Looks like Evan Henderson on the right in the second row. I think Joseph took his coaching spot at Lehigh. Still nothing official on GoHeels.
UNC Wrestling 2025-2026
- Thread starter 81Heel/M1
- Start date
Should be a good one tonight! Not too much of interest from our lineup. Couple things: one of the only OR is Simcox OR O’Neill. Askew is wrestling again at 149…he is well past keeping his redshirt so looks like he is the starter. Good news that Neves is listed at 285 so hopefully he is back to 100% (Levy also listed though).
Wrestlestat has us losing 23-10…7 matches to 3. They have Simcox, Hepner, and Neves winning. I’d say the Oakley, Dailey, and Platt matches are also winnable...not quite toss-ups but close. And Terukina has a big opportunity against #7 Strickenberger who is coming off a tournament win at Cliff Keen Las Vegas.
Let’s get it done boys!
Wrestlestat has us losing 23-10…7 matches to 3. They have Simcox, Hepner, and Neves winning. I’d say the Oakley, Dailey, and Platt matches are also winnable...not quite toss-ups but close. And Terukina has a big opportunity against #7 Strickenberger who is coming off a tournament win at Cliff Keen Las Vegas.
Let’s get it done boys!
I would call Oakley (WS 30/IM 16) vs Andrick (WS 23/IM 19) about as close as you can get to a toss up. The other “or” of interest is WVU’s 174 class. Murabito either has a top 15 wrestler or a similarly ranked 165 class wrestler.
Intermat reporting a commitment from Mick Moylan, a 2027 recruit at heavyweight out of CA. I believe he placed 3rd at States last year.
Intermat reporting a commitment from Mick Moylan, a 2027 recruit at heavyweight out of CA. I believe he placed 3rd at States last year.
Solid start from Terukina and Oakley. Hope we can keep it going.
Everything going right so far. Big win for Askew over a 3x NCAA qualifier. I remember seeing his name in the portal many months ago, but didn't realize he landed at WV.
Hopefully we can at least avoid bonus points in this next one.
EDIT: Gutsy performance from Root.
Hopefully we can at least avoid bonus points in this next one.
EDIT: Gutsy performance from Root.
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Really proud of Root. That was a really good match.
Good on Murabito just to finish that match when he was clearly in a lot of pain.
Hate that Murabito got hurt, been a great match for us every other match though. Root looked like he absolutely belonged wrestling the #1 guy in the country
Heckuva win from Dailey there. We are dialed in tonight.
Incredible effort from Platt to get a quick escape there and takedown, especially after that tough 2nd period ride. Man, what a match this has been.
They said he weighed in and was warming up but decided last minute he couldn't go, no real details other than that
I was hoping for a few big wins tonight, and we finished with more wins than I could have hoped for by some young wrestlers. Great match. Not sure anyone had a 20 point win for UNC, even with there backup at 125 (and his WS ranking was 30, so a good win for Terukina as well).
Perfect storm! Wrestlestat projected 3 wins. How about 8!
So many great wins..... Askew, Dailey, Platt, etc., but the Root match really stood out too. He was in on a nice shot multiple times and just ran out of time to finish. And scrambled his way out of trouble a few times as well.
Simcox also, with the amazing scramble. I couldn’t watch the match live, but saw that ending on Twitter. Great confidence-building win for him. All the Koll recruits killed it tonight. Not to single them out, just saying. Plus Hepner’s pin put the match basically out of reach and took the pressure off for Dailey and Platt to get the ranked wins.
well gentlemens i dint expect such a one-sided tussle against the left virginians
Thought about turning to the next match, but we need to enjoy last night first. I was hopeful that there would be some fun matches with the young lineup we have, and last night did not disappoint. Terukina vs Strickenberger did not happen, but Gill is ranked #30 by WS, so a really good win. We got the advantage of key takedowns late in matches, and it started with Oakley against a similarly ranked opponent. I look forward to the day when Simcox is more aggressive on his feet, but we are not there yet. He, along with Root and Hepner, enjoy the scrambles, and it was in a scramble that looked bad early for him that he emerged with the victory in sudden death. Askew is a 141 pounder wrestling up, and it showed in size last night. His opponent may have been less than 100%, but Nate took the match to him after getting down early and came out with a good win.
Root deserves special recognition for going in against the #1 wrestler at his weight, and wrestling like he could win. The crazy part is that he was in it to the last second. He did everything right, and just lost to a really good wrestler. Great match that should give him a lot of confidence going into a couple of big matches. Hepner looks like he is having fun, but he also wrestles like he has something to prove. I really like that attitude, and hope he is able to prove his skills.
