By Tim 07.01.11 at 9:00 am  Herky Hawkeye pictured here in happier times during the wedding reception of his third wife. ITBUUS continues to roll into the October portion of the football schedule with Ross (aka “RossWB”) of the popular Iowa blog Black Heart Gold Pants being so gracious enough as to answer several nagging questions that all Penn State fans want to know about the Hawkeyes…and by “all Penn State fans” I mean, myself..mostly.
Linebacker-U: Without a doubt, BHGP is one of my favorite non-PSU blogs out there, and is one that I read on a frequent basis. What is it in the Iowa water that gives their fans such a snarky sense of humor?
BHGP: The sensible answer would be to say that it’s some sort of residual bleed-over effect from spending so long in Iowa City and being so near a famed den of creativity and linguistic excellence like the Writer’s Workshop, but most of those folks were far too poncey to associate with a band of reprobates and drunkards like the BHGP braintrust. So it’s probably just the meth.
LBU: So, America’s Hero (Ricky Stanzi) is gone, all running backs not named Marcus Coker are gone, and man-child/punter swallower Adrian Clayborn is gone. I know there’s several others leaving as well, but that’s quite a core that will need replacing. How big of a step back do you see Iowa taking this year?
BHGP: Despite losing all those fine footballers, I’ve actually been projecting Iowa to have a better regular season record in ’11 (8-4) than they had in ’10 (7-5). That’s not to take anything away from the quality of the fellows who are no longer here, nor is it a suggestion that their replacements will be far better than they were (although Marcus Coker has a real chance to be Iowa’s finest running back since Shonn Greene ran roughshod over the Big Ten).
Mainly, it’s an acknowledgment of the fact that Iowa has a very favorable schedule — they avoid three of the four likely best teams in the East division (Wisconsin, Ohio State, Illinois) and get three of the four likely best teams in the West division (Michigan, Michigan State, and just Northwestern) at home — and some very promising players looking to step up next fall. I also refuse to believe Iowa will shit all over themselves against Minnesota again.
LBU: Looks like Iowa and Nebraska is about to become a Black Friday tradition for years to come. How excited is the Iowa fan base about this? If you could invent a trophy for this newfound rivalry, what would it be?
BHGP: I would say Iowa fans are 100% excited to be playing Nebraska every year and the overwhelming majority of them are happy the game is replacing the Minnesota game in the season finale rival spot (mainly because Minnesota’s general buffonery and incompetence under Glen Mason and Tim Brewster had drained most of the drama and intrigue from the series in recent years). The opinion on the game being played on Black Friday is a little more mixed, mainly due to logistical hang-ups (travel, work schedules, etc.), but most fans are enthusiastic about the increased exposure the game will bring (it’s nice being the only Big Ten game going on that day) and I think it’s something that Iowa fans will get accustomed to — and embrace — after a few years.
I’ve long been in favor of a nice bronze meth pipe as a traveling trophy for this soon-to-be epic rivalry, but for some reason Gary Barta and Tom Osborne haven’t been returning my calls. It’s like meth has a bad image or something. Crazy, right? Alternatively, I’ve been suggesting ditching the hideous Cy-Hawk Trophy (only a step or two behind the Land Grant Trophy on the eye blight scale) in favor of a bronze tractor or some other agricultural implement that better reflects Iowa’s agrarian nature; that idea could be imported to the Iowa-Nebraska rivalry just as easily.
 A bronzed meth pipe trophy for Iowa-Nebraska? Definitely more aesthetically pleasing than the Land Grant Trophy.
LBU: In case you didn’t notice, Penn State hired a new basketball coach in Pat Chambers. Do you have any concerns about fan safety the next time PSU and Iowa meet? I feel like the dichotomy of Chambers’ ATTITUDE and Fran McCaffrey’s RAGE will produce a ‘crossing of the steams’ type of effect a la Ghostbusters.
BHGP: It depends — if ATTITUDE and RAGE cross paths at the Bryce Jordan Center, no one will be hurt, since attendance there makes Ryan Field look like Beaver Stadium [TIM'S NOTE: Touche, Ross]. To be fair, that would also have been largely true if the streams had been crossed at Carver-Hawkeye a few years ago, but the presence of Fran (and more aesthetically pleasing hoopyball) has Iowa fans cautiously, but steadily, returning to CHA in greater numbers. After a decade of being treated like a Lifetime wife and being battered and neglected, Iowa fans are swiftly being won over by McCaffery’s passion — and predilection for getting his team to punch above its weight, as indicated by their season-ending upset of Purdue and a handful of other almost got ‘em games. I confess, I was mostly befeuddled by the Penn State basketball tomfoolery, since the idea of a Big Ten coach skittering off to take over a Patriot League team in mid-May was so damn weird. But Penn State fans seem a little excited about this Chambers guy, so bully for that.
