Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/847744
F or the better part of two months, Michael Beard and his coaches at Malvern (Pa.) Prep evaluated a list of pros and cons, determining which school would fit best as his ultimate landing spot. On March 22, the rising senior an- nounced via Twitter that he would be re- opening his recruitment after initially giving Northwestern a verbal commit- ment. He considered several options, in- cluding Penn State, Cornell and Princeton, and he kept the Wildcats on his list, too. He ultimately chose the Nit- tany Lions, revealing his decision to FloWrestling.com on May 16. A two-time national prep school cham- pion, Beard is a top-10 overall recruit in the Class of 2018. Flo ranks Beard No. 2 at 195 pounds behind a recently graduated senior, Jacob Warner, who is set to enroll at Iowa this summer. His head coach, Nathan Lautar, de- scribes Beard as "a gym rat" who not only stays late after his own practice but sticks around for youth club sessions afterward. He also studies the sport closely and is al- ways looking to evolve his game. Lautar said that Beard's approach to the sport will enable him to jell nicely with the Nit- tany Lion wrestling program. "The things that [Cael Sanderson] says he's looking for were, to me, perfect fits for Michael," Lautar said. "Michael loves wrestling. Michael is a student. He watches film. He's on FloWrestling. He's on different websites to watch wrestling. He's really into it." That studiousness helped turn Beard into one of the more highly sought-after wrestlers in the country. About one week after Beard announced his decommit- ment from Northwestern, Malvern Prep hosted Sanderson in its wrestling room. Lautar didn't even know the Nittany Lions' head coach had planned to make the trip. He was helping to load wrestling mats into the back of a truck when Sanderson walked into the building. "I look over to Mike [who is wrestling] on the mat, as I have a mat in my hand, and Mike's jaw just drops to the floor," Lautar recalled. "You could see on his face how excited he got." Due to NCAA regulations, Sanderson was unable to communicate with Beard during the visit, but his presence made an impression. Although Beard considered Cornell, Princeton and Northwestern a second time, Penn State was going to be hard to beat after that. Not only is it close to his hometown of Pottstown – Northwest- ern's distance was one of the reasons he began having second thoughts – but his older brother Billy also attends PSU. Billy Beard just finished his freshman year on the swim team. "It's been a dream of his to go to Penn State," Lautar said. "We used to talk about it when he was wrestling [as a youth] – it was to wrestle for Penn State and Cael Sanderson. "When he chose Northwestern, he was looking at everything – looking at the ac- ademics at Northwestern and the coach- ing staff that Northwestern has. At the time, it seemed like a perfect fit for him. Coming from a prep school like ours at Malvern, it was a great segue for him. I think it was just a little far from home for him. I think staying at Penn State is more local, plus he has his brother there at school." Beard's commitment only adds to a stockpile of talent in Penn State's Class of 2018. The Nittany Lions are also poised to sign Joe Lee of Indiana (157-174), Travis Wittlake of Oregon (174/184), Roman Bravo-Young of Arizona (133/141), Gavin Teasdale of Pennsylvania (125-141) and Seth Nevills of Cali- fornia (285). In addition to Beard, Wittlake, Bravo-Young, Teasdale and Nevills are ranked in the top three of their respective weight classes nationally. Penn State's success under Sanderson – it has won six of the past seven national champi- onships – was a big factor in Beard's decision. "He wants to be part of that winning at- mosphere and be on a team that's a con- tender right away," Lautar said. "I think that's going to elevate his game. When you have all those guys on a team, it's going to elevate his performance." RECRUITING NOTE Corey Keener an- nounced in May that he will be joining the Nittany Lions as a graduate transfer. Keener, a native of Schuykill Haven, Pa., spent his first three seasons at Central Michigan, where he competed at 133 pounds and went 60-42. A four-time District 11 and northeast region cham- pion for Blue Mountain, he finished his high school career with 190 victories, winning PIAA championships his junior and senior seasons. Keener will have one year of eligibility at Penn State and could end up vying for the starting spot at 133 pounds if Jered Cortez moves to 141 this coming season. ■ Malvern Prep standout picks Nittany Lions W R E S T L I N G | PSU BOUND Beard (left) and Lautar were both surprised when Sander- son paid a visit this past spring. Photo courtesy of Nathan Lau- tar/Malvern Prep Wrestling