Dee Lockett’s U20 finals opponent Rezaeia from Iran (Dee lost on criteria 3-3) just had a very competitive match with Messenbrink at U23s. The final score ended up being 16-7 after MM wore him down with his pace and poured on the points in the final couple of minutes, but the Iranian got three takedowns and had him on the ropes for most of the match. We already know that Dee is that guy but it’s still cool to see who he’s in league with.
***UPDATED*** ‘25 & '26 Commits / Rankings (Page 1)
- Thread starter AtownPoke
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If Jax and Bo are visiting for the match against Wyoming, how much weight does Spratley, Hughes/Witcraft, Jamison, Young's performance against Wyoming carry with Jax and Bo's decisions on whether or not they come to OK State? Just curious as to what you all think.
I can’t imagine it makes much difference at all. They will compete for starting spots, if they come and they have plenty of partners to roll with.
My thinking has always been that if a kid is hesitant in coming to your school because he is scared of not winning the spot, then you don't want him anyway. Besides, alpha wrestlers like Jax and Bo don't think like that.
I was not thinking they would be hesitant due to maybe not winning the spot. I was leaning more towards if all of these wrestlers do good and show progression due to the coaching change, does that help the chances of them coming to OK State. For example, Spratley has not beaten Volk, yet. If he shows progression from last year and smokes him in this dual, does that show the recruits that the coaching is taking the kids on the team to the next level? I know that neither of these recruits are afraid of competition at all.
It’s possible. Spratley is tough. Hughes is pretty tough too. I don’t think it would deter them though. Just my thoughts
I'm sure some kids look for individual progression from wrestlers they know. I mean, who was it that said since DT took over the room, he is now able to hit moves he couldn't before? Others look to see how the team is coached overall and what they do over a season. Either approach likely leads to the same conclusion. I think DT coaches as well as he recruits.
Wanna say Henrickson said something similar in his recent media availability as well. Or maybe his quote was about how they approach situation wrestling (believe that’s a PSU staple).
I believe the Bryan Pearsall video at the 7:30 mark explains how training in the room is conducted.
Also, Bryan discusses what the first year looked like with culture changes and 45 minute live matches over the first summer. That starts at the 3 minute mark.
I've read on here how brutal this summer has been on the guys so it seems DT is mimicking Cael's first year.
Willie just updated his class of 2025 big board rankings.
Lockett #2
Robideau #5
Vega #7
Routledge #24
Ramirez #29
Johnson #46
Guerrero #65
I figured that’s enough lol. DT is killing it!
Lockett #2
Robideau #5
Vega #7
Routledge #24
Ramirez #29
Johnson #46
Guerrero #65
I figured that’s enough lol. DT is killing it!
Called it ... knew you can't leave Vega and Robideau out of the Top 10 with their recent performances.
Kruz Goff #79
Beau Hickman #116
Ethan Teague #174
Interesting to see a guy we all got excited about back when drop from top 30 to #71…. De’Alcapone Veazy
Routledge dropped a bit (and not that Top 25 is anything disrespectful) but if I recall correctly, DT's first priority recruit ever was him. I know some think he wanted the Edmond North relationship strong or getting an Oklahoma kid but I don't think that was remotely a concern for DT (who can get any kids attention)
He sees something there even if others don't yet.
He sees something there even if others don't yet.
Exactly. The kid went from not even being a state finalist his fr or soph year to beating Kollin Rath (#25) for a U16 Fargo championship and then winning state as a Jr.
He’s a late developing kid who jumped levels fast.
He also barely lost to the eventual champ (Melvin Miller 2027 #1) in the semi’s of Fargo this year.
He’s a damn good prospect that still has a lot of room to develop. That’s exactly who DT is looking for imo.
To my knowledge, none. They were both flips (from Minnesota and Cornell) and I don't recall them ever being mentioned as targets for PSU (especially geographically) Possibly Cael kicked the tires on a kid as talented as Dee (though we didn't make the Top 6)
But that's ultimately irrelevant, it's not about beating Cael out, it's about getting top talent in whether Cael is in on them or not, as we see, plenty of top tier to go around. This is honestly an insane preview of upcoming team races.
