Oklahoma State wrestler Sammy Alvarez enters NCAA transfer portal
Oklahoma State wrestler Sammy Alvarez entered the NCAA transfer portal, On3’s Pete Nakos confirmed.
Alvarez joined the program after transferring from Rutgers in January of 2023. He started a handful of dual meets this season for the Cowboys, but was not the postseason starter at 149 pounds.
Jordan Williams got the nod for March and Alvarez will pursue a different opportunity with one year of eligibility remaining.
Alvarez went 3-4 this season, going 2-2 in duals for Oklahoma State.
Alvarez was in the middle of a 13-2 campaign at 141 pounds last season, his first year at the weight. But weight cutting and maintaining issues plagued him for the third consecutive season at Rutgers.
Alvarez failed to reach 133 pounds over the course of two seasons, leaving him out of wrestling’s individual postseason at the Big Ten Tournament for the Scarlet Knights.
Following a weekend where Alvarez did not travel with Rutgers in January of 2023, he decided to enter the transfer portal.
Alvarez contemplated retirement while remaining at Rutgers before deciding to continue his wrestling career. He spoke to NJ Advance Media’s Pat Lanni about the decision.
“I had a decision to stay and retire or transfer and wrestle. It was pretty night-and-day type of decision,” Alvarez said. “I decided I would regret it when I’m older and I don’t want to live with regret or question marks. I went into the portal, and Oklahoma State was a no-brainer.”
Since it was the third straight season Alvarez had trouble with his weight, his time at Rutgers fizzled out in the end.
Since he had a midseason transfer, he had to wait to wrestle for the Cowboys until this past season.
“There’s no hate,” Alvarez said of Rutgers, via NJ.com. “I left on a good note. I don’t have a negative thing to say about the program, the guys, the staff — they’ve always done right by me. I always wrestled with the ‘Block R’ with integrity and loved every second of it. It’s something I’ll definitely miss.”
Alvarez went 50-14 during his four seasons at Rutgers and is now 53-18 in his career counting Oklahoma State.
He went 26-10 as a true freshman in 2019-20, qualifying for the NCAA Tournament as the No. 10 seed in the 33-man bracket. However, the tournament was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Alvarez was named an NWCA All-American Honorable Mention, but he has yet to officially wrestle in the postseason.
The former Rutgers star and Oklahoma State wrestler initially committed to NC State coming out of St. Joseph Montvale (N.J.) before flipping to the Scarlet Knights in 2019.