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CRYIN Illini Grades OFFICIAL, undisputed

Biscuitsnmcllravy

Biscuitsnmcllravy

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Official grades for the CRYIN Illini dual

125-#28 CRUZ vs riley
Cruz with good movement and hand fighting, nice TD in 1st with a RIDEOUT!!! Tough on top, no real risk of a turn. Had his opponent outgunned and they both knew it. Good PHYSICAL wrestling against a lesser opponent, reminiscent of a young Tom Brands. Got the major handily. A

133-#4 AYALA VS #2 byrd
MARQUEE MATCHUP!!! No committed attacks from either wrestler in the first. Ayala’s gameplan was to keep this close and bet on himself on his feet and it PAID off!!! Beautiful snap setup to the winning take down! Match-up between 2 guys who look to be near the top of the podium come March and it played out like a NCAA finals match. Pretty boring match overall, but a win over a top 2 guy at the weight class deserves an A.

141-#30 BLOCK vs #12 pucino
Block came out AGGRESSIVE and earned an early stall call. Also gave up a total BS stall call in the first. A lot of action not a lot of scoring thru 2, both guys look to be going for a big move. Seemed like the gas tank was on E in the 3rd and that was the difference. Gave up a TD while screwing with his headgear SMH. C

149-#3 PARCO vs #12 webster
The scoreboard was in no danger of being exhausted. Almost no offensive attacks from either wrestler. INCREDIBLY BORING match, no attacks, no scrambles. Did just enough to winn a match he was supposed to win and they don’t award style points. C-

157-ESTRADA vs #20 kraisser
Estrada is going to be F** to watch!! Head wrap looks TOUGH!! When I saw that I knew it was going to be a tough night for the Illini. Score was closer than the match felt. Good ranked win over and experienced foe. Left a few points out there, chalk that up to inexperience. The future is BRIGHT for this young man. B+

165-#2 CALIENDO vs #11 scoles
Mikey said “WELCOME TO THE SHOW!” This looked like a big brother practicing moves on a little brother in the living room after dinner. There’s levels to this, kid. A+ with extra credit

174-#5 PK vs #21 braunagel
PK came out a little sloppy on what looked like a couple sure TDs. Cleaned it up and got one in the first with a BIG rideout. PK is a certified TOUGH guy!! Handled a solid foe with relative ease. I hope the debate of who’s the guy at 174 has been put to bed. B

184-#5 ARNOLD vs #10 ruth
HIGHLIGHTED BOUT!! When Gabe pulls the trigger it’s EXPLOSIVE!! Would’ve liked to open it up a little more on the feet late in the match and work for the major. Heat check match and confirmed Gabe is on FIRE 🔥 B+

197-#2 BUCHANON vs #18 braunagel
SMART match against a potential land mine. Braunagel is no easy out and Stephen, wisely, never let his guard down. B+

285-#12 KUETER vs #11 luffman
Noticeable size and experience gap in favor of Luffman. Disappointing match for keuter, I would really like to see him exploit his athleticism advantage over guys like luffman. Will need to be A LOT sharper if he wants a whiff of the podium in March. D-


Overall A- the hawks put an absolute WHOOPING on an up and coming team. Some folks thought this was going to be a tight dual, it was a razors edge from a SHUTOUT!!!
 
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fourbyfour69 said:
Is there a 285 in the portal for next year? This one has a long way to go and won’t get there going back to football.
Click to expand...

stop.

kueter is a freshman at heavyweight. i think he probably learned a ton from that loss tonight. trust his gas tank and don’t get in the one exchange matches. he will be fine. the weight completely clears out next year too
 
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Telford and Cassioppi were both freshman All American.

BK is light years from where those two were as redshirt freshmen.

He could get there, but he is going to have to change a lot of things.
He absolutely has the ability, but as Brands said about his match (paraphrase) “he was looking for shortcuts”.

Hard to “turn it on” at this point, but with his talent he may be one of the few athletes that could make that directional change to jump levels.
 
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As many have noted this weight clears completely out next year. Another year of experience and weight training could do wonders. 9 of the 12 ranked ahead of him are gone next year if I'm not mistaken.
 
Biscuitsnmcllravy said:
I don’t believe he is going back to football, maybe waiting until buchanon leaves to go 97
Click to expand...

Yeah he’s going to drop 50 lbs of muscle and be able to compete at 197. That’s genius.

Biscuitsnmcllravy said:
More wishful thinking than anything. He just looks so much smaller than some of these guys
Click to expand...

He’s a RS frosh. Think he won’t get bigger? He already has.

I like how you think we don’t know you’re just Ironbird with a new username. You’re not really trying very hard to hide it.

