Cael Sanderson Inducted into Utah Sports Hall of Fame

[T J]

From the article...

http://www.gopsusports.com/sports/m-wrestl/spec-rel/091715aab.html

Cael Sanderson Inducted into Utah Sports Hall of Fame

Sept. 17, 2015

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- Penn State Nittany Lion head wrestling coach Cael Sanderson is being inducted into the Utah Sports Hall of Fame as a part of the esteemed body’s Class of 2015. Sanderson will be honored at the 2015 Utah Sports Hall of Fame Induction Banquet tonight, Sept. 17, in Salt Lake City, Utah.

In a move that transformed college wrestling’s landscape, Sanderson moved east prior to the 2009-10 season to become the head wrestling coach at Penn State. Since that time, the veteran head coach has established Penn State’s place among the nation’s elite programs, having won four straight NCAA and Big Ten titles from 2010-2014.

has a 126-24-2 dual meet record, including an 82-14-2 mark at Penn State. Sanderson has been named NWCA National Coach of the Year twice and Big Ten Coach of the year four times.

During his first six years at Penn State, Sanderson has had 21 athletes earn first team national NWCA All-Academic laurels and 51 honored as Academic All-Big Ten. His team’s overall grade point average (GPA) has been above 3.0 in each of his six seasons, including last year’s 3.19 mark.
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[mn78psu83]

From the article...

http://www.gopsusports.com/sports/m-wrestl/spec-rel/091715aab.html

Cael Sanderson Inducted into Utah Sports Hall of Fame

Sept. 17, 2015

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- Penn State Nittany Lion head wrestling coach Cael Sanderson is being inducted into the Utah Sports Hall of Fame as a part of the esteemed body’s Class of 2015. Sanderson will be honored at the 2015 Utah Sports Hall of Fame Induction Banquet tonight, Sept. 17, in Salt Lake City, Utah.

In a move that transformed college wrestling’s landscape, Sanderson moved east prior to the 2009-10 season to become the head wrestling coach at Penn State. Since that time, the veteran head coach has established Penn State’s place among the nation’s elite programs, having won four straight NCAA and Big Ten titles from 2010-2014.

has a 126-24-2 dual meet record, including an 82-14-2 mark at Penn State. Sanderson has been named NWCA National Coach of the Year twice and Big Ten Coach of the year four times.

During his first six years at Penn State, Sanderson has had 21 athletes earn first team national NWCA All-Academic laurels and 51 honored as Academic All-Big Ten. His team’s overall grade point average (GPA) has been above 3.0 in each of his six seasons, including last year’s 3.19 mark.
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Pretty convincing résumé for any state HOF, eh?

 

[T J]

Pretty convincing résumé for any state HOF, eh?

Indeed mn78psu83.

Also see the link for Cael's stunning wrestling career records.

IIRC, Sports Illistrated did a special on the greatest college sports achievements of all time, in any sport.

Carl Sanderson's undefeated 159-0 record at Iowa State was listed at #2 on the all-time list in any sport. .

Plus by all accounts, Coach Sanderson is a really decent guy, with high values. He is perpetuating Penn State's "Success With Honor" vision in his program, with lots of team member successes, on and off the mat.

This year's team looks to be loaded and reloaded with talent. Five highly recruited wrestlers will be wrestling, after a red shirt year. Adding them to the lineup with other studs like McIntosh and PSU is a pre-season contender for another title run.

Should be a fun season for Penn State wrestling fans.

 

[BobPSU92]

I. AM. OUTRAGED.


Seriously, this guy dominates many states.

 

[psute]

Copied this to my home board, very positive reactions, thanks!

 

[T J]

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From BWI Tim's excellent preview of coming attractions on Cael's wrestling team for this fall. Of course third place finisher McIntosh will be an early favorite to compete for the top spot in his senior season. Here are some other names and faces that PSU Wrestling fans will want to get to know...

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From Tim's excellent article

https://bwi.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1750374

Part One of Two...

