One Pic i saw had him in the very back with a baseball hat on. I can't find him in this particular pic.
The don't clog the board with final/stay thoughts from NCAAs, post them here, thread
- Thread starter GregPickel
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Wrestlers overall are tough. Add in the woodsman attitude and it's speaks volumes to who he is .
The comment "A buck is a buck" was classic ! The announcer should of asked ,"Did you put a tag on it"?
. His father looked like he just left a duck blind.
Cael always talks about the quality of people in the program and it just seems to shine through. Not only are we enjoying a historic run of greatness, the PSU wrestlers are impossible not to like and be impressed by. Duke’s interview after taking 3rd should have been an embarrassment to every ‘adult’ asking him questions. It felt that some of these interviewers were clearly trying to bait him with peppering him with questions about the semi call and OSU’s team. He showed tremendous class and composure at 19. He congratulated Robidueu saying he deserved to win and that he personally needs to be more aggressive and said he doesn’t worry about other teams, worries about himself, his team and getting better. Cael couldn’t have answered better himself. Really appreciate being able to root for this team and these young men.Here's a thought: PJ Duke handled his getting screwed by the refs with much more dignity and class than I did!
Also trying to get mesenbrink to get in the whole hodge debate. Mitch had no part of it.
In the one group shot. He's in very back and you literally can see his jaw , no lie.
I have a lot of catching up to do, as I wasn't able to be active on the boards the past three day. Here are my first thought on the PSU guys.
125 - Luke got it done. Listen, I don't love seeing a guy backup, but, sometimes they do it because they know they are out-classed and they try to keep it close and go on a flurry at the end. McGowan simply backed up the whole time and was seemingly happy just having a close loss. I'm extremely happy for Luke. It was annoying to hear the arena boo, but, when you dominate the way that our boys have done for so long, it goes with the territory. He had an impressive semi-final win over Spratley.
133 - Marcus picked up two techs and got a solid win against a dangerous Ayala, before his 3rd match with Davino. I thought he was more aggressive in this on than the previous two. Davino is just, obviously an extremely difficult to break through against, and even when you do, it's hard to finish on him. Blaze actually did a great job with his ride, but, he struggles on the bottom against elite kids. Another tech for him over Knox, and then he runs into Seidel. I didn't agree with the choice for Marcus to go under Seidel. That is his best position and Blaze's worst position. Regardless, Marcus left it all on the mat, and he has been an absolute pleasure to watch. I look forward to seeing where it goes from here.
141 - I think it matches were 4 minutes long, he'd beat Hardy more often than not. You could see the moment when the gas tank emptied out in that match. He got a nice win over Titus, who was much better than his seed before falling to Composto. That may be his last match in a PSU singlet, and he takes a lot of abuse from PSU fans. I appreciate what he did for our team every time he was asked, and I'll always root for the kid to succeed.
149 - Shayne wrestled a really good tournament up until the final. He ran into a guy that seemed to be able to match his gas tank. I was disappointed that he let Valencia be the attacker at the end of the 3rd and in SV. He is so used to having the better gas tank that I think maybe he was waiting for a re-shot attack for the win. I don't love that thinking and hopefully he will learn from it and get that title next year. He is one of my absolute favorites and he handled himself with class in defeat.
157 - It makes me a little sick in my stomach to write this one. I felt like something clicked int he win against Antrell at BIG's. In his first three matches, he was an absolute machine. Now for the semi-final. First off, I didn't think Duke wrestled a good match. He later admitted that his nerves got to him, and I appreciated the honesty. Also, some credit has to be given to Robedeau. Despite all of this, he locked up the cradle, and I certainly thought it was the takedown. The ref on the mat really screwed this up. He needed to be aware of the situation, let the sequence/action play out and then make his call. Then the coaches can decide whether to challenge, and we avoid the situation that occurred. To have it over-turned and start them back in neutral was just incredibly unfair. All of that said, and P.J. said it himself. Both wrestlers still had a chance after that to win the match, and P.J. didn't get it done. P.J. was devastated, but, came back and dominated his two matches on Saturday as all champions do. P.J. has quick rose toward the top of my favorite wrestlers to watch and I'm extremely confident in his future.
165 - Mitchell continues to prove that he is just an all-time great among a small and elite group. The one odd thing was his having words with Hepner and then not even trying for the takedown to get the major at the end, which is really out of character for him. Regardless, he dominated like he always does in the semis and finals, and continues to pure entertainment. Wrestling him must feel like your wrestling the human version of a tornado.
