Conquistadors
11-04-2005, 01:15 AM
Notes on Missouri Wrestle-offs
General comments:
*Missouri looks to have quite a bit of depth at many of the weights. I was impressed with several of young guys, some of whom I was not familiar before. The intensity level was generally quite high.
*The acoustics at the field house are really awful. On top of that, the powers that be insisted on playing moderately raucous music for much of the time. Why was that necessary?
*The announcer didn’t know the difference between a take down and a reversal. He also didn’t bother to tell us which Tiger was which. I wasn’t impressed with the announcer.
*When I got started home I stopped and got gas and paid $2.19/gal. Didn't I just pay $2.99/gal just last month? Did I miss something, or is Columbia in another dimension?
Comments on matches and wrestlers:
*At 125, Tim Kephart (Sophomore) was a bit more aggressive than last year’s starter, senior Austin DeVoe, and won a tight match 3-2. If I recall, last year the story was pretty much the same, but DeVoe performed better during competition and held the starting spot until he was hurt mid-season. These two are very close.
*At 133, Ty McCormick (Sophomore) looked slick in handily beating Junior Armond Prater, 10-0.
*141 featured two wrestlers who, as best I can recall, split starting times last season, Chris McCormick (Sr) and Josh Wagner (So). McCormick came out on top of Wagner by a score of 5-4. However, to my eye it wasn’t as close as the score indicated. McCormick looked much stronger and was much more aggressive. Wagner’s lone take-down was off of a McCormick miss. If McCormick, who last year struggled in the second half of the season, stays focused and healthy, I would bet that he’ll be the starter for most of the year.
* At 149, Junior Jed Lewis was the surprise (at least to me) victor here. I was not familiar with Lewis at all. (Incidentally, Jed looks very much like Ryan Lewis, but without the mountainous deltoid muscles.) In “semi-final” matches, Lewis first bested true freshman Dane Espinosa, 6-4, while favorite Justin Cole had trouble with tenacious redshirt freshman Andrew Sherry. Sherry was the aggressor, and Cole was lucky (IMHO) to get to overtime. Lewis then showed a lot of heart in beating Cole 4-3. My feeling is that Cole is the more gifted athlete, but that Lewis has the heart of a lion (oops, Tiger). From these matches, it wasn’t clear who the starter will be during the season. But Lewis earned everyone’s respect.
*157 also has a number of wrestlers who seem to be close in ability. In semi-final matches, redshirt freshman Michael Chandler walloped redshirt freshman John Andrew 12 -3, while sophomore James Williamson narrowly beat true freshman Nick Marable, 4-3. Marable had the upper hand throughout much of the match, attempted a late take-down and lost his balance and the match. But I think everyone was impressed with Marable. I’m guessing that he’ll be a Tiger starter in the future. Chandler and Williamson then had a titanic struggle, with Chandler coming out on top 3-2. The difference was 1:05 in riding time for Chandler. I’m sure these two will continue to compete for the starting spot, but I was more impressed (by a hair) with Chandler, who hit me as a more aggressive wrestler.
*Matt Pell (Jr), who is a fun wrestler to watch, looks the same size at 165 as he did when he wrestled at 184. I think he’ll do very well this year. He’s a bit of a hot-and-cold wrestler, but I’m sure it will be much easier to deal with smaller opponents. Matt has the athleticism to compete with the top dogs at this weight; it will be interesting to see if his wrestling ability will allow him to stay with Hendricks, Letters, Chrurella, and Nagel. If he has half the NCAA tournament in 2006 as he did in March 2005, then Matt will end up very high on the podium.
*Ben Askren (Jr) looks like he’s bulked up quite a bit around the shoulders. I’m not sure why Coach Smith sacrificed Joey Garrity, who didn’t quite get through the first period. I guess it was to placate the Missouri masses.
*At 184, redshirt freshman Raymond Jordan easily beat redshirt freshman Garrity, 18-5. It was hard to tell just how good Raymond was, as he was physically superior to Garrity. I’m guessing that he’ll acquit himself well this year, and will be one to watch over the next few years.
*At 197, former Big XII champ Jeff Foust (Sr) quickly took down Max Askren with a slick duck-under. Within 30 seconds, Askren had maneuvered around to where he was on top, with a leg in. According to the ref, Foust still had a leg and control, so Max did not get credit for a reversal. After that it was all Askren. Foust is no slouch physically or in terms of wrestling ability, but baby-faced Max was too much for him. I’m going to guess that Coach Smith will still redshirt Max and let Jeff complete his senior year. That way, Max will mature for a year and probably immediately compete for AA honors out of the gate. To say the least, I was very impressed with Max Askren.
For those who have never seen Max, he looks similar to his older brother, but has a larger trunk. I watched Ben wrestle a few times as a true freshman, and in all honesty I feel that Max is a better wrestler at this stage of his career. That’s scary—or for Mizzou fans, exciting!
*Heavyweight featured two true freshmen, Sean Connole and Mark Ellis. Connole is more athletic and possesses sharper wrestling skills and won handily, 9-4. Both these guys are small heavyweights, and I fear will have a tough time against Div I heavyweights. Every time I see the name Connole, it puts me in the mood for aunt's lasagna.
In conclusion, Mizzou has a mix of top-AA caliber wrestlers (Askren & Pell), some mid-career guys who should be in the top 15-20 (Ty and Chris McCormick, Kephart/DeVoe, Foust), and a few young guns who will take their lumps, but hopefully show promise as the season progresses (of these, Raymond Jordan is the most promising, IMHO). The Tigers are ranked 14th in pre-season polls, which hits me as about right. They will probably knock off some higher ranked teams during the year, but may also fall to lower ranked teams on occasion. In any event, it should be a fun year.