Any overhaul it undertakes is expected to increase the firepower at next year's NCAA tournament in New York's Madison Square Garden. It's never too early to look ahead, is it?

Well, it's not only McIntosh who had split emotions about the end of this season and the beginning of the next. A few minutes after Brown secured his national championship, head coach Cael Sanderson offered a sneak peek, too. One season had wrapped up only minutes ago, but you could almost hear the eagerness in his voice to get the next one started.

"The attitude we have in the room right now is important," he said. "Nico and Zain, are guys who are so tough and so consistent. They're wrestling every second of every match just with that example they have. Nolf is the same way. So many young kids who are right there: Shakur and Anthony Cassar. We're excited about the future. I think a lot of teams are excited about the future. That's why this tournament is just going to keep getting better."

Redshirts no more, here's who is set to make an impact at Penn State in 2015-16:


Nico MegaludisAll-American

- A three-time All-American and two-time finalist at 125, Megaludis opted for a redshirt during his fourth season in order to take a step back, dial down the pace for a year, albeit slightly, and focus on technique while also competing in international freestyle events.

But, as you'd expect from the former three-time state champ from Murrysville, Pa., who has built a reputation of being one of PSU's hardest workers over the past three season, he's still been grinding in the Lorenzo Wrestling Complex almost every day, setting an example for his teammates and eagerly awaiting the opportunity to close out his career on top of the podium.

"I've been in competing mode most of (my career)," he said at the beginning of the year. "I'm going, going, going, going. You watch me in a match and I'm 600 miles per hour. Now it's time to get my technique better. Instead of staying after practice and doing 10 minutes of conditioning, now I'll spend 10 minutes on technique."


Zain RetherfordAll-American

- A fifth-place finisher as a true freshman at 141, Retherford redshirted in year two. And like Megaludis, Retherford has led by example in the practice room during the year off.

"If I'm talking to anyone on our team and I'm asking who is the great example of commitment and diet and training and just lifestyle, (Megaludis and Retherford) are the two names that would come up," Sanderson said earlier this season.

After overcoming a minor injury early on, Retherford returned to compete in the Dave Schultz Memorial, an international freestyle tournament, and wrestled 65 kg/143.3 pounds in early February. While there has been no official word from the team if Retherford will be moving weight classes as a sophomore, there's no doubt he's gained significant muscle since his freshman campaign. A jump up for Retherford, a two-time state champ from Benton, Pa., might simply be what works best when organizing the next lineup.


Jason Nolf

- Penn State's incoming freshman class has garnered a lot of public praise from Sanderson since arriving on campus last June, but it's Nolf who has received the highest and the most.

Following the Nittany Lion Open, for instance, Sanderson said Nolf "is wrestling as hard as anybody in the country right now."

A 157-pounder who could grow into 165, Nolf compiled a 15-1 record as an unattached freshman, with his only loss coming in the Southern Scuffle final to Nebraska's James Green, 7-4, who finished third at NCAAs. And he was fuming angry after that loss.

A three-time state champ from Kittanning, Pa., Nolf fits the prototypical mold of the wrestlers Sanderson wants to fill his roster.

"I think (Nolf) was definitely a little bit under the radar coming out before his senior year when we were recruiting him, but we had a chance to see him in practice and just see the kind of mentality he has and confidence he has and those things are such a big deal," Sanderson said. "I'm very pleased with him. I won't say I'm super surprised. We're definitely very pleased with the way he's wrestling. He loves wrestling. He expects to win. It doesn't matter who he's wrestling. He's a guy who's going to put people in the stands and that's what we'd like to do, keep that streak of (26 straight) sellouts rolling. I think we have plenty of talent, but talent's not going to do it. It's more than that; it's a lifestyle, it's the wrestling every second. That's really what sells tickets."