Where was Correa on this list? Any word on him since deciding Michigan was not for him?
I think it matters. 1) PSU has clearly had great talent eval and 2) I want to beat PSU at everything (almost as much as I want to beat Iowa)
I think they’ve had as much phenomenal development as evaluation. If we can develop like them then look out because like McScoreley said… there are alot of really talented kids not going to state college.
I would be surprised if he didn’t kick the tires on Dee at least a little bit. Even if you think you don’t have a chance you gotta at least reach out to a guy that talented.
I would agree. I know Cael went pretty hard for Daton Fix despite his Oklahoma State ties (and the fact he was in Stillwater literally) and did about as well as you could in that recruitment short of actually landing him.
Good news then, beating PSU almost certainly coincides with beating Iowa
That is my understanding also. It is 1 of the reasons I think he needs to get Jax or Bo. DT's challenge is Cael. Before we can beat them on the mat we will need a couple of big recruiting wins over Cael. To be the Man you must beat the man. When Coach Smith got Marstellar and Wittlake from Penn St. I think they had seen some vulnerability in both of them and Coach Smith offered big scholarships and Penn. St thought okay because we can get better which proved to be true. I look forward to us beating them for a superstar ( Jax). That would hurt them. Also, our 2025 class is looking better and better.
I think PSU reaches out to quite a few guys that they don't expect to get or frankly need. It's a courtesy thing, and you never know if someday the wrestler may have progressed to the RTC level, those contacts five years earlier help the discussion. Recruiting is essentially relationship building opportunities. If you look at it that way, there is no reason not to contact the top 20 or 30.
Good post. Cael is certainly going full bore on Jax, but the view has always been that he is an OSU lean, so no surprise or heartburn if he ends up in Stillwater.
On talent evaluation, from my vantage point it includes being teachable. It includes some inner fire/desire to get better as a person and wrestler. They must be a good cultural fit. A good cultural fit is living the life of a wrestler - commitment to the sport in all areas. Carter's X account has nothing to do with culture in this definition. Kids are allowed to be themselves within reason.
On development, two things are apparent. One, each wrestler develops according to their comfort level. If you are a thrower and big move guy (Q and Nickal), he will help you be the best at it within risk management. If you are a grinder/tactician, he will help you become the best grinder/tactician while expanding you offensively. Two, everyone is expected to become a good situational wrestler/scrambler. Better to see a position in practice than in a match. Everyone is expected to master the cross body ride. Watch a PSU meet. They all ride the same way.
You would know better than me (or most) re: Carter, but I think what has made me find his “villain” antics so cringeworthy is it doesn’t necessarily feel authentic to me. By that I mean I don’t think his social media (or interview) persona is who he really is when you’re in the room or just hanging out with him. Could be completely wrong. Just how I read it.
I wanna beat PSU and Iowa, albeit for 2 different reasons.
I want to beat PSU because beating them means they’ve reached the peak and the program has truly arrived. I want to crush Iowa because I want to see how toxic things get if/when OSU surpasses them.
I think Carter likes to be the "villian" sometimes. A ying to his yang. By all accounts, he is a great teammate and giving of his time to others.
My larger point though was that none of that twitter stuff is culture as defined earlier. It's about leading a wrestling life. According to a 2010 article, Cael Sanderson told wrestlers at Penn State that they can excel in college at three things: academics, wrestling, or social life, but not all three. That's culture defined.
*yin
I believe his saying is you can be good at 5 things, and elite at 3. Faith, Family, School, Wrestling and/or social life. Maybe I heard it wrong?
Never heard him say that. I've heard him talk about three things and that you can only do two well at the same time.
He probably saw the commitment level and didn’t want to put the effort in. All top talent has, and will be considered by every coach
Are you saying Jesus Christ can't hit a curveball?
Which includes beating Cael out lolFor sure. It’s about putting the best team on the mat
