for quantity of matches. Also, just like how Happy learned to putt, Daton learned to pin. Daton was a dangerous man this past season, becoming the #1 Fantasy Wrestler in only five matches mainly because of the specifically tailored Cowboy Challenge and that four of his five matches were won by pin (that one win that wasn't a pin, was a win by Tech). One pick that may fall in the rounds but is a perfect Fantasy play for the weight is Michael McGee (ASU). Last season he had the highest bonus rate of his career (53%) and won four of his 6 regular season matches by major… and with an aggregate score of those six total wins at 70-19 (dude can put up POINTS). 141: Nick Lee (Penn State) Will he come back or was the 2021 title his Folkstyle swan song? Will he be going 141 again or bumping up to 149? Can dogs really not look up? The answer is yes, Nick Lee will return to defend his National Title at the weight. And yes, dogs can look up… Big Al. There was a time, in the early part of the 2020 season, where a good argument could have been made for Nick Lee to win The Hodge. He recorded three pins and seven techs in the regular season on his way to taking 2nd in the Big Ten Championships and setting up the inevitable rubber match in the 2020 National Championship Finals. In Fact, using the last rankings of the regular season, Lee had beaten four of the top 10 wrestlers in the weight, three of them by bonus. 2020 marked Lee's all-time highest career bonus rate in a season at 76%, whereas in 2021, 2019, and 2018 he was closer to the average of about 65%. In Spite of That…. Penn State does not have an actual bracketed tournament on its schedule for the regular season. Usually, they would have the Black Knight Invite, or Keystone CLassic, along with the Southern Scuffle… but not this year. The only tournament is the Journeyman Collegiate Duals (which will be FIRE), but it only accounts for 4 matches this season compared to a possible 10 in year's past. Going conservative, that's a potential 18 Fantasy Points unavailable (maybe 22+ going by average bonus rate). In contrast, Jaydin Eierman and the Iowa Hawkeyes will not only compete in the same Journeyman Collegiate Duals, but also in Midlands, and have a constant dual per week in the home stretch of the competition schedule. Add into that, Kizahn Clarke (the 2020 #1 Fantasy Wrestler) and Andrew Alirez (UNCO) are moving down, Real Woods (STAN) and Clay Carlson (2021 #1 Fantasy Wrestler at 141) return, and all have more Fantasy match opportunities than Nick Lee. 149: Yianni Diakomihalis (Cornell) Moving up a weight from where he has seen 66 wins, two titles, and only one loss, Yianni D comes in as the man to beat without ever wrestling at the weight. He returns from making his first World Team to attempt to be a four-time NCAA Champ and be etched into the folklore of Folkstyle. In his two championship seasons (2018 and 2019), he averaged a bonus rate of 64% and at least 50% of the wins against D1 competition in each of those seasons was by Tech of Pin. In fact, in 2019, eight of his first 10 matches were won by bonus (and one win via MFF, which technically counts for bonus on the team scores). No matter the weight, Yianni is almost penciled into the 2022 National Finals. On The Other Hand…. We haven't seen him on the Folkstyle scene in 2 years. While that's more of a joke than concern, there is something to be said of coming back to the NCAA grind of a full regular season. However, in May 2021, Yianni had an interview where he indicated that maybe he doesn't keep the usual high match load and will only wrestle in certain duals, a tournament or two, and hit the Freestyle scene during the year. All I hear is, "I won't be on the mat to score Fantasy Points." He also mentioned that he really doesn't know (at that time at least) what weight he will be going (I'd link the video, but the company has a history of suing, so…). The bigger issue is… what weight will he go? Only Yianni and a select few know (not me, they don't tell me anything. I don't even know the WiFi password at InterMat HQ). But not knowing what weight a wrestler is going can have a ripple effect on the rest of your lineup. Assume he's going 149 and he actually goes 141? Now you have a hole at 149 or vice versa. Just for peace of mind alone, you might want to go with Sammy Sasso (OHST), who finished as the #4 Fantasy Wrestler at 149 this season and had 20 team points at NCAAs. On another note, what if we look at the postseason only (for those of you with carry-over rosters to NCAAs)? In his 2018 championship, he scored 22 team points (his finalist opponent Bryce Meredith scored 18). In his 2019 championship, Yianni scored 20 team points (the minimum for a champion), while his finalist opponent Joey McKenna scored 19.5 team points. Championships are one thing, but when the point difference is slightly minimal between the 1st round and say, the 3rd round, that huge. Just sayin'. 157: David Carr (Iowa State) Despite Iowa State having a few non-D1 matches on their schedule (five to be exact for Mr. Carr), he was still able to grab the #5 Fantasy Spot at 157 as five of his seven D1 matches were won by bonus (71%, in case you were wondering). Career-wise, he's only lost two matches in his career, one being to Peyton Mocco (MIZZ) in his True Freshman (Redshirt) season and the other to eventual CKLV champion Ryan Deakin (NW) in the semi-finals. Looking at the schedule, there will be some challenges in Kaleb Young (IOWA) and Kendall Coleman (PUR) before the new year, but after that, in the regular season, it looks to be smooth sailing (on paper, anyway). He ends the season with 11 dual matches scheduled against D1 competition in 7 weeks, with the Last Chance Open as the last competition of the Cyclone Season (2/20/2021) Conversely…. I'll be honest, it's hard to come up with reasons why Carr might not be worth the #1 overall pick, but possibly the two biggest points that will loom in the back of your head on draft day are that Ryan Deakin (NW) has beaten Carr before and Austin O'Connor (UNC) is moving up after winning a title at 149 in an undefeated season while boasting a regular-season bonus rate of 83%. Deakin was the #4 Fantasy Wrestler in 2020 (only had 3 regular season matches in 2021 that totaled 12 Fantasy points). From a regular season-only standpoint, 157 might be the equivalent of the Fantasy Football Defense or Kicker spot. The depth of serviceable and All-American threat contenders goes at least 15 deep on InterMat's rankings (the only D1 rankings that matter). This could be a weight that you skip to the later rounds and focus on other holes in your lineup now and worry about the add/drop at 157 for later on in the week. 165: Shane Griffith (Stanford) Saint Shane of Stanford, the Savior of the Sport, was rumored for a short time to be moving up a weight. That has since been squashed and Griffith returns to defend his title at 165. In the 2020 season as a redshirt freshman, Griffith went 28-0 (inclusive of the 2 wins at the Pac-12 Championships) and a 61% bonus rate. In fact, in 2020, he was the #1 Fantasy Wrestler at 165 and the #13 overall wrestler in Fantasy Points. Over those past two seasons, his win percentage is 97% over the past two seasons (30-1), with the lone loss being against Anthony Valencia (ASU) in the Pac-12 Championships. With a normal training regime, a seasoned and veteran coach in Rob Koll, and regular competition schedule, Griffith has all the potential to recreate his 2020 season stats. Then Again…. As the schedule shows, there are only 9 duals in 16 weeks, as compared to Penn State (14 duals, not counting the Journeyman Collegiate Duals), Arizona State (12), Iowa (12), etc etc. They do have three tournaments (CKLV, Reno TOC, and the Southern Scuffle), but will the starters go to all three? Before leaving Cornell with his new $2.5 million contract for the sunny San Fran Bay, he had noted that potentially he would be cutting down on the wear and tear that comes with the typical season-long quantity of matches (See 149 Yianni Diakomihalis). I can't imagine a couple of months and 3,000 miles have really changed that thought. Add into that the depth of Fantasy 165 lbers in veterans Alex Marinelli (#7 in 2020), Travis Wittlake (#4 in 2020), Zach Hartman (#3 in 2020), and Griffith's Pac-12 neighbors Anthony Valencia (#8 in 2021) and Evan Wick (#2 in 2020 while in the Big Ten). Don't forget about the newcomers Keegan O'Toole (#3 Fantasy Wrestler at 165 in 2021), Carson Kharchla (#20 in 2020 as a redshirt), and Andrew Sparks (#14 in 2021 while only having a 21% bonus rate). For the regular season only, there are a lot of other choices that you can snag in the other rounds that may finish higher than Griffith. 174: Carter Starocci (Penn State) The first of two freshmen on this list who have the rare opportunity to potentially be a 5X National Champion. Starocci made a splash in 2020 with his performance at the Southern Scuffle scoring 25 Fantasy Points while wearing Mark Hall's singlets. He finished as the #8 Fantasy Wrestler at 174 in 2020. He made such an impression in that Redshirt season, that I (Mr. FantasyD1Wrestling) selected him with my 1st round pick in the #MatScouts Dynasty League and helped secure the 'ship. He started off slow last season, losing a close one to Donnell Washington (IND), and then had several close matches (understandably) to Logan Massa and Kaleb Romero (OHST). But this season, I expect statistics more comparable to those of his 2019 season. And Yet…. Two new roommates from the ACC move to the 174 neighborhood this season in former National Champ Mekhi Lewis (VT) and Hayden Hidlay (NCST), who finished the last two seasons (at 57) with a bonus rate over 72%. That adds to an already formidable group of Michael Kemerer, who finished one slot behind Starocci (as the #18 Fantasy Wrestler) despite Carter having three more matches than Kemerer and Michael Labriola, who finished as the #8 Fantasy Wrestler at 174. Oh, and add in also recipient of the MatScouts most improved wrestler Ethan Smith (also moving on up), who finished 5th at NCAAs last season. Oh, and Carter will be facing these three in 10 days during the season. FUN! 184: Aaron Brooks (Penn State) In 2020 as a "True Freshman" starter for the Nittany Lions, he wrestled 13 matches against D1 competition and ended up being the #3 seed at the NCAAs that never happened. More importantly (for this article), with less than half the matches wrestled than most of the wrestlers in the top 20, Aaron Brooks finished as the #21 Fantasy Wrestler. In fact, no wrestler in the Top-20 at 184 had less than 18 matches wrestled. Last season, while Penn State as a whole seemed to start out of the gate a little sluggish, Brooks was the only one who seemed to pick up where the 2020 season left off with winning four of his five regular-season matches by bonus and finished as the #12 Fantasy Wrestler at 174 (had he beaten Jaden Bullock of Michigan by Major, he would have been #10 at 174). Much like RBY at 133, he's the top dog at 184 until proven otherwise. But…. San Marino's favorite Mat Rat returns to Michigan in his final year of eligibility to try and cap off one hell of a 9 months and get over the hump of reaching the NCAA Finals. Myles Amine has finished 4th, 3rd, 3rd, 3rd in his four trips to the National Tournament. If you're looking for consistency in winning, Myles Amine is it. The weight is stacked with formidable Fantasy wrestlers from Trent Hidlay (#13 Fantasy Wrestler at 184 in 2020), Louie DePrez (#6 Fantasy Wrestler in 2020), and Hunter Bolen (#5 Fantasy Wrestler in 2020). Old vets in Dakota Geer (#2 Fantasy Wrestler at 184 in 2021) and the always spontaneous Taylor Venz (who has a win over Aaron Brooks in his career), mixed in with the New Kids on the Mat of Parker Keckeisen (#6 Fantasy Wrestler in 2021) and John Poznanski (finished 4th at NCAAs as a True Freshman) make this weight very very interesting come Draft Day. 197: AJ Ferrari (Oklahoma State) The second possible 5-time National Champion to grace this list. He finished the 2020 season as the number 2 Fantasy Wrestler at 197, (only being upstaged by THE Fantasy Wrestler of the year, Tanner Sloan), and the 10th Fantasy Wrestler across all weights. Did you know he can also deadlift 665 lbs? For those interested, here's a list of animals around 600 lbs that Aj Ferrari could deadlift. Despite a lack of ranked opponents during the regular season, Ferrari more than proved himself on his way to the 197 Title by beating the InterMat Ranked #16 Woodley (OU), #5 ranked Tanner Sloan (SDSU), and #6 ranked Stephen Buchanan (WYO) for the BigXII crown, then beating Sloan again, Jacob Warner (IOWA), Myles Amine (MICH), and Nino Bonaccorsi (PITT) at NCAAS. I'd say he just about proved himself to all the doubters. Through the regular season and postseason, he had the third-best percentage of Takedowns For and Against, 58 to 2, respectively. Only Gable Steveson (62-1) and David Carr (60-1) had (slightly) better percentages. Despite the theatrics, the social media blasts, and the lack of shirts worn, you can't deny the guy can scrap. And isn't that really the point? Nevertheless…. Myles Amine may have dropped down, but Pat Brucki takes over the 197 slot for Michigan, which (from a Fantasy production standpoint) is an improvement for bonus percentage (46% in 2020 for Brucki as compared to 27% by Amine in 2019 in both their last, pre-covid, full seasons). Someone else who enters the chat at 197? Ben Darmstadt. A lot of people forget just how good a lot of these Ivy wrestlers are just because they are one season removed from competition. In 2020, he had 13 Pins and two Techs helping him finish as the #4 Fantasy Wrestler at 197 (granted, he wrestled about half his matches at 184 before moving back up to 197). He had two losses by pin and one loss by injury, which also counted for -18 Fpts on his scoresheet. I don't often like to play the "what if" game, but if he lost those three matches by Decision instead? He would have finished as the #2 Fantasy Wrestler at 197 that year. Had those matches not even been wrestled? He would have been tied for 1st. He may be a later-round steal for your draft. Nine of the Top 10 Fantasy wrestlers from last season return, with Luke Surber (Ferrari's teammate as #10). Even though Ferrari finished #2 at 197 in Fantasy Points, he had the https://intermatwrestle.com/articles/24615second lowest Points Per Match (PPM) statistic out of the Top 10 (beating only teammate Luke Surber). So while the number of matches won matters, Fantasy Wrestling is All About That Bonus, 'bout That Bonus (no Treble). 285: Gable Steveson (Minnesota) Has anyone else had the kind of 2021 like Gable Steveson? NCAA Champion, Olympic Gold Medalist, WWE cameo pop-ins? Last year in 2021 was one of the most dominant in all of the NCAA outside of Spencer Lee (though the argument can be made that Steveson had a more demanding regular-season schedule). He's only lost two matches in his career (his true freshman season 2019 to Anthony Cassar) and has steadily increased his bonus rate year after year. He's separated himself into the top tier by himself at the heaviest of weights in the sport, and has earned the "next topic" (maybe more so than Spencer too). Add to that, the InterMatScout CEO Brain heard from good sources that Steveson will be coming back (First Word on 8/23/2021) and what do you know… that's what happened! So with the biggest student-athlete (weight class and wallet), returning with hundreds of thousands to millions of potential "new wrestling" fans, the best marketing plan for Gable would be for him to turn completely heel. That means more face-mushes, shoves, and more DeSanto-Esque antics to entertain the masses and build up that reputation. That Said…. Only Gable Steveson and his daily journal know what his next move is (*disclaimer, I do not actually know if he has a journal). He's earned a huge payday from the gold medal, and an even bigger one recently with a lot more zeroes in his bank account when he signed with the WWE. Though it's not injury-induced like Spencer Lee, Steveson could be on a "pitch count" due solely for opportunity costs. One bad scramble, one awkward step, one slight tweak, and who knows, maybe the WWE requests he limit his time on the mat. I'm just Recklessly Speculating here. The Opposite may be true, too. Only show up for the big matches (Iowa, Nebraska, Wisconsin, and Michigan), which have a greater chance of potentially being only decisions, which don't help you the Fantasy Manager. Notice I said, greater chance… I know his bonus record. Now from a Fantasy perspective, Heavyweight is one of the most deep (and entertaining) weights we have. Mason Parris (MICH) could be a second-round pick this year who scored 22.5 Team Points (which was tied for 4th highest at 2021 NCAAs). Cohlton Schultz (ASU) scored 17.5,Team Points, Anthony Cassioppi (IOWA) scored 16.5, Matt Stencel had a "down year" after having two prior seasons with a bonus rate average of 57.5%, and they could all fall to the 3rd or later rounds. Extreme value potential is everywhere. So, you've read the article, you've had time to think about it. Who is it going to be? Which wrestler gets the honor of calling you "coach" first this season? The clock is ticking… tock, tick, tock...