Bhabbaganoosh said:
Telford and Cassioppi were both freshman All American.

BK is light years from where those two were as redshirt freshmen.

He could get there, but he is going to have to change a lot of things.
He absolutely has the ability, but as Brands said about his match (paraphrase) “he was looking for shortcuts”.

Hard to “turn it on” at this point, but with his talent he may be one of the few athletes that could make that directional change to jump levels.
Click to expand...


They were also both guys with a much lower ceiling than BK. And it wasn’t as if they didn’t have struggles at times.

Let him find his own way. What they did isn’t really relevant.
 
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Bhabbaganoosh said:
Telford and Cassioppi were both freshman All American.

BK is light years from where those two were as redshirt freshmen.

He could get there, but he is going to have to change a lot of things.
He absolutely has the ability, but as Brands said about his match (paraphrase) “he was looking for shortcuts”.

Hard to “turn it on” at this point, but with his talent he may be one of the few athletes that could make that directional change to jump levels.
Click to expand...
Mason Parris missed the podium as a freshman and he ended up having a pretty good career. Cass and Telford came in full sized, BK profiles closer to Parris than any of the Iowa heavies. Right now, BKs biggest strength is his athleticism, he needs to learn to use it on his feet. Getting caught under these big guys is a recipe for frustration
 
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Biscuitsnmcllravy said:
Mason Parris missed the podium as a freshman and he ended up having a pretty good career. Cass and Telford came in full sized, BK profiles closer to Parris than any of the Iowa heavies. Right now, BKs biggest strength is his athleticism, he needs to learn to use it on his feet. Getting caught under these big guys is a recipe for frustration
Click to expand...
And Heavyweight is stacked this year.
 
Bird's wife filling in for him?

With two big duals comning up, this one could have gotten away from us in terms of it being close. It didn't. Lots of points left out there but a solid dual up and down the lineup. Really liked the matches performances of the usual suspects but it was Los Muchachos Night at Carver with Cruz, Ayala, Estrada and Caliendo all showing out. Thought Gabe did a great job...I think Ruth had more looks at the clock then he had shot attempts. Thought he could have put more points on him. PK was working on his riding which I love to see. Some of his issues have been tank related because he shoots himself out of matches; love to see it when he's on but against tougher opponents, he has to make them waste some gas too. At HWY, Ben has to get that first period takedown...it will make his life much easier. Rather fend off guys on our feet in the third instead of having to take repeated shots at the end.
 
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Unpopular opinion but I’ve not seen anything out of bk to say he’s gonna turn it on, people were saying national champ at some point. Idk if it’s the weight, experience, lack of offense but he could be gone quick in March.
 
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Muscles1989 said:
Those two have been in college since the early 2000s.
Click to expand...
Thank GIF
 
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Muscles1989 said:
Unpopular opinion but I’ve not seen anything out of bk to say he’s gonna turn it on, people were saying national champ at some point. Idk if it’s the weight, experience, lack of offense but he could be gone quick in March.
Click to expand...
Not impressed so far, still time tho.
 
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Biscuitsnmcllravy said:
Official grades for the CRYIN Illini dual

125-#28 CRUZ vs riley
Cruz with good movement and hand fighting, nice TD in 1st with a RIDEOUT!!! Tough on top, no real risk of a turn. Had his opponent outgunned and they both knew it. Good PHYSICAL wrestling against a lesser opponent, reminiscent of a young Tom Brands. Got the major handily. A

133-#4 AYALA VS #2 byrd
MARQUEE MATCHUP!!! No committed attacks from either wrestler in the first. Ayala’s gameplan was to keep this close and bet on himself on his feet and it PAID off!!! Beautiful snap setup to the winning take down! Match-up between 2 guys who look to be near the top of the podium come March and it played out like a NCAA finals match. Pretty boring match overall, but a win over a top 2 guy at the weight class deserves an A.

141-#30 BLOCK vs #12 pucino
Block came out AGGRESSIVE and earned an early stall call. Also gave up a total BS stall call in the first. A lot of action not a lot of scoring thru 2, both guys look to be going for a big move. Seemed like the gas tank was on E in the 3rd and that was the difference. Gave up a TD while screwing with his headgear SMH. C

149-#3 PARCO vs #12 webster
The scoreboard was in no danger of being exhausted. Almost no offensive attacks from either wrestler. INCREDIBLY BORING match, no attacks, no scrambles. Did just enough to winn a match he was supposed to win and they don’t award style points. C-

157-ESTRADA vs #20 kraisser
Estrada is going to be F** to watch!! Head wrap looks TOUGH!! When I saw that I knew it was going to be a tough night for the Illini. Score was closer than the match felt. Good ranked win over and experienced foe. Left a few points out there, chalk that up to inexperience. The future is BRIGHT for this young man. B+

