Oklahoma State University Athletics
Photo by: Bruce Waterfield
Cowboy Wrestling: 2018 Season Preview
November 07, 2017 | Cowboy Wrestling
2017-18 Media Guide
With a pair of NCAA individual titles under his belt, Oklahoma State senior 141-pounder Dean Heil leads a young, but talented Cowboy roster into the 2017-18 season. Facing the losses of Anthony Collica and Nolan Boyd, both multi-year staples in the OSU lineup and All-Americans in their own right, head coach John Smith returns Heil along with five other All-America honorees from the 2017 NCAA Championships.
The Pokes will look to build on a 2016-17 season that saw them tally a third-place finish at the national tournament. Following up an impressive 14-1 dual record, the Cowboys also claimed the program's 51st conference title, shattering Big 12 Championship records for team points and margin of victory.
Following a season-opening neutral dual against North Carolina, the team will open up its home slate on Nov. 19 in Gallagher-Iba Arena against Minnesota before heading back out on the road for a handful of events, including an appearance at the Reno Tournament of Champions on Dec. 17, along with duals at North Dakota State (Nov. 26), Northern Colorado (Dec. 18) and Wyoming (Dec. 19). The Cowboys will look to make it two-straight Southern Scuffle titles to open the New Year in Chattanooga, Tenn., before making the trip overseas to Naples, Italy, for a historic dual against NC State on Jan. 5.
The historic OSU-Iowa rivalry continues on Jan. 14 in Iowa City, Iowa, as the Pokes will look to finish off a long road trip with their second consecutive win over the Hawkeyes.
The Cowboys return to Stillwater on Jan. 19 for a dual against Big 12 foe West Virginia, opening a seven-match homestand that also includes matchups with Kent State (Jan. 21), Missouri (Jan. 27), Iowa State (Jan. 28), Northern Iowa (Feb. 3), Edinboro (Feb. 9) and Oklahoma (Feb. 11). The Pokes wrap up the regular season in Fresno, Calif., on Feb. 18 with a dual at Fresno State.
For the second year in a row, the Big 12 Championships return to the BOK Center in Tulsa on March 3 and 4. The NCAA Championships are scheduled for March 15-17 at the Quicken Loans Center in Cleveland, as Ohio native Heil will look to three-peat in front of his home crowd.
Similar to a season ago, Oklahoma State's most powerful punches look to lie in the front of the lineup, with Nick Piccininni, Kaid Brock and Dean Heil expected to get starts at 125, 133 and 141, respectively.
Coming off posting a 27-8 overall record to go along with a 12-3 dual mark in 2017, Piccininni turned in an outstanding postseason performance as a redshirt freshman. The East Setauket, N.Y., product earned his first Big 12 title, defeating No. 4 Josh Rodriguez in sudden victory in the finals to pick up the crown. In the following weeks at the NCAA Championships, Piccininni defeated Rodriguez again, as well as No. 7 Sean Russell of Edinboro and No. 10 Jack Mueller of Virginia to finish fourth overall at the national tournament for his first career All-America recognition.
"I saw a little story today with picks of who was going to be the national champion at 125 and he wasn't one of them," John Smith said. "That tells you that a lot of guys are back at that weight, but he's pretty good. He took fourth last year, and he wasn't (a national champion pick). That tells you that the weight class is strong, and that should fire him up a little bit. I'm going to show him that. He'll be ready. He's everything you want as a coach. He loves everything he's doing. Life's pretty simple coaching Nick. I'll just say that."
Brock will look to take the next step forward in his young career in 2018, after going 29-4 in his first full season a year ago on his way to finishing fifth in his first appearance at the NCAA Championships. Just one of the Stillwater native's 13 ranked wins last season was a 7-6 victory over eventual national champion Cory Clark of Iowa in Gallagher-Iba Arena.
At 141 pounds, Heil enters his senior season on a 41-match win streak, ranking second in the nation behind Penn State's Zain Retherford. His 32-0 season marked the 15th undefeated season of 29 wins or more in program history, as he claimed the program's 142nd NCAA title.
"He's taken a real leadership role, and we needed it," Smith said. "He's doing some things that we haven't had like this before. I think one thing that's nice about Dean is he wants to have a successful team. He's trying to do something that only a handful of athletes have done in wrestling by winning three national championships, and that pretty much locks you into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame as a member in the future.
