What a way to kick-off the season with facing off against two Top 10 teams at National Duals in Tulsa. Ohio State ended up winning the tournament and was the first team Wyoming faced; the boys wrestled well in some matches but in other matches they wrestled tight. Sefton Douglass gave McCrone everything he could handle at 125 and thought he was going to win that match. Eddie Neitenbach was robbed of a SV opportunity (I will discuss it a little later).
Virginia Tech was the next dual. Wyoming had an opportunity to win this dual but needed a MD, or greater victory from Novak or Caroll to do it. They would fall short, but I think it highlights how close this team is to breaking through while still early in the season. The VT match count went 6-4.
What a great inaugural event overall. Wyoming earned a $20k paycheck for attending.
Wrestler of the tournament
Eddie Neitenbach (184). Against Dylan Fishback (OSU) he got down early 7-1 but just kept grinding out and was down 10-7 late with a takedown called to tie up the match. OSU would challenge and it was overturned. I find it hard with two refs on the mat that it was overturned by independent review. Independent review was lackluster in another match for Wyoming and has been called out in other duals during this tournament. I can only imagine Bubbles (Trailer Park Boys) was looking at a tablet trying to make the call.
Who to watch
Sefton Douglass (125). Reminds me of Cole Verner or maybe it is just how the folks of Western Wyoming wrestle. It is constant action, and you never know if he will get pinned, get the pin, or get the takedown after two minutes of scrambling. He is going to cause havoc this year; it kind of looks like two fish out of water knife fighting on ice.
My favorite
I finally got my four-year-old to watch some wrestling with me. My wife is a VT grad so he was rooting for the Pokes in that dual, he too likes to live dangerously. He experienced a wave of emotions 149-165 of that VT dual. Gabe Willochel did his famous rolling around but found offense on his way to victory. Jared Hill won in SV against a kid throwing haymakers, now I did yell, and my son started crying because I scared him, but he got excited to see Sloan Swan. A little backstory; his favorite dog at home is named Sloan so Sloan Swan is now his favorite wrestler, but Sloan would come up short and my son would start crying again. Not to worry he went outside and played in the leaves and was ok after that.
Upcoming
The boys head to Riverside, CA Saturday (7pm MT start time) to face off against CBU. I assume we see the lineup in flux again and 133 is a position I am interested in seeing who finally takes over that spot.
NWCA Rankings
I find it interesting that Wyoming lost the #2 and #8 ranked team this weekend but fell out of the standings. Meanwhile teams ahead of them have loses to lower ranked teams and have racked up wins against…Carl Albert State, Augustana, and Central Oklahoma. I hope the NWCA rankings are not turning into the College Football Playoff (CFP) favoritism rankings.
Virginia Tech was the next dual. Wyoming had an opportunity to win this dual but needed a MD, or greater victory from Novak or Caroll to do it. They would fall short, but I think it highlights how close this team is to breaking through while still early in the season. The VT match count went 6-4.
What a great inaugural event overall. Wyoming earned a $20k paycheck for attending.
Wrestler of the tournament
Eddie Neitenbach (184). Against Dylan Fishback (OSU) he got down early 7-1 but just kept grinding out and was down 10-7 late with a takedown called to tie up the match. OSU would challenge and it was overturned. I find it hard with two refs on the mat that it was overturned by independent review. Independent review was lackluster in another match for Wyoming and has been called out in other duals during this tournament. I can only imagine Bubbles (Trailer Park Boys) was looking at a tablet trying to make the call.
Who to watch
Sefton Douglass (125). Reminds me of Cole Verner or maybe it is just how the folks of Western Wyoming wrestle. It is constant action, and you never know if he will get pinned, get the pin, or get the takedown after two minutes of scrambling. He is going to cause havoc this year; it kind of looks like two fish out of water knife fighting on ice.
My favorite
I finally got my four-year-old to watch some wrestling with me. My wife is a VT grad so he was rooting for the Pokes in that dual, he too likes to live dangerously. He experienced a wave of emotions 149-165 of that VT dual. Gabe Willochel did his famous rolling around but found offense on his way to victory. Jared Hill won in SV against a kid throwing haymakers, now I did yell, and my son started crying because I scared him, but he got excited to see Sloan Swan. A little backstory; his favorite dog at home is named Sloan so Sloan Swan is now his favorite wrestler, but Sloan would come up short and my son would start crying again. Not to worry he went outside and played in the leaves and was ok after that.
Upcoming
The boys head to Riverside, CA Saturday (7pm MT start time) to face off against CBU. I assume we see the lineup in flux again and 133 is a position I am interested in seeing who finally takes over that spot.
NWCA Rankings
I find it interesting that Wyoming lost the #2 and #8 ranked team this weekend but fell out of the standings. Meanwhile teams ahead of them have loses to lower ranked teams and have racked up wins against…Carl Albert State, Augustana, and Central Oklahoma. I hope the NWCA rankings are not turning into the College Football Playoff (CFP) favoritism rankings.
