I know many online and around are blaming Brands for recruiting, but what are they supposed to do with a full drop off with the in-state recruiting. Outside of Ayala and Keuter, this state's well is dry. PSU starts 5 guys from Pennsylvania, with a 6th from about 2 hours away in Blair. They pulled in 3 more top 7 recruits from Pennsylvania in this years class as well. Not trying to take anything away from Carl, but their state is feeding that program, and it's not going anywhere.
In State Recruiting
- Thread starter relishingwinning18
- Start date
Just a few years ago people were talking about how Iowa HS wrestling was in a renaissance. However, aside from a couple guys, they just weren't elite prospects.
Those individual and team titles for Team Iowa were a nice accomplishment but they just weren't great college prospects.
I know it's a tough battle to get elite national guys but we cannot compete with Carl, and probably DT, with a bunch of above average Iowa prospects.
However, since we can't get enough of the national recruits, we have to rely on the transfer route... until NIL changes.
Luckily there are a lot of other states to recruit in. Iowa hasn't had the talent to carry a top program for a very long time.
Exactly, I think we all just have to accept the fact that our best recruiting is gonna have to be the transfer portal going forward. Grab one or two highschool top recruits and transfers.
The transfer portal is an unsustainable and lazy plan for becoming the best. Top end recruiting has to happen. The portal should be for fixing unforseen problems or icing on the cake, not your main plan.
Top level recruits want a fully funded and stocked RTC when looking at the best opportunity to reach long term goals (post college). TNT up until this point have not seen the value of bringing in outside staff to the HWC and make it attractive.
Look around the college landscape, it’s not lazy. It’s the new norm. It doesn’t have to be your main plan, you get two big time recruits every year that are gonna be top five, and like you said, you finish up every year with a couple seniors that want to transfer in to go to battle as a top 2 to 3 team. I think Iowas currently doing that with Deluca and Luddington, and has with Ferrari, Keuter, Arnold, etc, but it has to get even better.
You don’t have to, but it makes things a hell of a lot easier.
Of course it’s a major factor. It’s not disqualifying, but come on, it’s definitely a significant advantage to have proximity to talent.
It's lazy the way Iowa has used it because they were stuck with it due to bad recruiting. You are rolling the dice hoping a guy will be available to plug a hole and you actually land them plus it's often a short term solution if you get it. Look at the gaping holes that will be opening up the next two years with no legit contenders in the fold to fill them. The Brands have gotten slightly more active in up front recruiting the past year. Hopefully they continue and increase in that area.
I will acknowledge that a benefit of bringing in occasional portal guys is it can bring some fresh techniques to the room. Also it can more quickly stock the HWC if Brands can take advantage of that.
Just generally speaking here - I get that Penn State lands a lot of the #1 ranked kids out of High School and I also get that there are other good programs out there besides Iowa but what frustrates me is when you see the #2 - #10 ranked kids going to schools like Brown, Virginia, Drexel, Lehigh or Cal-State Bakersfield while Iowa pulls in the #15 ranked kid in a particular weight class... With that being said Iowa has done a lot better the past couple of years landing some #1 - #10 ranked kids.. I just hope they keep that up...
And with college wrestling currently mirroring the 80’s and 90’s, you have a solid point.
In Iowa's run of national championships starting in 1974, Iowa had 73 Individual champions, 37 of those came from our state. You are an idiot.
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