Let's Preview the Iowa Hawkeyes at the NCAA Wrestling Tournament

After the conference tournaments wrapped up, the only thing to wait for was how things were going to play out when it came to seeding. For the most part, the seeding and matchups were all pretty justified. I would say one guy had good luck, and one guy had the worst possible luck in the entire NCAA as I would say it is likely that he will only face guys that are past, present, and/or future All-Americans. It's so stupid, but we'll get to that later. Let's start with the positive first.

125 - Spencer Lee - #3 Seed
This is the big positive for Iowa. Lee was the #3 seed last year and did fairly well with that seed. Also, for the first time, the NCAA seeded all 33 wrestlers as opposed to just the top 16. He'll take on 13-9 Christian Moody from Oklahoma in the first round, and I wouldn't expect that one to get out of the first period. After that, it is likely Ryan Millhof, whose only match I really remember is the time he tried to go up a weight and Roman Bravo-Young looked like the second coming of Christ because of his dominance. That one may make the second period, but I really doubt it goes the distance. Then, it will likely be the 6 seed, Sean Russell who has wrestled Lee twice this year, but has yet to score a point, so that one looks fairly good. After that, he will likely go up against Nick Piccinnini who did pin Lee this year, but Lee beat him twice last year (including a pin of his own), and I like that matchup a ton more than facing Sebastian Rivera. Also, don't count out Pat Glory from Princeton as he is a true freshman who really brings it and could give Piccinnini some troubles although the Cowboy should be heavily favored. After that, it's most likely Sebastian Rivera in the finals. Lee had so many opportunities to win their second match this year, but it didn't happen. I still have tremendous faith in Lee winning the whole thing this year. It may be homerism, but if you find a good place to make bets on college wrestling, let me know, because I will gladly put my money on the Hawkeye.

Some other guys to watch in the top half of the bracket include Ronnie Bresser from Oregon State, undefeated Jack Mueller from Virginia, and Vitali Arujau, a true freshman from Cornell. All of those guys could prevent a rematch between Lee and Rivera.

IOWA PREDICTION: SPENCER LEE BECOMES TWO-TIME NATIONAL CHAMPION
National Champion: See above.

133 - Austin DeSanto - #7 Seed
I would say DeSanto got a fair draw. He's taking on somebody from Appalachian State in the first round, and I would expect him to cruise. Next up, he'll likely have Roman Bravo-Young who he absolutely dominated in the first period of their match at the Big Ten Tournament. I think he's too much on his feet for the Nittany Lion so I feel confident about his ability to move on. After that, things could get VERY interesting. The #2 seed is Stevan Micic who is undefeated but lost the top seed when he medically forfeited out of the Big Ten Tournament after his first match. I don't know how serious that injury is, but I seriously don't think he forgot that DeSanto put on a damn kimura during their match last year when Micic was putting a beatdown on him. DeSanto does have a dominant 22-10 win over Micic early last season, so this match could be bananas. If Micic is healthy, I have to go with the Wolverine, but that's no guarantee, but if he wins, he'd likely have a rubbermatch against Nick Suriano to make it to the finals. It's not an impossible road, but at a loaded 133 weight class, there are no easy paths.

In the top half of the bracket, Daton Fix is super good, so he's deserving of the #1 seed, and unfortunately, I have only seen bits and pieces of #4 Mickey Philipi so I'm not sure how good he is, but his results have been impressive. I do think Montorie Bridges has a chance to upset Luke Pletcher, but that may be because I am very down on Pletcher. Also, watch out for Iowa State's Austin Gomez at the 13 seed; he beat DeSanto earlier this year, and he has the skills to give guys trouble.

IOWA PREDICTION: AUSTIN DESANTO BECOMES AN ALL-AMERICAN (5TH PLACE)
National Champion: Stevan Micic, Michigan

141 - Max Murin - #22 Seed
I feel like Murin has an argument to be higher than this. The Big Ten schedule did him no favors as he had a ton of tough matches, and he just barely lost most of those matches. So, I guess the committee's thought was to see it continue as he is set to face off against Tristan Moran of Wisconsin. Moran is aggressive on top, but he's not anything special on his feet, so it's a winnable match, but it won't be easy. If things go well, he'd take on #6 seed Michael Carr who he is 1-1 against this season. Also, can someone please explain how the guy who finished eighth at the Big Tens is the six seed after accumulating a 12-5 record on the season? After that, he'd be looking at Nick Lee, and I think we can safely assume he won't make the semifinals, but I surely hope he proves me wrong.

As for the rest of this bracket, this is probably the deepest group of wrestlers in the tournament. Kaid Brock is an incredibly talented guy for the 15 seed. I love Mitch McKee, but not his draw as the seventh seed. Jaydin Eierman of Missouri and Josh Alber of Northern Iowa are both tough outs as the four and five seeds, but I could also see either guy getting upset. Iowa State's Ian Parker has a ton of notable wins at the weight class, but he also has a lot of losses to just general ass dudes. My super deep sleeper is #24 Mitch Moore of Virginia Tech. I think he could pull a couple upsets before having to take on the top seed, but he's a freshman who has gotten better as the season has rolled along.

And despite all that depth, I really see it ending up with Cornell's #1 ranked Yianni Diakomihalis taking on #2 Joey McKenna from Ohio State. I just think those guys are slightly above the rest of the field, and I'm actually going to take McKenna to get the upset over Yianni, but I fully acknowledge that this might just be Big Ten Brain taking over.

For Murin, I'll say he loses his first match before storming back in the consolation side of things. Unfortunately, I just don't think it'll be quite enough.

IOWA PREDICTION: MAX MURIN GOES 3-2 BUT FALLS IN ROUND OF 12
National Champion: Joey McKenna, Ohio State

149 - Pat Lugo - #10 Seed
Lugo is the ten seed that nobody wants to face. Four of his seven losses came in sudden victory, two of the others were to Matt Kolodzik when he was ranked #1, and the other was his first match of the season. He has really put it together lately, and I don't think people will be looking forward to matching up against him. First up, it's Arizona State's Josh Maruca who he should handle. Then, he has a rematch against Oklahoma State's Kaden Gfeller who Lugo dominated on the feet, but Gfeller is a very tough scrambler who always makes positions interesting. Still, I feel good about Lugo advancing to take on #2 Micah Jordan. Jordan should be clearly favored, but weird things always seem to happen to the Jordan boys, which might be karma for their uncle being an incredibly shady politician who did nothing when wrestlers were being sexually assaulted by the head trainer...allegedly. It's more likely that Jordan wins, but maybe Lugo can benefit from karma. The bottom half of the bracket is highlighted by Mitch Finesilver from Duke and Austin O'Connor from North Carolina so finally those two schools can have a real rivalry.

149 is pretty weak this year, so if you're looking for any surprises, maybe look at Justin Oliver of NC State or Jarrett Degen of Iowa State as both guys know how to scrap and have the ability to pull off upsets, but they'll have to get by each other in the second round. Otherwise, I think I'm going chalk for the final, but this is a weight class where it wouldn't be shocking to see some odd seeds ending up in the finals.

IOWA PREDICTION: PAT LUGO BECOMES AN ALL-AMERICAN (7TH PLACE)
National Champion: Anthony Ashnault, Rutgers

157 - Kaleb Young - #6 Seed
Things line up nicely for Young for the first two rounds in this tournament. First he has Dan Reed from Columbia, and he should be able to beat up a nerd. Then he has Ke-Shawn Hayes from Ohio State who he beat 11-1 at the Big Ten Tournament. After that, he likely gets Ryan Deakin (although Zach Hartman from Bucknell could give him trouble), the one guy to really beat Young when he won 6-2 against the Hawkeye (his other losses were two in sudden victory, and two close losses to Alec Pantaleo). I would love to see him win that match, but it seems rather unlikely. At that point, he'd probably be looking at Tyler Berger with a possibility of Larry Early pulling off the upset, although I think Berger gets by him.

