Overview
Head Coach: Brandon Eggum (7th season)
Assistants: Luke Becker, Trevor Brandbold, Zach Saunders
2022 NCAA Tournament Finished: 11th Place
2022 NCAA Tournament record: 17 wins 16 losses
2022 NCAA Tournament Points: 48.5
2022 B10 tournament 6th place
2022 dual record: 4-6 (3-5 B10)
National qualifiers: 12 (Patrick McKee, Jake Griba, Jake Bergeland, Marcos Polanco, Michael Brocks, Brayton Lee, Karl Carlson, Andrew Sparks, Bailey O’Reilly, Isaiah Salazar, Michal Foy , Gable Steveson)
Returning All-American: 4 (Patrick McKee, Jake Burgeland, Brayton Lee, Gable Steveson)
Last NCAA Champion: Gable Steveson (2022)
Best NCAA team performance: 1st (2001, 2002, 2007)
Best NCAA team finish under Eggum: 7th (2017, 2021)
Most Eggum winners: 4 (2017, 2019)
Overview
Minnesota has up to 12 national qualifiers led by Gable Steveson, who could return for the final season of qualification. The Golden Gophers will bring back 2021 All-American Brayton Lee (157), along with 2022 All-Americans Patrick McKee (125) and Jake Bergeland (141).
Few teams have as much balance and overall depth as Minnesota, but that doesn’t necessarily mean NCAA tournament points. Eggum and company went 4-6 in duals last season and in B10 he went 3-5. This is the toughest wrestling conference in the country. The Golden Gophers had excellent wins against Northwestern (31-9) and Nebraska (19-13), but they were also beaten by Oklahoma State (23-10), Iowa (22-10) and Wisconsin (21-15). , lost to Purdue (18-). 14), and Ohio (24-14). It will be interesting to see if some of the younger wrestlers can push the seniors into their spots.
Minnesota’s Expected 2022-23 Starting Lineup
125: Patrick McKee, JR, (AA)
133: Aaron Nagao, SO
141: Jake Bergeland, SR, (AA)
149: Michael Broccus, JR, (NQ)
157: Brayton Lee JR (AA)
165: Andrew Sparks, SO (NQ)
174: Bailey O’Reilly, SR, (NQ)
184: Isaiah Salazar SO (NQ)
197: Michal Foy, SR (NQ)
285: Gable Steveson, SR (NC, OG)
125: Patrick McKee, JR
Record for 2022: 26-9
2022 NCAA Tournament record: 6-2 (5th place)
McKee should be okay with losing early in the tournament. He is 3rd in 2021 after losing the second round, and 5th this year after losing the first match. This gives him 13 wins and 3 losses in his two NCAA championships.
The Golden Gophers will rely on him again this year to spark the team. He was able to score valuable points in his NCAA Tournament, and Iowa’s Spencer will likely be a favorite in most games, though he will have a big job to do with Lee coming back. Troy Spratly and Quincy Halverson can be in contention here, but the two-time All-American returning is a good bet to become a starter.
133: Aaron Nagao, SO
Record for 2022: 8-3
Nod simply because Nagao defeated Jake Griba in a straight match at the U23 Freestyle Nationals this summer. And Nagao is suitable for folk style. Good news for Eggum that Gliva reached his 2022 NCAA Tournament, but 13-15 he was eliminated 0-2 after the season. Nagao made it to the finals of this year’s Southern Scuffle, so Minnesota will have an edge here. Jägeraisch could also be in contention after his 8-6 freshman campaign.
141: Jake Bergeland, SR
Record for 2022: 23-9
2022 NCAA Tournament Record: 4-2 (7th)
Bergeland is back in a COVID year after a breakout season when they were All-American. It was Bergeland’s first year as a starter and he took advantage by delivering Golden Gopher consistency and important wins. However, a 7th-place finish should boost his confidence, especially since most of the top wrestlers are gone.
Vance Bombard redshirted last year, but had beaten Northern Iowa’s Kyle Biscoglia (Big 12 finalist with 133 and national qualifier) before posting a 13-3 freshman campaign. Marcos Polanco went 7-8 in the 2021 national qualifiers, while Taggen Jamison made headlines in a year in gray with a 6-2 record. He lost his 8-6 loss to Bergeland and dropped the game to Iowa in his 6-4 surprise victory. Caleb Rajen. If you’re a Minnesota wrestling fan, this is the division to watch.
149: Michael Broccus, JR
Record for 2022: 18-15
2022 NCAA Tournament record: 1 win 2 losses
Three-time national qualifier Michael Brocus returns from Northern Iowa after the 2020 season. Blockhus won the Nationals but didn’t have a signing win all season, but he was beaten by National finalists Yani Diakomi Harris (Cornell), Ridge Lovett (Nebraska) and Sammy Sasso (Ohio State). led to the decision. Drew Roberts is his U23 All-American and, like Blaine Brenner, a potential contender after his 10-8 redshirt season.
