Wrestling 2023 NCAA Tournament Live Thread

[CSauertiegPSU]

I won’t laugh at the mom because I think that’s lame. But I also think the defending of her is lame as well. Crying is one thing and a reasonable response. Breaking your glasses like a child shows a middle aged mother with the emotional maturity of a child. Therapy would do her well to learn how to process emotions in a healthy manner.

 

[District four]

I agree

I hope ramos uses that same move that was the most creative bullshit I ever saw being used on someone that good. I literally could not believe what I was actually seeing. My wife asked me why I was so amped up and I'm like Spencer Lee just got pinned by some move I've never seen before lmfao. What a match I will never forget that match as long as I live. Holy shit. I keep watching it actually lol

 

[RealMicah]

 

[mjmirv]

I don’t feel bad for Mrs Lee at all. It’s easy to be graceful in victory. Defeat/adversity reveals real character. Watch Robb after he lost. Very graceful to Levi.

 

[pawrestlersintn]

Uhhhh. Spencer's Mom just made SportsCenter.

 

[Chickenman Testa]

Uhhhh. Spencer's Mom just made SportsCenter.

Where was Larry Lee’s close up?? Damn it! You had 1 job

 

[Psalm 1 guy]

Does anyone have footage of Roman’s TD to go up 4-2. Stupid ESPN was following Vito walking

I know! As they cut away to the interview I thought RBY was getting taken down and was in grave danger of losing. When they cut back to the match Roman had just secured the takedown! My wife was a TV producer and that was a rookie mistake.

 

[tikk10]

I'm of two minds with respect to Spencer's mom. On the one hand destroying nearby objects when you lose is never a great look. I've worked alongside people who did things like that when things didn't go just so, and it's a bad place to be. I've made it a point to steer very clear of those people in my life.

On the other hand, it's an entirely human reaction to a huge disappointment and she suddenly became a meme. The social media reaction will outweigh any deserved criticism. So I feel bad for her, not for the moment she had, but for adverse and outsized publicity the moment has already generated. I hope she'll be able to laugh at it some day, but doubt that day is tomorrow.

 

[Psugo823]

I agree

I disagree. Glory will win a close match.

 

[SheldonJoe2215]

I agree

Pat with either a major or a pin

 

[bwfight]

One trick pony , Ramos wouldn’t beat Gilman, Spence don’t like folkstyle anyways or tough wrestling

Two-trick pony. Arm bar and tilt. At least he’s still a farm animal. But now, I guess Ramos is the GOAT 😉

 

[GogglesPaizano]

For sure Spencer was one of the most dominant wrestlers we have ever seen.

What went wrong? Without a doubt 2 repared ACLs and the resulting average gas tank or worse didn't help. I think his own dominance did him in, in the end. As great as he was he really was, he did not possess a 'diverse' skill set. He is strong in neutral, and other worldly on top, but IMO his defense has too many holes, his bottom game is mediocre enough to make him vulnerable.

Ok I'll say it!!!!!

One of Cael's montras is we strive to get better every day. To me Spencer looks like a guy who dedicated too much time enduring he was the strongest physical specimen and too little time on all of his weaknesses and creating new strengths and a diversity of attacks and offensive moves.

In the end Spencer distilled down to crazy arm and hand strength, a tilt, an arm bar, and a few strong single leg takedowns. He possessed all those same skills in highschool. I don't see this version of Spencer beating Gillman. Now way.

Had Spencer gone to Penn State, his tool chest would have been overflowing with new skills and weaknesses eliminated. I believe at PSU and that red shirt year, even with 2 resisted ACLs, he is a 4xer, probably makes a run at Nolf's pin record.

Despite an incredible 3xer, in a very small sense he is just one more hammer that T&T failed to develop to his full potential. I'll also stick by the belief that Marinelli, Kemerer and Warner all win at least 1 championship each in blue and white.

So Spencer is not a 4xer, he is still one of the best ever.

 

[bwfight]

View embedded media

I’m still curios where Mendez and Bouzakis end up next year weight wise.