174 - Levi wrestled an absolutely phenomenal tournament to end his time in NCAA Wrestling. Tech falls over Mantanona and Kennedy were extremely impressive, as those are two guys who are generally hard to score on. In the finals, he wrestled a smart and controlled match against a dangers opponent in Minto. I will miss Levi and I'm so happy to see him go out on top!
184 - I wasn't sure if letting Ryder walk was the right move, but, Rocco quickly got me on board this year. He wrestled a solid tournament. I think we all knew one takedown would probably win the match with McEnelly, and he gave it up and couldn't come back from it. That definitely wasn't from lack of effort, and I give props to McEnelly. Hopefully, Rocco can find a way to change those two 2nd place finishes into championships in the next two year.
197 - Among the many things that have us spoiled as PSU fans, having talent like Mesenbrink and Barr wrestling at the same time is an embarrassment of riches. Barr took care of business as he always does. Merrill did a solid job of holding Josh to a regular decision, but, the result was never in doubt, and Barr gets a much deserved title in an absolutely amazing season.
285 - I knew coming in that the match against Kueter was going to be the difference between medaling and falling short. He didn't get it done, and then ran into a bad matchup for him with Carroll. Cole improved as the year went on. It will be interesting to see what gains he can make in the off-season and if he can put on some solid weight. I believe in him and think he will end up being a very good 285.
Overall, as always, I'm proud to be this team and feel lucky to get to watch them.
125 - Luke got it done. Listen, I don't love seeing a guy backup, but, sometimes they do it because they know they are out-classed and they try to keep it close and go on a flurry at the end. McGowan simply backed up the whole time and was seemingly happy just having a close loss. I'm extremely happy for Luke. It was annoying to hear the arena boo, but, when you dominate the way that our boys have done for so long, it goes with the territory. He had an impressive semi-final win over Spratley.
133 - Marcus picked up two techs and got a solid win against a dangerous Ayala, before his 3rd match with Davino. I thought he was more aggressive in this on than the previous two. Davino is just, obviously an extremely difficult to break through against, and even when you do, it's hard to finish on him. Blaze actually did a great job with his ride, but, he struggles on the bottom against elite kids. Another tech for him over Knox, and then he runs into Seidel. I didn't agree with the choice for Marcus to go under Seidel. That is his best position and Blaze's worst position. Regardless, Marcus left it all on the mat, and he has been an absolute pleasure to watch. I look forward to seeing where it goes from here.
141 - I think it matches were 4 minutes long, he'd beat Hardy more often than not. You could see the moment when the gas tank emptied out in that match. He got a nice win over Titus, who was much better than his seed before falling to Composto. That may be his last match in a PSU singlet, and he takes a lot of abuse from PSU fans. I appreciate what he did for our team every time he was asked, and I'll always root for the kid to succeed.
149 - Shayne wrestled a really good tournament up until the final. He ran into a guy that seemed to be able to match his gas tank. I was disappointed that he let Valencia be the attacker at the end of the 3rd and in SV. He is so used to having the better gas tank that I think maybe he was waiting for a re-shot attack for the win. I don't love that thinking and hopefully he will learn from it and get that title next year. He is one of my absolute favorites and he handled himself with class in defeat.
157 - It makes me a little sick in my stomach to write this one. I felt like something clicked int he win against Antrell at BIG's. In his first three matches, he was an absolute machine. Now for the semi-final. First off, I didn't think Duke wrestled a good match. He later admitted that his nerves got to him, and I appreciated the honesty. Also, some credit has to be given to Robedeau. Despite all of this, he locked up the cradle, and I certainly thought it was the takedown. The ref on the mat really screwed this up. He needed to be aware of the situation, let the sequence/action play out and then make his call. Then the coaches can decide whether to challenge, and we avoid the situation that occurred. To have it over-turned and start them back in neutral was just incredibly unfair. All of that said, and P.J. said it himself. Both wrestlers still had a chance after that to win the match, and P.J. didn't get it done. P.J. was devastated, but, came back and dominated his two matches on Saturday as all champions do. P.J. has quick rose toward the top of my favorite wrestlers to watch and I'm extremely confident in his future.
165 - Mitchell continues to prove that he is just an all-time great among a small and elite group. The one odd thing was his having words with Hepner and then not even trying for the takedown to get the major at the end, which is really out of character for him. Regardless, he dominated like he always does in the semis and finals, and continues to pure entertainment. Wrestling him must feel like your wrestling the human version of a tornado.
