Match-up #5: 112 Madness: David Taylor vs. Sam White vs. Jamie Clark vs. Steve Mitcheff vs. Jerome Robinson vs. Logan Stieber (IRONMAN/MEDINA/DIVISION I STATE TOURNAMENT)

Last year, Ohio had a bumper crop of 103’s that was simply unmatched in Ohio wrestling history.  At year’s end, Ohio held a mind-boggling five of the top seven spots in the national rankings at www.intermatwrestle.com  (Taylor 1st, Stieber 2nd, White 4th, Clark 5th, and Robinson 7th).  Similarly, www.amateurwrestlingnews.com had Taylor, Stieber, White, and Clark in the top four spots.  Ohio has never been a particularly strong state for lightweights (if you compare how many junior national champs, senior national champs, and NCAA All-Americans we have had in the middleweights and upperweights to the lighter weight classes, the lighter weights, for whatever reason, have historically been much weaker).  That is not the case today.  Taylor, Stieber, and Clark all came in as good (maybe better) as any freshman 103 ever has in my view- including Kyle Ott and Harry Lester.  Throw in White and Robinson (and 103’s Hunter Stieber and Gus Sako, plus freshman Johnni DiJulius of Walsh at 103 and Cam Tessari of Monroeville at 112) and it seems to be the “golden age” of Ohio lightweights.

With all the major players returning, and Junior National 4th place finisher Steve Mitcheff returning to the 112 weight- the weight class looks to be simply stacked in Ohio next year.  Best of all, every one of these wrestlers will be at Ironman!

The conventional wisdom holds that two-time junior national champion Logan Stieber will jump to 119 to make room for freshman teammate Cam Tessari (a 4th place finisher in the cadet nationals himself at 105 lbs.).   The thinking is, such a move gives Monroeville a chance to have four state champions.  The conventional wisdom further holds that all other major contenders will be returning to the 112 lb. weight class.  However, excellent sources indicate to me that Clark may in fact be eyeing a wrestle-off with Gus Sako (himself a third-place finisher in Fargo) at 103 and Sam White will struggle to make 112 lbs.  If I had to bet, we will see both of these wrestlers at 112 as that is what is best for their respective teams (state qualifier Mike Hillock has transferred to Perry, and is likely to be top three in the 119 lb. weight).

However, the real bombshell is that Logan Stieber may yet debut at 112 lbs. for the Ironman.  Evidently, the move to 119 lbs. would be more for team reasons than his own- and Stieber prefers to be at his best weight for Ironman.  Stieber, as Ohio fans know, has not only won back-to-back cadet national freestyle titles- he has simply never been pushed in the Fargodome   After Ironman last season, Stieber never went the distance, including a quick technical fall victory at Brecksville over Division II state runner-up James Ingraham.

A Stieber move to 112 for Ironman would set the stage for a rematch of last year’s titanic struggle with David Taylor.  All Taylor has done is won five straight national titles in Fargo.  He would possibly be on his way to being the first 10x National Champ if not for a fluke touch fall loss in the 2005 Greco finals (in a match in which he was approaching a technical fall victory).  Most recently, Taylor went to Beijing, to compete for the United States in the Junior World (20 and under) Championships.  Despite being outsized and very young for this tournament, Taylor showed great skills and heart in winning his first match and very nearly winning his second. 

The performance at Junior Worlds makes me consider that perhaps Taylor has simply reached an entirely different level than the rest of this group.  Nevertheless, I think that a Taylor/Stieber rematch this year would be closer than last year’s 7-3 match, and a Stieber victory is possible (yes- I did pick the wrong winner in last year’s Ironman Preview,  http://www.ohiowrestlingsite.com/articles/article49.php). 

Watching the match closely between these two brilliant lightweights revealed that Stieber made several “match-management” errors- which I believe he will have learned from.  After getting the first takedown, a Taylor takedown late in the first gave the Graham sophomore a 3-2 lead. Perhaps it was for this reason that Stieber decided to ride Taylor rather than “cut:” him and go back on their feet (i.e. not wanting to fall behind 4-2), but this proved to be a huge mistake.  Steiber was hit for clasping, and when Taylor did escape, he was suddenly behind 5-2 (in a match in which both wrestlers only meaningful score was a single takedown).  When Stieber was unable to finish a solid second period shot, he was forced to either take neutral in the third, and hope he could get two takedowns and ride Taylor just to tie the match….or try to get his escape point, which would mean he needed only a single takedown to tie the score.  Stieber took the down position, which proved to be a disastrous choice against possibly the nation’s best mat wrestler.  Taylor was unshakable, and eventually added a two-point nearfall. 

