IMO depends on what Dee walks around at and if he can be a healthy and effective 157. He’s an immediate title contender at that weight if it’s doable. I’m not sure what Thompson can/can’t be at 184, but I think he’d be a helluva lot more effective than he was as a starving 174.
Next Years Lineup
- Thread starter Cowboy1989
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If Thompson ever sees 74 again, he's not passing drug tests or is sick.
I know freestyle isn't a perfect comparison, but he didn't look great at the US Open, losing to Reece Heller (never made round of 16), getting blanked by Rocco Welsh, and losing big to Illinois sophomore Chris Moore. His best wins were low-scoring criteria wins over Jaden Bullock and Jersey Robb.
Still cant figure out why DT convinced him to stick around. He needs to go somewhere he can have a terrible diet and still be a starter.
I agree. I think they find the best fit for Dee and go from there. He is you title contender among that group. I think Thompson has a small window for a spot in the lineup next year.
Nobody with any real grasp of wrestling.
BT CANNOT go get a td when he needs one. Will literally let the clock run out without trying. When he does get a TD (which aint often), Its usually something else besides a shot to a leg(s) and a finish.
I dont understand a line up that involves him unless as @osu2082 said theyre looking for the best spot for Dee. Maybe they give this a go next season to get a better idea about things but you gotta get Robideau in there the year after for sure.
I think the truth on BT is somewhere in the middle. I think it is way, way too early to give up on the kid. He is someone DT obviously wants around. I also can't imagine they are moving guys to sub-optimal weights to get him in the lineup.
Why do you assume DT wants him around? Because he didnt leave? I'm not saying DT doesnt like the guy. But I can promise you his mama was PISSED they brought Ryder in and was testing the waters hard. IMO she didnt find anyone that enthusiastic about giving him much to come their way, at least from a program that they deemed "worthy".
I'm going to tell it like I see it boys. Bear in mind if he proves me wrong I'll 100% say so. BT is terrible at pulling weight. 2 years ago he went 2 and BBQ at NCAAs and did exactly what I said earlier in that he was behind and couldnt go get a TD (hardly tried really). You can all say he was cutting to much. No, he was cutting all wrong. You dont make 174 on the weekend and come in Monday afternoon weighing 200 and that happened all season. What worked in HS doesnt work in college and some dont transition well. Look at Rocco W. He and BT were both top of the list recruits, and I think most of the time BT won when they wrestled in HS. The next year Rocco is a finalist and BT was in the stands at the end of Day 1.
Last year he fell asleep and missed his flight to the MSU open (nobody else did) and then couldnt make weight after juggling flights to get there (thats the jest of it anyway). He entered another tourney and won but if you get on Wrestlestat and see who he wrestled then you cant get real excited.
IMO which aint worth much, theres only 2 things that will help Brayden. (1) He needs to find a whole other level of discipline in his life and keep his weight under control the whole season. And (2) he needs to find at least 1 (preferably 2) Go-To TDs to have any chance of making even the bloodround next year.
Some folks wont like this post. I'd love for BT to hear about this and get madder than hell and set out to prove me wrong. If he can AA next year if he's in the line up I promise you I will walk up to him and congratulate him and tell him my name on this forum and tell him I was smooth jack wrong!
Well, I think the fact that he is on the team points to the fact DT wants him around. There is also the fact he took him to World's with him to train. And yes, that he was going to leave and they talked him out of it.
I think it is too soon to simply give up on him. Do I think BT will end up being an awesome wrestler for us? I wouldn't bet on it. I honestly don't think he will ever be a long-term starter for us. All I am saying is he was a monster recruit who has one year of live college wrestling under his belt. Has he been impressive? No, but he wouldn't be the first kid in the world to develop after their freshman year.
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What gets me about BT is watching his matches he is 99% defense, even the recent ones. The guy is an incredible athlete but its hard not to get frustrated at seeing him still sitting in tie-ups regardless of the score.
I think Howie's facts speak a lot about what BT's future looks like. Slow Development is one thing and is not the issue here. Having the tangibles to succeed at this level is something a lot different. BT has the talent maybe minus some go to offense, but I think he is just lacking the other tangibles needed to win at a high level. And Howie clearly spells it out what those are.
With BT, it may be mindset. While frustrating, it is something that if kid is able to fix, can see immediate large jumps. Sometimes it can be as easy as the right words from the right person. I lost a split decision fight. My coaches told me positional things, you’re doing great, pressure, etc. after the fight my wife said “you didn’t hit him, you should have hit him more.” At first I got annoyed, thinking what did she know, she’s never been in a fight. Then I realized she was right and I smashed my next opponent, who was probably a better fighter, because I took him down and hit him every chance I had instead of just looking for submissions. I think DT took BT to worlds as a partner, so maybe he sees something and can get through to him and change his in match mindset. I guess we’ll find out if DT is as good a coach as my wife
We have an opening on staff I believe...
