Alex Marinelli - Iowa's Most Improved Wrestler

It may seem a little insane to take a returning All-American, someone who entered the NCAA Tournament seeded fourth, and a guy who beat the NCAA Champion last year and name him Iowa's most improved wrestler. Most of the time I would agree with you, but it has been an absolute pleasure to see the leaps that Alex Marinelli has made this season for the Iowa Hawkeyes.

To start off, he's undefeated, but his record isn't the impressive part, it's how he's doing it. Last year, he got bonus points in 28% of his matches which is very solid for a redshirt freshman. This year, he is over 71% as only three guys have been able to keep it close and two of those guys are ranked in the top-5 in the nation. Those numbers will drop as the competition gets stiffer during the final month and a half, but he is still a totally different guy this season.

It's not surprising, because the first thing that jumps out at you is how different he looks. It is clear that he is much bigger this year than he was last year, and that increase in strength has definitely helped him.

The biggest way this has helped seems to be confidence as he is far more aggressive this year. He is really earning the nickname of "The Bull" as he is nonstop charging his opponents with pressure and takedowns, and he is simply breaking people. One of the best examples was this past Friday against Illinois. He squared off with former Hawkeye, Joey Gunther, and even though he wasn't scoring a ton of points, he kept the pressure on. Gunther got called for stalling. Then again. Then another one. Then one more. And finally, a fifth stalling call which is an automatic disqualification. Marinelli broke his opponent.

Finally, his technique has greatly improved. He is an absolute hammer on top, and that's leading to him turning guys over for big points and pins. He has also improved on bottom, which was most notably seen in his win over #3 Evan Wick. Last year, Wick dominated Marinelli on top which led him to a major decision victory at the NCAA Tournament. This year, Marinelli was able to get out from bottom, and he was able to win on his feet to give him a Midlands Championship.

Alex Marinelli still has a ton of work to do. He's likely got a rematch with Evan Wick, and, if he can win that, a match with two-time defending National Champion, Vincenzo Joseph, and that only gets him through the Big Tens. Two weeks, he'll have to do it all over again against those guys as well as some other tough challengers. Last year, Marinelli made the semifinals before dropping three straight matches. This year, I see a different guy, and although it's impossible to call him the favorite over a guy who is on pace to win four national championships in Joseph, I'm not counting out Marinelli. Win or lose, anyone who is brave enough to get in the way of The Bull is sure to get the horns.