Grades - just cause I'm feeling helpful

[FarvaHawk14]

125 - B
He went out and got after it from whistle one, he poured it on early and never stopped wrestling. I agree with many that he seems to need to wrestle himself into shape. When you are the best, people know what to do to try and slow you down, and that was a rolly guy from bottom. I think that and the fact that it was the first match slowed Lee down. However, I was a little concerned with his lack of overall pop, but I believe in the way he and the coaching staff will finish the year.

133 - B
Many will think that is high after the first period, but remember, he isn't a starter and never has been. He was today, and I believe that showed in his wrestling. He came out slow, and you can tell it is a hell of a cut. I give him credit for bouncing back and earning a win.

141 - A
He came out and poured it on bell to bell. I felt that he looked good size wise, but he didn't do some things with the ease he has at 133. Tech=A.

149 - B-
Very controlled win, but I was underwhelmed. He will continue to win matches and I love having Lugo, but show me some fire. Beat em up a little bit. He pulls the trigger and he's in deep, pull it more!

157 - A-
Very solid and controlled win, but this was the match I really thought to myself "we trained through this dual." He looked like he had already wrestled a couple live go's prior. I love watching this kid wrestle, and I think he will climb as the year goes on, and he's starting higher than he did last year already I think.

165 - B-
That kid was probably 100% focused on removing as many bonus points from Marinelli as possible. However, I agree with what Tom said, you have to earn the right to pin everyone by turning their world upside down. I would've liked to see him pour it on after the tough ride in the first and wear him out to look for the fall in the third.

174 - A
Boom... Welcome back Dawg. He looked quick and strong. Not afraid to use all of his tools, and I think he will adjust and improve those tools to work on some bigger guys as the year goes on. Hammer.

184 - A
I thought about going A-/B+ but that is UTC's best kid and he is giving up a ton of weight. Refreshing to see the output early. He was interested in separating himself early and scored late to ice it. I love the humble nature of his interview and I think he is approaching college wrestling with a dynamite attitude. The more comfortable he gets, the more dangerous he is IMO.

197 - C
This was by far the most disappointing match for me. At least Marinelli and Lugo were trying things. Jwar wrestled one hard period from what I saw. I was very pleased with the first period and part of the second, but he looked a little slow after that. I will say the UTC wanted to wrestle from space and Jwar chased himself into that last reshot. Frustrating, but I look for a lot of improvement. Hopefully, The ceiling stays high.

285 - A
Welcome Cass. He just has no problem chasing points down. He is adaptable and when something isn't there, look for the next thing. That said, he was dog on a bone with spinning over that bar. Love watching someone want to score that way I love it.

Overall - B+
We shut out a team we were supposed to, and I think there are a lot of moving parts right now. When a team has those, it is difficult to get in rhythm and feed off one another, I think that lack of momentum contributed to some lackluster performances, but they looked alright on the whole. I truly believe they trained through this a bit. That's my take, first time doing grades, so rip away I guess!

 

[sdvike]

Not grading them but UTC looked good. Overmatched in all but 1 match but other than the guy wrestling JWar, none of them did that retreat to the edge of mat thing that I hate watching.

 

[CaliHawkFan]

I was actually pretty impressed with UTC.

Warner, Marinelli, Lee were a bit disappointing

DeSanto, Brands, Young, Cass, Kem all impressive

Glynn, Lugo neutral.

 

[artradley]

No grade, but thoughts:

125
I have come to believe Spencer's biggest opponent is his own body. I don't believe for a minute he gets out of shape off-season and "wrestles himself into shape" during the year -- he was tired through B10's and Nationals last year. I don't think the world is catching up to him. He is a transcendent talent battling something that we'll probably learn about after he retires from the sport. In the mean time I will just hope he continues to dig deep inside come March and get the four titles that I believe he deserves.

133
Might have had some Carter jitters, could be his opponent got a rush of Adrenaline when he realized he wasn't going to wrestling DeSanto. Either way he gathered himself and took care of business in a manner equal to some of our AA's, so hopefully he's smiling big tonight.

141
Kid is a beast. I have to assume that TnT have decided to roll the dice with Teasdale and go for broke, hoping GT/AD give us better results than AD/MM. I can respect that, but Austin's body doesn't look like they made that decision in time for him to be up to size by December. I will say, if there is one wrestler on this team who I think has the mental toughness to wrestle up a weight class, compete with a lion's heart, and get it done, it's Austin.