157: Brayton Lee, JR
Record for 2022: 17-2
Minnesota will get Lee back after losing him to injury in the final dual of the season. Lee finished 6th in his NCAA Championship in 2021 following a 14-6 season. Before the injury, he had only lost his one game in the season, winning against Kendall Coleman (Purdue), Will Lewan (Michigan), Peyton Robb (Nebraska), Caleb Young (Iowa) and Jared Franeck (NDSU). rice field. That point.
165: Andrew Sparks, SO
Record for 2022: 4-3
It’s a roll of the dice, and despite Carlson’s defeat to Sparks at the 2021 Bison Open, Sparks beat 2022 national qualifier Karl Carlsson. Sparks is a true freshman as he qualifies for a national competition in 2021, and while still relatively unproven, Peyton of Nebraska, in particular with his first college victory over Rob, is capable. It shows a glimpse of sexuality. Don’t be surprised if Carlson is the starter and freshman Hunter his Raiden is in pursuit.
174: Bailey O’Reilly, SR
Record for 2022: 25-11
2022 NCAA Tournament Record: 0-2
Minnesota found the injury bug when two proven wrestlers went down during a key part of the season. The first was Lee in the final dual. Next, O’Reilly was injured during the quarterfinal match against Nebraska’s Mikey Labriola in the B10 Championship. O’Reilly is still NCAA-qualified, but he went 0-2. The Goodhue, Minnesota native is competitive in most of his games, but failed to score a win against a top-10 opponent last season.
Don’t expect to see O’Reilly early in the season. Minnesota may roll him out at the end of the first semester or the beginning of the second so he can reach his full potential. 4) and freshman Devin Wasley are battling for a spot, and either should be the starter until O’Reilly returns.
184: Isaiah Salazar, SO
Record for 2022: 15-7
2022 NCAA Tournament record: 1 win 2 losses
Salazar won four games in a row early and midway through the season, but then bounced back and forth in the second half. He has remained close in most of his matches, and if he can turn around a few toss-up losses, he could reach Round 12 this year, where he could end up on the podium with a great performance. Sam Skillings is up for the spot, but Salazar is the frontrunner at the moment.
197: Michal Foy, SR
Record for 2022: 16-14
2022 NCAA Tournament Record: 0-2
It should come as no surprise that Foy formed the U23 Greco World Team this year. His father, also Michal, was a Greco Olympian in 1988 and he in 1992. The young Foy, like Salazar, has a back-and-forth season and rests on his last chance to reach the podium.
The Crete, Illinois native lost both bouts in the NCAA Tournament, but against junior world freestyle champions Rocky Elam (Missouri) and Braxton Amos (Wisconsin). Jr. Garrett Joes has seen varsity action, but he wasn’t an end-of-year starter. Rowan Morgan, the son and assistant of former Minnesota NCAA champion, and Gabe Nagel, 184 or his 197, will join.
285: Gable Steveson
Record for 2022: 18-0
2022 NCAA Tournament record: 5-0 (1st place)
No guarantees, but it shows signs that Steveson will return at some point in his final year of eligibility. The 2020 Olympic gold medalist won the 2019 NCAA Championship semi-final against Anthony of Pennsylvania State University in the semifinals on March 21. He hasn’t lost in a college game since losing to Kassar.
Getting Gable back is big for the Golden Gophers. Especially since he scored his 23 points out of his 48.5 points for Minnesota last season, making him the greatest college heavyweight of all time by some. Steveson just turned 22, so he’s one of the deepest heavyweight fields in history, and we don’t know what he can do for an encore. He could be the first in program history to become his three-time NCAA champion, which should motivate him. Keaton Kluver and Bennett Tabor will vie for the spot until Steveson returns.
Where will the Golden Gophers finish in the NCAA?
Assuming Steveson returns for the final year, the Golden Gophers are eyeing the trophy that will be awarded to the top four teams in the NCAA Championship this year. Success depends on how the supporting cast helps the superstar. Arizona State put him fourth in 2022 with 66.5 points. That’s a realistic total for the Minnesota team next year. McKee, Lee and Bergeland need three or four of him to be on the podium again.
Without Steveson, there is a scenario where this team would drop out of the top 15. It’s hard for him to win back more than 20 points from a single wrestler, but Minnesota has proven he can succeed with a balanced offense. Is there a team that can do it? The Golden Gophers may have up to 12 national qualifiers, but most have yet to reach the top of the tournament.
This team is designed for year-end tournaments. Don’t expect Minnesota to have the best lineup of all duals. This could result in more losses than he wins in his highly competitive B10 conference. Regardless of who starts, this Minnesota team should be fun to watch. The battle for national team quotas will be as interesting as the teams they face.