However, throughout the match, and watching their other matches, it seemed to me that Stieber might be a bit better on their feet.  It seems likely that Stieber will change his strategy next time and keep the match on their feet should they meet again at Ironman.  I think the first takedown will be absolutely crucial.  If Taylor gets it, he may be able to ride Stieber out for the entire first period and wear down the sophomore- who will be fresh out of football once again when he competes at Ironman.  If Stieber gets the first takedown, it could get very interesting.  At the end of the day, I have to take Taylor in a close bout, as the fact that he can get crucial escapes points- and Stieber, it would seem, cannot get them against Taylor- means that Stieber needs to have a decisive edge in the takedown game to prevail.  All this presumes that they make the finals- with the group that will be assembled at Ironman, this is far from guaranteed!

OWS Pick:  David Taylor dec. Logan Stieber 5-4.  Should all of the above be at Ironman at this weight I see the final standings as:

1. David Taylor
2. Logan Stieber
3. Jamie Clark
4. Sam White
5. Steve Mitcheff
6. Jerome Robinson

One wrestler that did not get mentioned in this group was Ben Sergent.  This was not an oversight, per an excellent source the state champion and former Junior National Champion from Troy Christian will be competing at 119 lbs. this year.  This likely sets the stage for another of the year’s biggest match-ups, Logan Stieber vs. Ben Sergent- a battle of national champions for the Division III state title.  I don’t think the leverage of Sergent will be able to frustrate Stieber in the way that Taylor’s did.  Sergent is tough on top but is no David Taylor from that position (who is?) and I think that Stieber will be able to get out from bottom and control the match on his feet. 

OWS Pick: Logan Stieber dec. Ben Sergent 7-4.

(above): Logan Stieber dismantled Division II state runner-up by technical fall at Brecksville. Despite being just a sophomore, it is not unforseeable to me that he could emerge as the best wrestler in the state should conquer all of these challenges. Photo Credit: Bob Tuneberg, Villager News.

Matchup #4 Colt Sponseller vs. Dave Rella vs. Mike Miller (NCAA 165)

I have to confess that I’m looking forward to this match for personal reasons as much as anything.  It’s hardly a secret that the West Holmes graduate was this writer’s favorite Ohio wrestler the last two years.  In my view, Colt Sponseller has just put together one of the greatest folkstyle seasons of any Ohio wrestler in the past decade (second only to Dustin Schlatter, really), yet many still seem to resist giving the three-time state champion, and Senior National Champion his due.  I had thought that shellacking nearly every good 160 in the country (generally with 5-9 unanswered takedowns per match) would be sufficient- yet somehow, there is always something wrong with every one of his opponents…. one is injured, another is in a slump, another is out of shape, etc, etc.  Why so many normally-wise wrestling observers refuse to give this great champion the accolades he deserves is a mystery to me (I think they are hung-up on his prior year’s disappointing Fargo, but his failure to place at that freestyle tourney sure didn’t seem to stop him from wracking up nine unanswered takedowns in the Dream Team Dual against the national runner-up in his weight class).  In my view, you can’t watch Sponseller compete and not want to root for him.  While the  experts have it wrong, the “average fan” on the street gets it.  Time and time again, at tournaments, I hear the average fan in the stands talking about Colt Sponseller.  At the Dream Dual, I was discussing with Bob Preusse whether Dustin Schlatter or Alan Fried was Ohio best- only to be interrupted by a young fan who informed me that Colt Sponseller was the best ever from Ohio.

I think that after Sponseller steps up his achievements to the next level, there will be no denying the greatness of this competitor.  In my mind, the biggest question mark for Sponseller will be whether or not he can get off the bottom- as he has never faced anything close to the type of mat wrestlers he is about to go up against.  This is generally the most difficult transition for any collegiate freshman.  Typically, wrestlers with the powerful, explosive build of a Lance Palmer are the most difficult to ride, which makes me pause, as this doesn’t exactly fit Sponseller.  However, getting off the bottom is in large part about having the “will” to do so- certainly not an area where this true freshman is lacking.