2021 NCAA Runner-Up Jaydin Eierman (Photo/Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com; Graphic/Anna-Lee Marie) Welcome to a new recurring feature from InterMat as we lead into the 2021-22 collegiate season. We are about 50 days away from the start of the new season, so what better way to ring in the new year than to use that time to count down the top-50 current collegiate wrestlers. Each day a new wrestler will be released. These rankings have been compiled by members of the InterMat staff and used a combination of collegiate achievements, with 2021 accomplishments carrying more weight than past years, along with win-loss records and notable wins. While we are counting down the top-50 wrestlers based primarily on collegiate accomplishments, it is impossible to totally ignore achievements in the international settings, so they did factor in slightly, too. Before getting to the next wrestler on the list, look at the wrestlers previously profiled: #50 - Greg Kerkvliet (Penn State) #49 - Ben Darmstadt (Cornell) #48 - Dakota Geer (Oklahoma State) #47 - Kaleb Young (Iowa) #46 - Rocky Elam (Missouri) #45 - Chad Red Jr. (Nebraska) #44 - Brandon Courtney (Arizona State) #43 - Brock Mauller (Missouri) #42 - Cohlton Schultz (Arizona State) #41 - John Poznanski (Rutgers) #40 - Brayton Lee (Minnesota) #39 - Travis Wittlake (Oklahoma State) #38 - Parker Keckeisen (Northern Iowa) #37 - Tariq Wilson (NC State) #36 - Jacob Warner (Iowa) #35 - Jacori Teemer (Arizona State) #34 - Tony Cassioppi (Iowa) #33 - Vito Arujau (Cornell) #32 - Patrick Glory (Princeton) #31 - Max Dean (Penn State) #30 - Keegan O'Toole (Missouri) #29 - Mike Labriola (Nebraska) #28 - Nino Bonaccorsi (Pittsburgh) #27 - Austin DeSanto (Iowa) #26 - Jake Wentzel (Pittsburgh) #25 - Evan Wick (Cal Poly) #24 - Alex Marinelli (Iowa) #23 - Ryan Deakin (Northwestern) #22 - Sebastian Rivera (Rutgers) #21 - Sammy Sasso (Ohio State) #20 - Trent Hidlay (NC State) #19 - Stevan Micic (Michigan) #18 - Hayden Hidlay (NC State) #17 - Mekhi Lewis (Virginia Tech) #16 - Michael Kemerer (Iowa) #15 - Mason Parris (Michigan) #14 - Shane Griffith (Stanford) #13 - AJ Ferrari (Oklahoma State) #12 - Carter Starocci (Penn State) Next up is… #11 Jaydin Eierman (Iowa) Weight: 141 lbs Year: Senior Career Record: 103-15 Hometown: Columbia, Missouri College Accomplishments: 2021 NCAA Runner-Up, 2021 Big Ten Champion, 3x MAC Champion, 2019 NCAA 3rd, 2018 NCAA 4th, 2017 NCAA 5th 2021-22 Preseason Ranking: #2 at 141 lbs Four-time, undefeated Missouri state champion Jaydin Eierman didn't have to look very far for his initial college of choice, as he stayed in his hometown to attend the University of Missouri. At the time, he was only the second Missouri wrestler to go undefeated and win four titles. Eierman redshirted during his initial year with Mizzou and amassed a 22-2 record with wins at the Roger Denker Open, the UNI Open, and the Joe Parisi Open. The first official year competing at Missouri saw Eierman start the year at 133 lbs, but he would move up to 141 for the Southern Scuffle. Eierman finished fifth at the tournament and stayed at 141 for the remainder of the year (and his career). Eierman would go on to win the first of his three MAC titles and took fifth at the 2017 NCAA Championships, despite entering as the eighth seed. He scored victories over a pair of top-four seeds at the tournament, majoring #3 Joey McKenna (Stanford) and downing #4 Matt Kolodzik (Princeton), 6-2. He had a sparkling sophomore campaign, suffering only one loss during the regular season to returning NCAA runner-up Bryce Meredith (Wyoming) at the Reno Tournament of Champions. Eierman also handed true freshman Yianni Diakomihalis (Cornell) a 9-6 loss at the South Beach Duals. That was the first, and to date, only, loss of Diakomihalis' collegiate career. Of course, Diakomihalis got revenge in the NCAA semifinals. This time, at the 2018 NCAA Tournament, McKenna, wrestling for Ohio State, turned the tables with a 7-2 win in the third-place bout. Once again, at the 2019 NCAA Championships, it was Diakomihalis who halted Eierman's run on the championship side. Again, it was by a razor-thin margin (6-5), but this time coming in the quarterfinals. Eierman bounced back and finished in third place for his third All-American honor. Eierman's history on the freestyle scene allowed him to sit out the 2019-20 season and use an Olympic redshirt. When Eierman remerged on the collegiate scene, he announced he would finish his career in familiar colors, but a different singlet, while at the University of Iowa. With a new staff and training partners in the fold, Eierman looked as good as ever in the 2021 season. He started the dual season with an 8-4 win over returning 2x NCAA All-American Chad Red (Nebraska), before pinning three of his four remaining dual opponents. In one of the Big Ten's deepest weights, Eierman needed to get by Red again just to make the conference finals. He did so and was opposed by Penn State star, Nick Lee. In one of the most highly anticipated matches of the B1G tournament, Eierman edged Lee, 6-5, to grab a Big Ten crown. The win would allow Eierman to receive the top-seed at the 2021 NCAA Championships. Back in his home state, at the NCAA Championships in St. Louis, Eierman blew through the competition in his first four rounds. He notched a tech fall to go along with a pair of pins, the last one coming against the eventual third-place finisher (Tariq Wilson - NC State) in the semis. In the finals, it was another meeting with Lee. This time, the Nittany Lions star prevailed with a 4-2 win in sudden victory. Heading into his final year, Eierman has four conference titles, four All-American awards, 44 career falls in 103 wins, a team title with Iowa. He has one more honor that has eluded him, national champion. Strengths: Eierman has always been known for his funk and scrambling ability, along with his cradles. As his career has progressed, Eierman has developed more consistent leg attacks, so he can get more work on top and lock up those aforementioned cradles. 2021-22 Outlook: Eierman has the goods to win a title. Last season, he defeated the eventual champion two weeks before the national tournament. Over the course of his career, Eierman has defeated Yianni, Lee, Anthony Ashnault (Rutgers), Dean Heil (Oklahoma State), McKenna, Kolodzik, Kaid Brock (Oklahoma State), Boo Lewallen (Oklahoma State). That's a “who's who” list of the best 141-149 lbers over the last five years. 2021 NCAA Runner-Up Jaydin Eierman (Photo/Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com)

2x National Champion Emma Bruntil (Photo/Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com; Graphic/Anna-Lee Marie) MANHEIM, Pa. - With the start of 2021-22 women's wrestling season nearing, the National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA) released their NCAA Women's Wrestling Preseason Coaches Poll. INDIVIDUAL RANKINGS Defending national champion McKendree University sits atop the poll with 108 points while 2021 runner-up King University is ranked second. McKendree has 15 individuals ranked, including five ranked atop their respective weight classes. King is the only other team to reach double figures with ten individuals ranked. Augsburg College (third), Simon Fraser University (fourth), and Emmanuel College (fifth) round out the top five of the rankings. Simon Fraser did not compete in 2020-21 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but returns to the top five with five individuals ranked. All 10 of the 2021 national champions return, with eight of them ranked atop their respective weight classes. The two that aren't ranked atop their weight classes were supplanted by 2020 national champions, Karla Godinez-Gonzalez and Alex Hedrick of Simon Fraser. Godinez-Gonzalez is ranked No. 1 at 116 pounds with 2021 national champion, Felicity Taylor of McKendree ranked second, while Hendrick is ranked first at 123 pounds with 2021 national champion, Cheyenne Sisenstein of King ranked third. The southwest region leads the way with 24 individuals ranked while the southeast and northwest each have 20 ranked. The northeast region has the remaining 16 individuals. ranked.

2020 NCAA Runner-Up Sammy Sasso (Photo/Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Ohio State Buckeyes Tom Ryan was hired as Ohio State's wrestling coach ahead of the 2006-07 season, and the results he's produced since then have been quite impressive. In Ryan's 15 years in charge, the Buckeyes have produced 13 top-10 finishes at the NCAA Championships, eight top-5 finishes, five times have finished as runner-ups, and won the team title in 2015. They've also won three Big Ten tournament titles, too. As he enters Year 16 in Columbus, Ryan is confident in the team he plans to field this season. The Buckeyes have the talent to perhaps be a sneaky darkhorse trophy contender come March, but there's still plenty of work to do in the months ahead. “I think this team is hungry,” Ryan said. “We've got a lot of good guys. We just need our good guys to jump levels, and we'll be right in the thick of things.” TOP RETURNERS Sammy Sasso is the headliner, the defending Big Ten champion at 149 pounds and returning NCAA finalist. He boasts a career record of 40-4 and has never lost a Big Ten dual match. He will lead the Buckeyes this season. “The team trusts him,” Ryan said of Sasso. “He doesn't waste words. His example is really strong. They see the way he trains and does things, so they trust him. He creates a lot of communication among the team. He's a strong leader.” Behind Sasso, the Buckeyes return two more All-Americans, in Ethan Smith and Tate Orndorff. Smith took fifth at 165 but will bump to 174 this season. Orndorff, the Utah Valley transfer, finished eighth in a deep, deep heavyweight field last year. In all, Ohio State had seven NCAA qualifiers a year ago. In addition to the All-Americans, Malik Heinselman (125), Dylan D'Emilio (141), Kaleb Romero (who qualified at 174 but will bump to 184) and Rocky Jordan (184). Jordan Decatur (133) and Gavin Hoffman (197) are both back as well. “I like the depth,” Ryan said. “But they'll all be challenged by somebody.” Ryan said D'Emilio, Decatur and Anthony Echemendia, will battle for the starting spot at 141, and if Decatur doesn't win it, he may drop back down to 133. Ryan also said Romero and Jordan will wrestle-off for the starting spot at 184. Ohio State's wrestle-offs are set for Oct. 26 and 28 at the Covelli Center in Columbus. KEY DEPARTURES Elijah Cleary, a two-time participant at the Big Ten Championships for Ohio State, transferred to Pittsburgh this offseason. He went 40-26 for the Buckeyes and scored a point at the Big Ten tournament. His departure leaves a hole at 157 pounds, which Ryan said could be filled by any number of competitors, including, potentially, a true freshman. Keep reading for more. TOP NEWCOMERS There are three names to watch in the way of newcomers for the Buckeyes this season. The first: Carson Kharchla…kind of. He went 16-0 during his redshirt year in 2019-20, then sat out last year after a preseason injury. He's expected to be the guy at 165 this season. The second: Andre Gonzales, a true freshman from California power Poway who Ryan said is expected to lead the charge at 133 this season. The third: Paddy Gallagher, another talented true freshman from nearby powerhouse St. Ed who might be the guy at 157 later this season. Keyword: might. Ryan said Gallagher will carry his redshirt through the first half of the season and they will make a decision in the second half whether or not to pull it. “Paddy Gallagher is an impressive person,” Ryan said. “We're not sure if we're going to redshirt him or not, but we definitely won't wrestle him early on. There's a handful of other guys there, too.” In the meantime, guys like Isaac Wilcox, Jashon Hubbard, and Kevon Freeman will vie for the spot. WRESTLER TO WATCH Carson Kharchla was tremendous during his redshirt year. In his 16-0 record, he notched wins over Cal Poly's Bernie Truax (by fall), Michigan's Cam Amine (3-2), Buffalo's Troy Keller (19-2), among others. He also beat Virginia Tech's Mekhi Lewis and N.C. State graduate Tommy Gantt at the RTC Cup. He will likely cause big problems this year for the rest of the Big Ten at 165 pounds. “Carson's going to be a fun one to watch,” Ryan said. “He's going to be tough at 165.” POTENTIAL LINEUP 125: Malik Heinselman (Sr) 133: Andre Gonzales (Fr)/ Dylan Koontz (Sr) 141: Dyan D'Emilio (So)/Anthony Echemendia (So)/Jordan Decatur (Jr) 149: Sammy Sasso (Jr) 157: Isaac Wilcox (So)/Jashon Hubbard (Jr)/ Kevon Freeman (Jr)/Paddy Gallagher (Fr) 165: Carson Kharchla (So) 174: Ethan Smith (Sr) 184: Kaleb Romero (Sr)/Rocky Jordan (Jr) 197: Gavin Hoffman (Jr) 285: Tate Orndorff (Sr)

2021 All-American Ethan Smith (Photo/Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarrior.com) COLUMBUS, Ohio --The preliminary wrestle-off rounds will be held Tuesday with the finals set for 8 p.m. Thursday to determine the 2021-22 lineup for the Ohio State wrestling team. The finals are open to the public and will be held at the Covelli Center Thursday. Admission is free. Preliminary Bout Schedule (Oct. 26) 133 lbs. | Phillip Kue vs. Chase Liardi 133 lbs. | Kue/Liardi vs. Dylan Koontz 133 lbs. | Alex Flerlage vs. Andre Gonzales 141 lbs. | Anthony Echemendia vs. Jordan Decatur 157 lbs. | Kevon Freeman vs. Jashon Hubbard 157 lbs. | Freeman/Hubbard vs. Isaac Wilcox 174 lbs. | Fritz Schierl vs. Bryer Hall 285 lbs. | Mike Misita vs. Hogan Swenski Finals (Oct. 28, 8 p.m., Covelli Center) 125 lbs. | Malik Heinselman vs. AJ Crews 133 lbs. | TBD 141 lbs. | Echemendia/Decatur vs. Dylan D'Emilio 149 lbs. | Sammy Sasso vs. Klay Reeves 157 lbs. | TBD vs. Paddy Gallagher 165 lbs. | Carson Kharchla vs. Cade Hepner 174 lbs. | Schierl/Hall vs. Ethan Smith 184 lbs. | Kaleb Romero vs. Rocky Jordan 197 lbs. | Gavin Hoffman vs. Tyler Stein 285 lbs. | Misita/Swenski vs. Tate Orndorff