On the top half of the bracket, it's Jason Nolf. Actually, if you're looking for a winner, it's only Jason Nolf, because there are 32 guys that have zero shot of beating a healthy Nolf.

But for guys to watch out for on the backside, Hayden Hidlay and Alec Pantaleo are the two guys that I think are likely the second best guy at this weight, but unfortunately, they'll have to face each other before losing to Nolf, so third place is the best they can do. Josh Humphreys is a true freshman who has been wrestling really well outside of a terrible loss to Oklahoma State's Wyatt Sheets. I also want to point out Jarrett Jacques, only because his last name is pronounced jay-cues.

IOWA PREDICTION: KALEB YOUNG, ALL-AMERICAN (6TH PLACE)
National Champion: Jason Nolf, Penn State

165 - Alex Marinelli - #1 Seed
You may think it's tough to get screwed by being rightfully named the #1 seed, but they certainly found a way to do it as nearly every single wrestler I would not want to wrestle is in the top half of the bracket, and it's basically just Logan Massa and Vincenzo Joseph on the bottom half (Josh Shields is fine, but he would not worry me).

So who does Marinelli get to start off? Joseph Smith, just a two-time All-American out of Oklahoma State, and his Dad may be the greatest US wrestler in history, so nope nothing to worry about there. In all honesty, Joe Smith has not looked great down the stretch and just finally made the weight down to 165. His gas tank was a major issue at 174, so it should only be harder for him at 165. He also has to wrestle a pigtail match before taking on Marinelli, so he won't have much rest and Marinelli does know how to grind down opponents. Marinelli is facing him in the most ideal circumstances, but you would rather not run into a guy that talented in your first round match.

After that, he could rematch Jonathan Viruet who took him to sudden victory at the Midlands. It could also be Thomas Bullard from NC State, but I think Marinelli will take it to either one of those guys, especially in a second try against Viruet.

After that, it could be Utah Valley's Demetrius Romero who has beaten Joe Smith, Bryce Seitert (twice), and Logan Massa and only has three losses on the year. The other option is Mekhi Lewis from Virginia Tech who only has two losses and beat Marinelli in freestyle this past summer. Again, I'm definitely picking Marinelli, but this road is exhausting me just typing it out, and we haven't reached the semifinals yet.

At that point, it's either Evan Wick, who Marinelli has beaten three times this year, but every match has been painfully close as Wick has dominated the Hawkeye from the top position. Then there is Chance Marsteller, one of the greatest high school wrestlers to come out of Pennsylvania, the greatest high school wrestling state in the nation. He has two losses, one was a one-point loss to two-time defending National Champion, Vincenzo Joseph, and the other was to Josh Shields by tie breaker after two overtimes. That is a very dangerous guy.

Oh, and if he makes it to the finals, he's got Vincenzo Joseph, that two-time defending national champion. Marinelli beat Joseph last year, and BEAT him this year. But seriously, if Marinelli is going to somehow win a title, he's going to have to earn it every step of the way.

IOWA PREDICTION: ALEX MARINELLI EARNS HIMSELF A NATIONAL TITLE
National Champion: My heart said Marinelli, and the one thing I learned from DHT was to listen to my heart.

174 - Mitch Bowman - Did Not Qualify
Poor Mitch Bowman ends his senior season going out in a whimper as he was unable to qualify for the NCAA Tournament after dropping down a weight to help out the team after Michael Kemerer and Myles Wilson were injured. He was a rollercoaster of ultimate hustle and me ultimately yelling at my TV for him to get up.

Without a Hawkeye, this weight class loses a lot of luster for me. Is anybody beating Mark Hall in the top half of the bracket? No. Myles Amine will lose by a point to him in the semifinals, because that is what happens in every one of their 700 matches.

Bottom half is a two-horse race between Missouri's Daniel Lewis and Arizona State's Zahid Valencia. Lewis pinned Valencia in a match he was already controlling, but Zahid kicks ass at these NCAA Tournaments. He could easily be a two-time defending champion had he not gotten dinged for accidentally grabbing the headgear against Mark Hall a couple years ago.

So I say it comes down to Hall and Valencia again. When they were freshman, I didn't think anyone could beat the phenom that was Mark Hall. When they were sophomores, I thought Valencia broke through to show that he's the new dominator at this weight class. Then Mark Hall controlled him in their match this year. I still really like Valencia, but I can't deny that the guy is struggling underneath tough wrestlers.

IOWA PREDICTION: MITCH BOWMAN SHOCKS THE WORLD BY STORMING THE MAT AFTER THE NCAA FINALS TO CHALLENGE FOR THE TITLE AT WRESTLEMANIA
National Champion: Who cares? They'll be defending their title in two weeks on the biggest stage of them all, but the pick is Mark Hall, Penn State.

184 - Cash Wilcke - #12 Seed
Cash Wilcke fittingly got the twelfth seed as he is Mr. Round of 12 as that is the round he has been eliminated in during his first two years at the NCAA Tournament, falling just one win short of All-American status. Can he change that this year?

Wilcke should be able to win his first round match against Nick Gravina, but Gravina is probably underrated due to his lack of matches this year. Wilcke has no great wins but no bad losses, so I think he's solid enough to get things done in the first round. Unfortunately, in round two, that no great wins thing catches up to him as I just don't see a way past Max Dean for Wilcke. He'll keep it close, but even I've got to take Dean in that match.

This is Myles Martin's weight to lose, and I don't see him losing it. He's dominated everyone, and I think that continues from start to finish at the NCAAs. If you're looking for some fun, let's have seventh seeded Nick Reenan take out Shakur Rasheed of Penn State. I think Rasheed is overrated, but I wholeheartedly admit that I overrate guys based off their freestyle success which is definitely part of the reason I am taking Reenan in that match.

IOWA PREDICTION: THE STREAK IS BROKEN. UNFORTUNATELY, THIS YEAR WILCKE ONLY GOES 2-2 AND FAILS TO MAKE THE ROUND OF 12.
National Champion: Myles Martin, Ohio State

197 - Jacob Warner - #5 Seed
Warner is in a totally fair spot at the five seed. Warner has been great defensively, but has struggled at times on offense. I feel like his effort has increased as the year has gone on, and it may be a conditioning thing where now he's fully into form after dealing with an injury earlier in the year.

He should have no trouble taking out Drew Phipps of Bucknell in the first round. After that, a much tougher matchup against Army's Rocco Caywood, a guy who beat Warner earlier this year at the Midlands. I think a lot of that was Warner already taking a beating from South Dakota State's Tanner Sloan. He also had only one match going into the Midlands on the season, and that was four weeks earlier against Iowa State, so I think a Warner who has rounded into form and has his conditioning ready should be able to avenge that loss.

In the quarters, it's a likely matchup with #4 seed, Patrick Brucki, who beat Warner at last year's Midlands. Brucki is 29-1 and he avenged his one loss to Cornell's Ben Honis. I like Warner, but Brucki put up major decisions against the two guys that Warner lost to at the Midlands, and I think even a fully charged Warner isn't putting up those types of scores. I would lean towards the Princeton Tiger in this one. If that's the case, I have Warner getting matched up with Ben Honis in the blood round which I see as a total toss-up match.

If he loses that, he'll make his way in the consolation bracket. If he wins, he will just delay going into the consolation bracket as Bo Nickal will await him. Nickal is so far ahead of the competition that it was a victory for the #2 seed to only lose by regular decision, because the first time they faced each other, Kollin Moore got pinned in the first period.

On the bottom half of the bracket, I think either Kollin Moore keeps hold of that #2 seed or Preston Weigel rises up from #3 as I just don't see #6 Willie Miklus or #7 Jay Aiello having the skills to take those guys out. I'd lean towards Moore, but either way, it's just a matter of who gets that ass whooped by Nickal on Saturday night.

IOWA PREDICTION: JACOB WARNER BECOMES AN ALL-AMERICAN (4TH PLACE)
National Champion: Bo Nickal, Penn State

Heavyweight - Sam Stoll - #29 Seed
One thing that people have always criticized me for is why I still believe in men who have been shot in the leg. If you told me Plaxico Burress was making a comeback, I would still want the Bears to sign him, because that guy is a touchdown machine. The same is true for Sam Stoll who definitely got shot in the leg this offseason and definitely does not look like the same guy he was in the past. I still believe in him.

