New developments out of Penn State seem to indicate that there will be several changes to the lineup compared to what was reportedly previously. It seems several things remain unanswered, and there may be some changes, especially as earlier this year, we talked about various wrestlers moving weight classes to acclimate for new arrivals and for easier weight cuts.
When we talked about the potential lineup earlier this Summer, we knew Braeden Davis would not be staying at 125. His performance at the NCAA Championships was mostly due to a tough weight cut. He was the #1 seed but failed to make the podium and become an All-American.
We knew he would go to 133, but we thought a redshirt would be his most likely route as Aaron Nagao is set for his second year in State College. Expectations for Nagao's junior season are high -- he dealt with hand issues and had to deal with adjusting to life in a new area of the country. It now seems that Nagao will be challenged for his spot by Davis, and Davis does not plan to redshirt, at least as of now.
These rumors were reported by Pat Mineo, a wrestling insider who has a track record for being pretty reliable. I also talked to sources near the program recently, who confirmed Davis's plans to bump up, but the challenge for Nagao is new news.
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Additionally, there are plans that will inevitably shake up the bottom half of the lineup, as Carter Starocci is now planning to go to 184 instead of 197. This will bump Josh Barr to 197, and we still assume that Alex Facundo will have 174.
Starocci has been talking all off-season about his "steak and potatoes" diet, and we were all hoping that he would get an eventual matchup with Cal-State Bakersfield's newest member, AJ Ferrari. It seems that may not happen, but there are still plenty of good things to come of it, especially as Parker Keckeisen of Northern Iowa is returning to 184.
Levi Haines, who is the returning NCAA Champion at 157, will not stay at that weight, and is likely to go to 165. However, we have heard rumblings of him going to 174, although it seems more ideal for he and Mitchell Mesenbrink to swap spots at 157 and 165.
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