What in the WORLD?! Caldwell Beats Metcalf! Can it seriously be true?

Posted on March 24, 2009 by Jon

You know when you have those moments when you just say “Seriously? Really? Are you SERIOUS?” That’s about the reaction I had when I got back from California this weekend – a trip I had where I deliberatly didn’t have internet – and found out that Darrion Caldwell upset Brent Metcalf. For those of you who haven’t been paying attention to college wrestling in the past couple years, Metcalf, who wrestles for University of Iowa’s 149 lb spot, is not only the top ranked in the nation in 149, but is heralded as the second best wrestler in collegiate history, right behind Cael Sanderson. “Seriously?” One of the biggest upsets in college history. “Really?” Metcalf had a 69 win streak going into the match. The last time that he lost a match was actually to Caldwell back in early 2007. That’s right. Two years without a loss. “Are you SERIOUS?!” Yes, I’m serious.

So having not watched the match live and only being able to find a couple clips of it online, it looks like Caldwell was actually ahead by 6 points at one point. (Please correct me if I’m wrong on that one). Yes both wrestlers have grown since that point, but going into the match, no one gave Caldwell a second thought. Virtually all thoughts were that Metcalf would pull ahead as the winner. So what are your thoughts? Is Caldwell the better wrestler or was it a fluke? “He’s human,” Caldwell said. “It was a wrestling match. It was not like he had a gun and me a knife.” This was very obviously a well-matched fight. Metcalf knew it and didn’t make any excuses: “I looked at it as I had to go in and take it away from him, not just go in there and expect things to happen because I’m Brent Metcalf, because I wrestle hard. That is not enough,” Metcalf said.

So what say you? Who’s the better wrestler? Or smarter wrestler? Everyone, including myself, has been building up Metcalf like none other. Is he still the best? Here’s the best video I could find. Let me know what you think!

I just found the other video and I’m updating this post. Here it is!

[flashvideo file=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rNY4VW6Bi3U /]

[flashvideo file=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MI2j0fZOpIQ /]

Big Ten 2009 Tourney Results and Highlights

Posted on March 10, 2009 by Jon

So imagine how mad and frustrated I was when I go to create this post yesterday and the servers are down. Awesome. As soon as I get home, they’re working. Better. Best part is, I didn’t email the post to myself, so I couldn’t get it posted once I got home. It’s the best! – Nacho Libre plug. Anyways, here is the post that SHOULD have been up last night. Sorry for the delay.

Here is the transcript of the video. I’ve probably butchered a bunch of the names; sorry if yours is one of them and you’re reading it! Contact us and let us know and we’ll correct it!

Welcome back again wrestling at the 2009 big ten championships at 141 lbs Michigan sophomore Kellen Russell had a late take down to knock off top ranked Zach Tenelli 6-4 for his first individual title.
Brent Metcalf at 149 lbs continued his dominating performance. Metcalf pinned Bubba Jenkins to notch his 65th consecutive match win, breaking into Iowa’s top ten for pins in a season with 18.
At 157 lbs, defending big ten champion Mike Poeta defeated North Western’s Jason Welsh 8-2 for his second title
At 165 lbs Wisconsin true freshman Andrew Howell lived up to his top seed beating Ryan Morningstar in overtime giving the badgers their first big ten championship since 2006
174 lbs Michigan Steve Luke captured his third straight big ten title. The 12-5 decision over Quinton Right leaves Luke undefeated this season
At 184 lbs top ranked Jake Herbert became the first wildcat ever to capture 3 big ten championships with a win over Phil Petty. Herbert extended his college winning streak to 60.
At 197 lbs Tyron Todd of Michigan gathered riding time to beat Wisconsin’s Dallas Hurbst with a 5-4 decision this is Todd’s first title, helping Michigan to a third place finish while Iowa captured it’s second consecutive title.
6 wrestlers repeat as big 10 champs, including the winners from each of the first 5 weight classes. Defending NCAA champion Brent Metcalf who captured the 149 lb title was named The wrestler of the championships for the second straight season.
As for the final team standings behind their two individual winners, the Hawkeyes repeat as big ten champs, recording their 33rd title in program history. Pretty impressive. Iowa finished with 141 pts and Illinois was second with 113.5 and Michigan third with 92.5. The hawks will send 9 wrestlers to the NCAA championships beginning March 19th in St. Louis and will be looking to repeat as the title holders in this event as well.