Yet, by no means is a Sponseller victory over Ohio greats Rella and Miller a sure thing.  Rella (himself one of my favorites to watch compete) struggled a bit more than I expected this season, but very clearly stepped it up in the off-season, where he posted a win over NCAA Champion Trent Paulson among others.  Rella can match Sponseller’s speed and has the edge in strength.  However, Sponseller is “slicker” and has the edge on pretty much everyone but Dan Gable (circa 1972) in terms of conditioning.   Meanwhile, Mike Miller has already achieved All-American status with an 8th place finish at NCAA’s as a true freshman.   It was great to see that three-time Division I state champion from Uniontown Lake do so well- given that he placed at Senior Nationals and Junior Nationals in high school, but in view, finished significantly lower than he was capable of placing. 

At the end of the day, I think you will see at least two Ohio All-Americans at this weight, and possibly three.  With Sponseller being a freshman and Rella and Miller being sophomores, there will be many great battles to come.  I like Sponseller to edge either in a match where he gives up the first takedown or two, but comes on strong in the third.

OWS Pick:  Colt Sponseller dec. Dave Rella or Mike Miller 9-7.

(above): JD Bergman of Ohio State prevailed in this NCAA bout against long-time rival Phil Davis of Penn State. Photo Credit: Daniel Hobeika, www.amateurwrestlingphotos.com

Matchup #3: JD Bergman (Ohio State) vs. Dustin Fox- (Northwestern, formerly of Galion H.S.)

One year ago at this time, I believed J.D. Bergman would be unstoppable at 197 lbs.  After redshirting the previous season, he was coming off a brilliant summer freestyle campaign at the 211 lb. weight that included dominant wins over two NCAA Runner-ups, a win over former Ohio State 2x NCAA All-American Nick Preston, and pushing the United States dominant #1 wrestler, Daniel Cormier, to the wire.  Knowing that he would also be a full three years older than when he finished 3rd at the NCAA’s as a true frosh, I believed the former two-time NCAA Champ would likely post an unbeaten national championship season.  Instead, Bergman struggled at times, coming into NCAA’s with six losses, many of which were seemed senseless, given his wins of the previous summer. 

In the matches I saw, Bergman frequently looked a bit drained, and given his success at 211, it wasn’t a difficult conclusion to reach that he was struggling with the weight cut.  When I asked him about whether the cut was difficult at the Northwestern dual, he gave me an answer to the effect of he was getting used to it (in other words, “yes”).   With a heavyweight field returning that is as non-distinct as I can ever recall, I called for Bergman to make the move up to heavyweight the following year (which would also have the additional benefit of allowing 19-year-old Corey Morrison to take a redshirt year).  While Bergman did rebound at NCAA’s with a fourth place finish (including avenging two losses), I still feel that this finish was not up to his true potential- and I’m glad to say that he will in fact be moving up to heavyweight for his senior season. 

The current #1 ranked wrestler in the nation at this weight will be none other than Galion, Ohio, native Dustin Fox.  Now wrestling for the University of Northwestern, Fox is coming off a brilliant 3rd place finish at the 2007 NCAA Tournament.  It seems that perhaps I have never given Fox his due to some extent.  Like Bergman, Fox was a two-time state champion with a great track record in Fargo, yet I must admit that as I thought there were several heavyweights in Ohio who were better his senior year (Tony Johnson, possibly Kirk Nail) so I was absolutely stunned when he defeated Matt Fields of Iowa (at the time considered to be a virtual “Superman” among high school heavyweights) to win the Junior National Freestyle Crown (to go with the Greco title he won the year before). 

Any notion that I had that the Fargo win over Fields was a fluke has been dispelled by the fact that Fox has repeated the win three times in the collegiate ranks- including twice last year.  Fox has been solid from day one in collegiate wrestling, but I must confess that his 3rd place finish last year came as a surprise.  Perhaps it is the fact that the Galion native is the most impressive to watch at first- but he simply gets the job done with mental toughness and tenacity.  He is also deceptively strong and has surprisingly quick feet for a man of his size.  Fox has emerged as the favorite to win this year.

