FanPost

A Report Card of Iowa/Ohio State/Penn State Wrestlers

Iowa sits ready to start the second half of the wrestling today against Minnesota. While the Big Ten schedule will be difficult, and will feature some very good Top 10 match ups, Iowa will not face Penn State or Ohio State in a dual this year. This will leave many questions until the Big Ten Tournament in March, and no matter how Iowa finishes the regular wrestling season, there will be uncertainty until tournament season.

So, let's look at where our competition stands and where we stand. I will be evaluating the individual seasons for all ranked wrestlers at Iowa, Penn State, and Ohio State. I will keep it strictly to scores, and look at number of bonus point victories. Despite seeing almost every Iowa Match this year, I will refrain from commenting on my impression on those matches or wrestlers as I will not be able to do that for many Penn State/Ohio State matches. The format is simple, look at their W/L, evaluate their opponents (highlighting ranked matches), and count up the bonus point wins against ranked opponents.

My methodology isn't to say that lower ranks and wrestlebacks don't matter, I just have to draw the line somewhere, so I stay with ranked wrestlers, and BP wins/domination by your horses is the most important factor in tournaments these days, followed by quality WB performances. I also used InterMat for rankings because WrestleStats uses ELO, and in wrestling that can lead to some really awkward rankings.

Let's get going:

125:

#2 Spencer Lee (9-1)--Iowa

Spencer Lee enters this season the defending National Champion, and a key part of Iowa's blueprint to returning to the team podium. Spencer Lee has had 3 ranked matches, where he has gone 2-1. In those matches he has 1 Bonus Point Win, a technical fall against current #10 Patrick Glory. Out of Spencer Lee's 9 wins, 6 have been by way of TF, 1 Fall, 1 MD, for a total of 8 Bonus Point Wins.

Ohio State/Penn State: Not Ranked

Conclusion: Iowa Large Edge.

133:

#6 Luke Pletcher (15-1)--Ohio State

The returning All-American and Big Ten Finalist is 3-1 in his ranked matches (not including a medical forfeit win against Tariq Wilson) that is not bad and may warrant a higher ranking than #6, however, of those wins each one was by a single-point. Pletcher has had 3 pins, 2 TFs, 3 MDs for Bonus Points, none of those coming against ranked opponents. His expectation is certainly to All-American again, and with Seth Gross moving to 141 this is an open weight class where Pletcher can win a championship. Luke Pletcher will certainly score some early BP wins in March, but his test will be pushing his decisions to BP wins in the middle and late stages of the Championship Bracket.

#10 Austin DeSanto (10-1)--Iowa

Austin DeSanto is 3-1 in ranked matches as well, however those wins come against the current 18th, 19th, and 20th ranked wrestlers. His only loss this season to Austin Gomez the current #9 ranked wrestler. The great news for Iowa fans is two of his three ranked wins were BP (MD and DQ). In total DeSanto's 10 wins come by way of two falls, two TD, and three majors, plus the DQ. DeSanto has shown his ability to get BP wins against guys he will most likely see in the middle part of the bracket, his expectation and goal should be Podium.

#14 Roman Bravo-Young (13-1)--Penn State

Roman Bravo-Young is untested with only one match against a Top 20 opponent, which did not go his way. He was pinned by Austin Gomez. Bravo-Young has 3 pins, 1 TF, 4 MDs in his 13 wins. I imagine he is a big of a wild card for PSU. If a wrestler like this can put together some BP wins during the tournament combined with a deep run on either side of the bracket it will be VERY hard for anyone to keep pace given the names PSU has below. OSU and PSU will hope Roman Bravo-Young has a quick exit.

Conclusion: Edge OSU, Slight Edge Iowa.

141:

#2 Joey McKenna (12-0)--Ohio State

Senior and third-place finisher at last year's NCAA Tournament. Joey has put together a quality season so far with a 4-0 record against ranked opponents. He is one of the more tested wrestlers on this list. These wins comes against the current #3, #7, #8, and #17, ranked wrestlers. The good news for Iowa fans is none of those wins were by way of BP. Overall Joey has 2 pins, 1 TF, and 4 MD. Joey will most likely not BP his way to the finals like others on this list have a chance at doing, but he will be a solid earner for Ohio State and will most likely at the very least need a Finals appearance for OSU to keep pace in the tournament race.