Tournament results:

School	Score	Individual Champs	Weight
Iowa	141	A. Escobedo 125	125
Illinois	113.5	E. Gomez 133	133
Michigan	92.5	K. Russell 141	141
Wisconsin	88	B. Metcalf 149	149
Minnesota	86	M. Poeta 157	157
Ohio State	80	A. Howe 165	165
Penn State	79.5	S. Luke 174	174
Northwestern	73.5	J. Herbert 197	197
Indiana	67.5	D. Erekson HVY	HVY
Purdue	52
Michigan State	45.5

Iowa Shutdowns Indiana

Posted on February 21, 2009 by Jon

Just as a super quick note: earlier this week, we did put up a video of Metcalf in an interview. We said that he had 59 wins. We would like to correct that; he now has 60 straight wins.

Senior 125-pounder Charlie Falck upset defending NCAA champion Angel Escobedo

Indiana took on Iowa Friday night. And lost. Big surprise. That makes 37 straight dual victories for Iowa and they are 7-0 in the Big Ten this season. I’m pretty sure I can call this one and say they are going to stay number one and take the NCAA title this year as well. The final score of this match was Iowa 24, Indiana 12. They opened the match at the 125 lb mark with Iowa’s Charlie Falk, ranked fifth, going up against third-ranked Angel Escobedo. Falk took it 3-1, improving his record 19-2. After the 125 came the 133 pounders. Again, Iowa took the mat with Daniel Dennis, who gained a major decision over Matt Ortega, putting the Hawks ahead 7-0 and putting up his own ninth straight win.

Metcalf was able to get a tech fall over Nick Walpole at 149, scoring 19-4. This brought the Hawkeye’s up to an 11-3 lead for the night. He is now 28-0 this season alone but has, as we’ve said before, won 60 consecutive matches.

Other wins of the night came from Ryan Morningstar, Jay Borschel, Phillip Keddy and Chad Beatty.

One on One With Brent Metcalf: Mini Interview on His Wrestling Career Past and Future

Posted on February 18, 2009 by Jon

We found this new interview with Brent Metcalf on www.BigTenNetwork.com and thought we would share the joy. Gotta love Brent’s style with the hunting hoodie and the cauliflower ear!

Here is the transcript from the interview as well:

Announcer: Time now to bring in Brent Metcalf of the Iowa Hawkeyes, the number one team in the country and Brent with 59 straight matches that you have not lost, at what point does this really sink in, what you’re accomplishing right now?

Brent: I think you don’t worry about win streaks you don’t worry about records until probably the end of the season, you know after the NCAA tournament is over and really, you know in my case, I won’t worry about those things until, you know, two seasons from now when I get ready to graduate. But I think, you know, those things are on the line and you gotta be aware of it and be ready to go every time you step on the mat.

Announcer: Do you get the feel, Brent, that you’re always going to get guys best shot? That no matter what, people are pointing at the schedule and saying, “I’m gonna to be the guy that knocks him off?”

Brent: Absolutely. You know, you work hard to really create a position where you put a target on your back and you gotta be, as a competitor, you gotta love that; you gotta be aware of it and you gotta know that guys are gunnin’ for you; that there is a dot on the University of Iowa when they come to town and you gotta be ready to go.

Announcer: Up and down the line up, do you feel like if the NCAA championships were tomorrow you guys would NO DOUBT, and of course the rankings and the records reflect it, but you guys would NO DOUBT be the team to beat?

Brent: I think so. I think, you know, record wise we prove that, I think that on a daily basis we prove that but really one of the biggest things is we got a pretty tough team who rises to the occasion every single time and I think if you were to throw a situation like that at us right now we would be ready to go because the sort of competitors we have on this team and the way that they compete. So..

Announcer: Brent Metcalf, the defending Champion at 149 pounds; he has won 59 straight and his team is going to take on Iowa coming up, uh Indiana, coming up on Friday. Brent, appreciate the time!

Brent: Yup, absolutly!

WIN Magazine’s new rankings have got a couple surprises!

Posted on January 6, 2009 by Jon

Dallas Herbst, Sr. Wisconsin (3rd)

Be sure to check out WIN Magazine’s new rankings. They’ve surprised a few people. First off, the not big news stuff. All three DIV I teams from Northern Iowa are in the top 25. IOU is number one and Iowa State is number 2. Northern Iowa is at No. 23.