174 - Levi wrestled an absolutely phenomenal tournament to end his time in NCAA Wrestling. Tech falls over Mantanona and Kennedy were extremely impressive, as those are two guys who are generally hard to score on. In the finals, he wrestled a smart and controlled match against a dangers opponent in Minto. I will miss Levi and I'm so happy to see him go out on top!
184 - I wasn't sure if letting Ryder walk was the right move, but, Rocco quickly got me on board this year. He wrestled a solid tournament. I think we all knew one takedown would probably win the match with McEnelly, and he gave it up and couldn't come back from it. That definitely wasn't from lack of effort, and I give props to McEnelly. Hopefully, Rocco can find a way to change those two 2nd place finishes into championships in the next two year.
197 - Among the many things that have us spoiled as PSU fans, having talent like Mesenbrink and Barr wrestling at the same time is an embarrassment of riches. Barr took care of business as he always does. Merrill did a solid job of holding Josh to a regular decision, but, the result was never in doubt, and Barr gets a much deserved title in an absolutely amazing season.
285 - I knew coming in that the match against Kueter was going to be the difference between medaling and falling short. He didn't get it done, and then ran into a bad matchup for him with Carroll. Cole improved as the year went on. It will be interesting to see what gains he can make in the off-season and if he can put on some solid weight. I believe in him and think he will end up being a very good 285.
Overall, as always, I'm proud to be this team and feel lucky to get to watch them.
Any chance Davino goes up to 141? It would be better for their lineup. They have a couple stud 125/133 coming in with Munaretto and mills and Bouzakis at 125 ended like most expected. Davino doesn’t look that big but could maybe follow the Mendez model while helping the lineup
Who is this Palacio guy? Sounds familiar… current or recent wrestler? For what school?
Okie State is still a year away from offering serious competition. The four freshmen (believe that was the name of a pop group way back when, but I digress) performed better than anticipated. The three winners will be very tough next year. Most here knew Forrest would be good, but maybe not that good.
The kid who beat Jesse Mendez was particularly surprising. He beat Mendez, it wasn't some sort of a fluke.
The kid who beat Jesse Mendez was particularly surprising. He beat Mendez, it wasn't some sort of a fluke.
125 Luke did what he needed to win. You don't take a bad shot because the other guy is stalling. That is how you lose close matches (see Mendez)
133 blaze is close. Think a redshirt would help against the other top 4 guys.
141 may have been the last time we see Davis
149 Valencia matched Van Ness physically. Could have gone either way. Van Ness was so close to the TD in the 2nd.
157 every time is rewarch the semifinal, I feel sicker and sicker. Hope Duke takes the Zain plan, and bonuses everyone after his shirt year.
165 nothing to say
174 glad he won. Stall calls justified. He was the aggressor. One of my favorite PSU wrestlers
184 it will be a one takedown match, maybe less, amongst the top 4 for the next 2 years.
197 tough to score on someone not engaging. Barr wrestled smart no reason to make mistakes trying for bonus.
285 I think Cole is an AA next. Kueter had a good tournament.
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Thx for this thread idea, Greg. It's especially helpful for those of us who couldn't follow here or post much during the sessions. Here are some quick thoughts I've been holding onto today.
- Silver lining of SVN, Duke, and Rocco not winning = creates room for improvement and a clear path to breaking the scoring record for a 4th year in a row.
- Lightning Luke stating that 125 is his weight going forward caught my attention. There has been a fair amount of speculation that he wouldn’t be able to hold 125 after this season. It’s nice to hear a PSU wrestler definitively state their weight class intentions.
- Duke revealing just how unpleasant his weight cut is confirms what some on the board have been saying all season. Based on his comments it’s hard to imagine him at anything lower than 165/174 going forward.
- Duke impressively owned his loss to Robi-slow with no excuses. He also seems to have gotten the message to never again leave the outcome in the hands of a ref. Byers mentioned a potential injury to Duke so much that I assumed he had insider info and that Duke being banged up in some way contributed to his performance in the semis. But Duke pretty clearly shut down that idea in his post-tourney interview. Whether truthful or just unwilling to make excuses, it showed a high level of maturity for such a young guy. Much more than certain older whiny wrestlers who I won’t name (AJF).
- I love listening to Byers, but he needs to slow his roll on the injury speculation during matches. He had the poor UNC kid paralyzed for life there for a few minutes before it turned out to just be concussion protocol and the match continued to conclusion.
