Who wrestles McEnally and Plott in upcoming matches? Gabe or Angelo?
- Thread starter Cleaning guy
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Re (1): Neither PK nor Nelson are sniffing a final this year with Haines and KOT in the draw, and with Keck and Starocci lurking out there at 184, most likely neither is either of the 184s. The "ongoing audition" has to come to a conclusion. It's mid-February, that kind of stuff needs to happen in November & December, and the guys who are going to be the guys in the postseason need matches for RPI, coach's rank, and seeding (as well as just match experience to prepare for the top level competition).
What if was decided long ago? I think NB was always the guy at 174, but has been hurt for 2 months. Gabe has always been the guy at 184 as the plan all along was to get Angelo 5 matches and RS. If Angelo beats CStar, maybe the plan changes, maybe not. That is what it looks like to me.
I have been a huge advocate for Kem to be on the Hawkeye staff way before he even graduated.
MK is a tremendous asset to any wrestling program
Perhaps the approach at 184 changes with the struggles we're seeing?
I'm sure TnT thought they had a top 5 guy when the season started.
Gabe lost 1 overtime match against a good opponent in season and has won a couple close matches against good opponents. I don't see that changing Tom's thought process. Gabe needs to do more offensively, but he has a stud to try to knock off tomorrow. Gabe is still really good, he just isn't undefeated now.
He would be the perfect replacement for Morningstar
Say it's not so! Coaches actually have a plan on what they would like to do? No way.
Gabe needs to worry about Gabe and not all the other BS. When he believes in himself and is dialed in he's really good. When he's worried about all the outside distractions and acts like someone he's not he then becomes a good wrestler. When have seen Gabe the last few times out just be that good wrestler hopefully that changes and he's really good tomorrow
Well dead horse here is Jcchawk get ready for that beating
A couple factors lead to Gabe looking like he did last week vs Allred…. He definitely wasn’t firing on all cylinders. I’m confident he’ll look much better tomorrow.
If and when a position were to open up in our room I can guarantee that MK would be one of the first people in mind for Tom.
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PK has lost 3 out of his last 4 matches. Giving a previous AA and season starter an opportunity after injury is hardly nepotism.
I would like to see PK against Whiting. It’s not a gimme so let him prove he can bounce back and take care of biz as he should. Give Nelson the NW match and then see what he can do against Hamiti. We’ve already seen PK vs Hamiti twice. And I don’t think that result is going to change based on what we’ve seen this season.
That's fine. If NB is the guy and has been all along and injury was the only issue with him, then he needs to get all of the matches, not split with PK. He's already behind the 8-ball with the number of matches for ranking and seeding.
When guys don't open up and attack it's what's going on between the ears that hold them back.
Regardless if Nelson wrestles all 3 matches or not he still won't have 8 for a winning %. So he won't allocate for the conference. He won't have a RPI coming out of Big 10s either. He would've over 8 matches then for a winning % for seeding purposes but no RPI. So his seed at NCAA won't be great. But he's capable of beating many guys at 174 not in the top few
You absolutely cannot have a “my guy ain’t sniffing the finals” approach as a coach, especially if you are talking about a Top 10-caliber guy.
After last year’s performance and with OkSt on the the rise, I think Iowa needs to take control of their narrative and put their best guys out there to maximize chances for highest placements possible. Even if 174 and 184 aren’t realistic finalists on paper, they’d still get mentions (with graphics) during the other Hawkeye finalists’ matches. The higher those placements, the better the optics. Plus, you never know when illness or injury could strike down competition and open a lane. Chance favors the prepared mind.
I’d pretty much guarantee there will be on-air talk of Angelo and a bright future for Iowa during the 184 finals if he makes the semis and finishes 3rd. I just don’t see Gabe generating that kind of buzz unless he shocks the world with a major upset win. If Angelo wants to go, you kind of have to let him. If Nelson is demonstrably better than Kennedy, you have to wrestle him, too.
More points, more mentions, better optics. PSU, Iowa, and OkSt are going to be competing for eyes and attention on the national stage as the arms race continues to heat up.
There's nothing I really disagree with in this. You brought up the "# of finalists" argument as a recruiting tool.
I don't believe they're worried about him stealing a spot at big 10s. Probably need him to win the dual against Oklahoma st next weekend. Also with him just coming off an injury not sure he wrestles both Friday and Sunday
Doesn't the Head Coach determine what openings occur in the room? I mean, that's job #1.
