Breaking down each bout of Friday’s Penn State-Nebraska wrestling match
The No. 2 Penn State wrestling team will be in for a challenge when it heads on the road to face No. 7 Nebraska at 7 p.m. Friday.
While the team rankings favor the Nittany Lions, a look up and down the lineups reveals a close matchup at almost every weight class.
And depending which individual rankings you go by, Penn State is either the slight favorite or slight underdog. InterMat, which Penn State uses, has the Nittany Lions favored in five of the 10 bouts, Nebraska favored in four and a tossup at 125 pounds in a battle between two unranked wrestlers. FloWrestling, however, has Nebraska favored in five bouts, the difference being at 184 pounds, where the two sites differ on the ranks of Penn State’s Aaron Brooks and Nebraska’s Taylor Venz.
While the rankings showing a close dual, there are several opportunities for some of Penn State’s younger wrestlers, such as Jarod Verkleeren and Seth Nevills, to gain some ground. But there’s also several tricky Nebraska wrestlers who have historically given some trouble to Penn State’s standouts, such as Nick Lee and Vincenzo Joseph.
Either way it shakes out, this Big Ten Network-televised dual should be a can’t-miss for wrestling fans.
Here’s a breakdown of what to look for at each weight and our predictions:
125 pounds: PSU’s Brandon Meredith vs. Alex Thomsen
The only bout of the night without a ranked wrestler could end up being one of the most important. Featuring two redshirt freshmen looking to establish themselves in their starting roles, the 125-pound matchup has the potential to decide the dual if everything else goes to chalk.
While there’s not a ton of collegiate data on either wrestler yet, Penn State’s Meredith is 11-7 and Nebraska’s Thomsen 6-9, each with a win over an InterMat-ranked opponent. Meredith defeated Penn’s No. 7 Michael Colaiocco 7-5, and the Husker topped South Dakota State’s No. 19 Danny Vega 3-2.
The pair has one common opponent Lehigh’s No. 5 Brandon Paetzell. That matchup ended in a loss for both, with Meredith falling by major decision, 15-5, while Thomsen lost 7-3.
While his last two matches ended in losses, Meredith has shown gumption, snagging the first takedown Sunday against Rutgers’ No. 15 Nicolas Aguilar, and choosing neutral to start the third period down 4 against Northwestern’s No. 6 Michael DeAugustino, getting the takedown then cutting him loose to attempt another. Meredith came up short 7-3.
“He’s just little positions away from being more competitive against a tough opponent like today,” head coach Cael Sanderson said after the Aguilar loss.
Whichever one of these two wrestlers can come out on top Friday will have the chance to be a hero and to add a jolt of confidence into their young careers.
Muthler: Meredith by decision
Moyer: Meredith by decision
133 pounds: PSU’s No. 3 Roman Bravo-Young vs. No. 13 Ridge Lovett
If Nebraska wants to earn the team upset Friday, a win here would do wonders.
The quicker Bravo-Young (11-0) boasts the clear edge, and he hasn’t lost a bout against a wrestler ranked outside the top 10 since last January. At 8-5 on the season, Lovett, a freshman, has dropped his last three matches — including losses to Wisconsin’s No. 1 Seth Gross and Iowa’s No. 4 Austin DeSanto — but there’s been glimpses of potential.
Lovett doesn’t often get turned and battled hard with DeSanto last week before falling via 7-4 decision. He’s good on top and has a solid defense, but he doesn’t rack up enough takedowns to rally from a deficit.
If Bravo-Young starts off fast, Lovett might not be able to keep up. Lovett has yet to beat a ranked wrestler; Bravo-Young hasn’t been tested much this season, but he slipped past Rutgers’ No. 9 Sammy Alvarez last week in sudden victory.
“When he’s moving and he’s aggressive ... he’s capable of beating anybody,” Penn State coach Cael Sanderson said, referring to RBY.
Muthler: Bravo-Young by decision
Moyer: Bravo-Young by decision
141 pounds: PSU’s No. 2 Nick Lee vs. No. 8 Chad Red
Nick Lee and Chad Red are known for having one of the most memorable state finals in Indiana history, and the two haven’t disappointed on the collegiate level. Lee was able to get revenge for that high school loss last season, besting Red 5-4 in the pair’s lone college matchup.
While Lee has so far had the strongest college career of the two in terms of NCAA placement and record, but Red has show that he can beat just about anybody, including Oklahoma State’s two-time national champ Dean Heil, and higher-seeded wrestlers Michael Carr, of Illinois, and Kanen Storr, of Michigan, en route to his runner-up finish at last year’s Big Ten championships.