- Tom Brands got some pretty pointed questions after the tourney about his performance as a HC this season and the future of the Iowa coaching staff. Given that the press is usually somewhere between fawning and walking on egg shells around Brands this struck me as noteworthy. Is it foreshadowing that something is afoot or maybe just attributable to there being more national/less Iowa-centric press people asking questions at NCAAs?
- Jax Forrest is electric! He's like Mitch on methamphetamine. Hard to repress the lingering bitterness about @johnstownsteel's recruitment failure.
It will be interesting to see if anyone will be able to figure out Jax over the next few years. Davino acquitted himself very well in the finals IMO.
That's why I included Munaretto and Mills in the side notes, in case that happens. Postseason Bouzakis might never place, but 125 Postseason Bouzakis clearly wasn't what they hoped for.
Ohio State doesn't have another 141 option without an import. No incoming freshmen at that weight. The best of their 133/141 backups went 6-5. I doubt Bouzakis, McCrone, or Kilkeary can eat that much and be effective.
141 would be straight fire next year with Vega/Forrest, Stanich, Davino, and Bassett. And maybe Blaze?
Wrestled for Cornell. Made the NCAA semis around 2015-2016. Really big into trolling, especially trolling PSU. Helps that his best friend is Johnni DiJulius
My quick take. Overall very pleased with our results. I will leave it there. I am glad that we have a real up and coming rival. We needed some juice for next season. There could be several hungry lions looking for better results starting next October.
Rules need drastic overall for OT.
I wiil leave it at that till the fall. Next post will be in OT BBQ etc . Tripled the size of my garden and will be looking for other posters garden plans. Starting everything from seeds.
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Planted tomatoes and tomatillo's today. Last weekend was peppers and eggplants which several have already poked through. Overdid it as usual.
Not sure about the OT rules myself. Just glad there is no such thing as a "referee's decision" any more though.
I would be shocked if Bouzakis wasnt effective at 141. Pretty obvious the cut to 125 killed him post season. And I thought he was a big 133.
Sounds bad, but could be worse.
At least you didn't get locked in the car armed only with a screwdriver.
He was standing behind everyone and was shown in front when they turned around for the crowd.
I haven't been on the board for a while. What is the consensus on Duke in the semi's? He definitely locked him up in a cradle, but did his opponent need a knee or elbow on the mat?
Will be interesting to see if all 4 133 LB freshman stay at 133.
I think Welsh will make gains this year with aggressiveness
Every sport has dynasties and every time other teams fans hate those teams for having dynasties. Won't change so let's keep winning!!!
I have seen Levi's Dad before. There's literally thousands of them in central PennsylvaniaWrestlers overall are tough. Add in the woodsman attitude and it's speaks volumes to who he is .
The comment "A buck is a buck" was classic ! The announcer should of asked ,"Did you put a tag on it"?
. If you pull into the driveway and you have the wrong address...best put the car in reverse IMMEDIATELY and get the hell outta there 
About two seconds after he took that shot I'm sure Mendez was screaming to himself, "Why did I just do that!" Vega winning really shocked me.
Because if you don't, you'll end up with a venison summer sausage, some jerky and invitation to a BBQ. People like Ken are the nicest people on the planet earth and would do anything for you.I have seen Levi's Dad before. There's literally thousands of them in central Pennsylvania
If officiating doesn't change, I think you will be seeing more and more fans clamoring for the institution of freestyle-centric rule changes such as step out, finger grasping, mandatory passivity calls when there is no scoring, criteria scoring (never any time when the score is tied), etc. Check out this 2000 video of Cael and the late Paul Jenn (tragically killed at the age of 25 in a car crash) to see how officiating was in the not-too-distant past. Trivia: Jenn beat Cael his true freshman year while Cael was redshirting.
Paying for one month of ESPN+ to be able to watch every match on every mat for the entire tournament is absolutely worth it. I think it was something like $12.00.
I was amazed at how much larger McEnelly looked than Rocco. I swear some wrestlers must have less dense bones or something. I always felt the same way when I would watch Zahid and Mark Hall wrestle. It would be interesting to know if the difference is in how much weight a wrestler is cutting and/or bone density differences or similar physiological differences among the wrestlers.
I’ve been hesitant to say it, but I am wondering if there is a scenario that sees Rocco back at 174 and Connor at 184. Like you, I think Rocco looks small for 184. I dont know which is the bettter lineup: Henckel-Rocco or Rocco-Connor.
