2019 Southern Scuffle Middleweight Preview
2019 Southern Scuffle Middleweight Preview
Previews and predictions for the 2019 Southern Scuffle at 149, 157, 165, and 174 pounds.
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Most people watch college football on New Year's Day. But wrestling fans know where the real action will be on Tuesday morning: Chattanooga, Tennessee.
Now in its 16th year, and eighth time being hosted by the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, the Southern Scuffle is one of the premier events every year in college wrestling. We're looking at approximately 50 ranked athletes, not to mention several highly touted redshirts.
Watch the 2019 Southern Scuffle Live on Flo
Jan. 1-2 | 10 a.m. ET
As we regularly do with major tournaments like this, the previews are being separated into light, middle, and upperweights. Today we're covering 149, 157, 165, and 174 pounds. Let's see who the studs are, who could cause some ruckus, and let's make some predictions. Entries can be found here and brackets will eventually be on FloArena.
Now that pre-seeds have been released, we have a little better idea of how the brackets will look. Wrestling will go through the quarterfinals on Tuesday the 1st, with the semis and medal matches finishing us up on Wednesday the 2nd.
Southern Scuffle Previews: Lightweight | Upperweight
149 Pounds
Contenders
#6 Mitch Finesilver (Duke), RSSR: 12-2
#7 Jarrett Degen (Iowa State), RSSO: 9-1
#11 Kaden Gfeller (Oklahoma State), RSFR: 13-0
#12 Brady Berge (Penn State), RSFR: 6-0
In The Mix
#15 Russell Rohlfing (CSU Bakersfield), RSJR: 7-3
#20 Jared Prince (Navy), JR: 3-5
Jarod Verkleeren (Penn State), RSFR: 6-2
Matt Zovistoski (App State), RSJR: 7-7
Dark Horses
John Millner (App State), RSFR: 10-7
Tanner Smith (Chattanooga), RSFR: 3-3
Alec Hagan (Ohio), SO: 9-6
Commentary: Quite the diverse field here at 149. The highest returning placer is Jared Prince of Navy. Mitch Finesilver, the highest ranked wrestler in the field, was at 157 last year, and Kaden Gfeller, the defending champ at 141, is also now at this weight. Right in between them is the man with the best NCAA performance of anyone in the field, Round of 12’er Jarrett Degen.
Finesilver is pretty tall for the weight and can be very frustrating to deal with in short offense and re-attacks. He doesn’t shoot a whole lot, but when he does, he can finish quickly on low singles to Iranian finish and efficient wraplegs. He’s not incredible on top, but he can use his length well to pick up riding time and rarely leaves himself open for reversals.
If Finesilver’s tall, Degen’s gigantic. He’s a complete wildcard who will try just about anything: double unders is one he really seems to enjoy. Degen's win over Pat Lugo cemented his top-10 ranking, and he could face another two or three ranked opponents here. We can only hope for a power forward sized matchup between Degen and Russell Rohlfing.
It’s hard to talk about Gfeller and not continue to pose lineup questions for Oklahoma State. Is the Cowboy lineup best with him in it, be it at 41 or 49? Is Boo Lewallen coming back? Is Daton dropping? If so, does Kaid also drop or does Picc go up? The reason all of this matters is because you only get credit, seeding wise, for what you do at your end-of-year weight. So if Gfeller is OSU's long term 141, a potential Scuffle title at 149 wouldn’t mean anything.
Right now, it’s Brady Berge who is ranked for Penn State, and he theoretically has the lead to be the Nittany Lions' starter come time for the conference championships. He’s 6-0 on the year, including a win over his teammate Jarod Verkleeren, and is the only one of the two with a ranked win, as he beat Josh Maruca in the dual against Arizona State. I’m keeping a ticker on how many go-behinds Berge hits.
Verkleeren was seventh here last year, losing to Jared Prince (who is in this year’s bracket) and Max Thomsen (who is not in this year’s bracket). Verkleeren got the start in the Bucknell and Lehigh duals and will probably continue to see dual action as the year goes on, but the 2015 Cadet world champ will likely end the season as one of the best backups in the nation.
App State has a couple tough 149s in Zovistoski and Millner, who have had some solid results thus far, providing a good problem for Coach John Mark Bentley, who will have to make a decision for the SoCon tournament at the end of the season.
