You could tell by his post match reaction how meaningful it was for him. Always very satisfying to see a goal realized for someone.
UNC Wrestling 2025-2026
- Thread starter 81Heel/M1
- Start date
So happy for Hepner and our whole team! What a gutsy match.
Hepner’s blood round win gave us 3.5 team points and took us back to 30 th place. Great win for this young man and important for the program, as heelwrestler07 alluded to in his post.
Robideau! I thought Duke was one of the more unbeatable guys out there.
there have been some great matches this year, hoping we can have more guys involved in the big matches soon
8 years in a row with an AA for Carolina. Great streak, started by Coach Scott, continued by Coach Koll, with Coach Ramos there the whole time.
Hepner can't quite get out and runs out of gas with 30-40 seconds left to lose 2-0, he'll wrestle for 7th
Just looked at the bracket for 165, and Hepner‘s opponent in the 7/8 place match is the 16 seed, Gallagher from Ohio State. That is a very interesting turn of events.
Hepner with a dominate 9-1 win takes 7th place, also that is a major dec so he gets us a bonus point victory for the team score
T-31st season, basically what we've done the last 2 years
I wasn’t able to watch the match earlier, so I just now got to see it. Great job finishing by Hepner. He looked like he was having fun wrestling again, for the first time since before the state match. Very happy for this young man, and also for the program. It says a lot when a transfer can come in and improve his ranking significantly. Even with a tough stretch near the end of the dual season, he earned a #9 seed before finishing 7th at the tournament.
There will be a lot more to discuss in the coming weeks, including summaries of the tournament, the season, injuries, transfer portal evaluation, transfer portal expectation, etc. Tonight I think it’s best to celebrate Mr. Hepner’s accomplishments as a Tar Heel.
There will be a lot more to discuss in the coming weeks, including summaries of the tournament, the season, injuries, transfer portal evaluation, transfer portal expectation, etc. Tonight I think it’s best to celebrate Mr. Hepner’s accomplishments as a Tar Heel.
I agree. Our coaching staff should use this fact in their recruiting pitch to bring top level talent to come to the Heel.
For any of you not watching the finals 1. you should be they have been incredibly entertaining 2. Mesenbrink the guy that beat Hepner in the championships just won by Tech Fall in the finals and the fact that Hepner held him to a decision came up twice during the coverage, and I would argue watching him just destroy someone in the finals looking like he could do anything he wanted makes Hepner's match against him even more impressive
The season is over and with some success, based on the 7th place finish by Hepner. So I want to start looking at the a few key components of the team. Coach Scott has some successful years, but his teams were always low on depth. This left holes in the lineup almost every year. We had a little of that this year, with having to rely on true freshmen at 2 weights after injuries. One of our holes was at 149, and was a direct result of the transfer by Lachlan McNeil (who after an off year he finished third, losing only to the eventual champion). So lets start by looking at transfers.
Two years ago we had 4 transfer come into the program, including Oakley, Darracott, Ogunsanya, and Neves. All 4 were back, though Ogunsanya and Neves were lost for the season and Darracott did not have many opportunities to wrestle this year. Last year we picked up Terukina and Hepner (and at 1 point had a commitment from Ferrari) after losing McNeil, Moore, and Lautt to transfers. From the beginning until the tournament this weekend, Terukina and Moore were about an equal trade. When you look at the season Hepner and McNeil were a virtual even exchange, with Hepner seeded 9 and McNeil seeded 11 for the tournament. Then McNeil did his March thing and finished third vs Hepner's 7th place finish. I will add that Ferrari finished 6th, by medical forfeiting after losing in the semi finals (note that his younger brother also lost in the semis and medical forfeited to 6th place as well, speaking to the question of character that was always a concern with Ferrari's commitment before it fell apart).
Next year's roster from what I can tell includes:
125 - Stinson, Hickey, and true freshman Dunia Sibomana
133 - Botello, Guanajuato, Tocci, and true freshman Lukas Littleton-Mascaro
141 - Simcox, O'Neill, Navida and Askew
149 - Scott and Younger
157 - Root, Showalter, and Kane
165 - Hepner, Sipes, Nugent and true freshman Nafshi
174 - Ogunsanya, Carrigan, Murabito, Portella, and true freshman Gault
184 - Dailey, O'Boyle, Alvarez, Schlett, and true freshman Kelly
197 - Platt, Calcagno, and true freshman Jipp
285 - Neves and Levy
Obviously I have no insight to the exact weight classes for each of the wrestlers, but the above is my best guess as where they will be next year. I have had a hope for Guanajauto to be able to drop to 125, but I am guessing that will not happen. If neither transfer, I expect a stiff competition between Botello and Guanajuato for the 133 spot. Also, I would like to think O'Neill could bulk up a little and join the competition for 149. All of the freshmen coming in could move around from their high school weight. Schlett dropped from 215 in high school to the 184 weight class for college is an example of how weights change.