The surpises are as follows…

At 197 lbs, the top three are 1. Craig Brester, Jr. Nebraska (2nd) 2. Dallas Herbst, Sr. Wisconsin (3rd) 3. Jake Varner, Jr. Iowa State (1st). (The second number is the place they are coming from). The Last time that Varner wasn’t placed at number one was back in Feb of 2007. Dallas Herbst beat Varner in the Midlands championships, which caused the dance around. Be sure to keep your eye on these three in the coming year!

Jake Varner, Jr. Iowa State (1st)

If you are interested in the WIN magazine at all, go ahead and get it. It’s an amazing magazine with articles written by people who not only know the sport, they eat, breath, sleep and dream about it. You can check it out the website here or you can simply order here. Take your pick!

USA Today: Brands, Cael Reignite Iowa/ISU Rivalry

Posted on December 12, 2008 by Jon

Coach Cael

Brands, Sanderson re-ignite Iowa wrestling rivalry

By Luke Meredith, AP Sports Writer

DES MOINES, Iowa — They’re shooting for a record crowd Saturday night in Iowa City.

Local authorities gave the University of Iowa permission to increase the capacity at Carver-Hawkeye Arena from 15,500 to 16,000. Officials have warned folks to buy their tickets in advance and arrive early, and the school plans to run shuttles from parking lots around campus to alleviate traffic.

Must be a Jonas Brothers concert, a Hannah Montana show or a big-time basketball matchup, right?

No, no and no.

It’s the annual dual meet between the Iowa State and Iowa wrestling teams. In a state that prides itself on being a cradle of wrestling, that’s a very big deal – and this year’s matchup between top-rated Iowa and second-ranked Iowa State could be the biggest yet.

Iowa is hoping to break the dual-meet record of 15,646 set by Minnesota when it hosted the Hawkeyes in 2002. The school had sold 13,500 tickets as of Thursday morning.

“I think it shows that wrestling is strong in Iowa,” said Iowa coach Tom Brands. “When you look at two programs that are 200 miles apart, or whatever, I don’t know if there’s any other place in the country like that.”

That one of the biggest rivalries in all of college sports is as popular as ever is a testament to the schools’ dynamic young coaches – Brands and his Iowa State counterpart, former Olympic gold medalist Cael Sanderson.

The 40-year-old Brands, himself a gold medalist at the 1996 Games in Atlanta, was hired by the Hawkeyes in 2006 after they fired coach Jim Zalesky, who had the unenviable task of replacing legend Dan Gable. Though Zalesky won three straight national titles at Iowa from 1998-2000, a six-year drought followed.

Brands, a former three-time national champion at Iowa, was charged with putting the nation’s pre-eminent program back atop the college wrestling hierarchy. It took him just two seasons to get there, as last spring Iowa rolled to its 21st national title by a whopping margin of 38.5 points.

Brands – who recently signed a contract extension through 2013 that will pay him $150,000 a year plus incentives – will be hard-pressed to approach the 15 national crowns Iowa won under Gable from 1977-97, but he appears to have laid the foundation for an extended run at the top.

Iowa has won 22 straight dual meets and is favored to repeat as national champions. The 13 wrestlers in position to compete in the 10 individual matches on Saturday night are a combined 74-6 this season.

“These guys are about the lifestyle. They are geared toward doing the best they can every time they step out on the mat,” Brands said. “The one thing about this team that I like is that when they get ready to go, they’re pretty good.”

Sanderson, hired by the Cyclones a week before Brands got the Iowa job, is widely viewed as the greatest college wrestler who ever lived. He’s already established a strong reputation as a coach, even though he won’t turn 30 until next June.

Sanderson went 159-0 at Iowa State and was the only athlete ever named the Most Outstanding Wrestler at the NCAA meet four times. He spent just two seasons as an assistant with the Cyclones before becoming head coach.

Though the man who once graced the cover of a Wheaties box likely could coach anywhere he wanted, Sanderson views the Iowa State job as a “dream situation.”

The Cyclones feel the same way. Besides the esteem that comes with having Sanderson as the face of the program, a team that slipped to 13th at the national meet in 2006 has won two straight Big 12 titles and was second at the 2007 national meet.

The Cyclones are ranked No. 2 in the latest Intermat/NWCA poll.

“It’s awesome. That’s why I’m coaching here,” Sanderson said. “Wrestling is important at Iowa State. We do have the support of the fans and the alumni and the university.”

Sanderson has put Iowa State in position to challenge for its first national title since 1987, but the Cyclones know that the road to the title will go through Iowa City.

