Big 12 Championship

**ISU2007** · 03-10-2008, 10:08 AM

Originally Posted by thunderdave

Minny lost 2 in the BT Tourny due to injury.
CP Schlatter & Kish.
Not sure how serious the injuries are (they didn't wrestle on Sunday), but this could hurt their chance for a nation title.

Kish with a dislocated shoulder. Gonna be tough for him to score a lot of points at NCAA's. Reiter will need a strong finish to keep Minny in contention. I have a bad feeling we will be chasing Iowa unless they have another meltdown like the Big 10 Semifinals (2-6). Minnesota's Sunday performance was worse (0-7).

Iowa State needs to string together a few good sessions and keep as many alive as possible. We are going to need some bonus points and have 3-4 guys go deep in the tourny like last year (Trent, Travis, Jake, and Kurt).

I expect Iowa to bounce back from a rough Big 10 tournament.

I can't wait to get to St. Louis...

**BryceC** · 03-10-2008, 10:14 AM

When do seedings come out for the nationals? I mean ISU's ability to win the whole thing will probably depend on a lot on the seedings there as well.

**isuno1fan** · 03-10-2008, 10:16 AM

Originally Posted by ISU2007

Kish with a dislocated shoulder. Gonna be tough for him to score a lot of points at NCAA's. Reiter will need a strong finish to keep Minny in contention. I have a bad feeling we will be chasing Iowa unless they have another meltdown like the Big 10 Semifinals (2-6). Minnesota's Sunday performance was worse (0-7).

Iowa State needs to string together a few good sessions and keep as many alive as possible. We are going to need some bonus points and have 3-4 guys go deep in the tourny like last year (Trent, Travis, Jake, and Kurt).

I expect Iowa to bounce back from a rough Big 10 tournament.

I can't wait to get to St. Louis...

Our inability to get bonus points will likely hurt us IMO. I see 2nd or 3rd again this year.

**leg4cy** · 03-10-2008, 10:33 AM

I think our best case scenario leaves us with 5 All-Americans: Fanthorpe, Sanderson, Reader, Varner (champion), and Zabriskie. That just might be enough to win it if the others come close to All-American status.

**keepngoal** · 03-10-2008, 10:57 AM

my stomach is all in knots..... I am exCYted about this years national tourney.

-keep.

**Cyclone62** · 03-10-2008, 04:07 PM

Originally Posted by keepngoal

my stomach is all in knots..... I am exCYted about this years national tourney.

-keep.

Ditto. And I'm only about 1 more guilt trip away from getting down there!

**jahfg** · 03-10-2008, 04:13 PM

I think best case scenario is 6 AA. Fanthorpe, Gallick, Sanderson, Reader, Varner, and Z. These guys have to AA if we are going to have a chance. Iowa is the favorite but they showed they are beatable. We need guys like Bert, Mueller, and Clark to really step up and get some points.

**thunderdave** · 03-10-2008, 04:24 PM

Remembering from last year, the difference comes from bonus points and the wrestle-back brackets.
We didn't seem to do a good job if we dropped down into the loser bracket.

**jDub** · 03-10-2008, 09:49 PM

Originally Posted by isuno1fan

Our inability to get bonus points will likely hurt us IMO. I see 2nd or 3rd again this year.

Yup. As good as Varner is, he seems content to get an early lead and then just grind the guy into the mat for a couple minutes (but not scoring points while doing it). It's just his style, but one that doesn't lend itself to team scoring.

**EggMcClone** · 03-10-2008, 09:56 PM

Seems like Iowa racks up a lot of bonus points. I would guess they're the team to beat, unfortunately.

**leg4cy** · 03-11-2008, 11:31 AM

Sadly, Varner's offense is extremely limited. Every match he goes for a trip from the neutral position that never works and when he' on top he's content to just work the half that everyone knows is coming and has learned how to defend.

**jahfg** · 03-11-2008, 03:56 PM

Originally Posted by leg4cy

Sadly, Varner's offense is extremely limited. Every match he goes for a trip from the neutral position that never works and when he' on top he's content to just work the half that everyone knows is coming and has learned how to defend.

If by defend you mean they are content with laying there so they don't get turned. To call Varner's offense "extremely limited" is a bit of an exaggeration. He likes to slow the pace but I wouldn't call his offense limited. He has had a couple matches recently that were low-scoring (Jones-Neb, Jordan-Mizz), but he clearly dominated.

**CyForPresident** · 03-11-2008, 04:11 PM

Varner was a pinner in high school. Cael has turned him into a grinder which isn't necessarily a bad thing. Varner is always in control of the match but if he was trying to pin everyone, it's pretty likely he would eventually get pinned too. It's safer to grind it out and not get caught in a bad position.

**leg4cy** · 03-11-2008, 10:10 PM

I don't disagree with anything said about Varner. I'm not trying to put him down either. I know he is a pinner and even though the score is close on many of his matches he still dominates. Yet, for a top-ranked wrestler I don't think it's too much to ask for him to try and open up a little bit. He doesn't go to anything but the half in the top position. He has a couple offensive moves from neutral but nothing he hits consistently. I'm not trying to take for granted what Varner gives to this team, but I think he's capable of a lot more.

**Cyclone62** · 03-12-2008, 05:34 AM

Originally Posted by leg4cy

I don't disagree with anything said about Varner. I'm not trying to put him down either. I know he is a pinner and even though the score is close on many of his matches he still dominates. Yet, for a top-ranked wrestler I don't think it's too much to ask for him to try and open up a little bit. He doesn't go to anything but the half in the top position. He has a couple offensive moves from neutral but nothing he hits consistently. I'm not trying to take for granted what Varner gives to this team, but I think he's capable of a lot more.

Yea, he's lost WAY too many matches this year that have cost us the meet...

Seriously, he's a sophomore. He isn't wrestling the same style he did in high school, and hasn't lost a single match this year. Another thing is that many of the guys stall when Varner is trying to turn them.