Red is a dangerous wrestler, and proved that again just last weekend, earning the 6-2 upset over Iowa’s then-No. 6 Max Murin.
But Lee, as told by his coaches and teammates, is on a different level this season.
“I think he’s finally starting to realize how good he is,” Penn State senior Vincenzo Joseph said.
While Lee’s looked impressive so far in his 11-0 season, he has yet to be tested by the likes of 11-4 Red.
Muthler: Lee by decision
Moyer: Lee by decision
149 pounds: PSU’s Jarod Verkleeren vs. No. 14 Collin Purinton
These two wrestlers couldn’t be on much different trajectories right now.
Purinton, a redshirt senior, has been tested week in and week out by facing five ranked wrestlers already in his 10-5 season. Verkleeren, a Type 1 diabetic, hasn’t competed against any yet in his 12-2 campaign.
The good news for the Nittany Lions? Verkleeren is still riding an eight-match win streak, while Purinton has dropped five of his last six — three of which came against top-15 opponents but another that came against Purdue’s unranked Griffin Parriott.
Is Purinton’s confidence still high? Can Verkleeren, who has a solid defense, pull off the best win of his young career? A lot is on the line, and the result here could set the tone for both wrestlers for the rest of the season.
Verkleeren has clearly made strides the last few weeks. The only question is whether he’s made enough to beat a talent like Purinton.
“Jarod’s a little more relaxed, a little more confident,” Penn State coach Cael Sanderson said. “Just the look in his eyes has been better this last month.”
Muthler: Verkleeren by decision
Moyer: Purinton by decision
157 pounds: PSU’s Bo Pipher vs. No. 11 Peyton Robb
With No. 4 Brady Berge not expected to wrestle Friday, per Sanderson, it looks like it’ll be Pipher who takes the mat against No. 11 Robb.
Pipher is 8-8 and still looking for his first big win of his junior season. Robb, who’s 12-3 on the season, has a 5-0 decision over Arizona State freshman Jacori Teemer. Teemer beat Pipher 10-8. Of Robb’s three losses, two have been to top-10 opponents, falling 3-2 to North Carolina State’s Hayden Hidlay and 6-4 to Iowa’s No. 6 Kaleb Young.
Pipher was able to keep Northwestern’s top-ranked Ryan Deakin to a regular 6-0 decision, but the Wildcat controlled most of the match.
“We believe in Bo, we believe he can win big matches” Sanderson said after the Deakin loss.
Friday should present an opportunity for the junior to do just that, but Robb won’t make it easy.
Muthler: Robb by decision
Moyer: Robb by decision
165 pounds: PSU’s No. 1 Vincenzo Joseph vs. No. 5 Isaiah White
As the old wrestling idiom goes, the only certainties in life are death, taxes — and a close bout between Joseph and White.
The two former high school rivals have squared off three times so far in their college careers, and each match has resulted in a narrow victory for Joseph. At NCAAs last season, Joseph pulled off a 3-1 sudden-victory win. Joseph also came away with a 2-0 decision during the regular season last year and earned a 4-2 win in the second sudden victory period the year before.
The biggest surprise here wouldn’t be if White finally pulled off the win. It would be if this bout wasn’t close.
Sure, White (12-2) is coming off back-to-back losses — but both came against the Nos. 2 and 4 wrestlers in his weight class, Iowa’s Alex Marinelli and Wisconsin’s Evan Wick. Joseph (6-0) hasn’t been challenged since late November, in a 7-4 win against Arizona State’s Josh Shields.
With White and Joseph, it’s seemingly been the same match every meeting. Joseph has yet to record a takedown in regulation against White, and White has struggled getting away from the Penn State wrestler.
Joseph said he doesn’t expect any serious departures from the way the two will approach Friday’s bout.
“At this point, we’re both pretty familiar with each other’s tendencies and styles,” he said. “So you just got to go in looking to battle. That’s pretty much it.”
Muthler: Joseph by decision (SV)
Moyer: Joseph by decision
174 pounds: PSU’s No. 1 Mark Hall vs. No. 6 Mikey Labriola
While Hall emerged the victor, last year’s 5-3 bout between the 2017 national champ and Pennsylvania product Labriola materialized as a much closer match than many had anticipated.
While Hall got the initial takedown at the end of the first period, Labriola countered in the second to come within a point of Hall. The Nittany Lion quickly escaped, but a locked hands call kept the margin at 1. Nebraska challenged for another locked hands call at the end of the match, but was overruled, giving Hall the narrow win plus riding time.