Down the stretch, he really shit the bed, but he had some good wins earlier beating both Youssif Hemida and Conan Jennings. Plus, he's still SAM FREAKIN STOLL, who entered the season as the #1 ranked heavyweight. You know, sometimes it's just more fun to pick with your heart instead of your head, and this is one of those times. Keep that in mind as I run you through the Sam Stoll Sacrifice to the Gods.

First up, Jordan Wood, #4 ranked heavyweight out of Lehigh. Wood has a good record, but he didn't really beat anybody good. He faced the top three guys and lost to each of them, so his best win is #15 Tate Orndorff. Stoll, who has had a terrible season, has two better wins than that. It ain't going to be pretty, but Stoll wins 2-1.

I'll go with Zach Elam to get the slight upset over #13 Matt Voss, but that just leads to his ultimate destruction when Stoll really gets in a Gogarrian Groove and gets his first pin of the tournament.

After that, it seems like #12 seed Conan Jennings has #5 seed Mason Parris's number as he has beaten him three times this year, so give Stoll another huge victory as he was dominating Jennings before Jennings had to injury default after the match. Stoll takes it to him again in an excruciatingly boring 2-0 victory.

I bet you're thinking that he will take on #1 seeded Derek White next. Well, guess again, buckaroo, because I've got Central Michigan's Matt Stencel shocking White in the third round. Stencel has 17 pins this year, and hilariously, all three of his real losses (one injury default) were by pin as well. The man just loves pins, and I've got great news as he's going to find his way to another pin in the semifinals. Unfortunately for him, it's going to be our big beefy boy, Sam Stoll having him stare up at the lights when the ref's hand smacks the mat.

In the bottom half of the bracket, I'm taking Gable Steveson, and I don't think it's close. I know Anthony Cassar just beat him last week, but I'm pretty sure that Cassar was the only one who believed he could take him down, and Steveson was practically napping on the mat before he was like, "Oh shit, this dude just took me down with like no time left." I don't see him making that mistake again.

And yes, Gable Steveson beat Sam Stoll in their one matchup, but this is the Sam Stoll Sacrifice to the Gods tour. I say they battle it out until an overtime to settle it all, but you know who I'm going with.

IOWA PREDICTION: SAM STOLL GOES FROM 29TH SEED TO THE NCAA FINALS AND TAKES...
National Champion: Gable Steveson, Minnesota

Sorry, Sam Stoll. If the guy wasn't named after Dan Gable, I could go for it, but the Freshman Phenom is too much in the end.

2018 NCAA Wrestling Tournament Predictions

It's the most wonderful time of the year when it comes to watching daytime sporting events during the work week. While most will be watching the first round of the NCAA Basketball Tournament, I will be huddled next to as many screens as possible playing WatchESPN feeds of the NCAA Wrestling Tournament. In my hopes to get other people amped for wrestling, I'm going to preview each Iowa wrestler's chances and predict the All-Americans at each weight class.

125 - Spencer Lee - #3 Seed

As an Iowa fan, 125 is the most interesting weight class as it is Iowa's best chance at a national champion this year. Spencer Lee came in as the most blue chip of blue chip prospects that Iowa could hope for, and he has more than lived up to that hype as a true freshman. Lee has just two losses on the year, one to Ronnie Bresser, a good but not great wrestler, who beat Lee early on in the season, and a loss to Nathan Tomasello, a man who has already been a national champion, but also someone who Lee has beaten this year. Lee has gotten better as the year has gone on, and he's definitely peaking at the right time. He's earned a three seed in the tournament. In his first three matches, I don't just expect to win, I expect him to get bonus points in each of those matches, the toughest of which will be Nick Piccinnini who he only beat by decision earlier this year, but with his improved gas tank, yeah, let's move that up to a Major. The semifinals is going to be his toughest match, the rubber match against Nathan Tomasello, who will also definitely be there. Whoever wins that match will go onto win in the Finals. So can Lee pull it off? I'm an unabashed Hawkeye Homer, so yeah, Lee pulls it off, and caps off an incredible freshman season with a national title.

All-Americans

1. Spencer Lee

2. Darian Cruz

3. Nathan Tomasello

4. Sean Fausz

5. Sebastian Rivera

6. Nick Suriano

7. Taylor LaMont

8. Ronnie Bresser

133 - No Qualifier

Iowa did not qualify anyone at this weight class, which is unfortunate, as that will end Iowa's streak of having someone in the finals at this weight class for the last five consecutive years. Even sadder is that the #1 ranked guy at this weight class, Seth Gross, spent a year at Iowa before some legal troubles sparked his transfer to South Dakota State. Still, I'm going to pick an upset in the finals, because Stevan Micic from Michigan has been wrestling out of his mind late in the season, and I just can't see anybody stopping that momentum from rolling to a national title.

All-Americans

1. Stevan Micic

2. Seth Gross

3. Kaid Brock

4. Austin DeSanto

5. Scott Parker

6. John Erneste

7. Luke Pletcher

8. Josh Terao

141 - Vince Turk - Unseeded

Vince Turk may be the most fascinating wrestler on the Iowa team. He had a lot of hype going into last season before tearing his ACL right at the beginning of the season. This year, there was less hype, but he won out in some tough wrestle-offs to take the starting spot. I had hopes that he could make a positive impact on the lineup. Then he went out and wrestled like crap. Carter Happel nearly took the starting spot, but then Turk got another chance and he just started letting loose. He was uber-aggressive, and he was causing fits for people. His defense seemed nearly non-existent, but he was going for so much offense that decisions were going in his favor, and the matches were all exciting as hell. His only losses at the Big Ten Tournament were to Joey McKenna and Nick Lee, the fourth and eighth ranked wrestlers at 141. I really like Turk, but this weight class is STACKED. The depth is the best of any weight class, and although I think Turk gets some wins, I can't quite see him making it to All-American status.

All-Americans

1. Yianni Diakomihalis

2. Bryce Meredith

3. Dean Heil

4. Joey McKenna

5. Jaydin Eierman

6. Kevin Jack

7. Michael Carr

8. Mason Smith

149 - Brandon Sorensen - #2 Seed

Sorensen is Iowa's highest seeded wrestler, but he does not have the best chances of winning a National Championship, due to the existence of Zain Retherford, an absolute monster who will be closing in on his third national title this year. Sorensen is great, but Retherford is transcendent, and although Sorensen should make the finals, he has never beaten Retherford, and I just can't see that changing on Saturday night.

All-Americans

1. Zain Retherford

2. Brandon Sorensen

3. Ryan Deakin

4. Grant Leeth

5. Justin Oliver

6. Troy Heilmann

7. Ke-Shawn Hayes

8. Jason Tsirtsis

157 - Michael Kemerer - #6 Seed

Let's just get this out of the way: Michael Kemerer got totally screwed on seeding. That is not just Iowa homerism in me either, as everyone seems to agree. Yes, he got caught and pinned against Micah Jordan in the semifinals. That's bad, but that also only made Jordan 1-1 against him. Kemerer then forfeited out of the tournament, which the NCAA seeding committee definitely punished this year. Still, Jason Nolf, whose resume this year is nearly identical to Kemerer's, injury defaulted a round earlier than Kemerer and managed the #3 seed. Somehow, Kemerer fell to sixth despite having a convincing win over the #4 seed, Josh Shields earlier this year. It does not make sense, and it means that Kemerer will have to go up against Jason Nolf in the quarterfinals. Nolf was hurt earlier this year but is at least close to back to normal as he was fairly impressive in his two wins in the Big Ten Tournament. It should never happen that whoever wins a quarterfinal matchup is the favorite to win the whole thing, but here we are, and if these guys are near 100%, the winner is going to go on to win the National Title. I want to pick Kemerer so bad, but until I see someone actually beat Jason Nolf, I can't pick against him. I don't see Kemerer losing to anybody else in this tournament.

