Rod Van Ness

[rpiseman]

Is Rod still a well thought of RU Wrestling alum given the fact that his son chose PSU?

Shayne didn’t choose RU which is certainly his rite, but it’s not like he chose an Ivy, he chose another Big Ten School.

Our program has had national champs, multi-year all Americans, and we just put the finishing touches on a beautiful practice faculty. PSU and RU academically are a “wash”, you would have thought if the kid was going Big Ten there would have been some loyalty to RU.

Just seems like a real slap in the face.

 

[koleszar]

I'll leave it at, very disappointing decision and a gut punch to the Rutgers community. Hell now after hearing his interview I'm not even sure we were ever really in it. Mom wanted Cornell, Dad wanted Princeton, kid wanted psu. Don't see where Rutgers fit in there unless he's got an Uncle.

 

[SCNJ]

Is Rod still a well thought of RU Wrestling alum given the fact that his son chose PSU?

Shayne didn’t choose RU which is certainly his rite, but it’s not like he chose an Ivy, he chose another Big Ten School.

Our program has had national champs, multi-year all Americans, and we just put the finishing touches on a beautiful practice faculty. PSU and RU academically are a “wash”, you would have thought if the kid was going Big Ten there would have been some loyalty to RU.

Just seems like a real slap in the face.

Penn State is the gold standard. We don’t have to like them, but to hold a grudge over an elite kid choosing a better program is silly. Root against him and his school all you want, I sure will be.

 

[R U Crazy]

I agree with SCNJ

 

[wngarbarini]

Rod is a great guy, coach and well known and thought of by RU coaches. Shayne has been around the program for years so had ample experience to make a judgment whether he wanted to come to RU. The commitments we had lined up to mentor him That would effect his opportunities 5-10-15 years after college no other school could match. Other issues obviously were more important in their decision making process. Shayne decided what he felt was best for him. End of story. Move on.

 

[KidDagger]

Rod is a great guy, coach and well known and thought of by RU coaches. Shayne has been around the program for years so had ample experience to make a judgment whether he wanted to come to RU. The commitments we had lined up to mentor him That would effect his opportunities 5-10-15 years after college no other school could match. Other issues obviously were more important in their decision making process. Shayne decided what he felt was best for him. End of story. Move on.

maybe there’s a 1% chance SVN Nick Suriano’s it?? 😇😇... what... no way😤? Ok ,best of luck to him

 

[Leonard23]

Other issues obviously were more important in their decision making process. Shayne decided what he felt was best for him. End of story. Move on.

What other issues? I keep seeing and hearing this but no one will elaborate. We should move on, but the fact is we never had a shot, if Rod didn't want SVN to come here (or Princeton), so that won't sit well with many, regardless of how beloved or well thought of Rod is. Maybe things change and he transfers back but I'm guessing that lightening isn't striking twice.

 

[rpiseman]

Rod is a great guy, coach and well known and thought of by RU coaches. Shayne has been around the program for years so had ample experience to make a judgment whether he wanted to come to RU. The commitments we had lined up to mentor him That would effect his opportunities 5-10-15 years after college no other school could match. Other issues obviously were more important in their decision making process. Shayne decided what he felt was best for him. End of story. Move on.

What are these issues you speak of, what could have possibly happened to turn this kid off to us?

 

[ScarletGrapfan]

Not sure if it was "issues". SVN has Olympic and World titles as his goals and have heard he wants to be around World and Olympic Gold medalists(which the NLWC has).
And as I have stated, if his father was not an alum he would not even had us on his list.

 

[wngarbarini]

Shayne said on the podcast that Rod favored Princeton that may or may not be true. He also said he was not close to Carl but liked his brother. He said the time he spent with the team showed the passion they all had to get better. That and the quality of the NLWC must have done it and the tenacity the coaches showed him to come there. Originally he turned them down but they would not take no for an answer.

 

[rpiseman]

Shayne said on the podcast that Rod favored Princeton that may or may not be true. He also said he was not close to Carl but liked his brother. He said the time he spent with the team showed the passion they all had to get better. That and the quality of the NLWC must have done it and the tenacity the coaches showed him to come there. Originally he turned them down but they would not take no for an answer.

Thanks for the color, last question. Did Rod really care at all is Shayne gave Rutgers a hard look?

 

[wngarbarini]

Deep down Rod would have liked him at RU and yes Shayne did give us a hard look but we had many things to overcome—elite prep school, local school, etc

 

[Leonard23]

Shayne said on the podcast that Rod favored Princeton that may or may not be true. He also said he was not close to Carl but liked his brother. He said the time he spent with the team showed the passion they all had to get better. That and the quality of the NLWC must have done it and the tenacity the coaches showed him to come there. Originally he turned them down but they would not take no for an answer.