Returning ncaat qualifiers include Simcox, Scott, Root, Hepner, Carrigan, Ogunsanya, Dailey, and Neves. That is 8 wrestlers at 7 weights that should be good starters, and have an expectation to at least match past success. That leaves 3 weights that we need to improve on to move forward. Platt will be back and could reasonably be expected to improve enough to qualify for ncaat. Scott will be back at 149, and should shore up this weight. I think 133 will be at least as good next year with 1 of Guanajuato/Botello filling in this spot. Unless something changes drastically, or unless one of Hickey or Stinson can step up at 125, this is the most likely focus for the transfer portal targets.
Clearly we could lose key wrestlers like we did last year, either as probable starters or key depth roles, and this would add to any portal interest we may have. It also might help to get more depth at certain weights, including 197 and heavyweight.
This team will have a few key leaders that have only a year of eligibility left next year, including expected starters Hepner and Ogunsanya and key depth pieces in Showalter and Murabito. This is still a young team, but they should be getting better over the next year of 2.
Just a few thoughts for your consideration.
Two years ago we had 4 transfer come into the program, including Oakley, Darracott, Ogunsanya, and Neves. All 4 were back, though Ogunsanya and Neves were lost for the season and Darracott did not have many opportunities to wrestle this year. Last year we picked up Terukina and Hepner (and at 1 point had a commitment from Ferrari) after losing McNeil, Moore, and Lautt to transfers. From the beginning until the tournament this weekend, Terukina and Moore were about an equal trade. When you look at the season Hepner and McNeil were a virtual even exchange, with Hepner seeded 9 and McNeil seeded 11 for the tournament. Then McNeil did his March thing and finished third vs Hepner's 7th place finish. I will add that Ferrari finished 6th, by medical forfeiting after losing in the semi finals (note that his younger brother also lost in the semis and medical forfeited to 6th place as well, speaking to the question of character that was always a concern with Ferrari's commitment before it fell apart).
Next year's roster from what I can tell includes:
125 - Stinson, Hickey, and true freshman Dunia Sibomana
133 - Botello, Guanajuato, Tocci, and true freshman Lukas Littleton-Mascaro
141 - Simcox, O'Neill, Navida and Askew
149 - Scott and Younger
157 - Root, Showalter, and Kane
165 - Hepner, Sipes, Nugent and true freshman Nafshi
174 - Ogunsanya, Carrigan, Murabito, Portella, and true freshman Gault
184 - Dailey, O'Boyle, Alvarez, Schlett, and true freshman Kelly
197 - Platt, Calcagno, and true freshman Jipp
285 - Neves and Levy
Obviously I have no insight to the exact weight classes for each of the wrestlers, but the above is my best guess as where they will be next year. I have had a hope for Guanajauto to be able to drop to 125, but I am guessing that will not happen. If neither transfer, I expect a stiff competition between Botello and Guanajuato for the 133 spot. Also, I would like to think O'Neill could bulk up a little and join the competition for 149. All of the freshmen coming in could move around from their high school weight. Schlett dropped from 215 in high school to the 184 weight class for college is an example of how weights change.
Returning ncaat qualifiers include Simcox, Scott, Root, Hepner, Carrigan, Ogunsanya, Dailey, and Neves. That is 8 wrestlers at 7 weights that should be good starters, and have an expectation to at least match past success. That leaves 3 weights that we need to improve on to move forward. Platt will be back and could reasonably be expected to improve enough to qualify for ncaat. Scott will be back at 149, and should shore up this weight. I think 133 will be at least as good next year with 1 of Guanajuato/Botello filling in this spot. Unless something changes drastically, or unless one of Hickey or Stinson can step up at 125, this is the most likely focus for the transfer portal targets.
Clearly we could lose key wrestlers like we did last year, either as probable starters or key depth roles, and this would add to any portal interest we may have. It also might help to get more depth at certain weights, including 197 and heavyweight.