Back home:
1) I'm surprised that people are impressed by Robideau's plan to slow down PJ but at the same time can see how hand fighting was a problem in Luke's match. Luke's ref was willing to try and call stalling to see if it pried the hands free. It didn't work but he didn't want to induce the embarrassing DQ that should have happened (again). Ref "Miles Finch" was a hot mess on this in PJ’s match. Hand fighting has to be addressed. So many unwatchable matches in Cleveland. It's not wrestling. It could be done with a Pushout or Passivity. Try something. Anything..
2) Speaking with one HC with several competitors in Cleveland, he suggests the Pushout as well. Agreed that the retreat to the circle was supposed to be addressed by "wrestling action" rule but few refs call it, let alone properly. Somehow have to keep them wrestling in the center, not the edges. And his gripe also centers around when to call it.....not waiting for the last 30...as everyone mentions. At point on Friday AM there were like 5 matches going on at once that went 0-0, 1-0, 1-1 SV. Where is Bryce Andonian and Gomez when you need them?
3) Meanwhile, not only too many bricks, but way too long to review. And way too much Mark Manning.
Funny brick moment when Lockett when down via the Elevator and pleaded for Taylor to throw the brick. He hesitated and the look on his face was, "ok, but I've seen this movie before" lol
4) Blood time. Cody Merrill shows up on the mat in the finals with an open abrasion ready to bleed. That happened 24 hours ago. Cover it up before you take the mat and if it isn't good enough wrap the head. It's almost as if the plan is to make sure you get some blood time
Which brings me to the FIATS. How does AJ have a bloody tampon up his nose BEFORE the match starts. 12 hours ago and you can't stop the bleeding by then??? Anyone else suspect he whacks his own nose to ensure stoppages?
Bottom line: The jewel of the sport is the finals. The sheer lack of action is hard on the eyes in a couple of those matches.
1) I'm surprised that people are impressed by Robideau's plan to slow down PJ but at the same time can see how hand fighting was a problem in Luke's match. Luke's ref was willing to try and call stalling to see if it pried the hands free. It didn't work but he didn't want to induce the embarrassing DQ that should have happened (again). Ref "Miles Finch" was a hot mess on this in PJ’s match. Hand fighting has to be addressed. So many unwatchable matches in Cleveland. It's not wrestling. It could be done with a Pushout or Passivity. Try something. Anything..
2) Speaking with one HC with several competitors in Cleveland, he suggests the Pushout as well. Agreed that the retreat to the circle was supposed to be addressed by "wrestling action" rule but few refs call it, let alone properly. Somehow have to keep them wrestling in the center, not the edges. And his gripe also centers around when to call it.....not waiting for the last 30...as everyone mentions. At point on Friday AM there were like 5 matches going on at once that went 0-0, 1-0, 1-1 SV. Where is Bryce Andonian and Gomez when you need them?
3) Meanwhile, not only too many bricks, but way too long to review. And way too much Mark Manning.
Funny brick moment when Lockett when down via the Elevator and pleaded for Taylor to throw the brick. He hesitated and the look on his face was, "ok, but I've seen this movie before" lol
4) Blood time. Cody Merrill shows up on the mat in the finals with an open abrasion ready to bleed. That happened 24 hours ago. Cover it up before you take the mat and if it isn't good enough wrap the head. It's almost as if the plan is to make sure you get some blood time
Which brings me to the FIATS. How does AJ have a bloody tampon up his nose BEFORE the match starts. 12 hours ago and you can't stop the bleeding by then??? Anyone else suspect he whacks his own nose to ensure stoppages?
Bottom line: The jewel of the sport is the finals. The sheer lack of action is hard on the eyes in a couple of those matches.
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Funny story. I’m watching the semis in my recliner on Friday. I tend to get a little worked up during the close bouts and a couple of times I get a message on my Apple Watch saying it’s noticed my heart rate is above 120 while I’m seated and am I OK?
This hangs in the trunk of my car. If you look closely you’ll see that it even provides instructions. Perhaps tOSU chartered buses should include a similar emergency release.
You’re in the database nowFunny story. I’m watching the semis in my recliner on Friday. I tend to get a little worked up during the close bouts and a couple of times I get a message on my Apple Watch saying it’s noticed my heart rate is above 120 while I’m seated and am I OK?
Epidemic of this. 9 PA state finals matches were 1-0 or 1-1 after regulation. So it's not getting any better in college on its own when the next wave of wrestlers arrives.
That's more understandable. We wouldn't want his brain cell to leak out.