Coninued in Part Two, due to post size limits...​

 

[T J]

Part Two of Two

From BWI TIM's excellent article...

https://bwi.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1750374

Bo Nickal

- After compiling a 13-2 record as an unattached freshman at 174, Nickal is the favorite to take over the vacancy Brown leaves behind. How does the native of Allen, Texas, compare to the recent national champ from Utah? Well, look no further than the NLO when Nickal pushed Brown to a 10-7 decision, one of just two losses on Nickal's season. And that was in December. The reviews coming out of the practice room since then have only grown more positive.

Where Nolf has developed a reputation for almost a robotic, never-slow-down style of wrestling, Nickal has turned heads during his redshirt season with counter takedowns and throws, what some might call trickery. Similar to how Nolf's energy will draw fans to the stands, Nickal's slick array of moves could become his calling card.

After Brown won his NCAA title in St. Louis, Sanderson said, "Bo Nickal has been very good for Matt Brown because Nickal is a guy who can score from any position. Brown, he's just a straight-forward guy. He has a hard time with the guys with the tricks."


Shakur Rasheed

- A two-time state champion from Longwood, N.Y., Rasheed is the variable in next year's starting lineup equation. He enrolled at Penn State with less fanfare than some of his classmates, but from inside the wrestling room he's garnered similar positive reviews, often giving starters all they can handle in practice. In fact, Sanderson said Rasheed, too, helped Brown prepare for his national title run late in the season.

Rasheed missed the first portion of the year after shoulder surgery, but returned for the Franklin and Marshall Open in January. He finished 4-1, losing only to Joey Davis of Notre Dame College in the final, who is now a three-time Division II undefeated national champion. Listed at 165, Rasheed competed at 174 after just barely missing weight. It's only a matter of time, however, until he completely outgrows '65. 174 or even 184 could be his potential landing spot.

Prior to Rasheed's medical clearance Sanderson said "it will be fun to see him get on the scene and see what he can do." After that first and only tournament, Sanderson added, "Rasheed did a nice job. He won four matches and then he wrestled Joey Davis in the finals, who is a kid who is pretty darn good and a couple-time national champion in (Division II). Rasheed is just a consistent kid. He's real consistent in the room and he's very talented. He's going to be really good - he is."


Anthony Cassar

- While the other freshmen listed in this breakdown were ranked among the top 100 recruits in the Class of 2015, Cassar was a more unheralded recruit. A native of Rocky Hill, N.J., Cassar is only the fourth person in New Jersey history to win a state title (2014) after never qualifying for the state tournament in years prior. He's continuing that upward trajectory in State College.

After a season in which he worked closely with some of the team's and club's best inside the wrestling room, including Olympic gold medalist Jake Varner, Cassar is positioning himself to eventually earn a spot in Penn State's starting lineup. He might not be ready for it this upcoming year, but as of now, he appears to be the No. 1 contender to replace McIntosh at 197 after his graduation next season.

"I think Cassar's going be really good," Sanderson said. "He's really strong and he has an unusual shot. I have high hopes for him. He's a little under the radar. Everyone talks about the Ns - the Nolfs, the Nickals, the Nevills. He came in a little behind those guys. He didn't start wrestling as early."


Nick Nevills

- The No.1 heavyweight in the 2015 class, Nevills is known for almost a middleweight-like style, predicating his neutral attack on ankle picks and low takedown attempts. Many heavyweights wrestle with a less-than-exciting style; Nevills is an exception.

He was victorious in his first 10 matches during his redshirt year and his first and only loss came at the Southern Scuffle to Oklahoma State's Austin Mardsen, a match in which Nevills broke his foot and lost, 11-3. Nevills was still in a hard boot by March, but is expected to be recovered in time to take over the starting 285-pound spot next season.

"We're obviously real excited about him," Sanderson said. "We miss having him in here every day because he's just a guy who loves wrestling. He wants to be very good, but it says a lot about him: He broke his foot early in the match (vs. Mardsen) and kept wrestling. Got pounded on, but kept wrestling. There's something about the character and toughness there that is exciting."
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