Snyder receives No. 1 seed for Senior Worlds, as six U.S. men’s freestylers get seeded
United World Wrestling released its seeds via instagram for men’s freestyle at the 2023 Senior World Championships, which will be held in Belgrade, Serbia, September 16-24.
The United States, which is the defending Senior World Team champions in men’s freestyle, received six seeded wrestlers, including three in the top two of their weight class.
2016 Olympic champion and three-time World champion Kyle Snyder earned the No. 1 seed at 97 kg. Snyder is the defending World champion at this weight class.
2023 World silver medalist Zain Retherford (65 kg) and four-time World champion and Olympic medalist Kyle Dake (74 kg) have received the No. 2 seeds at their weight class.
Chance Marsteller, who is competing in his first Senior World Championships, is the No. 4 seed at 79 kg. 2020 Olympic champion and defending World champion David Taylor has the No. 7 seed at 86 kg. Also receiving the No. 7 seed at 92 kg is Zahid Valencia, who will be competing in his first Senior World Championships.
The nation with the most No. 1 seeds is Iran, with three: Reza Atri (61 kg), Rahmad Amouzad (65 kg) and Mohammad Nokhodi (79 kg). … rest of story at … Themat.com/news/2023/august/31/snyder-receives-no-1-seed-for-senior-worlds-as-six-u-s-men-s-freestylers-get-seeded
NATIONAL CHAMPION ROB KOLL NAMED WRESTLING HEAD COACH
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – Rob Koll, a 1988 national champion wrestler at the University of North Carolina who has coached 74 All-Americas, has been named the head coach of Carolina’s wrestling program. Koll becomes the seventh head coach in team history and returns to his alma mater after spending the last two seasons at Stanford and the previous 28 as the head coach at Cornell.
“Rob is a proven winner both on the mat and as a coach, and he has an outstanding track record of recruiting great student-athletes dedicated to their sport, the classroom and the community,” said UNC Director of Athletics Bubba Cunningham. “He is a strong leader who loves his alma mater and will be a terrific role model for students. Rob also will be a great ambassador for the program with fans, alumni and fellow coaches. We are happy to welcome him back to Carolina.”
The program’s first four-time All-America from 1985-88, Koll graduated with a career record of 155-20-1, the most wins in program and Atlantic Coast Conference history. Koll was a three-time ACC champion at 158 pounds and capped off his Carolina career with the program’s second ever individual national championship in 1988.
“Ever since Coach (Bill) Lam brought me to campus for the first time in 1984, I’ve been preparing for this opportunity,” Koll said. “There’s no school in the country that offers Carolina’s combination of academic and athletic dominance, along with the outstanding campus and community that Chapel Hill has to offer. I’m grateful to the Board of Trustees, Chancellor Kevin Guskiewicz and Director of Athletics Bubba Cunningham giving me the opportunity to return home to my alma mater. I’m excited to get to work every day with our outstanding student-athletes, as we strive to achieve success in the ACC and on a national level.”
Koll began his coaching career at Cornell, where he served as an assistant for four seasons, before being named the head coach at Cornell in 1993. While in Ithaca, Koll collected a dual record of 317-101-5, including a 125-9-1 mark in Ivy League dual action. Koll’s teams won 20 Ivy League championships while producing 177 NCAA Championship qualifiers, 71 All-Americas, and 16 NCAA individual national championships.
For 17 straight seasons, at least three Cornell wrestlers reached the All-America podium under Koll, including one NCAA champion in 10 of the last 12 years he was at Cornell. … rest of story at … GOheels.com/news/2023/8/31/national-champion-rob-koll-named-carolina-wrestling-coach
Texas College Wrestling Foundation
TDR Editor’s Notes; It is encouraging to see another effort to promote the growth of collegiate wrestling opportunities. We welcome input and news about new teams starting and programs reviving across the nation. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The Texas College Wrestling Foundation is proud to lead the fight to bring the sport of wrestling for both men and women to the colleges and universities to the great state of Texas.