149
Lugo got it done. I can't help but think there is no way he doesn't place, but also no way he gets better than the 5/6 match. So all I'm watching for is that he stays healthy. He sure looks like it right now.

157
I've loved him from the first tapes I saw of him wrestling in HS. I always felt he had a high ceiling compared to his HS ranking, and he's showing that to be true. Not the match I hoped for, but he looks fine and it will all come down to March.

165
Dominated the kid, but I hate the match strategy. Don't just ride him for four minutes and leave things close in the 3rd. Catch & release tires them out more, while building a lead that demoralizes them. When a kid is worn out and demoralized it's a lot easier to turn them. But he's a great wrestler and the only thing he has to prove is the ability to get it done at Nationals.

174
Well, any doubts about his injury recovery and his size were answered to my satisfaction. That was an impressive exhibition of talent.

184
Great, great effort. He's going to have some very good results in his career. But he's giving up WAY too much size. Even in a solid victory he seemed to get horsed a couple of times. I'd be very surprised if he is beating $$$, but this makes it an interesting bracket to follow at Midlands.

197
Poor kid's body just hasn't kicked into manhood yet, so every match is going to be a battle. Also, if I were his coach before every match I would tell him he owes me 1,000 push-ups the next day, but I'll subtract 200 for every offensive move he makes on his feet. He's not going to improve at Nationals without scoring on his own attacks, so they need to find a way to motivate him to do it.

285
At the risk of getting banned, it's going to be f*n watching him these next four years!

 

[TarpHawk]

I was afraid I was going to have to start this thread, so I will instead happily add my grades:

125: B. Great first period, then got tired and left himself open to the same cradle that Picc got him on and Mueller locked up. Like deja vu all over again.

133: C. I know Glynn's not the starter, and he showed grit in coming back for the win, but his opponent was ranked #99. Very sloppy first period, not ready to go from the first whistle.

141: A+. Fantastic. Wrestling an opponent who's a 4x starter, 2x NQ (so far), and 8 pounds heavier.

149: B. Lugo sometimes makes everything harder than it should be. He clearly was the better wrestler but he failed to put points on the board. Riding the entire 2nd period netted him a total of 1 point and kept the guy in the match well into the 3rd period.

157: B. Like Lugo, he was clearly better but just didn't dominate, especially against a kid who is starting for the first time as a senior and wrestled 133 last year, according to wrestlestat.

165: C. Dominated, but sloppy, didn't put up enough points. Four minutes of riding time is nice, but it's three minutes more than necessary if you're not scoring any back points. When Marinelli wrestles the #125 guy, it's fair to expect a pin or TF, not a 4-point decision.

174: A+. So great to see Kemerer come out and look like Kemerer.

184: A+. Opponent is ranked #17 by Flo and has already beaten #18 Braunagel and #24 Wisman this year. Brands looked confident and solid...the only thing he gave up was 10 pounds. Won't take much to convince me to make him the permanent starter.

197: C. He's so much better than most everyone he wrestles, but he lacks the hustle to put points on the scoreboard.

285: A+. Unheralded opponent, but a dominating performance for his first varsity match.

 

[MonteHawkeyeSS]

 

[GG121AND2]

View embedded media

Imagine what it's going to be like when the "big guys" come to town. WFL is already getting multiple club requests for Ohio State and Penn State.

 

[wasdt21]

art i agree with everything in your post,now i need a shower

 

[js8793]

Not grading them but UTC looked good. Overmatched in all but 1 match but other than the guy wrestling JWar, none of them did that retreat to the edge of mat thing that I hate watching.

This was my thought the whole dual. They got shut out, but they came to scrap. Even the 165 was working the whole time on bottom even though he got smothered. The fact Marinelli never came close to getting his Gable is a testament to how hard that kid worked on bottom to keep moving and coming to his feet. Some very encouraging results from that squad in my opinion.

 

[js8793]

I was afraid I was going to have to start this thread, so I will instead happily add my grades:

125: B. Great first period, then got tired and left himself open to the same cradle that Picc got him on and Mueller locked up. Like deja vu all over again.

133: C. I know Glynn's not the starter, and he showed grit in coming back for the win, but his opponent was ranked #99. Very sloppy first period, not ready to go from the first whistle.

141: A+. Fantastic. Wrestling an opponent who's a 4x starter, 2x NQ (so far), and 8 pounds heavier.