"A lot of things are riding on a young guy like that. He knows what he wants. I've really seen him improve his level of intensity in the room. I just want to see him separate the scores this year. He's got some other guys chasing title No. 3 out there as well. If you want to be recognized as one of the outstanding wrestlers in the nation, that's something you're going to have to do."
The first spot with any uncertainty in the OSU lineup comes at 149 where Smith will be tasked with replacing four-year lineup fixture Anthony Collica. Pegged to potentially fill Collica's spot are Boise State transfer and 2015 All-American Geordan Martinez, Stillwater product Tristan Moran, or Boo Lewallen who is coming off a stellar redshirt freshman campaign.
"At 149, we're not dropping off a whole lot. You have Geo Martinez, who was an All-American for Boise State who transferred here. We have Tristan Moran who is very competitive at the weight. We also have Boo Lewallen, who won't be competing until second semester. I think we're going to be strong at that weight, so I think those first four weights are strong."
Rounding out the front half of the lineup at 157, fourth-place finisher Joe Smith is expected to redshirt the season with Wyatt Sheets and Jonce Blaylock expected to battle it out for the start. Blaylock, who started a handful of matches at the weight last season and went 4-0 in those matches, went 20-6 overall in 2017. Sheets, competing primarily in open tournaments, posted a 10-5 mark.
"I look at where we're at, and it's a good team," Smith said. "We'll have a pretty competitive team. I'm not sure we drop off any. (Redshirting Joe Smith) also gives some guys some experience that wouldn't get it, so in the future, guys like Wyatt Sheets and Jonce Blaylock, who's a junior, and Sheets who's a freshman, it gives them an opportunity to get a season in and have a full season under them. I'm really doing it to strengthen our team and give us depth in the future."
Junior Chandler Rogers figures to get the nod at 165 after a breakout season in 2017. Rogers, who went 25-8 overall a season ago, earned his first All-America honor, going 5-2 at the NCAA Championships to finish fifth. The Stillwater product is as electric of a wrestler as OSU has on its roster, as Rogers led the team in falls last season with 11.
"At 165, you have Chandler Rogers, who we've all seen," Smith said. "He's explosive, powerful and can do a lot of damage. He's fun to watch wrestle."
The Cowboys will look to overcome a bit of inexperience at 174, 184 and, at least to start the season, 197, with 2017 All-American Preston Weigel sidelined to open the year with injury.
After racking up a pair of JUCO national titles at Northeastern Oklahoma A&M and redshirting the 2016-17 season, junior Jacobe Smith is ready to make an impact in the OSU lineup, and he'll get his chance as he's expected to get the start at 174 pounds.
"It's the toughest weight in the country at 174," John Smith said. "You have a new guy coming in your lineup at 174. I'm not talking eight deep, I'm talking 25 or 30 deep. Either you get better quickly or it can be an ugly season for you. I will say this: the effort is in place. The focus is in place. He's a fun kid to watch. He loves to wrestle. He loves to train. That gives you a great chance to get better because people want to help you when you want to wrestle and you want to train."
Freshman Keegan Moore will open the season with the nod at 184, and Andrew Marsden will hold down the 197 spot. When Weigel returns, Marsden will likely make the cut back down to 184 to compete with Moore for the job.
"Those three weights are weight classes that we need to be competitive in as we go along," Smith said. "Right now, none of them rank in the top 15, probably. Where does that put you with our schedule? It doesn't put you in a very good position. There are just some uncertainties at those weights right now, as far as what they're capable of doing because they haven't done anything yet."
Finally, rounding out the lineup, Derek White and Ethan Andersen will compete for the void at heavyweight left by Austin Schafer, who provided a breakout season in 2017. White briefly competed at heavyweight last season going 18-9 overall with six dual starts, but wrestling primarily at 197. Andersen, a freshman, went 10-4 at heavyweight last year, competing exclusively in open tournaments for the Cowboys during his redshirt season.
The Cowboy wrestling program enjoyed a number of firsts and record-breaking performances during the 2016-17 season, and they look to continue that trend into 2018. While Dean Heil sets his sights on title No. 3, a slew of other Cowboys and returning All-Americans look to make their mark on program history as well come March.
