![Quote](images/misc/quote_icon.png)
Originally Posted by
Big Bird
It's nearly September and while there is still a lot of work to be done, the 2023-2024 roster looks set. NDSU still needs to finish adding 2 coaches to the staff, which has taken far too long.
There aren't a lot of uncommitted big boarders left in the 2024 class, but there are some available and having a full staff would better allow NDSU to rebuild this team, since they didn't add anyone via the portal.
As far as the upcoming season and roster, it will be young and in all honesty, probably not very good. Much of the lineup lacks both depth and upside. I don't expect any tFr to burn their redshirts and I'd expect a lineup along the lines of:
125- Zach Silvis/Ryan Henningson/Carlos Negrete. I don't want Negrete starting. He's the most talented guy, but his effort is abysmal. We know who Henningson is, which leads me to hoping Zach Silvis will be the guy. He's coming off of a 1-1 showing at the U20 Greco Roman World Championships. I don't think he'd be a qualifier, but I'm tired of watching Negrete and Henningson is a far below .500 wrestler.
133- Fernando Barreto. He's a source of optimism for this upcoming season. My hope is that he can step in and be an immediate qualifier.
141- Gavin Drexler. Another source of optimism and a guy who should be a really good long term starter.
149- Kellyn March will be the leader and highest upside guy. They have quality depth options with Schumm, Radenz, and Peterson too. Hopefully March can contend for a low AA.
157- Landen Johnson. He's young and looks promising but has a funky, weird style. I'm not sure what his ceiling is, but hopefully he hits the ground running.
165- Brendan Howes. He's young and my expectations are pretty low.
174- Gaven Sax. A veteran and probably a fringe NCAA qualifier this year.
184- Lathan Duda. I think he'll struggle here, but he'll get an opportunity after barely wrestling thus far.
197- Spencer Mooberry. Hopefully he got stronger but I don't mind watching him. He's generally active and looking to score, he's just pretty thin.
HWT- Devon Dawson. I think he'll really struggle, but I've only seen a handful of his matches online.
If Silvis were to start, that'd be 5 rFr starting, and they didn't wrestle very much last year. With their limited match counts at the NCAA level, it's hard to tell how they'll do. Throw in that Duda and Dawson have very minimal D1 matches under their belts, and this team is full of unknowns. Hopefully the class of 2023 freshmen can get more in-season matches in than the 2022 guys.
IMO, the season can't start soon enough. This has been the worst offseason in program history, and the near term future doesn't look all that bright. My hope is Coach Blanc adds to the staff ASAP and they fill out the 2024 class with some upside. Hopefully he can turn this around quickly and rebuild this team to be a middle of the B12 squad soon.