149: B. Lugo sometimes makes everything harder than it should be. He clearly was the better wrestler but he failed to put points on the board. Riding the entire 2nd period netted him a total of 1 point and kept the guy in the match well into the 3rd period.

157: B. Like Lugo, he was clearly better but just didn't dominate, especially against a kid who is starting for the first time as a senior and wrestled 133 last year, according to wrestlestat.

165: C. Dominated, but sloppy, didn't put up enough points. Four minutes of riding time is nice, but it's three minutes more than necessary if you're not scoring any back points. When Marinelli wrestles the #125 guy, it's fair to expect a pin or TF, not a 4-point decision.

174: A+. So great to see Kemerer come out and look like Kemerer.

184: A+. Opponent is ranked #17 by Flo and has already beaten #18 Braunagel and #24 Wisman this year. Brands looked confident and solid...the only thing he gave up was 10 pounds. Won't take much to convince me to make him the permanent starter.

197: C. He's so much better than most everyone he wrestles, but he lacks the hustle to put points on the scoreboard.

285: A+. Unheralded opponent, but a dominating performance for his first varsity match.

It seems like every time he gasses he gives up a far side cradle like that and then we go through 30 seconds of holding our breath while he hangs on for dear life to not go over. Maybe it's always there because he's so short and if he stops moving, most guys can just reach it.

 

[js8793]

125: B- Tough to grade him as he doesn't look in top form. For how dominant he is on the scoreboard, I don't think I'm ever more nervous than when I watch him wrestle. You know he's going to put up points early. You never know if how long his tank will last. I think he'll wrestle his way into shape (before I get jumped on) and be fine this year.

133: B Terrible start, but buckled down and controlled the 2nd and 3rd periods. I really appreciate Glynn making a tough cut when he knows he won't start. Team player. Grade would be lower if he was the starter.

141: A I thought he looked big enough and still looked physically dominant. Hard to say much until we see him against a good 141.

149: B- Typical Lugo. He wrestles to the level of his competition. He's still very good, but not somebody to expect consistent bonus from and always someone that will give us some scares this year.

157: Young B+ Wrestling Penn State's former 133 starter who hit a huge growth spurt. He was really squirrely on bottom and Young had a tough time controlling him, but still dominated. Reminds me a lot of St. John.

165: C Dominant, but spent the whole match controlling a wrist on top. He could have teched that kid on his feet. Not sure how much he learned from that match. Just kind of weird.

174: A Looked big and still smooth. Liked the crab series on top. He's shown that a little in the past, but not consistently. It's nice to see him add a turn.

184: A+ I'm a believer. I thought that was a trap match for Wilcke. Wouldn't expect a 165 to completely control him. Waddell is by far their best wrestler and a legit top 20 guy.

197: C He is who he is. Lack of consistent leg attacks will hold him back. Not a dominant hand fighter as advertised. Still a top 5 guy at the weight, but susceptible to upsets in close matches. I want to see him step on the mat with the confidence he had at junior trials 2 years ago. That Warner stepped on the mat to murder someone.

285: A Looking forward to heavyweight the next 4 years.

 

[10ACHAWK]

This was my thought the whole dual. They got shut out, but they came to scrap. Even the 165 was working the whole time on bottom even though he got smothered. The fact Marinelli never came close to getting his Gable is a testament to how hard that kid worked on bottom to keep moving and coming to his feet. Some very encouraging results from that squad in my opinion.

I was an assistant coach with Nicholson (165) and Walthall (HWT) during most of their middle and high school years. Nicholson is a tough kid. He never really enjoyed a loss. Some good battles with Bolen of vatech. Not surprised he made it tough on THE Bull.

 

[pointtheway]

I was afraid I was going to have to start this thread, so I will instead happily add my grades:

125: B. Great first period, then got tired and left himself open to the same cradle that Picc got him on and Mueller locked up. Like deja vu all over again.

133: C. I know Glynn's not the starter, and he showed grit in coming back for the win, but his opponent was ranked #99. Very sloppy first period, not ready to go from the first whistle.

141: A+. Fantastic. Wrestling an opponent who's a 4x starter, 2x NQ (so far), and 8 pounds heavier.

149: B. Lugo sometimes makes everything harder than it should be. He clearly was the better wrestler but he failed to put points on the board. Riding the entire 2nd period netted him a total of 1 point and kept the guy in the match well into the 3rd period.

