Blue White Illustrated

and he misses his conference tourna- ment, he can apply for a wildcard bid to the tournament. Additionally, exhibition matches will be held during dual meets this season, and those matches will count on a wrestler's varsity record. A wrestler who has participated four or more matches, even if they're exhibition bouts, could conceivably replace a starter in the con- ference meet and be eligible for NCAAs if he did not earn an automatic qualifying spot. "We're very excited about that, actu- ally," said Penn State coach Cael Sander- son, adding that if a wrestler tests positive for COVID he's out for at least 17 days. "The rules committee has really done a great job. We've got a very con- densed season here, so we just have to get to that four-match mark for starters, and then being able to get potential backups or guys … anyone that has a chance of going to the conference or the national tournament, they just need to get to that four number. We're going to wrestle as many exhibition matches as we can each week." Who will start for Penn State – ranked second behind Iowa – remains to be seen. Twenty-five wrestlers on Sanderson's 35-man roster have freshman, redshirt freshman or sophomore eligibility. "I think we'll see all of our young guys come out and compete. I see every day how good these kids are, and how good our team is, so I'm excited to see them go out there and do what they love to do," Sanderson said. Here's a weight-by-breakdown: 125 POUNDS The contenders are Baylor Shunk, freshman Robbie Howard and last year's starter, Brandon Meredith. Mered- ith is listed as a 125/133-pounder on the roster and may have outgrown the weight. Howard is coming off an injury and might struggle to make the weight, at least at the opening of the season. That leaves one. 133 Third-ranked Roman Bravo-Young returns. Last year's Big Ten runner-up wrestled anyone and everyone he could find in the off-season and looked good doing it. 141 Second-ranked Nick Lee, a two-time All-American, is a crowd favorite and a favorite to make the NCAA finals. 149 This is the team's biggest unknown. Last year's starter, 10th- ranked Jarod Verkleeren, will be challenged by Luke Gardner, Terrell Barraclough, freshman Beau Bartlett and last year's spot starter at 157, Bo Pipher. Barraclough has looked good in Nittany Lion Club events, and Bartlett will defi- nitely be included in the exhibition matches. 157 Eleventh-ranked Brady Berge re- turns. Sanderson said Berge has recovered from head/neck injuries he suffered in October 2019 and is ready to show his po- tential. Austin Boone and Matt Lee, one of three Lee brothers, could see exhibition action. 165 Sixth-ranked Joe Lee seems to have the edge over Mason Manville. 174 Carter Starocci is already ranked fifth without having wrestled a match. Can the redshirt freshman be put in the same class as a Bo Nickal or a Jason Nolf in his first season? The ranking answers that question. 184 Brooks improved throughout the season last year and is another budding star; he's ranked third behind Michigan's Myles Amine and Virginia Tech's Hunter Bolen. 197 Redshirt freshman Michael Beard, a national prep champion, is ranked 13th and is intriguing to fans who want to see what he can do under the pressure of a Big Ten schedule. 285 Heavyweight should be one of the best weight classes in the NCAA this sea- son, and Greg Kerkvliet could be one of the best heavyweights. Already ranked sixth among a loaded set of big guys, Kerkvliet is yet another Nittany Lion with star potential. Last year's starter, Seth Nevills, if he doesn't earn the job, will be a rock-solid fill-in if something goes astray with Kerkvliet. ■ NICK OF TIME Lee, a two-time All-Ameri- can, appears ready to contend for a na- tional championship at 141 pounds this season. Photo by Steve Manuel

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