Bouzakis will end up at 133. However, he will also lose his tan to the portal. 👍

 

[bwfight]

I agree

Nope. I think he wins handily. Then, of course he will be the GOAT 😎

 

[Psugo823]

Ramos will forever be the Henry Green of college wrestling 😆

 

[Ian]

Bouzakis will end up at 133. However, he will also lose his tan to the portal. 👍

Bouzakis in blue and white?

 

[donboy6499]

I won’t laugh at the mom because I think that’s lame. But I also think the defending of her is lame as well. Crying is one thing and a reasonable response. Breaking your glasses like a child shows a middle aged mother with the emotional maturity of a child. Therapy would do her well to learn how to process emotions in a healthy manner.

Clay going to make me scroll the whole thread to see people feel the need to defend picking on the mom.

 

[bourbon n blues]

For sure Spencer was one of the most dominant wrestlers we have ever seen.

What went wrong? Without a doubt 2 repared ACLs and the resulting average gas tank or worse didn't help. I think his own dominance did him in, in the end. As great as he was he really was, he did not possess a 'diverse' skill set. He is strong in neutral, and other worldly on top, but IMO his defense has too many holes, his bottom game is mediocre enough to make him vulnerable.

Ok I'll say it!!!!!

One of Cael's montras is we strive to get better every day. To me Spencer looks like a guy who dedicated too much time enduring he was the strongest physical specimen and too little time on all of his weaknesses and creating new strengths and a diversity of attacks and offensive moves.

In the end Spencer distilled down to crazy arm and hand strength, a tilt, an arm bar, and a few strong single leg takedowns. He possessed all those same skills in highschool. I don't see this version of Spencer beating Gillman. Now way.

Had Spencer gone to Penn State, his tool chest would have been overflowing with new skills and weaknesses eliminated. I believe at PSU and that red shirt year, even with 2 resisted ACLs, he is a 4xer, probably makes a run at Nolf's pin record.

Despite an incredible 3xer, in a very small sense he is just one more hammer that T&T failed to develop to his full potential. I'll also stick by the belief that Marinelli, Kemerer and Warner all win at least 1 championship each in blue and white.

So Spencer is not a 4xer, he is still one of the best ever.

Very good assessment. Imo I was saying Lee is just physically better than almost any opponent so he just wins easily , most times.

 

[donboy6499]

That's about as painful as it gets as a fan. Congrats I guess

Probably about as painful as losing a unicorn recruit to your rival from your state.

Least you all were gracious about it tho.

 

[donboy6499]

i think they reviewed the wrong clip.....

They did.

They reviewed the reaction time after the action lock rather than the original which was clear as day. Even the official knew.

 

[mcpat]

Clay going to make me scroll the whole thread to see people feel the need to defend picking on the mom.

I posted a few times in the spirit of leaving this one alone. I generally don't like seeing people's bad moments become viral jokes. I also don't see what good comes from fixating on a wrestler's mom's reaction to her son's upset loss. I think its generally poor taste. And I don't want mom's of recruits to think thats what PSU wrestling fans are about.

 

[Aardvark86]

For sure Spencer was one of the most dominant wrestlers we have ever seen.

What went wrong? Without a doubt 2 repared ACLs and the resulting average gas tank or worse didn't help. I think his own dominance did him in, in the end. As great as he was he really was, he did not possess a 'diverse' skill set. He is strong in neutral, and other worldly on top, but IMO his defense has too many holes, his bottom game is mediocre enough to make him vulnerable.

Ok I'll say it!!!!!

One of Cael's montras is we strive to get better every day. To me Spencer looks like a guy who dedicated too much time enduring he was the strongest physical specimen and too little time on all of his weaknesses and creating new strengths and a diversity of attacks and offensive moves.

In the end Spencer distilled down to crazy arm and hand strength, a tilt, an arm bar, and a few strong single leg takedowns. He possessed all those same skills in highschool. I don't see this version of Spencer beating Gillman. Now way.

Had Spencer gone to Penn State, his tool chest would have been overflowing with new skills and weaknesses eliminated. I believe at PSU and that red shirt year, even with 2 resisted ACLs, he is a 4xer, probably makes a run at Nolf's pin record.

Despite an incredible 3xer, in a very small sense he is just one more hammer that T&T failed to develop to his full potential. I'll also stick by the belief that Marinelli, Kemerer and Warner all win at least 1 championship each in blue and white.