2020 NWCA All-American Real Woods (Photo/Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) Stanford Cardinal "We're not focusing on being the best dual-meet team in the country -- we obviously want guys to have their best performances at nationals." --Head Coach Rob Koll A new coaching staff has arrived to welcome the Stanford Cardinal wrestling team, justly, back into their wrestling room after a tumultuous 2021 season. Grappling with novel viruses and bureaucracy in addition to Division 1 competition was no easy task, and the Cardinal did so in a display of fortitude that captured the admiration of not only the wrestling community, but the broader general sport-public. For the newly formed Cardinal wrestling staff, the excitement among the wrestlers has been contagious. "Honestly, I think all of us were pleasantly surprised when we very first got here, given the condition of the team getting cut and then what they had to go through last year. They never got to practice inside the wrestling room, all season long. They didn't really get to have workouts together," explained Assistant Coach Grant Leeth in a recent interview with InterMat. "I don't think they got to showcase the talent that's on this team. Since we've been here, they've surprised us in a good way. … You can tell these kids love wrestling. They love being on this team and actually having a chance to workout in the wrestling room with this new staff -- they've just brought excitement into the room everyday." Despite the strong energy from his athletes, veteran coach and Head Coach Rob Koll is keeping his expectations tempered, awaiting the results of a challenging schedule ahead to measure his line-up. "You've got to be really careful of thinking, 'boy, these guys look really good!' when, the problem is they look 'really good' because the room's not very good. So, that's always a fear. We'll find that out sooner rather than later -- our first two matches are Oklahoma State and Cornell." (Oklahoma State and Cornell enter the year as the #4/#3 and #7/#11 tournament/dual teams in the country, respectively.) The concern for Koll and company is not the talented personnel they return, in the form of three All-Americans and six NCAA qualifiers overall, but rather the lack of a freshman class coming into the room. "Not having that [freshman] class not just hurts the talent on the mat in competition, but it hurts the room in practice everyday. You only have twenty-three, twenty-four guys on the roster of which, on any given day, two or three are hurt or sick or whatever, now you're in the teens. That's a scary proposition going into a tough dual-meet schedule like we've got." Nonetheless, Koll and staff are looking forward to seeing their relatively light roster compete on a relatively heavy schedule. "You can't pull back. We're fortunate -- we're actually lucky -- we have a nice [spread]. We don't have a bell curve of weights; we actually have a couple guys at every single weight." And pull back, they did not. The Cardinal are expected to compete at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invite, the Reno Tournament of Champions, as well as the Southern Scuffle. For Assistant Coach Vincenzo Joseph, there are a few key events on their schedule. "I'm looking forward to Scuffle, Oklahoma State, [#3/#8] Arizona State. Just a few dates I have marked down. And [UR/#28] Oregon State as well, really curious to see how we match-up with them." With many opportunities to face the upper-echelon, the Stanford squad will be more than seasoned by the time they take the mat at the conference tournament. It is the kind of season apt for a talented team that fought for and earned its survival last year against the odds, with a national title to show for it. It is also the kind of season that a talented staff organizes to refine their team in the fire of competition. In the words of Coach Leeth, "It's gonna be a fun year; we're putting them through the wringer [and we] wouldn't have it any other way." TOP RETURNERS Returning, defending National Champion Shane Griffith returns for Stanford as the No. 1 wrestler at a loaded 165lbs class. Returning 7th-place All-American Jaden Abas (149) will look to improve on his 2021 performance, as will the never-to-be-overlooked #7 Real Woods (141), who was a Round of 12 finisher in 2021. This triumvirate of All-Americans is the core of the Stanford line-up. KEY DEPARTURES 4x NCAA Qualifier Nathan Traxler (197/285) and Pac-12 Champion, 2x NCAA Qualifier Requir van der Merwe (149/157) have since graduated from The Farm, and each leave big shoes to fill in the Cardinal lineup. The heir apparents are freshmen Charlie Darracott (157) and Peter Ming (285), but ultimately performance will determine who will be Traxler's and van der Merwe's successors. "It's really just a work-in-progress right now, we're working on it. We might do intrasquad coming up here, but we get some open tournaments throughout the season too that we'll be able to look at, then we'll determine what our line-up is gonna look like for the postseason. … Like [Leeth] said we have some pretty dang good athletes at '33, '57, '84, and heavyweight," Coach Joseph divulged. TOP NEWCOMERS Senior Judah Duhm doesn't necessarily meet the criteria for a "newcomer," but Duhm nonetheless returns to the Cardinal lineup after two seasons away. Duhm was a Pac-12 Runner-up in 2019, and a member of Stanford's only conference championship team to date, before taking a redshirt during the 2020 season and not competing during the 2021 season. With All-American Bernie Truax (Cal Poly) and multiple-time NCAA Qualifier Tanner Harvey (Oregon State) expected at the weight, Duhm will have a quality conference schedule ahead to earn a trip to the national tournament. WRESTLER TO WATCH Two Cardinal wrestlers have the potential to continue their upward career trajectories this season: Jackson DiSario (125) and Tyler Eischens (174). Lightweight DiSario has proven himself to be a legitimate contender, having made the conference finals and qualified for the NCAA tournament in both attempts thus far. The obvious goals for the Cardinal spark-plug are a Pac-12 title and an All-American plaque at the conclusion of the 2022 season. Eischens is expected in the Cardinal lineup after taking the mat at both 165lbs and 174lbs last season (although he did not compete at the conference tournament). An NCAA Qualifier in 2020, Eischens has the potential to make an immediate impact for the Cardinal, feeding off national champion teammate Shane Griffith at the weight-class below him. At present, Eischens is the only Pac-12 wrestler ranked (#31) at 174lbs. POTENTIAL LINEUP 125: #30 Jackson DiSario (So), Pac-12 Runner-up (2020, 2021), NCAA Qualifier (2020, 2021) 133: Jason Miranda (Fr) 141: #7 Real Woods (So), Pac-12 Champion (2020), NCAA Round-of-12 (2021), NCAA All-American (2020) 149: #7 Jaden Abas (Fr), Pac-12 Champion (2021), NCAA All-American (2021) 157: Charlie Darracott (Fr) 165: #1 Shane Griffith (So), Pac-12 Runner-up (2021), Pac-12 Champion (2020), NCAA All-American (2020, 2021), NCAA Champion (2021) 174: #31 Tyler Eischens (So), Pac-12 Runner-up (2020), NCAA Qualifier (2020) 184: Judah Duhm (RS-Sr), Pac-12 Runner-up (2019) 197: #28 Nick Stemmet (Fr), NCAA Qualifier (2021) 285: Peter Ming (Fr)

2x NCAA champion Yianni Diakomihalis (Photo/Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarrior.com) InterMat has released its preseason All-EIWA first and second teams, along with preseason conference Wrestler of the Year, preseason Newcomer of the Year, and preseason team favorite. We've used the term "Newcomer" since there is the possibility of wrestlers that competed at the national tournament in 2021, being called "freshmen." The EIWA, as mentioned a hundred times before, will look very different this year compared to last season. Due to COVID-19, all six Ivy League teams, plus Franklin & Marshall, were forced to sit out the season. With sixteen teams in the EIWA, last year's conference tournament was missing seven of them. This year, the conference will bounce back in an unprecedented fashion. Just as an example, of the twenty wrestlers listed in the first and second teams below, ten of them were forced to sit out last year. Many of the conference's top wrestlers will be back in action this season. First Team Preseason All-EIWA 125: Patrick Glory (Princeton) 2020 NCAA All-American, 2020 EIWA Champion, 2020 EIWA Wrestler of the Year 133: Brandon Paetzell (Lehigh) 2019 EIWA 3rd; 2019 NCAA #7 seed 141: Yianni Diakomihalis (Cornell) 2x NCAA Champion, 2x EIWA Champion 149: Anthony Artalona (Penn) 2019 NCAA R12, 2019 EIWA Champ 157: Josh Humphreys (Lehigh) 2020 NWCA All-American, 2x EIWA Champion 165: Zach Hartman (Bucknell) 2021 NCAA All-American, EIWA Champion 174: Chris Foca (Cornell) 21-3 unattached in 2019-20 184: Lou Deprez (Binghamton) 2021 All-American, 2x EIWA Champion 197: Ben Darmstadt (Cornell) 2018 All-American, 2x EIWA Champion 285: Jordan Wood (Lehigh) 2019 NCAA All-American, 4X EIWA Champion Second Team Preseason All-EIWA 125: Vito Arujau (Cornell) 133: Michael Colaiocco (Penn) 141: Malyke Hines (Lehigh) 149: PJ Ogunsanya (Army) 157: Quincy Monday (Princeton) 165: Philip Conigliaro (Harvard) 174: Ben Pasiuk (Army) 184: David Key (Navy) 197: JT Brown (Army) 285: Yaraslau Slavikouski (Harvard) EIWA Pre-Season Wrestler of the Year - Yianni Diakomihalis Not only is he one of the best wrestlers in the conference, but also the nation. Yianni will be on the shortlist of finalists for both the EIWA Wrestler of the Year and Hodge Trophy this year. Although his weight class is still undecided, for now, we expect Yianni to start the year ranked #1 in whichever weight class he decides to perform at. After an Olympic-redshirt season during the 2019/2020 season, and being forced to sit last season, we have not seen Yianni in a Cornell singlet in quite some time. He has been very busy on the international scene, however. One of those highs includes beating the top-ranked wrestlers in the world during an exhibition, while still in college. Unfortunately, he fell short of his ultimate goals by failing to make the U.S. Olympic Team, but did come back to earn a spot on the 2021 World Team. This year, he will look to claim his third EIWA and NCAA Championships. Currently, Yianni has 47 straight NCAA wins, which is the third-most in school history. Kyle Dake had an incredible 77 consecutive wins, so Yianni is within range of breaking that record. He is already the best of the best ever at Cornell in terms of win percentage with a .985 career win percentage (66-1 record). If he will be at 141lb, he will most likely be on a "pitch count" due to the larger cut. Newcomer of the Year - Luke Stout (Princeton) The Pennsylvania native will be a true freshman in the starting lineup for the Princeton Tigers. The Tiger coaching staff has very high expectations for the 197lb wrestler. As a high school blue-chip recruit, he was a 3X PIAA state placer, capturing a gold, silver, and fourth-place medal. During his time as a four-year starter, he accumulated 153 wins with only 16 losses. Preseason Team Favorites - Cornell Cornell is poised to return as top team in the EIWA conference. With four wrestlers listed in the pre-season first team, Lehigh is behind them, with two wrestlers appearing on the list. Cornell is scary good, even with a handful of changes occurring to the program during the off-season. First, Max Dean, a returning NCAA runner-up, transferred out of the conference. It shows the amazing depth for Cornell to remain at the top. Secondly, longtime head coach, Rob Koll, has left the program to take over the revived Stanford program. His longtime assistant and Big Red alum, Mike Grey, has taken over the program. Returning 2020 Ivy League Champions, Princeton, are locked and loaded to return to action as well. Lehigh will be back at full strength after some injuries left a few starters out of the lineup last year. The dual meets between these three teams will be close - and may be decided by bonus points or a key upset.

2021 NCAA qualifier Owen Pentz (Photo/Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) North Dakota State Bison Led by five returning NCAA qualifiers, one of which is a Big 12 Champion, North Dakota State will look to move up the Big 12 ladder this season and grab a few All-American spots at the NCAA tournament. TOP RETURNERS 157: Jared Franek-NCAA Qualifier 165: Luke Weber-NCAA Qualifier and Big 12 Champion 197: Owen Pentz-NCAA Qualifier 285: Brandon Metz-NCAA Qualifier 133: Dylan Droegemueller- 2020 NCAA qualifier KEY DEPARTURE McGwire Midkiff went 36-34 over three years in the Bison lineup at 125 lbs. He was the team's entrant in the Big 12 Championships during all three of those seasons. Last year, Midkiff went 1-7 against a very deep conference weight class. TOP NEWCOMERS Carlos Negrete JR(125), Michael Caliendo(165), DJ Parker(184), Spencer Mooberry(197), Juan Mora(285), Dom Vacura(285), Cole Gripka(285). These are some of the headliners of a recruiting class that was ranked 15th in the nation in 2021 by InterMat. The bulk of the group should be able to redshirt this season. WRESTLER TO WATCH Luke Weber: Weber had a tough draw at the NCAA tournament last season and hit the eventual champion Shane Griffith and later the third-place finisher Keegan O'Toole. That draw kept him off the podium, but if he can get a top-eight seed and the bracket breaks right for him, he could reasonably break off an All-American finish this season. Weber was one of the stories of the Big 12 Championships, as he handed Travis Wittlake his first loss of the 2021 campaign. POTENTIAL LINEUP 125-Ryan Henningson/Carlos Negrete 133-Kellyn March 141-Dylan Droegemueller 149- Jaden Van Maanen/Gaven Sax 157-Jared Franek 165-Luke Weber 174-Austin Brenner/Riley Habisch 184-Michael Nelson 197-Owen Pentz 285-Brandon Metz Three weights are still up for grabs. At 125, Henningson and Negrete will battle it out to replace McGwire Midkiff. Gaven Sax will throw his hat in the ring against Jaden Van Maanen for the 149 lb spot. At 174, Austin Brenner and Riley Habisch will contend for a starting role. The two squared off at the Last Chance Challenge in 2021 and Brenner won a tight 3-2 decision.

Nick Palumbo and the Sacred Heart staff celebrate after the 2021 EIWA semifinals (Photo/Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Sacred Heart Pioneers "As a team, we are very excited to have a full season with 40 returners from last year. It will be a fun season, as I believe this could possibly be the best team ever in program history. We are looking forward to a tough schedule that includes a dual with Penn State and the Cliff Keen Invitational in Las Vegas" - Head Coach John Clark TOP RETURNERS The Pioneers will look to improve on their eighth-place finish at the EIWA Conference last season. The roster will include nine of ten starters returning for another season, headlined by two NCAA Qualifiers. Nick Palumbo and Joe Accousti were the first Pioneers to qualify for the NCAA Championships in 14 years. Nick Palumbo (2021 EIWA 2nd, NCAA Qualifier) Joe Accousti (2021 EIWA 6th, NCAA Qualifier) KEY DEPARTURES Coach Clark was ecstatic regarding the fact that so many of his wrestlers are returning after last season. This speaks for the great retention Sacred Heart is currently showing. Many of the athletes are returning for a fifth and sixth year of eligibility, due to the COVID "free year," all student-athletes were gifted. As mentioned previously, forty wrestlers returned from last season. TOP NEWCOMERS With 36 incoming freshmen (adding to the 40 returners), Sacred Heart has a gigantic roster of 76 student-athletes. Coach Clark wants to give everyone a chance to prove themselves, making it difficult to name just a few key newcomers. With a large incoming class, we are most likely expected to see a few of the freshman breakout over their careers with the Pioneers. Only time will tell as to whom it may be… WRESTLER TO WATCH The first key wrestler in the line-up is returning NCAA Qualifier Nick Palumbo. As an EIWA runner-up, Nick is hitting his stride at the correct time. Previously Nick was wrestling at Buffalo but settled in nicely at Sacred Heart. Look for him to man the 157lb weight class for the Pioneers. Joe Accousti is the second returning NCAA Qualifier to be back in the line-up this season. Joe is another transfer who has made a home at Sacred Heart. Previously, at Appalachian State, look for him to be one of the leaders of the team while representing the Pioneers at the 184lb weight class. Unfortunately, neither wrestler won a match at the NCAA Championships last season. Looking on the bright side, having this experience with another year left is priceless. They will set a great example for the young freshmen coming into the room. All seventy-six athletes will benefit from having guys like Palumbo and Accousti in the room. POTENTIAL LINEUP 125: Sean Faraon (Sr) 133: Kyle Randall (Sr) 141: Jordan Carlucci (So) 149: Shaun Williams (Sr) 157: Nick Palumbo (Sr) 165: Scott Jarosz (So) 174: Joe Accousti (Sr)/Rob Hetherman (Sr) 184: Rob Hetherman (Sr)/Joe Accousti (Sr) 197: Dante DelBonis (Sr) 285: Mark Blokh (Sr)

