It all came down to the heavyweights.
After trailing by 10 points at 16-6 and again at 19-9, Ohio State was back within two points after massive victories at 184 and 197 pounds. But No. 16 Nick Feldman entered as a massive underdog against No. 4 Lucas Davison.
"That stage and this opportunity is something that God has given me," Feldman said. "He's given me such a great environment, such great people to wrestle for. I think there's no better place in the world than the Covelli Center, than Ohio State. So it'd be a shame if I didn't go out there and show the world what I can do."
The first period stayed nip-and-tuck until the final few seconds. Davison flipped Feldman onto the mat with three seconds remaining but a scramble from the second-year Buckeye kept his opponent off the scoreboard entering the second period.
Davison rode Feldman the entire two-minute second period but did so at the cost of two stall warnings, making it a 1-0 Feldman lead before a Davison escape opened the third period.
Then Feldman scored a takedown and a few eardrums may have burst in the Covelli Center as Feldman secured a 4-2 victory over his higher-ranked opponent to win the match for the home team in 20-19 fashion.
"There's so many things I could talk about," an exuberant Tom Ryan said after the win.
THERE GOES THAT FELDAN. pic.twitter.com/EarizEueY6
— Ohio State Wrestling (@wrestlingbucks) January 27, 2024
Ohio State faced an uphill climb against Michigan on Friday.
While No. 11 Michigan came in ranked lower than the No. 7 Buckeyes, Ohio State was without three of its starters including a former All-American at 174 pounds in Carson Kharchla.
As such, discounting a forfeit given to No. 3 Jesse Mendez at 141 pounds, only two Buckeye grapplers faced an opponent that wasn't ranked higher than them. But the Buckeyes managed to overcome the odds.
Nothing much was going Ohio State's way as it trailed 16-6. Michigan's 10th-ranked wrestler at 165 pounds was a match-day decision and didn't end up wrestling, giving No. 21 Bryce Hepner a bout with an unranked Beau Mantanona. But Mantanona scored a quick takedown and secured one of Hepner's shoulders to the mat for a four-point near fall, taking a 7-0 lead.
Then Hepner gave the Covelli Center crowd something to cheer about.
Down 9-5, Hepner scored a reversal to open the third period after starting on the bottom and allowed an escape to make it a 10-7 bout. Mantanona tried to keep Hepner away from his legs for a match-tying takedown, but the first stall warning of the night quickened the pace.
Lighting quick as the seconds ticked away, Hepner scored a takedown, locked Mantanona's neck and leg in a cradle and rolled through to score two back points. That secured a 12-10 win as the Ohio State crowd roared to a standing ovation.
"He energized the whole crowd," Ryan said. "Now, mathematically, you've got a chance. Just really, really proud of him, his grit and the way he came back tonight and really got the team going."
https://t.co/M614FgkRuH pic.twitter.com/GEkr6UbdXn
— Ohio State Wrestling (@wrestlingbucks) January 27, 2024
No. 4 Shane Griffin killed the Buckeye momentum once again, though. No. 11 Rocco Welsh had a prime shot at victory entering the third period tied 1-1 and starting on bottom thanks to a stall point against Griffin, but Griffin rode Welsh out the entire two-minute period, landing several mat returns to take a 2-1 win off riding time.
Michigan led 19-9 with three weight classes remaining, meaning that Ohio State would have to win each of the last three matches to win the dual.
The momentum swung back in Ohio State's favor.
Unranked Ryder Rogotzke wasn't given much of a chance at 184 pounds against Michigan's No. 15 Jaden Bullock. Watching the match, one would have thought it was the other way around. Rogotzke took a 13-0 lead in the first period, locking in double underhooks and tripping Bullock to pile drive him into the ground for multiple takedowns.
One more such takedown and a near fall locked up a dominant 21-0 upset win and brought Ohio State back within striking distance at 19-14 with two matches remaining.