So Spencer is not a 4xer, he is still one of the best ever.

Other than the prospective and what if speculation, which I have no comment on, this post absolutely nails it.

 

[Kale_yeah]

5 for 5 would be absolutely spectacular. With the staff track record it's hard to go against. I'll go 4 for 5.

The big 3 do that they do. See Bo's speech.

I think Levi can match AOC. AOC is damn good but I'll give it to Cael to pick out one thing to exploit and hand it to Levi. We've seen Levi win just about every kind of match you can dream up. Cael gives Levi the tools. Levi executes.

Parris just seems to be on a mission this year. Complete destruction of everyone hes faced. I'd love to be wrong here though.

Haines should about 165 by tonight, Aoc will fight to be around 157 so go chest to chest and pick on the smaller wrestler.

 

[Ski]

Iowa quietly doing well in WBs. Murin, Brands and Warner all win.

After listening to Tom Brands' interview on the Des Moines Register web site, I now know why these guys did so well in the WBs. Of course, it was all because of Spencer Lee. Brands looked like he was choking back tears for half the video and had this to say:

“Sometimes it’s easy to fold up your tent when your leader goes down,” Tom Brands said, “but these guys are principled and awesome. Doesn’t take the sting away though. The sting is always there. There’s just so many things going on.

“You have to look at Real Woods. Got a win. Did it for Spencer. We won six matches in a row on the backside. Did it for Spencer.”

All Spencer, all the time. Some of these Iowa folks are going to be totally lost and bewildered after this season to not be able to talk about Spencer all the time (though they still might). Personally, I think Woods wants to be a National Champion for himself and Murin wanted to finish his career as an All-American once for himself. The sun and the moon does not revolve around Spencer Lee though I am sure Ayala would have wanted to go out and win one for Spencer Lee too if he could have.

 

[mcpat]

For sure Spencer was one of the most dominant wrestlers we have ever seen.

What went wrong? Without a doubt 2 repared ACLs and the resulting average gas tank or worse didn't help. I think his own dominance did him in, in the end. As great as he was he really was, he did not possess a 'diverse' skill set. He is strong in neutral, and other worldly on top, but IMO his defense has too many holes, his bottom game is mediocre enough to make him vulnerable.

Ok I'll say it!!!!!

One of Cael's montras is we strive to get better every day. To me Spencer looks like a guy who dedicated too much time enduring he was the strongest physical specimen and too little time on all of his weaknesses and creating new strengths and a diversity of attacks and offensive moves.

In the end Spencer distilled down to crazy arm and hand strength, a tilt, an arm bar, and a few strong single leg takedowns. He possessed all those same skills in highschool. I don't see this version of Spencer beating Gillman. Now way.

Had Spencer gone to Penn State, his tool chest would have been overflowing with new skills and weaknesses eliminated. I believe at PSU and that red shirt year, even with 2 resisted ACLs, he is a 4xer, probably makes a run at Nolf's pin record.

Despite an incredible 3xer, in a very small sense he is just one more hammer that T&T failed to develop to his full potential. I'll also stick by the belief that Marinelli, Kemerer and Warner all win at least 1 championship each in blue and white.

So Spencer is not a 4xer, he is still one of the best ever.

I didn’t make a special point of watching his matches over the years but I watched many of his matches this year. While incredibly dominant, he also gave up quite a number of back points this season. Was that always the case? If not, what happened this year? Was it just time spent off the mat with injuries that caused his general positioning to decline?

 

[Kale_yeah]

We should be more sympathetic toward Mrs. Lee.

Not only did her son lose, but now the family is getting evicted on Monday.

Well that's what happens when you become Coe-dependent

 

[Cstroke]

It’s looking like that $100,000. Got them one in the finals.

 

[bourbon n blues]

I posted a few times in the spirit of leaving this one alone. I generally don't like seeing people's bad moments become viral jokes. I also don't see what good comes from fixating on a wrestler's mom's reaction to her son's upset loss. I think its generally poor taste. And I don't want mom's of recruits to think thats what PSU wrestling fans are about.