LBU: But seriously, what can we expect in Year 2 of McCaffrey’s extreme makeover of Iowa hoops?
BHGP: More wins, first and foremost. In part that will be a function of an almost embarrassingly soft non-conference slate (Iowa isn’t leaving the state borders until conference play and the toughest teams on the slate appear to be Creighton, Clemson, Iowa State, and Northern Iowa) and in part that will be a function of a Big Ten that should take a step back next year with the loss of so many talented upperclassmen. But it’s also based on the notion that the Franimal has managed to (a) actually retain virtually everyone from last year’s team and (b) add some promising recruits in the offseason.
After finding Bryce Cartwright, who turned out to be one of the league’s better point guard last season, and Melsahn Basabe, one of the league’s better freshmen, Iowa fans are willing to give McCaffery quite a bit of rope when it comes to recruiting. It’s also a hope predicated on the belief that further exposure to McCaffery’s tutelage will improve the current squad; Jarryd Cole blossomed as a solid post player last year and even previously-hopeless cases like Andrew Brommer began to show signs of actual basketball talent at times. Given all that, 17-20 wins seems like a genuinely reasonable prediction and an NIT berth seems like an attainable goal.
LBU: Obligatory wrestling question: What’s the outlook on next season for the Hawkeyes? Will PSU-Iowa remain a fierce clash of the titans for years to come in the Big Ten, or is there another team that could join the fray?
BHGP: There should be some other very good teams next year (and in years to come), like Oklahoma State, Ohio State, Wisconsin, Cornell, and Minnesota… but Penn State and Iowa look like the true forces to be reckoned with, particularly next year. Both teams return the lion’s share (er, no pun intended) of their teams last years — teams that finished a scant point apart at the Big Ten Tournament (and a few more apart at the NCAA Tournament). Both teams also return basically all of their studs — McDonough, Marion, St. John, and Gambrall return for Iowa, while Taylor, Ruth, Long, and Wright return for Penn State.
Both teams are also (justifiably) excited about some of the new starters looking to muscle their way into the line-ups, as both had some blue-chip prospects redshirting next year. Really, both teams look absolutely loaded for next year; Iowa has a bit more ground to make up than Penn State, but there should be some exciting clashes between both teams next year, first at the dual meet at Penn State’s Rec Center and later at the Big Ten and NCAA Tournaments.
WORD ASSOCIATION: Name the first thing that comes to mind for each of the following:
- Hayden Fry – Mustache
- Joe Paterno – Zombie
- Ken O’Keefe – Pirate
- Cael Sanderson – Supervillain
- Steve Alford – Greasy
- Tim Dwight – Superman
- Tim Brewster – Tourette’s
- Metrodome – Sex
- Heaven – A place where there is no beer [TIM'S NOTE: In other words, Iowa fans would prefer hell?]
LBU: And finally, fill in the blank on the next asinine Kirk Ferentz rumor. Kirk Ferentz is a candidate for ________
BHGP: Kirk Ferentz is a candidate for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. CFL4EVER, yo.
We thank Ross for his cooperation, and look forward to Penn State choking against clashing with Iowa again on October 8th.
By Galen 03.21.11 at 9:20 am
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| Your 2011 NCAA Wrestling Champs! |
Cael Sanderson left Iowa State to come to Penn State believing that the Nittany Lions were close to winning a National Title and, with his help, they could achieve top honors. Coming into this season many long-time followers of Penn State wrestling believed that the Lions were a year away from winning it all but few thought it would happen this season. Oh there was an outside shot that if things went Penn State’s way they may be able to pull it off but very few thought it would end like this. Well thanks to a lot of hard work and long hours of practice, Penn State has won the 2011 NCAA Wrestling national championship!
Penn State finished with 5 All-Americans: Andrew Long took 3rd at 133, Frank Molinaro took 2nd at 141, David Taylor took 2nd at 157, Ed Ruth took 3rd at 174 and Quentin Wright is the national champ at 184 pounds. Penn State finished with 107.5 points, a new record, easily outdistancing 2nd place Cornell who finished with 93.5. Penn State’s lead was so great that when the finals started Saturday night, the team race was already locked up, neither Cornell or third place Iowa could catch Penn State.
The big story was the continued season ending surge by Quentin Wright. After losing his last three matches of the season, Wright has reeled off a Big Ten and NCAA championship and he saved the best for last. Quentin went 5-0 and powered by 4 ranked wrestlers. Wright beat No. 8 Kevin Steinhaus of Minnesota 8-4 in the 2nd round, he then convincingly took down No. 1 seeded Chris Honeycutt of Edinboro 7-3, he pinned No. 12 Grant Gambrall of Iowa in the semi’s and finished off No. 2 Robert Hamlin of Lehigh 5-2 in Saturday night’s finals. Honeycutt and Wright did not meet this season but Quentin lost to all three of the other wrestlers.