#4 Nick Lee (16-0)--Penn State

Not a single match against another ranked opponent. This shows you just how dominant PSU is recruiting in Pennsylvania, because PSU has already wrestled Bucknell, Lehigh, Pittsburgh, Edinboro, and Drexel, and not one have a 141er ranked in the top 20. The depth of talent in PA use to power these schools, but much like Iowa had cornered the Iowa market during Gable years, PA is the land of Cael. Nick Lee has 3 pins, 4 TFs, and 8 majors 15/16 on BPs isn't bad. Lee had some big BP wins last year against ranked opponents so he is capable. He is another wrestler for PSU if he elevates his game and makes a deep run to the finals combined with BP wins on the way it will be very difficult to keep pace.

#15 Max Murin (9-2)--Iowa

Max Murin is 0-2 against ranked opponents, those come to the current #8 and #14 ranked wrestlers at this weight, both by decesion. This is not a weight Iowa can afford to lose much ground at if they want a chance to compete at the NCAA Tournament. Murin has 3 top 15 wrestlers left on the schedule plus a load of top 10s at the Big Ten Tournament, those results will give Iowa fans a lot of information on what we can expect at the end of the season.

Conclusion: Edge OSU, Edge PSU

149:

#3 Micah Jordan (15-1)--Ohio State

Another tested wrestler this year, Micah Jordan is 4-1 against ranked opponents. His sole loss against #2 ranked and 6th year Senior Anthony Ashnault. His ranked wins come over #19 (TF), #5 (DEC), #15 (DEC), and #4 (DEC). Micah Jordan appears to be a solid All-American who will earn BP against middle of the bracket type guys, but (hopefully) not much more than that. In his 15 wins he has had 3 falls, 3 TFs, and 3 MDs.

#9 Brady Berge (13-2, including MF)--Penn State

Brady Berge is 3-2 against ranked opponents, both loses coming to Duke's #7 Mitch Finesilver (DEC, MF). His wins, all decisions, come against the #11, #15, #19 ranked wrestlers currently. Brady has 3 TFs, 2 MD against lesser talent. This is another PSU wrestler we'd like to see under-achieve at the tournament while our guy over-achieves.

#12 Pat Lugo (7-5)--Iowa

Pat Lugo is 1-3 against ranked opponents, two of those being decisions against Matthew Kolodzik the current #1 ranked wrestler, the third being an after-regulation loss to Iowa State's Degen and current #11. Kolodzik is not a BP machine, so the fact those are decisions does not say much. His sole win is an injury forfeit. He has recorded 2 pins, 1 TF, 1 MD. This biggest question around Lugo is how deep will his run be at the either the Big Ten or NCAA Tournament. An early exit could be possible, and devastating for Iowa.

Conclusion: Ohio State Edge, Penn State Slight Edge

157:

#1 Jason Nolf (14-0)--Penn State

This is where things start to not get pretty in the line-ups. 2x champ, 3x NCAA-finalist Jason Nolf has recorded 14 BP wins this season in 14 tries. He has wins over #10 (Fall), #17 (Fall), #3 (MD). Pinning middle/top third of the bracket guys, and majors or better against the top of the bracket has been what has made PSU unbeatable in tournaments. Iowa and OSU will need one of these PSU greats to stumble, but Jason Nolf who will compete for Outstanding Wrestler is tough to bet against.

#5 Kaleb Young (11-1)--Iowa

Kaleb Young is 3-1 against ranked opponents with wins against #10 (DEC), #17 (DEC), and #13 (FALL). His only defeat was to the number 3 ranked wrestler in the Midlands Finals by decision. The problem is the guy who beat him Jason Nolf beat by 12-points. Young has another 5 ranked wrestlers on the backside of the schedule, plus the loaded Big Ten tournament. For Iowa to have a chance my guess is Young will need to podium with BPs through the early and middle part of the bracket. To keep up with Nolf a BP win against a Top 10 guy will probably need to happen as well. A departure without at least AA status will spot PSU a double-digit edge. Young has 3 falls, 3 TFs, and 1 MD.