All-Americans

1. Jason Nolf

2. Hayden Hidlay

3. Michael Kemerer

4. Alec Pantaleo

5. Josh Shields

6. Micah Jordan

7. Joseph Lavallee

8. Andrew Crone

165 - Alex Marinelli - #5 Seed

Well, where Kemerer got screwed on seeding, Marinelli seemed to get a fairly generous draw. He should be able to handle his first two opponents with limited worries before facing Chad Walsh of Rider. Although Walsh has an impressive 24-1 record, it was done against fairly weak opposition. His best win is against #9 seed, Chance Marsteller, who also beat Walsh once. I think Marinelli can get that one, although I can't see him getting by Martinez in the semifinals. At that point, his NCAA Tournament would be at least as good as his sixth place finish at the Big Tens, so I think Hawkeyes fans should be pleased with Marinelli's performance.

All-Americans

1. Isaiah Martinez

2. Logan Massa

3. Vincenzo Joseph

4. David McFadden

5. Alex Marinelli

6. Chance Marsteller

7. Anthony Valencia

8. Richie Lewis

174 - Joey Gunther - Unseeded

Gunther had a solid year bumping up to 174 this season, but it's tough to see him making much of an impact. I could see him getting a couple wins, but nothing more than that as I don't think he will be near competing for All-American status. This weight class is fascinating as it has three undefeated wrestlers in Zahid Valencia, Mark Hall, and Daniel Lewis. I think those top two guys are clearly better than the rest, but Daniel Lewis may surprise me. He's been a bonus point machine, but it has been against a weak schedule so it's tough to say how good he is at 174. I'm not buying what he's selling though.

All-Americans

1. Zahid Valencia

2. Mark Hall

3. Bo Jordan

4. Daniel Lewis

5. Myles Amine

6. Jaeden Bernstein

7. Ethan Ramos

8. Taylor Lujan

184 - Mitch Bowman - Unseeded

Bowman is a solid wrestler for the Hawkeyes, but there is ntohing about him that really stands out. Sometimes, he's relentless; other times, he gets stuck on the mat with no hope of getting up. Sometimes he'll be ultra aggressive; other times, he will barely go for a shot. Even when he's on, it's not the most impressive thing in the world. If he gets a couple wins, it will be a nice tournament for him, but he probably has the best chance of not scoring any team points for the Hawkeyes, so no, I do not see him becoming an All-American. At the top of the bracket, you've got Bo Nickal. Abounader could give him some troubles, but Bo Nickal is really freaking good, so I've got to pick him at this weight class.

All-Americans

1. Bo Nickal

2. Myles Martin

3. Pete Renda

4. Dominic Abounader

5. Emory Parker

6. Maxwell Dean

7. Ryan Preisch

8. Drew Foster

197 - Cash Wilcke - #14 Seed

Cash Wilcke made it to the Round of 12 last year, and although I love Cash Wilcke, I kind of saw that as his ceiling again this year. Many probably thought I was pretty dumb when he was undefeated and ranked fifth in the nation. I would have been so happy to be dumb about that, but instead, I was correct, and he basically fell apart during the second half of the season. He can be competitive against all but the very best in this division, but it is going to take him squeaking out a whole lot of wins for him to make it to All-American status. I predict the same result as last year, where he makes the Round of 12, just barely falling short of AA. Oh, and this weight class is a total clusterfuck, and I have no idea what is going to happen. Random predictions below.

All-Americans

1. Kollin Moore

2. Jared Haught

3. Ben Darmstadt

4. Michael Machiavello

5. Nate Rotert

6. Preston Weigel

7. William Miklus

8. Shakur Rasheed

Heavyweight - Sam Stoll - #5 Seed

Sam Stoll is right where he should be in the seeds. If he wrestles like he should, he will cruise into the quarterfinals against Duke's Jacob Kasper. I don't love Stoll's chances in that match, but I wouldn't count him out either. Even if he does win that match, he's not getting by America's greatest living athlete, Kyle Snyder, so don't expect to see him wrestling Saturday night. But for the first time, Stoll is actually healthy at the NCAA Tournament, and I think he does enough to become an All-American. It's going to be Snyder and Coon in the finals, and although they have split their first two matches this year, there is no way I am going to pick against Snyder. 

All-Americans

1. Kyle Snyder

2. Adam Coon

3. Jacob Kasper

4. Sam Stoll

5. Tanner Hall

6. Derek White

7. Nick Nevills

8. Michael Boykin

And that wraps up my selections for the tournament. Iowa is definitely not winning a team title this year, but with Lee, Sorensen, and Kemerer, they have three guys who have the potential to be competing on Saturday night. And seriously, take a break from college basketball and at least tune in on Saturday night, it really is one of the most fun sporting events of the year.

Ranking Each Number One Seed's Championship Chances at the NCAA Wrestling Tournament

It's the most wonderful sports weekend of the year. Starting on Thursday, all eyes will be towards the sports world. Fans will fill out their brackets and hope that this is the year that they win their office pool. And after three days of amazing action, on Sunday you can rest and watch basketball, because the NCAA Wrestling Tournament is here. March Matness is the only thing that matters this weekend, so do yourself a favor and tune into as much as you can.

With that, I wanted to look at all of the number one seeds and rank who has the best and worst chances of being atop the podium on Saturday night.

10. Zahid Valencia - Arizona State - 174
Valencia has had an incredible freshman season, as he has worked his way through everyone that stood in his path to an undefeated record. He faced some solid competition but almost completely avoided the Big Ten, and I believe that is where he will struggle in this tournament. As a number one seed, it's close to impossible to see them lose one of their first two matchups, and Valencia should cruise through those. I believe he'll have to get through Miles Amine in the Quarterfinals, who he did beat by a single point earlier in the season, and Amine has seemed to improve by leaps and bounds since then. After that, he either gets Zach Epperly of Virginia Tech or super Freshman, Mark Hall. I think it'll be the latter, and I significantly favor Hall in that match. His offense has just been incredible, and you could make a pretty strong argument that he outwrestled Bo Jordan in the B1G finals through seven minutes but wasn't able to get the win. After that, I think Bo Jordan comes out of the bottom half of the bracket, but Realbuto is funky enough to give anyone troubles. Still, I just don't see how Valencia gets through all of these landmines to win a championship. But the good news is he's only a freshman, so he'll still have plenty of time to end up as a champion.

9. Dean Heil - Oklahoma State - 141
I'm a Dean Heil hater. I wrote this article last year, and he ranked tenth, but he managed to still win the National Title, so this year he moves all the way up to the nine spot. The guy wrestles way too many close matches to consistently come out on top, but he does manage to always come out on top. I'm still predicting that to end at the NCAA Tournament. He's a tough guy to score on, but I refuse to believe he's going back-to-back this year. Although I have trouble not seeing him in the semifinals, I see him having a tough time getting past Matthew Kolodzik or Anthony Ashnault, especially since the latter is wrestling better than he ever has before. I like Ashnault a lot in this tournament and would bet on him to beat Heil this year, but even if he makes it to the finals, a matchup with Kevin Jack or Joey McKenna awaits him. Honestly, there isn't much separating the top five guys at this weight. Last year, Heil managed to work his way through to a title; I don't see him repeating the feat.

8. Nathan Tomasello - Ohio State - 133
Tomasello's a stud, but 133 is absolutely stacked this year. It's either this weight or the next one I'm going to talk about for the toughest weight class in college wrestling. Tomasello will cruise through his first two opponents, but things start to get very interesting in the quarterfinals. Zane Richards is a tough guy who was looked at as a top-five guy entering this year. I do think Tomasello can take care of business there, but things get very interesting in the semifinals where he is likely to take on Cory Clark or Stevan Micic. He barely beat Micic 6-5 at the Big Ten Tournament, and that is a guy who has gotten a ton better as the year has gone on. I'm still hoping it's Clark he's going to see, and Tomasello won by a literal last second escape (and was helped by getting a point for an illegal move as well). I think it was a learning experience for Clark, and I think Tomasello is in serious trouble if Clark gets past Micic. Then you have the bottom half of the bracket that is led by Seth Gross and Kaid Brock, two guys who can absolutely put up points, and even they have to get through Eric Montoya and Dom Forys just to get there. Tomasello could beat any of these guys, but it's going to be tough to beat all of them, and I just don't see him doing it this year.