157: B. Like Lugo, he was clearly better but just didn't dominate, especially against a kid who is starting for the first time as a senior and wrestled 133 last year, according to wrestlestat.

165: C. Dominated, but sloppy, didn't put up enough points. Four minutes of riding time is nice, but it's three minutes more than necessary if you're not scoring any back points. When Marinelli wrestles the #125 guy, it's fair to expect a pin or TF, not a 4-point decision.

174: A+. So great to see Kemerer come out and look like Kemerer.

184: A+. Opponent is ranked #17 by Flo and has already beaten #18 Braunagel and #24 Wisman this year. Brands looked confident and solid...the only thing he gave up was 10 pounds. Won't take much to convince me to make him the permanent starter.

197: C. He's so much better than most everyone he wrestles, but he lacks the hustle to put points on the scoreboard.

285: A+. Unheralded opponent, but a dominating performance for his first varsity match.

125: According to Wrestlestat, Lee's opponent is ranked #22. He's Chattanooga's highest ranked wrester, per Wrestlestat. It's kind of unfair that we seem to expect a tech or pin every time out from Lee, regardless of the opponent.

133: I give Glynn at least a B. Glynn started slow, but finished strong. His strong finish got the crowd going again after the slow start. He always surprises me with his gas tank given the huge cut he's making. Remember he was originally a 141 pounder a few years ago and made the tough cut to 133 to fill a void, and he's still making the cut. Tremendous dedication to make that cut for three years.

141: He tech'd him, so he's gotta get an A, but according to Wrestlestat, DeSanto wrestled Chattanooga's 3rd string 141 pounder, Aiden Murphy, ranked #160, not their normal 141 pounder Chris Debien.

165: C seems kind of harsh for someone that totally dominated the match working for a pin. Marinelli could have tech'd the guy by playing takedown / release. Obviously he wanted to work on his mat wrestling and he put a pretty good beating on the guy that the score does not reflect.

174: A+++++ Love seeing Kemdog back on the mat. He's definitely a full size 174.

184: Fantastic job by undersized Brands, but they had him weigh in at 176.5 to stay eligible to go 174 next week if needed. I'm betting we see Cash at 184 next week. Brands just too small to compete consistently against the top full sized 184 pounders.

197: Warner probably deserves the C, but in his defense some opponents can be really good at keeping it close. Warner's opponent was an NCAA qualifier last season and he was put together pretty well so he didn't let Warner control the ties. Plus, Warner seemed to get frustrated chasing the guy all over the mat as the guy didn't want to tie up with Warner other than to go ear-to-ear and squeeze Warner's head. Don't want Warner to get desperate and dive in on long distance shots, so he's gotta get better at getting to his ties to set up his shots. Tough to shoot when you're locked up ear to ear.

 

[MitchLL]

Regarding 184... Iowa should be at the point that an AA finish is expected. We know what we have with $$$... a R12 guy. I say let NB wrestle all year. You'll see continued improvement and a higher ceiling.

Wrestle Brands against Colbray next week. See if he can compete? We already know $$$ will be either a one point loss or a one point win.

 

[JEDN]

Why wouldn’t Kem go against ISU?

 

[pumpdog20]

Would Cash have scored three takedowns on that guy? I doubt it.

 

[fufighters]

Lee...although he is definitely the man , I wish he would add a half to his arsenal. Was happy somewhat he was able to defeat a leg rider.
Glenn doesn't take advantage at all of his length ..need a heel pick and some cradles ..4 years in program still wrestling the same.
AD came out to wild thing and it was great...little humor....but his motor is really the difference maker. He had a nice couple of attacks from his left... for the hand behind their back boys. Imagine if everyone wrestled with that motor.
Lugo wrestles like hes unwillingly to attack. No blast double yet, so hes going to worry me with taller opponents.
Young needs to spend some more time with Mstar for the sweeping single... if hes going to beat Carr or Hidlay. You can see Sorenson has been working with him especially in finishing singles.
The Bull...cant pin everyone with a cow catcher so wish he had more arsenal...plus like to see him use the foot sweep out front sometime soon especially when from a side attack.
Kem Dog looked like a guy who will be in the finals and I think hes got a motor to stop Hall.
Nelson undersized ..will remain that way and if Cash cant show how hes the best athlete on the team then I'm good with him sitting in JV tourneys.
Warner has his fan boys and I'm not one... he seams down right lazy at times and doesnt have mental toughness. Look for Glazier to figure him out and give him a real battle by years end.
Big Cass...a redshirt freshman that acts like a 5th year senior. Hes going to be fun to watch and if he can get out I expect a real battle by b10s.
For all the super insiders with all the top info..how about ask Gable to come in and go over his arm bar and pinning combos.
But as before its November and everone won including 2 backups (3: if AD counts) A 1st appearance by a RS freshman Hwt and a guy who's coming of a season ending injury and up 2 classes. Overall good night!!