They’ll get to see how they stack up to the vaunted Hawkeyes and a raucous crowd that, even by Iowa standards, figures to be huge.

“It’s fun, it’s something that I look forward to as a coach. I know our wrestlers look forward to it,” Sanderson said. “If you get a chance to step out there on a stage where there’s 10,000-plus, 15,000 people watching, it’s pretty cool.”

Results of Iowa St. vs ASU

Posted on December 3, 2008 by Jon

Courtesy: Athletics Communications

Iowa State 24, Arizona State 11
125 – Tyler Clark (ISU) dec. Anthony Robles (ASU), 9-3
133 – Nick Fanthorpe (ISU) tech. fall Tyler Bowles (ASU), 6:55 (22-5)
141 – Chris Drouin (ASU) major dec. Joey DeMarie (ISU), 16-5
149 – Vicente Varela (ASU) dec. Dalton Jensen (ISU), 7-3
157 – Nate Carr Jr. (ISU) dec. Jerrad Trulson (ASU), 10-3
165 – Jon Reader (ISU) major dec. Kyle Deberry (ASU), 16-7
174 – Duke Burk (ISU) dec. Eric Starks (ASU), 8-4
184 – Jerome Ward (ISU) dec. Jake Meredith (ASU), 6-4 (SV1)
197 – Joe Curran (ISU) dec. Thor More (ASU), 8-3
HWT – Erik Nye (ASU) major dec. Kyle Simonson (ISU), 8-0

NCAA Rankings (Ranked on Nov. 25 by WIN Magazine)

Posted on November 29, 2008 by Jon

Date Ranked:11/25/2008
Ranked By

WRESTLING INSIDER NEWSMAGAZINE (WIN)
2008-09 NCAA DIV. I DUAL TEAM RANKINGS
(Previous Rankings from Nov. 18, 2008)

Rk. Team (Previous)
1. Iowa (1st)
2. Ohio State (2nd)
3. Iowa State (3rd)
4. Cornell (4th)
5. Missouri (5th)
6. Oklahoma State (6th)
7. Nebraska (8th)
8. Illinois (7th)
9. Minnesota (10th)
10. Boise State (13th)
11. Central Michigan (14th)
12. Lehigh (19th)
13. Michigan (9th)
14. Penn State (11th)
15. Wisconsin (15th)
16. Indiana (16th)
17. Hofstra (17th)
18. Edinboro (18th)
19. Northwestern (12th)
20. Oklahoma (21st)
21. Kent State (24th)
22. West Virginia (20th)
23. Penn (22nd)
24. Old Dominion (23rd)
25. Navy (25th)

Individual Rankings

125 pounds
1. Angel Escobedo, Jr. Indiana (1st)
2. Charlie Falck, Sr. Iowa (2nd)
3. Troy Nickerson, Jr. Cornell (3rd)
4. Brandon Precin, Jr. Northwestern (5th)
5. James Nicholson, So. Old Dominion (6th)
6. Obe Blanc, Sr. Oklahoma State (9th)
7. Anthony Robles, So. Arizona State (7th)
8. Scott Sentes, Fr. Central Michigan (10th)
9. Rollie Peterkin, Jr. Penn (8th)
10. Marcos Orozco, Jr. UC Davis (12th)
11. Zach Sanders Fr. Minnesota (18th)
12. Tyler Clark, So. Iowa State (15th)
13. Brian Owen, Fr. Boise State (NR)
14. Brandon Zoetewey, Sr. Cal State Bakersfield (14th)
15. Steve Mytych, Sr. Drexel (NR)
16. Ian Moser, So. Bloomsburg (16th)
17. Nikko Triggas, So. Ohio State (17th)
18. Joey Fio, So. Oklahoma (20th)
19. Nic Bedelyon, So. Kent State (11th)
20. Tony Mustari, Jr. Northern Colorado (13th)

