The Buckeyes will take a big step up in competition this weekend when they head west for the 2016 Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational and take on some of the best teams in the country. Cornell, Virginia Tech, Michigan, and North Carolina State will all send excellent wrestlers to lock horns in the early season tournament, which starts Friday at 12 PM EST.
Let's take a look at what to expect when the CKLV kicks off on Friday, which can be streamed live on FloWrestling (subscription required).
125
2015 Champion: Nathan Tomasello (Ohio State)
Buckeye at 125: Jose Rodriguez
Wrestlers to watch at 125: Connor Schram (Stanford) and Joey Dance (Virginia Tech) lead a competitive field, though they are undoubtedly the favorites. Rodriguez will get a chance to add another chapter to his personal history with Austin Assad (Michigan) as Rodriguez defeated Assad twice in the state tournament in the championship bout. Josh Terao (American), Sean Russell (Edinboro), and Brent Fleetwood (Central Michigan) should factor into the placement at 125.
133
2015 Champion: Nahshon Garrett (Cornell)
Buckeye at 133: No. 3 Nathan Tomasello
Wrestlers to watch at 133: Tomasello and Earl Hall (Iowa State) should meet in the finals, as long as Tomasello doesn’t show signs of rust as he kicks off his junior season. Hall is ranked fifth in the latest InterMat rankings, but has shown some serious inconsistency throughout his career so don’t bet the rent on him. Stevan Micic (Michigan) and Ali Naser (Arizona State) are excellent freestylers, but have a way to go before they are among the elite in folkstyle. Anthony Tutulo of Kent State looked impressive in the tri meet against the Buckeyes, so he is not one to overlook for placement potential.
141
2015 Champion: Micah Jordan (Ohio State)
Buckeye at 141: Brendan Fitzgerald
Wrestlers to watch at 141: Bryce Meredith (Wyoming) and Joey McKenna (Stanford) had a battle in the semifinals of last year’s NCAA tournament, with Meredith taking the 5-3 decision. Meredith is a wild scrambler and finds himself in some incredibly precarious positions. Kevin Jack (NC State), Randy Cruz (Lehigh), and George Dicamillo (Virginia) also have a shot at taking the title at 141, but the field is pretty wide-open beyond the top five. Fitzgerald is filling in for Ke-Shawn Hayes, who is out due to an injury sustained in training. Coach Ryan indicated that he believes Hayes will return to the lineup after being out for the next 4-6 weeks.
149
2015 Champion: Lavion Mayes (Missouri)
Buckeye at 149: No. 6 Micah Jordan
Wrestlers to watch at 149: Micah has won several matches against Virginia Tech’s Solomon Chisko to this point in his career, which should give him some confidence heading into the weekend. Jordan also has wins over Laike Gardner (Lehigh) and Justin Oliver (Central Michigan) earlier this season, who are also clear front-runners for placement in Las Vegas. It’s safe to suggest we’ll see yet another Jordan-Chisko bout in the finals.
157
2015 Champion: Ian Miller (Kent State)
Buckeye at 157: Jake Ryan
Wrestlers to watch at 157: Ryan will have his hands full at 157 against a tough field, especially since Ryan has been up and down to this point in the season. Dylan Palacio (Cornell) and Max Rohskopf (NC State) are the leaders of the pack, but Brian Murphy (Michigan) and Richie Lewis (Rutgers) aren’t far behind. Murphy was actually leading Rohskopf at the NWCA All-Star Classic before the Wolfpack wrestler hit one of his funky arm traps and pinned Murphy late in the match. Victor Lopez of Bucknell and Colin Heffernan lead the next wave of contenders, joined by Russ Parsons of Army. Ryan has an opportunity to avenge 2016 losses against both Shields of Arizona State and Sparkman of Kent State, who are both in the field. Division II NCAA champ Destin McCauley (Nebraska-Kearney) is also in the field, but he only won a single match at last year’s CKLV before winning the DII title.
165
2015 Champion: Isaac Jordan (Wisconsin)
Buckeye at 165: Cody Burcher
Wrestlers to watch at 165: Isaac Jordan may have the luxury of not wrestling Bo Jordan at seemingly every late season tournament this year, but his road doesn’t get any easier with Michigan’s Logan Massa stepping onto the scene at 165. Massa is a point-scorer of the highest order and will be in serious contention for an All-American finish in March. Dylan Cottrell of West Virginia has an early season victory over Anthony Valencia of Arizona State, but both will be in strong placement contention, though likely after Jordan and Massa. Burcher will need to pick up a few upset wins to find himself on the podium on Saturday night, but he could easily achieve placement if he locks in a cradle or two.
174
2015 Champion: Brian Realbuto (Cornell)
Buckeye at 174: Seth Williams
Wrestlers to watch at 174: Zahid Valencia (Arizona State) is probably the safe bet at 174, though Cornell’s Brian Realbuto is currently ranked two spots higher in the InterMat rankings. Realbuto doesn’t really move the needle or fill me with much confidence. Williams is filling in for top-ranked Bo Jordan, who is back to wrestling live after rehabbing from a minor surgery prior to the season. Head coach Tom Ryan believes that Jordan will be back in the lineup against Missouri on December 8, but Williams will take his place in the meantime.
184
2015 Champion: Gabe Dean (Cornell)
Buckeye at 184: No. 2 Myles Martin
Wrestlers to watch at 184: There are two NCAA champions in this weight class. If you’re really looking for more wrestlers to watch, just reread the previous sentence. Gabe Dean thoroughly handled Myles at the All-Star Classic, but Dean has shown lapses in the past and lost matches that he shouldn’t. Myles is going to have to set up his attacks and pick his spots if he’s going to knock off Dean. In order to get to Dean, Martin will likely need to defeat a tough customer in Virginia Tech’s Zach Zavatsky, who is an absolute monster in the top position.
197
2015 Champion: J’Den Cox (Missouri)
Buckeye at 197: No. 12 Kollin Moore
Wrestlers to watch at 197: Brett Pfarr (Minnesota) is likely the front-runner in this weight, but his slow, grinding style certainly won’t win him many fans. Kollin Moore will have an opportunity to climb up the rankings from his current spot at No. 12 as he could possibly face Pfarr in the semifinals. Virginia Tech’s Jared Haught and Jake Smith (West Virginia) could work their way through the bottom half of the bracket, but there are several other talented wrestlers in the field.
285
2015 Champion: Ty Walz (Virginia Tech)
Buckeye at 285: Josh Fox
Wrestlers to watch at HWT: The field features five wrestlers currently in InterMat’s top ten at heavyweight, including second-ranked Connor Medbery of Wisconsin. Medbery defeated Virginia Tech heavyweight Ty Walz 5-2 at the All-Star Classic, though the bout was an exhibition. Medbery has also defeated Minnesota’s Michael Kroells and Arizona State’s Tanner Hall, who are both on the short-list to place at the CKLV this weekend. Kroells was blanked 10-0 by Medbery early in November, but he’s been able to keep matches close with Hall and Walz in the past. At a glance, Medbery and Walz are the class of the bracket, with Kroells and Hall not far behind. After Hall and Kroells, the drop-off gets pretty steep. Josh Fox may have a difficult time this weekend as he fills in for Kyle Snyder, who is wrestling in Ukraine.