This team will have a few key leaders that have only a year of eligibility left next year, including expected starters Hepner and Ogunsanya and key depth pieces in Showalter and Murabito. This is still a young team, but they should be getting better over the next year of 2.
Just a few thoughts for your consideration.
For what it’s worth California Baptist is apparently dropping their wrestling program, and understandably their wrestlers are announce their intent to enter the portal. They have a 4X Arizona state champion with 4 years of eligibility named Gabriel Ramirez at 125, and he’s looking for a place to land. The portal officially opens from April 1 - 30.
Sounds like Hepner may have made his deal to be back at UNC!
Awesome! Love watching Hepner wrestle. So happy that he was able to move from depth at OSU to an AA at UNC!
Based on his last match, he would have been OSU’s starter it seems. Not sure about the details of why he chose to transfer, but I am very glad he selected the Heels as his destination for his last 2 years of eligibility.
Hepner being back is great news, at times he was the most fun to watch wrestler on the team, and obviously he managed to do the best in the post season (ACC Champ and All-American). Will be nice to have a returning All-American, hopefully his performance at NCAAs this year gives him confidence to be even better next year
On the Intermat college forum there is a thread discussing way too early transfer portal information. On page 4 there is a post that includes “Sealy to UNC?” I did not see any other mention of UNC, and it is possible this was directed at Northern Colorado. That said, I believe this is referring to Joe Sealey, a redshirt freshman at Penn State. He was a 2024 recruit from Wyoming Seminar, and I believe Flo had him as there #11 recruit. On PSU’s site they list him as a 157 pounder, though he wrestled 165 in high school. He would be a good addition to our team if there is any truth to this rumor, but might push someone else to the portal.
You can’t take this too seriously yet, as the portal doesn’t open until next week.
You can’t take this too seriously yet, as the portal doesn’t open until next week.
Great stuff - thanks for all the good posts 81Heel, heelwrestler07, NYHeel92, and Jriv23. I think I'm in denial that it's all over but that was a really fun championships to watch, and I'm excited to see what the portal brings us, and then of course excited to see how the guys we have develop. There are opportunities out there at at lot of weights, especially 125 and 133, but also others. Also excited to get back some guys who were likely qualifiers and would have been helpful to have this past year. Definitely excited to have our coach and have faith that we'll get better every year, but man if our conference isn't just loaded with young talent everywhere. That's a good thing, but it's going to be challenging going up against Stanford, VT, State, and Pitt in particular in the near future. Hope our guys continue to develop and/or that we get some guys to push them via the portal.
On a personal note, my son will be a freshman at UNC in the fall, and I'm so excited for him and envious of him. He's not really into this sport, but he loves sports generally and I'm hoping that he'll get to at least a few matches to support our team (and all of our teams). What a time to be able to be at UNC with the state of our Olympic sports.
On a personal note, my son will be a freshman at UNC in the fall, and I'm so excited for him and envious of him. He's not really into this sport, but he loves sports generally and I'm hoping that he'll get to at least a few matches to support our team (and all of our teams). What a time to be able to be at UNC with the state of our Olympic sports.
Great to have another volume poster, ivyheel. 81Heel's rundown of the roster for next year is encouraging. Assuming there is steady improvement from this year's redshirt freshmen (Simcox, Root, Dailey, Carrigan, Platt) and the injured guys are back healthy (Scott, Ogunsanya, Neves) we should see clear improvement at every weight except 125 and 133. Plus there is good depth at 133 with Botello and Guanajuato potentially very good starters.
Honestly with how off Oakley seemed this year and how much potential I think those two guys have I could see us being improved at 133 from this season
Didn't necessarily want to say it out loud, but I agree. Botello looked very good this year and Guanajuato showed a lot of promise before presumably being injured all of this year.
So taking a deeper dive at the depth and potential starters next year, I will offer a few extra observations. Understand that every great depth wrestler becomes a potential transfer in this day and age.
At 125 the hope is that either Stimson or Hickey can both make the weight and improve to the point of being a serviceable starter in this spot. Hickey is still listed as a 133, I believe, but if he is going to have an impact it is more likely at 125. He wrestled this weight at times during the past season. I still think we look for an upper classman to transfer in, or a top level wrestler at this weight if 1 is available.
