ADVERTISEMENT

PSU - OSU Match Thread

2 comments on Howard and Lee matches.
Both wrestler looked aggressive which is always a good sign.
Howard was looking for a big move, feet to back homerun. It works in high school but college is different animal. He'll figure it out that sometimes you look for 2 instead of 6.
Lee likes to let it fly , he got caught. If he was able to get off back he would of picked the kid apart. Lee will get put on his back because of the way he wrestles. Eventually he'll understand when to give up 2 instead of taking the risk to fight off a bad situation.
I think Howard tried to hit a big move a couple times only because nothing else was working; he really didn't come close to a more conventional TD against Heinselman.

The Lee-Smith match was considered close to a toss-up by most folks. Smith recently beat Cam Amine of UM by one point, while just last weekend Amine beat Lee 4-1. We'll never know what might have happened, but I kind of doubt that Lee would have picked Smith apart. Plus, guys seem to be getting to Joe Lee's leg too easily, such as the sequence early in that match where Lee's knee popped.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Ski
Am I going soft on TanTom?

It hasn’t been mentioned in this thread, but how many of us honestly believed TT would send out Malik and Romero last night? Normally he would have seed protected (ducked).

Appreciate that he didn’t. It’s bad for the sport and I hate it.

Props to TT
Being over 60 not only can't I remember every detail of the subjects that interest me, I don't even try anymore. With that preface laid out, I do not recall very many times Ryan hasn't put his best chance to beat PSU out on the mat.
 
  • Like
Reactions: tbay165
I fully admit that I didn’t think he’d send Romero out. That said, I can’t give him too much credit for something he should have been doing all along.

Tom got an unexpected fall at 165 to even the score. He might have thought he had a chance to win the dual, and Romero was going to help him get there. Just my $.02.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Oracle68 and RandyL
Can’t base it on one mans performance. The state is not broken into sections. A 32 man bracket is a gauntlet. I don’t care who you are, a California state champ is a great accomplishment.

One division. There are sections. But your point stands. Its a huge accomplishment.
 
MJo beat verk

OK, I decided to self-serve some crow. Combined, Bo & Micah Jordan are 9-5 vs PSU opponents (Bo 5-2 & Micah 4-3).

Bo (5-2):
2014
W MD 12-2 over Garett Hammond
2015
W Dec 10-6 over Garett Hammond
2016
W Dec 3-2 over Gino Morelli
W Dec 3-2 over Gino Morelli
2017
W SV1 6-4 over Mark Hall
L Dec 5-2 to Mark Hall
2018
L Dec 6-4 to Mark Hall

Micah (4-3):
2016
W Dec 6-3 over Jimmy Gulibon
2017
L TF 20-5 to Zain Retherford
L TF 16-1 to Zain Retherford
2018
W TF 24-9 over Bo Pipher
L TF 16-0 to Jason Nolf
2019
W Dec 10-8 over Jarod Verkleeren
W MD 13-4 over Brady Berge
courtesy WrestleStat.com
 
Taking into account that the real-world physical constraints and logistics aren't going away, I'd be in favor of simply shrinking the circle enough so that the wood floor, the wall, the Blaise Alexander sign, etc., aren't ever a factor.

I guess if you shrunk the circle to a degree where the floor becomes a non-issue, you might have wrestlers going out of bounds more, at least at first, but I think they'd adjust. I imagine there'd also be resistance from some people who might deem the dimensions of the circle as sacred, but the rules should serve the sport, not vice versa.
What exactly are the real-world constraints of a larger mat size in bigger venues such as tOSU's new wrestling facility (or most any college venue)? Increase the mat size from 42' square to 45' square and the "touch the floor" situations we saw in the PSU-tOSU dual largely disappear. I suppose that floor space could be an issue in certain tournament settings where six or eight mats are needed. In those situations, stick with the current 42' mats.

In any event, shrinking the circle is not the answer. There are already enough OOB stoppages.
 
Last edited:
OK, I decided to self-serve some crow. Combined, Bo & Micah Jordan are 9-5 vs PSU opponents (Bo 5-2 & Micah 4-3).

Bo (5-2):
2014
W MD 12-2 over Garett Hammond
2015
W Dec 10-6 over Garett Hammond
2016
W Dec 3-2 over Gino Morelli
W Dec 3-2 over Gino Morelli
2017
W SV1 6-4 over Mark Hall
L Dec 5-2 to Mark Hall
2018
L Dec 6-4 to Mark Hall

Micah (4-3):
2016
W Dec 6-3 over Jimmy Gulibon
2017
L TF 20-5 to Zain Retherford
L TF 16-1 to Zain Retherford
2018
W TF 24-9 over Bo Pipher
L TF 16-0 to Jason Nolf
2019
W Dec 10-8 over Jarod Verkleeren
W MD 13-4 over Brady Berge
courtesy WrestleStat.com
The last entry looks to be a mistake (repeat of a match against Bo). Pretty sure that Mark Hall never wrestled Micah. And if he did, I doubt it would have been a 6-4 decision.