133 pounds
1. Joey Slaton, Jr. Iowa (1st)
2. Franklin Gomez, Jr. Michigan State (2nd)
3. Jimmy Kennedy, Jr. Illinois (3rd)
4. Jayson Ness, Jr. Minnesota (4th)
5. Nick Fanthorpe, Jr. Iowa State (5th)
6. Joe Baker, Sr. Navy (6th)
7. Lou Ruggirello, Jr. Hofstra (7th)
8. Reece Humphrey, Jr. Ohio State (8th)
9. Andrew Hochstrasser, So. Boise State (9th)
10. Steve Bell, Jr. Maryland (11th)
11. Dave Marble, Jr. Buckell (14th)
12. Matt Fisk, Jr. Lehigh (15th)
13. Tyler Shinn, Jr. Oklahoma State (13th)
14. Kyle Hutter, Jr. Old Dominion (12th)
15. Dan Mitcheff, Jr. Kent State (17th)
16. T.J. Dillashaw, Jr. Cal State Fullerton (19th)
17. Boris Novachkov. Jr. Cal Poly (18th)
18. Tim Haas, Sr. Penn State (NR)
19. Rick Deubel, Sr. Edinboro (16th)
20. Conor Beebe, Jr. Central Michigan (NR)

141 pounds
1. Nick Gallick, Jr. Iowa State (2nd)
2. J Jaggers, Sr. Ohio State (1st)
3. Zach Tanelli, Sr. Wisconsin (9th)
4. Brandon Rader, Sr. West Virginia (5th)
5. Alex Tsirtsis, Sr. Iowa (6th)
6. Kellen Russell, So. Michigan (4th)
7. Chris Drouin, So. Arizona State (7th)
8. Keith Sulzer, So. Northwestern (8th)
9. Mike Grey, So. Cornell (3rd)
10. Ryan Williams, Sr. Old Dominion (18th)
11. Zach Bailey, Jr. Oklahoma (10th)
12. Mike Thorn, So. Minnesota (NR)
13. Andrae Hernandez, Sr. Indiana (13th)
14. Drew Lashaway, Sr. Kent State (NR)
15. Jamal Parks, Fr. Oklahoma State (15th)
16. Joe Caramanica, Sr. NC State (14th)
17. Alex Krom, Jr. Maryland (17th)
18. Eric Kruger, Jr. Central Michigan (16th)
19. Cory Fish, Sr. Boise State (12th)
20. Cory Jantzen, So. Harvard (19th)

149 pounds
1. Brent Metcalf, Jr. Iowa (1st)
2. Bubba Jenkins, Jr. Penn State (2nd)
3. Darrion Caldwell, Jr. NC State (4th)
4. Lance Palmer, Jr. Ohio State (5th)
5. Kyle Ruschell, Jr. Wisconsin (6th)
6. Steve Brown, Jr. Central Michigan (7th)
7. Mitch Mueller, Jr. Iowa State (8th)
8. Jake Patacsil, Sr. Purdue (10th)
9. David Jauregui, Sr. West Virginia (11th)
10. Bryce Saddoris, So. Navy (12th)
11. Cesar Grajales, Jr. Penn (13th)
12. Matt Kyler, Jr. Army (9th)
13. Torsten Gillespie, So. Edinboro (14th)
14. Trevor Chinn, Sr. Lehigh (15th)
15. Jason Chamberlain, Fr. Boise State (NR)
16. Heinrich Barnes, Sr. Oregon State (16th)
17. Eric Medina, So. Maryland (17th)
18. Mike Roberts, Sr. Boston (18th)
19. Matt Cathell, So. Delaware State (19th)
20. Luke Silver, Fr. Oklahoma State (NR)

157 pounds
1. Mike Poeta, Sr. Illinois (1st)
2. Jordan Leen, Sr. Cornell (2nd)
3. J.P. O’Connor, Jr. Harvard (4th)
4. Gregor Gillespie, Sr. Edinboro (5th)
5. Jordan Burroughs, Jr. Nebraska (3rd@149)
6. Cyler Sanderson, Jr. Iowa State (6th)
7. Dan Vallimont, Jr. Penn State (3rd)
8. Michael Chandler, Sr. Missouri (7th)
9. Adam Hall, So. Boise State (9th)
10. Matt Moley, Jr. Bloomsburg (8th)
11. Newly McSpadden, Sr. Oklahoma State (10th)
12. Matt Coughlin, Jr. Indiana (11th)
13. Jason Johnstone, Sr. Ohio State (12th)
14. Shane Vernon, Jr. Oklahoma (13th)
15.Tyler Safratowich, Sr. Minnesota (14th)
16. Chase Pami, Jr. Cal Poly (16th)
17. Jason Welch, Fr. Northwestern (17th)
18. Kody Hamrah, Sr. NC State (18th)
19. Matt Dragon, Sr. Penn (19th)
20. Hadley Harrison, Jr. Clarion (NR)

