THE ILLINI WRESTLING BLOG AND FORUM

INTRODUCTION This paper details the ways the foot sweep is an excellent but underused takedown in wrestling. It is economical--only two movements are required. It is efficient--performed successfully, your opponent will be on or near his butt with possible back points. Finally, it is aesthetically pleasing--a beautiful throw--which provides the oohs and ahhs factor for spectators. ECONOMY OF MOVEMENT There are usually at least two movements in a set up for a routine takedown. Then, when you add in the movements required to complete the takedown, you have complicated matters greatly.  The foot sweep requires only that you (1) sweep (or block) a foot, while (2) pulling your opponent over his now-unavailable foot.  There isn't even a specific tie that needs to be employed. Any tie will do, Russian, collar, under/overhooks, inside arm, outside arm, even simple wrist control. You just need somewhere to place your hand so that you can direct where (and how fast) your opponent's body...

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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY.  Warriors like Coach Mike Poeta, Ed Ruth and Jeremy Hunter will not be pleased with that performance. I was not pleased with that performance. Not nearly enough "Fighting Spirit" shown by the Orange and Blue. This 13-25 defeat has certainly been the worst loss against Purdue--there were only two others--in the last twenty years.  Here's an example that popped up again and again: The ILLINI took a lot of shots and let their Boilermaker opponent funk roll them. These were not Delgado-speed funk rolls. Rather, they were ponderous slow-motion moves. Frequently, there was time to be aware of your leg and how close it was to your opponent, and how it represented a very nice target of opportunity.  Except for Zac Braunagel, the ILLINI had no answer for the most part.  How could that be? Jesse Delgado is a wrestling alum. Jeremy Hunter is their wrestling coach. The team should sit down and look at the video of Gerrit Nijenhuis's (aka Def Leppard's) funk...

The folks at FightingILLINI.com have revealed the probable starters for the ILLINOIS-Purdue dual . A couple of quick observations: No Dylan Duncan. No Matt Wroblewski. DJ Shannon and We Rachal are back. No "ors" for either team. The latter is the most surprising given Covid and the injuries that have plagued the ILLINI lineup this season. Here are the lineups: Justin Cardani 9-4 125 lbs. Devin Schroder 13-2 Lucas Byrd 12-1 133 lbs. Matt Ramos 12-4 We Rachal 8-9 141 lbs. Parker Filius 16-6 Christian Kanzler 8-7 149 lbs. Alec White 0-2 Joe Roberts 9-9 157 lbs. Kendall Coleman 10-3 Danny Braunagel 8-6 165 lbs. Hayden Lohrey 6-5 DJ Shannon 5-4 174 lbs. Gerrit Nijenhuis 13-9 Zac Braunagel 6-4 184 lbs. Max Lyon 9-7 Nikita Nepomnyashchiy 2-5 197 lbs. Thomas Penola 13-5 Luke Luffman 11-3 HWT Michael Woulfe 12-8 The ILLINI will need some upsets here to take the dual. Bonus will be important, getting it and not giving it up. Last year, the most decisive match was a Lucas Byrd pin. Nobo...

STANDINGS The January basho has been entertaining, but not without its disappointments. At the present, the leaderboard shows a tie between the Yokozuna, Terunofuji, and Sekiwake Mitakeumi at 10-1. Right behind them is rikishi Abi at 9-2.  In every basho at this highest level, there are fifteen bouts, one each day, and the winner at the end will have the best record. In the event of a tie, they will have a wrestle-off for the championship.  On paper, the favorite to win has to be the Yokozuna. Terunofuji was just elevated to this highest of ranks a couple of bashos ago, and all he has done has been to win both tournaments since. The last one was in dominant fashion, a  zenshō basho, where he went undefeated at 15-0.  However, it is very likely that he will meet both Mitakeumi and Abi in the remaining bouts. Additionally, Mitakeumi and Abi will likely face each other.  That is the drama that remains.  DISAPPOINTMENT Along with the drama has come tragedy. One...

For part one, click on this link .  When they were little, my kids would kick and scream if Santa came close to them. What would they do in the presence of this monster?  Who thought this was a good idea?  ANOTHER BLAST FROM THE PAST It was 2008.  Music service Spotify is launched. SpaceX sends up its first Earth orbital mission. The Large Hadron Collider becomes operational in Geneva, Switzerland, presaging Skynet, the Terminator and the end of human civilization as the robots take control. The Beijing Olympics take place, with Michael Phelps, Usain Bolt and gymnast Nastia Liukin becoming even bigger stars.   And the ILLINI roll.  Ben Friedl earns a big upset over Purdue's four-time NCAA qualifer, round of twelver and pins leader A.J. Kissel. There are nine ILLINI winners. Purdue gets a win because of an injury default. This was the box score from February 22, 2008 : #11 Illinois 31, Purdue 6 125:  #8  Gabe Flores  (ILL) maj. dec. Akif ...

WHAT:   Dual with the Purdue Boilermakers WHEN:   Friday, January 1 at 6:00 pm (Central) WHERE:   West Lafayette, Indiana WHY:   To put a stake through the heart of Purdue Wrestling and their Creepy Mascot TV/STREAMING:   BTN+   Which of the above are the classic horror monsters of cinema and which are the classic horror mascots of Purdue? HISTORY Since the turn of the century, the ILLINI are 16-2 against Purdue. Tied for the largest margin of victory was a dual in 2017 that saw the ILLINI win 30-6 . In that dual, Kyle Langenderfer scored as many team points with a pin as all ten Purdue wrestlers combined.  The last time the two teams faced each other, on January 22, 2021, the ILLINI won by the score of 19-17. Sadly, it was also the day that home run king Hank Aaron passed away at the age of 86. Here is the box score from that exciting match: FULL RESULTS 125: Devin Schroder (PUR) over  Justin Cardani  (ILL) (Dec 2-0) 133:  Lucas Byrd ...