And I suspect that Micah may have long-term shoulder issues due to his matches against Retherford and a one-legged Jason Nolf. Those were just brutal, pain-inflicting beat-downs.
 
The last entry looks to be a mistake (repeat of a match against Bo). Pretty sure that Mark Hall never wrestled Micah. And if he did, I doubt it would have been a 6-4 decision.

And I suspect that Micah may have long-term shoulder issues due to his matches against Retherford and a one-legged Jason Nolf. Those were just brutal, pain-inflicting beat-downs.

I know. I fixed it before you commented. ;) Thanks though. The tribulations of copy/paste.
 
Don’t the rules allow for a circle 32’ to 42’ in diameter? Or some similarly large variance?
 
I think Byers should start reporting to us the actual mat dimensions at the same time he's reporting the colors of the team singlets.

(insert sarcasm emoji here)
 
  • Like
Reactions: jtothemfp and SRATH
I think Howard tried to hit a big move a couple times only because nothing else was working; he really didn't come close to a more conventional TD against Heinselman.

The Lee-Smith match was considered close to a toss-up by most folks. Smith recently beat Cam Amine of UM by one point, while just last weekend Amine beat Lee 4-1. We'll never know what might have happened, but I kind of doubt that Lee would have picked Smith apart. Plus, guys seem to be getting to Joe Lee's leg too easily, such as the sequence early in that match where Lee's knee popped.
Smith likes to counter. Lee just has to be more careful on his scrambles. I think if Lee wrestles from feet he can score a few more takedowns than what Smith intiates.
Just my opinion.
 
Don’t the rules allow for a circle 32’ to 42’ in diameter? Or some similarly large variance?

Yes, here is the rule. It looks to me that tOSU mat may not meet the 5 foot requirement at the 12 o'clock and 6 o'clock ends of the mat.

Section 1. Mats Art. 1. Mat Specifications. Mats shall have a competition circle between 32 and 42 feet in diameter. There shall be a matted area with a minimum width of five feet that extends entirely around the competition circle. The competition circle and matted area shall be differentiated by the use of either contrasting colors or a 2-inch-wid
 
Yes, here is the rule. It looks to me that tOSU mat may not meet the 5 foot requirement at the 12 o'clock and 6 o'clock ends of the mat.

Section 1. Mats Art. 1. Mat Specifications. Mats shall have a competition circle between 32 and 42 feet in diameter. There shall be a matted area with a minimum width of five feet that extends entirely around the competition circle. The competition circle and matted area shall be differentiated by the use of either contrasting colors or a 2-inch-wid
What makes you think the tOSU mat doesn't meet regulation? The floor touching stuff has been around forever; just had more than usual at the PSU-tOSU meet. The root problem is that 5 feet between the circle and the edge of the mat simply isn't large enough. Increase that to 6.5 feet or so (i.e., a 45 ft square mat) and the "floor touching" events would pretty much disappear.
 
What makes you think the tOSU mat doesn't meet regulation? The floor touching stuff has been around forever; just had more than usual at the PSU-tOSU meet. The root problem is that 5 feet between the circle and the edge of the mat simply isn't large enough. Increase that to 6.5 feet or so (i.e., a 45 ft square mat) and the "floor touching" events would pretty much disappear.
Especially with the rules now that if any part is in bounds they are still considered in bounds
 
What makes you think the tOSU mat doesn't meet regulation? The floor touching stuff has been around forever; just had more than usual at the PSU-tOSU meet. The root problem is that 5 feet between the circle and the edge of the mat simply isn't large enough. Increase that to 6.5 feet or so (i.e., a 45 ft square mat) and the "floor touching" events would pretty much disappear.

As i said at 12 & 6 o'clock the distance looks to be less than 5 feet. Not much but still less than 5 feet.
 
What exactly are the real-world constraints of a larger mat size in bigger venues such as tOSU's new wrestling facility (or most any college venue)?
Panera would have to charge an extra 1 or 2 cents per order.
 
I sometimes forget Gavin was usually getting the better of Michael in high school. A lot of Ohio State fans talked about how we made the wrong choice between 197 pounders. Similarly, so many Iowa fans are so confident Kennedy will get the better of Facundo in college because of a match from Facundo's JUNIOR year.

