2023-2024 Season

[bruinbison]

JACKRABBITS KNOCK OFF NO. 6 MICHIGAN

https://gojacks.com/news/2024/1/4/wr...-michigan.aspx

[NDSU_grad]

JACKRABBITS KNOCK OFF NO. 6 MICHIGAN

https://gojacks.com/news/2024/1/4/wr...-michigan.aspx

Good win for the Jacks, but it looks like Lewan and DeAugustino were out for Michigan.

[Big Bird]

Good win for the Jacks, but it looks like Lewan and DeAugustino were out for Michigan.

And Amine and Cannon. The lineup Michigan put out there wasn't a top 15 team, and that's what SDSU is.

[Big Bird]

Just passed the midpoint of the season and felt it's a good time to see how things are going in Coach Blanc's first season.

125- Pretty much a disaster. Negrete was 3-3 and is no longer listed on the roster. I'm surprised he lasted this long as I've heard very little on a positive note with him, before even taking into account his lack of success on the mat. Without Negrete, they've been forfeiting or not entering a 125, which I can't stand at the D1 level. Even if Henningson or Mills makes it down to 125, it'll be very rough, as Henningson is 6-29 against D1 competition for his career. Zach Silvis hasn't wrestled this year, has wrestled in one event in his NCAA career, and went 1-3. I would like to see him here (or on the mat period) and see if his high level Greco skills can translate.
133- Barreto has underwhelmed compared to what I expected/hoped and is 3-5. No quality wins, not scoring a ton, and got injured his last time out. He's faced a lot of fringe NCAA qualifier types and lost significantly more than he's won.
141- Drexler has been as advertised and a bright spot. He's 7-3 and his win over Vombaur is nice. I think there's a 60% chance Drexler is an NCAA qualifier.
149- Peterson has been ok, but inconsistent. Beat Roberts once, but also lost to him with a bizarre late match performance. Other than that win, no quality wins. I do like how he's typically active, and I could see him winning some at the B12s. March hasn't been healthy and he's 1-3 as a result and I hope he redshirts.
157- Johnson has been very disappointing IMO. He's 6-8 and taken some bad losses and he has so little offense.
165- Howes has surprised me some, like against Purdue, but then he is 5-8 and has gotten blown out a bunch, including by fringe NCAA guys. I think my expectations were just super low and he's exceeded them.
174- Sax has taken a leap and won several matches against ranked opponents. Still needs more offense from neutral, but he has looks improved all around and looks like an NCAA qualifier who could win a match or two, depending on matchups.
184- Brenot has exceeded my very low expectations and is 8-9. He's beat a bunch of sub par guys, and generally gotten blown out by ok starters. Still, he doesn't look big enough for 184 or all that strong, but he's beating unheralded and lesser starters as an unheralded true freshman.
197- Mooberry has been as expected. He's 7-7 and hasn't registered a quality win yet.
HWT- Dawson ahs been as expected. He's athletic and willing to try to score, but pretty sloppy at times. He's 5-9 on the year.
Depth- The depth is non-existent. Forfeiting 125, no real backup at 133 if Barreto misses time, no backup HWT. Duda had a decent Scuffle but even with that, he's 2-5.
Youth development- No clue. The young guys aren't wrestling and when they are, they're typically losing. Rivera-Cain hasn't wrestled, Barker is 0-1, Licht is 0-2, and Mills is 1-3. On the positive side, Brenot has been better, Cherne has been impressive other than against MN, and Greenley has been ok, although his Scuffle performance was very concerning.
Recruiting- HUGE question mark. Magayna is the crown jewel of the 2024 class and securing his signature was nice. Most of the 2024 class at large is committed and signed, and NDSU is nowhere near a top 25 class with their current signees. Shilo Jones could fill in at HWT, but from what I've seen, he will struggle to score against D1 guys and lacks quickness. Olson, Hight, Taylor, Tanimoto, Secoy, and McMonagle are all generally unheralded.
Retention- Only really lost Negrete this year, which hurts this year's lineup, but not a big loss.
Overall- This year was always going to be rough, but it's been worse than I expected. Barreto, Johnson, and Greenley all need to improve for this team to have hope long term. Cherne looks to be the real deal and Brenot should benefit from a redshirt year next year to get a D1 body. Other than them, the kids need to get mat time, which was a big issue last year too. Rivera-Cain, Barker, Licht, and Mills have 7 matches between them and they've won 1 of those seven matches...not great.

