(Moderator comment - giving this topic it's own thread)
Michigan?
Michigan?
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PSU guys in the Portal
- Thread starter GableBeer
- Start date
I'm happy for Alex. He didn't pan out, but he fought for a spot. He didn't give up.
Well now I’m embarrassed. All this time I thought the “portal” was just another name for Iowa’s tunnel.
Not pound of pickles worthy.
Geography makes sense, but they have the Mantanona brothers at 165 and 174.
They have a gaping hole at 184. Not sure either Mantanona can get there, but that would enable Alex to go 165 or 174.
His 4 finalists were PSU, Michigan, Iowa State, and Cornell. Won't be Cornell since he has no Ivy eligibility after this year. Iowa State has a much bigger need at both 165 and 174 than Michigan does.
Iowa State also has Metcalf connection and Carr to train with for freestyle it seems most logical to me
Steen should probably cut back down to 125. Someone might get a qualifier out of him
I would think Alex would like to wrestle 174. If necessary and with the purchase of a Kasak cow, 184 is probably doable.
If I were to guess on Gary, I’d guess it’d be a state school like Clarion or Boro. Clarion has taken a couple of steps back while Boro quietly had a good season this year with Matt Hill being named MAC COTY. FWIW, Gary’s dad recently secured consistent practice time in the Clarion wrestling room for Bad Karma’s club practices.
No surprise, best of luck!
www.psucollegian.com
Report: Pair of Penn State wrestlers enter transfer portal
Two Nittany Lions entered the NCAA transfer portal during the NCAA Championships, per Justin Basch.
Best of luck to both!!! Great teammates who deserve a shot at the mat
Sad to see high quality wrestlers go, but completely understandable. Facundo is from MI, so maybe UMich is a landing spot?
Yeah, no surprise.
Facundo was a highly rated recruit (like #3 P4P, as I recall), but to date has been better at freestyle than folk. Always seemed to avoid mat wrestling. And, amazingly, I think he will have 3 seasons of eligibility remaining. This season is his 4th at PSU, but three have been redshirt years, assuming he gets a medical RS for 2024-25.
Gotta believe he'll go somewhere he doesn't have to cut to 157, which seems brutal. Seems better suited at 165 or maybe even 174.
Facundo was a highly rated recruit (like #3 P4P, as I recall), but to date has been better at freestyle than folk. Always seemed to avoid mat wrestling. And, amazingly, I think he will have 3 seasons of eligibility remaining. This season is his 4th at PSU, but three have been redshirt years, assuming he gets a medical RS for 2024-25.
Gotta believe he'll go somewhere he doesn't have to cut to 157, which seems brutal. Seems better suited at 165 or maybe even 174.
Best of luck to both. Feel like Facundo can challenge to be a multi-time AA. Steen has had some good wins - good enough to think he could make the tourney.
Yeah, the cut to 157 was a last ditch attempt to make the lineup, essentially thinking (possibly mistakenly, as shocking as that sounds) that challenging Kasak for 157 was an easier route to a starting spot than challenging either Mesenbrink or Levi. I don't know the extent of his injury, but the leg brace showed up immediately after he lost the challenge, so I think he and Cael may have had a heart to heart and PSU did him a solid to get a med RS year with the intention of portalling out after the season. He's way too good to be a room guy.
He'll never cut to 157 again and probably go somewhere that could use a 165. Of the names mentioned, Iowa St and Ok St seem like the most logical choices, but we'll see. If he's more concerned about freestyle, I think he'll probably try to stay at 165 to be around 74kg, but who knows. Ok St loses their entire starting lineup from 157-285, so there is a lot of opportunity there, and so far, DT is showing that the Penn State model can be replicated and is the way of the future. Wherever he goes, I wish him success. I'm sure GIA has him penciled in already as their 157 next year. LOL.
Thought for a second @GableBeer started this thread himself to stir the pot then saw mods moved it.
Sorry man, you have a great track record here and I shouldn't have thought you'd do something like that.
Sorry man, you have a great track record here and I shouldn't have thought you'd do something like that.
Okie state is bringing in big time recruits in that range though. Lockett is a 174. Robideau and Routledge are both 157-165. All 3 are top 20 p4p on Flo. I don’t think Okie State makes sense with Facundo having 3 years. Michigan has the Mantanona’s but they are so long I could see one of them moving up. Iowa state makes the most sense to me
On the recent NCAA recap show with Basch and Willie, Basch was saying he heard Joe Sealey would be jumping in the portal. Wouldn’t be suprised.
That would really suck but I wouldn’t blame him. No clear path to a spot in the lineup especially with Duke coming in. I love Sealey though and think he’s going to be really good for someone. Maybe not national champion good but multiple time AA
Gary Steen would be a welcomed addition to most teams. I enjoy watching that kid wrestle.
Go get em!!
Go get em!!
Would make too much sense IMO, no path to start and he is likely good enough to be a real factor next year if he can find the right program where he starts
Side note: what are potential landing spots?
All these guys are now part of the Penn State family. The support in Philadelphia for Barraclough, Beard and Nevills was beyond amazing. Each was appreciative of the support too. That WILL continue for anyone that transfers, whatever the reason.
The desire to start next season is by far the most compelling reason for transferring, but I also believe the ease of entering the portal, NIL $$'s, and the need to keep the roster (by rule) to 30 wrestlers or fewer starting in 2025-2026 all play a part in some way. These are all great young men, and it is bittersweet to see them go, but I am happy they get to chase their dreams.
The desire to start next season is by far the most compelling reason for transferring, but I also believe the ease of entering the portal, NIL $$'s, and the need to keep the roster (by rule) to 30 wrestlers or fewer starting in 2025-2026 all play a part in some way. These are all great young men, and it is bittersweet to see them go, but I am happy they get to chase their dreams.
Anyone have Sealys top 5 coming out if high-school? Gut feeling if he transfers, Bob will be calling.
I don't think he ever released one.
Most people assumed he would be strongly considering UNC, NC State, and VT due to being from North Carolina. But that was mostly a (somewhat educated) guess.
Iowa would surprise me. The infamous M* no-show at Seminary was supposed to be visiting Sealey. After that, he doesn't have much reason to believe they will support him.
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