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| 184 pound champ Quentin Wright |
Moving Forward
Looking ahead, the future looks very bright for Penn State. The Lions return all of their All-Americans next season and only lose 125 pounder Brad Pataky to graduation and his replacement, Frank Martellotti, was ranked in the top 15 when Brad sat out with a knee injury. There are some promising young wrestlers coming off of redshirt next year and some big time freshman recruits coming in. One thing is for sure, Penn State will be the team everyone is gunning for, but for now it’s time for the team to celebrate. Well done Gentlemen, well done!
By Galen 03.16.11 at 2:16 pm
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| One last chance to post this pic again!! |
The Big Ten wrestling champs Penn State Nittany Lions take a short bus trip to Philadelphia’s Wells Fargo Center to compete in the 2011 NCAA wrestling championships starting tomorrow. Coach Cael Sanderson came to Penn State to win the Big Ten and NCAA championships. Half of that goal has been achieved, can he make Penn State a national champ for the first time in 50 years? We’re about to find out.
The good news is that last Wednesday it was announced that while Brad Pataky did not finish high enough in the Big Ten’s to automatically qualify for an NCAA bid, he did receive an at-large bid and will compete as an unseeded wrestler. Pataky has been so close to All-American status but has yet to realize that dream and this will be his final chance. Here’s a look at Penn State’s 8 qualifiers:
125- Brad Pataky: Unseeded
Unlike last season, Brad didn’t get that bad of a draw. It’s not going to be easy by any stretch of the imagination but Brad has the potential to get somewhere in the championship bracket. Brad will face No. 12 seed Jarrod Garnett of Virginia Tech in the first bout. Pataky and Garnett split two bouts last season. Win that and he would likely get 5th seeded Zach Sanders of Minnesota who Pataky lost to by 2 points in the dual this season. Win that and Pataky would be in the quarterfinals against 4th seeded James Nicholson of Old Dominion. Brad could easily lose his first match but he could also make it pretty far. While he does have top-seeded Anthony Robles in his bracket both Matt McDonough of Iowa and Brandon Precin of Northwestern are in the other bracket. If there was ever a year that Brad has a good opportunity to get that top-8 finish it would be this one.
Prediction: All-American (top-8 finish) – call me crazy I just have a feeling Brad will do well this time around
133- Andrew Long: No. 3
Like Pataky, Long got a pretty good draw as well. If Andrew avoids the upset he wouldn’t face a ranked wrestler until at least the quarterfinals. Long also would get No. 2 seed Andrew Hochstrasser of Boise in the semi’s and I like Long’s chances if he gets there.
Prediction: NCAA finalist
141- Andrew Alton: No. 6
Andrew will get Binghamton’s Anwar Goeres in the first round and then Matthew Mariacher the 11 seed out of American. Both are winnable bouts for Alton and if he did win it would get him to Borislav Novachkov of Cal poly the 3rd seed. Russell of Michigan, Kennedy of Illinois, and Marion of Iowa, all of who Andrew lost to, are in the other bracket. If Alton makes it to the semi’s he would most likely have a tough matchup with 2nd seeded Michael Thorn of Minnesota.
Prediction: All-American – Alton never gives up and I like his chances of becoming a true freshman All-American
149- Frank Molinaro: No. 2
Frank gets a high seed in an admittedly week weight as far as the Big Ten is concerned. Having said that, no other wrestler in the Big Ten even scored on Frank in the Big Ten championships, there’s something to be said for that. Frank does have a sort of tough road ahead of him. If he makes it past unseeded wrestlers in his first two matches he’ll likely face Mario Mason of Rutgers in the quarters, who was one of the two wrestlers to beat Frank this season.
Prediction: NCAA finalist – I think if Frank makes it past Mason he makes it to the finals
157- David Taylor: No. 3
What more can I say about the Magic Man that I haven’t already said this season. Taylor gets the 3rd seed behind Fittery of American and Hall of Boise. Surprisingly Fittery gets the 2nd seed and would likely face Taylor in a Semifinal match that everyone wants to see. I think whoever wins that match is your champ at 157 and I’ll never count Taylor out.
Prediction: NCAA champ
174- Ed Ruth: No. 2
Ruth is another wrestler I feel pretty confident about sitting at No. 2. He would likely get Big Ten Championship rematch with Nick Heflin of Ohio State in the quarters and then a rematch with Mack Lewnes of Cornell whom Ed beat handily by an 11-5 score in the dual earlier this year. I don’t expect that kind of dominance but I think Ruth gets by to make it to the championship.