"The way we scored points and the fight that that true freshman showed – Rogotzke had 193 pins in high school," Ryan said. "He is a dangerous wrestler and he wrestles freely. We all see it. He got us going."
https://t.co/7YpttYOS4r pic.twitter.com/yAxTjjf1Mt
— Ohio State Wrestling (@wrestlingbucks) January 27, 2024
No. 22 Luke Geog took care of business against his unranked opponent Rylan Rogers to cut Michigan’s lead to 19-17 entering the final match, setting up Feldman to win the dual.
It was a rough night for the Buckeyes in the lighter weight classes.
No. 24 Brendan McCrone wrestled to a stalemate early against No. 14 Michael DeAugustino, but a cavalcade of back points and takedowns saw DeAugustino pick up a 16-1 tech fall by the middle of the third period.
At 133 pounds, No. 12 Nic Bouzakis again kept things close early against No. 4 Dylan Ragusin, somersaulting through for a pair of reversals in the first period. But he ran out of gas and a combination of riding time and several takedowns led to a 15-6 major decision in Michigan's favor.
Mendez's forfeit cut the Wolverines' lead to 9-6, but an 18-6 major decision victory made to look easy by Michigan's No. 6 Austin Gomez over No. 9 Dylan D'Emilio at 149 pounds gave the momentum back and made it 13-6.
Ohio State got a chance to stem the tide at 157 pounds. No. 30 Isaac Wilcox fought for positioning early against No. 10 Will Lewan, the latter wrestler taking the more conservative, retreating approach. As the bout was knotted 1-1 off escape points entering the third period, Lewan continued retreating, drawing boos from the Ohio State crowd who wanted stall calls.
Neither wrestler got points in sudden victory, then Wilcox chose bottom in the first 30-second overtime period. He escaped, but Lewan then arm-dragged Wilcox down to the mat and worked around to the Buckeye's hips. Wilcox tried to grab an ankle in separation, but Lewan got his leg free to score a takedown and go ahead 4-2. Wilcox couldn't respond with a takedown of his own in the second overtime period and Lewan pushed the Michigan lead to 16-6 at halftime with a 5-2 victory.
Michigan held the lead after all of the night’s first nine matches. But it wasn’t able to fend off the Buckeyes’ comeback in the end as Ohio State secured a rivalry win in front of a sellout crowd.
"I think I'm most happy for my team, but I'm happy just for the fans," Ryan said. "When you come to an event like this, doesn't matter how long the wait is getting out. If the wait is five hours getting out (of the venue), who cares? Everyone just had a great night, they were uplifted. And uplifting stuff is what we need in the world."
| Wt. | Results | OSU | UM |
|---|---|---|---|
| 125 | No. 14 Michael DeAugustino (UM) def. No. 24 Brendan McCrone (OSU) | TF, 16-1 | 0 | 5 |
| 133 | No. 4 Dylan Ragusin (UM) def. No. 12 Nic Bouzakis (OSU) | MD, 15-6 | 0 | 9 |
| 141 | No. 3 Jesse Mendez (OSU) wins by forfeit | 6 | 9 |
| 149 | No. 6 Austin Gomez (UM) def. No. 9 Dylan D'Emilio (OSU) | MD, 17-6 | 6 | 13 |
| 157 | No. 10 Will Lewan (UM) def. Isaac Wilcox (OSU) | TB2, 5-2 | 6 | 16 |
| 165 | No. 21 Bryce Hepner (OSU) def. Beau Mantanona (UM) | D, 12-10 | 9 | 16 |
| 174 | No. 4 Shane Griffith (Gr.) def. No. 11 Rocco Welsh (OSU) | D, 2-1 | 9 | 19 |
| 184 | Ryder Rogotzke (OSU) def. No. 15 Jaden Bullock (UM) | TF, 21-0 | 14 | 19 |
| 197 | No. 22 Luke Geog (OSU) def. Rylan Rogers (UM) | D, 9-4 | 17 | 19 |
| HWT | No. 16 Nick Feldman (OSU) def. No. 4 Lucas Davison (UM) | D, 4-3 | 20 | 19 |
| Attendance: 4,382 (Sellout) |
It’s the first win for Ohio State over Michigan in Columbus since 2012.