165 pounds
1. Nick Marable, Jr. Missouri (2nd)
2. Mack Lewnes, So. Cornell (1st)
3. Moza Fay, Sr. Northern Iowa (3rd)
4. Jonathan Reader, So. Iowa State (4th)
5. Stephen Dwyer, Jr. Nebraska (5th)
6. Luke Manuel, So. Purdue (6th)
7. Jarrod King, Sr. Edinboro (7th)
8. Trevor Stewart, Sr. Central Michigan (8th)
9. Brandon Mason, Sr. Oklahoma State (9th)
10. Colt Sponseller, So. Ohio State (10th)
11. Zach Shanaman, Sr. Penn (12th)
12. Roger Smith-Bergsrud, Sr. Illinois (13th)
13. Chris Brown, Jr. Old Dominion (11th)
14. Andrew Flanagan, Sr. Harvard (15th)
15. Anthony Rendos, Jr. Bucknell (16th)
16. Tyler Sherfey, Sr. Boise State (14th)
17. Ryan Morningstar, Jr. Iowa (17th)
18. Keegan Mueller, Sr. North Carolina (18th)
19. Rex Kendle, Sr. Michigan State (NR)
20. Rick Schmelyn, Jr. Bloomsburg (NR)

174 pounds
1. Steve Luke, Sr. Michigan (1st)
2. Jay Borschel, Jr. Iowa (2nd)
3. Brandon Browne, Jr. Nebraska (3rd)
4. Steve Anceravage, Sr. Cornell (4th)
5. Raymond Jordan, Sr. Missouri (5th)
6. Mike Cannon, Jr. American (6th)
7. Alton Lucas, Sr. Hofstra (7th)
8. Mike Letts, Jr. Maryland (8th)
9. Chris Henrich, So. Virginia (9th)
10. Duke Burke, Jr. Iowa State (10th)
11. Mike Miller, So. Central Michigan (11th)
12. Nate Lee, Jr. Boise State (12th)
13. John Dergo, Jr. Illinois (13th)
14. Luke Feist, Sr. Stanford (14th)
15. Jeff James, So. Oklahoma (15th)
16. Quentin Wright, Fr. Penn State (16th)
17. Alex Caruso, So. Lehigh (17th)
18. Tyler Bernacchi, Sr. UC Davis (NR)
19. Phil Moricone, Sr. Edinboro (18th)
20. Austin Trotman, So. Appalachian St (NR)

184 pounds
1. Mike Pucillo, Jr. Ohio State (1st)
2. Jake Herbert, Sr. Northwestern (2nd)
3. Phil Keddy, Jr. Iowa (3rd)
4. Kirk Smith, So. Boise State (4th)
5. Louis Caputo, Jr. Harvard (5th)
6. Vince Jones, Sr. Nebraska (6th)
7. Doug Umbehauer, Sr. Rider (7th)
8. Rocco Caponi, Sr. Virginia (8th)
9. Dustin Kilgore, Fr. Kent State (9th)
10. Zack Geisen, Jr. Stanford (10th)
11. David Craig, Jr. Lehigh (12th)
12. Justin Kerber, So. Cornell (NR)
13. Chris Honeycutt, So. Edinboro (13th)
14. Kyle Bressler, Oregon State (14th)
15. A.J. Kissel, So. Purdue (16th)
16. Josh Patterson, Jr. Binghamton (17th)
17. John Barone, Jr. Duke (NR)
18. Anthony Biondo, So. Michigan (19th)
19. Phil Bomberger, Sr. Penn State (12th)
20. Jordan Blanton, Fr. Illinois (NR)

197 pounds
1. Jake Varner, Jr. Iowa State (1st)
2. Hudson Taylor, Jr. Maryland (2nd)
3. Craig Brester, Jr. Nebraska (3rd)
4. Dallas Herbst, Sr. Wisconsin (4th)
5. Max Askren, Jr. Missouri (5th)
6. Tyrel Todd, Sr. Michigan (6th)
7. Josh Arnone, Jr. Cornell (7th)
8. Eric Lapotsky, So. Oklahoma (8th)
9. Andrew Anderson, Sr. Northern Iowa (9th)
10. Cayle Byers, So. George Mason (10th)
11. Brent Chriswell, So. Boise State (11th)
12. Clayton Foster, So. Oklahoma State (12th)
13. Logan Brown, So. Purdue (13th)
14. Brent Jones, Sr. Virginia (14th)
15. Joe Fagiano, So. Hofstra (17th)
16. Cody Gardner, Fr. Ohio State (15th)
17. Chad Beatty, Jr. Iowa (19th)
18. Patrick Bond, Jr. Illinois (18th)
19. Jon Oplinger, Sr. Drexel (NR)
20. Richard Starks, Jr. Army (16th)