Deep down Rod would have liked him at RU and yes Shayne did give us a hard look but we had many things to overcome—elite prep school, local school, etc

Kinda conflicts with the earlier post that his parents ruled out NJ entirely. Seems like neither school ever had a chance then. Oh well.

 

[Racpack]

Shayne wanted to be tested by and coached by the best. His dream is national and Olympic championships. PSU fit the bill above all other schools. Cael Sanderson, an RTC complete with world and Olympic champions, and a team of highly competitive wrestlers that will challenge him ever day.

Rodney probably preferred Princeton. Most dads would jump at the chance for their kid to attend Princeton. I would. Rodney would also have been very proud if Shayne were at RU. He is a loyal alumnus.

At the end of the day, no school provided the wrestling challenge that PSU offers.

 

[ruwarrior]

What PSU alum has excelled in international/Olympic competition? (other than Cael), who is the Olympic champ from PSU? Snyder (OSU) is training there now... at totally different weight. Am I missing someone???

RU has NCAA champs. RU has Pritzlaf, who is an absolute stud coach and is right in RVN weightclass wheelhouse. What TF gives?

Shayne wanted to be tested by and coached by the best. His dream is national and Olympic championships. PSU fit the bill above all other schools. Cael Sanderson, an RTC complete with world and Olympic champions, and a team of highly competitive wrestlers that will challenge him ever day.

Rodney probably preferred Princeton. Most dads would jump at the chance for their kid to attend Princeton. I would. Rodney would also have been very proud if Shayne were at RU. He is a loyal alumnus.

At the end of the day, no school provided the wrestling challenge that PSU offers.

 

[brentx35]

Deep down Rod would have liked him at RU and yes Shayne did give us a hard look but we had many things to overcome—elite prep school, local school, etc

How old is Shayne right now?

 

[wngarbarini]

Probably 18 with 1 year left of hs. He repeated 8th grade and went to a catholic school

 

[ScarletGrapfan]

What PSU alum has excelled in international/Olympic competition? (other than Cael), who is the Olympic champ from PSU? Snyder (OSU) is training there now... at totally different weight. Am I missing someone???

RU has NCAA champs. RU has Pritzlaf, who is an absolute stud coach and is right in RVN weightclass wheelhouse. What TF gives?

David Taylor won the Worlds. Zain Retherford has been on multiple world teams. It is pretty much night and day with the NLWC and the NJRTC/SKWC(the NLWC has over 5 million in the bank.....so much more than any other club). The NLWC currently has 15 athletes on the roster to train at the Club’s Olympic Regional Training Center: Thomas Gilman, Josh Rodriguez, Jordan Conaway, Zain Retherford, Bekzod Abdurakmonov, Franklin Gomez, Vincenzo Joseph, Jason Nolf, David Taylor, Jaime Espinal, Riley Lefever, Bo Nickal, Kyle Snyder, Anthony Cassar, and Nick Nevills.

 

[Racpack]

RU Warrior asked?

What PSU alum has excelled in international/Olympic competition? (other than Cael), who is the Olympic champ from PSU? Snyder (OSU) is training there now... at totally different weight. Am I missing someone???

RU has NCAA champs. RU has Pritzlaf, who is an absolute stud coach and is right in RVN weightclass wheelhouse. What TF gives?


RU Warrior love your RU pride. We can't change or be blind to the facts. In 2017, PSU had 5 national champs and RU has 2 in our history. Check out the NLWC coaches in additional to Cael and the other collegiate coaches. As ScarletGrapfan said they have 5 million in their RTC and 15 guys in their RTC with great credentials.

SVN is the # 1 kid in the country. The RU coaches gave it the old college try. If you were the best high school wrestler in the country, wanted to compete in the best in the room, and be coached by the only undefeated college wrestler in history where would you go.

Rutgers is getting better every year and the recruiting is picking up. WIN Magazine just ranked us # 11 for the upcoming season and a lot of our new guys aren't ranked.

 

[SCNJ]

Here’s what RU can usually offer that Penn State can’t: close to home for NJ kids, and a starting spot for most of the elite recruits.

If you’re someone like SVN who can probably start for either team on day 1 and staying local isn’t a concern, you’d be an absolute fool to choose RU over Penn State at this point. Ashnault is a rare exception who didn’t want to leave home and Suriano wanted a team that would let him do his thing.

SVN made the right decision. We’re a team on the rise, but Penn State can help him achieve his goals more than we can. That doesn’t necessarily mean that we couldn’t though.