2021 NCAA Champion Carter Starocci (Photo/Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com; Graphic/Anna-Lee Marie) Welcome to a new recurring feature from InterMat as we lead into the 2021-22 collegiate season. We are about 50 days away from the start of the new season, so what better way to ring in the new year than to use that time to count down the top-50 current collegiate wrestlers. Each day a new wrestler will be released. These rankings have been compiled by members of the InterMat staff and used a combination of collegiate achievements, with 2021 accomplishments carrying more weight than past years, along with win-loss records and notable wins. While we are counting down the top-50 wrestlers based primarily on collegiate accomplishments, it is impossible to totally ignore achievements in the international settings, so they did factor in slightly, too. Before getting to the next wrestler on the list, look at the wrestlers previously profiled: #50 - Greg Kerkvliet (Penn State) #49 - Ben Darmstadt (Cornell) #48 - Dakota Geer (Oklahoma State) #47 - Kaleb Young (Iowa) #46 - Rocky Elam (Missouri) #45 - Chad Red Jr. (Nebraska) #44 - Brandon Courtney (Arizona State) #43 - Brock Mauller (Missouri) #42 - Cohlton Schultz (Arizona State) #41 - John Poznanski (Rutgers) #40 - Brayton Lee (Minnesota) #39 - Travis Wittlake (Oklahoma State) #38 - Parker Keckeisen (Northern Iowa) #37 - Tariq Wilson (NC State) #36 - Jacob Warner (Iowa) #35 - Jacori Teemer (Arizona State) #34 - Tony Cassioppi (Iowa) #33 - Vito Arujau (Cornell) #32 - Patrick Glory (Princeton) #31 - Max Dean (Penn State) #30 - Keegan O'Toole (Missouri) #29 - Mike Labriola (Nebraska) #28 - Nino Bonaccorsi (Pittsburgh) #27 - Austin DeSanto (Iowa) #26 - Jake Wentzel (Pittsburgh) #25 - Evan Wick (Cal Poly) #24 - Alex Marinelli (Iowa) #23 - Ryan Deakin (Northwestern) #22 - Sebastian Rivera (Rutgers) #21 - Sammy Sasso (Ohio State) #20 - Trent Hidlay (NC State) #19 - Stevan Micic (Michigan) #18 - Hayden Hidlay (NC State) #17 - Mekhi Lewis (Virginia Tech) #16 - Michael Kemerer (Iowa) #15 - Mason Parris (Michigan) #14 - Shane Griffith (Stanford) #13 - AJ Ferrari (Oklahoma State) Next up is… #12 Carter Starocci (Penn State) Weight: 174 lbs Year: Freshman Career Record: 14-2 Hometown: Erie, Pennsylvania College Accomplishments: 2021 NCAA Champion, 2021 Big Ten Runner-Up 2021-22 Preseason Ranking: #1 at 174 lbs The Penn State recruiting Class of 2019 was a small group, but looks great on paper because of the signing of Carter Starocci, a top-ten recruit and the top 174 lb prospect among high school seniors. With national champion Mark Hall handling the 174 lb weight class in the Nittany Lion lineup, Starocci was allowed to redshirt during his initial year in State College. Even though Starocci wasn't in the Penn State lineup, he still saw plenty of action during the 2019-20 campaign. Starocci went undefeated and captured titles at the Clarion Open, the Patriot Open, the Southern Scuffle, and the Edinboro Open. Of course, the most prestigious of the bunch was the Scuffle, where he notched wins over the eventual SoCon champion (Neal Richards - VMI) and the eventual EIWA finalist (Spencer Carey - Navy) to claim his title. At the Scuffle, Starocci's closest bout was an 11-5 win over Pittsburgh's Gregg Harvey. A constant during Starocci's redshirt season was his ability to light up the scoreboard and rack up bonus points. He got to bonus-point territory in more than 63% of his 19 victories. With Hall out of the picture in 2020-21, the spot at 174 was Starocci's for the taking. Unfortunately, his Nittany Lion debut didn't go as planned. In a dual against Indiana, Starocci was put on his back by Donnell Washington and trailed 6-0 less than a minute into the bout. He battled back but ultimately lost 10-9. After a couple of lopsided wins, Starocci went into the toughest stretch of his dual season with matches against Logan Massa (Michigan) and Kaleb Romero (Ohio State) in back-to-back outings. In both contests, Starocci had to dig deep and edged the veterans in tiebreakers. At the Big Ten Championships, Starocci would meet Romero again and again prevailed in a low-scoring affair, 2-0. He made the finals after taking down returning All-American Mikey Labriola (Nebraska) in sudden victory. Starocci's run would come to an end in the tournament's final against Michael Kemerer (Iowa), who prevailed with a 7-2 win. The second-place finish and a win over Labriola helped the Nittany Lion freshman net the third seed at his first NCAA Tournament. In the opening round, Starocci was able to grab a bonus point in his 10-2 win over Vic Marcelli (Virginia); however, he had to fight and scrap with close bouts throughout the balance of the tournament. For a place in the finals, Starocci pulled the ever-so-slight upset and handed #2 Demetrius Romero (Utah Valley) his first loss of the 2021 campaign, 2-0. That set the stage for a rematch of the Big Ten finals with Kemerer on the raised mat in St. Louis. Starocci was able to slow down the high-paced Kemerer and the Hawkeye was never able to get to his offense. Through the first seven minutes of the bout, the two traded escape points and they accounted for the only scoring in regulation. Early in the sudden victory period, Starocci got to a double leg and fought for the finish and the national title. Just over a month ago, Starocci was in action at the World Team Trials at 79 kg. He had a remarkable run that resulted in a third-place finish after wins over Evan Wick, Chance Marsteller, and Jason Nolf. Strengths: Starocci has excellent footwork and moves well for his weight class. He had a solid head/hands defense which rarely allows opponents to get to his legs. Offensively, Starocci's best weapon is a double leg. Most of the time, he goes directly for it, but other times he switches to it after a single leg. Starocci also scores with a sweep single. On the mat, Starocci ends up getting riding time with a majority of his competition. He actively looks for wrists and ankles to neutralize and can get a tilt if the situation presents itself. As alluded to earlier, his matwork and overall ability to pull out close wins against more seasoned competition, bodes well for his future. 2021-22 Outlook: With his national title, Starocci enters the season as the favorite and the top-ranked 174 lber in the land. He'll likely have to face Kemerer two or three more times this season to repeat as champion. In addition to the 2021 All-Americans, the 174 lb weight class got a boost from the ACC as former national finalists Mekhi Lewis (Virginia Tech) and Hayden Hidlay (NC State) are slated to move up. 2021 NCAA Champion Carter Starocci (Photo/Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com)

2021 NCAA All-American Taylor LaMont (Photo/Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) Utah Valley Wolverines Hopes are high at Utah Valley as the school is coming off a 21st place finish at the 2021 NCAA Championships with 21.5 points and two All-Americans. Not only did those AA's return, but three other Wolverine wrestlers earned spots in InterMat's preseason rankings. TOP RETURNERS For the first time in their short history, Utah Valley saw two of their wrestlers earn spots on the NCAA podium in the same year with Taylor LaMont (5th at 125) and Demetrius Romero (6th at 174). Both will return, which will allow the Wolverines to have past All-Americans in the lineup for the first time. Their previous NCAA All-Americans were both seniors and NWCA AA Tate Orndorff transferred to Ohio State. The pair both made the NCAA semifinals in 2021 and will be contenders at their respective weights. LaMont will be back at 125, while Romero drops down to 165. Before NCAA's, Romero captured his second conference title, making him the first and second UVU wrestler to win the Big 12. KEY DEPARTURE Utah Valley doesn't have any notable departures; however, they will be without the services of their 149 lber Cameron Hunsaker. Hunsaker is injured and has already been ruled out for the year. Look for freshman Jaxon Garoutte to hold down the fort in Hunsaker's absence. The Utah Valley staff was impressed with Garoutte in 2021, who went 5-2 before suffering an injury himself. Garoutte has reportedly looked good in preseason workouts. TOP NEWCOMERS The most immediate impact from new faces in the UVU room will come from their three transfers, Haiden Drury (133 - Fresno State), Hunter Cruz (184 - Fresno State), and Evan Bockman (197 - Cal Baptist). Drury (#31) and Cruz (#32) started the year in the national rankings. Bockman will contend for the starting role at 197 lbs. Looking at the long term, Yusief Lillie (WA) was the most notable signee for head coach Greg Williams' team. Lillie was a seven-time All-American in Fargo. He projects as a 125 lber, so he'll get to redshirt behind LaMont. WRESTLER TO WATCH Williams and his staff believe that Danny Snediker could have a breakout year if he's able to main the 157 lb weight class. Snediker went 10-6 overall and finished seventh in the Big 12. Replacing Romero at 174 lbs will be Kekana Fouret. He and Romero will flip-flop in the lineup, as Fouret was at 165 last year and went 6-4. Most of Fouret's experience came in “extra” matches, though he was 3-1 in dual meet action. POTENTIAL LINEUP 125: #8 Taylor LaMont (Jr) 133: #31 Haiden Drury (Fr) 141: #31 Ty Smith (Fr) 149: Jaxon Garoutte (Fr) 157: Danny Snediker (Fr) 165: #8 Demetrius Romero (Sr) 174: Kekana Fouret (Fr) 184: #32 Hunter Cruz (So)/Jacob Armstrong (So) 197: Evan Bockman (So)/Ashton Seely (Jr) 285: Chase Trussell (So)/Jayden Woodruff (So)

The 2021 Super 32 (Photo/Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) The 2021 Super 32 is officially in the books. This year's tournament returned to Greensboro, North Carolina and was as good as ever. The entire event was filled with future collegiate stars and coaches roaming around looking for diamonds in the rough. Here are some of the superstars from the Super 32, ones that have already committed to compete at the next level. Arizona State Michael Kilic (GA) - 6th at 152 lbs Kaleb Larkin (AZ) - 7th at 145 lbs Army West Point Gunner Filipowicz (GA) - 6th at 160 lbs Bucknell Logan Shephard (OH) - 2nd at 220 lbs Cal Baptist Mitch Mesenbrink (WI) - 7th at 152 lbs Cal Poly Dominic Mendez (CA) - 6th at 113 lbs Chattanooga Cole Cochran (GA) - 8th at 160 lbs Columbia Richard Fedalen (MD) - 4th at 145 lbs Illinois Christian Carroll (IN) - 1st at 220 lbs (Class of 2023) Kanon Webster (IL) - 3rd at 126 lbs (Class of 2023) Iowa Mickey Griffith (IA) - 7th at 182 lbs Nate Jesuroga (IA) - 1st at 120 lbs (Class of 2023) Little Rock Brendon Abdon (FL) - 8th at 152 lbs Keith Miley (MO) - 2nd at 285 lbs Michigan Rylan Rogers (ID) - 1st at 195 lbs Minnesota Cody Chittum (TN) - 1st at 145 lbs (Class of 2023) Missouri Zeke Seltzer (IN) - 5th at 132 lbs Clayton Whiting (WI) - 2nd at 182 lbs NC State Jackson Arrington (PA) - 2nd at 145 lbs Chase Horne (GA) - 1st at 285 lbs Matthew Singleton (GA) - 1st at 170 lbs North Carolina Danny Nini (FL) - 3rd at 138 lbs Northern Iowa Cory Land (AL) - 2nd at 126 lbs Ohio State Gavin Brown (OH) - 6th at 145 lbs Nic Bouzakis (FL) - 1st at 132 lbs Rocco Welsh (PA) - 2nd at 170 lbs Penn Martin Cosgrove (NJ) - 2nd at 195 lbs Penn State Levi Haines (PA) - 2nd at 160 lbs Princeton Kole Mulhauser (NY) - 6th at 182 lbs Ty Whalen (NJ) - 3rd at 145 lbs Purdue Joey Blaze (OH) - 8th at 145 lbs (Class of 2023) Rider Hunter Mays (NJ) - 3rd at 160 lbs Rutgers Brian Soldano (NJ) - 3rd at 182 lbs South Dakota State Kail Wynia (MN) - 6th at 195 lbs Stanford Jack Darrah (MO) - 4th at 220 lbs Virginia Michael Gioffre (CA) - 6th at 138 lbs Virginia Tech Mac Church (PA) - 6th at 132 lbs (Class of 2023)

2021 NCAA Champion AJ Ferrari (Photo/Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com; Graphic/Anna-Lee Marie) Welcome to a new recurring feature from InterMat as we lead into the 2021-22 collegiate season. We are about 50 days away from the start of the new season, so what better way to ring in the new year than to use that time to count down the top-50 current collegiate wrestlers. Each day a new wrestler will be released. These rankings have been compiled by members of the InterMat staff and used a combination of collegiate achievements, with 2021 accomplishments carrying more weight than past years, along with win-loss records and notable wins. While we are counting down the top-50 wrestlers based primarily on collegiate accomplishments, it is impossible to totally ignore achievements in the international settings, so they did factor in slightly, too. Before getting to the next wrestler on the list, look at the wrestlers previously profiled: #50 - Greg Kerkvliet (Penn State) #49 - Ben Darmstadt (Cornell) #48 - Dakota Geer (Oklahoma State) #47 - Kaleb Young (Iowa) #46 - Rocky Elam (Missouri) #45 - Chad Red Jr. (Nebraska) #44 - Brandon Courtney (Arizona State) #43 - Brock Mauller (Missouri) #42 - Cohlton Schultz (Arizona State) #41 - John Poznanski (Rutgers) #40 - Brayton Lee (Minnesota) #39 - Travis Wittlake (Oklahoma State) #38 - Parker Keckeisen (Northern Iowa) #37 - Tariq Wilson (NC State) #36 - Jacob Warner (Iowa) #35 - Jacori Teemer (Arizona State) #34 - Tony Cassioppi (Iowa) #33 - Vito Arujau (Cornell) #32 - Patrick Glory (Princeton) #31 - Max Dean (Penn State) #30 - Keegan O'Toole (Missouri) #29 - Mike Labriola (Nebraska) #28 - Nino Bonaccorsi (Pittsburgh) #27 - Austin DeSanto (Iowa) #26 - Jake Wentzel (Pittsburgh) #25 - Evan Wick (Cal Poly) #24 - Alex Marinelli (Iowa) #23 - Ryan Deakin (Northwestern) #22 - Sebastian Rivera (Rutgers) #21 - Sammy Sasso (Ohio State) #20 - Trent Hidlay (NC State) #19 - Stevan Micic (Michigan) #18 - Hayden Hidlay (NC State) #17 - Mekhi Lewis (Virginia Tech) #16 - Michael Kemerer (Iowa) #15 - Mason Parris (Michigan) #14 - Shane Griffith (Stanford) Next up is… #13 AJ Ferrari (Oklahoma State) Weight: 197 lbs Year: Freshman Career Record: 20-1 Hometown: Allen, Texas College Accomplishments: 2021 NCAA Champion, 2021 Big 12 Champion 2021-22 Preseason Ranking: #1 at 197 lbs The charismatic, talented #1 prospect in the loaded high school Class of 2020, AJ Ferrari, inked with Oklahoma State and immediately looked like the Cowboy's answer at 197 lbs. With 2021 being a free year, it was all the more reason for head coach John Smith to let his top signee get a crack at the starting role. Early returns showed that this was a wise decision and Ferrari seized the starting gig. In his first outing, Ferrari turned in major decision wins over opponents from Chattanooga and Oregon State. A week later, he did even better with a pair of technical falls at Little Rock. It wouldn't be until Ferrari's sixth collegiate match where he was held to a regular decision. In early February, we got a glimpse of where Ferrari may fit in nationally. To that point, his high-scoring affairs came against unranked competition. In the Cowboys Bedlam Dual, Ferrari grinded out a 3-2 win over Sooner veteran Jake Woodley, a fixture in the top-20. A week later, Ferrari suffered what ended up being his only collegiate loss, to date, a 3-2 setback to West Virginia's Noah Adams. That was by no means a “bad loss” as Adams was the defending Big 12 champion and finished the 2019-20 campaign unbeaten. He would close the regular season with another win over Woodley. At the Big 12 Championships. Ferrari had to contend with perhaps the conference's deepest weight class. The Cowboy freshman prevailed by downing two eventual All-Americans, Woodley and Stephen Buchanan (Wyoming), as well as a Round of 12 finisher (Tanner Sloan - South Dakota State). Ferrari's 15-1 record and a Big 12 title were good enough to warrant the #4 seed at his first NCAA Tournament. After a first-round tech fall, the path got a lot tougher with a second meeting against Sloan. Ferrari got by and into the quarterfinals by pitching a 5-0 shutout. Next up was a clash with Iowa and Jacob Warner in the quarters. Ferrari got by in a razor-thin 3-2 win, which locked up All-American status. In the semifinals, Ferrari was paired with the 197 lb bracket's top seed, Myles Amine (Michigan). The highly decorated international star was stunned by the upstart freshman in a 5-1 match. Afterwards, Ferrari cut an incredible promo that mentioned his 665 deadlift. The heavy-lifting wasn't over, though, as Ferrari still needed to get by #6 Nino Bonaccorsi (Pittsburgh) to claim an NCAA title. That ended up coming to fruition as Ferrari controlled the Pitt start in a 4-2 win. With his win, Ferrari became the first Oklahoma State freshman to win a national championship since Jake Rosholt did so in 2003. The last true freshman to win one for the Cowboys was Pat Smith in 1990. Strengths: While some may scoff at Ferrari's larger-than-life personality, his belief in himself and his mental toughness is hard to top. Even in a sport with confident, tough individuals all over the place. Ferrari caught the eye of the wrestling public early in his freshman year with his assortment of low-leg attacks, something not as commonplace at 197 lbs. While he lit the scoreboards up early, it was his riding ability and mat savvy that won a national title. Again, those are intangible traits that you don't typically see in true freshmen against high-quality competition. 2021-22 Outlook: It goes without saying, but a true freshman who won a national title, well...he'll be in the mix for the remainder of his career. Ferrari will have to contend with a loaded Big 12 weight class, along with some other contenders nationally that were not in his 2021 class. #4 Max Dean (Penn State), #6 Ben Darmstadt (Cornell), #7 Pat Brucki (Michigan). One concern is Ferrari's health. He suffered a foot injury at NCAA's and it has lingered into the fall. 2021 NCAA Champion AJ Ferrari (Photo/Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com)

