What we learned from Nebraska wrestling's preseason press conference

With its first matches just under two weeks away, expectations for Nebraska wrestling have never been higher. Coming off a national runner-up finish for its best season in program history, head coach Mark Manning’s squad has plenty of horsepower to remain dominant in his 26th season.

Here’s what we learned from Huskers’ preseason wrestling press conference…

Ferrari has to earn it at Nebraska

Enter AJ Ferrari, the nation’s No. 5 pound-for-pound wrestler and one of the most significant transfers in program history. His 2021 197-pound national championship and 51-2 record speak for themselves.

However, the former Oklahoma State Cowboy faces a new challenge going up to the heavyweight (285-pound) division. Yet Manning is confident the junior will remain dominant on the mat.

“He’s big and strong,” Manning said. “He’s 240-something; whether he weighs 227 or 242, he’s a strong man. He wrestles with a lot of intensity, and that’s what people are going to see. He’s a competitor, and that’s why we brought him in.”

Although Ferrari faced cultural challenges in Stillwater, he’s starting to gel well with Manning’s tight-knit culture.

“It’s a work in progress,” Manning said. “Like Brock (Hardy) said, he’s been at some different places – short time at Oklahoma State, so he wasn’t really ingrained in their program, I don’t think. It’s a learning process for him, but he really enjoys this team.”

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Striving to reach a new level

Nebraska returns two of the top-11 pound-for-pound wrestlers, according to FloWrestling. Multiple-time All-Americans, senior Brock Hardy (141 pounds) and junior Antrell Taylor (157 pounds), are each striving for another champion-type season.

Taylor took home a national championship last season, going 5-0 at the NCAA finals. However, even after an individual championship, the homegrown Husker noticed room for improvement over the offseason.

“My biggest thing was being able to wrestle on the mat top and bottom,” Taylor said. “That was a big thing I tried to get at this summer, and I feel like I’m pushing towards getting some more riding time, and being just a fully-developed wrestler.”

Hardy came up just short, finishing runner-up at the NCAA finals last season. The 4-1 finish sparked even more hunger to get to the top.

“I’ve mainly wanted to work off the mat, which is just consistency,” Hardy said. “There’s been some moments where I’ve beaten the national champ, but then I’ve also lost to true freshmen from other schools. So, I’ve got to make sure that I have the best product out on the mat every single time.”

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Emerging underclassmen

Taylor and Hardy are two of Nebraska’s primary leaders, but they have noticed underclassmen taking strides. That includes LJ Araujo, who many expect to be the No. 1 option in the 165-pound division.

“He’ll be at 165 – he’s been doing good, man,” Taylor said. “I tell you that he’s going to shock a lot of people. So, I’m really looking forward to him.”

The established continuity that Manning has built also makes it difficult to single out just one rising star. However, after finishing eighth-place in the 197-pound division at nationals, Camden McDanel took his craft to another level.

“Since the NCAAs, the room’s been full,” Hardy said. “A lot of guys are getting better in a lot of different ways, but I think that you know the work that I see someone like Camden, who was an All-American as a true freshman. But you see that he’s not taken it for granted. He’s gotten way better, and he was already a dog.”

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Demand has never been higher for Nebraska wrestling

Nebraska set a home-dual attendance record of 6,736 fans last January against Penn State. Getting Husker wrestling to relevance has been a top priority for Manning during his 20-plus-year stint at the helm.

“It means a lot. I fought like a dang animal to make wrestling relevant here, and a lot of other people have,” Manning said. “In some ways, for us over here, volleyball sets the tone. I remember talking to John (Cook) many times…

“John being in the coliseum, we’d wrestle over at the coliseum, and packing 4,000, that was something not that long ago. Now, we’re packing 10,000 or 9,000 something, but it’s pretty cool. It’s an opportunity for us to really have our program seen in that light. You have to have success. It’s about winning.”

Nebraska will open its season on Nov. 2 with a dual at Navy, and Hardy can’t wait to kick off his senior campaign.

“Man, let’s just do this, right?” Hardy said. “It’s fun to do a lot of the work, but I’ve done it a lot of times now. This September, October, is kind of probably the worst time of year in terms of it just feels like you’re constantly itching to actually do the thing. So, I’m excited to get it done.”

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