HWT
1. Jared Rosholt, Jr. Oklahoma State (1st)
2. Dave Zabriskie, Jr. Iowa State (2nd)
3. Kyle Massey, Sr. Wisconsin (3rd)
4. Mark Ellis, Sr. Missouri (5th)
5. Jermail Porter, Sr. Kent State (6th)
6. John Wise, Sr. Illinois (7th)
7. Zach Sheaffer, Sr. Pittsburgh (8th)
8. Scott Steele, Sr. Navy (4th)
9. Zach Hammond, Sr. Cornell (9th)
10. Joe Fendone, Sr. Edinboro (10th)
11. Rashard Goff, Sr. Cleveland State (11th)
12. Dustin Rogers, Sr. West Virginia (12th)
13. Nathan Everhart, Jr. Indiana (13th)
14. Dan Erekson, Jr. Iowa (15th)
15. Corey Morrison, Sr. Ohio State (16th)
16. Justin Dobies, Sr. North Carolina (18th)
17. Tucker Lane, Fr. Nebraska (NR)
18. Konrad Dudziak, Jr. Duke (NR)
19. Ben Berhow, So. Minnesota (19th)
20. Ryan Flores, So. Columbia (NR)

WIN TOURNAMENT POWER INDEX (TPI)

The Tournament Power Index (T.P.I.) is compiled by awarding potential NCAA tournament points to each team for the ranked wrestlers they have in WIN’s current individual rankings. Teams are awarded points based on how many potential All-Americans they could have and get advancement points for wrestlers ranked No. 9-20. The order of teams in the T.P.I. can vary greatly from our dual meet rankings, as some teams have a number of highly-ranked individuals but may have holes in their dual meet line-up.

Point totals associated with individual rankings are as followed: 1st – 20 (16 AA points + 4 advancement points); 2nd – 16 (12+4); 3rd – 13.5 (10+3.5); 4th – 12. 5 (9+3.5); 5th – 10 (7+3); 6th – 9 (6+3); 7th – 6.5 (4+2.5); 8th – 5.5 (3+2.5); 9th/12th – 2; 13th/16th – 1.5; 17th-20th – 1

Fans or coaches who have questions or input on our current rankings process can e-mail W.I.N. editor Mike Finn at MikeF@WIN-magazine.com. If you wish to be included on weekly ranking release list, e-mail W.I.N. at Info@WIN-magazine.com.

Rk. School Top 8 PTS
1. Iowa 6 99
2. Iowa State 7 97.5
3. Cornell 5 70.5
4. Ohio State 4 61.5
5. Missouri 5 58
6. Nebraska 5 57
7. Wisconsin 3 49.5
8. Illinois 3 48
9. Michigan 3 40
10. Oklahoma State 2 39
11. Northwestern 3 35
12(tie). Edinboro 2 26
12(tie). Harvard 2 26
14. Maryland 2 25.5
15(tie). Boise State 1 25
15(tie). Penn State 2 25
15(tie). Indiana 1 25
18. Central Michigan 3 24
19. Purdue 2 17.5
20(tie) Michigan State 1 17
20(tie) Minnesota 1 17
22(tie). Navy 2 16.5
22(tie). West Virginia 1 16.5
24(tie). Kent State 1 16
24(tie) NC State 1 16
26. Northern Iowa 1 15.5
27. Old Dominion 1 15
28. Hofstra 2 14.5
29. Arizona State 2 13
30. Oklahoma 1 11.5
31(tie) American 1 9
31(tie) Virginia 1 9
33. Penn 0 7
34(tie) Lehigh 0 6.5
34(tie) Pitt 1 6.5
34(tie) Rider 1 6.5
37. Bloomsburg 1 4.5
38. Stanford 0 3.5
39(tie) UC Davis 0 3
39(tie) Army 0 3
39(tie) Oregon State 0 3
42(tie) Cal Poly 0 2.5
42(tie) North Carolina 0 2.5
44(tie) Cleveland State 0 2
44(tie) George Mason 0 2
46(tie) Binghamton 0 1.5
46(tie) Bucknell 0 1.5
46(tie) Cal State Bakersfield 0 1.5
46(tie) Cal State Fullerton 0 1.5
50(tie) Appalachian State 0 1
50(tie) Boston U. 0 1
50(tie) Delaware State 0 1
50(tie) Northern Colorado 0 1