2021 NCAA Qualifier Mario Guillen (Photo/Ohio University athletics) Ohio Bobcats “I think we have a very good, young team that is hungry for success. Our athletes are working hard and willing to do whatever it takes to get to the next level. We will put a very competitive person on the mat at every weight. We think that we are good enough to compete for a MAC Championship by the end of the year. We have big matchups within the conference with Central Michigan, Northern Illinois, and Buffalo. We have big home matches with non-conference teams like West Virginia, Indiana, and Navy.” - Head Coach Joel Greenlee TOP RETURNERS The Bobcats have five returning starters in their lineup this upcoming season; all of which have made a huge impact on the Ohio wrestling program. #33 Alec Hagan – NCAA Qualifier, MAC place finisher #26 Mario Guillen – NCAA Qualifier, MAC 3rd place finisher Jordan Earnest – NCAA qualifier, MAC 3rd place finisher Logan Stanley – Academic All-MAC Colt Yinger – MAC 2nd place finisher KEY DEPARTURES Ohio University will be losing one of its 2021 starters this upcoming season. 197 lber Jake Walker. Jake spent parts of three seasons in the Bobcats starting lineup and was the school's entrant at the MAC Championships in each of his final two seasons. Walker was sixth in the conference as a senior and finished with a career record of 33-45. TOP NEWCOMERS Ohio University's wrestling program is excited to welcome fifteen incoming freshmen/transfers this upcoming season. Tommy Hoskins (125) - Transfer from Oklahoma, 3x Ohio State Champion Dierre Clayton (125) - St. Vincent St. Mary's High School Ohio State Champion Michael Catanzaro (133) - Williamsville North High School, 8th place finisher in NYS Aidan Waszak (141) - Wheaton Warrenville South IL, 6th place finisher in IL Colin Roberts (149) - Austintown Fitch High School, 3rd and 5th place finisher in OH Liam Harris (157) Atlee High School, VA State Champion Peyten Kellar (157) - Warren Local High school, Ohio State Champion, NHSCA National Champion Garrett Thompson (157) - Franklin Regional High School, PA Bobby Gaylord (165) - Marist High School, 5th palace finisher in IL Sal Perrine (174) – Nordonia High school, Ohio State Champion Mason Clem (184) - Sacred Heart Griffin High School, 3rd place finisher in IL (2020) Zayne Lehman (184) - Revere High School, Ohio State Champion Scott Schlett (184) - St. Joseph Regional HS, NJ Drew Harris (HWT) - Alexander HS, Ohio State Qualifier Austin Mullins - Huber Heights Wayne High School, 4th and 5th place finisher in OH WRESTLER TO WATCH The Bobcats have one wrestler in particular who is ready to make a splash in the MAC conference this upcoming season, 197 lber Carson Brewer. Brewer is a redshirt sophomore who went 19-3 in 2019-20 while competing unattached. Last year, he saw action in eight dual meets and went 4-5 over, at 184 lbs. In Brewer's final outing, he defeated Cleveland State's DeAndre Nassar, who went on to qualify for nationals after taking third in the conference. POTENTIAL LINEUP 125: Oscar Sanchez (So) 133: Mario Guillen (Sr) 141: Kyran Hagan (Sr) 149: Alec Hagan (Sr) 157: Jordan Slivka (So) 165: Colt Yinger (Jr) 174: Logan Stanley (Sr) 184: Zayne Lehman (Fr) 197: Carson Brewer (So) HWT: Jordan Earnest (Jr)

Former Maryland wrestler Mansur Abdul-Malik (Photo/UMD athletics) This weekend's slate of MMA cards will naturally feature several former wrestlers. While the Bellator and UFC cards may not be loaded with wrestling talent, there are some smaller shows that will likely hold a lot of intrigue for the MMA fan. Bellator 269 Despite coming off a loss against Valentin Moldavsky for the Bellator interim heavyweight title in his last fight, Tim Johnson will face Fedor Emelianenko in perhaps the biggest fight of his career. The bout will headline Bellator 269, which takes place Saturday at 3:00pm ET on Showtime. Johnson was a two-time NCAA Division II qualifier for Minnesota Moorhead back in the day. His opponent is widely considered to be the best heavyweight MMA fighter of all time, but he is already 45 years old, which opens the door for a potential Johnson victory. UFC Vegas 41 This weekend's UFC Vegas 41 show is surprisingly light on former wrestlers, but Grant Dawson will do his best to carry the torch. He wrestled at the high school level in Nebraska. As a senior, he went 40-8 and placed in the Class C state tournament. Dawson takes on Ricky Glenn on the main card, which airs live on ESPN+ at 4:00pm ET. XMMA 3: Vice City In the main event of this upstart show, Cody Gibson will take on former UFC title challenger John Dodson. During his collegiate days, Gibson spent time at both Bakersfield College and Menlo College. He eventually exhausted his eligibility after two All-American seasons. This will be Dodson's first trip back into the cage since leaving the UFC last year. Gibson fought four times for the UFC between 2012-2015 and has a career 17-7 record. Former Bellator featherweight champion Daniel Straus will return to action for the first time since 2019. Straus wrestled on the high school level in his native Ohio. He never once won a state title, but he finished third as a junior in 2002. After being forced to miss his senior season due to an academic issue, he entered the NHSCA Senior Nationals tournament and ended up winning. Straus never wrestled in college due to some off-the-mat issues, and he eventually made his MMA debut in 2009. He won the Bellator featherweight title over Pat Curran in 2013, but his career has been continually plagued by out-of-the-cage issues and injuries. Tyler Ray was a Division III wrestler at Mount St. Joseph who finished up his collegiate career in 2015. He then made the transition into fighting and made his MMA debut in 2017. This weekend, Ray takes a big step up in competition against UFC veteran John Howard. The veteran has been fighting professionally since 2004 and holds wins over the likes of Uriah Hall and Ray Cooper III. Mansur Abdul-Malik was a state champion in Maryland before transferring to Wyoming Seminary to finish his high school career. He eventually ended up joining the Maryland team under Kerry McCoy and started multiple Big Ten duals. In 2019, he made his amateur MMA debut with a first-round stoppage victory. Abdul Malik will turn professional on this card against Cole Jordan. The main card of “Vice City” will air live on YouTube at 7:00pm ET. Third Coast Grappling 8 Although it is not an MMA event, this grappling tournament features an extremely interesting first-round bout between former wrestlers. Former Iowa State All-American Pat Downey is set to face off against former Penn State national qualifier Geno Morelli. Both seem destined to make the transition into full-time MMA, with Morelli already winning his amateur debut earlier this year. The winner of this bout should receive a major test as the next round will likely be a match against former UFC title challenger Jake Shields. The Third Coast Grappling 8 tournament will air live on Fite.tv as an Internet pay-per-view at 9:00pm ET.

2021 NCAA Champion Shane Griffith (Photo/Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com; Graphic/Anna-Lee Marie) Welcome to a new recurring feature from InterMat as we lead into the 2021-22 collegiate season. We are about 50 days away from the start of the new season, so what better way to ring in the new year than to use that time to count down the top-50 current collegiate wrestlers. Each day a new wrestler will be released. These rankings have been compiled by members of the InterMat staff and used a combination of collegiate achievements, with 2021 accomplishments carrying more weight than past years, along with win-loss records and notable wins. While we are counting down the top-50 wrestlers based primarily on collegiate accomplishments, it is impossible to totally ignore achievements in the international settings, so they did factor in slightly, too. Before getting to the next wrestler on the list, look at the wrestlers previously profiled: #50 - Greg Kerkvliet (Penn State) #49 - Ben Darmstadt (Cornell) #48 - Dakota Geer (Oklahoma State) #47 - Kaleb Young (Iowa) #46 - Rocky Elam (Missouri) #45 - Chad Red Jr. (Nebraska) #44 - Brandon Courtney (Arizona State) #43 - Brock Mauller (Missouri) #42 - Cohlton Schultz (Arizona State) #41 - John Poznanski (Rutgers) #40 - Brayton Lee (Minnesota) #39 - Travis Wittlake (Oklahoma State) #38 - Parker Keckeisen (Northern Iowa) #37 - Tariq Wilson (NC State) #36 - Jacob Warner (Iowa) #35 - Jacori Teemer (Arizona State) #34 - Tony Cassioppi (Iowa) #33 - Vito Arujau (Cornell) #32 - Patrick Glory (Princeton) #31 - Max Dean (Penn State) #30 - Keegan O'Toole (Missouri) #29 - Mike Labriola (Nebraska) #28 - Nino Bonaccorsi (Pittsburgh) #27 - Austin DeSanto (Iowa) #26 - Jake Wentzel (Pittsburgh) #25 - Evan Wick (Cal Poly) #24 - Alex Marinelli (Iowa) #23 - Ryan Deakin (Northwestern) #22 - Sebastian Rivera (Rutgers) #21 - Sammy Sasso (Ohio State) #20 - Trent Hidlay (NC State) #19 - Stevan Micic (Michigan) #18 - Hayden Hidlay (NC State) #17 - Mekhi Lewis (Virginia Tech) #16 - Michael Kemerer (Iowa) #15 - Mason Parris (Michigan) Next up is… #14 Shane Griffith (Stanford) Weight: 165 lbs Year: Junior Career Record: 40-1 Hometown: Westwood, New Jersey College Accomplishments: 2021 NCAA Champion, 2020 NWCA First-Team All-American, 2020 Pac-12 Champion 2021-22 Preseason Ranking: #1 at 165 lbs Shane Griffith is one half of an impressive tag team of blue-chip recruits signed by Stanford from the high school Class of 2018. He was ranked #19 overall in the class, while Real Woods was ranked #21. Griffith redshirted during his first year in Palo Alto, though with his impressive results, there was speculation that the Cardinal staff would be tempted to rip him out of redshirt. The freshman from New Jersey started his unattached campaign with back-to-back tournament wins at the Princeton Open and the Roadrunner Open. His best win during those events was an 8-1 victory over multiple-time national qualifier Andrew Fogarty (North Dakota State). Griffith suffered his first setback at the Reno Tournament of Champions when he fell to Grand View's Ryan Niven, 3-1. Less than two weeks later, Griffith went to the Southern Scuffle and finished third in a loaded weight. His only loss was a 6-4 decision to two-time national champion Vincenzo Joseph (Penn State). Some of his top wins came at the expense of Jesse Dellavecchia (Rider), Chandler Rogers (Oklahoma State), and Tanner Skidgel (Navy). The redshirt year concluded with a title at the National Collegiate Open. Griffith finished with a 24-2 record and three open titles, along with a 50% bonus point rate. In his dual meet debut, Griffith started with a bang by pinning Ohio State's Ethan Smith. From there, Griffith cruised until he reached the Southern Scuffle. While still victorious, Griffith wasn't able to roll through the competition as he did leading into Chattanooga. There he had close wins over Skidgel and Travis Wittlake (Oklahoma State) to capture the Scuffle crown. The most notable dual for the remainder of the regular season occurred when the Cardinal traveled to Arizona State. There he knocked off returning All-American Josh Shields, 5-3 in sudden victory. The win over Shields was the last roadblock between Griffith and an undefeated regular season. At 26-0, Griffith entered his first Pac-12 tournament with a likely rematch against Shields looming. As expected, the pair advanced to the finals, but this time it was all-Griffith in a 4-0 victory. A perfect record as a redshirt freshman, with a Southern Scuffle title and a Pac-12 crown, wasn't enough for Griffith to earn the top seed at nationals. He was given the #3 seed for Minneapolis. As we all know, that tournament was never conducted due to the Covid pandemic. Some of the notables on Griffith's half of the bracket included #2 Joseph, #6 Shields, #7 David McFadden (Virginia Tech), #10 Thomas Bullard (NC State), and #11 Jake Wentzel (Pittsburgh). Based on his seed, Griffith was named an NWCA first-team All-American. After the 2019-20 season, Stanford's athletic department announced that they would be cutting wrestling and 10 other sports. Griffith, along with most of his teammates, entered the transfer portal as their future at the school was highly uncertain. While the wrestling program was in flux, to say the least, because of the Covid restrictions in the area, Stanford was not allowed to practice for longer than any other area in the nation and they weren't given the “go-ahead” to compete until late in the season. With all of those factors working against him, Griffith still took the mat in late January and earned a major decision in his first 2021 bout. He won the remainder of his next four regular-season bouts, too, earning bonus points in all but one. At the Pac-12 Championships, Griffith advanced to the finals and squared off with Anthony Valencia (Arizona State), who handed him his first official collegiate loss 7-1. After winning another bout, Griffith finished in second place and earned an automatic bid to nationals. He was given the eighth seed in St. Louis. In what ended up being a fairy tale ending, Griffith upset the undefeated #1 Alex Marinelli (Iowa), #5 Zach Hartman (Bucknell), and #3 Jake Wentzel to earn a national title. Afterward, he led the limited spectators allowed in the venue in “Keep Stanford Wrestling” chants. The win made mainstream sports news and put more national pressure on the school to keep wrestling. Eventually, the Stanford administration relented and decided not to drop any of the 11 sports. Shortly thereafter, Griffith announced via social media that he would remain in Palo Alto to wrestle for new head coach Rob Koll. Strengths: Griffith has good size and length for the weight class, which he uses to his advantage. He also is excellent at controlling ties. Griffith will mainly work from either a two-on-one or underhook. From there, he can generate a variety of offense, with low attacks or doubles. When fighting for his ties, Griffith can look for trips or even go upperbody. Griffith is also very dangerous from the top, riding legs, looking for bars and cradles. 2021-22 Outlook: Of course, a returning national champion will be in the mix for another title in the upcoming year. It's scary to think how Griffith will fare with a typical training cycle and a partner like new assistant head coach Vincenzo Joseph at his disposal. 2021 NCAA Champion Shane Griffith (Photo/Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com)