I think we can count on gobblin posting a pic/gif that sums up how stupid you are.
if Iowa burns his RS and he finishes 3rd, next year all of you will say it was a mistake to burn the RS and it cost Iowa a year of Angelo with Bo and whoever joins that class. What does it mean for GA if he is benched last minute - is he unhappy then? does he portal?
whatever Tom decides will be the wrong choice with you lot regardless
sometimes guys leave on their own accord. maybe Tom does make that decision and that is exactly what is being referenced. maybe they realign the staff with the HWC
I refuse to beleive even the best of the PSU posters (of which I hold the tow of you and @PSUmike in that regard) cant think outside the box more then just what makes Iowa look the absolute worst - its just more veiled trolling compared to the obvious ones
However, if Iowa holds his RS now, and something unexpected happens such that he doesn’t wrestle the next 4 years for Iowa, then all of us will say it was a mistake to not use him right out of the gate. I think the nature of the sport and power of the athlete these days makes it risky to adopt a keep-your-powder-dry approach.
I think we can agree that if Angelo and Gabe both want to be the 184 in 2025, one of them is not going to get his way. In that scenario, and with the future in mind, who would you least want to upset and risk losing? Of course, this is just hypothetical. Maybe it is not the scenario at all, which would make the point moot.
And “yes” on your second point. 😉
I'm not sure how you could interpret what I said as low-key trolling. It was simply a logical response to the statement. Any CEO (which essentially Tom is) is first and foremost responsible for the C-Suite staff. If it ain't working, he/she needs to fix it by getting better results from the current COO/CIO/CPO, etc... or replace those that aren't providing the results. Short of that, the Board will replace you. One has to ask; is Tom Brands a top 3 Head Coach? I think it is pretty clearly a yes. Is the rest of the staff top 3 staff? I'm not so sure there. So as HC, what's the logical move? Manage with your head or your heart?
If Angelo wanted to be the guy he would've wrestled way more matches. He could've been hitting opens and getting his match count up. He was obviously told you will get your 5 dates and we will test you against the best.
Well obviously that was the wrong choice by Tom.
It’s not about being worried about it, they’re coaches and it’s their job to do everything in their power to give their wrestler his best opportunity to succeed. Sending your guy to the Big10 tourney with 6 matches under his belt when he can easily go to 1 of 4 open tournaments and pick up 3-4 wins, get some much needed mat time, earn an allocation and give yourself a shot at an at large in case something unexpected happens seems like a no brainer. Not doing it would be negligent and leaves very little room for error in case he gets a bad draw or gets banged up.
I think you do your best to keep them both happy. You sell Angelo on being a 4 timer starting next year and the team being better in his 5th year. It might not be the case but with an uptick in recruiting they are making a good pitch. My opinion is if they were to entertain him going this year I would think 174 would have been his first choice
Nah, the twins don't want anyone to take the light off of them. Why do you think Metcalf, StJohn, Borschel, McDonough, Ramos, Clark and every other stud we have had in the last 15 years are all somewhere else. Maybe when Spencer leaves people will realize that TnT are the problem not the guys that went elsewhere because they weren't welcomed in Iowa City. Gable had his recently graduated hammers as coaches. Hmmmmm, that would make sense. He didn't hire average guys like M* and Bob.
Come on man, what the fudge is wrong with your oblongata
see this is a well-thought-out response. its hard to glean that is what you meant based on what you said.
I tend to agree some staff shakeups should be made. I think the guys currently on staff are integral to the program (as much hate as they get), but do they need to be on the Univeristy staff or can they be moved to HWC to bring someone else aboard - I don't have a good enough understanding of the rules around this stuff to really say, but I previously posted a suggestion that maybe Moriah can oversee some of her current duties (or help someone else on staff do them while working under HWC salary to bring aboard another coach/recruiting coordinator
yeah - I hear what you are saying but it is still a bunch of what ifs (which it is either way). Tom has the inside knowledge and is the man in charge. he is managing a lot of talent and egos and trying to position the team to get back to title contention - which unless PSU has a guy or two go down with injury, we aren't likely contending this season. So if Angelo is okay RS (which he has stated) then it seems best for long-term plans
Cael took a punt year once upon a time and it set PSU up for great long-term success
PK and Gabe vs minn is my guess.
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