ILLINI Wrestling: The Lineup

WEIGHT BY WEIGHT ANALYSIS

As was stated in our previous article about the nonconference schedule, this is by far the earliest I've seen a roster for the ILLINI Wrestling team. Early by about two months! This is good because it gives us something to think about, and it gives the wrestlers something to shoot for. 

I am providing my analysis of each weight first, then I'm adding the authoritative comments from Coach Poeta that can be found here at the Flo Wrestling Early Lineup Look for the 2022-23 ILLINI. So, here goes:

125.  The starter at this weight will likely be determined in wrestle offs and in the early part of the season. Justin Cardani has held this spot for the last three years. So far, he has always been in matches but has trouble closing them in the Big Ten and the NCAA tournament. What he needs are finishes. I don't think anybody in the NCAA gets to a leg better or more often than the Champaign Kid, but sometimes that means he's stretched out and can only hold on. 

Cardani does have the grip of a lion, though, which means he can usually hold off an opponent who needs to score by just diving in and holding on. The problem occurs when he needs to score. Has he worked on his finishes? Has he gained more strength? I've always said that he would be an AA, but he still needs to learn how to finish those takedowns. 

Maximo Renteria is a blue-chip recruit from California. He was coached by Troy Tirapelle out of Clovis, where he won three state championships before Covid ruined his chance for a fourth.

Maximo had a pretty awful redshirt year in terms of wrestling, but I think it had everything to do with him coming down with Covid. This is all speculation on my part, but you could almost pinpoint the exact hour Covid hit him hard--it was between matches at the MSU Open. 

All of a sudden, Maximo didn't have the wind to last past the first period. 

The young man has a daring Fireman's and high crotch that he can finish in multiple ways, and he has shown a great gas tank in high school. Will his pedigree shine through? I've heard from people who know much more about wrestling than I do that Maximo can be an All American--if he stays on track and sets that as his goal.

A couple of random observations: I believe I saw Cardani in a sling over the off season, but I might be thinking of a year ago. Renteria was sent to wrestle at U23 and not U20, presumably because he would be up to that challenge. The coaching staff obviously think highly of his talents. Intermat has Cardani ranked #25. 

From the Flo article, Coach Poeta states that "I think this is the first time where [Cardani's] going to be challenged. I think the spot is open and I think it’s between him and Maximo Renteria. Maximo has shown us signs that he can be an All-American and that’s the thing that Cardani also has at times.”

133.  This is Lucas Byrd all day long. The only question about this young man is, "How high can this Byrd fly?" Okay, I guess there's also some question about an injury he sustained in the last match of his NCAA tournament. 

The returning two-time All American sidelined himself over the Summer to get ready for the NCAA season. He has been involved in camps. 

Byrd must be back to his old self, as he has agreed to wrestle in the NWCA All Star matches. 

I've always thought that Lucas was small for 133, so if he can put on some more muscle, he could terrorize people even more. Can you wait to see his first matches with RBY and Daton Fix? 

I can't. 

I have called this the Greatest Blood Round Takedown in NCAA History, and Dan Sweeny @DPSBreakdowns on Twitter called it possibly the move of the 2022 NCAA tournament (I will not argue that point):

In the Flo article, Coach Poeta noted this about Byrd: "What he's been for us is really special and he's mentally as tough as anyone I've ever coached. We have high expectations for him this year against whoever he wrestles." Intermat has Byrd ranked #4, just behind his NWCA All Star opponent, Michael McGee--who he beat two years ago in the NCAA tournament. 

141. It looks like Danny Pucino is a lock for this weight. That's what I thought would happen once Dylan Duncan graduated. The kid from Libertyville really impressed in his two redshirt years, with wins over Round of 16er Dylan D'Emilio of Ohio State, the Wisconsin starter and in an extra match against Northwestern's Frankie Tal-Shahar. The latter qualified for the NCAA tournament last season. 

Pucino won the Don Parker Invitational last year, and I got to see him wrestle (really well) for the Italian U23 team and for the Italians during the Matteo Pellicone. 

Too bad he always gets an Iranian!

Danny is unranked at Intermat so far, but two guys he beat two years ago are: D'Emilio is ranked #8, while Tal-Shahar is #9. I expect the slick and quick Pucino to replace them in the rankings soon. 

This is what Coach Poeta had to say about the highlight reel kid: "He has dedicated himself this summer as much as anyone I've ever seen. He's exciting. His gas tank is great. His technique is great. He's fun to watch."

149.  At this weight, the staff is also looking at some wrestle off fireworks. A lot of folks are penciling in Kevon Davenport, as he was a four-time state champ in Michigan as well as the #22 overall recruit a couple of years ago. 

Davenport was stuck behind Ridge Lovett at Nebraska and transferred to the ILLINI. Back in the 2019-2020 season as a redshirt, Kevon had a sparkling 18-2 record with wins over two guys who would go on to qualify at the NCAA tournament. 