I agree that there should not be much drop off, and easily could be improvement at the 133 weight. If both hang around, Guanajuato and Botello should have some tough wrestle-offs. Also at this weight are Tocci, and possibly Hickey and/or Navida.
Assuming Simcox stays are 141, we should be solid. If you look at WrestleStat they actually rank O'Neill higher than Simcox, at this weight. It seem clear that Simcox won the wrestle-offs for this weight, but O'Neill is a solid backup. Before he was hurt, Scott was also wrestling at this weight, so a tough room coming back if everyone stays. I should also note that Askew should redshirt, but he still looks like a 141 pounder to me. Younger may also be able to drop to 141, though he was wrestling up in the preseason likely competing for the spot that eventually went to Askew. Navida may also stick at this weight, rather than dropping to 133 and competing.
With no true 149 pounders, I look for this weight to be manned by Scott, with some challenge from O'Neill and Younger. I believe they will take advantage of the depth to give Askew his redshirt year.
Root seems solid here, with a ncaat qualification and a tournament win under his belt. I think Showalter is a great backup here, and for 165, though that also makes him a candidate to transfer. Kane and the freshman Sipes add additional potential backups here.
At 165 we loss Daracott, and Alvarez bumped up to join the hunt for a starting spot at 184. Assuming he can still get down to this weight, he and Showalter are the likely backups.
Ogunsanya should be back to take over the 174 starting role. Like 141, 174 has a potential log jam of backups including Carrigan fresh off his ncaat appearance, O'Boyle, Murabito, and Portella. Alvarez may also stick at this weight, and not try to compete with Hepner coming off his AA tournament showing.
With Dailey back at 184, there might not be the rush to challenge here next year, but any of the 174 wrestlers listed below could bump up if this spot opens up for some reason. In addition, Schlett is still at this weight.
At 197 and 285, I look for us to go back to Platt and Neves with Calcagno and Levy providing backup. Hoping that Levy can get his redshirt year in this year.
If we are going to have someone transfer out, and we likely will, I would expect any transfers out of the program to most likely come from 133/141 and/or 174. As far as transfers in I have already stated my top priority would be at 125. After that I would look for a serviceable backup at 197/285 weights. The coaches have a good idea of what they have and how high they think the pieces can go. I think you have to look for any piece that might upgrade the room, given how competitive the conference is becoming nationally. With that in mind, the 3rd priority might be simply looking for the best available wrestlers that we can get. All this while managing the roster limit of 30 plus any DSAs that are still on the team. Last thought is 2 wrestlers could potentially graduate and move on (in life or to other programs), including Showalter and Murabito.
Next year I expect improvement for the team and the program. That said, there will likely be some twist and turns along the way.
At 125 the hope is that either Stimson or Hickey can both make the weight and improve to the point of being a serviceable starter in this spot. Hickey is still listed as a 133, I believe, but if he is going to have an impact it is more likely at 125. He wrestled this weight at times during the past season. I still think we look for an upper classman to transfer in, or a top level wrestler at this weight if 1 is available.
I agree that there should not be much drop off, and easily could be improvement at the 133 weight. If both hang around, Guanajuato and Botello should have some tough wrestle-offs. Also at this weight are Tocci, and possibly Hickey and/or Navida.
Assuming Simcox stays are 141, we should be solid. If you look at WrestleStat they actually rank O'Neill higher than Simcox, at this weight. It seem clear that Simcox won the wrestle-offs for this weight, but O'Neill is a solid backup. Before he was hurt, Scott was also wrestling at this weight, so a tough room coming back if everyone stays. I should also note that Askew should redshirt, but he still looks like a 141 pounder to me. Younger may also be able to drop to 141, though he was wrestling up in the preseason likely competing for the spot that eventually went to Askew. Navida may also stick at this weight, rather than dropping to 133 and competing.
With no true 149 pounders, I look for this weight to be manned by Scott, with some challenge from O'Neill and Younger. I believe they will take advantage of the depth to give Askew his redshirt year.
Root seems solid here, with a ncaat qualification and a tournament win under his belt. I think Showalter is a great backup here, and for 165, though that also makes him a candidate to transfer. Kane and the freshman Sipes add additional potential backups here.
At 165 we loss Daracott, and Alvarez bumped up to join the hunt for a starting spot at 184. Assuming he can still get down to this weight, he and Showalter are the likely backups.