Who else was he going to take? I dont think he wanted someone from outside the Cowboys to go? Brayden WASNT going to start and was in a RS. Merrill wouldve been the only other option and he was going hard with Surber all season as a partner and possible replacement.
I don't know why you are so hell bent on arguing that coaches don't see something in someone who is on the roster. If there wasn't something there they wouldn't have talked him into to staying.
Again, if I had to bet my house I don't think BT is ever a regular starter for us. I'm just not going to act like a kid with his pedigree who gets to work out every day with DT, Zhadid, Plott and Merrill can't improve after their freshman year.
I mean you literally laid out how he could get better in your own post. I think we mainly agree.
#1 regular starter is a misnomer with the 4 event rule. I’m excited to see the point where we see a bunch of guys at many weights each year.
#2 many know of his nutrition struggles. He has to get 100% bought in at this level.
#3 pedigree doesn’t mean a thing today.
#4 yes, he ain’t lost yet on living up to his big board ranking.
A shower thought for y’all regarding BT at 184 and Dee at 157.
A 157-197 lineup in 2025-26 of Lockett, Facundo, Ryder, BT, and Merrill is pretty damn salty on paper (at least in my little fantasy world). It’s also likely not sustainable beyond this year because I think Dee outgrows 157 pretty quickly. Let’s also say in my world that Ryder is a clear H2H winner over Thompson in the practice room.
What if BT staying another year is a win-win business move for both him and OSU. Pokes get a really good lineup that’ll push for a top 3 finish, and Thompson has a chance to show what he can do at 184 on a full feed. Let’s say he AA’s. Then 2026 rolls around, everyone shifts up a weight, and Thompson enters the portal with a much better shot at landing in a very nice NIL situation. A million ways I could be wrong, and like 999,999 of them will come to pass. But still, ya never know.
A 157-197 lineup in 2025-26 of Lockett, Facundo, Ryder, BT, and Merrill is pretty damn salty on paper (at least in my little fantasy world). It’s also likely not sustainable beyond this year because I think Dee outgrows 157 pretty quickly. Let’s also say in my world that Ryder is a clear H2H winner over Thompson in the practice room.
What if BT staying another year is a win-win business move for both him and OSU. Pokes get a really good lineup that’ll push for a top 3 finish, and Thompson has a chance to show what he can do at 184 on a full feed. Let’s say he AA’s. Then 2026 rolls around, everyone shifts up a weight, and Thompson enters the portal with a much better shot at landing in a very nice NIL situation. A million ways I could be wrong, and like 999,999 of them will come to pass. But still, ya never know.
I think we probably, kinda, sorta, somewhat, mostly agree lol. The only point of my last post was that so many people bring up DT taking BT with him to worlds and I think if you look at it realistically it isnt that big a deal.
Think they said it was too close to the start of the regular season and the staff wanted him to focus on weight and prep.
Sometime previously on this website, someone with knowledge of the wrestlers in the program (and those on the way), made up a chart by year & by weight of what the team the Cowboys will have in the near future. Would that someone in the know, consider putting up a similar chart as of the moment? Cowboy fans would appreciate it!
I'm cool with whatever Dee is cool with, but in the past there were times when Lockett's gas tank was an issue for him. We saw that again in his U20 US Open finals matchup a couple weeks ago (note: he overcame it and got a big takedown late!). I think a bigger weight cut would just make the endurance issue worse.
In your lineup proposal, you have to think about two things.
1. Does Teague or Robado score more points at 57 that BT at 84?
2. Does Dee score more points in a more stacked weight than he does at 65?
IMO, BT has to prove he can score more than Teague and that is a safer bet until proven otherwise. At 65, Dee should score better than he would at 57. With everybody running from MM, 57 and 74 are tougher than they normally would be. His floor at 65 is 3-4, at 57 its probably 5-6 with less bonus on the Wrestle-ups.
The problem with his gas tank is he rarely ever goes a full bout in high school. My 75 lber got pinned in :23 vs him. Our backup got pinned by him in :35
We faced Dee again at state and we last a full minute vs him. To my 75 lber that was an accomplishment. I’m not saying Dee doesn’t practice hard or train hard but in live matches when you rarely go longer than a minute it’s tough to have that 6 min mindset 3-4 times a day.
Isn't that true for all the top guys? Bo Bassett rarely goes over a minute in high school matches and I don't see him gassing at big national tournaments
National Duals will be a good time to test lineup/weight options.