I hope Murabito is okay today, as he was clearly in pain. Good job finishing the match, and had the ref not gotten so crazy with the stalling calls he might have only given up a 3 team point loss. I won't go into my historical view on stalling, but this match would have been better served with an older ref (or just a good ref).
Huge wins for Dailey and Platt against ranked wrestlers. Dailey getting the key takedown and controlling the match was a big deal against a quality opponent. As for Platt's match, there is just so much to say. 3 takedowns, including 1 late were the difference in the match that the ref tried to give away with stalling calls. I haven't kept up with the rules as well as others may have, but the rule was always that if you are on top and your opponent stands up you have to attempt to return them to the mat. It is hard to see and count stalling warnings/calls as the ref is generally out of sight of the camera when they are calling them. That said it was clear that the ref made at least 1 stalling call and awarded a point to WVU in a sequence where Platt tried 3 times in 10 seconds to return the wrestler to the mat. All were successfully defended, but that was terrible officiating. Was not pleased with him getting ridden out for the entire 2nd period. In the end the late takedown won the day.
Neves took care of business, though waiting to sudden victory to get his first takedown would not have been my preference.
Huge win for the team, and perhaps some confidence going into 2 tough matches this weekend. Fun match to watch, and a great night for the team with all of the young wrestlers coming through, and the veterans largely taking care of business. By Tuesday we will see if this has any significant impact in individual rankings, and it should for several of the wrestlers.
If you did not see the match, it is still available on the espn app.
Root deserves special recognition for going in against the #1 wrestler at his weight, and wrestling like he could win. The crazy part is that he was in it to the last second. He did everything right, and just lost to a really good wrestler. Great match that should give him a lot of confidence going into a couple of big matches. Hepner looks like he is having fun, but he also wrestles like he has something to prove. I really like that attitude, and hope he is able to prove his skills.
I hope Murabito is okay today, as he was clearly in pain. Good job finishing the match, and had the ref not gotten so crazy with the stalling calls he might have only given up a 3 team point loss. I won't go into my historical view on stalling, but this match would have been better served with an older ref (or just a good ref).
Huge wins for Dailey and Platt against ranked wrestlers. Dailey getting the key takedown and controlling the match was a big deal against a quality opponent. As for Platt's match, there is just so much to say. 3 takedowns, including 1 late were the difference in the match that the ref tried to give away with stalling calls. I haven't kept up with the rules as well as others may have, but the rule was always that if you are on top and your opponent stands up you have to attempt to return them to the mat. It is hard to see and count stalling warnings/calls as the ref is generally out of sight of the camera when they are calling them. That said it was clear that the ref made at least 1 stalling call and awarded a point to WVU in a sequence where Platt tried 3 times in 10 seconds to return the wrestler to the mat. All were successfully defended, but that was terrible officiating. Was not pleased with him getting ridden out for the entire 2nd period. In the end the late takedown won the day.
Neves took care of business, though waiting to sudden victory to get his first takedown would not have been my preference.
Huge win for the team, and perhaps some confidence going into 2 tough matches this weekend. Fun match to watch, and a great night for the team with all of the young wrestlers coming through, and the veterans largely taking care of business. By Tuesday we will see if this has any significant impact in individual rankings, and it should for several of the wrestlers.
If you did not see the match, it is still available on the espn app.
Great win. Go Heels!
Forgot to add that it was great having Clay Lautt on the coverage team.
Also, not sure, but I think Evan Henderson was at the scorer’s table. Nothing added to the goheels or THWC sites, but if he is working out with the team that is a good thing.
Also, not sure, but I think Evan Henderson was at the scorer’s table. Nothing added to the goheels or THWC sites, but if he is working out with the team that is a good thing.
WVu wrestled OK State today with some interesting results compared with our match results. WVu lost 34-3 against OK State, though they were without a few guys that went against us, including #1 ranked Watters but a lot of their guys kept matches close against highly ranked opponents.