Last Place UVU takes on #2 Iowa State Cyclones

Posted on November 21, 2008 by Jon

The local wrestling team from Utah Valley University went ot Iowa last week to wrestle their #2 ranked Cyclones on their home mat. Though it takes guts to do that, they where still destroyed as a team losing 39-0. That’s the team score though. That doesn’t reveal how close it came in some matches. Both UVU and Iowa State have nationaly ranked wrestlers and some of them grappeled last night and it came pretty close. UVU star Ben Kjar, ranked 18th in the nation, went up against number 7, Tyler Clark. It came down to the wire, but Kjar couldn’t hold on and lost the match 4-2.

Photo Comp of Athletics Communications

Other matches were just as close, but of course there were some crushing blows as well. Two time NCAA returning finalist Jake Varner pinned Adam Fagner in 2:34. Nick Fanthorpe, who finished 7th last year at the NCAA tournament, got his first technical fall of the season at 6:24 against Flint Ray.

“Overall, I thought we looked real solid,” Sanderson said. “Utah Valley is making real strides in their program. Chris Pursell wrestled an aggressive match and dictated the tempo of the match.”

To their credit though, UVU showed up and gave the Cyclones a run. I wish I could have seen the match! UVU will have a long way to go, but I’m sure that this has given them a push in the right direction.

“Overall I was pleased with how technically sound we looked tonight,” Utah Valley head wrestling coach Greg Williams said. “What hurt us though was not being able to finish our matches. We will go back, get the tape out, and learn from our mistakes to help prepare us for Saturday.”

“Cody and Cael Sanderson are both tremendous coaches and we were very pleased and grateful for this opportunity to face so many highly-ranked individuals,” Williams added. “Tonight’s matches against such good competition will definitely help lead us down the path to prepare ourselves to meet our goals and reach nationals next year.”

The Wolverines stayed in Iowa for the weekend for the Harold Nichols Open, where six wrestlers placed in the 32 team tournament.

Six Wrestlers from UVU Place at Harold Nichols Open

Posted on November 19, 2008 by Jon

Sophomore Ben Kjar placed 3rd (125-pounds) at the Harold Nichols Open

Sophomore Ben Kjar leads UVU placing third overall in the 125-pound tournament.

Nov. 15, 2008

AMES, Iowa - Six out of nine Utah Valley University wrestlers who competed at the Harold Nichols Cyclones Open Saturday finished placing in the 32-team tournament.

“I am excited about the team this year,” UVU head wrestling coach Greg Williams said. “They are wrestling with confidence and are really working hard to develop in the areas they need to improve. Even in the matches that our younger guys are losing, they are working hard through the whole match and not letting up. I am proud of them.”

UVU battled it out at the Harold Nichols Open against some of the best wrestlers in the nation. Top notched talent that was at the open included wrestlers from No. 1 Iowa, No. 2 Iowa State, No. 6 Nebraska, No. 12 Wisconsin, No. 22 Northern Iowa, and fellow Western Wrestling Conference opponent South Dakota State just to name a few.

Utah Valley sophomore Benjamin Kjar led the way again as he finished placing third in the 125-pound tournament. Kjar, who earned the two-seed on the day wrestled some very good competition and came through earning his 19th national rank. He fell in the semis to Andrew Long of Iowa State losing by only one-point (3-2) but rebounded winning two more matches to place third.

Three other Wolverine wrestlers placed fourth in their respective weight-class tournaments. Junior Jeffrey Newby came out of the 141-pound tourney, sophomore Justin Morrill at 149, and sophomore Jeb Clark 165.

Also placing for UVU at the open was sophomore Flint Ray who finished fifth in the 133-pound tournament and redshirt freshman Brad Darrington placed sixth at 174 pounds.

The other trio of Utah Valley wrestlers at the open included redshirt freshman Wade Eldredge (157), sophomore Casen Eldredge (184), and freshman Adam Fager (197) who all went 3-2 individually on the day. Wade and Casen both missed placement by only one match.

Utah Valley (0-1) in duals will be back in dual action next week at No. 14 Boise State on Nov. 19 and at Portland State the very next night Nov. 20. To round out the week the Wolverines will take part in the Best of the West Open in Central Point, Ore., Nov. 22.

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