Nevertheless, I favor the Bergman in this battle for two-time state champions from Northeast Ohio.   Some feel that the upperbody-oriented style of Bergman will not fare as well in the heavyweight ranks, yet I tend to disagree.  I think that he will be coming in at around 225-230 lbs. this year, wrestling with energy.  It’s no secret that Bergman is unnaturally strong for his weight- and now, he will be one of the quickest guys as well, and have the energy to go hard the full seven minutes.  Most importantly, he has the best workout situation of any heavyweight in the country- with World Team member Tommy Rowlands and the solid Corey Morrison to wrestle with every day (and probably club coach Ross Thatcher as well).  If anyone can instruct him as to how to wrestle as a light heavyweight- Rowlands can.  I think that my prediction of Bergman emerging as a dominant force will come true- one year later than I expected.

OWS Pick:  J.D. Bergman dec. Dustin Fox 7-5

(above): 3x state champion Tony Jameson (shown here in his 13-2 torching of state champ and All-American Jeffrey Pelton) should face the stiffest challenge of his career at Top Gun in the form of either Ben Jordan or Coby Boyd of Graham. Photo Credit: Bob Tuneberg, Villager News.

Match-up #2:  Tony Jameson vs. Ben Jordan/Coby Boyd (Alliance Top Gun, IRONMAN???)

Reports are mixed as to whether three-time state champion Tony Jameson will compete at 145 or 152 this year.  And just to throw a monkey wrench into things, he recently entered the Super 32 Challenge at 140 lbs (believe that when you see it). 

It has also not yet been determined whether two-time state champ Ben Jordan, or state champion Coby Boyd will man the 152 lb. spot for Graham.  Credible reports have both over 160 lbs. right now and wanting the 152 lb. spot (should a wrestle-off come to pass, it is arguable be that the biggest match-up of the year takes place in the Graham wrestling room).   Conventional wisdom, from many good sources, also has Jordan possibly going to 160 lbs.  Nevertheless- while I may stand alone on this one-  I have a hunch that come December, we will see Ben Jordan at 145 and Coby Boyd at 152. 

The Jameson/Jordan match-up should have happened last year at Top Gun, but Jordan was defeated in a (minor) upset by 2006 state runner-up Marcel Clopton of Shaker Heights.  It’s well-known to wrestling fans in this state that Tony Jameson- ever the showman- lives for the big match.  After the state tournament, I asked Jameson who the one wrestler in this state he wanted to wrestle against was.  Without hesitation, he answered with a single word….“Jordan”.  

After winning state that last two years, Ben Jordan had what can only be considered a disappointing season.   He started off strong at Ironman, winning over the eventual Senior National Champion (Chris Diaz) and wrestling Max Shanaman of Blair Academy tough.  However,his stunning defeat by fall at the hands of Andrew Gasber of St. Edward (in Gasber’s dreaded “monkey roll”) seemed to almost take the momentum out of his junior campaign- as surprising losses followed against the likes of Clopton, T.J. Rigel, and eventually, in the state finals to Jeffrey Pelton (though following Pelton’s 4th place finish at Senior Nationals and win at the Dream Team Dual, this one-point loss clearly was nothing to hang one’s head over).

In my view, what transpired was more of “domino effect” where Jordan did not wrestle up to his ability.   Reports are that he has spent the off-season working on building strength to go with his superb technique.  I’d look for a vastly improved Ben Jordan this year.  That said, Jordan matches up poorly with Tony Jameson in my view.  Jordan is the master of controlling position.  However, in my opinion, it’s impossible to control position for the full six minutes against Jameson- he simply creates too many bizarre scoring opportunities for himself with his funk- unless you can eat a good chunk of the time up with a tough ride.  Jordan is a good rider, but I’m not sure that he has the strength to ride Jameson.  Perhaps Jordan is a better scrambler than I give him credit for- I just haven’t seen him scramble all that much in the past three seasons.  I think Jordan will score some early takedown, but Jameson will catch him in a big move and go from there.