Nomad's Picks
1) Gfeller, OKST 2) Berge, PSU 3) Finesilver, DUKE 4) Degen, ISU
157 Pounds
Contenders
#1 Jason Nolf (Penn State), RSSR: 8-0
In The Mix
#13 Paul Fox (Stanford), SR: 10-2
#15 Dan Reed (Columbia), SR: 9-1
Andrew Shomers (Oklahoma State), RSJR: 6-2
Dark Horses
Dominick Mandarino (Stanford), SO: 11-4
Kolby Ho (George Mason), FR: 13-5
Alex Mossing (Air Force), SR: 8-7
BC Laprade (Virginia Tech), SO: 6-3
Alex Klucker (Lock Haven), RSJR: 10-3
Commentary: On this episode of the Jason Nolf show, well, we’re not exactly sure what’s going to happen. Before the season, I wrote that he was appointment viewing and, unsurprisingly, nothing has changed. He’s got six pins this season and has scored 40 points in the other two matches. He and Bo Nickal are 1A and 1B for the Hodge this year. Good luck to everyone trying to stop Nolf in Chattanooga.
So who are those trying to slow down the Nolf Chainsaw Massacre? Two other ranked wrestlers in Paul Fox and Dan Reed, as well as some under the radar guys. One of the nice things about fields like this is it gives a national audience an opportunity to see the skill some of these lower-ranked guys have.
Paul Fox is back in the rankings after winning the RTOC. The AA will likely re-establish himself as Stanford's starter after placing high in Chattanooga. With David Carr being held out due to illness, I see Fox making the finals out of the bottom side, though it should be noted he split with Mossing last year, who he is slated to see in the quarters.
Dan Reed has steadily improved and finds himself in the rankings as a senior. He was only 1-2 last year at the Scuffle competing unattached and has yet to qualify for NCAAs. But sometimes the last year in college can change a man, leading to results he's never seen before.
There are quite a few people, both now and prior to the season, who said that Oklahoma State's best lineup includes Gfeller at 149 and (the currently injured) Boo Lewallen at 157. I thought that was a bit disrespectful to Edinboro transfer and NCAA qualifier Andrew Shomers, but getting pinned by Steven Lawrence at RTOC might have started those whispers again.
FloNationals finalist Kolby Ho is making an immediate impact for George Mason. He majored Alex Klucker in the dual, both of them are seeded. Laprade could get a rematch with Mandarino in the quarterfinals, he lost to the Stanford wrestler at CKLV.
Nomad's Picks
1) Nolf, PSU 2) Fox, STAN 3) Ho, GMU 4) Shomers, OKST
165 Pounds
Contenders
#1 Vincenzo Joseph (Penn State), RSJR: 8-0
#3 Chance Marsteller (Lock Haven), RSSR: 7-0
#9 Mekhi Lewis (Virginia Tech), RSFR: 11-2
#10 Chandler Rogers (Oklahoma State), RSSR: 12-1
In The Mix
#14 Ebed Jarrell (Drexel), RSJR: 8-1
#14 (at 157) Tyler Marinelli (Gardner-Webb), RSSR: 9-0
Shane Griffith (Stanford), FR: 13-1
Dark Horses
Zach Finesilver (Duke), RSSR: 6-0
Jesse Dellavecchia (Rider), RSJR: 9-1
Colston DiBlasi (George Mason), RSJR: 16-7
Commentary: What a fun weight. You've got the past two Scuffle champs in Vincenzo Joseph and Chandler Rogers, a Junior world champ in Mekhi Lewis, All-American Chance Marsteller, and the guy who beat CKLV champ Isaiah White in Drexel's Ebed Jarrell. Also Tyler Marinelli is bumping up from 157, where he is ranked.
Joseph is looking like a legit Hodge contender thus far with a 100% bonus rate, and the only match that has gone the distance being against AA Josh Shields. Joseph bullied his way through the tournament last year, outside of his 10-7 win over Jarrell in the quarters in which he gave up two takedowns. However, he teched Jarrell in the finals of the Keystone Classic last month.
Somehow, Marsteller has never wrestled Joseph, which makes it a juicy matchup if it happens. Two studs who've wrestled their whole lives (minus a short detour for Chance in Stillwater) in Pennsylvania, the Keystone State will absolutely tune in it comes down to those two on Thursday night. Marsteller took the bronze here last year, beating Mekhi Lewis in the quarters and again for third.
One of Mekhi Lewis' best traits is his patience. No one always makes the right decisions in matches, but Lewis rarely tastes defeat because he got way out of control or made a poorly timed decision. Now, sometimes that patience can be mistaken for inactivity, as evidenced by the fact he only scored one takedown in his last three matches at CKLV. But Lewis has also only given up two takedowns this year, and none since falling to Connor Flynn of Missouri on Nov. 18.