#7 Ke-Shawn Hayes (14-3)--Ohio State

Ke-Shawn Hayes is 2-3 against ranked opponents losing to the current #2, #4, and #13 ranked wrestlers, all decisions. His ranked wins are against the #8 and #11 both decisions as well. Against lesser talent he has 4 TFs, and 4 MDs. Ke-Shawn is a guy Ohio State needs to bloom late and rack up BPs come tournament time. He looks like a guy on paper who can score big against bottom half of the bracket guys, but that won't get it done if Ohio State wants to stay close and not give a huge edge in this class.

Conclusion: PSU Large Edge, Iowa Slight Edge

165:

#1 Vincenzo Joseph (13-0)--Penn State

Joseph is 4-0 against ranked opponents, with wins over #4 (DEC), #5 (MD), #17 (TF), and #18 (MD). When Joseph busted onto the scene by winning the NCAAs with a pin in the finals as freshman Joseph looked like he might have been another 165-terror like David Taylor. He thankfully regressed (a little, I mean he still won a title the next year but didn't do in quite the same fashion). He isn't the terror that Nickal and Nolf are, but he is certainly the favorite to win it all, and if he does it and adds BPs on the way, it will make it very difficult to keep up.

#2 Alex Marinelli (11-0)--Iowa

Thankfully Iowa has a horse here to limit the bleeding, and Iowa fans are hoping he does more than that. Alex is 3-0 against ranked opponents, with wins over #3 (DEC), #5 (DEC), and #15 (SV). Against lesser opponents he is a BP earner. 4 Falls, 1 TF, 3 decisions, which means his only non-BP wins are against ranked guys. The expectation for Alex is to earn-BPs in the early and middle parts of the bracket, and ride his way to the podium. If he can do that and bounce Vincenzo out in the SF/Finals that would be great.

Ohio State: Not Ranked

Conclusion: PSU Edge, Iowa Edge

174:

#1 Mark Hall (14-0)--PSU

Mark Hall has been very well tested this year and he has shown his freshman championship was no fluke. He is 5-0 against ranked opponents with wins against #2, #5, #7, and #14 twice. The good news for Iowa fans is these were all decisions. Hall has 3 pins, 2 TFs, and 1 MD on the season. So against tier-2 talent he isn't guaranteed to rack up BPs. Having a legit threat at this weight would be huge, but Iowa does not unless Coach Brands really decides to mix things up come tournament time.

#12 Te'shawn Campbell (8-2)/UR Ethan Smith--Ohio State

I am pretty sure InterMat only ranks one person per school, but Ethan Smith would probably make the Top 20 in what is a pretty weak class this year. Te'shawn Campbell is the most recent dual starter, but his only top 20 win was the first dual of the season against the current #19th ranked wrestler. He has been defeated by the #2 ranked guy via decision and by his teammate Ethan Smith. Ethan Smith has one ranked win over #10 ranked wrestler, which was a decision.

Iowa: Not Ranked

Conclusion: PSU Edge

184:

#1 Myles Martin (9-0)--Ohio State

Myles Martin is 3-0 in ranked bouts. He has wins against the current #9 and #10 ranked wrestlers, both MDs, and was a point-away from a MD against the #4 ranked wrestler. He has BPs in 7 of his 9 victories with two falls, 1 TF, and 4 MDs. Ohio State has to have Myles make another appearance in the Finals to keep their chances going.

#3 Shakur Rasheed (14-0)--Penn State

Shakur has only face one wrestling currently on InterMat's ranking, #19, and he pinned him in under a minute. I jumped over to WrestleStat which goes deeper in rankings (I just think they are a little off sometimes) and it appears he has some BP wins against borderline tournament guys at best, but that's about it. He just has not been tested much this year, so we won't know more until the Big Tens.

