The offseason is officially over. Ohio State, the unanimous No. 2 wrestling team in the country, takes to the mats Saturday morning in New Jersey with six members of its projected starting lineup competing alongside a number of their teammates in the Princeton Open.
It isn't called a preseason, but the early matches of the NCAA wrestling season serve much the same purpose as professional leagues' unofficial early matches. After months of strength and conditioning work, and nearly a month of official team practices, the athletes finally meet non-teammates in competitive action, and can tune-up the skills they've been honing against an actual opponent.
Twelve members of the Big Ten conference compete in similar events Saturday. Minnesota and Nebraska head to the Daktronics Open in South Dakota, while Michigan, Michigan State, Northwestern, Purdue and Wisconsin all compete in the Michigan State Open in East Lansing. Indiana competes at the Clarion Open in Pennsylvania Sunday.
Illinois travels to Missouri for their first dual of the season Saturday, and Maryland visits Rutgers for an outdoor dual at High Point Solutions Stadium. Penn State hosts Army Thursday, and Iowa will open its season with the Iowa City Duals on Nov. 17.
Buckeye Breakdown
More than a dozen teams entered the Princeton Open, with 206 wrestlers registered. The Buckeyes travel with 18 members of the roster, though several will technically wrestle "unattached" in the open format. Six members of the starting lineup compete, including former NCAA champion Myles Martin and the All-American Jordan brothers Bo and Micah.
Freshman Braken Mead will step in for Nathan Tomasello, who will be out until at least December after suffering a knee injury at the U23 World Team Trials last month. Luke Pletcher, Ke-Shawn Hayes and Te'Shan Campbell are all members of head coach Tom Ryan's starting lineup once dual-season opens in mid-November.
Along with NaTo, Joey McKenna, Kollin Moore and Kyle Snyder will all watch from the sidelines this weekend. McKenna missed a week after tweaking an ankle during the wrestle-offs, and is working toward the U23 World Championships in Poland Nov. 21-26. Moore is coming off a minor leg injury in practice, and withdrew from the NWCA All-Star Classic Sunday. Snyder, because of his more intense international schedule, doesn't tend to compete in the early-season opens.
125 pounds: Mead is the projected starter for the team until Tomasello's return. Also competing from the Buckeye roster is Hunter Lucas, a redshirt freshman from Lima Central Catholic, where he was a two-time OSHAA state finalist. Penn State freshman Justin Lopez will compete at 125, though it is unlikely he will start for the Nittany Lions in dual-meets.
133 pounds: Luke Pletcher moved up to 141 pounds last season, advancing to the round of 16 at the NCAA tournament. He is a much better fit at 133, with Tomasello moving back down to 125. Pletcher enters the season ranked No. 10 in the country according to FloWrestling.
141 pounds: With Joey McKenna sitting this one out, another redshirt freshman will see competition at Princeton. Clay Ragon, from Williamston, Mich., where he was a state runner-up at 135 pounds as a senior and 125 pounds as a junior.
149 pounds: One of the most anticipated matches of the day will be Ke-Shawn Hayes' first tilt. Hayes is one of the more heralded recruits Tom Ryan has brought to Columbus, going 29-1 as a redshirt, but he missed last season due to a knee injury. He was expected to enter the lineup at 141, but the offseason transfer of McKenna from Stanford gave Ryan options, including moving Hayes up a class.
157 pounds: This class should be interesting. Micah Jordan will make his Buckeye debut at 157 after finishing fourth at the NCAA Tournament in the 149 pound class. Jordan is currently ranked No. 4 in the country. Penn State's Brady Berge, a four-time Minnesota state champion, will also compete in the tournament in his first collegiate action. FloWrestling ranked Princeton's Mike D'angelo No. 18 in the country at 149, but he's entered at 157 for this open.
165 pounds: Ohio State makes up a good portion of the field at 165, with starter Te'Shan Campbell flanked by Anthony DeCarlo, Cody Dingess, Ryan Ferro and Fritz Schierl. Campbell won the ACC Championship at Pitt last season, and is currently No. 10 in the country at 165.
174 pounds: Bo Jordan is a three-time All-American and 2017 NCAA finalist, entering the season No. 3 in the country. He's a solid 61-7 over three seasons in Columbus.
184 pounds: Myles Martin won a NCAA championship as a true freshman, and established himself as one of the most electric wrestlers in the field. He was an unexpected early exit from last year's tournament after upsetting Penn State's Bo Nickal to win the Big Ten title, but finished 5th to earn a second All-America finish. Entering the season No. 2 behind defending national champ Nickal, Martin is eager to get back to work toward another title. Freshmen Ethan Smith and Zach Steiner will also compete; both were very successful high school wrestlers.
197 pounds: Kollin Moore was slated to compete Sunday in the NWCA All-Star Classic, but withdrew following what Coach Ryan described as a "minor leg injury." Moore is expected to start as scheduled at the Buckeyes' home opener versus Arizona State Nov. 12. The Buckeyes won't field anyone in the class at Princeton.
285 pounds: Three heavyweights not named Kyle Snyder will round out the Buckeye delegation Saturday. Chase Singletary, Kevin Snyder and Gary Traub will all compete. True freshman Singletary may be the treat of the day, as the highly-touted newcomer could well be the elder Snyder's replacement in the starting lineup next year. He was the top-ranked 220-pound recruit in the country and FloWrestling's No. 5 recruit overall.
How It Plays Out
Most of the nationally-ranked wrestlers competing will be doing so in scarlet and gray singlets. Teams like Princeton and LeHigh have strong individual contenders, but they're not slated to hit the mats during this open. It'll be a great atmosphere for Tom Ryan's team to get their first action of the season, and for several freshman on the squad it'll be their first collegiate competition.
Live streaming is available via TrackWrestling beginning at 9 a.m.