Our guys take losses in high school and college, they're not afraid to bottom line. Our guys take losses at conferences then win nationals. (Ask Nico, Mark, Cenzo) It's a mentality thing that Cael seeks. It allows them to wrestle loose in March. It also leads to some sloppy mistakes and losses but guess what? That's wrestling, it happens.

I remember thinking Nick was probably mentally done in wrestle offs in 2018. He gets pinned by a kid he should probably tech fall in the first round and has Josh Alber first match back. Nope ... back to work. Wins 5 matches in a row and is in the difference between Cael's most dramatic team race.
i stated back during that Flo match that Beard was the better wrestler.. he just happened to lost that match.
 
I can't believe he chose bottom but I guess it's more about experience than it is about winning at this point.

Yes but I think it was the right call regardless of that.

It was 4-2 going into the third. If he chooses neutral, he needs to get at least +2 more TD’s on Sasso to win.

Considering he had about 15 secs of RT, he had 1:15 to get out before Sasso got the RT point. I think that +1 late TD was more likely than +2 TD’s.
 
Being over 60 not only can't I remember every detail of the subjects that interest me, I don't even try anymore. With that preface laid out, I do not recall very many times Ryan hasn't put his best chance to beat PSU out on the mat.
very many...
 
Yes, here is the rule. It looks to me that tOSU mat may not meet the 5 foot requirement at the 12 o'clock and 6 o'clock ends of the mat.

Section 1. Mats Art. 1. Mat Specifications. Mats shall have a competition circle between 32 and 42 feet in diameter. There shall be a matted area with a minimum width of five feet that extends entirely around the competition circle. The competition circle and matted area shall be differentiated by the use of either contrasting colors or a 2-inch-wid
I can't remember all the spefics but when Gable was at Iowa he was going to wrestle a team that was notorious for working the edge of circle. He had a huge mat made which was like 50% larger than typical size mat. I believe the only guidelines at the the time was for a minimum size .
I can't remember all the details, maybe someone can add info.
 
Yes, here is the rule. It looks to me that tOSU mat may not meet the 5 foot requirement at the 12 o'clock and 6 o'clock ends of the mat.

Section 1. Mats Art. 1. Mat Specifications. Mats shall have a competition circle between 32 and 42 feet in diameter. There shall be a matted area with a minimum width of five feet that extends entirely around the competition circle. The competition circle and matted area shall be differentiated by the use of either contrasting colors or a 2-inch-wid
I rewatched the dual this afternoon. I swear the tOSU kids were all trying their edge finishes at the corners. Call me looney, but I can’t help but wonder if this was a point of emphasis against us, as we have so frequently cut and edged take downs against them and well, everyone.
 
I can't remember all the spefics but when Gable was at Iowa he was going to wrestle a team that was notorious for working the edge of circle. He had a huge mat made which was like 50% larger than typical size mat. I believe the only guidelines at the the time was for a minimum size .
I can't remember all the details, maybe someone can add info.
 
Agree with others that this was PSU's best match to date. Great effort up and down the lineup. No complaints about not getting bonus points this week, LOL. Our guys were on a mission. RBY's match was the closest thing to watching Nolf I've seen since Jason graduated. RBY didn't just dominate, he made Decatur lose the will to wrestle. And the way Brooks wrestles on his feet reminds me of Cael. You can see it in the ankle and knee picks and the smooth finishes he has. I really enjoy watching him go and he's just getting started!

I just wish we had another two months of duals before B1Gs as some of the younger guys need it bad. Still some struggles off the bottom and a few of the frosh aren't quite where we need them to be. But this team is coming together fast and can't wait to see them in March.
 
Did anyone else think Beard came in to last night’s match with an axe to grind and looking to make a statement? Guess this wasn’t just any other match. Very impressed and happy for Michael.
 
  • Like
Reactions: ptomaselli
Did anyone else think Beard came in to last night’s match with an axe to grind and looking to make a statement? Guess this wasn’t just any other match. Very impressed and happy for Michael.
You could see it. He bulldozed poor Hoffman - treated him like Hoffman’s dad treated their Penn State swag a few years back
 
  • Like
Reactions: ptomaselli
Did anyone else think Beard came in to last night’s match with an axe to grind and looking to make a statement? Guess this wasn’t just any other match. Very impressed and happy for Michael.
No. That's a distraction.

What he did was the product of training with teammates who convert singles into standing cradles, like Brooks did to Venz. He saw an opportunity and took it.
 
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT