James Hackney
Mizzou held their home opener in the Hearnes and came away with a blowout win against Arizona State. Admittedly it was not the Sun Devils full lineup, and they’re a stronger tournament team (#6) than dual team (#16), but Mizzou dominated with eight bonus point wins. The Tigers have some time off, but open up conference duals against Oklahoma at home on December 1st. Overall a solid win for Mizzou, here are my biggest takeaways.
- Two Piece Uniform
I wrestled in high school and I know the singlet is the iconic look for wrestling. However, I loved seeing the two piece uniform at today’s dual. While it doesn’t really affect the matches, the look is much more akin to other grappling sports like jiu-jitsu. To casual fans, it is more relatable than the singlet and takes away the eye rolling jokes. College guys clearly do not care about a singlet, but to younger male wrestlers, the singlet is certainly a reason why some did not try wrestling. While it’s a small step and not a permanent one, count me in for wrestling moving to the two piece set. Anything that can make the sport more relatable and understandable to the casual fan, the better in my eyes.
- No Rocky yet, but soon.
Rocky didn’t weigh in, but Coach Smith said to expect him back soon and that he started live this week. The team didn’t need him today, but the dual against OU could be tougher and that includes #2 Stephen Buchanan at 197….