2021 NCAA Round of 12 finisher Chance Rich (Photo/Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) CSU Bakersfield Roadrunners “Extremely grateful for the opportunity to lead this program that has had a tremendous history and to try to get back to those ‘glory years.' … We have the staff and wrestlers to do some great things.” --Head Coach Luke Smith A youthful, California-raised flock of Roadrunners are beginning to coalesce with the guidance of Head Coach Luke Smith's conspicuously Midwestern coaching staff. “We do have a very young team,” Coach Smith acknowledged. “Two-thirds of our team, this is their first- or second year in Bakersfield. … We only have one, true 5th-year senior that's been here the entire time -- that's [Josh] Loomer.” This mix of youth and anticipation of the full season has made for a productive offseason. Second-year Assistant Coach Steve Bleise approves of the response from the ‘Runners thus far. “Since nationals got done last year -- I'd say April ‘til now -- we've been consistently training. They've been excited to get after it, because they kind of had it taken away for a bit.” Similarly excited to return to the mat is recent staff addition, Assistant Coach Matt Meuleners, whose previous team (Brown University) did not compete during the COVID season. Despite his recent move into town, Meuleners is already pleased with the productivity of his wrestlers. “Our guys got a lot of Bakersfield grit. They enjoy putting in that hard work.” With a newly completed coaching staff alongside him, Coach Smith enters his first year (and fifth overall with CSU Bakersfield) with excitement and determination. His staff and wrestlers have found common ground despite their disparate geographic roots in the blue-collar work ethic embedded in Bakersfield and the greater Central Valley. “We are a development-based program,” Smith explained. For Smith, the emphasis on catered, individual development is at the heart of Bakersfield's ability to maximize the potential of their wrestlers. “When we step on the mat and compete, all I want them thinking about is going out there and trying to execute their individual gameplans relentlessly for four 7-minutes or longer, if it takes that.” The eager Roadrunner wrestling team has earned itself a strong, competitive schedule, and their staff obliged with a worthy regular-season slate. Starting with the Menlo Open in week one, the Roadrunners will appear in four total tournaments in the first semester (including the Roadrunner Open, the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invite, and the Southern Scuffle), in addition to an early-season away-dual at preseason #5 (Tourney/Dual) Michigan. In the second semester, the ‘Runners are busy with the conference dual-slate as well as the Chippewa Challenge quad-dual event at Smith's alma mater, Central Michigan. In his first full year at the helm, Smith has completed his staff and aims to produce wrestlers worth etching in the Bakersfield record book. A motivated team will face a schedule of tough challenges, with many opportunities to make their mark. The staff and team seem resolute to do it in classic Bakersfield fashion: with tough, homegrown California kids. “I do think it's pretty great ... that we have a team entirely of California guys. That creates a uniqueness that I've never seen -- these guys take a lot of pride in representing their home state.” TOP RETURNERS #14 Chance Rich (133; Valencia HS, #SS) and #24 Angelo Martinoni (141; Folsom HS, #SJS) are the Roadrunners' two most-decorated returners, having qualified for the 2021 NCAAs. Both Rich and Martinoni took losses only to NCAA Top 12 opponents of the course of their 2021 tournaments, with the former reaching the Round of12 himself. KEY DEPARTURES Bakersfield's most notable graduate from last season is Pac-12 Champion and 2x NCAA qualifier Dominic Ducharme at 184lbs (Windsor HS, #NCS), one of the final members of the latest generation of Roadrunners, all but closing a chapter for the program that included conference champions and NCAA qualifiers Russell Rohlfing (Sonora HS, #SS) and Sean Nickell (Bakersfield HS, #CS), among others. TOP NEWCOMERS With eleven new faces in the room, comprising five transfers with previous collegiate experience from the JUCO to Division 1 levels and six true freshmen, there are many new talents in the Bakersfield wrestling room. Tyler Deen (Buchanan HS, #CS) returns to California after a two-year stint at the University of Nebraska. Having spent 2020 on redshirt, Deen joins the Roadrunners with four years of eligibility and is considered a threat for the 149lbs starting spot. Although returning NCAA qualifier, Angelo Martinoni is the senior man at 141lbs, incoming Division 3 All-American transfer Luis Ramos (Selma HS, #CS; D3 Central College) is sure to provide the push needed to make 141 a productive weight for Coach Smith and company. It is yet to be seen if 2020 NJCAA All-American Jayden Smith (Brawley Union HS, #SDS; NJCAA Northeastern Oklahoma A&M) will earn himself a starting place at either 184lbs or 197lbs. WRESTLER TO WATCH “One guy that people kind of forgot about, because he wasn't completely healthy last year ... Josh Loomer,” Coach Smith stated. A 2020 Pac-12 Champion and NCAA qualifier, Josh Loomer (184/197; Cajon HS, #SS) is among the most senior members of the team and looks for some redemption after a lackluster 2021 season at 197lbs. It'll be interesting to see if he returns to 184lbs. Albert Urias (Ridgeview HS, #CS), the returning starter at 174lbs, has earned his coaches' praise with his work ethic and focus, leaving a noticeable impression on the staff. A de facto team leader, Urias, “does all the right things,” says Coach Smith. “He's worked unbelievably hard.” Coach Meuleners went on to add that Urias, “embodies everything that Bakersfield Wrestling is about.” It is the sort of praise that is indicative of the investment the early-tenured staff is already garnering from their young roster. For Coach Bleise, he's excited for the long game. Knowing how many freshmen and sophomores are on their roster, he's excited to see the transitions these young underclassmen make with a couple full-seasons under them. “You really see guys jump levels during that period between 18 to 21.” POTENTIAL LINEUP 125: Eddie Flores (So) 133: #14 Chance Rich (So), Pac-12 Runner-up, NCAA Round-of-12 141: #24 Angelo Martinoni (So), NCAA Qualifier/Luis Ramos (So), NWCA DIII All-American 149: Josh Brown (Jr)/Tyler Deen (Fr-Tr) 157: Brock Rogers (Fr) 165: Braden Smelser (Fr) 174: Albert Urias (So) 184/197: Josh Loomer (Jr), Pac-12 Champion, NCAA Qualifier 184/197: Jayden Smith (So), NJCAA All-American 285: Eric Mittlestead (Fr)/Jake Andrews (Fr)

3x NCAA All-American Sebastian Rivera (Photo/Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Rutgers Scarlet Knights Despite all the challenges that came with the 2021 college wrestling season, Rutgers capped the year on a high note, with three All-Americans, the most in program history. The Scarlet Knights are looking to build off that success in the upcoming '21-22 campaign. A bunch of talent, plus some new faces, returns this season. They begin the year ranked No. 15 overall by InterMat. “A lot of talent in this room, so that makes it fun,” Rutgers coach Scott Goodale said in an interview with InterMat last weekend. “We're excited to get back to the RAC. Our guys feed off that energy. That's one thing we missed last year.” TOP RETURNERS Let's start with the returning All-Americans: Sebastian Rivera (141), Jackson Turley (174) and John Poznanski (184). Rivera is a spark plug near the top of the lineup. Turley won four consecutive wrestleback matches on his way to the NCAA podium and Poznanski capped a breakout freshman campaign with a fourth-place finish at the national tournament. Behind them, two others qualified for the 2021 NCAA Championships, in Mike Van Brill (149) and Billy Janzer (197). Additionally, Sammy Alvarez, a 2020 NCAA qualifier as a true freshman, will return at 133 pounds, plus Robert Kanniard at 157 and both Alex Esposito and Boone McDermott at heavyweight. KEY DEPARTURES The Scarlet Knights will be without two notable wrestlers from last year's postseason team: Shane Metzler, who started at 133 pounds at the Big Ten Championships, and heavyweight Christian Colucci. Rutgers has both experience and new faces ready to fill both spots. TOP NEWCOMERS Three notable newcomers could make immediate impacts for Rutgers this season. The first, Greg Bulsak, a four-time NCAA qualifier for Clarion with a 77-25 career record who opted to spend his final season of eligibility with the Scarlet Knights. He was the 14-seed at the 2021 NCAA Championships, and will battle Janzer to start at 197. The second, Nick Raimo, who transferred in after spending his first two seasons at Arizona State. He won two New Jersey state titles, and wrestled in just two matches last year for the Sun Devils. He'll battle Alvarez for the starting spot at 133. The third, Dean Peterson, a true freshman from nearby St. John Vianney who joined as part of Rutgers' 2021 recruiting class. He was a two-time NJ state champ and will be a lightweight fixture for Rutgers moving forward. He is expected to redshirt in '21-22. WRESTLER TO WATCH Sebastian Rivera, of course. He's one of college wrestling's most exciting competitors, and has a résumé that's sterling compared to many of his peers. He is now a three-time All-American, twice at 125 for Northwestern, then at 141 for Rutgers. He's also a two-time Big Ten champion, once at 125, then again at 133. He's got world championship experience, too, representing Puerto Rico and finishing eighth at 65 kilograms at the 2021 Senior men's freestyle world championships in Norway. There's a lot of reason to be excited about Rutgers this year and into the future. Rivera's final collegiate season is one of them. Catch him while you still can this year. POTENTIAL LINEUP 125: Dylan Shawver (Dean Peterson (Fr) 133: Sammy Alvarez (So)/Nick Raimo (So) 141: Sebastian Rivera (Sr) 149: Mike Van Brill, Gerard Angelo (So)/JoJo Aragona (So) 157: Robert Kanniard (Fr)/Jake Benner (So) 165: Andrew Clark (Fr)/Connor O'Neill (Fr) 174: Jackson Turley (So) 184: John Poznanski (Fr) 197: Greg Bulsak (Sr) 285: Boone McDermott (So)/ Alex Esposito (Jr)

2021 NCAA All-American Louie DePrez (Photo/Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Binghamton Bearcats “Our goal is to compete with the best teams in the country. We believe we can put more guys on the NCAA podium, especially after seeing Lou Deprez achieve this last season. He continues to motivate the team with his leadership and hard work. We are looking forward to a snowball effect from this.” – Head Coach Kyle Borshoff TOP RETURNERS The Bearcats have four main key returners from last year, all of whom saw action at the NCAA Tournament last season. Lou Deprez (NCAA All-American, 2x EIWA Champion) Joe Doyle (NCAA Qualifier, 3x EIWA Placer) Micah Roes (NCAA Qualifier, 1x EIWA Placer) Jacob Nolan (NCAA Qualifier, 1x EIWA Placer) KEY DEPARTURES There was one main departure that the Bearcats had last season. Zach Trampe was a multiple-time EIWA place finisher and NCAA Qualifier and is no longer at Binghamton. Besides this, the remainder of the starters who competed at the EIWA Championships from last season are returning. They will be a dangerous team in March. TOP NEWCOMERS Two transfers during the summer lead the way for new faces in the potential starting line-ups. Ryan Anderson is bringing his talents to Binghamton. Previously, an unstoppable force at the Division 3 level, Anderson will look to be competitive right away at the 141lb weight class. In high school, Anderson was a two-time Pennsylvania AAA State Champion, who finished ranked at the top of his weight class. Secondly, Nick Lombard was a spot starter in a heavily talented University of Michigan line-up. Coach Borshoff mentioned Nick's Big Ten work ethic is rubbing off on other athletes around his weight. His experience and competitiveness in the room will add tremendous depth to the heart of the line-up. WRESTLER TO WATCH Coach Borshoff listed Lou Deprez as a wrestler to watch. As mentioned, he was an All-American in St. Louis last season. With his NWCA All-American status at the end of the 2020 season, he is the first two-time All-American in school history. Also, a two-time EIWA Champion, he will be the leader on and off the mat for the Bearcats. He is quickly approaching 100 career wins, and will look to add to his already impressive resume. The second wrestler to watch is Micah Roes. The 125lb wrestler was an NCAA qualifier last season and will be looking to keep that momentum rolling into this year's campaign. The coaching staff is most impressed with his conditioning. He is looking to surprise a few people this year now that he has had time to figure out the weight control aspect of college wrestling. It will be exciting to have him for an entire season. POTENTIAL LINEUP 125: Micah Roes (So) 133: Anthony Sobotker (Sr)/ Ivan Garcia (So) 141: Ryan Anderson (So)/ Mike Zarif (Jr) 149: Nick Lombard (Sr) 157: J.R. Kazalas (So)/Alex Strashinsky (So) 165: Brevin Cassella (So) 174: Jacob Nolan (Jr) 184: Lou Deprez (Sr) 197: Cory Day (So) 285: Joe Doyle (Sr)

Drexel's national qualifier Mickey O'Malley (Photo/Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Mailbags. Ever since the birth of the newspaper, someone thought it was a good idea to have readers send in their questions about marriage advice, nosy neighbors, and favorite pot roast recipes. I can't help you with those things. But fear not, there's still plenty of useless knowledge in the old noggin to drop on anyone willing to listen. First off, I'd like to thank Willie and Earl for giving me the opportunity to take over this long-time staple of InterMat and I hope I can entertain you to the fullest of my capabilities along the way. I feel they are building something special here, while trying to bring you the best wrestling coverage in the country and I'm honored to be included in the growth. But enough about them, this is my time. If you're familiar with me on Twitter, then you probably know what I'm all about and if you're not familiar with me, well, get on Twitter, you fools! You're missing all the fun. To your questions! Fave Twitter rivalries? @gallardo_rachel A potentially epic feud is heating up between Jersey Hokie and the Hidlay brothers that might explode before March, if we're lucky. I'm also partial to Coach Green vs ranch dressing truthers, Coach Dom vs. Soprano's hate, and Pelican Head vs basically everyone. Speaking of which… Who is a Jersey guy that is under the radar this season that we should keep an eye on? Who is tweeting/writing about wrestling lately that has you laughing? @pelicanhead With the shortened and late NJ season, it was hard to get a read on the new blood in town. One guy I've kept my eye on for a few years is CBA sophomore Alex Nini. He tore through youth states year after year and placed eighth as a freshman last year. Now, at the always tough 120 lb weight class, look for him to make noise at the Super 32 this season, as he tunes up for what should be a breakout high school season. Wrestling is a very serious sport filled with men and women who train extremely hard to reach their goals and I do not appreciate you making light of it for your own amusement, good sir. Oldest and Greatest is pretty funny though, you should listen to his podcast. Favorite NJ wrestler who competes for a Philly program? @WrestlingPhilly What's your favorite thing about New Jersey wrestling? @irunwithdogs Best crowd you've been a part of? @oldestandgreatest Look folks, we're gonna get some Jersey questions here since the rest of the country is obsessed with us. Penn showed those Ivy League smarts and loaded up on Jersey guys like they were disco fries at the local diner, but my heart belongs to Drexel's Mickey O'Malley. The best crowd I've been to recently (crowds are sparse these days) was a St. Joe's-Bergen Catholic dual right before the world shut down in 2020 and the environment there is what my favorite thing about NJ wrestling is. You take a small state with big talent and you get a bunch of kids banging heads since the second they're out of diapers leading to some salty grandmother booing some kid because she remembers when he slammed her little Kaden ten years earlier. I could go on and on, but lets transition out of the Garden State for now before I get fired for being a homer. Who is most likely to pull a 2017 Thomas Gilman and gas someone from bottom? @jkos11 Pick your favorite Buckeye who's impossible to turn. I think Nick Lee takes out Yianni to repeat as NCAA champ this year. Thoughts? @wrestlingjunki6 We still don't know if Yianni stays at 141 to reclaim his crown or looks for new land to conquer at 149, but more importantly, I'm very intrigued to see how he responds after two years of high-level freestyle. Let's be real here. The guy is one late loss away from chasing Cael and my money is still on him to bang out two more chips, until something tells me otherwise. Nick is the one man I feel can knock him off as we've seen him jump levels like he found the warp zone in Super Mario Bros, not to mention having the master game planner in his corner; always looking bored as heck, yet always plotting how to get his next victory. Was Mike C. actually Foley burner? @codyOcho5 We all know Foley is UWW Creative How much money would you say you've spent on dining out on grilled cheese sandwiches over the years? @BulldogTCOB My grilled cheese is always on the house. Marlboros, not so much!

