Michigan Wolverines Wrestling: 2019-20 Season Preview
The decision to have four top individuals — graduate student Stevan Micic, fifth-year seniors Myles Amine and Logan Massa, and redshirt junior Kanen Storr – take Olympic redshirts certainly complicates the task facing Michigan wrestling head coach Sean Bormet this year. However, taking advantage of these types of opportunities is part of the program’s philosophy.
“During the recruiting process, we look for kids who have aspirations to win Olympic gold medals,” Bormet said. “It’s the pinnacle of our sport. Winning an NCAA championship is also part of that, but the Olympics only come around every four years.”
Michigan will be without Micic and Amine, both three-time All-Americans at 133 and 174 pounds, respectively; Massa, an All-American as a redshirt freshman at 165 pounds; and Storr, who posted a 26-8 record at 141 pounds last season.
“There’s a lot of variables that go into it. For us, we’re really committed to our athletes and the preparation it takes to have your best chance to succeed," Bormet said. "There’s a lot of similarity between freestyle [the style competed in for the Olympics] and folkstyle [what is wrestled in college]. Sometimes, you have to make decisions based on weight class and what it takes to be optimally prepared at your weight class. It’s exciting for us.
“We already have two guys who are qualified [for the Olympics in Micic and Amine] and we have opportunity for more between our college roster and our club athletes. That’s definitely an exciting start and there’s a lot of momentum.”
Handling the required lineup changes is the task that faces the remaining Wolverines, who will be led by sophomore heavyweight Mason Parris. Parris was pulled out of redshirt Jan. 3 of last year and posted an 11-4 win over then-No. 1 Amar Dhesi of Oregon State in his varsity debut. He went on to post a 3-2 record at the NCAA Championships, where he reached the round of 12, and led U-M — which finished fifth nationally — with 32 wins and 13 falls last year.
“It’s challenging, but we have a group of young guys that are very talented and have been working very hard,” Bormet admitted. “It’s going to give a lot of them an opportunity to shine. I think they’ll be ready to embrace the challenges.”
Michigan Wolverines Wrestling's 2019-20 Season At A Glance
Big Ten predicted finish: Top four behind powerhouses Iowa, Penn State and Ohio State – who might be the best three teams in the country.
Coach’s Expectations: “I look at this year as an incredible opportunity for some of these young guys to get in our lineup and shine,” Bormet said. “It’s also an opportunity and challenge for our coaching staff too. We welcome those kinds of challenges.
"It’s a great problem to have [with the Olympic redshirts], and I’ve told everyone else on the team, once we made the decision to Olympic redshirt the four of them, that everybody has to be ready to wrestle this year. Every guy on the roster has to be ready. You may start out redshirting, but you may get pulled out of redshirt. You may be No. 2 on the roster, but at any given time, you’ve got to be ready to be put in the lineup and go. We need a full effort every week in terms of preparation. Everyone on this roster is on notice that they need to be training at their best.”
Top Wrestler: Sophomore heavyweight Mason Parris lost in the match to be an All-American as a true freshman last season and then won a Junior World Championship this summer.
Wrestler to Watch: Redshirt senior Austin Assad won the Cleveland State Open at 125 and will try to make the lineup at that weight with last season’s starter, Drew Mattin, moving up to 133 pounds. “He looks really good this fall," Bormet said of Assad.
Must See Event: Iowa, ranked as the best dual team in the country this preseason by WrestleStat.com, visits Ann Arbor Feb. 8.
Michigan Wrestling Coach Sean Bormet Breaks Down His Roster By Weight Class
125: “At 125, we have multiple guys right now. It’s probably [redshirt sophomore] Jack Medley and Austin Assad who will be the front runners wrestling off for that position. Austin’s experienced, he’s a fifth-year senior. Jack’s a little bit younger, but he’s really gritty and I’d say he’s one of the most consistent and improved guys on our entire roster. Freshman Kurt McHenry’s a very talented 125, but we’ll probably redshirt him this year.”
133: “Not 100 percent sure yet, we have some options. Possibly Drew Mattin, but we’re not sure yet — we may still redshirt Drew. He could potentially be at 133. There’s also the possibility for Austin Assad to see some time at 133. That’s a weight that we’re still figuring out a bit.”
141: “I’d say, right now, one of our most experienced guys at 141 is [redshirt sophomore] Ben Freeman. We have some younger guys, some freshmen that could see some time. We’ll be challenging for that spot. I’d say right now that Ben Freeman’s probably the front runner.”
149: “We have a couple veteran guys, [graduate student] Ben Lamantia and [redshirt junior] Tyler Meisinger. Ben Lamantia’s got a lot of experience, so he’s probably a front runner for that weight.”
157: “At 157, we’ve got Tyler Meisinger from a veteran standpoint. We also have Will Lewan who’s coming off a freshman redshirt year. I have a lot of expectation and excitement about Will Lewan. At 157, I think he’s probably the front runner right now.”
165: “We have a couple of guys who I think will be wrestling off for that spot, between [redshirt sophomore] Layne Van Anrooy and [junior] Reece Hughes. Both are upperclassmen and both have seen some varsity time between 157 and 174. I think those two will be battling it out for that spot. Cameron Amine is a really tough young freshman that will also be wrestling at 165, but our plan right now is to redshirt him.”
174: “Between Layne [Van Anrooy] and Reece [Hughes], one of those guys may see some time at 174 along with redshirt freshman Max Maylor, who will also be battling for that spot.”
184: “At 184, we have three guys that will be battling. Right now, the front runner, a returning guy, is [redshirt sophomore] Jelani Embree. He’s having a really good preseason. I’m pretty excited about what he’s been doing this preseason. We also have [redshirt sophomore] J.T. Correll, who’s had some varsity time at 184, and redshirt freshman Bobby Striggow. All three of those will be battling for the spot.”
197: “At 197, we have some competitive depth. Jackson Striggow is a fifth-year senior. He’s a returning starter from last year and [redshirt sophomore] Andrew Davison has a tremendous amount of potential at that weight as well, so that’s going to be a pretty heated battle for that spot.”
Heavyweight: “It's Mason Parris. I think he’s really excited to compete again this year. He’s coming off winning a Junior World Championship [this summer in Tallinn, Estonia]. He’s put on a lot of size and strength since last year at the NCAA Tournament. We have some good depth at that weight between [redshirt sophomores] Luke Ready and Zach Nemec. We have a freshman, Blake Querio, who will probably redshirt. We don’t plan to redshirt [Parris] and Mason is definitely the frontrunner at that weight.”
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