General comments:
*Missouri looks to have quite a bit of depth at many of the weights. I was impressed with several of young guys, some of whom I was not familiar before. The intensity level was generally quite high.
*The acoustics at the field house are really awful. On top of that, the powers that be insisted on playing moderately raucous music for much of the time. Why was that necessary?
*The announcer didn’t know the difference between a take down and a reversal. He also didn’t bother to tell us which Tiger was which. I wasn’t impressed with the announcer.
*When I got started home I stopped and got gas and paid $2.19/gal. Didn't I just pay $2.99/gal just last month? Did I miss something, or is Columbia in another dimension?
Comments on matches and wrestlers:
*At 125, Tim Kephart (Sophomore) was a bit more aggressive than last year’s starter, senior Austin DeVoe, and won a tight match 3-2. If I recall, last year the story was pretty much the same, but DeVoe performed better during competition and held the starting spot until he was hurt mid-season. These two are very close.
*At 133, Ty McCormick (Sophomore) looked slick in handily beating Junior Armond Prater, 10-0.
*141 featured two wrestlers who, as best I can recall, split starting times last season, Chris McCormick (Sr) and Josh Wagner (So). McCormick came out on top of Wagner by a score of 5-4. However, to my eye it wasn’t as close as the score indicated. McCormick looked much stronger and was much more aggressive. Wagner’s lone take-down was off of a McCormick miss. If McCormick, who last year struggled in the second half of the season, stays focused and healthy, I would bet that he’ll be the starter for most of the year.
* At 149, Junior Jed Lewis was the surprise (at least to me) victor here. I was not familiar with Lewis at all. (Incidentally, Jed looks very much like Ryan Lewis, but without the mountainous deltoid muscles.) In “semi-final” matches, Lewis first bested true freshman Dane Espinosa, 6-4, while favorite Justin Cole had trouble with tenacious redshirt freshman Andrew Sherry. Sherry was the aggressor, and Cole was lucky (IMHO) to get to overtime. Lewis then showed a lot of heart in beating Cole 4-3. My feeling is that Cole is the more gifted athlete, but that Lewis has the heart of a lion (oops, Tiger). From these matches, it wasn’t clear who the starter will be during the season. But Lewis earned everyone’s respect.
*157 also has a number of wrestlers who seem to be close in ability. In semi-final matches, redshirt freshman Michael Chandler walloped redshirt freshman John Andrew 12 -3, while sophomore James Williamson narrowly beat true freshman Nick Marable, 4-3. Marable had the upper hand throughout much of the match, attempted a late take-down and lost his balance and the match. But I think everyone was impressed with Marable. I’m guessing that he’ll be a Tiger starter in the future. Chandler and Williamson then had a titanic struggle, with Chandler coming out on top 3-2. The difference was 1:05 in riding time for Chandler. I’m sure these two will continue to compete for the starting spot, but I was more impressed (by a hair) with Chandler, who hit me as a more aggressive wrestler.
*Matt Pell (Jr), who is a fun wrestler to watch, looks the same size at 165 as he did when he wrestled at 184. I think he’ll do very well this year. He’s a bit of a hot-and-cold wrestler, but I’m sure it will be much easier to deal with smaller opponents. Matt has the athleticism to compete with the top dogs at this weight; it will be interesting to see if his wrestling ability will allow him to stay with Hendricks, Letters, Chrurella, and Nagel. If he has half the NCAA tournament in 2006 as he did in March 2005, then Matt will end up very high on the podium.
*Ben Askren (Jr) looks like he’s bulked up quite a bit around the shoulders. I’m not sure why Coach Smith sacrificed Joey Garrity, who didn’t quite get through the first period. I guess it was to placate the Missouri masses.
*At 184, redshirt freshman Raymond Jordan easily beat redshirt freshman Garrity, 18-5. It was hard to tell just how good Raymond was, as he was physically superior to Garrity. I’m guessing that he’ll acquit himself well this year, and will be one to watch over the next few years.
*At 197, former Big XII champ Jeff Foust (Sr) quickly took down Max Askren with a slick duck-under. Within 30 seconds, Askren had maneuvered around to where he was on top, with a leg in. According to the ref, Foust still had a leg and control, so Max did not get credit for a reversal. After that it was all Askren. Foust is no slouch physically or in terms of wrestling ability, but baby-faced Max was too much for him. I’m going to guess that Coach Smith will still redshirt Max and let Jeff complete his senior year. That way, Max will mature for a year and probably immediately compete for AA honors out of the gate. To say the least, I was very impressed with Max Askren.
For those who have never seen Max, he looks similar to his older brother, but has a larger trunk. I watched Ben wrestle a few times as a true freshman, and in all honesty I feel that Max is a better wrestler at this stage of his career. That’s scary—or for Mizzou fans, exciting!
*Heavyweight featured two true freshmen, Sean Connole and Mark Ellis. Connole is more athletic and possesses sharper wrestling skills and won handily, 9-4. Both these guys are small heavyweights, and I fear will have a tough time against Div I heavyweights. Every time I see the name Connole, it puts me in the mood for aunt's lasagna.
In conclusion, Mizzou has a mix of top-AA caliber wrestlers (Askren & Pell), some mid-career guys who should be in the top 15-20 (Ty and Chris McCormick, Kephart/DeVoe, Foust), and a few young guns who will take their lumps, but hopefully show promise as the season progresses (of these, Raymond Jordan is the most promising, IMHO). The Tigers are ranked 14th in pre-season polls, which hits me as about right. They will probably knock off some higher ranked teams during the year, but may also fall to lower ranked teams on occasion. In any event, it should be a fun year.