3x NCAA Champion Spencer Lee (Photo/Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) The start of the NCAA season is right around the corner, and InterMat has already posted our preseason rankings for each of the ten weight classes. While it is exceedingly difficult to go wire-to-wire as the number-one ranked wrestler in the country, it certainly does happen. Several of the current number ones are returning champions who have already defeated a large share of their contenders. The following looks at each of the top-ranked wrestlers and how they have done against the other 32 ranked wrestlers in their weight class. 285: Gable Steveson (Minnesota) Ranked Opponents Faced: 13 Record: 26-0 (100%) Considering Steveson only has two collegiate losses, it should come as no surprise that he has defeated all of the ranked opponents he has faced. However, the sheer number of matches against ranked opposition is extremely impressive. 26 of his 70 matches (37%) since moving onto campus have been against wrestlers who are currently ranked. Not only has Steveson faced a ton of ranked opposition, he has also scored victories over nearly all of the competitors ranked near the top of the division. Steveson holds victories over eight of the other nine wrestlers currently ranked in the top 10. The only top-10 wrestler he has not defeated on a college mat is Greco World team member No. 4 Cohlton Schultz (Arizona State). Of course, Steveson has previously beaten Schultz in freestyle, including in the 2015 Fargo final. 125: Spencer Lee (Iowa) Ranked Opponents Faced: 11 Record: 21-0 (100%) Steveson's co-Hodge Trophy Winner has also never lost to a currently ranked opponent. He has won all 21 of his matches against the 11 ranked wrestlers he has faced. Lee's most frequent ranked opponent is No. 13 Devin Schroder (Purdue). They have met four times over the last two seasons, with three of their bouts occurring in either the Big Ten or NCAA tournaments. The highest-ranked wrestler that Lee has yet to face in college is No. 3 Vito Arujau (Cornell). Arujau went 31-4 as a freshman in 2019 before sitting out the last two seasons due to an Olympic redshirt and the Ivy League sitting out last year. The two did face off at the 2019 edition of Senior Nationals. Arujau actually scored the first points of the match with an exposure during a scramble. However, Lee stormed back and took the 14-4 victory via match termination. 197: AJ Ferrari (Oklahoma State) Ranked Opponents Faced: 7 Record: 10-0 (100%) Ferrari lost only one match in his first season at Oklahoma State. It was a one-point bout against West Virginia's Noah Adams during the regular season. Ferrari then swept through the Big 12 and NCAA tournaments on the way to his first NCAA title. Outside of that loss against Adams, the Cowboy defeated all of his opponents, including seven who are currently ranked. While Ferrari does hold wins over No. 2 Nino Bonaccorsi (Pittsburgh) and No. 3 Jacob Warner (Iowa), there are five more wrestlers ranked in the top eight that he has never faced. Many fans are looking forward to a potential match between No. 4 Max Dean (Penn State). The former NCAA finalist for Cornell relocated to Penn State after sitting out the past two seasons. 149: Yianni Diakomihalis (Cornell) Ranked Opponents Faced: 2 Record: 2-0 (100%) Diakomihalis has not wrestled a college match since the 2019 season, and he is currently ranked at 149 pounds this year. His only career defeat came against Jaydin Eierman (Iowa) during his true freshman season. Eierman is still competing, but he has stayed down at 141 pounds. The Cornell wrestler has only competed against two of the 32 other ranked wrestlers at 149 pounds. He holds a 6-1 decision over No. 16 Mitch Moore (Oklahoma) and an 8-0 major over No. 32 Luke Karam (West Virginia). Interestingly enough, both of those competitors were wrestling for different schools when they faced Diakomihalis. If he remains at 149 (and he could move to 141), his toughest challenge this year will likely be the returning runner up at the weight, No. 2 Sammy Sasso (Ohio State). The two have never met in college, but they have competed against each other in high school and in freestyle. Their most recent match came at the 2020 RTC Cup. Diakomihalis dominated throughout and won a 12-2 superiority victory 35 seconds into the second period. Many expect their skill sets to produce a closer and more exciting match under folkstyle rules. 157: David Carr (Iowa State) Ranked Opponents Faced: 13 Record: 19-1 (95%) Carr lost once as a redshirt freshman in 2020 and returned last season for an undefeated season and his first NCAA title. He holds career victories over multiple wrestlers ranked inside the top 10, including wins over No. 4 Jacori Teemer (Arizona State), No. 5 Brayton Lee (Minnesota), No. 6 Kaleb Young (Iowa), No. 9 Kendall Coleman (Purdue) and No. 10 Jarrett Jacques (Missouri). However, his lone defeat came against No. 3 Ryan Deakin (Northwestern). The bout came during the Cliff Keen Invitational in December 2019. The Northwestern wrestler took a commanding 9-3 victory. It appeared as if Carr and Deakin might rematch in the national final last year, but Rider's Jesse Dellavecchia upset Deakin in the semifinals before falling against Carr in the title bout. Carr has also never faced off against No. 2 Austin O'Connor (North Carolina) in college. The 149-pound champion from last season will move up to 157 for this year. There is history between them as Carr defeated O'Connor in a Super 32 final, while O'Connor edged Carr in freestyle at the 2018 Junior Open. 184: Aaron Brooks (Penn State) Ranked Opponents Faced: 9 Record: 12-1 (92%) Brooks has only one loss since joining the Penn State squad, and he has avenged it in a major way. In only his fifth dual match for the Nittany Lions, he dropped a 9-5 decision against No. 12 Taylor Venz (Nebraska). However, since that match, the two have wrestled three more times, and Brooks has won all three as well as scored a fall. While there is plenty of young talent at this weight, Brooks has already defeated No. 3 Trent Hidlay (NC State), No. 4 Parker Keckeisen (Northern Iowa) and No. 5 John Poznanski (Rutgers), with the victories over Hidlay and Keckeisen coming in the NCAA tournament. With that being said, there will be an interesting addition to 184 pounds this year. No. 2 Myles Amine (Michigan) was a three-time All-American at 174 pounds. Last year, he stayed out of folkstyle action for the majority of the season while preparing for the Olympics. He then returned at 197 pounds and finished this with his only defeat coming against eventual champion AJ Ferarri. Amine followed that up with a bronze medal at the 2020 Olympics at 86 kg. He is expected to drop down 184 pounds this year and challenge Brooks. 165: Shane Griffith (Stanford) Ranked Opponents Faced: 10 Record: 10-1 (91%) Griffith has wrestled in only one NCAA tournament. He not only won a title, but he also possibly saved the Stanford wrestling program. Along the way, he defeated multiple wrestlers currently in the rankings, including No. 2 Alex Marinelli (Iowa), Mp. 4 Jake Wentzel (Pittsburgh) and No. 9 Zach Hartman (Bucknell). Despite the incredible run through the 2021 NCAA tournament, there are still four wrestlers currently ranked in the top 10 that he has never faced. That list is highlighted by veteran No. 3 Evan Wick (Cal Poly), who transferred from Wisconsin in the offseason, and No. 5 Keegan O'Toole (Missouri), who returns to folkstyle after winning a gold medal at the recent Junior World Championships. The only wrestler to defeat Griffith, excluding his redshirt season, on the college mats has been Pac-12 rival Anthony Valencia (Arizona State). The bout came at last year's conference tournament, and Valencia took a surprising 7-1 decision. These two will likely rematch, perhaps multiple times, this upcoming season. 141: Nick Lee (Penn State) Ranked Opponents Faced: 14 Record: 17-3 (85%) Lee entered last year's NCAA final with an 0-2 record against No. 2 Jaydin Eierman (Iowa). Despite that, Eierman was able to pull out the 4-2 decision in sudden victory to claim his first NCAA title. Eierman previously handed Lee a loss at the 2018 NCAA tournament and in the finals of last year's Big Ten tournament. The only other currently ranked wrestler to defeat Lee is No. 8 Dom Demas (Oklahoma). The match came during the 2019 NCAA tournament, and the Oklahoma wrestler scored a 13-9 decision victory. Somewhat surprisingly, this bout has not been rematched. While Lee had quite the rivalry against No. 4 Chad Red (Nebraska) back in their days on the Indiana high school scene, things have been different in college. They have wrestled three times in college, and each time, Lee has walked away the victor. Many are expecting this weight to lead to another rematch between Lee and Eierman. The smart money is probably on that, but there are unknowns for Lee. He has yet to face off against No. 5 Allan Hart (Missouri), No. 9 Ian Parker (Iowa State) or No. 10 Grant Willits (Oregon State) collegiately. 133: Roman Bravo-Young (Penn State) Ranked Opponents Faced: 12 Record: 14-3 (82%) Much like his Penn State teammate, Bravo-Young has avenged most of the losses he has suffered against currently ranked opposition. He dropped a pair of matches against No. 4 Austin DeSanto (Iowa) during the 2019 season. However, during the last two seasons, he has won the last three meetings. In their most recent match, Bravo-Young scored a 6-2 decision in the Big Ten tournament, which was his widest margin to date. The only other currently ranked opponent to defeat the Penn State representative is No. 3 Sebastian Rivera (Rutgers). The bout came in the finals of the 2020 Big Ten tournament, and the pair have not met since. Rivera was up at 141 pounds last year and may end up there again, but he would be an interesting challenge for Bravo-Young at 133. Outside of Rivera, Bravo-Young has defeated all of the other wrestlers ranked in the top five. The highest-ranked wrestler he has not yet faced is No. 6 Lucas Byrd (Illinois). Penn State and Illinois are not scheduled to wrestle this year, but a bout at the Big Ten tournament is quite possible. 174: Carter Starocci (Penn State) Ranked Opponents Faced: 9 Record: 8-2 (80%) Starocci has only had one season in the lineup for Penn State, but he made the most of it with an NCAA title and a surprising upset over No. 2 Michael Kemerer (Iowa) in the finals. Kemerer handed him a seemingly complete defeat via a 7-2 score in the Big Ten final a few weeks prior. The only other wrestler to defeat Starocci in college is No. 10 Donnell Washington (Indiana). They met in Starocci's first match in the lineup, and Washington scored the upset. Due mainly to Starocci's first season coming during the curtailed season, there are plenty of highly ranked competitors that he has not faced yet, including No. 5 Mekhi Lewis (Virginia Tech), No. 6 Hayden Hidlay (NC State) and No. 7 Ethan Smith (Ohio State).

2021 NCAA Runner-Up Mason Parris (Photo/Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com; Graphic/Anna-Lee Marie) Welcome to a new recurring feature from InterMat as we lead into the 2021-22 collegiate season. We are about 50 days away from the start of the new season, so what better way to ring in the new year than to use that time to count down the top-50 current collegiate wrestlers. Each day a new wrestler will be released. These rankings have been compiled by members of the InterMat staff and used a combination of collegiate achievements, with 2021 accomplishments carrying more weight than past years, along with win-loss records and notable wins. While we are counting down the top-50 wrestlers based primarily on collegiate accomplishments, it is impossible to totally ignore achievements in the international settings, so they did factor in slightly, too. Before getting to the next wrestler on the list, look at the wrestlers previously profiled: #50 - Greg Kerkvliet (Penn State) #49 - Ben Darmstadt (Cornell) #48 - Dakota Geer (Oklahoma State) #47 - Kaleb Young (Iowa) #46 - Rocky Elam (Missouri) #45 - Chad Red Jr. (Nebraska) #44 - Brandon Courtney (Arizona State) #43 - Brock Mauller (Missouri) #42 - Cohlton Schultz (Arizona State) #41 - John Poznanski (Rutgers) #40 - Brayton Lee (Minnesota) #39 - Travis Wittlake (Oklahoma State) #38 - Parker Keckeisen (Northern Iowa) #37 - Tariq Wilson (NC State) #36 - Jacob Warner (Iowa) #35 - Jacori Teemer (Arizona State) #34 - Tony Cassioppi (Iowa) #33 - Vito Arujau (Cornell) #32 - Patrick Glory (Princeton) #31 - Max Dean (Penn State) #30 - Keegan O'Toole (Missouri) #29 - Mike Labriola (Nebraska) #28 - Nino Bonaccorsi (Pittsburgh) #27 - Austin DeSanto (Iowa) #26 - Jake Wentzel (Pittsburgh) #25 - Evan Wick (Cal Poly) #24 - Alex Marinelli (Iowa) #23 - Ryan Deakin (Northwestern) #22 - Sebastian Rivera (Rutgers) #21 - Sammy Sasso (Ohio State) #20 - Trent Hidlay (NC State) #19 - Stevan Micic (Michigan) #18 - Hayden Hidlay (NC State) #17 - Mekhi Lewis (Virginia Tech) #16 - Michael Kemerer (Iowa) Next up is… #15 Mason Parris (Michigan) Weight: 285 lbs Year: Junior Career Record: 73-12 Hometown: Lawrenceburg, Indiana College Accomplishments: 2021 NCAA Runner-Up, 2x Big Ten Runner-Up, 2020 NWCA First-Team All-American 2021-22 Preseason Ranking: #2 at 285 lbs As a three-sport star (football and track) in high school, Mason Parris was one of the most intriguing prospects in the high school Class of 2018. Parris had offers from a few Big Ten schools for football, but chose to pursue a wrestling career. Since Parris rarely did any wrestling outside of the high school season, his potential upside was huge. Being such a raw prospect, the Michigan staff did not initially intend on wrestling Parris as a true freshman. In his first outing, Parris won the Michigan State Open and pinned Central Michigan's star Matt Stencel in only :14 seconds. A week later, Parris showed some areas of improvement in a 15-9 loss to Chase Singletary (Ohio State) at the Ohio Intercollegiate Open. The next time Parris was in action, at the Edinboro Open, he claimed a title and racked up bonus points in all six of his bouts. Still unattached, Parris then went to the Midlands and came away with fifth-place. There he suffered a loss to the massive Conan Jennings (Northwestern) and was pinned in :30 by Stencel. Along the way, Parris notched a solid win over redshirt freshman Trent Hillger (Wisconsin), who was in the midst of a nice rookie season, himself. The Midlands must have been the final straw for the Michigan staff as they unleashed Parris in the next dual against Oregon State. It wasn't easing him into the role either, since the Beavers big man was two-time All-American Amar Dhesi. Unphased, Parris struck early and often to shock the veteran 11-4. He would finish off January unbeaten in dual competition. Once February hit, Parris was faced with the prospect of taking on Anthony Cassar (Penn State), an undersized heavyweight that was almost as athletic as him. Cassar put it on the freshman with a 19-8 major decision. In his next outing, Parris' offense was stifled by Jennings again and he fell 7-5. He'd get back on track with a win over Maryland's All-American Youssif Hemida. At the Big Ten Championships, after another win over Hemida, Jennings proved to be a thorn in the side of Parris, beating the third seed 9-7. Parris would gain automatic qualification to the NCAA Championships after finishing seventh. Even with a seventh-place showing at the Big Ten Championships, Parris was still rewarded with the fifth seed at the 2019 National Tournament. Normally, a fifth-seed would be heavily favored in the opening round, but that wasn't the case as the young Wolverine was paired with Iowa All-American Sam Stoll. In one of the oddest matches of the tournament, Stoll was an 8-5 winner over Parris. After the Stoll loss, Parris came back with a vengeance and pinned two of his next three opponents to earn a place in the bloodround. In the Round of 12, Parris met a familiar foe in Stencel. Like their previous two matchups, this one ended in a first round fall; however, it went in favor of the Chippewa. Once the collegiate season came to an end, Parris turned his focus towards freestyle. After falling in the first match of a best-of-three Junior World Team series against Hillger, Parris rebounded to win the next two bouts to claim a spot on the World Team. At the 2019 Junior World Championships, Parris crushed the field. He was met with little resistance from the field as he rolled to the world finals. There he ended things with a first period fall over Iran's Amir Zare. This year, Zare brought home a bronze medal from the Olympic Games and won the 2021 World Championships. With his first full offseason dedicated to wrestling, it was assumed that Parris would return bigger and better in 2019-20. That was evident right from the get-go as Parris met up with Stencel three times within the first month of the season. The Wolverine was victorious in all three and outscored the 2019 All-American by the combined score of 17-3. A short time later, Parris would collect a title at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational. He capped off his title run with a 6-3 win over returning All-American Tanner Hall (Arizona State). After the new year, Parris continued his dominance on the dual slate, by finishing the regular season unbeaten. One of the highlights was handing Tony Cassioppi (Iowa) his first collegiate loss via second period fall. That stretch saw Parris win all 11 duals and he notched bonus points in nine of those contests. At the 2020 Big Ten Championships, Parris shutout Hillger in the semifinals to set up one of the most highly-anticipated bouts of the tournament. He would clash with the returning NCAA third-place finisher, Gable Steveson (Minnesota), who was also perfect. Though the score may not indicate it, Steveson was never seriously threatened in an 8-6 win. The runner-up finish at the Big Ten Championships netted Parris the second seed at the 2020 NCAA Tournament. He and the other 329 national qualifiers were unable to compete as the tournament was canceled. Some notables on Parris' half of the bracket included #3 Cassioppi, #6 Hillger, #7 Demetrius Thomas (Pittsburgh), #10 Yaraslau Slavikouski (Harvard), and #11 Gannon Gremmel (Iowa State). Once again, Parris appeared to jump levels between his sophomore season and the 2021 campaign. During his six-match regular season dual schedule, Parris notched bonus points in all of his matches. His “closest” win was a 11-2 major decision over Christian Colucci (Rutgers) in his debut. The 2021 Big Ten Tournament saw a rematch with Steveson on the docket after Parris pinned Cassioppi in the semis. This time the Gopher great was really able to open things up and logged a 12-4 major decision. For the second consecutive year, a runner-up finish in the conference was good enough for Parris to garner the #2 seed. Parris continued his dominance of everyone not named Gable and earned bonus-point wins in all four of his bouts leading up to the NCAA finals. In the NCAA finals, it Parris' nemesis, Steveson, who continued his mastery over the Michigan star. The future Olympic champion notched an 8-4 win over Parris to win a national title. The runner-up finish marked the first NCAA All-American accolade for Parris, who was named an NWCA first-team All-American in 2020. Over his last two years of collegiate competition, Parris is 40-3, with all three defeats coming against Steveson. During that time he's been able to amass bonus points in 30 of those wins, a remarkable feat for a 285 lber. Strengths: Even as Parris has put on size and muscle during his time in Ann Arbor, he's been able to maintain the athleticism and explosiveness that he's been known for. Offensively, Parris is best known for his fireman's/dump series. It's one of those moves that the opposite expects, yet generally can't stop. Parris' quickness allows him to work from space more than most heavyweights, allowing him to hit doubles and low singles. Most know him for his offensive repertoire, but Parris is about as good of scrambler for a big man as you'll find. He also is more active than most 285 lbers from the top and tries to work armbars. 2021-22 Outlook: Parris is in a bit of an odd place. He appears to be in a class of his own. Steveson has comfortably defeated him in both of their 2021 bouts. For the most part, Parris can tally bonus points against anyone else at the weight. It would be a longshot if Parris were to unseat Steveson, but he might be the only collegiate wrestler capable of knocking off the Olympic gold medalist. 2021 NCAA Runner-Up Mason Parris (Photo/Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com)