7. Gabe Dean - Cornell - 184
On talent and resume, Gabe Dean should definitely be higher on this list. I know that, you know that, we all know that. But 184 has a legitimate claim at being the toughest weight class in college wrestling this year. There are just so many landmines at this weight class. I mean, yes, Dean is cruising through his first two opponents, but then he likely gets Nate Jackson of Indiana or Jack Dechow of Old Dominion, both of who are tough guys. Then he will likely get Zach Zavatsky (I'm not a believer in Nolan Boyd) who is another legitimate challenger. Those guys are all tough, but Dean has faced tough guy after tough guy and almost always comes out on top. I have trouble seeing him not make the Finals, but then he goes up against either Sammy Brooks or Bo Nickal. Bo Nickal may have the most fun offensive moveset in college wrestling, as the guy is always looking for a huge move. He has the ability to hit it on anybody, and that include Gabe Dean. But don't sleep on Brooks who wrestled Dean tight two years ago and is wrestling better than he has ever wrestled right now. Dean is the best guy at this weight, but with the competition that he is going to have to go through, it is far from a guarantee that he ends up on top of the podium.

6. Thomas Gilman - Iowa - 125
Is there some Hawkeye bias here? Maybe, but who exactly is he going to lose to before the finals? He's basically dominated every opponent he's had outside of Nick Suriano, who is both injured and on the other side of the bracket. He's beaten just about every guy on his side of the bracket, and with the way he's wrestling this year, it seems highly unlikely that anyone is going to rise up and take him out. So that leads him to a relatively easy path with a likely matchup against Suriano or Joey Dance from Virginia Tech. Suriano is hurt, and I really don't think he's going to be able to make an impact on a bum ankle. He's 1-1 against Dance, but they wrestled both of those matches two seasons ago. Both have gotten better since then, but Dance is only very good where Gilman is an absolute dominator on the mat these days. I think Gilman finds his way through the bracket to become the Hawkeyes first National Champion since Tony Ramos.

5. Isaiah Martinez - Illinois - 165
Isaiah Martinez is going for his third national title in three years, this time up a weight at 165. Although there are some tough guys at 165, Martinez is still the clear favorite. He's going to cruise to the semifinals where a likely matchup with Isaac Jordan awaits. Jordan is always rock solid in his wrestling, but I just don't think he has the offense to truly threaten Martinez. The most interesting matchup lies in the finals where he will take on Logan Massa. Outside of getting hit with a six-point move in the Big Ten Tournament, Massa has wrestled Martinez tough, but I have a tough time seeing anyone stop Martinez from a threepeat.

4. J'Den Cox - Missouri - 197
Originally, I had Martinez ahead of J'Den Cox, but then I got to looking at things, and then I thought about some things and decided it's really hard to put the 2016 Olympic Bronze Medalist lower than this. He's wrestled against the #2, #3, and #4 ranked wrestlers and beaten them all. Yes, they have been relatively close as he's won each match by two points, but he's winning, and he's super good. Also, this weight isn't that strong past Cox. Kollin Moore and Brett Pfarr are both good enough to push Cox in the Finals, but third best in the world almost definitely means that he's the best in the NCAA.

3. Zain Retherford - Penn State - 149
I could probably just say, "Ain't nobody stopping the Zain Train," and call it a day, but what fun would that be? There are two interesting matchups for him. One with Brandon Sorensen, who he beat 9-8 after having an advantage in riding time in the second tiebreaker, and Anthony Collica, who he only beat 2-1 in their match late in the season. Those were his only two decision wins, and honestly, I still wouldn't be surprised if those remained his only two decision wins this year, as I could easily see him storming through everyone in the tournament. As a Hawkeye fan, I'd love to pick Sorensen for the upset, but ain't nobody stopping the Zain Train.

2. Kyle Snyder - Ohio State - Heavyweight
How can I put the United States's youngest Olympic gold medal winning wrestler below the top spot? I'm struggling with that question myself. I actually originally had him at the three spot, but decided to move him ahead of Zain. The other issue is that he won that gold medal at 213 pounds, and the heavyweight limit is 275. Even if he's walking around at 225-230, he's going to be giving up around 50 pounds to some of the big boys at this weight. He's still steamrolled everybody that he's gone up against, as he's a takedown machine. He's freakishly strong as no heavyweight can push him around on the mat, and he's such an incredible athlete that he can do whatever he wants despite the size disadvantage. He's going to win his second straight national title, but I just couldn't put him ahead of this last guy.

1. Jason Nolf - Penn State - 157
Nolf is winning the National Title this year. The only thing that stopped him were some incredibly close matches with Isaiah Martinez last year, and this year, he doesn't have to worry about that. In fact, he doesn't have much to worry about at all. There is only one guy he hasn't scored bonus points against this year, and that is the second-ranked Michael Kemerer, but that does not mean that these were close matches. Kemerer lost by more but looked better in their second match, but Nolf is just too good. Even as a Penn State hater, there is no way to not like watching Nolf. There is no question that he will come home with a National Title; the only question is whether he gets bonus points in all of his matches or not. He's that good, and that is why, out of all the number one seeds, there is nobody I am more confident in taking home the title than Jason Nolf.

The Best and Worst of the Iowa Hawkeyes at the 2016 NCAA Tournament

So the NCAA Tournament did not exactly work out how Hawkeye fans had hoped it would. Penn State was expected to win, and they went out and dominated. It seems as if there is nobody better than Cael Sanderson in prepping his team for the NCAA Tournament, and this year was no different. Even though there were some disappointments for the Hawkeyes, there were also things to celebrate. Let's break it down in chronological order to get through the muck early, so we can celebrate late.

141 - Brody Grothus - N/A
Iowa didn't qualify anybody for the tournament, and there was no Vince McMahon to bring in a brand new Iowa wrestler, Grody Brothus, to liven things up at the Nationals. So, yeah, nothing to note here.

165 - Patrick Rhoads - 0-2
Rhoads was unseeded, and he lived up to that in the tournament. He lost both of his matches. He just didn't have the necessary skills to generate any offense. He wrestled hard; it just wasn't enough.

Heavyweight - Sam Stoll - 0-1
I knew this was a possibility. Sam Stoll's injured knee just couldn't hold up. If he was healthy, I think he would have become an All-American as a freshman, which would have been an incredible accomplishment. Only his knee did give out, and it's a what if as opposed to what actually happened. Wrestling is a hard sport, and it always sucks to see a talented guy not be able to showcase what he has worked so hard for because his body simply can't perform (Brian Realbuto was another example from this year). I'm guessing he'll still struggle early in the season next year, but he will hopefully be back to 100% by the time the matches get meaningful.

157 - Edwin Cooper - 1-2
We knew Cooper was going to need some good matchups to do much damage in this tournament, and unfortunately, he did not get those matchups. He got to his offense early in his first round matchup and took care of business with an 8-3 win. After that, he got matched up with Ian Miller, who nearly beat Isaiah Martinez in the semifinals, and Miller just ran right through Cooper. After that, he was in a match against Austin Matthews from Edinboro, and he started off really well as he got into a shot immediately, but he couldn't finish his shots. After that, he lost some scrambles, ended up on his back repeatedly, and finally got pinned as he knew it was basically the end for him. Obviously, it would have been preferable for him to win another match or two, but he beat the guy he should have, lost to a guy he should have, and didn't find the breaks in his the match that was pretty even going into it. It happens.