 

[HawkMD]

We trained through this meet, which explains much of the gas issues.

 

[TarpHawk]

Regarding 184... Iowa should be at the point that an AA finish is expected. We know what we have with $$$... a R12 guy. I say let NB wrestle all year. You'll see continued improvement and a higher ceiling.

Wrestle Brands against Colbray next week. See if he can compete? We already know $$$ will be either a one point loss or a one point win.

I hear you, Mitch. I'm still kind of on the fence. Brands and Wilcke both had good weekends. You have to let Wilcke go against Colbray to see how he responds. If he wins by 6, that's new data. If he loses by 6, that's new data.

The real case for Brands, which you allude to, is that, as of now, we can pretty much count on no more than 5.5 points out of Wilcke at NCAAs. (R12 = 2 points), so there's limited downside to putting Brands in if he continues to beat good guys and if Wilcke struggles against R12 guys like Colbray.

But you've got to let Brands get to full 184 to make it a fair comparison. Looking forward to Midlands.

 

[NeedMoreIronside]

I hear you, Mitch. I'm still kind of on the fence. Brands and Wilcke both had good weekends. You have to let Wilcke go against Colbray to see how he responds. If he wins by 6, that's new data. If he loses by 6, that's new data.

The real case for Brands, which you allude to, is that, as of now, we can pretty much count on no more than 5.5 points out of Wilcke at NCAAs. (R12 = 2 points), so there's limited downside to putting Brands in if he continues to beat good guys and if Wilcke struggles against R12 guys like Colbray.

But you've got to let Brands get to full 184 to make it a fair comparison. Looking forward to Midlands.

But he'll never be at 84 this year unless he goes full feed starting tomorrow. Surely Dawgs performance alleviated any doubt that he is back at full strength and no reason to keep Nelson down to be his defacto back-up correct?

 

[MitchLL]

I suspect there's some psychological warfare going on in the wrestling room from Coach. Sending $$$ to Luther was the equivalent of a jv match. Nelson wrestled varsity on Sunday vs UTC.

Maybe $$$ wrestles Colbray, as Tarp suggests, to see the motivation. If next weekend's developments don't get the hoped for response from Wilcke... you have an easier decision for the rest of the year.

Then you can determine NB's diet for the rest of this season.

 

[iowaHOXXX]

Didn’t Wilson get hurt wrestling Coleman last year? Maybe they sit Kem-Dawg at 174 and let Brands wrestle Coleman?

 

[MitchLL]

Didn’t Wilson get hurt wrestling Coleman last year? Maybe they sit Kem-Dawg at 174 and let Brands wrestle Coleman?

That's insinuating that Wilson getting hurt was Coleman's fault. Injuries happen. Coleman is a hot/cold wrestler. Can look good at times, but fades late at other times.

I'd like to see Kem TF him in two periods.

 

[minnhawkeye]

How many ranked wrestlers will Iowa State have?
To lazy to check it out..

 

[Inspiteofourselves]

How many ranked wrestlers will Iowa State have?
To lazy to check it out..

125 Mackall 13-20 range
133 Small UR/Gomez 5-10 range
141 Parker 15-20
149 Degan 5-10
157 Carr 5-12
165 Straw 20ish
174 Coleman 20ish
184 Colbray 10ish
197 Shapiro UR
285 Gremmel 20ish

there are multiple rankings so I ball parked it on own knowledge

 

[butchinmi]

125 - Mackal #8
133 - Gomez #5 (if wrestling)
141 - Parker #13
149 - Degen #4
157 - Carr #20 (will be much higher)
165/174 - None
184 - Colbray #6
197 - No
HWT - Gremmel - #16

sorry inspite - similar time - mine are from flo.

 

[hawkeyecrazy]

Are we rooting for Nelson and Cash to be on the same side of the bracket at Midlands or hoping , with fingers crossed, that they are on opposite sides and both make the finals?