By contrast, I’m not so sure about a potential Jameson/Boyd match.  Frankly, I forsee that the almost unnatural “horsepower” of Boyd- combined with how dangerous he is himself- could present problems for Jameson.   While Jameson is the most proficient wrestler in the state at creating numerous scoring opportunies, Coby Boyd is probably the most proficient at putting away an opponent who makes a mistake.  Get out of position, and you are going to your back, and once you’re there, there had better not be time on the clock.  I think that the legendary “funk” of the Fitch senior has the potential to get him into trouble against Boyd.  I think it’s interesting to note that of Jameson’s top five opponents last year (Pelton, Spicel, Lybarger, Habat, and Clopton)- he had the easiest time with the Jeffrey Pelton.  Pelton seems to be the best of those five, but is clearly the “finesse wrestler” of the group. What I take from this is- power is more valuable than finesse against Jameson.

Outside of the fluke pin against Jeb Pencil (avenged in dominating fashion), and the close  loss to Alex Meade at Ironman, Boyd was unstoppable last year, including a win over four-time state champ Shane Nay (a wrestler who beat Thomas Straughn the year before) and a fall in the state finals over Kirk Tank.  More recently, Boyd posted a huge win over three-time Division I state champ Kevin Hardy in an unbeaten Disney Duals.  Hardy had a simply awesome post season with wins over national champion Luke Ashmore, Eric Cubberly, Jedd Moore, and Steve Wilson, but couldn’t get anything going against the senior-to-be from Graham (who it should be noted, was giving up some size in this match-up).  To some extent- Boyd has flown under the radar in part because of wrestling fewer national events than some- but I would not be surprised to see him pull off an upset at Ironman over one of the nation’s best that he is likely to face (possibly Mario Mason or Alex Meade). 

In my view, the Jameson/Boyd match will never come to pass, as Jameson’s entering the Super 32 at 140 signals that he is more likely to be 145 than 152.  However, should this match-up occur (Roddy, Palmer, and Taylor could definitely have a say in this as well), this match could be for the unofficial title of “Ohio’s best wrestler” much as Sponseller/Nemec was last year.

OWS Pick: Tony Jameson dec. Ben Jordan 11-5

Match-up #1: Dustin Schlatter vs. Brent Metcalf (NCAA 149 lbs.)

At the end of the day, the Ohio match-up I’m looking forward to the most is one between an Ohio wrestler who is now a collegian, Dustin Schlatter (formerly of Graham and Perry, now of the University of Minnesota) and his long-time Brent Metcalf.  The two greatest high school folkstyle wrestlers of the decade, the prep achievements of these two were simply unsurpassed.  Both won six straight titles in Fargo in highly competitive weight classes, and were very rarely pushed in the process. 

The dominant careers of Metcalf and Schlatter were almost parallel for many years.  Both dominated the national scene from their sophomore year on, but never met as they were always a weight class apart.  There were many possible opportunities where they could have squared off.  They could have met at FILA Cadets their sophomore year (Metcalf didn’t attend, Schlatter dominated) they could have met at Cincinnati Nationals (Schlatter entered but pulled out with an injury), they could have met at M.I.T. (Metcalf didn’t drop a weight as it was reported he would, or maybe Schlatter failed to move up a weight), they could have met at Fargo their junior years (Schlatter was out with  a broken wrist).  Who was dodging who, if anyone?  It was almost as if the two great warriors were letting the drama build before the ultimate high school wrestling showdown.   I’m not sure if this is true or not, but legend has it that Metcalf even attended a Jordan camp to glean wisdom on how to beat Schlatter following Schlatter’s transfer from Graham (see http://s7.invisionfree.com/The_Guillotine_Forum/ar/t276.htm).

So acclaimed was the duo that before their first meeting, at the Medina Invitational Tournament, the entire gymnasium was on their feet before the start of the bout applauding- something I have never seen before or since.  Schlatter struck with a quick takedown with a duck-under.  However, as the match progressed, Schlatter seemed disconcerted by Metcalf’s constant pressure and clearly began to tire.  Nevertheless, with the score tied, Schlatter hit another slick duck-under for what appeared to be the winning takedown- only to have the call reversed (incorrectly in my view) and the match sent into overtime.  After a scoreless overtime, in double-overtime, Metcalf rode out Schlatter for the win despite not getting a takedown.