Chandler Rogers continues to rack up falls (eight this year already) and be one of the most exciting wrestlers in the country. That coincidentally is how he won the Scuffle in 2017, getting pins in the finals and semis, as well as a tech and a major. As interesting as 165 can be once again, Rogers is still probably the most dangerous guy in any bracket he enters.
Ebed Jarrell is indicative of the team Matt Azevedo is building: a complete pain to wrestle. Drexel is getting better and better recruits, and they're not going to be any fun to wrestle. Case in point: Jarrell beat Isaiah White. Whether it's an outlier or not, it shows that Jarrell has to be taken seriously whenever he steps on the line across from you. He also hasn't wrestled since Keystone, so hopefully he's back.
One of the best redshirts in the field, Shane Griffith, stumbled at Reno, taking his first loss of the year to Ryan Niven of Grand View. But otherwise he's looked fantastic in his 13 wins and should be a very real threat to place. His length will give people issues all tournament long.
Finesilver got a late start to the year having not wrestled in November and is a two-time qualifier. Dellavecchia missed all of 2017, ended 2018 with a National Collegiate Open title, and his only loss this year is to Jarrell. Frank Beasley and the George Mason staff are making sure Colston DiBlasi has a ton of mat time to prepare for the national tournament.
Nomad's Picks
1) Joseph, PSU 2) Lewis, VT 3) Marsteller, LHU 4) Rogers, OKST
174 Pounds
Contenders
#1 Mark Hall (Penn State), JR: 8-0
#5 David McFadden (Virginia Tech), RSJR: 2-0
#7 Jacobe Smith (Oklahoma State), RSSR: 9-0
Joe Smith (Oklahoma State), RSJR: 5-0
In The Mix
#16 Spencer Carey (Navy), JR: 11-6
Matt Finesilver (Duke), RSSO: 10-3
Trent Hidlay (NC State), FR: 12-0
Dark Horses
Jacob Oliver (Edinboro), RSFR: 16-2
Marcus Coleman (Iowa State), RSFR: 10-3
Commentary: Mark Hall is still on his way to being a four-time Southern Scuffle champion but enters the tournament for the first time with a #1 ranking. That's due to his win over Zahid Valencia, avenging a loss in the NCAA finals. Hall is probably the most battle-tested of anyone on Penn State's roster so far this season, and he could see some combination of David McFadden and the Smiths at Oklahoma State to get a title here.
Since McFadden missed CKLV after coming back from U23s, we should be thankful that Virginia Tech put two tournaments on its schedule. McFadden is one of the most confident wrestlers you'll ever meet, and his big move ability always makes him dangerous (see his pins over Evan Wick and Alex Marinelli for evidence).
Wrestling fans were not pleased that Jacobe Smith and Joe Smith made it to the Reno TOC finals and did not wrestle each other, but according to John Smith, that was the plan all along. With Bear Hughes going 184 and Dakota Geer at 197 for their last two events before the Scuffle, it seems possible that whichever Smith fares worse in Chattanooga will be moving up to 184.
We're now two months into the season, and the Cowboys still have a roster situation on their hands. Some more injuries to Preston Weigel may finally mean that it's been solved, but it is unquestionably fascinating that two All-Americans will be having essentially a wrestle-off in McKenzie Arena.
Spencer Carey made his way into the rankings after placing fifth in Vegas. A junior, he placed just one time at the New Jersey state tournament for DePaul Catholic, but he's clearly made jumps since reaching the Naval Academy, and picked up wins over Dylan Lydy and Kimball Bastian at CKLV.
Matt Finesilver was eighth at the Scuffle last year and wound up qualifying for NCAAs in his redshirt freshman season. He had to wrestle Zahid Valencia there, faced Mark Hall at the Keystone Classic and Myles Amine in Vegas, so he's certainly faced all the topflight guys already. Favorably for him, he fared the best against Hall, only losing 6-4 and getting a takedown in the third period.
A couple redshirt freshmen in Jacob Oliver and Marcus Coleman are right on the cusp of getting ranked. Coleman's taken a couple losses to lower division guys and hasn't gotten the opportunity against a ton of high level guys (outside of Taylor Lujan). Oliver is probably Edinboro's best wrestler right now and seems too consistent to stay off the podium next week.
To this point, Trent Hidlay has looked like one of the best true freshmen in the country. While his undefeated record probably won't make it to January 3rd, the Wolfpack will have good problems next year figuring out if Hidlay or Daniel Bullard will be their starter. We'll be sure to get the word from Trent on how the hoagie situation is in Chattanooga.
Nomad's Picks
1) Hall, PSU 2) McFadden, VT 3) Joe Smith, OKST 4) Jacobe Smith, OKST