 

[PessimisticallyHopefulPragmatist]

Here’s what RU can usually offer that Penn State can’t: close to home for NJ kids, and a starting spot for most of the elite recruits.

If you’re someone like SVN who can probably start for either team on day 1 and staying local isn’t a concern, you’d be an absolute fool to choose RU over Penn State at this point. Ashnault is a rare exception who didn’t want to leave home and Suriano wanted a team that would let him do his thing.

SVN made the right decision. We’re a team on the rise, but Penn State can help him achieve his goals more than we can. That doesn’t necessarily mean that we couldn’t though.

For wrestling, he is better off at Penn State; for education, he would have been better off at Cornell or Princeton; for Rutgers, he would have been better off at Rutgers. 🤥

 

[PessimisticallyHopefulPragmatist]

Rutgers is getting better every year and the recruiting is picking up. WIN Magazine just ranked us # 11 for the upcoming season and a lot of our new guys aren't ranked.

Doesn't it stand to reason that recruiting at #11 keeps us out of top ten ranking?

 

[Leonard23]

I love how it went from some mysterious reason no one would say to he just wanted the best coach and partners. You guys are too funny. He could've achieved his goals here. To say otherwise is silly. We never really had a chance and now people are backpedaling. Sheesh.

 

[SCNJ]

I love how it went from some mysterious reason no one would say to he just wanted the best coach and partners. You guys are too funny. He could've achieved his goals here. To say otherwise is silly. We never really had a chance and now people are backpedaling. Sheesh.

I have no idea what the mysterious reason is and until that information comes out, I can’t really give an opinion on it. He certainly could have achieved his goals here, we’ve had two national champs, a couple Olympic hopefuls, and even a few guys with success at worlds. But where we are as a program to where Penn State is as a program, they can get him closer to those goals than we can. To deny that is silly.

 

[wngarbarini]

Until you can get inside his head to understand his thinking process, we can only go by what he said in his 52 minute interview with the Airey Bro’s

 

[SCNJ]

Until you can get inside his head to understand his thinking process, we can only go by what he said in his 52 minute interview with the Airey Bro’s

I don’t have much interest in listening to an hour long interview from a Penn State commit. Can you highlight a few notable points that haven’t been discussed here or has it all been covered?

 

[Leonard23]

I have no idea what the mysterious reason is and until that information comes out, I can’t really give an opinion on it. He certainly could have achieved his goals here, we’ve had two national champs, a couple Olympic hopefuls, and even a few guys with success at worlds. But where we are as a program to where Penn State is as a program, they can get him closer to those goals than we can. To deny that is silly.

I'm not ignoring how good of a program PSU has, but did PSU get Suriano any closer than we did? No. Elite talent like that will be just as successful here or there.

 

[SCNJ]

I'm not ignoring how good of a program PSU has, but did PSU get Suriano any closer than we did? No. Elite talent like that will be just as successful here or there.

Suriano was a unique circumstance with a lone wolf type of athlete who took offense to not being allowed to wrestle through an injury
Again, I’m not doubting that Van Ness couldn’t succeed here but Penn St has more resources to allow that to happen. Hopefully we can get to that point soon.

 

[Leonard23]

Suriano was a unique circumstance with a lone wolf type of athlete who took offense to not being allowed to wrestle through an injury
Again, I’m not doubting that Van Ness couldn’t succeed here but Penn St has more resources to allow that to happen. Hopefully we can get to that point soon.

I will continue to disagree with the view that the top talent wouldn't do just as well here, and Suriano is more than enough proof.

 

[Jersey Boys]

I will continue to disagree with the view that the top talent wouldn't do just as well here, and Suriano is more than enough proof.

As is Ashnault. 3 time BIG champ, 4 time AA, 3 time National semi finalist finishing 4th and a natty title. I might add that Gullibon and Ashnault were similar recruits out of HS. Gullibon had a good career, but if he wore a RU singlet and performed the same way based off the below HS resume, this board would have called for Goody’s head.

“Gullibon came to Penn State from Derry Area High School in Latrobe, Pa., where he won four straight Pennsylvania State Championships, becoming the rare four-timer at the state level. Gulibon left Derry High with a stunning 134-4 career record to go along with four straight PIAA titles and four Powerade National Championships.“

 

[Leonard23]

As is Ashnault. 3 time BIG champ, 4 time AA, 3 time National semi finalist finishing 4th and a natty title. I might add that Gullibon and Ashnault were similar recruits out of HS. Gullibon had a good career, but if he wore a RU singlet and performed the same way based off the below HS resume, this board would have called for Goody’s head.

