Hwt1

“Entire programs” - exaggerate much? Iowa, Mich and PSU all had 30-40% of starting lineup and Iowa’s was mainly due to the gambling issue. They “may” have 20-30% this year, but doubt they get that many.

It’s early, so lineups could change if transfers, but based on lineups I’ve seen projected so far: 125 Ayala dec Terukina/Perryman 3-0 133 Frost dec Schriever/transfer 3-3 141 Block dec other Frost 6-3 149 Johnson/Echemendia dec Rathjen 6-6 157 Caliendo dec Chittum/Johnson 9-6 165 Kennedy dec Chittum/Euton/Rojas 12-6 174 Arnold dec Gaitan 15-6 184 Brands dec Tate Naak. 18-6 197 Glazier dec Hagarty/Bartelt 21-6 285 Bastida Mdec Hill 21-10 May see Iowa get a transfer at 133 and ISU at 184/197. Hard to predict but best guess

And it only sold out because lot of Iowa fans. They also give away free tickets to high school clubs/teams

What does that have to do with what Gable could have done from 1998 to 2008???

Exaggerate grossly??? I simply stated his 17 NCAA top 5 finishes and 4/5 championships. Both facts. You said Iowa has only finished 2nd TWICE since 2011. True, but you are forgetting the 2020 and 2021 Firsts (yes, counting 2020). And then 4 3rds. Regarding being satisfied with top 5, I am not - see my other recent response on that. ”A team like Iowa should NEVER finish below those teams. NEVER, not even once”. Be careful when saying NEVER. I seem to recall Penn State finishing SIXTH in 2015, below teams like Edinboro and Missouri. And in 2020 they got 4th at Big Ten, 50 points behind Iowa. So another likely 5/6 at NCAA. Regarding Dresser, he had his best team at ISU ever and still only beat Iowa by 1.5. A Iowa team that everyone knew was in a rebuilding year after losing Spencer, Warner, Murin and then 4 starters including Cassioppi and Brands to gambling. Plus he held Arnold and Kueter out. Not excuses and not satisfied with 5th, but realistic fans knew it would be a difficult year and Dresser barely beat them with his best team.

No one at Iowa is satisfied with top 5 finishes, Tom has repeatedly said championships are the goal. At the same time, you do have to be realistic and recognize this is a generational dynasty with what Cael has done, similar to Gable. No one stopped Gable’s run - he retired at age 49 after the 1997 championship team (the same team that it took 27 years for someone to finally beat their scoring record). Otherwise, he would have continued for another 10 years or so. But you have to be careful you don’t put yourself in a Frank Solich situation like Nebby football. And that comparison is not even fair to Tom, he had a championship in 2021 and would have been back to back in 2020. Name another coach they could get that could do better? Ryan hasn’t done it at OSU, Smith hasn’t won since mid-2000, Michigan and Cornell haven’t found a coach that has won it. Certainly not Dresser, he is 61. It is going to take a new generational type coach. JB and Askren have said they don’t want to coach college. DT probably isn’t leaving his situation. Maybe Cunningham if he would leave, but he would probably choose CMU if willing to leave. So who else, Dake, when will he be done? Brands is signed through 2029. Spencer has indicated going through 2028 cycle. He is a possibility. Brands has Arnold, Kueter, youngest Ferrari and others. Plus the portal. Can he do it again like 2020 and 2021? We will see. Penn State is loaded, but I don’t see anyone else making a better attempt. But go ahead and criticize Tom, I get it that most of you hate him.

You have stated opinions, not facts: ”Iowa would be in a much better position today if they had Dresser” ”If Brands was at ISU, they would not be close to where they are today” You refuse to recognize the facts I have said: Brands has been in top 5 17 years in a row, including 4/5 championships. Other than Cael, name a coach that can say that. Smith can’t, Ryan can’t, Michigan can’t, Cornell can’t. And sure as heck Dresser can’t. Only twice in 17 years. That is why Iowa is 2nd best program. Of course it is easier to improve performance from an over 20 team to something respectable (top 10 once in a while). But can he keep it there or just be every few years. That is lot easier than trying to take over a dominant / generational powerhouse like Cael, Gable. Will Dresser be a failure if can’t beat Cael? Brands replaced 70% of his lineup and still finished top 5. Good luck to Dresser if he has to do that.

You are comparing Brands to Cael. So if Brands doesn’t win championships, he is not a good coach even though he is consistently placing in top 4/5. Zalesky had a few years outside of top 5. Try comparing Dresser to Cael and see how that looks. You are putting an awful lot of credit into one year that VT potentially would have won a dual (remember only 1 point difference at NCAA). They have wrestled every year since 2017 and Dresser hasn’t won yet.

So now you are saying Brands is only better because he had more to work with? But PSU has more to work with / funding because they are great? Can’t have it both ways, treat them consistently.

I never did! I was responding to the other guys post that was implying Brands was only successful because he was consistently second highest funded coach. Looks like you are salty now

So Dresser finished top 5 twice (probably top 10 as well) since he has been coaching college starting in 2007. Meanwhile, Tom has been top 5 every year since 2008, with 4(5) championships. And those 2 years by Dresser were the only years since 2008 Tom wasn’t top 4. 2016: 4th VT 82 points; 5th Iowa 81 points 2024: 4th ISU 68.5; 5th Iowa 67 As I said before, no way Dresser is replacing Brands at Iowa. Not even comparable. Never has beat him in a dual and the two best NCAA finishes in his career, only beats him by combined 2.5 points, including the lucky medical forfeit this year.

There are - but they still have to care about wrestling, just like your comment about the general public in PA. It’s not like Iowa wrestling isn’t well funded compared to majority of other schools, but no where near PSU. And in recent years PSU has been more successful, which creates more funding as you stated.

Should have said this in my other response. I did see what you did there - Cornell only had 3 AA this year.

5 of the 7 were AA. So one coach, probably a couple more like Michigan. Proves the point, great job by Brands.

Agree, success creates more success. I wasn’t complaining about his funding or saying it was entirely why Cael is successful. He is the best coach. I was replying to a post where it was implied Brands was only successful because of being second highest funded. Regarding Iowa versus PSU funding - Pennsylvania has 13 million people compared to 3 million in Iowa. In addition, it is really about the highest donors, and it is my understanding PSU top contributor has way more funds than Iowa top contributor.