The second bout was with much larger stakes- in the Senior National finals, with a national title on the line.  It was unmistakable that his match featured a much more confident-looking Dustin Schlatter.  Once again, Schlatter struck quickly with a takedown, but this time, was able to take Metcalf out of his game by riding him out the entire period.  Schlatter then escaped to build his lead to 3-0, and quickly fired in on a beautiful single-leg and appeared to be about to break the match open to 5-0.  However, Metcalf- a simply outstanding scrambler- had the presence of mind (despite Schlatter being ever so close to a takedown and possibly even backpoints) to hold a likely stalemate position until Schlatter “forced” the action to convert his takedown. At that point, Metcalf capitalized, turning the tables on Schlatter with a scramble takedown to cut the lead to 3-2.  A Schlatter escape point with a few seconds left was key to his eventual victory, as he went up 4-2 at the end of the second, and from there, held on for a 4-3 win (to read Schlatter’s thoughts on their timeless bouts, go here: http://www.ohiowrestlingsite.com/articles/article21.php).

Since then, the paths of these two wrestlers have diverged greatly.  Schlatter stepped into the University of Minnesota’s lineup immediately, or perhaps it should be said, exploded into it.  Schlatter dropped an early season bout to Mark Disalvo 1-0, as a result of poor strategic decision (taking neutral rather than the down position), but never lost again.  His “coming out” party was at National Duals in January.  Schlatter was first pitted against returning NCAA 3rd place finisher Jon Masa, a 6th year senior who had even wrestled at a World Championships.  The ever-vocal New York crowd on www.themat.com gleefully predicted that the true frosh would get a rather rude welcome to collegiate wrestling.  It didn’t happen, as Schlatter completely dominated Masa in all phases, winning by a 6-0 score.  Next, he avenged his only loss to Disalvo, himself an All-American (and an Ohio native from Dayton Carroll High School). 

That set up a match against Zach Esposito.  Esposito was the returning NCAA Champion, runner-up the year before, and was even seeded #2 at NCAA’s that year. He was considered one of the few true sure-fire champs that year.  However, the true frosh did the unthinkable- he knocking off NCAA Champ Zach Esposito 8-7 in one of the most exciting bouts I had ever seen.  Schlatter outdid himself a  few weeks later, with a mind-blowing 11-2 win over Esposito  It was truly one of the most mind-boggling things I have ever seen, as Schlatter had Esposito completely broken by the end of the bout (go here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aNMW3CIW-1U).

Schlatter’s exploits just kept coming as the season progressed, including wins of 6-0 and 8-0 over returning NCAA 4th place finisher Eric Tannenbaum (the long-time arch-rival of his older brother, C.P. Schlatter).  At NCAA’s, Schlatter yielded just two escape points in five matches, and his closest bout was 5-1.  So outstanding was Schlatter’s freshman season that it was difficult to really even dispute that he had compiled a better true freshman year than the two best middleweights of the 1990’s, Cary Kolat and Lincoln McIlravy, and possibly the greatest season of any true freshman, ever (see http://www.ohiowrestlingsite.com/articles/article28.php).

While Schlatter soared, Metcalf struggled.  Early in the fall of his freshman year, tragedy struck, as the Virginia Tech freshman had to endure the death of his older brother, (former Senior National Champion) Chase Metcalf, in an automobile accident.  Perhaps as a result, the wrestler who finished his high school career was a staggering 228-0 record, struggled for the first time.   Metcalf was beaten by NCAA Runner-up Ty Eustice (certainly a forgivable loss) and also by former Ohio state champion Aaron Martin.  In a number of other bouts, Metcalf struggled to win against other freshmen or wrestlers who were simply not of “national caliber.”
 
As Metcalf appeared ready to begin his collegiate career, another bizarre twist occurred.  Metcalf’s coach, Olympic Gold Medalist Tom Brands, became the head coach at the college wrestling’s most storied program, the University of Iowa.  Since Metcalf had only attended Virginia Tech due to being a Brands’ disciple, it was clear that Metcalf (and several others) would be coming to Iowa as part of the package.  Virginia Tech, having made a big investment in the wrestling program, was not pleased with what amounted to a “plundering” of their program, and Metcalf’s career became a political football.  At the end of the day, Brent Metcalf transferred to Iowa, but Virginia Tech, perhaps motivated by spite (and perhaps understandably so), forced him to sit out a year.  It was in that year off, that Metcalf’s career was rejuvenated.   Unleashing his talents on the senior freestyle circuit, among Metcalf’s brilliant wins were victories over former NCAA Champion Jesse Jantzen and NCAA Runner-ups Dylan Long, Joe Johnston , and Phil Simpson, plus a win over Olympic Gold Medalist Kendall Cross (which should be qualified by saying that Cross is nearly 40 years old and was supposed to be a weight class lighter).  In general, he showed himself to be very competitive with the U.S.A.’s best wrestlers at this weight. 