Notably:
133 Andrick who Oakley beat upset the #11 wrestler in the country
141 Titus who Simcox beat 5-2 only lost 5-1 against the #2 ranked wrestler in the country
165 Taylor who Hepner pinned quickly stayed in the match and only lost 5-2 against the #2 wrestler in the country
184 and 197 the WVu wrestlers that Dailey and Platt upset both lost 2-1 matches against wrestlers ranked #10 and #7 respectively
obviously you can't just use the transitive property in wrestling, but the results in these matches make the performances look even better in my opinion
Notably:
133 Andrick who Oakley beat upset the #11 wrestler in the country
141 Titus who Simcox beat 5-2 only lost 5-1 against the #2 ranked wrestler in the country
165 Taylor who Hepner pinned quickly stayed in the match and only lost 5-2 against the #2 wrestler in the country
184 and 197 the WVu wrestlers that Dailey and Platt upset both lost 2-1 matches against wrestlers ranked #10 and #7 respectively
obviously you can't just use the transitive property in wrestling, but the results in these matches make the performances look even better in my opinion
Awesome. More evidence that we were really dialed-in on Friday and have a lot of young guys that have pretty high ceilings.
Wrestlestat currently predicts us to lose 34-0 to Nebraska on Friday. Bulletin board material!
The WS prediction includes an upset win by their unranked 125(unranked on Intermat, but 46 on WS). Maybe he is a freshman whose star is rising, but after that I believe their Intermat rankings go; 8,3,5,6,12,6,9,12,& 4. Good bulletin board material, but not without some basis for a lopsided prediction. Still, a good match to see what we have. Will our freshmen take the next step, or do they fold on the road at a powerhouse program? Should be a great wrestling environment, and another opportunity to announce who you are.
Waiting to see how our rankings are impacted by the weekend matches.
Waiting to see how our rankings are impacted by the weekend matches.
As usual on Tuesday Intermat re-ranked wrestlers based on results from the last week. Both Dailey and Platt get mentioned specifically at their weights in the article linked below.
As to the question of how NE is only ranked 6th as a team based on their individual rankings, I would guess that having a 125 starter ranked in the mid-40s likely really hurt them compared to the top 5 that likely have 10 qualifiers. The other team we wrestle this weekend, Northern Iowa, is currently ranked 15th in the dual team rankings. UNC jumped up to 16. Regardless of what happens at NE, we need another good outing against NI.
As to the question of how NE is only ranked 6th as a team based on their individual rankings, I would guess that having a 125 starter ranked in the mid-40s likely really hurt them compared to the top 5 that likely have 10 qualifiers. The other team we wrestle this weekend, Northern Iowa, is currently ranked 15th in the dual team rankings. UNC jumped up to 16. Regardless of what happens at NE, we need another good outing against NI.
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Gonna be a tough one tonight, but looking forward to seeing what we can do....
A few interesting notes about tonight‘s match. First, there are 11 different weights listed as either A or B will wrestle. We have 5, which makes sense to have some backups for a 2 match long distance road trip. Nebraska has 6, meaning we may see a backup or 2 possibly. Still there will be opportunities for guys to get significant wins.
Nebraska is known for building their team by developing wrestlers internally, but clearly there are some transfers in their lineup. Rumor had it at one point that they were a possible destination for McNeil, before he chose Michigan. Also, Neves may wrestle AJ Ferrari, who landed at Nebraska after his UNC transfer imploded. If not Ferrari, then Neves will wrestle Cade Ziola. He is the older brother of UNC commitment Ben Ziola (2027 recruit).
Nebraska is known for building their team by developing wrestlers internally, but clearly there are some transfers in their lineup. Rumor had it at one point that they were a possible destination for McNeil, before he chose Michigan. Also, Neves may wrestle AJ Ferrari, who landed at Nebraska after his UNC transfer imploded. If not Ferrari, then Neves will wrestle Cade Ziola. He is the older brother of UNC commitment Ben Ziola (2027 recruit).
Wrestling Falls At No. 6 Nebraska Friday Night, 27-9 - University of North Carolina Athletics
Up next, the Tar Heels will close out the weekend on the road at 12th-ranked Northern Iowa on Sunday. Action between Carolina and the Panthers gets underway ...
I was not able to watch the match, but we won the 3 matches we were suppose to win, and lost to 7 wrestlers ranked 12 or better (6 top 10). Largely we had our normal starting lineup, except for Carrigan at 174 and Calcagno wrestled heavyweight. No big surprises last night like last week, but nothing where we just didn’t show up ready or wrestled poorly that is obvious from the scores. My only negative from the results of last night’s match is that a couple of our wrestlers did not score.
Good match for them to experience, if they can use it as a growing experience for the team heading into the new year. In th meantime they drive to Northern Iowa today for tomorrow’s match.