Fighting for the spot will be Jake Harrier, a transfer from Lindenwood, who went 20-3 as a redshirt there. His high school years were injury plagued, so we never got to see the best of him. 

This year he can shine. 

Neither Davenport or Harrier are ranked by Intermat so far, but I expect whoever earns the starting spot will leap into the Top 25.  

This is what Coach Poeta had to say about this battle: "That will probably be one of the most up-in-the-air weight classes. Kevon is the front-runner but Jake Harrier is fighting for the spot. He's still a freshman.... We knew he was a hard-nosed, tough kid and his performance at U23s went past our expectations starting out."

157.  The returning starter is Sophomore Joe Roberts, but there's also talk of a possible red shirt, and there's talk that Luke Odom could be shooting for that spot in the lineup. 

This is one of the traditionally hard-hitting weight classes at the University of ILLINOIS. You only have to go back to the coaches themselves, IMAR and Mike Poeta, and then there's Alex Tirapelle, and at 149/150, Adam Tirapelle, Eric Siebert and Steve Marianetti. Then, another champ, Ernest Benion at 158. 

The pull for Odom would seem very hard to me, as he's a big boy, but if he feels he can do it, why not? The ILLINI certainly want to see improvement at this weight over the results from last season. 

This is what Coach Poeta had to say: "Joe Roberts and Luke Odom are the two main guys and both are ILLINOIS state champs. I think Odom has been on the national scene longer. His name has been around. Both have great potential and will be guys that go one way or the other: They can be with the elite or they can stay status quo. If their mindset is in the right place, I have confidence those guys can beat anybody."  

This is what the ILLINI have come to expect from their middleweights:

165.  This will be one of the Brawlnagels. Write it down. Danny has been ranked as high as #6 in the country and was an Honorable Mention All American during the Covid year, but a rash of injuries has stunted his NCAA and B1G tournament performances. 

We ILLINI fans only ask for a full, healthy year! 

Last year, it was a concussion that wouldn't allow him to wrestle at the Big Ten tournament; the year before, it was a broken bone that hampered his wrestling. 

There was a recent thread about the Brawny Twins at themat.com that posed this question: How do identical twins wrestle at 165 and 197 during the same year? My answer is that they are the same weight, it is that Danny always stands closer to the camera than Zac. It's all about perspective, my friends. 

This is a very tough weight, but Intermat doesn't have the Brawlnagel ranked at all. That's a mistake. He has a 4-2 record against the #5, #12 and #14 wrestlers. He just needs to have a healthy season.

This is what the Coach has to say: "I think the way his season ended has fueled him over the summer. He didn't just work hard, he was very strategic.... He put himself in the best position to reach his goal this season, which is to be a national champ...."

174.  This is going to be Edmond Ruth, although Coach Poeta thinks we could have some keen wrestle offs at this weight as well. Intermat already has Ruth at #16 in the country, and that's based on a gray shirt year last season, where he went 8-0 and won two opens, as well as a redshirt season for Lehigh two years before that, when he went 17-7, and even in high school, when he entered open tournaments and beat college kids.  

There's also Ohio high school champ Trey Sizemore, who is the best wrestling broadcaster in the conference, and then there's all-around good guy and ILLINOIS state champ Caden Ernd. 

Coach Poeta went on at length with Flo Wrestling about this weight: 

“We have two other tough guys and I’m not going to put Edmond in front of them right now. Edmond has shown that he can wrestle with anybody. Just like his older brother, I think he’s a better folkstyler because of how good he is on top. Edmond is someone I have extremely high expectations for. Bringing him on the team was a huge bonus for us. 

“Trey Sizemore has been a great part of our program. He’s a guy who can pick up some big wins, so he’s going to be in the mix and Caden Ernd. He’s a coach's dream. He does everything you ask of him. His grades are great. His work ethic is great. He’s improving on a pretty high trajectory. Those three are going to be fighting it out. The cool thing about 174 is they’ve been feeding off of each other.”

184.  ILLINOIS high school four-timer Dylan Connell worked his butt off last year in open tournaments, finishing with a 22-6 record, and he gets rewarded with a spot in the starting lineup. 

Or, maybe it'll be at 197?

I always wondered if it was possible to keep him out of the lineup, and no it wasn't. 

The move of Zac Braunagel to 197 and Matt Wroblewski to heavyweight means that Connell will get to show what he's got against the rest of the Big Ten. The Intermat rankings have Big Brawny at #9 at this weight. That has a lot to do with his missing out on a second AA finish because of a sudden victory loss in the Blood Round. 

Coach Poeta told the good folks at Flo that he's "leaning toward Dylan Connell at 184," while bumping up Zac Braunagel to 197. He had more to say about Connell: 

“Dylan Connell is so tough and mean on top. I think he’s like Edmond where folkstyle fits him way better because they’re a blanket on top of you, it’s nearly impossible to get away, and he can turn. They have an X-factor that a lot of guys in folkstyle don’t have. I’m very confident in him and very excited for him to get out there.”