Prediction: NCAA champ- I just like the way Ed is wrestling right now
184- Quentin Wright: No. 9
While I’ve said that most of Penn State’s wrestlers have decent draws up to this point, Q is the exact opposite. Wright has a horrendous draw getting a Big Ten championship rematch against Kevin Steinhaus in the 2nd round. That’s extremely tough and even worse the winner of that get’s top-seeded Chris Honeycutt of Edinboro. Wright would have been way better off getting the 10th seed but you just have to go out and wrestle. I’ll never count Q out but he may have to do his damage in the wrestle backs.
Prediction: All-American
285- Cameron Wade: No. 9
Like I say every time I preview Cameron Wade you just don’t know which Wade is going to step on the mat. Wade has the potential to go all the way and he has the potential to drop out without placing. Wade gets a very winnable 1st round match against the winner of a pigtail but then gets a rematch with Minnesota’s Tony Nelson whom Cameron is 1-1 with this season. The winner of that gets top-seeded Zach Rey of Lehigh which is tough.
Prediction: doesn’t place – I’d like to think Cameron will get to All-American status but I just don’t see it happening
Overall
I know I’m looking like a homer predicting 7 All-Americans and two national champs but after watching these guys in the Big Ten’s I just think that they are peaking at the right time. Another thing to think about is the fact that it will be in Penn State’s back yard so there should be LOTS of Nittany Lion fans filling the stands. Things could go sour fast but I think with some of the draws this could be Penn State’s year. If things end up like I’m predicting it will be a close finish. The team championship could be just as close as the Big Ten championships.
TV coverage
Thankfully, the ESPN family of networks if covering the championships from beginning to end. The schedule will go like this:
Thursday, March 17
Session 1 – 11 a.m. (ESPN3)
Session 2 – 6:30 p.m. (ESPN3)
Friday, March 18
Session 3 – 10:30 a.m. (ESPNU & ESPN3 simulcast)
Session 4 – 7 p.m. (ESPNU & ESPN3 simulcast)
Saturday, March 19
Session 5- 11 a.m. (ESPNU & ESPN3 simulcast)
Session six/championship finals, 7:30 p.m. (ESPN)
By Galen 03.07.11 at 10:37 am In just his second season as head coach of the Penn State Nittany Lions, Cael Sanderson has led his team to a Big Ten Championship. Penn State becomes the first team in the Eastern Time Zone since 1973 to win the Big Ten’s. PSU went 5 for 5 in the finals and got important bonus points in the wrestle-backs to earn a 1 point victory over defending champ Iowa. Penn State won the title with 139.0 points narrowly beating Iowa who had 138.0.
Andrew Long, Frank Molinaro, David Taylor, Ed Ruth, and Quentin Wright all won Big Ten titles. But it wasn’t just the guys in the championship rounds, it was a complete team effort. Brad Pataky and James Vollrath were wrestling for 7th and knew there year was most likely over, but instead of sulking and going through the motions they went out and wrestled hard. Pataky got a tech fall and Vollrath used a first period cradle to secure a pin and those bonus points are the difference when you’re talking about a 1-point win.
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| This makes every Penn State wrestling fan smile |
The real story though was the resurgence of sophomore Quentin Wright. Coming off a three match losing streak, Wright was seeded 8th. All he did was beat the 1st, 2nd and 5th seeded wrestler and went 4-0 on his way to his first Big Ten championship. For his efforts Wright was named the tournament’s outstanding wrestler. Cael Sanderson was named the 2011 Big Ten Coach of the Year and David Taylor was named both the Big Ten Wrestler of the Year and Big Ten Freshman of the Year for his undefeated run through the regular season and Big Tens. Congrats guys, now let’s go get them at nationals!
By Galen 03.04.11 at 3:58 pm  The Penn State wrestling team heads to Evanston, Ill this weekend to take part in the Big Ten Championships. The two day event starts Saturday at 11 a.m. and ends with the championship round on Sunday at 4 p.m. The championship round will air live on the Big Ten Network. We’ll take a quick look after the jump.
The Big Ten conference was allotted 64 automatic qualifiers by the NCAA and break down by weight class as follows:
125: 5
133: 8
141: 6
149: 8
157: 6
165: 5
174: 8
184: 6
197: 6
HWT: 6
It just so happens that the three toughest weight classes (if you go by most automatic bids allotted) are weights Penn State is pre-seeded #1. In fact a Penn State wrestler is pre-seeded #1 in 5 of the 10 weight classes overall. Pre-seeds are not locked in the coaches meet today and finalize the seeds. There could be some movement but usually not at the top.
