Thoughts from watching the RU commits today (only saw semis, so no comments on Donner).
Paetzell - I honestly couldn't tell that he was wrestling up a weight. This kid would run back to the circle each time and you could tell that he was in much better shape at the end of his match than his opponent. I know he struggled early on this year in the big tournaments and had his injury, so I just wonder about how much more potential this kid is going to have after (likely) his redshirt year when he gets healthy and in the right weight. His chances tomorrow are pretty good for a state title.
Van Brill - I really hope nobody takes him for granted. He's got John's grit. And more importantly he's in his proper weight class, whereas John has wrestled all over the place for us the past two years to fill in holes. I don't think this was a killer weight class this year in NJ, but he was definitely better than his opponent today (who was no slouch). He'll definitely be the underdog vs. Griffith, but he's had an incredible year so far. He's only got 2 losses in his HS career, but I believe a couple of years lost to injury ... somebody correct me on that if I'm wrong.
Grello - He didn't wrestle a dominant match early on. Seemed to be feeling out his opponent a bit, and was struggling to get in on shots. And then like that the match was over. One thing that these guys have over some of our current RU wrestlers is how technically sound they are. Whereas a Hayden Hrymack is a really funky, giraffe-like wrestler, these guys are going to be REAL steady at the top of the lineup.
Mulligan - Really was never challenged. I didn't get that good of a read on him, other than what I mentioned above in the Grello thing about just how technical he was. His opponent had no chance on getting out throughout the 3rd period when Mulligan was on top.
Correnti - He's way too small for HWT. I'm sorry, but right now, that's just how it is while he's wrestling 220. I'll continue my rant for the need for a 220 or 225 class in college. For most of two periods, his match was no different than Mulligan. Rarely challenged by his opponent. Then he got caught and was down 7-5 late in the 2nd, almost getting pinned. Some scary stuff. But what he did next just floored me. Once he got out, he just started manhandling his opponent. I hadn't seen this type of fire out of any wrestler that I watched today. Don't get me wrong. There were guys that pinned or teched their kids early. There were guys with big comebacks. But Correnti looked POSSESSED and PISSED. The refs took back two of his points, so in reality the match could have been much wider. Thankfully the match ended the way it did, because it was a battle in the 3rd. But if he carries that attacking style with him to college, watch out.
(Non-commits)
If you asked me what I want future recruits to look like, Glaskow is the one. Sure, Suriano and Bierdumpfel were the best wrestlers today, but this guy has so much quickness and strength, it's crazy. Of course it can get him in trouble, and almost did a bunch, but he was bouncing around the mat and flipping his guy all over the place. I really hope we can get this kid and a few others.