174 - Alex Meyer - 4-3 - All American (8th)
Alex Meyer came much closer to having a bigger impact in the tournament. Unfortunately, he got off to a slow start where he was in a match that was seven minutes long, and about six minutes of that were scrambles. He lost 10-9 to Gordon Wolf in a match that he would definitely win the next time around, but that's what makes winning the NCAAs so tough. You face a mystery opponent and one slip up and you've lost your shot at a national title. After that, Meyer really started wrestling great. In the consolation round, he took out the 4, 6, 9, and 14 seeds on his route to become an All-American, and I think he may have trailed in each of those matches. He finally lost to Zach Epperly who took third place in the tournament. Even that was on Friday night after Meyer had a match while Epperly advanced by medical forfeit. On Saturday morning, he lost a hard fought match against Cody Walters from Ohio who pulled out the victory in the final seconds. It was disappointing to end with a couple losses, but considering how he battled back after his first match, it was a really strong performance for Meyer and gives Hawkeyes a reason for excitement for his senior year.

184 - Sammy Brooks - 3-3 - All-American (8th)
Where Alex Meyer bounced back to become a happy surprise as an 8th place finisher, it seems that 8th place is what happened for Sammy Brooks because everything went wrong. He won his first two matches, and then had his third match with TJ Dudley of Nebraska. It was an issue of falling behind early and then not having enough time to catch up. He did make it interesting though as he continually went for upper body throws and actually put Dudley on his back for a second, but he couldn't hold the position, and Dudley held on to win and eventually make it to the finals. That easily could have been Brooks going up against Gabe Dean, but alas, it was not meant to be. On the back half, things continued to get screwy. Brooks faced Dominic Abounader from Michigan and put him on his back in the first period. Right before he is about to complete the pin, the second ref stops the match because he thought there may be an illegal hold. There wasn't, but Brooks lost the position and an extra two points. On top of that, Iowa lost another team point because Assistant Coach, Ryan Morningstar, would not stop screaming at the officials. Iowa would have made the podium as a team with those points, but fourth place isn't really all that important to the Hawkeyes despite what the announcers were saying on Saturday night. Back to Brooks, instead of having a two minute match, he had to go seven hard minutes and then wrestle again later that night against Mat Miller who did get a two minute pin and got up early on Brooks. Sammy went for a big move but got put on his back and pinned. The next morning it was more of the same where Brooks got down and never came close to coming back against Nathaniel Brown from Lehigh. It was a disappointing end to what had been a very good season for Brooks. Still, I think he's a top competitor at 184 next year.

197 - Nathan Burak - 4-2 - All-American (4th)
Burak did exactly what he was supposed to do. He was seeded fourth and he finished fourth. Really, there's nothing to complain about. He won his first three matches, went up against Morgan McIntosh and lost his sixth match to McIntosh. He couldn't generate any offense, and that's the way it has always gone against McIntosh. In what was the only match between Iowa and Iowa State wrestlers, Burak bounced back to beat Patrick Downey in sudden victory. He then lost to Brett Pfarr, a guy he had split with in their previous two matches. Burak was an incredibly solid wrestler for all four years, but he just never had the athleticism to take out the top guys. Iowa would be lucky to get anything close to Nathan Burak for their next starter at 197.

149 - Brandon Sorensen - 4-1 - All-American (2nd)
Brandon Sorensen came in as the #2 seed, and he lived up to that seed. Ultimately, it was a really good performance from Sorensen. The guy is not a point scoring machine, but he is solid everywhere, and he finds ways to win. After a major decision in the first round, he won by two points in his next three matches, one of which went to the second sudden victory period against Jake Sueflohn. It's not flashy, but it gets the job done, and it got him into the finals. That earned him a second match against Zain Retherford, and Retherford is just on another level right now. I think he deserves the Hodge Trophy for best wrestler at any weight class, and he completely overwhelmed Sorensen in the finals. Still, Sorensen did the best of any of his opponents as he was the only one to last all seven minutes. Retherford won by tech fall, pin, pin, and pin before the finals. I feel like second place was his ceiling, and he reached it. Unfortunately, Zain is only a sophomore, so I don't really see that ceiling changing in the next two years.

133 - Cory Clark - 4-1 - All-American (2nd)
Clark wrestled a smart tournament. And by smart, I am implying safe. He got a major decision in his first match and then just plugged along with enough offense to win each match. It got him to the finals where he met Nahshon Garrett, and Garrett is a different sort of wrestler. Technique wise, Clark can hang with anyone, but Garrett's athleticism gave him a lot of problems. Garrett did an excellent job of finding open spots to take his shots, and he was very successful in doing so. The match ended up 7-6, but it really wasn't that close, as Garrett took a large lead and played it safe to hang on to win in the end. Next year, this weight class opens up as the guys who have beat him the last two years (Garrett and Cody Brewer) both graduate. There's a good chance he opens the year as the top ranked wrestler in the 133 pound weight class.

125 - Thomas Gilman - 4-1 - All-American (2nd)
Although he was one of three Hawkeyes to be runner-up in his weight class, Gilman had the best performance of any Hawkeye in the tournament. He absolutely steamrolled his way into the semifinals with a tech fall and two major decisions. He then faced top-ranked Nathan Tomasello and battled for seven minutes. Tomasello almost got a takedown at the end, but Gilman managed to hold him off. Then in overtime, Tomasello looked pretty gassed, and Gilman was not only able to get a takedown, but he got the pin as well to give Iowa even more bonus points. Tomasello was the only top-seeded wrestler to not make the finals, so it was a great job by Gilman. As for the finals, Gilman had a good shot early on, but Megaludis was able to reverse the advantage and get two himself. It changed the whole dynamic of the match, and Gilman wasn't able to make up the deficit. Still, Gilman had a great tournament, and he'll be a co-favorite with Tomasello to win the National Title next year.

This was a disappointing season in many ways for Iowa. Not winning the National Title was not one of them, as Penn State was absolutely stacked, and it was going to take not only Iowa performing well but Penn State to perform poorly to rise to that standard. Still, fifth place is about as low as this team could have finished. The most disappointing part were all those even numbers in the All-American finishes. Every single Iowa wrestler ended his season with a loss. It leaves a bad taste in the mouth, but maybe it's just what they need to take a big step forward for 2017.

Breaking Down the #1 Seeds in the 2016 NCAA Wrestling Tournament

As an Iowan, it is genetically ingrained in me to love wrestling. I can't help it, and my love of the sport seems to grow with each passing year. Even though my beloved Hawkeyes are on a drought (not winning a National Title since 2010), I am still awed by the sport, as I think it is one of the most action packed events you can watch.

This NCAA season has already been pretty surprising. Kyle Snyder took an Olympic Redshirt, then changed his mind and came back, but instead of wrestling 197, he's wrestling 285 (although his weight will be nowhere near that). Gabe Dean got beat by a guy who wasn't even a starter to begin the season, and Isaiah Martinez, who I thought had a chance to never lose a college match, lost to a Freshman this year. These are just some of the crazy things that have happened in the last few weeks. Wrestling is awesome.

Anyway, I was going through the rankings at each weight class, and it got me thinking how crazy this NCAA Tournament could be. Usually, there are a few guys who you know are going to win National Titles, but this year, it is different, as there isn't a single #1 seed that I would feel confident betting on this year. So I though it'd be fun to look at the #1 ranked guys and see who has the best and worst chance of winning a title this year.

1. 165 - Alex Dieringer, Oklahoma State
As much as it pains me to say this about an Oklahoma State wrestler, if I had to bet on anybody, it would be Dieringer. There is a reason he is looking for his third straight National Title, and it's because he is an absolute beast. 165 is shallow outside of that top 3, so I really don't see anybody tripping up Dieringer before the finals. His biggest competition are the Jordan cousins, Isaac from Wisconsin and Bo from Ohio State, and although both are tough wrestlers, Dieringer's offense gives him a significant advantage when he squares off against them.