Ogunsanya should be back to take over the 174 starting role. Like 141, 174 has a potential log jam of backups including Carrigan fresh off his ncaat appearance, O'Boyle, Murabito, and Portella. Alvarez may also stick at this weight, and not try to compete with Hepner coming off his AA tournament showing.
With Dailey back at 184, there might not be the rush to challenge here next year, but any of the 174 wrestlers listed below could bump up if this spot opens up for some reason. In addition, Schlett is still at this weight.
At 197 and 285, I look for us to go back to Platt and Neves with Calcagno and Levy providing backup. Hoping that Levy can get his redshirt year in this year.
If we are going to have someone transfer out, and we likely will, I would expect any transfers out of the program to most likely come from 133/141 and/or 174. As far as transfers in I have already stated my top priority would be at 125. After that I would look for a serviceable backup at 197/285 weights. The coaches have a good idea of what they have and how high they think the pieces can go. I think you have to look for any piece that might upgrade the room, given how competitive the conference is becoming nationally. With that in mind, the 3rd priority might be simply looking for the best available wrestlers that we can get. All this while managing the roster limit of 30 plus any DSAs that are still on the team. Last thought is 2 wrestlers could potentially graduate and move on (in life or to other programs), including Showalter and Murabito.
Next year I expect improvement for the team and the program. That said, there will likely be some twist and turns along the way.
Ryan Crookham in the portal. I assume he'll have his pick of programs, notwithstanding his injury issues.
www.flowrestling.org
Ryan Crookham Enters The Transfer Portal - FloWrestling
Lehigh's Ryan Crookham has entered the transfer portal following two injury-plagued seasons.
I saw that too, he is certainly a really good wrestler, he is not at a position of need for us, but he is an instant title contender if he can stay healthyRyan Crookham in the portal. I assume he'll have his pick of programs, notwithstanding his injury issues.
Ryan Crookham Enters The Transfer Portal - FloWrestling
Lehigh's Ryan Crookham has entered the transfer portal following two injury-plagued seasons.
They are saying on the Intermat forum that Ryan Crookham is looking for a good law school. Ivy League schools are probably out,due to their transfer and redshirt restrictions. One poster thinks he ends up at NC or Michigan. Someone posted our history with Clark transferring into our law school and having his best season afterwards. As has been pointed out, 133 is not a priority position for a transfer, but he finished 3rd at the 2024 ncaat and brings a high level AA contender with 2 years of eligibility.
Adding AA link to a transfer tracke:
Adding AA link to a transfer tracke:
Last edited:
Mo Endene is another interesting name on the current transfer portal list, but I'm not sure how he would have any eligibility left. Sounds like he may be trying to get a medical redshirt. It's also unclear why he was removed from the Iowa roster mid-season. I see various speculation, including that it could have been related to he and his wife welcoming a baby around the same time, and also some speculation about a neck injury. In any event, like Crookham, he would be a big pickup for someone if he were eligible and healthy.
www.flowrestling.org
2026 NCAA D1 Wrestling Transfer Tracker - FloWrestling
Take a look at a running list of every NCAA D1 wrestler that has entered the transfer portal and where they have committed.
Just a note on that 3rd place finish, his only loss all season was to the eventual champion in the semi finals, a guy he had beaten earlier in the season, but he was probably the second best wrestler at the weight, and a very close second. That said his injury history since that season is very troubling to say the least. It is probably better that he is at a weight we have depth at if we were to bring him in as there is the risk his health doesn't hold up
Wow, I hate seeing that, changes up our possible needs, hopefully we either have a young guy ready to step up or can land a replacement in the portal
Ouch, that hurts. I figured we were set at 184 for the foreseeable future. Maybe one of the 174s moves up.
Another AA in the transfer portal - Tyler Knox (STAN):
Another AA in the transfer portal - Tyler Knox (STAN):
Sincerely appreciate this think piece 81Heel! I used to eat/breathe/sleep UNC Wrestling, but now have two pre-school age boys +travel for work so it's a lot harder to follow as closely. I know when I come here I'm always going to get excellent, up-to-date information and thoughts from your posts (along with others!). Really appreciate you guys creating a space where we can talk Tar Heel wrestling and information flows in/out.
Hate losing Scott, but Dailey is a bigger loss in terms of ceiling and eligibility. Things should start popping over the next few days, and I will have limited access to follow it. Hoping this group can track what is happening. Thanks for the updates.