With a pair of NCAA individual titles under his belt, Oklahoma State senior 141-pounder Dean Heil leads a young, but talented Cowboy roster into the 2017-18 season. Facing the losses of Anthony Collica and Nolan Boyd, both multi-year staples in the OSU lineup and All-Americans in their own right, head coach John Smith returns Heil along with five other All-America honorees from the 2017 NCAA Championships.
The Pokes will look to build on a 2016-17 season that saw them tally a third-place finish at the national tournament. Following up an impressive 14-1 dual record, the Cowboys also claimed the program's 51st conference title, shattering Big 12 Championship records for team points and margin of victory.
Following a season-opening neutral dual against North Carolina, the team will open up its home slate on Nov. 19 in Gallagher-Iba Arena against Minnesota before heading back out on the road for a handful of events, including an appearance at the Reno Tournament of Champions on Dec. 17, along with duals at North Dakota State (Nov. 26), Northern Colorado (Dec. 18) and Wyoming (Dec. 19). The Cowboys will look to make it two-straight Southern Scuffle titles to open the New Year in Chattanooga, Tenn., before making the trip overseas to Naples, Italy, for a historic dual against NC State on Jan. 5.
The historic OSU-Iowa rivalry continues on Jan. 14 in Iowa City, Iowa, as the Pokes will look to finish off a long road trip with their second consecutive win over the Hawkeyes.
The Cowboys return to Stillwater on Jan. 19 for a dual against Big 12 foe West Virginia, opening a seven-match homestand that also includes matchups with Kent State (Jan. 21), Missouri (Jan. 27), Iowa State (Jan. 28), Northern Iowa (Feb. 3), Edinboro (Feb. 9) and Oklahoma (Feb. 11). The Pokes wrap up the regular season in Fresno, Calif., on Feb. 18 with a dual at Fresno State.
For the second year in a row, the Big 12 Championships return to the BOK Center in Tulsa on March 3 and 4. The NCAA Championships are scheduled for March 15-17 at the Quicken Loans Center in Cleveland, as Ohio native Heil will look to three-peat in front of his home crowd.
Similar to a season ago, Oklahoma State's most powerful punches look to lie in the front of the lineup, with Nick Piccininni, Kaid Brock and Dean Heil expected to get starts at 125, 133 and 141, respectively.
Coming off posting a 27-8 overall record to go along with a 12-3 dual mark in 2017, Piccininni turned in an outstanding postseason performance as a redshirt freshman. The East Setauket, N.Y., product earned his first Big 12 title, defeating No. 4 Josh Rodriguez in sudden victory in the finals to pick up the crown. In the following weeks at the NCAA Championships, Piccininni defeated Rodriguez again, as well as No. 7 Sean Russell of Edinboro and No. 10 Jack Mueller of Virginia to finish fourth overall at the national tournament for his first career All-America recognition.
"I saw a little story today with picks of who was going to be the national champion at 125 and he wasn't one of them," John Smith said. "That tells you that a lot of guys are back at that weight, but he's pretty good. He took fourth last year, and he wasn't (a national champion pick). That tells you that the weight class is strong, and that should fire him up a little bit. I'm going to show him that. He'll be ready. He's everything you want as a coach. He loves everything he's doing. Life's pretty simple coaching Nick. I'll just say that."
Brock will look to take the next step forward in his young career in 2018, after going 29-4 in his first full season a year ago on his way to finishing fifth in his first appearance at the NCAA Championships. Just one of the Stillwater native's 13 ranked wins last season was a 7-6 victory over eventual national champion Cory Clark of Iowa in Gallagher-Iba Arena.
At 141 pounds, Heil enters his senior season on a 41-match win streak, ranking second in the nation behind Penn State's Zain Retherford. His 32-0 season marked the 15th undefeated season of 29 wins or more in program history, as he claimed the program's 142nd NCAA title.
"He's taken a real leadership role, and we needed it," Smith said. "He's doing some things that we haven't had like this before. I think one thing that's nice about Dean is he wants to have a successful team. He's trying to do something that only a handful of athletes have done in wrestling by winning three national championships, and that pretty much locks you into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame as a member in the future.