2. 149 - Zain Retherford, Penn State
You know how I said it hurt to put Dieringer as having the best chance? Yeah, this might hurt more, because Retherford is currently ranked #1, and Brandon Sorensen from Iowa is ranked #2. Both guys are undefeated, and that should give me confidence in Sorensen's chances, but man, the Zain Train has just been unstoppable. After the top two, the defending National Champion, Jason Tsirtsis from Northwestern, is back, but hasn't quite looked right throughout this season. He is without a doubt a threat, as he's just incredibly good in all positions when he's wrestling at his best. This is going to take a monumental effort to knock off Retherford, which is very unfortunate.

3. HWT - Nick Gwiazdowski, North Carolina State
I nearly put Gwiazdowski in the top spot, but heavyweights are tough to predict as they are so inclined to wrestle close matches. Gwiazdowski has been an absolute hammer for NC State, as he hasn't just won, he's been putting up big points all year long. Still, he's had some close matches, and there is some good competition at this weight. Kyle Snyder's the guy that everybody talks about, and obviously winning a World Freestyle Title deserves a whole lot of respect, but I have doubts he'll make it to the Finals. He didn't win a title at 197 last year, so wrestling at 285 isn't going to make things any easier. I think Adam Coon has the highest potential of anybody outside of Gwiazdowski, but I still think GWizz has a damn good shot of getting through the field unscathed.

4. 184 - Gabe Dean, Cornell
Dean probably would have been on top of this list had I made it a couple weeks ago, but his recent loss to Nolan Boyd has to drop him a little. Still, he's pretty high for not being undefeated, but that shows you how good Dean has been when it matters in March. He wasn't able to overcome Ed Ruth, but he plowed through the field last year. He has close matches, but he always finds a way to come through. There is a ton of depth at this weight class (too many to name), so it won't be easy, but it's tough for me to reasonably pick against Dean without a single monumental talent to take him out.

5. 197 - Morgan McIntosh, Penn State
McIntosh has done everything he can to cement himself as the top guy at 197 this year. Still, there is J'Den Cox sitting there, who won the National Title two years ago. They're both incredibly good, and I definitely favor McIntosh, but not by a whole lot. As a Hawkeye homer, I will note that Nathan Burak wrestles everybody tough and his only loss is controversial as he came very close to a takedown (I thought he had it) in the closing seconds of his match against Brett Pfarr. McIntosh is the best but being the best over and over again isn't easy, so it's far from a guarantee that he'll pull it off.

6. 133 - Nahshon Garrett, Cornell
This may have been the hardest guy to place in these rankings. Garrett moved up from 125 this year, and he has dominated everyone he has faced. However, he hasn't faced a ton of the top guys at this weight class, and considering he never won the title at 125, Also, the defending national champion, Cody Brewer, is back this year. Garrett got the better of him when they faced off earlier in the season, but Brewer was one of the most dominant forces in the NCAA Tournament last year, so I'm not ready to count him out by any means. This doesn't even include Zane Richards and Cory Clark who are both incredibly tough and could definitely reach the finals. Garrett is great, but it's tough to have a lot of confidence in him with how strong the top of this weight class is.

7. 157 - Jason Nolf, Penn State
Nolf has been ridiculously good this season. He's not only undefeated, but he's also putting up bonus points like it ain't no thang, when it most certainly is a thang. No offense to Ian Miller, but the only real question on whether Nolf can win this National Title is getting through Isaiah Martinez from Illinois. I honestly thought that Martinez was the best wrestler at any weight class coming into this season, so my jaw dropped when I saw that he not only lost but got pinned by Nolf when they met earlier this season. Martinez looked off in that match in that he got down early, panicked, and possibly even gassed out trying to come back in a single move. The Big Ten Tournament is going to answer a ton of questions at nearly every weight class, but never is that more true than here. If Nolf wins again, he shoots up to the top of this list, but if he loses, it's likely him and I-Mar will have a rubber match in the finals of the NCAAs.\

8. 174 - Bo Nickal, Penn State
Penn State's other super freshman, although I don't see Nickal on the same level as Jason Nolf. Nickal has been crafty and has only suffered one loss in a weak division. Still, he's not physically overwhelming, and there are those chances of him slipping up well before reaching the finals. As to who is going to beat him, on that, I really don't have much of a clue. There's a lot of guys that could rise up, but Nickal is still probably the favorite, just because nobody else has been all that impressive either. This is probably the most wide open weight class in the nation, but Nickal deserves to be the favorite.

9. 125 - Nathan Tomasello, Ohio State
Not much faith in Tomasello repeating as a National Champion, and he has really given no reason for me to doubt him, but Thomas Gilman of Iowa has been wrestling ridiculously well the entire season, and I see that matchup as a coin toss. Maybe that's me being a homer, but Tomasello isn't untouchable, and 125 is incredibly deep. Outside of him and Gilman, Joey Dance and Nico Megaludis are both legitimate threats, and Tomasello is going to have to be his peak abilities to overcome everyone in this weight class.

10. 141 - Dean Heil, Oklahoma State
This was a tough one, as this is what I believe to be the weakest weight class in the nation, and because of that, they have the weakest #1 ranked guy in Heil from Oklahoma State. Now, I still must say that Heil is definitely a tough wrestler; it's just that I'm never overwhelmed by his performances. I just don't think there is much that separates 1-10 at this weight class, and there are plenty of opportunities to slip up before finding himself on top of the podium. Kevin Jack and Joey McKenna are the best alternatives at this weight, but this is the weight class where I could see somebody coming from out of nowhere to make a run at the title.

The elephant in the room is the team race. Currently, Penn State has four top-ranked guys and are the clear favorites for the team title. But the beauty of March Matness is the unpredictability. This year should have no shortage of that. It makes me happy to be a wrestling fan, because otherwise, there is like NOTHING going on in college sports in the month of March.

2014 NCAA Wrestling Tournament Predictions

Last week, I gave my thoughts on what the brackets meant for Iowa, but I figured that I should probably give my actual predictions for what is going to happen in each weight class. I'm not going to pick out each All-American spot, but I do want to look at who I have making the finals and winning as well as where the Iowa wrestler at each weight will end up. I will admit that I am overly optimistic about Iowa, but I also don't think I'm insane in any of these predictions. Still, I definitely lean towards the positive when it comes to Iowa. (Note: I try to predict who Iowa will face in later rounds, but I am almost always going by seed. There are going to be a ton of upsets this weekend, but trying to predict them is almost impossible).

125 - Iowa
I really like Cory Clark, but I don't love his draw. I think he's capable of beating anybody but having to go up against Jesse Delgado in the quarterfinals will prove too tough of a road for him. In the wrestlebacks, I think he can do some damage as he has enormous talent. I think he can get through anybody until he goes up against Nahshon Garrett. That puts him in the 5th place match where I see him getting revenge over Wisconsin's Bradley Taylor.

125 - Final
It's going to come down to another match between Jesse Delgado of Illinois and Nico Megaludis of Penn State. Megaludis is tough everywhere, but Delgado is just a ridiculous talent, and I think he knows what it takes to peak at the NCAA Tournament. This is going to be a close match; it will probably be seen as a boring match by many, but I think Delgado does enough to win a second National Title.

National Champion - Jesse Delgado - Illinois

133 - Iowa
I'm not betting against Ramos. There is a reason he was heavily favored to win the title before the season began. Logan Stieber was the only guy that was able to beat him last year, and even though this year has not gone as well as many had hoped. I expect to see Tony dominating early before taking an impressive decision in the quarterfinals to set up his rematch with AJ Schopp. He lost 3-2 when he just didn't get to his offense, but I think he learns from that mistake and shows why he was the favorite going into the season.

133 - Final
I tried to come up with a way that Joe Colon did not make the finals, but I couldn't reasonably do it. I think Graff gets to the semis, but Colon has handled him both times, so I expect him to win again. That means that Ramos gets a chance to avenge his only other loss in the finals. I think he does it, but that may be because I don't want to live in a world where Tony Ramos does not win a National Title. Last time, Colon got an early takedown, and then he caught Ramos going in for a shot perfectly, put him to his back and pinned him. I don't see Ramos getting down early, and I think in a close match that I really like what Tony does both from the top and the bottom positions.