I'd like to see Nelson get out from under a few quality 84 pounders. He is strong but will have to do it with repeated efforts IMO and then see where the gas tank is at.
Throw Cash out against ISU and see how bad he wants this senior year.
FWIW I'd make Teasdale take bottom at Midlands to get some of those answers as well.

It is going to be an interesting season.

 

[MitchLL]

125 Mackall 13-20 range
133 Small UR/Gomez 5-10 range
141 Parker 15-20
149 Degan 5-10
157 Carr 5-12
165 Straw 20ish
174 Coleman 20ish
184 Colbray 10ish
197 Shapiro UR
285 Gremmel 20ish

there are multiple rankings so I ball parked it on own knowledge

That's pretty damn accurate. Realistically, ISU's best chances are to win are 149/184/141/157, in that order, imo. Lots of questions a week out.

 

[Inspiteofourselves]

That's pretty damn accurate. Realistically, ISU's best chances are to win are 149/184/141/157, in that order, imo. Lots of questions a week out.

I’d throw 133 in there as well if it’s Teasdale/Glynn. The other 5 weights are pretty much locks for the Hawks. Out of the 5 weights were the clones have a shot I’d bet they only win 2. Most excited for the Carr/Young match.

 

[Sandor45]

So is Desanto a lock for 41 rest of year or until Murin comes back?

 

[MitchLL]

I’d throw 133 in there as well if it’s Teasdale/Glynn. The other 5 weights are pretty much locks for the Hawks. Out of the 5 weights were the clones have a shot I’d bet they only win 2. Most excited for the Carr/Young match.

Reports are that Gomez won't be down at 133 until CKeen. Small, the backup got beat today. The only question, to me, is how badly Small loses to either Glynn or Teasdale.

But I'm with you... Carr/Young should be pretty good.

 

[Inspiteofourselves]

Reports are that Gomez won't be down at 133 until CKeen. Small, the backup got beat today. The only question, to me, is how badly Small loses to either Glynn or Teasdale.

But I'm with you... Carr/Young should be pretty good.

Didn’t know that about Gomez. 2nd most anticipated match for me is Colbray vs Wilcke/Brands followed by Lugo vs Degen

 

[Sandor45]

My take aways...

KemDawg vs Hall is going to be a thing this year. Just gotta make sure we are up in points by the 3rd.

CassWhoopin is going to be a thing this year. I know i'm jumping the gun, but he's a title contender. He's built muscle and is still very quick on his feet for a heavy and also just has an intangible swagger about him.

UT coaches gave that "I don't give a crap what logo is on their singlet, you don't lay down for these guys" speech before the duel.

 

[MitchLL]

Didn’t know that about Gomez. 2nd most anticipated match for me is Colbray vs Wilcke/Brands followed by Lugo vs Degen

Gomez lost to Parker in the intrasquad 4-0. I don't know if that says more about Parker or Gomez. Gomez seems like a guy, when scouted, loses his advantage. Parker is good on top. If Austin is still a bit undersized, he might struggle from bottom.

Barring something strange, like last season's injury default at 174, this one could get really ugly again for the Clones.

 

[Nashville_Hawkeye]

125 - B
He went out and got after it from whistle one, he poured it on early and never stopped wrestling. I agree with many that he seems to need to wrestle himself into shape. When you are the best, people know what to do to try and slow you down, and that was a rolly guy from bottom. I think that and the fact that it was the first match slowed Lee down. However, I was a little concerned with his lack of overall pop, but I believe in the way he and the coaching staff will finish the year.

133 - B
Many will think that is high after the first period, but remember, he isn't a starter and never has been. He was today, and I believe that showed in his wrestling. He came out slow, and you can tell it is a hell of a cut. I give him credit for bouncing back and earning a win.

141 - A
He came out and poured it on bell to bell. I felt that he looked good size wise, but he didn't do some things with the ease he has at 133. Tech=A.

149 - B-
Very controlled win, but I was underwhelmed. He will continue to win matches and I love having Lugo, but show me some fire. Beat em up a little bit. He pulls the trigger and he's in deep, pull it more!

157 - A-
Very solid and controlled win, but this was the match I really thought to myself "we trained through this dual." He looked like he had already wrestled a couple live go's prior. I love watching this kid wrestle, and I think he will climb as the year goes on, and he's starting higher than he did last year already I think.

