Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/199173
WRESTLING Nine starters ranked nationally All-Americans David Taylor and Ed Ruth top the charts for No. 1 PSU | t's being hyped as the highest-powered team of Cael Sanderson's coaching career. And when IntermatWrestle.com released its national team and individual rankings on Oct. 8, the online polls did nothing to diminish the feeling of anticipation that's been building at Penn State. There are 10 weight classes in Division I wrestling, and the Nittany Lions have nine student-athletes ranked among the top 25 at their respective weights, eight of whom are in the top 10. Headlining the star-studded roster are seniors David Taylor and Ed Ruth, who are ranked No. 1 at 165 pounds and 184, respectively. Combined, they have a record of 202-5, six All-America citations and three NCAA titles. But they are hoping to save their best performance for last, which is only one of the reasons why the 2013-14 season has the potential to be Sanderson's best yet. Intermat also ranks the Nittany Lions as the No. 1 team in the country. Ac- I 'Ironhead' returning to airwaves for 2013-14 BWI has confirmed that Jeff "Ironhead" Byers, the traveling voice of Nittany Lion wrestling on the Penn State Radio Network, will return for the 201314 season. He has been Penn State wrestling's radio personality since 1990. Byers' trademark is his energetic call, which is unmatched by most in the industry. Now, fans will be able to hear it for at least one more season. – T.O. cording to its Tournament Power Index, the three-time defending NCAA and Big Ten champions have a nation-high 100.5 points, while conference foe Iowa is ranked second with 99. Minnesota (83.0), Oklahoma (70.5) and Oklahoma State (70.5) round out the top five. Oklahoma State visits Penn State for a dual meet on Feb. 16. Nebraska (seventh), Wisconsin (eighth), Ohio State (11th), Illinois (13th), Michigan (15th) and Northwestern (18th) give the Big Ten nine teams ranked among the top 25. In addition to Taylor and Ruth, Penn State has three wrestlers ranked in the top five of their respective weight classes. Those wrestlers include junior Nico Megaludis, who is ranked No. 2 at 125, junior Matt Brown, who is No. 3 at 174, and sophomore Morgan McIntosh, who is No. 4 at 197. Rounding out the contingent, redshirt freshman Jimmy Gulibon is ranked No. 11 at 133. Junior Andrew Alton is No. 8 at 149, and his twin brother Dylan Alton is No. 6 at 157. Junior Jimmy Lawson is ranked No. 10 at 285. I PENN STATE LINEUP WT NAME ELIG RANK* 125 Nico Megaludis Jr. 2nd 133 Jimmy Gulibon R-Fr. 11th -or- Jordan Conaway So. – 141 Zack Beitz R-Fr. – -or- Zain Retherford Fr. – 149 Andrew Alton Jr. 8th 157 Dylan Alton Jr. 6th 165 David Taylor Sr. 1st 174 Matt Brown Jr. 3rd 184 Ed Ruth Sr. 1st 197 Morgan McIntosh So. 4th 285 Jimmy Lawson Jr. 10th -or- Jon Gingrich Jr. – *Individual weight rankings from IntermatWrestle.com