165-#2 CALIENDO vs #11 scoles
Mikey said “WELCOME TO THE SHOW!” This looked like a big brother practicing moves on a little brother in the living room after dinner. There’s levels to this, kid. A+ with extra credit

174-#5 PK vs #21 braunagel
PK came out a little sloppy on what looked like a couple sure TDs. Cleaned it up and got one in the first with a BIG rideout. PK is a certified TOUGH guy!! Handled a solid foe with relative ease. I hope the debate of who’s the guy at 174 has been put to bed. B

184-#5 ARNOLD vs #10 ruth
HIGHLIGHTED BOUT!! When Gabe pulls the trigger it’s EXPLOSIVE!! Would’ve liked to open it up a little more on the feet late in the match and work for the major. Heat check match and confirmed Gabe is on FIRE 🔥 B+

197-#2 BUCHANON vs #18 braunagel
SMART match against a potential land mine. Braunagel is no easy out and Stephen, wisely, never let his guard down. B+

285-#12 KUETER vs #11 luffman
Noticeable size and experience gap in favor of Luffman. Disappointing match for keuter, I would really like to see him exploit his athleticism advantage over guys like luffman. Will need to be A LOT sharper if he wants a whiff of the podium in March. D-


Overall A- the hawks put an absolute WHOOPING on an up and coming team. Some folks thought this was going to be a tight dual, it was a razors edge from a SHUTOUT!!!
Click to expand...
Caliendo doesn’t get the respect he deserves on a national level. Whether he beats mesenbrink or gets tech’d by him caliendo deserves national respect. He is a DOG. Almost reminds me of the disrespect Sorensen got
 
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Muscles1989 said:
Unpopular opinion but I’ve not seen anything out of bk to say he’s gonna turn it on, people were saying national champ at some point. Idk if it’s the weight, experience, lack of offense but he could be gone quick in March.
Click to expand...
His dream is NFL. He’s going back to football.
 
Bhabbaganoosh said:
Telford and Cassioppi were both freshman All American.

BK is light years from where those two were as redshirt freshmen.

He could get there, but he is going to have to change a lot of things.
He absolutely has the ability, but as Brands said about his match (paraphrase) “he was looking for shortcuts”.

Hard to “turn it on” at this point, but with his talent he may be one of the few athletes that could make that directional change to jump levels.
Click to expand...
There’s a common denominator with our heavyweights in the last # years. Their coached by a certain heavyweight that liked to wrestle one point matches all the time. That certain coach had one of the best double legs a heavyweight ever had, but would never pull the trigger. Who does Ben have to work at in the room that will push his lungs like they need to be pushed?
 
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IAChief32 said:
Bird's wife filling in for him?

With two big duals comning up, this one could have gotten away from us in terms of it being close. It didn't. Lots of points left out there but a solid dual up and down the lineup. Really liked the matches performances of the usual suspects but it was Los Muchachos Night at Carver with Cruz, Ayala, Estrada and Caliendo all showing out. Thought Gabe did a great job...I think Ruth had more looks at the clock then he had shot attempts. Thought he could have put more points on him. PK was working on his riding which I love to see. Some of his issues have been tank related because he shoots himself out of matches; love to see it when he's on but against tougher opponents, he has to make them waste some gas too. At HWY, Ben has to get that first period takedown...it will make his life much easier. Rather fend off guys on our feet in the third instead of having to take repeated shots at the end.
Click to expand...
Caliendo is Italian — hate to ruin your post. 😂
 
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Biscuitsnmcllravy said:
Mason Parris missed the podium as a freshman and he ended up having a pretty good career. Cass and Telford came in full sized, BK profiles closer to Parris than any of the Iowa heavies. Right now, BKs biggest strength is his athleticism, he needs to learn to use it on his feet. Getting caught under these big guys is a recipe for frustration
Click to expand...
I agree. I hope he can open up his offense and just let the fur fly every period.
 
Lucas Byrd = FFF-

Byrd laid a turd. What a failure to even make one attempt at anything offensive when it counted.
 
For the most part the Hawks wrestled fairly well. Illinois is a solid team (waaaayyy better than Wisky) and they got 1 takedown (against Block) the entire dual! While the Hawks definitely could have scored more in a couple matches, Illinois was on the defense all night trying to keep matches close and I felt Iowa was in control of most of the matches the whole time regardless of the score. BK had a tough night, but his fixes are easy adjustments to better utilize his speed and athleticism and neutralize his opponents weight advantage. He will adjust, or he will keep losing to bigger guys. Pretty dominant night for Iowa with some good wins for seeds in the future.
 
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