197.  If Connell is at 184, you'll find Zac at 197. As you recall, he lost in overtime in the blood round to just miss out on his second AA award. Brawny is ranked #9 by Intermat at 184, but he's unranked at 197 ... so far. 

This reminds me of Midorifuji.

You see, Midorifuji is a five-foot seven-inch tall (Haha, right!) Sumo wrestler who weighs about 250 pounds (Haha, sure). That seems like a lot of weight until you realize that he gives up 100 pounds in almost every match, 150+ in some others. Yet, Midorifuji has made his way up the ranks to Maegashira 1. Here he wrestles an Ozeki, Shodai, who outweighs him by about 110 pounds:

The wrestling starts at about 1:55.

Zac has had great success wrestling the bigger 184ers so far in his career, beating the likes of Marcus Coleman, Max Lyon, Isaiah Salazar, Cameron Caffey, Jelani Embree, Billy Janzer, Taylor Venz (x2), and Rocky Jordan (x2). Cam Caffey and Billy Janzer have already made the jump to 197. 

Coach Poeta brings up an even bigger name in his Brawlnagel analysis: "I think Zac Braunagel will do better at 197 just because of his style of wrestling. Every time he's wrestled bigger guys it's gone better for him. He's 2-0 against (former Minnesota NCAA tournament finalist) Brett Pfarr (in freestyle) right now at 202 (pounds)."

285.  It is looking more and more like this will be a weight manned by Matt Wroblewski. There are a number of factors that provide evidence for this assumption. First, Luffman had surgery over the off season and spent some time in a sling. 

Second, Luuuuke has a redshirt to use. Third, would he do more damage at the NCAA tournament coming off an injury this year, or healthy and fully-trained in two years? Third and most importantly, Coach Poeta is giving this very serious consideration. 

I believe that I read that WroboCop is walking around at about 235. That's a lot more than what I weighed (191) when wrestling heavyweight in college. And back then, there was no upper limit at heavyweight.

Again, there are the comparisons to a Sumo like Midorifuji. 

I can see Matt having success with knee picks against heavyweights, even some of the B1G heavys. When I first heard about this possibility, I tweeted that Wroblewski should spend the rest of the Summer underneath Luffman, Bosco and Renshaw. Getting out from the bottom might be the hardest aspect of this jump. Even if he wrestles at 235 while training with the team during the season, he will still be giving up as much as 50 pounds to some guys. 

Coach Poeta said this about the situation: "Matt Wroblewski is going to be fighting it out at heavyweight. Luke Luffman might redshirt. I'm figuring out heavyweight right now. I'm playing around with heavyweight right now.... I think at 184-197 we have two such clear-cut guys and they don't have a redshirt. Luffman has a redshirt. Wroblewski spent the Summer getting bigger. He got himself up to 235. He's our potential heavyweight." Okay, that's where I read that WroboCop was up to 235. Haha!

DEPTH.  I can't remember a time since the mid-2000s that the ILLINI had this much quality depth at various weights. Sure, you only have Dylan Connell at 184 in the chart at the top, but Zac Braunagel could come down, and Trey Sizemore or Caden Ernd could come up. 

Similarly, there's a bit of a logjam at 149. A really good wrestler might have to take a seat this year, but he will provide out-of-this-world depth. That provides depth from 141 to 157. 

Likewise at 125. A very good wrestler won't start, but he'll be there to back up the weight and 133. High-flyer Joey Braunagel can back up 197 or be an emergency heavyweight. 

A NOTE TO THE TRUE FRESHMEN.  Do what Dylan Connell did: Find an open tournament during as many weekends as you can to hone your craft and get a feel for these college fellers. Also, do what Joey Braunagel did: Go big. This is your chance to work on throws or moves that might come in handy one day when you're down by one with :20 on the clock. Plus, it's fun to watch! 

For the people who have followed the ILLINI Wrestling Recruits and Scholarship Sheets that are posted at the top, here is a complete breakdown of how these sheets differ from the previous version:

For the Wee Folk: Brian Beers from 125 to 133; Sammy Hayes from 133 to 125; Josh Contreras has moved on and is helping BTS Chicago on the side; Dane Durlacher has also moved on with his bad self; Kole Brower is at 133, not 141 like I thought; Kenny Kerstein has moved on to bigger things; Jake Harrier from 141 to 149; Charlie Fifield from 157 to 149; No Rachals on the roster, neither Baan or We, as they are off to become doctors and lawyers and businessmen; Billy Spassov and Cooper Wettig added at 157; Kept Luke Odom at 165 because he could be needed there and space issues with the chart, but he will probably be wrestling off for 157. 

For the Fatties: Added Braeden Scoles at 165 and Chris Moore to 174; Luke Rasmussen has moved on; Zac Braunagel and Chase Waggoner move to 197; Nikita Nepomnyashchiy has graduated and is giving private wrestling lessons in the Chicago area--you should look him up; Looks like Wrobocop is going heavyweight while Luuuuke Luffman takes a redshirt.