Penn State wrestling notebook: Bravo-Young talks possible Lee match ahead of Iowa dual
Penn State senior Roman Bravo-Young is a competitor in every sense of the word.
He’s a two-time national champion, two-time Big Ten champion and a four-time All-American. There’s been a discussion swirling around the wrestling world, especially on the internet, that Iowa’s Spencer Lee (125) should bump up to Bravo-Young’s weight class (133) so the two-time Big Ten champions can duke it out.
Lee has won three NCAA Division I wrestling championships of his own. The chatter between Penn State and Iowa’s rivalry and the enormity of the Bryce Jordan Center dual on Friday could rattle some. But Bravo-Young said Tuesday that he’s ready to throw down at any time and any place.
“I mean, I don’t really care,” Bravo-Young said. “If someone wants to wrestle, let’s wrestle. It’d probably do numbers. Let people watch it or you can wait until after the season. Maybe you could do a pay-per-view or something. But I’m all about wrestling the best. I’ve got nothing to lose against him. So if he wants to wrestle, let’s wrestle. I could(n’t) care less. I’m always down to scrap it. He believes just like I believe, I really don’t care who it is. I’ll wrestle anyone.”
The same goes for his future in the sport or beyond.
Bravo-Young is looking into the crystal ball of what his future could hold, and he sees himself as a mixed martial artist. He wants to compete in crossover Brazilian jiujitsu matches in the summer and understands that “it’s different getting punched in the mouth.”
“I’ve sparred before this past summer and 15 minutes of getting punched in the face is a lot different than in wrestling,” Bravo-Young said. “In wrestling, you kind of know what could happen. We’re coming at you and fighting. It’s just your nerves are just all over the place ... it’s a lot scarier, but I love that adrenaline rush.”
Penn State looks to continue to be steady against Iowa
The Nittany Lions have yet to lose a dual as a team this season. Sitting at 10-0 on the year with a No. 1 ranking and coming off of another national championship, the key for the Nittany Lions has always been to stay calm, cool and collected.
Max Dean (197) has seen the ups and downs of a season unfold. He’s definitely seen more ups, going 12-2 to this point on the year and sitting at No. 4 in his weight class. On Friday, Dean is most likely set to take on Iowa’s Jacob Warner (197), who is InterMat’s No. 7 wrestler. The Penn State wrestler is looking to emulate what his program has taught him.
“With no disrespect to Iowa or any other competitors, I just think that we’re really blessed as a program, but we do a good job of keeping it light,” Dean said. “I think one of the big focuses that our coaches will talk about is just making sure that you’re calm and you’re present in those big moments. I think it’s just trying to make sure that you’re being yourself while you’re out there and sometimes, it comes down to one point or an inch or one second. (It’s) being ready to be there and take advantage of that opportunity to go in a match the way you need to.”
Penn State associate head coach Cody Sanderson looks forward to each Big Ten dual. With 12 teams ranked in the NWCA Coaches Poll top-25 and the top-3 teams in the nation, Friday night’s battle for supremacy in the Big Ten is a massive step forward for the sport as a whole.
“The Big Ten Conference is pretty special,” Sanderson said. “It supports wrestling, there’s a lot of great teams, the athletic directors, the universities and institutions are willing to put their financial resources behind the teams. It just makes it fun. We’re able to provide the training situation for our guys, the other teams are able to provide the training situation for guys and that leads to great competitions. We wrestle because we love to compete. And when you have great teams to compete with it just makes it that much better.”