The Foundation is comprised of businesspeople, coaches, and those who both honor and love the sport of wrestling.
The Foundation is reaching out to schools across the state offering assistance in developing a wrestling program for both men and women. … rest of story at … https://www.texascollegiatewrestlingfoundation.org/
2024 Olympic Redshirt Qualifier List
A current list of who’s qualified to take an Olympic Redshirt in the 2023-24 NCAA season
The NCAA season is right around the corner and it’s got me thinking – who will be competing for their college team and who will be focusing 100% on their Olympic dreams? Like real redshirts, the Olympic version is ongoing. You don’t need to formally declare your intentions to do so, and if you do plan on taking one you can still end it and begin competing for your team at any time. However, if you do take one, you cannot compete collegiately in the 203-24 season.
Let’s first take a look at the criteria:
- Past National Team members
- Top 8 at the April 2023 Senior US Open
- Top 8 at the December 2023 Senior US Nationals
- Top 3 at the 2023 NCAA D1 Wrestling Championships
- NCAA D1 champion from a previous year AND top 2 from 2023 U23 Nationals (must accomplish both)
- Previous U17, U20, or U23 World Medalists
The U23 World Championships are the only age-level World Championships remaining before the season. These athletes could still become eligible if they win a medal:
- Julian Chlebove, Arizona State
- Brock Hardy, Nebraska
- Doug Zapf, Penn (potentially with Sammy Sasso likely no longer wrestling in U23 World Championships)
- Julian Ramirez, Cornell
- Dustin Plott, Oklahoma State
- Nick Stemmet, Stanford
- Yusief Lillie, Utah Valley (Greco)
- Jordan Hamdan, Michigan State (Greco)
- Tereus Henry, Fort Hayes State (Greco)
A wrestler could also become eligible if they place top 8 at Senior Nationals in December. However, they would not be able to compete attached before that unless they are a true freshman. … rest of story at … Flowrestling.org/articles/11207500-2024-olympic-redshirt-qualifier-list
2023 Walsh Ironman Teams
The Walsh Ironman has long held the title of “toughest regular season tournament ” at the high school level. The tournament has released its teams for the 2023 Ironman and it will undoubtedly retain that title again.
Here are the teams:
Alliance (OH)
Archbishop Moeller (OH)
Archbold (OH)
Aurora (OH)
Barnesville (OH)
Baylor School (TN)
Bethlehem Catholic (PA)
Bishop Hartley (OH)
Bishop Kelly (ID)
Bishop McCort (PA)
Bishop Lynch (TX)
Bishop Watterson (OH)
Bixby (OK)
Blackfoot (ID)
Blair Academy (NJ)
Brecksville (OH)
Broken Arrow (OK)
Brooke Point (VA)
Brownsburg (IN)
Buckeye (OH)
Canon-McMillan (PA)
Caraval Academy (DE)
Cardinal Gibbons (FL)
Center Grove (IN)
Clay (OH)
Conant (IL)
Copley (OH)
Corner Canyon (UT)
Crestview (OH)
Crown Point (IN)
Cuyahoga Valley CA (OH) … rest of story at … Intermatwrestle.com/articles.html/recruiting/2023-walsh-ironman-teams
Plenty of Movement on the 2023 Coaching Carousel
The 2023 offseason coaching carousel got off to a slow start, but has picked up steam. This past week, in particular, there were a handful of notable names that changed jobs. Movement begats movement and as new jobs are accepted, typically new positions open up. We’ll certainly have more updates as the summer progresses and fades into fall and the college preseason.