Before we go any further we need to answer a couple questions. There were questions about who will represent Penn State at 165 and 197 and they’ve been answered. Redshirt freshman James Vollrath will get the starting nod over Jake Kemerer at 165 and freshman Nick Ruggear will get the start over Justin Ortega at 197. You always want to win but at this point any wins by either of these guys will be bonus. I’m not saying they won’t fight hard but they’re just not weights Penn State will be counting on. Ruggear has wrestled in 6 Big Ten duals and lost all of them. Vollrath does have two victories against Big Ten foe but they were backups and he lost to Dan Yates of Michigan who is pre-seeded 6th. Let’s take a look at Penn State’s pre-seeds.
| Wt. |
|
Nat. Rank* |
Pre-Seed |
| 125 |
Brad Pataky |
MS |
4 |
| 133 |
Andrew Long |
MS |
1 |
| 141 |
Andrew Alton |
2 |
5 |
| 149 |
Frank Molinaro |
4 |
1 |
| 157 |
David Taylor |
1 |
1 |
| 165 |
James Vollrath |
NR |
NS |
| 174 |
Ed Ruth |
2 |
1 |
| 184 |
Quentin Wright |
11 |
8 |
| 197 |
Nick Ruggear |
NR |
NS |
| 285 |
Cameron Wade |
4 |
1 |
*I used the RPI ranking for their National Rank, some people use intermat or the coaches poll. RPI and the coaches are used in formulas for deciding at-large qualifiers for the Nationals after all the conference championships have concluded so they actually mean something. Pataky and Long did not meet the minimum number of matches to qualify for a RPI ranking.
Rankings
125 lbs.
1. Matt McDonough, IOWA
2. Brandon Precin, NU
3. Zach Sanders, MINN
4. Brad Pataky, PSU
5. Sean Boyle, MICH
6. Justin Brooks, IND
7. Camden Eppert, PUR
8. Tom Kelliher, WIS
133 lbs.
1. Andrew Long, PSU
2. Tyler Graff, WIS
3. Tony Ramos, IOWA
4. B.J. Futrell, ILL
5. Levi Mele, NU
6. David Thorn, MINN
7. Zac Stevens, MICH
8. Ian Paddock, OSU
141 lbs.
1. Kellen Russell, MICH
2. Montell Marion, IOWA
3. Mike Thorn, MINN
4. Jimmy Kennedy, ILL
5. Andrew Alton, PSU
6. Kaleb Friedly, NU
7. Jake Fleckenstein, PUR
8. Shane McQuade, WIS
149 lbs.
1. Frank Molinaro, PSU
2. Andrew Nadhir, NU
3. Kurt Kinser, IND
4. Eric Terrazas, ILL
5. Cole Schmitt, WIS
6. Eric Grajales, MICH
7. Dan Osterman, MSU
8. Danny Zilverberg, MINN
157 lbs.
1. David Taylor, PSU
2. Derek St. John, IOWA
3. Jason Welch, NU
4. Colton Salazar, PUR
5. Paul Young, IND
6. Brandon Zeerip, MICH
7. Sean McMurray, MSU
8. Matt Mincey, MINN
165 lbs.
1. Andrew Howe, WIS
2. Colt Sponseller, OSU
3. Cody Yohn, MINN
4. Aaron Janssen, IOWA
5. Conrad Polz, ILL
6. Dan Yates, MICH
7. Ryan LeBlanc, IND
8. Kevin Bialka, NU
174 lbs.
1. Ed Ruth, PSU
2. Nick Heflin, OSU
3. Scott Glasser, MINN
4. Luke Manuel, PUR
5. Ethen Lofthouse, IOWA
6. Ben Jordan, WIS
7. Justin Zeerip, MICH
8. Curran Jacobs, MSU
184 lbs.
1. Travis Rutt, WIS
2. Kevin Steinhaus, MINN
3. Grant Gambrall, IOWA
4. Ian Hinton, MSU
5. Tony Dallago, ILL
6. A.J. Kissel, PUR
7. Cody Magrum, OSU
8. Quentin Wright, PSU
197 lbs.
1. Trevor Brandvold, WIS
2. Luke Lofthouse, IOWA
3. Logan Brown, PUR
4. Matt Powless, IND
5. Sonny Yohn, MINN
6. Anthony Biondo, MICH
7. Joe Barczak, ILL
8. Peter Capone, OSU
285 lbs.
1. Cameron Wade, PSU
2. Ricky Alcala, IND
3. Blake Rasing, IOWA
4. Tony Nelson, MINN
5. Ben Apland, MICH
6. Eric Bugenhagen, WIS
7. Joe Rizqallah, MSU
8. Ben Kuhar, NU
Thoughts
David Taylor and Ed Ruth are locks at 157 and 174 respectively. Ruth did not wrestle 2nd seeded Nick Heflin of OSU so there is a small amount of uncertainty but Ed is on the top of his game right now. Taylor, on the other hand, is an absolute lock I would be shocked if he doesn’t win and win big. Not only has no one beaten him in the Big Ten but no one has kept it less than a major. Oh by the way he has a fall and 8 Tech falls in Big Ten play. The only guy all year that kept him from scoring bonus points is Jesse Dong of Virginia Tech way back in the Nittany Lion Open finals and it was still a 9-3 beat down. Put that one in the books. I think they send at the very lease 7 to nationals and most likely 8, any more than that and I’m sure they win the Big Ten’s.