National Champion - Tony Ramos - Iowa

141 - Iowa
To prove I am not a total Iowa homer, I do have Dziewa losing his first round match with Dutton. Dutton expanded the margin between these two after their first meeting with a dominant win at the Big Tens. Still, I really like how things set up for him in the consolation matches. He will likely be taking on Nick Flannery from Buffalo in his first consolation match, and as he was only able to accumulate a 22-16 record, this seems like a win for Dziewa. After that, it is likely 14 seed, Edgar Bright from Pittsburgh, and although I expect it to be close, I do think Dziewa can win that one as well. Then he is projected to take on Joey Lazor, the 11 seed in the next round, and I really feel as if Lazor is overrated. Outside of catching Mecate in his final match, he doesn't really have any quality wins. I'm taking Dziewa again before falling to Luke Vaith of Hofstra and falling short of All-American status.

141 - Final
Mitchell Port is the 1 seed, and his biggest competition is Devin Carter who is technically undefeated but lost to Ramos (who was wrestling up a weight class) in a preseason match. I think Port makes it to the finals, where he will face Logan Steiber who is going to steamroll everybody. Steiber showed everyone that his loss to Retherford was more due to not having any experience against him than Retherford being the better wrestler. Retherford has a tough road, including a surprisingly tough first round match. I still see him making it to the semis, but Stieber beasts him there, and then goes onto beast Mitchell Port. Don't bet agianst Steiber; he's going to win the National Title.

National Champion - Logan Stieber - Ohio State

149 - Iowa
Brody Grothus got the 13 seed and is a total enigma to me. He has faced a lot of tough competition, and outside of the Big Ten Tournament, he has taken care of business against most lesser foes. That means that I have him winning his first round match before getting beat (and likely beaten badly) by Kendric Maple. I have him taking his first wrestleback match, and then has a likely matchup with Dyllan Cotrell from Appalachian State. Cotrell only has one loss, but he has only faced one legitimate wrestler and got majored by Jason Tsirtsis. I'll say Grothus's luck finally runs out against Nick Dardanes who gets upset in the quarterfinals. Still, 3-2 would be a solid showing for Grothus.

149 - Final
149 has been insane for most of the year, but I do think that things have settled. Still, I don't see a 1-2 matchup. I think 1 seed, Drake Houdashelt, will make his way through a tough top-side of the bracket. It might be Maple or Tsirtsis in the semis, but I still see Drake getting by him. On the bottom side of the bracket, I have 6 seed, Jake Sueflohn, making it through. His only losses are to Drake, Maple, and Tsirtsis, so the draw really worked out well for him. Although the draw works out well, I still see Houdashelt claiming the national title for Missouri.

National Champion - Drake Houdashelt - Missouri

157 - Iowa
Derek St. John got the number two seed, and a pretty favorable draw. He has a surprisingly tough first round match in Joey Napoli, but after that, he should cruise to the semifinals where has a likely match with Alex Dieringer. DSJ is never pretty, but he usually finds a way to do enough to win, especially at the NCAAs. I don't see that changing this year.

157 - Final
The top half of this bracket has a ton of talent with Ness, Pena, and Jordan, and Green. I keep going back and forth on things as I could really see any of those guys emerging and making it to the final. Still, Green has had some close matches, but he has still proven that he is number one at this weight class, so I do see him making the finals. He has dominated DSJ twice this year, and when watching those matches, it is tough to see how DSJ can beat him. Still, I really want to pick DSJ...but I can't. Green wins his first National Title.

National Champion - James Green - Nebraska

165 - Iowa
Nick Moore got the 5 seed, but I do like his path to make it to the semifinals. I think he gets revenge on Steven Monk in the quarterfinals, but yeah, he's not going to compete with the Magicman. It is kind of a bummer, as I really believe he could prove himself as the second best guy in the country behind Taylor. Still, I think he dominates the Wrestlebacks to take third place which would be a great finish for him.

165 - Final
Honestly, outside of Taylor, 165 is kind of a weak weight. There aren't guys that inspire much confidence in me picking them. Because of that, I'll go chalk and put Caldwell in the finals. He was able to stall so much that he held Taylor to a regular decision earlier this year, but I think Taylor gets his revenge and majors him in the finals, putting a nice little bow on what has been a very impressive collegiate wrestling career.

National Champion - David Taylor - Penn State

174 - Iowa
Mike Evans got the 4 seed after a good Big Ten Tournament. I think Evans is strong enough to cruise into the quarterfinals where he will face Matt Brown. These two have gone back and forth, and unfortunately, I see Brown getting the victory. It will be a close match, and one takedown will probably win it. After that, I see him tearing through the Wrestlebacks. Unfortunately, in the semifinals, he will go up against Robert Kokesh, where he will lose. He will still recover to win his 5th place match for a very nice tournament.

174 - Final
I'm going chalk for this weight class. Perry from Oklahoma State taking on Howe from Oklahoma. Perry upset him at the Big 12 Tournament (which is now just 4 teams), but Howe came very close many times to getting points. I don't think Howe loses again. He's freakishly strong and totally solid in technique. Also, he's a 9th year senior (estimate), so he can go out and celebrate by renting a car. Good for him.

National Champion - Andrew Howe - Oklahoma

184 - Iowa
As I stated in my earlier piece, Lofthouse got a great draw, and I'm going to keep this one short and predict a spot in the finals for him. Bring it, Thomusseit. Bring it, Sheptock. You're all going down.

184 - Final
As for winning the final, that ain't happening. Ed Ruth is a monster. Ed Ruth will avenge his loss to Gabe Dean, cruise to the finals, and win yet another national championship while racking up a ridiculous amount of bonus points for Penn State. Ed Ruth is amazing, and as a Hawkeye, I'm happy to see him graduate.

National Champion - Ed Ruth - Penn State

197 - Iowa
I have Burak winning his first round match before losing in the second round to Richard Perry from Bloomsburg. After that, I see him winning his first wrestleback, but then losing to Chris Penny from Virginia Tech. Burak could outperform these expectations, but he just hasn't shown enough offense to inspire much confidence in him.

197 - Final
I think Nick Heflin holds seed and makes it to the finals where he runs into J'Den Cox from Missouri. Both guys have been on a roll as of late, but I see Cox doing enough to give Missouri a second national champion.

National Champion - J'Den Cox - Missouri

HWT - Iowa
While I think Bobby could beat anybody on the bottom half of the bracket, the top is a much tougher draw for him. I think he will do enough to beat the guys he is supposed to, but he is already lost twice to Adam Coon this season, and I see Coon getting the better of him a third time. Still, I have him coming back from that to win his first two matches against Jeremy Johnson and getting another win over JT Felix before a tough match against Nick Gwiazdowski from NC State. I think Telford can get past him to make it into the third place match. At that point, he gets yet another match against Coon, but this time I see Telford figuring it out and getting the win for third place.

HWT - Final
Heavyweight has been a rollercoaster this year, but somehow, Tony Nelson ended up as the top seed despite four losses. I have him beating Coon in the semifinals to advance. On the bottom of the bracket, I'm taking Mike McMullan from Northwestern overcoming some odds as the 6 seed. Still, Tony Nelson has won teh last two national titles for a reason. He's really good, and he wrestles great at the tournament. I don't see that changing this year, and Nelson wins his third straight title.

National Champion - Tony Nelson - Minnesota

Overall
So, as an Iowa fan, this is a very optimistic view of what could happen. Any of these things could happen, but the chances of Iowa having 7 All-Americans is just a tad unlikely. Penn State is almost certainly getting two national champions, and they have a strong chance in at least three other weights. I think Minnesota is overvalued in their seeds, and I think they could run into some very tough early matchups. Oklahoma State just isn't strong enough to compete with those top three teams, and in the end, I see it coming down to Iowa and Penn State. If I'm right on everything, Iowa wins, but I honestly don't think my prognostication skills have been perfected yet. It pains me to say it, but I still see Penn State showing that they are the best team in the nation and winning yet another National Championship.

National Champions - Penn State