Again WS is not high on our chances, predicting that Root and Platt will be our only wins, as each is likely to have opponents not ranked as ncaa qualifiers. Root deserves a break after 2 top 6 wrestlers in the last week. If NI has their best wrestlers available, then Simcox, Hepner, Carrigan and Neves get wrestlers ranked between 8-12. Note their probable lineup in the goheels article had a lot of A or B options, so they may have some wrestlers that sit this match out. Terukina, Oakley, Askew and Dailey all have potential ncaa qualifiers ranked between 26-29. We may need to win all of these to win the match. If we win only 3 of these matches, then we will need wrestlers to get bonus point wins, while limiting bonus points given up or getting an upset win somewhere along the way.
As always with this young team, it should be a fun match. After this match they get a break until the Soldier Salute the first week in January.
Good match for them to experience, if they can use it as a growing experience for the team heading into the new year. In th meantime they drive to Northern Iowa today for tomorrow’s match.
Again WS is not high on our chances, predicting that Root and Platt will be our only wins, as each is likely to have opponents not ranked as ncaa qualifiers. Root deserves a break after 2 top 6 wrestlers in the last week. If NI has their best wrestlers available, then Simcox, Hepner, Carrigan and Neves get wrestlers ranked between 8-12. Note their probable lineup in the goheels article had a lot of A or B options, so they may have some wrestlers that sit this match out. Terukina, Oakley, Askew and Dailey all have potential ncaa qualifiers ranked between 26-29. We may need to win all of these to win the match. If we win only 3 of these matches, then we will need wrestlers to get bonus point wins, while limiting bonus points given up or getting an upset win somewhere along the way.
As always with this young team, it should be a fun match. After this match they get a break until the Soldier Salute the first week in January.
Looking forward to N Iowa, should be some really great matches.
I only got to watch 157-174 last night. Root again looked like he belonged against a potential national champion. Didn’t get to his offense as much as against Watters, and gave up a couple late takedowns on bases on incredible quickness by Taylor. Got to tip your hat, but I’m really high on Root right now for the future.
Hepner didn’t score but not for lack of trying. He was the aggressor the whole match, but Arajao was incredibly slippery and kept on avoiding the takedowns. Hepner has a great motor and is always aggressive which I love.
Carrigan did fine but was just outclassed by a top 10 guy.
Any win against Nebraska is a very good win, so big congrats to Terukina, Askew, and Dailey, even though Askew and Dailey were against backups
I only got to watch 157-174 last night. Root again looked like he belonged against a potential national champion. Didn’t get to his offense as much as against Watters, and gave up a couple late takedowns on bases on incredible quickness by Taylor. Got to tip your hat, but I’m really high on Root right now for the future.
Hepner didn’t score but not for lack of trying. He was the aggressor the whole match, but Arajao was incredibly slippery and kept on avoiding the takedowns. Hepner has a great motor and is always aggressive which I love.
Carrigan did fine but was just outclassed by a top 10 guy.
Any win against Nebraska is a very good win, so big congrats to Terukina, Askew, and Dailey, even though Askew and Dailey were against backups
Another good win for the Heels, 19-13 over UNI. Hepner wins over #8 ranked wrestler highlights the match, along with ranked wins by Terukina and Dailey. Askew, Platt, and Levy also posted wins. Loses were largely close, except Simcox getting beat 11-0 by the #10 ranked wrestler. Oakley lost 11-10 (TB-1) in OT to a lower ranked wrestler, Carrigan lost 4-3 to the #10 wrestler, and Root lost 4-3.
goheels.com
Wrestling Defeats No. 12 Northern Iowa, 19-13 - University of North Carolina Athletics
The win for the Tar Heels is the highest ranked road victory since the 2017-18 campaign, when Carolina defeated 12th-ranked Nebraska, 22-14.
Great win for our program. And another over-performance like against WV. N Iowa wrestled a few backups but even with the real lineups, wrestlestat predicted 3 wins and we got 6. Terukina, Hepner, Dailey, Levy were predicted to lose and won. Root projected to win and lost. Not that WS is the end all, be all, but it’s a good comparison tool.
Hepner with a huge upset and I think deserves to move up to probably 12-14. Terukina and Dailey with another very good win. Levy was down in the 3rd and won. Platt with a solid win and Askew taking care of business against a backup. He’s been a great surprise.
And Oakley had a great comeback to go to OT from 9-3 down. Lost in ride-outs when his opponent escaped with one second left.
Hepner with a huge upset and I think deserves to move up to probably 12-14. Terukina and Dailey with another very good win. Levy was down in the 3rd and won. Platt with a solid win and Askew taking care of business against a backup. He’s been a great surprise.
And Oakley had a great comeback to go to OT from 9-3 down. Lost in ride-outs when his opponent escaped with one second left.