165 - B-
That kid was probably 100% focused on removing as many bonus points from Marinelli as possible. However, I agree with what Tom said, you have to earn the right to pin everyone by turning their world upside down. I would've liked to see him pour it on after the tough ride in the first and wear him out to look for the fall in the third.

174 - A
Boom... Welcome back Dawg. He looked quick and strong. Not afraid to use all of his tools, and I think he will adjust and improve those tools to work on some bigger guys as the year goes on. Hammer.

184 - A
I thought about going A-/B+ but that is UTC's best kid and he is giving up a ton of weight. Refreshing to see the output early. He was interested in separating himself early and scored late to ice it. I love the humble nature of his interview and I think he is approaching college wrestling with a dynamite attitude. The more comfortable he gets, the more dangerous he is IMO.

197 - C
This was by far the most disappointing match for me. At least Marinelli and Lugo were trying things. Jwar wrestled one hard period from what I saw. I was very pleased with the first period and part of the second, but he looked a little slow after that. I will say the UTC wanted to wrestle from space and Jwar chased himself into that last reshot. Frustrating, but I look for a lot of improvement. Hopefully, The ceiling stays high.

285 - A
Welcome Cass. He just has no problem chasing points down. He is adaptable and when something isn't there, look for the next thing. That said, he was dog on a bone with spinning over that bar. Love watching someone want to score that way I love it.

Overall - B+
We shut out a team we were supposed to, and I think there are a lot of moving parts right now. When a team has those, it is difficult to get in rhythm and feed off one another, I think that lack of momentum contributed to some lackluster performances, but they looked alright on the whole. I truly believe they trained through this a bit. That's my take, first time doing grades, so rip away I guess!

125: C - Looked great in the first but was non-existent after that. Since he's a 2-time champ it's hard to be critical so I'll stop there. Based on his performance at NCAAs, he's proven that he can produce points when it matters.


133: B+ - For a guy who's not in the starting lineup he performed very well. As others have said, he seemed a bit timid initially, but once he shook it off he looked pretty darn good!

141: A+ - I love watching him wrestle...a non-stop heat seeking missile that keeps chasing until the target is destroyed. Not sure how much he weighed, but if he can gain a few more points while maintaining that same gas tank I don't see why he can't bring home the hardware in March.

149: C- - I really have a hard time giving a good grade to an AA who rode his unranked opponent for 3 plus minutes. Our AAs need to be able to score bonus points against significantly weaker opponents, so in Lugo's case, I would like to see quick releases and more TDs unless he's able to get some back points. Riding time of more than a minute (especially against weaker opponents) is wasted time that you could have spent scoring more TDs.


157: B- - While he fared better than Lugo, it was disappointing that he didn't TF an opponent who earlier this month got MD'd by WrestleStat's 49th ranked wrestler. If we're going to win the B10s and NCAAs our studs need to TF or pin our significantly weaker opponents.


165: F - Look at Nicholson's stats on WrestleStat. He's ranked 105th while Alex is ranked between 2 and 4. Anything other than a fall or TF is unacceptable. Alex is a beast! He needs to set the example!


174: A+. Now I see what all you local guys who could attend practices have been talking about these past several weeks. Holy shit, Kem looks great!!! Hall - and everyone else at 174 - are in big trouble if Kem stays healthy. I've said a few prayers for him along the way and am very hopeful that he'll have the season he deserves. Love seeing him back in the lineup!!

184: A - I thought Brands looked 10-15 pounds lighter than his ranked opponent, yet he still had a decisive victory. Sure was nice seeing some offense at 184!! I vote to keep this man in the starting job while continuously feeding him steaks, peanut butter, protein shakes and extra hours with barbells and dumbbells. Maybe have Cash go back to 97 and compete against Warner...