This is Pataky’s last chance and he’s still wrestling on a gimpy knee. It won’t be easy, McDonough is the returning National Champ and Precin is the only guy to beat him all season. Regardless, Pataky has wrestled with a lot of heart over his career and I expect him to place in the top 5 and make the Nationals.
Long’s only loss came to 3rd seeded Tony Ramos of Iowa (of course) but he bounced back and dominated Tyler Graff of Wisconsin 12-5 in the season ending dual. I expect Long to make it to the finals at least and he has a good shot at winning.
Andrew Alton is in a stacked weight in the Big Ten, it’s not so much complete from top to bottom but the top five wrestlers are very good. Alton has had a tough time, losing to top seeded Kellen Russell three times by a combined 4 points. In fact in his 6 losses he’s lost by only 11 total points. The good news is he’s seen the top competition and in some cases more than once. Andrew is a lock to finish 6th or better and make the Nationals but how high he finishes is anybody’s guess.
Frank Molinaro had a disappointing 8th place finish in the Big Ten’s last year before finishing strong in the Nationals and taking home All-American honors. He hasn’t wrestled 2nd seeded Andrew Nadhir of NU but he’s beaten Kurt Kinser and Eric Terrazas (3 and 4 seed) by 5 points or more. Anything less than a finals appearance will be a disappointment and he most likely is a solid favorite to win.
That brings us to the enigma that is Quentin Wright. He finished the season horribly, losing his last three, each worse than the previous loss. It’s a far cry from his 3-1 2nd place freshman campaign two years ago. Having said all that, I never doubt Quentin, he’s been listening to all the negatives said about him and if there’s one thing we all know about Wright is he has a huge heart and I expect him to wrestle well. The Open Mat preview says it best:
Although Wright has not wrestled well, he may be the most dangerous eight seed in the tournament.
Then there’s the bulldozers. This season Heavyweight is probably the toughest weight to predict and Wade is easily the shakiest 1 seed. All these guys are pretty close. Wade’s only loss came to Joe Rizqallah of MSU the 7th seed but he beat 2nd seed Ricky Alcala handedly (6-0). Anything could happen at 285, I’m not even going to hazard a guess but to say that I’m confident Wade will finish in the top 6 and make it to nationals.
Overall
Penn State is coming into this season’s tournament completely different than last season. Although Iowa is the defending champs, Penn State has a lot of buzz surrounding them and no one will take them lightly. If they finish at their pre-seeds they will win the championship but that’s a big ‘if’, winning 5 of the 10 weight classes is a tall order. I’m not going to predict that they will win it all but I do think it comes down to Iowa and Penn State.
By Galen 02.15.11 at 9:45 am Penn State beat #20 Illinois 23-13 Friday night and then battled back to salvage a tie (18-18) against #5 Minnesota on Sunday. The Minnesota dual saw the return of Brad Pataky as the 125 pounder saw his first action in weeks. Results and thoughts after the break.