2021 NCAA Champion Daton Fix (Photo/Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) InterMat has released its preseason All-Big12 first and second teams (and honorable mentions), along with preseason conference Wrestler of the Year, preseason Newcomer of the Year, and preseason team favorite. We've used the term "Newcomer" since there is the possibility of wrestlers that competed at the national tournament in 2021, being called "freshmen." 125 1st Team: Brody Teske-Northern Iowa 2nd Team: Taylor Lamont-Utah Valley Honorable Mention: Killian Cardinale-West Virginia This one falls exactly how it finished at the conference tournament with Teske in the #1 slot, Lamont at #2 and Cardinale at #3. Lamont and Cardinale both finished as All-Americans last season, whereas Teske did not, but most of that is due to the way the bracket broke, which matched up Teske with the eventual third-place finisher McKee from Minnesota on the consolation side. I still think Teske will be the guy this year in the Big 12 though Cardinale and Lamont definitely could give him a run. 133 1st Team: Daton Fix-Oklahoma State 2nd Team: Matthew Schmitt-Missouri Honorable Mention: Everyone else I'm being a little facetious here, but not really. Daton Fix is the clear #1 and I believe Matthew Schmitt, conference newcomer for Mizzou, will be the #2 guy this year. But the rest of this weight is completely wide open. OU's Tony Madrigal made a finals run last year but didn't even come in seeded. There are really 5-6 guys that you could make an argument for as the #3 in the conference at 133. 141 1st Team: Dom Demas-Oklahoma 2nd Team: Allan Hart-Missouri Honorable Mention: Clay Carlson-South Dakota State, Andrew Alirez-Northern Colorado Demas was the Big 12 Champion last year and should still be the favorite this season. Allan Hart will come in from Mizzou and could challenge Demas. Interestingly, neither finished as All-Americans last year. Clay Carlson, who was seeded below both Demas and Hart at the NCAA tournament, did. Andrew Alirez also makes the list as he's on the move down from 149. Alirez is still a bit of unknown with some of the injuries and the new weight class, but the pedigree is certainly there for him to compete with the other three. 149 1st Team: Brock Mauller-Missouri 2nd Team: Mitch Moore-Oklahoma Honorable Mention: Ian Parker-Iowa State Brock Mauller comes in as the #1 guy at 149, with last year's conference runner-up Mitch Moore in the #2 spot. The interesting thing here is Ian Parker at 149. We're hearing he's moving up from 141. Parker's obviously been great at 141, but I put him at a tier just below Moore and Mauller until we see what he can do at 149. 157 1st Team: David Carr-Iowa State 2nd Team: Jared Franek-North Dakota State Honorable Mention: Wyatt Sheets-Oklahoma State, Justin Thomas-Oklahoma, Jarrett Jaques-Missouri Carr as the defending NCAA champion, is the clear #1. Franek was the Big 12 runner-up and fell in a close match with Jacori Teemer on the consolation side at the NCAA tournament to end up just short of being an All-American. I give Franek a nod just above Sheets, Thomas, and Jaques, but I think a healthy Sheets could surprise a lot of people and be a top-four type guy in the country. He finished as an All-American last year with no knee; who knows what he'll do healthy? I haven't given more than two honorable mentions at any weight until now, but I really do believe that this is quietly a very strong and deep weight for the conference. All five of these guys could be All-Americans. 165 1st Team: Demetrius Romero-Utah Valley 2nd Team: Keegan O'Toole-Missouri Honorable Mention: Travis Wittlake-Oklahoma State, Luke Weber-North Dakota State A few years ago, in the Big 12, 165 was an afterthought. Travis Wittlake was pretty much the only wrestler at the weight that was viewed to be an All-American type. That's changed dramatically. Keegan O'Toole knocked off both Weber and Wittlake at the NCAA tournament in finishing third, while Weber took out Wittlake on his way to a Big 12 title last season. Wittlake and O'Toole both finished as All-Americans and with a better draw than he got last year, Weber certainly could as well this season. The big offseason move for this weight is Demetrius Romero coming down from 174. Romero was the Big 12 champ last season at 174 and gets the first-team nod here, with some reservations as we'll have to see how he handles the weight cut as the season goes. 174 1st Team: Hayden Hastings-Wyoming 2nd Team: Dustin Plott-Oklahoma State Honorable Mention-Peyton Mocco-Missouri, Jackson Hemauer-Northern Colorado. This one was a little tough to rank. Romero goes to 165 and opens this weight up dramatically. All four listed here were pretty even most of last season and with their NCAA finishes. I ultimately gave Hastings the #1 spot and the #2 nod to Plott as he was dealing and wrestling with a major shoulder injury for most of last season, that ultimately required surgery right after the season ended. Mocco and Hemauer could all certainly prove me wrong and potentially win the conference. This is one of the more wide-open weight classes in the Big 12 and could be taken by anyone. 184 1st Team: Parker Keckeisen-Northern Iowa 2nd Team: Dakota Geer-Oklahoma State Honorable Mention: Tate Samuelson Wyoming, Jeremiah Kent-Missouri Keckeisen is the clear #1 as the Big 12 Champ and highest NCAA finisher. Geer lost to Samuelson at the Big 12 tournament, but I gave Geer the nod here as he finished much higher at the NCAA tournament. Jeremiah Kent beat Samuelson at the NCAAs. 197 1st Team: AJ Ferrari-Oklahoma State 2nd Team: Rocky Elam-Missouri Honorable Mention: Jake Woodley-Oklahoma, Stephen Buchanan-Wyoming I said this most of last season, and I think with the addition of Elam from Mizzou, it's solidified even more. The Big 12 is the best conference in the country at 197 pounds. You've got the defending NCAA champion and four All-Americans from last year all returning at this weight. Elam and Woodley split at the NCAAs, but Elam won their placement match, so I put Elam above Woodley. 285 1st Team: Brian Andrews-Wyoming 2nd Team: Wyatt Hendrickson-Air Force Academy Honorable Mention: Austin Harris-Oklahoma State, Josh Heindselman-Oklahoma, Carter Isley-Northern Iowa, Zach Elam-Missouri. Most of the other weights were fairly straightforward. One guy beats another guy or finishes above them at the NCAAs and that's what you use for criteria in making these decisions. This weight was not like that at all. They all beat up on each other all season. Brian Andrews gets the #1 nod as the highest returning Big 12 tournament finisher and Wyatt Hendrickson gets the #2 slot after a third-place finish at the conference tournament and run to the bloodround at the NCAA tournament last season. Harris gets an honorable mention for his bloodround run last season (though I think there is some competition for his starting job in the room at OSU this season). Heindselman, Isley, and Elam are all right in that same mix where they could make the blood round and maybe even All-American next year. This will be a wild weight to follow in the Big 12 next year. Preseason Big 12 Wrestler of the Year: Daton Fix-Oklahoma State The easy answer to go with here probably would have been one of David Carr or AJ Ferrari as both won NCAA titles last year while Daton Fix finished as runner-up. But the Fix we saw win a Senior World silver medal a few weeks ago was a different guy. The optimism behind what we saw from him there, coupled with the fact that he was unable to compete for an entire season last year, has me leaning towards Fix winning it all. Add to it that, Ferrari has the gauntlet of a Big 12 schedule mentioned above with a multitude of All-Americans in his path. And David Carr will have another NCAA champion at his weight this season with Austin O'Connor. You can't go wrong picking any of these three guys, but I think when the smoke clears at the end of the season, the most likely undefeated NCAA Champion of these three is Fix. Preseason Big 12 Newcomer of the Year: Victor Voinovich - Oklahoma State After the graduation of two-time All-American Boo Lewallen, there's some uncertainty about the 149 lb weight class for Oklahoma State. Which bodes well for a blue-chip true freshman like Victor Voinovich. Early whispers out of the OSU room reveal that Voinovich has been impressive. Voinovich was a top-three finisher on two occasions in Fargo. He was a Cadet finalist in 2017 and third in Junior freestyle in 2019. Victor also picked up wins in two different "Who's #1" dual meets. Voinovich finished his high school career as the #15 overall recruit in the Class of 2021. Preseason Team Favorite: Missouri That's right. The guy that got his start in wrestling media blogging about his alma mater Oklahoma State is picking Missouri here. Missouri is deep. They have everyone back and every wrestler on their roster qualified for the NCAA tournament last season. If their entire roster finishes in the top four at the Big 12, they will score a lot of points and be difficult to beat. Oklahoma State has the top-end firepower that Missouri doesn't with guys like Fix and Ferrari. But there's some uncertainty at 141 and 149 as OSU will have new starters there. This sets up for Oklahoma State to potentially be a higher finishing team at the NCAA tournament, while Mizzou has little more scoring potential on paper in the Big 12.

2021 NCAA All-American Zach Hartman (Photo/Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Bucknell Bison “We have a strong cast of battle-tested veterans and talented newcomers that are poised to have a breakout year. We have a lot of talent and are returning seven EIWA placewinners, including All-American Zach Hartman. We bring back great experience in competitive environments and we will be challenged by our schedule. Our goal is to become one of the elite teams in our conference and in the country, and I believe we have what it takes to do that” - Head coach Dan Wirnsberger TOP RETURNERS We've got to mention senior Zach Hartman, who became the first Bison wrestler to make the NCAA podium since one of his assistant coaches, Kevin LeValley, did so in 2011. Not only did Hartman get on the podium, but he also advanced to the NCAA semifinals at one of the deepest weights in the nation. Before nationals, Hartman was the first Bucknell wrestler since Joe Stolfi (2014) to capture an EIWA championship. Zach has reached the EIWA finals in all three years of competition. He starts the year ranked ninth at the 165 lb weight class and will be one of the team's leaders again. The other returning national qualifier for Bucknell is Darren Miller, who finished third in the EIWA at 133 lbs. Miller will move up to 141 for his third year in Lewisburg. Through two years, his combined record is 30-19. The Bucknell lineup is set to feature senior Brandon Seidman in the leadoff role at 125 lbs. One of Bucknell's captain's in 2021, Seidman is a returning sixth-place finisher at the 2021 EIWA Championships and amassed a 6-4 record, overall. KEY DEPARTURES Bucknell lost a pair of their 2021 starters to graduation in the offseason, Matt Kolonia (149) and Frankie Guida (184). Kolonia finished fifth at the EIWA Championships last year, while Guida was eighth. Neither qualified for the NCAA Tournament, but they were mainstays in the Bison lineup. TOP NEWCOMERS The Bison staff is excited about a handful of incoming freshmen. One in particular, that may have the inside track to starting at 184 is Logan Deceatis, a two-time, undefeated Illinois state champion. Deceatis finished his high school career ranked #215 on MatScouts Big Board. The highest-ranked member of the freshman class was three-time Pennsylvania state runner-up Dylan Chappell, who came in at #156. Chappell will not be forced into action due to the strength at 133 lbs. Aidan Lewis (125) and Nolan Springer (174) are two more freshmen that could push for significant time in the Bucknell lineup. WRESTLER TO WATCH Earlier, we mentioned that Darren Miller was planning to move up to 141 lbs. Swapping with Miller will be Kurt Phipps, the 2021 starter at 141. The Bucknell staff expects a breakout year from Phipps at 133. Younger brother of Bucknell's two-time national qualifier, Drew, Kurt put together an 8-6 campaign as a true freshman and was seventh at the EIWA Championships. With another year of seasoning under his belt and at a more natural weight, Phipps could definitely improve upon his conference finish from a year ago. POTENTIAL LINEUP 125: Brandon Seidman (Sr) 133: Kurt Phipps (So) 141: Darren Miller (Jr) 149: Noah Levett (Sr) 157: Nick Delp (So) 165: Zach Hartman (Sr) 174: Vincent Andreano (Jr) 184: Logan Deceatis (Fr) 197: Mason McCready (Jr) 285: Dorian Crosby (So)

2021 NCAA All-American Lucas Byrd (Photo/Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Illinois Fighting Illini There's a new man in charge of the Illinois wrestling program. Michael Poeta begins his first season as the head coach of the Fighting Illini this season after spending the last five as an assistant. That's the fun news. The bad news? "I have more grey hair and my belly's bigger," Poeta said and laughed. "I'm just really busy." But there's good news, too. Illinois brings back plenty of talent and experience for the '21-22 campaign. "I see a lot of consistency right now," Poeta continued. "That's what we struggled with in the past. We had a full lineup of guys who, at any point, could beat any guy standing across from them, but we didn't do it consistently enough. "I feel like our training has been at a really, really high level. Every practice has been productive. Our guys have gotten better, and we're chomping at the bit to compete." TOP RETURNERS Five Illinois wrestlers qualified for the NCAA Championships last season and are back again this year: Lucas Byrd (133), Dylan Duncan (141), Dan Braunagel (165), Zach Braunagel (184) and Luke Luffman (285). Byrd and Duncan both finished last year as All-Americans. They both took the same paths, too, losing in the second round then rattling off four straight wins in the wrestlebacks to finish on the podium. They both took fifth. Additionally, Justin Cardani (125) and Mikey Carr (149) return and have both previously qualified for the NCAA Championships - Cardani in 2020, Carr in both 2018 and 2019. KEY DEPARTURES Illinois experienced a little roster turnover, but all the starters from last year's postseason are back. NEWCOMERS A handful of wrestlers joined the program this season - a couple of transfers in Luke Rasmussen from North Dakota State and Anthony Federico from Fresno State, plus the 2021 recruiting class - but Poeta believes Joe Roberts will have the biggest impact. Roberts was an Illinois state champ who originally went to North Carolina State. He announced his plans to transfer back home last May, and Poeta expects him to be the guy right away at 157 pounds. "We got really lucky with him," Poeta said of Roberts. "He came into town and blew us away. Way better of a wrestler than I thought. His gas tank is unbelievable. "That was a hole for us last year. We were pretty solid all around, but that was one weight class we couldn't figure out. We're going to be pretty good there." WRESTLER TO WATCH Mikey Carr is the guy to watch for Illinois, which is saying something because there are plenty of talented wrestlers in this lineup. But Carr, a sixth-year junior, is one of the better wrestlers around the country that doesn't get a ton of love. He's twice reached day two of the NCAA Championships, and has wins over All-Americans like Yahya Thomas, Chad Red, Tommy Thorn, Sa'Derian Perry, Mitch McKee, and Nick Lee, a returning NCAA champ for Penn State, throughout his career. If he can stay healthy - and perform in March - he'll be an X-Factor for this Illinois team. "He's about as good of a wrestler as I've ever seen in my life, in practice, and we just need to see that when he's competing," Poeta said. "If he is able to finish on the podium this year, it will be the most satisfying feeling, as a coach, for me to that point." POTENTIAL LINEUP 125: Justin Cardani (So) 133: Lucas Byrd (Fr) 141: Dylan Duncan (Sr) 149: Mikey Carr (Sr) 157: Joe Roberts (Fr)/Johnny Mologousis (Jr) 165: Danny Braunagel (So) 174: DJ Shannon (So) 184: Zac Braunagel (So) 197: Matt Wroblewski (Jr) 285: Luke Luffman (So)