Tony Robie breaks down what excites him about Oklahoma State matchup

Tony Robie and Virginia Tech have North Carolina to focus on Friday, but Oklahoma State comes to town Sunday, February 15th for a much anticipated showdown. The Hokies and Cowboys are two of the best dual teams in the country and fireworks could happen right away.

“Obviously a big weekend, it’ll be good to be back at home,” Robie said to The Quad Pod after beating Virginia. “But big challenge, you know, obviously, we’re focused on UNC on Friday to get the job done there, and then Oklahoma State presents a big challenge as well, so we’re excited about the opportunity to compete against some really good teams at home in front of our fans.”

As far as the matchups are concerned, seeing VT’s Eddie Ventresca and against NCAA finalist Troy Spratley at 125 pounds is wild. Then, as long as they both go, two all-star freshmen in Aaron Seidel and Jax Forrest at 133, running back their PA high school rivalry.

“(125) for sure, (133) obviously. I mean, those are two exciting matches,” Robie said. “I think everybody’s looking forward to those two in particular. 133 both guys were phenomenal and wrestling really well. So, you know, excited about that. I think we’re gonna have a great crowd. I encourage everybody, you know, everybody in southwest Virginia, come out and watch that. 

“You don’t get opportunities to see matchups like that often. So I think Hokie Nation will represent itself well. You know, we’re excited about it. Obviously (Oklahoma State’s) got a lot of talent in their lineup, but it’ll be a good test, and we’re excited to see where we’re at, and just a great opportunity for our guys to go compete.”

That’s only the beginning as the rest of the matchups could be just as good. Here’s a look at the projected starting lineups a week out, as of now.

Virginia Tech vs. Oklahoma State projected matchups

125: Eddie Ventresca vs. Troy Spratley
133: Aaron Seidel vs. Jax Forrest
141: Tom Crook vs. Sergio Vega
149: Collin Gaj vs. Casey Swiderski
157: Ethen Miller vs. Landon Robideau
165: Mac Church vs. Ladarion Lockett
174: Sergio Desiante vs. Alex Facundo
184: Jaden Bullock vs. Zack Ryder
197: Sonny Sasso vs. Cody Merrill
285: Jimmy Mullen vs. Konner Doucet

David Taylor addresses Ronnie Ramirez in for Jax Forrest

Oklahoma State head coach David Taylor decided to put in freshman Ronnie Ramirez at 133 instead of Jax Forrest against Little Rock-Arkansas Friday night. In the 41-6 win, Ramirez got a 17-2 tech fall over Tyson Roach.

Forrest, since enrolling at Oklahoma State earlier this semester, has taken command of the weight class and ranks No. 11 in the latest InterMat rankings. The World Team member, at this point, is expected to be the guy in the postseason, but Ramirez got his opportunity from Taylor Friday after being one of the original starters in the first semester.

“We have a lot of guys on our team, and just giving guys opportunities to wrestle,” Taylor said post-match. “Ronnie wanted to wrestle this week. You know, he texted me last week. You know, kept trying to wrestle. And, you know, on the opportunity to wrestle here at home. And obviously he’s a big part of that young group that we have, and it was really cool with him to want to wrestle and also to go out there and he got after, it was awesome.”

Forrest is undefeated (7-0) and six of those wins are by bonus points. Ramirez, also a freshman, is now 7-3 after wrestling his first dual since December 21st. Taylor opted for the latter.