After that, the 2017 PIAA champ was able to complete an impressive freshman campaign for Nebraska, finishing sixth at NCAAs and in fourth-place at Big Tens. Hall finished last season as a Big Ten champ and runnerup at NCAAs.
But in his senior season, Hall is more focused than ever. He ended his true freshman year as a national champion, and is intent on finishing his collegiate career with another one — so much so that he put his Olympic dreams on the back burner for the time being.
With his collegiate career quickly coming to an end, Hall isn’t taking a single match - or time in the practice room - for granted.
“Every day I just come in and look for something I can get better at, and look for ways I can put myself in the best position to win,” he said earlier in the season. “And just keep looking forward to my next competition, because they are numbered.”
While at 14-0, Hall appears to be well on his way to his second national title, Labriola (13-4) will certainly be ready for the challenge Friday, and won’t make things easy.
Muthler: Hall by decision
Moyer: Hall by decision
184 pounds: PSU’s No. 6 Aaron Brooks vs. No. 8 Taylor Venz
Brooks is among Penn State’s most exciting prospects, a freshman who some believe could eventually see the same type of success as a Jason Nolf or Bo Nickal. And this will the first real test of his college career — the first time he’ll compete against a top-10 wrestler.
Venz, who’s so far put together an 11-5 a redshirt junior season, is no push-over. But he’s not exactly the most consistent of opponents either. Over the last two seasons, he has gone 5-11 against top-10 InterMat wrestlers and he’s coming off a 6-4 loss to Iowa’s Abe Assad, a freshman who is nowhere near as decorated as Brooks.
Venz lost to Penn State’s Shakur Rasheed last season, back when he had a torn ACL, but he’s also pinned the likes of Cornell’s Ben Darmstadt, and gave Arizona State’s two-time national champion Zahid Valencia his closest match of this season (8-7). So it’s difficult to gauge exactly what Venz will show up.
Regardless, Brooks has been consistent so far, and he’s constantly impressed on his feet. This is a big opportunity for the 7-0 Brooks, and this is a bout neither team can likely afford to lose.
Muthler: Brooks by decision
Moyer: Brooks by major decision
197 pounds: PSU’s No. 19 Shakur Rasheed vs. No. 8 Eric Schultz
Six-year senior Rasheed started the season ranked No. 2 by InterMat at 184 pounds, and has since fallen to No. 19 at 197 after sitting out the first half of the season while recovering from offseason ACL surgery, bumping up a weight and then taking a loss to Northwestern’s No. 18 Lucas Davison.
Friday could be a huge opportunity for Rasheed (2-1) to earn a top-10 win and move back up in the rankings.
Nebraska’s No. 8 Schultz (15-2) had that opportunity last weekend against Iowa’s No. 6 Jacob Warner, and made the most of it, beating the Hawkeye 3-1.
While Rasheed earned a ranked win, 6-0 over Rutgers’ No. 20 Jordan Pagano, last weekend, he’s still trying to make his way up to weight, and regain strength and confidence. Coming off the Warner win, Schultz should be brimming with confidence.
However, this is still a winnable match for the Nittany Lion, if he’s close to full strength and ready to compete.
Muthler: Schultz by decision
Moyer: Schultz by decision
285 pounds: PSU’s Seth Nevills vs. No. 15 Christian Lance
Lance, a transfer from Fort Hays State, is a bit of an enigma. But he’s struggled against top-tier competition, and all of his five losses this season have come in the last seven bouts.
During that span, which stretches back to early December, Lance has beaten just two opponents — both of whom have double-digit losses, in Oregon State’s Jamarcus Grant (13-13) and The Citadel’s Michael McAleavey (14-13). That could prove problematic against an aggressive heavyweight like Nevills.
Nevills may not be ranked, at least not yet, but he’s trending that way. He’s been the starter for just a few weeks, since returning starter Anthony Cassar shut it down to rehab an injury ahead of the Olympic Trials. But he’s fared well against so-so competition.
That doesn’t necessarily mean he hasn’t been tested in his career — he upset Maryland’s Youssif Hemida last season at the Franklin & Marshall Open — but he hasn’t had to do much heavy-lifting so far in this season.
Nevills (9-0) is coming off a fall over Rutgers’ Alex Esposito, so his confidence is riding high. Lance (9-5) is coming off back-to-back losses against top-5 opponents. Nevills may be the more inexperienced wrestler here, but a win is well within his reach.
Muthler: Nevills by decision
Moyer: Nevills by major decision
Final score predictions
Muthler: 24-6
Moyer: Penn State 23-9
This story was originally published January 23, 2020 at 5:46 PM.
