Most weight classes have a one-year qualification granted by the NCAA, so there are plenty of familiar faces, but there was a maximum shedding of 141 pounds after the 2021-2022 season.1 in FloWrestling’s final season rankings ~ All the 5th place graduates graduated and moved on. This makes 141lb one of the most attractive and interesting weight classes of the season.
Preview of other preseason weight classes: 125 | 133
departed
Nick Lee, Pennsylvania
Sebastian Rivera, Rutgers
Jadin Ierman, Iowa
Chad Redd, Nebraska
Kizan Clark, North Carolina
Grant Willits, Oregon
Stevan Mysick, Michigan
Dylan Duncan, Illinois
Ian Parker, Iowa
Dresden, Central Michigan Simon
Like I said, maximum outflow of talent. It’s been interesting to watch Nick Lee battle it out over Jadin Eierman and Sebastian Rivera for supremacy the past two seasons, and let’s not forget that Kizhan Clarke’s NCAA finals are just around the corner. A really fun group of wrestlers I miss.
Returning the 2022 All-Americans
Cole Matthews, Pitt (5th)
Real Woods, Stanford (6th)
Jake Bergeland, Minnesota (No. 7)
CJ Compost, Pen (8th)
Half of last year’s All-Americans are back, despite the incredible loss of talent in this division. I don’t want to discredit the accomplishments of these wrestlers, but part of that is because older wrestlers lack the ability to stay fit in the NCAA tournament.
Watch Jake Bergeland defeat Andrew Arriles in the Blood Round below.
I was healed
Jesse Vasquez, Arizona
Jesse Vazquez, 21st overall in his class of 2020, won four California State titles after graduating from high school. He redshirted for a year before earning a 141-pound starting spot at Arizona State, going 7-1 before suffering a season-ending injury.
Soaring from 133
Sammy Alvarez, Rutgers
Jordan Titus, West Virginia
Sammy Alvarez’s weight has been a problem for him over the past two seasons. He didn’t even reach his 133 pounds in his 2021 Big Ten Tournament.
Jordan Titus, who competed in the redshirts at 133 last season, will move up and take over the Mountaineers’ 141-pound starting spot. He won the championship and left a record of 20 wins and 7 losses as an independent team.
down from 149
Beau Bartlett, Pennsylvania
With 2X National Champion Nick Lee holding the 141 spot, why Beau Bartlett is competing at 149 when many believe his optimal weight class is 141 is clear.
coming off red shirt
Wyatt Henson, Oklahoma
Lachlan McNeill, North Carolina
Jordan Titus, West Virginia
Esen Miller, Maryland
Casey Swiderski, Iowa
Ryan Crookham, Lehi
Ismael Ayub, Nebraska
Nash Singleton, Oregon
Michael Joffre, Virginia
Garrett Grice, Virginia
In recent exciting news, Kevin Dresser has confirmed that his plans are to start No. 2 recruit, Casey Swayderski. With many of the top heavyweight talent leaving, many say Swayderski could be in contention for the podium in March.
At one point, Ryan Crookham was considered the #1 overall recruit in the 2022 class. His final two years in high school were plagued with injuries, but if he can stay healthy, he’ll be a factor at the national level.
Favorites on paper
Cole Matthews, Pitt
Real Woods, Iowa
The two favorites to win the odds are the top two return winners, Cole Matthews and Real Woods. Many probably think Woods is the lone favorite, but Matthews defeated Woods for fifth place in last year’s NCAA, aided by a huge six-point through.
Watch Matthews beat Woods by throwing him in the back at last year’s NCAA.
But don’t rule out Woods. He transferred to the University of Iowa this year, so his appearance and training regime are a little different. People also forget how great Woods was in training for an entire regular season. In 2020, Woods was the No. 3 seed in the NCAA behind Luke Pletcher and Nick Lee.
Contenders
Jacob Bergeland, Minnesota
CJ Compost, Pen
Andrew Ariles, Northern Colorado
Clay Carlson, SDSU
Alan Hart, Missouri
These guys aren’t bringing in Vegas money to win the title, but they have the skills if they can pull it all together and be on the right track to get things done in Tulsa. Alirez, Carlson and Hart meet several times a year, often exchanging wins and losses. While this is good news for fans, it makes it much harder to predict and rank.
Watch Clay Carlson explain the exciting CKLV finals with Andrew Alirez.
All-American threat
Carter Young, Oklahoma
Beau Bartlett, Pennsylvania
Frankie Tal Shahar, Northwest
Ryan Jack, Northwestern
Dylan DeMiglio, Ohio
Joseph Zargo, Wisconsin
Parker Phileas, Purdue
Dylan Droguemueller, NDSU
Matthew Kazimire, Columbia
Casey Swiderski, Iowa
All eight of these guys have qualified for the national qualifiers, but have never reached the podium. I think that will change this year.
mine
Brock Hardy, Nebraska
Josh Mason, Bloomsburg
Kaer Happel, Northern Iowa
Who you don’t want to tie the first round in the NCAA. Brock Hardy was a top 10 recruit in the 2018 class. In 2021 he was used selectively at £149 before losing a spot to Ridge Lovett. It turns out that he is not bad. Josh Mason is a national qualifier with very good pinning ability. Cael Happel is tough like a typical Panther Train.
predict
1) Woods 2) Matthews 3) Carlson 4) Bergeland 5) Young 6) Ariles 7) Swayderski 8) Compost