Results
| Weight |
Winner |
|
Loser |
|
Bout Score |
Team Score |
| 285 |
Cameron Wade |
PSU |
Pat Walker |
ILL |
5-0 |
3-0 |
| 125 |
Nathan Morgan |
PSU |
Logan Arlis |
ILL |
6-5 |
6-0 |
| 133 |
Andrew Long |
PSU |
B.J. Futrell |
ILL |
9-6 |
9-0 |
| 141 |
Jimmy Kennedy |
ILL |
Andrew Alton |
PSU |
5-3 |
9-3 |
| 149 |
Frank Molinaro |
PSU |
Eric Terrazas |
ILL |
5-0 |
12-3 |
| 157 |
David Taylor |
PSU |
Jackson Morse |
ILL |
26-10 (TF; 6:21) |
17-3 |
| 165 |
Conrad Polz |
ILL |
Nick Fischer |
PSU |
10-5 |
17-6 |
| 174 |
Ed Ruth |
PSU |
Ben Friedl |
ILL |
WBF (4:56) |
23-6 |
| 184 |
Tony Dellago |
ILL |
Quentin Wright |
PSU |
8-7 |
23-9 |
| 197 |
Joe Barczak |
ILL |
Nick Ruggear |
PSU |
15-6 |
23-13 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Weight |
Winner |
|
Loser |
|
Bout Score |
Team Score |
| 125 |
Zach Sanders |
MN |
Brad Pataky |
PSU |
10-8 |
0-3 |
| 133 |
Andrew Long |
PSU |
David Thorn |
MN |
14-4 |
4-3 |
| 141 |
Mike Thorn |
MN |
Andrew Alton |
PSU |
1-4 |
4-6 |
| 149 |
Frank Molinaro |
PSU |
Danny Zilverberg |
MN |
6-5 |
7-6 |
| 157 |
David Taylor |
PSU |
Matt Mincey |
MN |
16-1 (TF; 6:15) |
12-6 |
| 165 |
Cody Yohn |
MN |
Jake Kemerer |
PSU |
8-0 |
12-10 |
| 174 |
Ed Ruth |
PSU |
Scott Glasser |
MN |
12-5 |
15-10 |
| 184 |
Kevin Steinhaus |
MN |
Quentin Wright |
PSU |
10-1 |
15-14 |
| 197 |
Sonny Yohn |
PSU |
Nick Ruggear |
MN |
10-2 |
15-18 |
| 285 |
Cameron Wade |
MN |
Tony Nelson |
PSU |
2-0 |
18-18 |
Thoughts
The first thing that jumps out at you is the two losses by Quentin Wright. Dellago was unranked and Steinhaus was ranked lower the Quentin and in a bout that ends in a tie every match counts and Wright got majored. Of course the message boards are all aflutter over this as one would expect from their ilk. I have no answers and cannot find anything on the intertubes that points to any problems. Wright no longer gets his shoulder taped up so the injury must be completely healed. Is it a mental problem? Is he cutting too much weight? One thing is for sure, he doesn’t have the snap or the energy he wrestled with as a true freshman. Quentin is a very valuable member of the team and an important cog if they want a chance at winning a national championship. Whatever the problem is it needs to be worked out fast because there is only one dual left.
It was a tough weekend for Andrew Alton who lost to two top-five wrestlers by a combined 5 points. Andrew is so close to moving up to that top tier but he’s just not there yet. For a true freshman he’s had an amazing season, hopefully he’ll take the next step come tournament time. I know a boxer from my hometown that won a gold glove boxing like Andrew wrestles. He would come out and throw as many fast and furious combinations at his opponents hoping to either knock them out quickly or have them throw in the towel. Andrew kind of has a similar wrestling style, he comes out in the first minute and throws everything at his opponent hoping to get the pin. The good wrestlers have stayed away from that and beat him later in the match, Thorn got the winning takedown with 18 seconds in the third. I’m not being critical of his style, it’s just an observation. If it works, who am I to argue.
Of course the return of Pataky was a welcomed sight, I had no idea he was ready to go. His leg is heavily bandaged which limits some of his mobility but he wrestled well. Considering he returned to take on 5th ranked Zach Sanders of Minnesota and lost by only two points, it seems he’s going to be ok. I’m sure he’s not please with the result but he didn’t run out of gas in the 3rd and he was a takedown away from tying it. It didn’t help that he got a penalty point on a third caution on the restart late in the 3rd. If that had not happened he may have been able to ride Sanders out and go to overtime.
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| DT is so awesome it does seem like he has four feet |
Ed Ruth, Andrew Long, and David Taylor all had good weekends and like I’ve said before, look like they are tournament ready. Ruth destroyed 12th ranked Scott Glasser of Minnesota 12-5 and pinned Ben Friedl of Illinois. DT did what DT does, totally dominate overwhelmed opponents getting two more tech falls this weekend. Taylor is going to buzz saw through the Big Ten’s.
Next Up
It doesn’t get any easier for Penn State as they take on #12 Wisconsin, Friday, Feb. 18 at 7 p.m. It will be the last dual of the season and senior night.
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By Galen 02.11.11 at 11:15 am
Penn State host No. 20 Illinois tonight at 7 p.m. in Rec Hall and then travels to Minneapolis to take on No. 5 Minnesota Sunday at 3 p.m. The Lions will then host No. 12 Wisconsin on Friday, Feb. 18, at 7 p.m. in Rec Hall which will be the final dual of the season and senior night. But before that let’s take a look at the potential match-ups after the jump.