Obe Blanc (North Dakota State Head Coach) – North Dakota State Associate Head Coach
Steve Bleise (Army West Point) – CSU Bakersfield Assistant Coach
Tyler Caldwell (Oklahoma State Assistant Coach) – Oklahoma State recruiting coordinator
Marcus Coleman (Davidson Assistant Coach) – Iowa State athlete
Evan DeLong (Clarion Assistant Coach)
Ceron Francisco (North Dakota State Assistant Coach) – Nittany Lion WC athlete
Ben Freeman (Buffalo Volunteer Assistant) – Buffalo athlete
BJ Futrell (Northwestern Assistant Coach) – Penn Assistant Coach
Tommy Gantt (NC State Assistant Coach) – Wolfpack Wrestling Club
James Green (Nebraska Assistant Coach) – USA Wrestling Freestyle Development … rest of story at … Intermatwrestle.com/college/plenty-of-movement-on-the-2023-coaching-carousel
Wrestling Programs To Join St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
Clarksville, Ark.- The University of the Ozarks women’s and men’s wrestling programs will join the NCAA Division III St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SLIAC) as an affiliate member effective the 2023-24 academic year.
In March, the SLIAC President’s Council approved the addition of men’s and women’s wrestling to its list of sponsored championships. Seven member schools will compete in women’s and men’s wrestling: Blackburn College, Eureka College, Fontbonne University, Lyon University, Schreiner University, University of the Ozarks and Westminster College.
“This is exciting for both of our programs,” said athletic director Jimmy Clark. “Now our teams will be able to compete for conference championships. This provides even greater opportunities for regional competition and opens up our recruiting base to outstanding high school wrestling.”
The SLIAC wrestling championships will be held in early February.
“As Commissioner, I am extremely pleased about the addition of the University of the Ozarks as one of the first two new affiliates in the sports of men’s and women’s wrestling to the SLIAC,” said Dr. Dick Kaiser, SLIAC Commissioner. “With the conference adding both men’s and women’s wrestling championships this year to the sports sponsorship, it is obviously very exciting to be able to expand the total number of participating institutions in SLIAC wrestling to seven institutions in our first year of the championships.” … rest of story at … UOfoathletics.com/sports/wwrest/2022-23/releases/
OSU hires Coleman Scott as associate wrestling head coach
STILLWATER — Oklahoma State’s wrestling staff shuffling continued Monday, with the program announcing the hiring of former Cowboys standout Coleman Scott as associate head coach.
Scott was North Carolina’s head coach the past eight years.
“Coming back to Oklahoma State and having the opportunity to serve Coach (John) Smith and this program means the world to me,” Scott said.
Scott’s hiring comes days after former OSU assistant Zack Esposito left the program for a coaching position with USA Wrestling. Esposito served as the Cowboys’ associate head coach the past seven seasons and served under Smith since 2010.
Scott most recently coached North Carolina to 12th place at the NCAA Championships in Tulsa — UNC’s best team finish since 1995 — and 157-pounder Austin O’Connor to his second NCAA individual national title in March. … rest of story at … Tulsaworld.com/college/osu/osu-hires-coleman-scott-as-associate-wrestling-head-coach
Gardner-Webb Wrestling Announces 2023-24 Schedule
Slate features nine home matches
BOILING SPRINGS, N.C. – Head Wrestling Coach Daniel Elliot announced the 2023-24 Gardner-Webb wrestling schedule on Friday, Aug. 18.
The slate sees the Runnin’ Bulldogs traveling to five different tournaments, along with hosting a pair of tri-matches, one opponent from the ACC, and four SoCon matches inside of Paul Porter Arena.
The season begins on Sunday, Nov. 5 at the Clarion Open for the second straight season. The Runnin’ Bulldogs finished sixth at the tournament last year, with RJ Mosley picking up four wins individually to lead the team.
The ‘Dawgs then head up to Boone for the Mountaineer Invite on Nov. 12. GWU picked up a pair of fourth place finishes at last year’s event. Gardner-Webb closes out the opening portion of tournament play with a trip to West Point, N.Y. for the Black Knight Invite, hosted by Army West Point.
