Blue White Illustrated

W R E S T L I N G | T he quest for world domination contin- ues this off-season inside Penn State's Lorenzo Wrestling Complex. With the Nittany Lions eager to continue their reign over college wrestling, one individ- ual national champion is jumping up a weight, while the back end of the lineup has undergone a shakeup. As Cael Sanderson enters his 10th sea- son as head coach, he's determined to win his eighth NCAA crown and fourth in a row. In previous years, he showed a will- ingness to allow his top wrestlers to move up a weight class to a spot where they were more comfortable. He was espe- cially receptive to that approach if it boosted the team's chances at another title, and those moves usually paid off. One of the first examples was Quentin Wright, Sanderson's first individual na- tional champ at Penn State. After earning All-America honors at 174 pounds as a true freshman, Wright won the title as a redshirt sophomore at 184, Sanderson's second year with the program. He fin- ished second as a junior, but then jumped up again and finished his career as the 197-pound national champion in 2013. On Penn State's current roster, Bo Nickal is doing something similar. Not only has his wrestling style drawn com- parisons to Wright, but he has followed a nearly identical weight trajectory. After starting his career as an All-American at 174, Nickal has taken home the title twice consecutively at 184, with the most re- cent of those championships coming in dramatic fashion this past March to seal PSU's latest team trophy. Nickal immediately becomes the na- tional favorite at his new weight class. He's already a candidate for the 2019 Hodge Trophy, and the move to 197 should only help his odds of winning the sport's most prestigious award. The move displaces Penn State's two 197-pounders from a year ago. They're both returning, but they will be going op- posite directions. After a seventh-place All-America fin- ish in March, Shakur Rasheed moves down to 184, swapping spots with Nickal. Assuming he takes the starting spot, Rasheed will have competed at four dif- ferent weight classes for Penn State. He started his career at 165 before moving to 174 as a sophomore. As a junior, he went to 197, taking a shot at a rare lineup open- ing and capitalizing on the move. But Rasheed was lighter than many of his op- ponents in the 197-pound class, as his true weight was closer to 184. That's still the case, so the move to that weight class should be a natural one for the senior. The other notable move is Anthony Cas- sar to 285 pounds. Cassar battled Rasheed for the 197-pound spot last season before Rasheed took it over late in the year. As op- posed to Rasheed, Cassar tipped the scales at 197 and has the frame to handle up to 30 more pounds while maintaining a quick- ness over many true heavyweights. Elsewhere in the lineup, it's expected that Penn State will turn to a pair of true freshmen to start at 125 and 133. It's still to be determined where Gavin Teasdale, Brody Teske and Roman Bravo-Young will start out, but two of those three are all but certain to claim starting spots. The other one will redshirt. All-American Nick Lee is back at 141, while redshirt freshman Brady Berge is the expected replacement for 149-pound great Zain Retherford. Classmate Jarod Verkleeren can also factor in at this weight class. NCAA champions Jason Nolf, Vin- cenzo Joseph and Mark Hall all hold their posts at 157, 165 and 174, respectively. At heavyweight, Nick Nevills returns to the roster as a fifth-year senior and two- time All-American. He's battled various injuries throughout his career. Cassar's presence at the same weight will serve as an insurance policy of sorts in case Nevills is limited, and it will also create competi- tion between two seniors who both covet a spot for their final season. ■ Nittany Lions making lineup moves ahead of season WRESTLING* NOVEMBER 11 KENT STATE............................................... 2 p.m. 18 at Keystone Classic at Philadelphia, Pa....... All Day 30 at Bucknell.................................................7 p.m. DECEMBER 2 LEHIGH......................................................2 p.m. 14 ARIZONA STATE.......................................... 7 p.m. JANUARY 1-2 Southern Scuffle at Chattanooga, Tenn....... All Day 11 at Northwestern......................................... 8 p.m. 13 WISCONSIN............................................... 1 p.m. 20 NEBRASKA................................................ 1 p.m. 25 at Purdue...................................................7 p.m. 27 at Indiana................................................. 2 p.m. FEBRUARY 1-3 MICHIGAN (BJC Dual, date TBA)...................... TBA 8-10 at Ohio State (date TBA)................................. TBA 15 MICHIGAN STATE........................................ 7 p.m. 17 at Illinois....................................................2 p.m. 24 BUFFALO................................................... 2 p.m. MARCH 9-10 Big Ten Championships at Minnesota...............TBA 21-23 NCAA Championships at Pittsburgh, Pa............ TBA * Times/dates subject to change Penn State unveils 2018-19 schedule Penn State will wrestle 14 dual meets and two in-season tournaments in the schedule it released on Sept. 17. The Nittany Lions will host eight home duals, including four of their nine Big Ten matchups, as well as a nonconfer- ence dual against Arizona State. This will be the Sun Devils' first visit to Rec Hall. Penn State and Arizona State have split their seven matches to date, 3-3-1, with all of those matches taking place at neutral sites. The Lions head into the 2018-19 sea- son riding a 45-dual win streak dating back to Feb. 15, 2015. Another highlight of the schedule is the Michigan dual meet, which will take place either Feb. 1, 2 or 3 at the Bryce Jordan Center. The exact date and time will be announced at a later date. ■

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