As far as NCAAs, Drexler and Sax look the likeliest. Outside of them, I could see Peterson or Barreto sneaking in, but we need the B12 to get a bunch of AQs for that to happen.

This staff should hit the portal very hard this year, as this team needs depth and quality.

[NDSU_grad]

Just passed the midpoint of the season and felt it's a good time to see how things are going in Coach Blanc's first season.

125- Pretty much a disaster. Negrete was 3-3 and is no longer listed on the roster. I'm surprised he lasted this long as I've heard very little on a positive note with him, before even taking into account his lack of success on the mat. Without Negrete, they've been forfeiting or not entering a 125, which I can't stand at the D1 level. Even if Henningson or Mills makes it down to 125, it'll be very rough, as Henningson is 6-29 against D1 competition for his career. Zach Silvis hasn't wrestled this year, has wrestled in one event in his NCAA career, and went 1-3. I would like to see him here (or on the mat period) and see if his high level Greco skills can translate.
133- Barreto has underwhelmed compared to what I expected/hoped and is 3-5. No quality wins, not scoring a ton, and got injured his last time out. He's faced a lot of fringe NCAA qualifier types and lost significantly more than he's won.
141- Drexler has been as advertised and a bright spot. He's 7-3 and his win over Vombaur is nice. I think there's a 60% chance Drexler is an NCAA qualifier.
149- Peterson has been ok, but inconsistent. Beat Roberts once, but also lost to him with a bizarre late match performance. Other than that win, no quality wins. I do like how he's typically active, and I could see him winning some at the B12s. March hasn't been healthy and he's 1-3 as a result and I hope he redshirts.
157- Johnson has been very disappointing IMO. He's 6-8 and taken some bad losses and he has so little offense.
165- Howes has surprised me some, like against Purdue, but then he is 5-8 and has gotten blown out a bunch, including by fringe NCAA guys. I think my expectations were just super low and he's exceeded them.
174- Sax has taken a leap and won several matches against ranked opponents. Still needs more offense from neutral, but he has looks improved all around and looks like an NCAA qualifier who could win a match or two, depending on matchups.
184- Brenot has exceeded my very low expectations and is 8-9. He's beat a bunch of sub par guys, and generally gotten blown out by ok starters. Still, he doesn't look big enough for 184 or all that strong, but he's beating unheralded and lesser starters as an unheralded true freshman.
197- Mooberry has been as expected. He's 7-7 and hasn't registered a quality win yet.
HWT- Dawson ahs been as expected. He's athletic and willing to try to score, but pretty sloppy at times. He's 5-9 on the year.
Depth- The depth is non-existent. Forfeiting 125, no real backup at 133 if Barreto misses time, no backup HWT. Duda had a decent Scuffle but even with that, he's 2-5.
Youth development- No clue. The young guys aren't wrestling and when they are, they're typically losing. Rivera-Cain hasn't wrestled, Barker is 0-1, Licht is 0-2, and Mills is 1-3. On the positive side, Brenot has been better, Cherne has been impressive other than against MN, and Greenley has been ok, although his Scuffle performance was very concerning.
Recruiting- HUGE question mark. Magayna is the crown jewel of the 2024 class and securing his signature was nice. Most of the 2024 class at large is committed and signed, and NDSU is nowhere near a top 25 class with their current signees. Shilo Jones could fill in at HWT, but from what I've seen, he will struggle to score against D1 guys and lacks quickness. Olson, Hight, Taylor, Tanimoto, Secoy, and McMonagle are all generally unheralded.
Retention- Only really lost Negrete this year, which hurts this year's lineup, but not a big loss.
Overall- This year was always going to be rough, but it's been worse than I expected. Barreto, Johnson, and Greenley all need to improve for this team to have hope long term. Cherne looks to be the real deal and Brenot should benefit from a redshirt year next year to get a D1 body. Other than them, the kids need to get mat time, which was a big issue last year too. Rivera-Cain, Barker, Licht, and Mills have 7 matches between them and they've won 1 of those seven matches...not great.

