Recap of the Stupid Nebraska Dual (part two)

Have you ever felt sorry for a Cornhusker?

Me either. But after watching Lucas Byrd's onslaught against Dominick Serrano, I did. The Nebraska kid was an undefeated four-time state champion two years ago, but he got a beatdown yesterday that you won't see outside of a Tom & Jerry cartoon. 

You do that to another human, and you usually have to answer to a judge. 

Serrano lost to Chris Cannon by one point, and he beat Wisconsin's Kyle Burwick by two. He's a tough kid, and he's bigger than Lucas, but the ILLINI exerted control from the opening whistle. This was Lucas' first takedown:

For some reason, the Nebraska kid tried to ride Byrd in the second. It was a short ride:

To get the major decision he was working on, Lucas had to catch and release a couple of times. But not until he secured a comfortable riding time margin and a beautiful mat return:

After a whip-over, this time on his knees, and another release, Byrd picks apart his opponent methodically. 

Byrd with another couple of takedowns, a riding point and the 12-4 major decision. He finishes Big Ten duals at 8-0 with a pin, three major decisions and no other margin of victory closer than five points. It looks like DeSanto in the semis and RBY in the finals. 

During the match at 157, Jim Gibbons said something along the lines of, "You can see the confidence growing in Joe Roberts." The ILLINI wrestled honorable mention AA Peyton Robb, who is very big, and who has some very big wins this year. With Roberts coming within a couple of ergs of scoring two different takedowns in a 2-3 loss, my confidence in Joe Roberts is increasing as well. 

I would note this as well: With Robb having that 3-2 lead in the third period, Joe drove in with a front headlock and pushed the Husker out of bounds. In something like six or seven other instances in the dual when it was a Nebraska doofus doing the pushing, well, the ref called a stall warning. That first stalling, which wasn't called, would've come in handy when that second stall warning was called later in the third.

Be consistent is all I ask!

At 165, Danny Braunagel faced a very big, strong and explosive Bubba Wilson. The Cornhusker has sky-high confidence right now, as he's coming off a win against returning AA Cameron Amine of Michigan. (Of course, Danny is 3-0 against Amine himself). 

The first period ends 0-0, but that doesn't tell the tale. There were a couple of scrambles, including the final one which lasted a full fifty seconds. 

Bubba with the quick escape in the second. Then Little Brawny shoots a single, limps out of the whizzer, and when the Husker defends by putting his head too low and near his leg, Danny can smell what the Ruth is cooking! 

That's a takedown and four back points. Bubba Wilson fights off his back, but then the Brawlnagel takes him down again. It was a very clinical conversion of a single:

With :27 to go in the match, there's a restart in neutral. Danny needs a takedown and ride-out for the major and ...

CONCLUSION:  The Wisconsin dual was pretty bad, but the ILLINI returned to Lincoln with some Fighting Spirit. Lucas Byrd was scintillating and will be must-watch TV for the rest of his career. The Brawlnagels were excellent with upsets over higher-ranked opponents. DJ Shannon made that list as well with his win over Wisconsin's Andrew McNally. 

Leading into the post season, the major question left to answer is what is going on with Justin Cardani. I agree with Jim Gibbons that Joe Roberts is gaining confidence, and there's time now for Duncan and Wroblewski to work on their conditioning. 

As for the 500 capes that Nebraska was to give out at the dual, I saw a bunch of little kids in the crowd, but not one of them was so uncool that he actually wore the cape. I think I saw a cape laying next to one tyke in the stands. If your promotion is not cool enough for a toddler, it was a bad promotion.