2016 NCAA tournament in MSG

[JDale83]

Penn State has got to be considered one of the favorites for the team title at MSG next year. One partially uninformed person's projected lineup for next year:

125 - Megatron - potential champ
133 - Gulibon - potential champ
141 - Retherford - potential champ
149 - Beitz - potential AA
157 - Nolf - potential AA
165 - Hammond - NCAA qualifier
174 - Nickal - potential AA
184 - McCutcheon - potential AA
197 - Mac - potential champ
285 - Nevills - NCAA qualifier

Four potential champs (all with proven top three talent). Four additional place winners. Nevills has the talent but a HWT in the Big Ten is a meat grinder. Get your tickets know, it should be an exciting time in the Garden next Spring.

 

[Tom McAndrew]

lineup hard to predict, but could be an excellent one ...


the bottom part of the lineup is a mystery right now.

Nico could qualify for an Olympic RS. If he does, he might RS again. Then again, he might not qualify, or he might not want to sit out for 2 years.

Conaway's last year of eligibility will be next year. What Nico does will impact whether JC, who finished 8th this year, has much of a role in next year's lineup.

Another variable is Retherford. Lots of talk that he will not be able to make 141 next year. Is it rumors, legit, or somewhere in between? Hard to say. He did wrestle a FS match at 143 in January (I think), so it's not as though he's ballooned way beyond 141 -- just not sure if he can cut to that for an entire season. If he can't make 141, there are a number of options. Can Beitz get down to 141? Seems doubtful, but I'm sure he'd rather be starting than just practicing in the room. Might Jimmy move up to 141 and have JC (or Nico) go at 133? Another possibility, though it's unclear if that would help the team more than keeping Jimmy at 133.

Hammond may be at 165. If Shakur can make that weight, he'll give him a lot of competition. Dinmore will also be joining the team, and he could go anywhere from 149 to 165 (49 or 57 seem more likely). He grayshirted this year, so he's unlikely to be chomping to redshirt. Vincenzo Joseph is an incoming freshman that has amazing talent. He's likely to start at 149. I don't think he can beat Zain at that weight, but if Zain is at 141, he's likely to give Beitz a real run for the spot.

174 thru 285 looks to be correct, assuming there are no injuries, growth spurts, etc.

PSU, Ohio State, Virginia Tech, and Oklahoma St. seem to be poised to be the leading contenders next year. Iowa should not be discounted, either.

Lots to discuss between now and November. Those of you that are curious, or getting into wrestling, or want to expand your knowledge of wrestling, I encourage you to venture over to the Wrestling Room board. We talk PSU wrestling there pretty much every day of the year.

Tom