I get this but my wife who does not care about sports or wrestling saw that and noticed it. And commented .
You can point out this is piling on. However , every wrestler wants to win. Every other mom feels her kids pain. Just because he's had so much more success doesn't mean there are different rules for his mom than the rest who of those who support their kids.
Schlubs who barely scratch a starting lineup in high school , to an average college guy. A whole lot of dreams didn't come through this weekend, his aren't any more important than the rest of the field.

 

[Treelion66]

But like an aggressively cartoonish one, like Super Mario

Si!

 

[mcpat]

Every other mom feels her kids pain. Just because he's had so much more success doesn't mean there are different rules for his mom than the rest who of those who support their kids.

To your point, though… 310 wrestlers have taken at least one loss thus far in the tournament. They filmed the reaction of only one of their mothers.

 

[PSUer1989]

I don’t know how everyone can post so much during the moment. I am always to nervous! I managed one celebratory word when Spencer was pinned! For all the talk of how disappointed he was, the shock etc, no one mentioned the Ramos interview. What an amazing kid. I am so happy for him, and Purdue. So many talked like Spencer already had his fourth title. Ramos said he spoke it into reality, believing in himself. What a moment for that young man!

 

[Cowbell Man]

They did.

They reviewed the reaction time after the action lock rather than the original which was clear as day. Even the official knew.

That was bizarre in any event. It’s probably the most binary objective rule in wrestling. Did/didn’t.

I didn’t think it was possible to get that wrong.

 

[ccdiver]

Flashbacks to PIAA finals when Disanto beat Lee in his last HS match… does he even go out there tomorrow morning? I hope he goes out and put his shoes on the center of the mat….

Look

Stay classy Penn State. Parents are proud and live it through their kids. We never like to see our kids not reach their goals.

Staying classy is always a good idea, but I’m sure not going to chide anyone having a laugh at Cathy Lee’s expense. My kids are all grown up. Guarantee you they still take note of how I respond to failure and comport myself in times of adversity. She could have done better by Spencer in that moment. There were nine other semi-finalists whose parents had to deal with disappointment. I haven’t seen any others going viral.

 

[mcpat]

There were nine other semi-finalists whose parents had to deal with disappointment. I haven’t seen any others going viral.

Do you recall the camera going live to the mom of the losing wrestler in any other match?

 

[Cstroke]

Lots of crazy quotes out there sum it up.
was it an old abc Winter Olympics commercial part of it
the agony of defeat.
another one is a wrestler on the “wrestling changed my life podcast” how to pick yourself up like a man after you’ve failed.

 

[86PSUPaul]

Heard she was looking for PSUPaul after she bent up her glasses.

Except she couldn’t see me!

The antics of the Iowa wrestling families is childish. I don’t care if it is heart breaking, my son had many heartbreaking matches, granted not on those stages. I still never destroyed anything or searched out some random fan to berate them.

 

[Cowbell Man]

I didn’t make a special point of watching his matches over the years but I watched many of his matches this year. While incredibly dominant, he also gave up quite a number of back points this season. Was that always the case? If not, what happened this year? Was it just time spent off the mat with injuries that caused his general positioning to decline?

It takes a certain level of arrogance or lack of awareness to offer the “wusses” statement. Some just eat their own press releases. His actions with Ayala foreshadowed if “wusses” didn’t. He has one excuse and it rests with him. C’est la Vie.

Hardware lasts forever. He has three NC’s to hang on his mantle and we will see how he reacts today.

 

[Cstroke]

Do you recall the camera going live to the mom of the losing wrestler in any other match?

I’d say it was on her to catch how happy they were when he won, I’m sure the broadcasters didn’t predict this either.

 

[GogglesPaizano]

Well that's what happens when you become Coe-dependent

I have to admit, that was a very good one.

 

[13th Grade]

I’ve got no problem with the Hawk fans that frequent this board.
I’ve got no problem with Spencer Lee that would make me root against him as a person.
But if I had to watch another montage of how his childhood Care Bear collection made him the wrestler he is today (was yesterday?), I’d need to go find Tom Brands’ bent shoe and puke in it. So…Matt Ramos is one of my favorites today. I’m so grateful that I got to watch that happen, even if on my tv from the couch…well… I actually left my couch. 🤷‍♂️