I decided to start a new thread because I don't think enough appreciation is given to what this dude did for us this season. It wasn't officially mathematically what happened but he more or less locked the team race up for us with his win over Mason Parris.
Reading tea leaves, Kerk is banged up and has been for a long time but has been pushing through for the team. Despite that, he gave Gable as good of a match as you can give Gable and absolutely manhandled Mason Parris to lock up the team race. I didn't want to speculate but there was multiple times when I felt he was slow to get up or walking a bit gingerly or favoring some part of his body but then he goes right back into being an absolute beast that we never guess just how much he is hurting.
During this season, Kerk has battled something that dropped his weight under 230 (down from his preferred 245-250) before the season even started (he was like 228 for the Sacred Heart Dual), he dealt with a stomach bug that was causing him to vomit nonstop during the Penn dual but he still told the coaches he was prepared to wrestle if the team needed him. He breaks his nose against the Arizona State backup and was losing way more blood than any human should. He tweaks his hamstring against Christian Lance in the dual, he hurts his knee against Cassioppi (which is what I think caused him to give up the reversal) and now apparently his shoulder is ailing him.
I don't even want to guess what % Kerk is but it's probably very low. I pray so hard for him to be at full health one day. Selfishly for Penn State obviously but 100x more because the kid deserves to show the world just how good he really is (because I don't believe anybody has seen it yet)
I don't want to hear anymore about how the kid is mentally weak because I've quite honestly seen it a bit because he got stuck on bottom against Cassioppi and had that gaff at the end of the Big Ten semis. It's wrestling it happens (and like I mentioned, I think he was hurt in the sequence)
Thank you Daniel Greg Kerkvliet ... you are Penn State and we are so blessed to have you.
Reading tea leaves, Kerk is banged up and has been for a long time but has been pushing through for the team. Despite that, he gave Gable as good of a match as you can give Gable and absolutely manhandled Mason Parris to lock up the team race. I didn't want to speculate but there was multiple times when I felt he was slow to get up or walking a bit gingerly or favoring some part of his body but then he goes right back into being an absolute beast that we never guess just how much he is hurting.
During this season, Kerk has battled something that dropped his weight under 230 (down from his preferred 245-250) before the season even started (he was like 228 for the Sacred Heart Dual), he dealt with a stomach bug that was causing him to vomit nonstop during the Penn dual but he still told the coaches he was prepared to wrestle if the team needed him. He breaks his nose against the Arizona State backup and was losing way more blood than any human should. He tweaks his hamstring against Christian Lance in the dual, he hurts his knee against Cassioppi (which is what I think caused him to give up the reversal) and now apparently his shoulder is ailing him.
I don't even want to guess what % Kerk is but it's probably very low. I pray so hard for him to be at full health one day. Selfishly for Penn State obviously but 100x more because the kid deserves to show the world just how good he really is (because I don't believe anybody has seen it yet)
I don't want to hear anymore about how the kid is mentally weak because I've quite honestly seen it a bit because he got stuck on bottom against Cassioppi and had that gaff at the end of the Big Ten semis. It's wrestling it happens (and like I mentioned, I think he was hurt in the sequence)
Thank you Daniel Greg Kerkvliet ... you are Penn State and we are so blessed to have you.
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