197: F - The other day I posted in this forum that I had no confidence in Warner due to the fact that he only scored bonus points in 6 of his matches last year, as well as the fact that he looked very lethargic in several matches (just like tonight), that he seemed to wrestle down to his opponent's level (just like tonight), and that he either barely won or at times lost the close matches he should have won (just like tonight). And for course I received a couple nasty comments about how unfair I was in being critical of Warner's season with everything he went through last year, and how he's advanced since then, and so on. Well for what it's worth, tonight I saw exactly what we all saw last year...Warner laying an egg and barely beating a guy he should have destroyed. Jones came into this match with a 3-3 record, losing to guys ranked 21, 31 and 58, respectively, and Warner won by one point. Totally unacceptable. And how many of Warner's shots resulted in TDs? Zero. He got his points via a poke in the eye, a stall, an escape, and securing a TD off one of Jones' shots. Warner is such an accomplished and incredibly gifted wrestler, so I find it hard to understand why he's not attacking his opponents. Brands, in his first match, wrestled up 2 weight classes against a ranked opponent and looked exponentially better than Warner, our returning AA who wrestled a much less talented opponent. Is Warner injured or sick? I don't want to be unfair, so if he's injured or sick I apologize for being critical. But if he's not injured or sick, someone needs to light a fire under his ass. He is way too talented to perform like this.


285: A+ - Loved it!! He performed exactly like all of our studs should against unranked or significantly less talented opponents!! That's number one, Cass...I want to see you break the record!!

 

[IRONBIRD]

Many fair assessments here. When I coached I always tried to remember what the great General Patton would say. "Things are never as bad or good as they seem."

25 The concerns about Lee which I were hoping would disappear, still seem to be there. The kid is just so darn good that beating a pretty good wrestler easily, isn't even close to showing what he can do at 100%. Like everyone else, I sit here scratching my head trying to come up with answers.

Part of me says, not to worry. He just turns it on when it counts and kicks everyones ass! Thing is I want him to be a 4 time champ as bad as the next guy, and to see him getting a power half with legs in, and cradled, makes me want to break something.

33 everyone should tip their hat to Glynn. To currently be a non starter, and still make a tough cut for the team says a lot about the young man!

What this weekend did I am not sure? Did it answer questions, or raise questions? We saw Teasdale look pretty good, and maybe not so good, or as good as we had hoped. Obviously very early, but with Murin in a shoulder brace, and then defaulting out, are we looking at him taking a medical year?

Which may make sense as to why deSantos is up at 41. In any case we need an AA at 33.

41 DeSanto is an animal and he is a contender wherever he winds up.

49 Was already pointed out that he need to get to his offense more etc...

57 Young look OK was hoping for more like others but he is in the hunt for a title

65 Thought the bull should have played the takedown game a little. Like someone said, might have thought it was better to work on his top game. You know you are going to get a maximum effort every time from him and I guess that is all you can ask. Hope he can be at his best and win it when it counts!

74 Love having the KemDawg back. He looked very good.

84 My thought here are 1) The intel was correct and brands sure enough is better then most expected. he is defiantly a little small for the weight. Some have said bulk him up, which i just do not see happening during wrestling season.

I believe a message was sent to Ca$h, get to your offense or you ride the pine! He did just that against some lesser competition, I hope to see him against ISU and watch him do the same.

Will be interesting to see how this plays out.

97 hmmm, Did you ever see a movie where someone takes a spiked thing and puts it under a unsuspected cowboys horses saddle? Then he jumps on and the horse takes off like a bat outa hell. Well can someone please come up with a similar item for warner!

heavy- Big Cass is very fun to watch and easy to like. Here is to him kicking ass for the next 4 years!

 

[TarpHawk]

But he'll never be at 84 this year unless he goes full feed starting tomorrow. Surely Dawgs performance alleviated any doubt that he is back at full strength and no reason to keep Nelson down to be his defacto back-up correct?

Exactly

 

[Chips28]

It’s been said that Spencer will have to wrestle himself into shape. What does he gain from a 1st period tech if he needs the mat time working towards the Olympics. Everybody just needs to calm down they are so tightly wound about him.

 

[artradley]

It’s been said that Spencer will have to wrestle himself into shape. What does he gain from a 1st period tech if he needs the mat time working towards the Olympics. Everybody just needs to calm down they are so tightly wound about him.

Link to a “tightly wound” post?

 

[west2east]

Are we rooting for Nelson and Cash to be on the same side of the bracket at Midlands or hoping , with fingers crossed, that they are on opposite sides and both make the finals?

I'd like to see Nelson get out from under a few quality 84 pounders. He is strong but will have to do it with repeated efforts IMO and then see where the gas tank is at.
Throw Cash out against ISU and see how bad he wants this senior year.
FWIW I'd make Teasdale take bottom at Midlands to get some of those answers as well.

It is going to be an interesting season.

Waddell has wins over Wisman and Braunagel this year so Brands beating him is impressive.184 will be a battle all year and Brands will only get better