#14 Cash Wilke (10-2)--Iowa

Cash Wilke has not seen a ton of talent at this class. It is a weird class with a ton of out of conference talent. He will get some more exposure to ranked guys in the second half but we have to go with what we have, which is not great. Cash is 0-2 against ranked guys, #19 (who Shakur pinned), and Drew Foster the #6 guy who he lost to in the Midlands Finals. Both of these were close matches, and the ISU one was very frustrating. Like Shakur on WrestleStat he has some BP wins against Top 50 guys, but we will know more post-break.

Conclusion: OSU Edge, PSU Edge

197:

#1 Bo Nickal (13-0)--Penn State

The other part of the "two-headed bonus points only 2X champ dragon" that PSU has. Bo Nickal has 10 pins, 1 TF, and 2 MDs in 13 tries. He has a pin against #8 and #9, MD against #16, TF against #15.Two seasons ago when he pinned Sammy Brooks at the NCAAs he was a monster at the tournament scoring a TF or Fall in evert match except the finals. Last year there was some regression in the tournament, but he still ended up pinning Myles Martin in the Finals, and won OW. He's the favorite, obviously, but as long as we see a bunch of DEC next to his name and not TF5/Fall I would be happy.

#2 Kollin Moore (9-0)--Ohio State

Moore is certainly no push-over as he should become one of the few wrestlers in OSU history to reach 100-wins when all is said and done. Moore is 4-0 in his ranked matches, with 2 of those coming by way of MD (against #19 and #12). He is not a huge BP earner which might be the biggest problem in this class for Ohio State. He will need to turn it up and score big points during his bracket at the NCAA.

#6 Jacob Warner (5-2)--Iowa

Warner has had a short, but very eventful season. He has technically only wrestled 2 ranked opponents but that's only because InterMat does not rank RS, which is what Tanner Sloan is. So in reality he is 1-2 against ranked opponents. His 1 victory was a decision against the #4 ranked wrestler, and his 2 losses against #5 (DEC), and Tanner Sloan (TF) who would be ranked in the top 10. We really haven't seen enough to see where Warner really stacks up against the top competition. He won't see anymore top 10 talent till the Big Ten Tournament, so he needs to do his best to prepare in the room to come out and surprise some people.

Conslusion: PSU Large Edge, OSU Edge

HWT:

#1 Sam Stoll (3-0)--Iowa

As we all know Stoll was pulled from the Midlands and has been used cautiously this season. This is no doubt because Brands knows how important it is to have Sam healthy come tournament time. We don't have much information from this season, and may not get a lot before March, let's just hope he gets and stays healthy.

#4 Anthony Cassar (12-1) Penn State

Anthony Cassar is quietly putting together a very good season. He is 4-1 in his ranked matches, all 4 being wins by MD. Those wins are against the #16, #7, #15, and #19 ranked wrestlers. Not exactly the top of the top sure, but those will be tournament guys, and BP at HWT are always a nice extra bonus come tournament time. Cassar's sole loss comes to the #3 ranked wrestler as a decision. Cassar is one of the guys who could help put it out of reach for PSU. If he makes it to the Finals and picks up some big BP wins on the way, that could hurt.

#18 Chase Singletary (14-4)--Ohio State

Chase Singletary is 3-1 in his ranked matches against mostly bottom of the half guys. An impressive decision over #8, and decisions against #19, and #20. He has one loss against the #10 ranked wrestler at this class, and a handful of losses to lesser opponents. He has a 4 Falls, 1 TF, 1 MD against lesser opponents. His weakness is obviously that he has 3 losses to non-ranked opponents, one of those by way of fall. He'd be a bit of a wildcard for Ohio State who I am sure is hoping he can do some damage on the wrestle-backs if he qualifies.

Conclusion: Iowa Edge, PSU Edge

Conclusion:

As has been the theme in previous years, Iowa will most likely be in a position where they have a chance, but only if a few things go wrong for PSU, and a few things go really-right for Iowa. Iowa has proven and unproven elements on this team, and I hope guys like Pat Lugo, Cashe Wilke, and Max Murin have more to show for us. Improvements in those classes would do a ton to help our chances come tournament time.

Unless otherwise expressly indicated by BHGP editors, this FanPost is strictly the viewpoint of the author and is not endorsed by BHGP in any way.