Yeah, that is what I like about the new RS participation rules and our growing room of talent...we could see multiple different lineups!
I don’t disagree but everyone hyped up Bo Bassett as the nations best all around. Dee was rarely talked about, but who had the better U20’s. My point is people question his gas tank and that’s understandable but Dee also wrestled an older division and guys whose job is to wrestle. Dee and Bo had to train around school.
His gas tank isn’t on my list of worries. He will be and is doing just fine.
Recruits True Freshmen RS Freshmen Sophomore Junior Senior
| 125 | Ronnie Ramirez (30) | Sam Smith (199) Jayce Mullin | Troy Spratley (15) | |||
| 133 | Rocklin Zinklin (39) Jayden Raney (6) | JJ McComas (21) Rin Sakamoto | Cael Hughes (8) | Richard Figueroa (3) Gary Steen (55) | ||
| 141 | Jax Forrest (2) | Kolter Burton (188) Jake Hamiti | Tagen Jamison (47) | |||
| 149 | Jordyn Raney (5) | Sergio Vega (7) | Ramon Salazar | Casey Swiderski (3) Cutter Sheets | Carter Young (11) | |
| 157 | Kellen Wolbert (22) | Beau Hickman (92) Landon Robideau (5) | Teague Travis (142) | |||
| 165 | Ladarion Lockett (3) Kody Routledge (28) | Colin Young | Jaxen Wright | |||
| 174 | Ishmael Guerrero (58) Ethan Teague (205) | Alex Facundo (2) Benjamin Mower | Blake Skidgel | |||
| 184 | Zach Ryder (6) | Brayden Thompson (5) Jersey Robb (68) | ||||
| 197 | Kruz Goff (63) Austin Johnson (54) | Cody Merrill (2) | Kyle Haas (37) Trevor Dopps | |||
| 285 | Dreshaun Ross (4) | Hayden Simpson | Konner Doucet (110) |
I know someone else has put together a cleaner version of this, I just wasn't able to find it. This is patched together from several sources with p4p rankings in parenthesis for each class (combo of Matscouts and Flo). We have and will have an absolute ton of talent in the room.
Two years from now we will be absolutely loaded
OK State now has 3 of the Top 10 from 2025 and 4 of the Top 10 from 2026. Throw Routledge and Wolbert into this lineup and damn its looking pretty good. DT will make wrestlers better and continue to bring in solid recruits. The lineup below is what I see for the year after Spratley, Jamison, and Facundo graduate. I think that's the first year they have a shot to dethrone PSU. I may be way off or spot on, but its gonna be fun to watch!
125: Ramirez: Or is it another recruit or a Raney?
133: Raney: Does Sakamoto surprise everyone?
141: Forrest: What weight does he end up at?
149: Raney: Does he end up a lower weight?
157: Vega: He is gonna be a beast, is it at 57 or lower?
165: Robideau: Beast
174: Lockett: Beast
184: Ryder: Gonna be really really good! PSU is gonna regret it.
197: Merrill: Beast
HWT: Ross: Beast
125: Ramirez: Or is it another recruit or a Raney?
133: Raney: Does Sakamoto surprise everyone?
141: Forrest: What weight does he end up at?
149: Raney: Does he end up a lower weight?
157: Vega: He is gonna be a beast, is it at 57 or lower?
165: Robideau: Beast
174: Lockett: Beast
184: Ryder: Gonna be really really good! PSU is gonna regret it.
197: Merrill: Beast
HWT: Ross: Beast
Hope we get to see what Rin can do at 125 this year in opens and the occasional dual
I believe Facundo has three years remaining of eligibility. He is damn good when not trying to cut 20 pounds.
I think people are assuming he’ll get a medical redshirt which I believe you can’t apply for until after your senior season.
Next year's lineup as I see it right now would be 25=Spratley jun., 33=Figueroa sen, 41=Jamison jun. 49=Swiderski jun, 57=Lockett fr, 65=Facundo maybe soph, 74=Ryder fr, 84=Thompson soph, 97=Merrill fr, HWT=Doucet sen. Good chances to be All Americans=Spratley, Figueroa, Jamison, Swiderski, Lockett, Facundo, Ryder, Merrill. Thompson and Doucet have fair chances to be All Americans. With good development 10 All Americans is possible. National Champ potential for next year would be 125 Spratley, Lockett and Figueroa more questionable because He has not wrestled 133 before. I think at these weights our best chance for a National Championship would be Dee Lockett. I would like Hughes to get 141 but from what I have seen, not likely. I would like to see some signs of weight lifting with Merrill.