All this optimism is way over the top. Everyone here had it drilled into their brain that you need 8 scoring wrestlers. 5 just won't do it, especially if the other 5 don't add up to 3 more.
Just not feeling it at 125, 149, 157, 197, and 285....
- Thread starter BrucePa
- Start date
Thank you for not panicking!
Sorry about what autocorrect did to your attempted handle of “brusselssprout”!
Shak is not Quentin Wright. Quentin Wright was an elite, powerful, lightning fast, superior wrestler who won 2 championships and nearly a 3rd. Shak is an above average, talented 184 pounder whose ceiling has always been low podium, r-12, who is wrestling injured at aweight too high for him. We have a 197 pounder who will be elite but this is a punt year.
I have actually like Shak in the last two matches. Moore "big brothered him" but at least you could see he was moving more freely. That match gave me a little more confidence in him finding his game so to speak.
Here are some of the other thing about college wrestling that we all need to keep in mind
1) College wrestling is ridiculously hard. I know, for a fact, that I have never made a physical sacrifice close to what our wrestlers - yes, even the "less impressive" ones - make on a daily basis. And those here who wrestled "merely" in high school or elementary school understand what I mean. And it's not just about sacrifices ..... unless one had wrestled, scoring an offensive point in college wrestling is almost immeasurably hard for all but the best athletes. Heck, most football players who dabble in wrestling admit to being gassed after a few moves. So we should always be measured in our criticisms of our wrestlers.
2) Penn State is by no means out of the title race, though they aren't the favorite. In terms of actually scoring points at nationals, what matters most is top five finishes and bonus points. There hasn't even been a national title team with 10 All-Americans since like 2001 Minnesota. Because having 10 qualifiers with a few points between them is not necessarily as important as top 5 finishes and bonus points. And guess what? We have several possible top 5 finishers: RBY, Nick Lee, Cenzo, Mark Hall, and Aaron Brooks are all almost sure fire as far as I can tell (I don't want to ever set that in stone, because the tournament is absurdly difficult, but they all have as good a chance as anyone else). And all of those guys, especially the latter 4, have been getting strong bonus points all season.
3) Don't underestimate just how badly injuries affect a team. We only have 9.9 scholarships. It's actually pretty amazing that we're still in the title hunt despite having lost several of our best wrestlers to injuries.
1) College wrestling is ridiculously hard. I know, for a fact, that I have never made a physical sacrifice close to what our wrestlers - yes, even the "less impressive" ones - make on a daily basis. And those here who wrestled "merely" in high school or elementary school understand what I mean. And it's not just about sacrifices ..... unless one had wrestled, scoring an offensive point in college wrestling is almost immeasurably hard for all but the best athletes. Heck, most football players who dabble in wrestling admit to being gassed after a few moves. So we should always be measured in our criticisms of our wrestlers.
2) Penn State is by no means out of the title race, though they aren't the favorite. In terms of actually scoring points at nationals, what matters most is top five finishes and bonus points. There hasn't even been a national title team with 10 All-Americans since like 2001 Minnesota. Because having 10 qualifiers with a few points between them is not necessarily as important as top 5 finishes and bonus points. And guess what? We have several possible top 5 finishers: RBY, Nick Lee, Cenzo, Mark Hall, and Aaron Brooks are all almost sure fire as far as I can tell (I don't want to ever set that in stone, because the tournament is absurdly difficult, but they all have as good a chance as anyone else). And all of those guys, especially the latter 4, have been getting strong bonus points all season.
3) Don't underestimate just how badly injuries affect a team. We only have 9.9 scholarships. It's actually pretty amazing that we're still in the title hunt despite having lost several of our best wrestlers to injuries.
why did we pull Brooks shirt in a “punt” year? TIA
You talk Shak more than Bubba talks shrimp.
“... Shak-kabobs, Shak creole, Shak gumbo. Pan fried, deep fried, stir-fried. There's pineapple Shak, lemon Shak, coconut Shak, pepper Shak, Shak soup, Shak stew, Shak salad, Shak and potatoes, Shak burger, Shak sandwich ...”
I was talking about Quentin Wright actually and what an amazing championship wrestler he was.You talk Shak more than Bubba talks shrimp.
“... Shak-kabobs, Shak creole, Shak gumbo. Pan fried, deep fried, stir-fried. There's pineapple Shak, lemon Shak, coconut Shak, pepper Shak, Shak soup, Shak stew, Shak salad, Shak and potatoes, Shak burger, Shak sandwich ...”
And we all know how pro-Quentin you would have been BEFORE he won, you front-running punk.
157 "...with each match". He has only 1 more match and then he will need to take someone else's spot to make Nationals. I just hope 1 more match is enough.
I'm actually a friend. From Milesburg and grew up with him at BEA. Go Eagles!And we all know how pro-Quentin you would have been BEFORE he won, you front-running punk.
Joseph lost a dual to a Stanford no name early his RS year. Hall lost to Brucki. RBY lost to Thorton. If anything, if there is a black eye, our elite kids have some head scratching losses early on in their careers. And then they go on and just murder kids. I'm not giving up on Berge just yet. That weight class isn't great, he's a world class talent, he'll just have an uphill battle with some low seeds. I expect him to score some points in March.
What’s up with the poser/troll uprising around here the past few days?
PSU has 3 guys who are favorites to be at least finalists if not champions, a 4th for whom it certainly wouldn't be surprising and AA status is almost a guarantee, and one or two others who are likely to be AAs as well. If that's not good enough to win the NCAAs this year, so be it, but it's still really damn good. We're spoiled by dynasty level success in recent years.
You talk Shak more than Bubba talks shrimp.
“... Shak-kabobs, Shak creole, Shak gumbo. Pan fried, deep fried, stir-fried. There's pineapple Shak, lemon Shak, coconut Shak, pepper Shak, Shak soup, Shak stew, Shak salad, Shak and potatoes, Shak burger, Shak sandwich ...”
Some of your better work.
9.25/10.
Shak-tastic.You talk Shak more than Bubba talks shrimp.
“... Shak-kabobs, Shak creole, Shak gumbo. Pan fried, deep fried, stir-fried. There's pineapple Shak, lemon Shak, coconut Shak, pepper Shak, Shak soup, Shak stew, Shak salad, Shak and potatoes, Shak burger, Shak sandwich ...”
Cause the idea it’s a punt year is ridiculous. Pulled Brooks when it made a little more sense and expecting Shak to find himself again.
if he does, then he can repeat his 7th place AA at 197. Beard could improve on that...or not. What Shak has done for this team at different weights and if the switch goes on.....is why Cael says he’s earned the right.
I’m all in with Shak. Brooks and Berge are gonna make the necessary noise to help our 4 finalists.
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