Duals begin at home for the Runnin’ Bulldogs, hosting Buffalo and Kent State on Dec. 2. GWU last faced the Buffalo Bulls on Feb. 23, 2020, in Athens, Ohio, falling by a score of 34-12.
Gardner-Webb will host one more dual before Christmas break, hosting George Mason and Ohio on Dec. 21. The last time GWU hosted the Patriots, the Runnin’ Bulldogs knocked off George Mason 22-14 on Dec. 19, 2021. The ‘Dawgs are 0-5 all-time against Ohio, falling to the Bobcats 23-15 in Athens last season.
The new year begins for Gardner-Webb in Chattanooga, Tenn., as the ‘Dawgs get set for the Southern Scuffle. GWU sent 13 competitors to the event last season, with Todd Carter picking up a pair of victories.
Gardner-Webb hits the road again to face ACC foe Virginia in Richmond on Jan. 6, before competing in their final tournament of the regular season on Jan. 9 at the Davidson Duals.
Non-conference action closes on Jan. 16 for the Runnin’ Bulldogs, with GWU hosting ACC foe Duke inside Paul Porter Arena. GWU has won two of their last three matches against the Blue Devils, including a 30-10 win in Durham last season.
The eight-match SoCon schedule begins on the road for GWU on Jan. 18 at Bellarmine, … rest of story at GWUsports.com/news/2023/8/18/gardner-webb-wrestling-announces-2023-24-schedule…
Can King’s Court Win This Season’s Women’s College Crown?
Jason Moorman made off-season moves that put his team in contention for the 2024 National Collegiate Women’s Wrestling Championships. Will it be enough?
King coach Jason Moorman’s off-season recruiting haul sent a message: Overlook King at your own peril.
The Tornado have weathered the storm against the best NCAA women’s programs in the country — and won.
Moorman led his team to four straight WCWA (all divisions) titles from 2014 through 2017 and has 12 top-five finishes at the national collegiate championships over the past 13 seasons.
They are also the reigning two-time NWCA National Duals champions with finals wins over the eventual NCWWC champions, McKendree and North Central. Sarah Hildebrandt, Forrest Molinari, Alli Ragan, and Haley Augello are just a few of the world-caliber wrestlers the program has produced.
King At The National Championships
| Year | Division | Place |
| 2023 | NCWWC | 2nd |
| 2022 | NCWWC | 2nd |
| 2021 | NCWWC | 2nd |
| 2020 | NCWWC | 3rd |
| 2019 | WCWA | 5th |
| 2018 | WCWA | 6th |
| 2017 | WCWA | 1st |
| 2016 | WCWA | 1st |
| 2015 | WCWA | 1st |
| 2014 | WCWA | 1st |
| 2013 | WCWA | 3rd |
| 2012 | WCWA | 2nd |
| 2011 | WCWA | 4th |
King’s Recruiting Haul
King has a formidable line-up with plenty of top-end power. King returns three wrestlers in FloWrestling’s pound-for-pound college rankings: Samara Chavez (#4), Sage Mortimer (#6), and Cheyenne Bowman (#21).
Moorman went on a recruiting spree to add even more firepower. He recently landed junior college stars Victoria Baez-Dillone (Umpqua), Aine Drury (Cerritos), and Alexa Garcia (Southwestern Oregon) along with a promising crop of incoming freshmen. … rest of story at … Flowrestling.org/Can-kings-court-win-this-seasons-womens-college-crown
TDR blog
After 20 seasons of publicizing wrestling The TakeDown Report’s (TDR) focus has changed to the collecting of college coaching records from North America since 1903. We will continue to recognize and reward successful wrestlers in eastern North Carolina (east of Raleigh & Fayetteville), assist with schools in starting or re-starting a team and this blog. Join us on our FaceBook Page – “The TakeDown Report” for photos and news. Please send results, stories, links and news to pass along. E-mail us at takedownreport@gmail.com
Martin Fleming, Editor
Takedown Report
Takedown Report 