"A lot of things are riding on a young guy like that. He knows what he wants. I've really seen him improve his level of intensity in the room. I just want to see him separate the scores this year. He's got some other guys chasing title No. 3 out there as well. If you want to be recognized as one of the outstanding wrestlers in the nation, that's something you're going to have to do."
The first spot with any uncertainty in the OSU lineup comes at 149 where Smith will be tasked with replacing four-year lineup fixture Anthony Collica. Pegged to potentially fill Collica's spot are Boise State transfer and 2015 All-American Geordan Martinez, Stillwater product Tristan Moran, or Boo Lewallen who is coming off a stellar redshirt freshman campaign.
"At 149, we're not dropping off a whole lot. You have Geo Martinez, who was an All-American for Boise State who transferred here. We have Tristan Moran who is very competitive at the weight. We also have Boo Lewallen, who won't be competing until second semester. I think we're going to be strong at that weight, so I think those first four weights are strong."
Rounding out the front half of the lineup at 157, fourth-place finisher Joe Smith is expected to redshirt the season with Wyatt Sheets and Jonce Blaylock expected to battle it out for the start. Blaylock, who started a handful of matches at the weight last season and went 4-0 in those matches, went 20-6 overall in 2017. Sheets, competing primarily in open tournaments, posted a 10-5 mark.
"I look at where we're at, and it's a good team," Smith said. "We'll have a pretty competitive team. I'm not sure we drop off any. (Redshirting Joe Smith) also gives some guys some experience that wouldn't get it, so in the future, guys like Wyatt Sheets and Jonce Blaylock, who's a junior, and Sheets who's a freshman, it gives them an opportunity to get a season in and have a full season under them. I'm really doing it to strengthen our team and give us depth in the future."
Junior Chandler Rogers figures to get the nod at 165 after a breakout season in 2017. Rogers, who went 25-8 overall a season ago, earned his first All-America honor, going 5-2 at the NCAA Championships to finish fifth. The Stillwater product is as electric of a wrestler as OSU has on its roster, as Rogers led the team in falls last season with 11.
"At 165, you have Chandler Rogers, who we've all seen," Smith said. "He's explosive, powerful and can do a lot of damage. He's fun to watch wrestle."
The Cowboys will look to overcome a bit of inexperience at 174, 184 and, at least to start the season, 197, with 2017 All-American Preston Weigel sidelined to open the year with injury.
After racking up a pair of JUCO national titles at Northeastern Oklahoma A&M and redshirting the 2016-17 season, junior Jacobe Smith is ready to make an impact in the OSU lineup, and he'll get his chance as he's expected to get the start at 174 pounds.
"It's the toughest weight in the country at 174," John Smith said. "You have a new guy coming in your lineup at 174. I'm not talking eight deep, I'm talking 25 or 30 deep. Either you get better quickly or it can be an ugly season for you. I will say this: the effort is in place. The focus is in place. He's a fun kid to watch. He loves to wrestle. He loves to train. That gives you a great chance to get better because people want to help you when you want to wrestle and you want to train."
Freshman Keegan Moore will open the season with the nod at 184, and Andrew Marsden will hold down the 197 spot. When Weigel returns, Marsden will likely make the cut back down to 184 to compete with Moore for the job.
"Those three weights are weight classes that we need to be competitive in as we go along," Smith said. "Right now, none of them rank in the top 15, probably. Where does that put you with our schedule? It doesn't put you in a very good position. There are just some uncertainties at those weights right now, as far as what they're capable of doing because they haven't done anything yet."
Finally, rounding out the lineup, Derek White and Ethan Andersen will compete for the void at heavyweight left by Austin Schafer, who provided a breakout season in 2017. White briefly competed at heavyweight last season going 18-9 overall with six dual starts, but wrestling primarily at 197. Andersen, a freshman, went 10-4 at heavyweight last year, competing exclusively in open tournaments for the Cowboys during his redshirt season.
The Cowboy wrestling program enjoyed a number of firsts and record-breaking performances during the 2016-17 season, and they look to continue that trend into 2018. While Dean Heil sets his sights on title No. 3, a slew of other Cowboys and returning All-Americans look to make their mark on program history as well come March.
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