Meanwhile, it was Schlatter whose career backslid, relatively speaking.  Gone was the dominating Schlatter of the prior year- the 2006-2007 version seemed content to win by a point against everyone.   Whereas Schlatter had only three wins by a single point as a freshman (and one of those was against an NCAA Champion), he had no less than nine of them his sophomore year.  Eventually, it was to catch up with him- as Gregor Gillespie of Edinboro snapped Schlatter’s long unbeaten streak in the NCAA Semi-finals by a 3-2 score. 

The question then remains, which Schlatter will show up for next year?  Some have offered the opinion that perhaps the fire to compete has dimmed, or perhaps Schlatter “wore the weight of the crown” too heavily, i.e. couldn’t handle going from the hunter to the “hunted” so to speak.  There was also talk that perhaps Schlatter’s style had been scouted and figured out to some extent.  I think that to some extent, going from the freshman underdog to the marked man have had an effect.  However, what hampered Schlatter’s performance most, in my view, was his injured knee (which required surgery at the end of the season).  I talked to a Big Ten coach of a rival team (who had numerous opportunities to see him wrestle down the stretch) about whether the knee had an impact on Schlatter’s performance, and he had a simple answer- “there’s no question, it definitely slowed him down and affected his performance.”  

I think it is useful to look to his past history.  Schlatter’s sophomore year, he struggled early, losing the first two bouts of his career (to Jason Johnstone and Shane Grogg) and needing overtime to defeat Grogg in a second bout.  There was even talk that the unbeaten Jorge Conger, dropping to 125, might just give him a run for his money at the Schott.  Instead, Schlatter thumped Conger 11-0, and then brought his game to a whole new level- as the sophomore defeated Senior national champions Ryan Lang and Dan Frishkorn, and the very highly regarded junior Alex Tsirtsis, to win in Fargo.  I look for a repeat of history here.  Schlatter will return healthy, and no longer as the marked man, but with something to prove.  I think he returns wrestling at a higher level than he ever has and emerges as the best wrestler in the nation this year, regardless of weight.

So how does Schlatter project against the vaunted Metcalf?  A couple of key things to bear in mind.  First of all, Metcalf is, and always has been, a better freestyle than folkstyle wrestler.  He may have defeated Jesse Jantzen in freestyle, but I’ll take Jantzen, (with his amazing riding ability) any day of the week in folkstyle.  Metcalf’s explosive style creates a lot of situations where he scores big points off his opponents shots with back exposures in freestyle, and makes him very dangerous from par terre with a gut wrench.  By contrast, he is not much of a threat from the top position in folkstyle.  Frankly, I anticipate that he will drop a bout or two during the year.  That said, Schlatter matches up poorly with Metcalf to some extent.  Reason being, what Schlatter does best is counter his opponent’s shots (this is why brilliant leg attack artist Eric Tannenbaum was so completely dominated by Schlatter), in fact he is without question one of the best “counter-shot” artists of all time.  This presents a problem versus Metcalf, who rarely shoots, but rather mauls an opponent until they are forced to shoot in the face of his constant pressure.   What will be key for Schlatter is to go on the offensive early, score a takedown and then ride out Metcalf as he did at Senior Nationals.  The longer they are on their feet, the more the advantage shifts to Metcalf with his style of wearing down an opponent (as happened at M.I.T.)   There could be as many as four bouts between these two outstanding competitors this year, and while a healthy Schlatter is the better of the two in my view, a sweep of these bouts seems very unlikely.    Nevertheless, I think that Schlatter, with two years of collegiate competition under his belt, will be much less “fazed” by the physicality and pressure of Metcalf, and get the better of the series.

OWS Pick:  Dustin Schlatter prevails in three of four bouts, including the NCAA Finals, 5-4.

(above): Gut-check time: The battered but not broken Dustin Schlatter rebounded from his first loss to in over a year by defeating J.P. O'Conner and Lance Palmer to finish 3rd at NCAA's. Photo Credit: Daniel Hobeika, www.amateurwrestlingphotos.com

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