As far as NCAAs, Drexler and Sax look the likeliest. Outside of them, I could see Peterson or Barreto sneaking in, but we need the B12 to get a bunch of AQs for that to happen.

This staff should hit the portal very hard this year, as this team needs depth and quality.

That’s a good breakdown. I knew this year was going to suck and it has not disappointed in that regard. I think I only differ from you in that I’m willing to be more patient and see if he can re-build this thing with high school recruits. I really want Obe to succeed because everybody I’ve talked to that run in North Dakota wrestling circles like Obe and have a high opinion of him. So much so that most high school coaches in the state were excited to see Kish leave and Obe take over. I’m looking for steady improvement in the next few years.

[PaBizon]

That’s a good breakdown. I knew this year was going to suck and it has not disappointed in that regard. I think I only differ from you in that I’m willing to be more patient and see if he can re-build this thing with high school recruits. I really want Obe to succeed because everybody I’ve talked to that run in North Dakota wrestling circles like Obe and have a high opinion of him. So much so that most high school coaches in the state were excited to see Kish leave and Obe take over. I’m looking for steady improvement in the next few years.

100% agree with you. I’m glad Obe stayed loyal to the kids he had on the roster. This year was going to be bad no matter what and the options in the portal weren’t what was needed at this time. Not to mention what ranked wrestler wants to come to fargo for a rebuild?? Adding via recruiting is 100% the way to go and a couple years down the road the portal options might be there. In two years when most of these kids are battle tested juniors I believe we’ll start to see the fruits of Obes labor and the coming years after that will put the BiZon back on track. He seems to have a plan of building around a greco background which plays into scoring more on your feet so let’s see if it works out. Good things happen to good people and Obe is good people.

[PaBizon]

On a clearly different note. Hats off to the new threads the BiZon are sporting. IMO much better than what they had. The white ones with BISON script (looks like they’ll use on the final day of tournaments) are pretty sweet.

[PaBizon]

A couple of duals this weekend that should be competitive and the BiZon certainly have a chance to win both. Wrestlestat has the BiZon winning both matches comfortably but that’s with Negrete, March and Cherne all in the lineup. Switching Negrete out for solis and/or forfeit, March for Peterson and Brenoit for Cherne makes the matches much closer. Hoping for a sweep but feels more like a split. Either way the boys are gaining experience for future seasons. Go BiZon!!!!

[NDSU_grad]

A couple of duals this weekend that should be competitive and the BiZon certainly have a chance to win both. Wrestlestat has the BiZon winning both matches comfortably but that’s with Negrete, March and Cherne all in the lineup. Switching Negrete out for solis and/or forfeit, March for Peterson and Brenoit for Cherne makes the matches much closer. Hoping for a sweep but feels more like a split. Either way the boys are gaining experience for future seasons. Go BiZon!!!!

Is Henningson a permanent 133 now? And I’m assuming you mean Silvis, not Solis. Solis is listed as a 141# on the GoBison roster.

[PaBizon]

Is Henningson a permanent 133 now? And I’m assuming you mean Silvis, not Solis. Solis is listed as a 141# on the GoBison roster.

Correct (my bad), I did mean Silvis. I’m leaving Henningson out only because I think he would have wrestled 125 already if he could make weight. I would love to see him there. Actually right now I’d love to see anyone there.