“Gullibon came to Penn State from Derry Area High School in Latrobe, Pa., where he won four straight Pennsylvania State Championships, becoming the rare four-timer at the state level. Gulibon left Derry High with a stunning 134-4 career record to go along with four straight PIAA titles and four Powerade National Championships.“

Yup.

 

[Racpack]

Elite talent like that will be just as successful here or there.

Winston and Mason were elite talents. # 1 or #2 in the country. They didn't even all American once. It can happen to any kid. We are a really good program. Penn State is a great program and maybe the best ever. Don’t try to compare them now. Maybe in the future as schools only have 9.9 scholarships

 

[Jersey Boys]

Winston and Mason were elite talents. # 1 or #2 in the country. They didn't even all American once. It can happen to any kid. We are a really good program. Penn State is a great program and maybe the best ever. Don’t try to compare them now. Maybe in the future as schools only have 9.9 scholarships

I think you missed Leonards point. Mason couldn’t cut it in Minesotta. They are a top program. Meanwhile how did Mason’s replacement at RU turn out?

Did Cael fail to develop Jimmy Guilibon?

Pat Downey had national championship pedigree. Did Iowa State fail him? He actually started to reach his potential here at our very own RTC until he predictably flaked out yet again.

Sometimes it’s the kid and not the coach or program. The point Leonard was making is that if a kid is elite AND has the mindset he can win anywhere.

 

[Racpack]

Good points. SVN wanted to wrestle with and be challenged by the best. Cael promotes national championships. When is the last time we heard Goody say he wants to win a national championship. Winning a team trophy is great and a big achievement. Shayne just has bigger goals and wants the best chance to achieve them. Can you blame the kid for wanting the best?

 

[wngarbarini]

I think I have covered all the points SVN states. The one interesting point I briefly mentioned was that SVN actually said that he was not that enamored with Cael but maybe he would get to like him more. So the fact that Cael was the clincher was probably not An important factor. It was the attitude of the team and the RTC coaches.

 

[Leonard23]

Winston and Mason were elite talents. # 1 or #2 in the country. They didn't even all American once. It can happen to any kid. We are a really good program. Penn State is a great program and maybe the best ever. Don’t try to compare them now. Maybe in the future as schools only have 9.9 scholarships

LMAO. Ya got nothing, so you pull out a 2008 recruit (Winston), who was a 4X NCAA qualifier while battling numerous injuries and had some off the mat stuff. Not to mention he was here when we were funding about 4.4 schollies, but don't let that get in the way of a good smear job. As for Mason, he couldn't AA in 2 yrs at Minnesota with JRob, also had off the mat issues, and we were barely funding half of the 9.9 schollies. He was also ranked 3rd in his weight coming out of Blair, not the Ashnault or Suriano, or SVN level we're talking about, but you don't care.

I think you missed Leonards point. Mason couldn’t cut it in Minesotta. They are a top program. Meanwhile how did Mason’s replacement at RU turn out?

Did Cael fail to develop Jimmy Guilibon?

Pat Downey had national championship pedigree. Did Iowa State fail him? He actually started to reach his potential here at our very own RTC until he predictably flaked out yet again.

Sometimes it’s the kid and not the coach or program. The point Leonard was making is that if a kid is elite AND has the mindset he can win anywhere.

Yeah, he and others of that mindset don't care and won't look at reality, so it's like talking to a wall.

Good points. SVN wanted to wrestle with and be challenged by the best. Cael promotes national championships. When is the last time we heard Goody say he wants to win a national championship. Winning a team trophy is great and a big achievement. Shayne just has bigger goals and wants the best chance to achieve them. Can you blame the kid for wanting the best?

You're definitely not a Rutgers fan.

 

[pawrestlersintn]

What PSU alum has excelled in international/Olympic competition? (other than Cael), who is the Olympic champ from PSU? Snyder (OSU) is training there now... at totally different weight. Am I missing someone???

RU has NCAA champs. RU has Pritzlaf, who is an absolute stud coach and is right in RVN weightclass wheelhouse. What TF gives?

Non-alum coach Jake Varner: 2x NC, 4x finalist, Olympic gold

 

[Harleyr1]

Jeez guys ..get over it ..he made his decision ..crying and complaining about it isn’t changing a thing ...move on and let’s talk about who we do have

 

[LetsGoRUwrestling]

Hopefully one day it will change but Blair guys have never had any interest in attending Rutgers. Buxton and current staff have always looked down at RU Program. Kind of a shame there have been plenty of Blair greats that never panned out in College and might of had good careers at RU

 

[wngarbarini]

Blair is a $60,000 year school and those kids look at the Ivies and the top national sports programs as their destination. I agree, that SVN has made his decision so let’s move on.