Matchups
| Weight |
Penn State |
vs. |
Illinois (record) |
| 125 |
Nathan Morgan |
|
Logan Arliss (9-15) |
| 133 |
#5 Andrew Long |
|
#7 B.J. Futrell (21-4 ) |
| 141 |
#5 Andrew Alton |
|
#4 Jimmy Kennedy (11-1) |
| 149 |
#5 Frank Molinaro |
|
Eric Terrazas (19-6) |
| 157 |
#3 David Taylor |
|
Jackson Morse (19-8) |
| 165 |
Jake Kemerer OR Nick Fischer |
|
Conrad Polz (9-8) |
| 174 |
#2 Ed Ruth |
|
Ben Friedl (9-5)OR Dan Stelter(3-7) |
| 184 |
#6 Quentin Wright |
|
Tony Dallago(13-12) |
| 197 |
Nick Ruggear |
|
Joe Barczak (11-5) |
| 285 |
#6 Cameron Wade |
|
Pat Walker (9-10) |
| Weight |
Penn State |
vs. |
Minnesota (record) |
| 125 |
Nathan Morgan |
|
#5 Zach Sanders (23-2) |
| 133 |
#5 Andrew Long |
|
David Thorn (11-7) |
| 141 |
#5 Andrew Alton |
|
#2 Mike Thorn (31-1) |
| 149 |
#5 Frank Molinaro |
|
Danny Zilverberg (15-9) |
| 157 |
#3 David Taylor |
|
Matt Mincey (10-5) |
| 165 |
Jake Kemerer OR Nick Fischer |
|
#11 Cody Yohn (22-9) |
| 174 |
#2 Ed Ruth |
|
#12 Scott Glasser (25-7) |
| 184 |
#6 Quentin Wright |
|
#9 Kevin Steinhaus (25-8) |
| 197 |
Nick Ruggear |
|
Joe Nord (8-10) |
| 285 |
#6 Cameron Wade |
|
#8 Tony Nelson (25-3) |
The first thing that jumps out at you is the tough weekend Andrew Alton has taking on two wrestlers ranked ahead of him and in the top 5. Both losses for Alton’s opponents came at the hands of #1 Kellen Russell of Michigan who you may remember beat Alton three times by a combined 4 points. Russell pinned Kennedy and beat Thorn 6-2. Alton ran out of gas against Mason in the Iowa dual it will be interesting to see if his stamina is better going up against two top 5 wrestlers back to back in two day’s time.
If ever there was a weekend that Penn State needs bonus points from David Taylor it’s this weekend especially against Minnesota. Both wrestlers have winning records but both are unranked and neither are in DT’s ballpark. Having said that I don’t expect any less from Taylor. While were speaking of bonus points ditto can be said for Frank Molinaro who is facing two unranked wrestlers as well.
Lineup
I made some assumptions as far as Penn State’s lineup is concerned. The official site lists Morgan or Pataky at 125 and Ruggear or Ortega at 197. I’m assuming Pataky is still nursing his knee injury and I’ve seen nothing on the Interwebs to make me think different. I’m about 70% sure Ruggear will wrestle simply because he’s more aggressive than Ortega and the team will need their best chance at a win at 197. Ortega is simply a defensive wrestler and gives you very little chance of victory, at least Ruggear will take his shots. Nord of Illinois doesn’t even have a .500 record so a victory there will go a long way for Penn State. I did include the dreaded “OR” for Kemerer and Fischer at 165 because I have no idea where the coaches are going as those two wrestlers appear to be starter 1A and 1B
Predictions
I think Penn State will beat Illinois handily. Long seems to be back on track after the Iowa match and this will be a chance for him to show he’s a top 5 wrestler facing the 7th ranked grappler at 133. The rest of the Penn State lineup is a nightmare for the Fighting [inoffensive fluffy mascots]. Molinaro, Taylor, Ruth, Wright, and Wade should all get bonus points with 2 or 3 pins a possibility. Heck, whoever wrestles at 165 has a good chance at victory.
The Minnesota match is a different beast altogether. The Gophers have beat Penn State 9 straight times! The last Penn State victory was in 1998 in the Bryce Jordan Center (which I was there for… just sayin’). 125, 165, and 197 are crucial to a Penn State win. Morgan and whoever wrestles for Penn State at 165 will need to only give up decisions and stay away from bonus points. That might mean that Kemerer is the guy at 165 because he is more of a defensive wrestler and Fisher is really a 157 pounder wrestling 165. Kemerer is the bigger of the two. At 197, Minnesota’s Joe Nord is (8-10) so Ruggear will have a very good opportunity to get 3 points for Penn State at a weak weight, he has to come through. Long, Molinaro and Taylor are all getting unranked wrestlers and need to come up with bonus points. Ed Ruth get’s 12th ranked Scott Glasser but should have no problem with him. Quentin Wright gets 12th ranked Kevin Steinhaus and should win but I’m not as optimistic as the Ruth match.
Final Score
-Penn State 29 Illinois 6
-Penn State 21 Minnesota 15
On Air
Hat tip to LB-U reader wvlion who tells us that the Illinois match can be viewed live on internet webcast through the Big Ten Network but it will cost you $7.95/month, but it’s well worth it if you ask me.
The Minnesota dual will air on the Big Ten Network on a same day tape delay at 9:30 p.m. and again on 2/15 at 7 p.m.
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