Hey guys,
In the future I’ll have more extensive previews and recaps of duals and tournaments on site, but I was out at PSU-UM covering football yesterday so had to catch up on the duals when I got home last night. Here are my initial takeaways, let me know what agree and disagree and on!
1. RBY in cruise control
Last year, I spent most of the season thinking Roman Bravo-Young just looked a bit off the pace. He wasn’t putting up tons of points or separating himself from guys he should be. Then he won a national title. That was again the case against Oregon State last night and I’ve come to acknowledge that he can and will turn things on and off as he pleases.
2. Bartlett’s got chutzpah
It seemed very clear to me watching Beau Bartlett wrestle Cory Crooks yesterday that he’s still undersized for 149. He’s bigger than he was last year, but guys that are cutting any significant weight to get to 149 are going to have a big advantage. A couple things Bartlett has to his advantage is his guile and his grit. He won the match against Crooks by not putting himself in bad spots and with a savvy third-period ride out. We’ll take it.
3. No answers at 57/65
As Hoosier Lion reported yesterday, Joe Lee is carrying a slight injury and didn’t go last night. I don’t know why we didn’t see Terrell Barraclough, but I can tell you that Joey Blumer won’t be the starter at 165 all year. I feel comfortable saying the same with Creighton Edsell at 165, despite two solid performances.
4. The dudes are dudes
Turns out Carter Starocci and Aaron Brooks are still good to quite good. Penn State has national title favorites in both wrestlers and Starocci in particular looked a man on a mission last night.
5. Stronger in the back end
Whether it’s Michael Beard or Max Dean, Penn State will have a significant contributor at 197. Dean looked fantastic in a pair of matches last night and Beard was reportedly right there with him in a wrestle-off. I’m not quite ready to call either a title contender, but it’s not far off. As for Greg Kerkvliet, I thought he looked as strong and confident as ever, rolling through a pair of opponents, include a potential NCAA qualifier in Gary Traub.
In the future I’ll have more extensive previews and recaps of duals and tournaments on site, but I was out at PSU-UM covering football yesterday so had to catch up on the duals when I got home last night. Here are my initial takeaways, let me know what agree and disagree and on!
1. RBY in cruise control
Last year, I spent most of the season thinking Roman Bravo-Young just looked a bit off the pace. He wasn’t putting up tons of points or separating himself from guys he should be. Then he won a national title. That was again the case against Oregon State last night and I’ve come to acknowledge that he can and will turn things on and off as he pleases.
2. Bartlett’s got chutzpah
It seemed very clear to me watching Beau Bartlett wrestle Cory Crooks yesterday that he’s still undersized for 149. He’s bigger than he was last year, but guys that are cutting any significant weight to get to 149 are going to have a big advantage. A couple things Bartlett has to his advantage is his guile and his grit. He won the match against Crooks by not putting himself in bad spots and with a savvy third-period ride out. We’ll take it.
3. No answers at 57/65
As Hoosier Lion reported yesterday, Joe Lee is carrying a slight injury and didn’t go last night. I don’t know why we didn’t see Terrell Barraclough, but I can tell you that Joey Blumer won’t be the starter at 165 all year. I feel comfortable saying the same with Creighton Edsell at 165, despite two solid performances.
4. The dudes are dudes
Turns out Carter Starocci and Aaron Brooks are still good to quite good. Penn State has national title favorites in both wrestlers and Starocci in particular looked a man on a mission last night.
5. Stronger in the back end
Whether it’s Michael Beard or Max Dean, Penn State will have a significant contributor at 197. Dean looked fantastic in a pair of matches last night and Beard was reportedly right there with him in a wrestle-off. I’m not quite ready to call either a title contender, but it’s not far off. As for Greg Kerkvliet, I thought he looked as strong and confident as ever, rolling through a pair of opponents, include a potential NCAA qualifier in Gary Traub.
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