WVU recruiting

[dunbar76]

Is Rune Lawrence the first 4 time Pennsylvania state champ to land at WVU? I’ve said all along I think Tim Flynn can and has to recruit against C. Sanderson at Penn. St. to really move us forward. Flynn is slowly building a very nice program IMO.

[mscoach4]

Gavin Teasdale was the last 4 timer graduating in 2018, he never made it at Penn State or Iowa and is now a MMA fighter. There have only been 14 four timers in PA so I would guess Rune is the first

[Letsgooo]

Is Rune Lawrence the first 4 time Pennsylvania state champ to land at WVU? I’ve said all along I think Tim Flynn can and has to recruit against C. Sanderson at Penn. St. to really move us forward. Flynn is slowly building a very nice program IMO.

No one is recruiting with Sanderson. Especially not us.

[mscoach4]

Speaking of Sanderson I wonder if he showed Rune any interest and if not, why not

[Geoswaff]

I think I remember seeing that Rune had chosen WVU because it was close to his home and he could commute.

[mscoach57]

For starters, I have been pleasantly surprised with the results this year. I know I have been critical of the poor performances in the past but I think Coach Flynn has the future looking much better. I do not know how soon the high school/prep school recruits will make an impact but if we can get a Watters like performances from the incoming guys we are in for some fun years ahead. Our current starting lineup has ONE native west virginia wrestler. I do not blame the coaches, their job is to put the best wrestler on the mat. I hope WV guys on the roster and future wv guys (like Andrick) will follow in Hall's footsteps. I hope Coach Flynn will make a genuine effort to get the kids who are legitimate division 1 wrestlers to stay in state.

Here is my homemade snapshot of what we have coming back

125
4 wrestlers return, 1 from WV
133
3 wrestlers return, 0 from WV
141
2 or 3 wrestlers return (Hillegas is a senior but has a year remaining), 1 from WV
149
2 wrestlers return, 1 from WV
157
4 or 5 wrestlers return (Dowling is a senior but has a year remaining), 1 from WV
165
1 or 3 wrestlers return (Hall and Blumer are seniors but have a year remaining), 1 from WV if Hall returns
174
3 wrestlers return, 0 from WV
184
4 wrestlers return, 1 from WV
197
2 wrestlers return, 0 from WV
285
4 wrestlers return, 1 from WV

If everyone comes back we have 33 guys on the roster which does not leave a lot of room for incoming recruits and transfer portal due to NCAA scholarship allocation (9.9) and Title IX roster limitations.

Are we at risk for losing Hall and or Watters to someone like Penn State/Iowa's if enough NIL money is offered?

I won't belittle or criticize a young man who is wearing the singlet and giving his best effort. That being said we need help in a few weights where we are not competitive and the fact that we have starters and backups returning at those weights (who were unable to dethrone non competitive starter) means we probably need to hit the portal or pray that a blue chipper like Rune develops quickly.

[Letsgooo]

For starters, I have been pleasantly surprised with the results this year. I know I have been critical of the poor performances in the past but I think Coach Flynn has the future looking much better. I do not know how soon the high school/prep school recruits will make an impact but if we can get a Watters like performances from the incoming guys we are in for some fun years ahead. Our current starting lineup has ONE native west virginia wrestler. I do not blame the coaches, their job is to put the best wrestler on the mat. I hope WV guys on the roster and future wv guys (like Andrick) will follow in Hall's footsteps. I hope Coach Flynn will make a genuine effort to get the kids who are legitimate division 1 wrestlers to stay in state.

Here is my homemade snapshot of what we have coming back

125
4 wrestlers return, 1 from WV
133
3 wrestlers return, 0 from WV
141
2 or 3 wrestlers return (Hillegas is a senior but has a year remaining), 1 from WV
149
2 wrestlers return, 1 from WV
157
4 or 5 wrestlers return (Dowling is a senior but has a year remaining), 1 from WV
165
1 or 3 wrestlers return (Hall and Blumer are seniors but have a year remaining), 1 from WV if Hall returns
174
3 wrestlers return, 0 from WV
184
4 wrestlers return, 1 from WV
197
2 wrestlers return, 0 from WV
285
4 wrestlers return, 1 from WV

If everyone comes back we have 33 guys on the roster which does not leave a lot of room for incoming recruits and transfer portal due to NCAA scholarship allocation (9.9) and Title IX roster limitations.

Are we at risk for losing Hall and or Watters to someone like Penn State/Iowa's if enough NIL money is offered?

I won't belittle or criticize a young man who is wearing the singlet and giving his best effort. That being said we need help in a few weights where we are not competitive and the fact that we have starters and backups returning at those weights (who were unable to dethrone non competitive starter) means we probably need to hit the portal or pray that a blue chipper like Rune develops quickly.

There has to be a portal 125 or 133. If it’s a 125 then Jett just goes up to 133. 133 is a giant hole. 197 is another weakness and hopefully Rune can at least man this weight for a year. I don’t see any other freshmen starting other than him if he’s 197. Expected a little more out of Wolfgram this year. If Dowling does leave I think Watters just moves but maybe not since 157 is loaded.

Penn st is loaded at both Watters and Hall’s weights (at every weight you could say lol) but there are 6 or 7 other schools that Flo and college coaches have said that have the resources and mindset to play the nil, pay for play, every single year, in the high five to six digits. So if they have a hole at a weight that you just happen to have a young stud in then tough luck it seems.

[Jon Perkins]

The number of guys on the roster has been an issue I've been contemplating on for a while. They will have 6 or 8 new freshmen coming in next year and I am sure they will be looking to pick up at least one or two guys from the transfer portal. As it is the coaches job to put the best team on the mat, they may have to go back to the old high school days of cutting the worst guys off the roster. Having too many guys on the roster is a result of the COVID year and it is just not an issue with WVU.

[dunbar76]

My point exactly mscoach4. Some very good wrestlers get lost at Penn St. and Iowa. We can have a top ten program. Sanderson can’t get them all. I’d like to have that problem here. No reason not to. Is Rune wrestling 215? Not sure 197 is an option for him. Maybe an All-American heavyweight at WVU. When was the last heavyweight All-American at WVU?

[Jon Perkins]

I won’t say that I disagree with your idea because your premise is spot on. However, it’s just not recruiting kids that coaches have to worry about these days. Top talent is garnering big money from NIL deals and when it comes to money Penn State is a bottomless pit. With the rules set as they are, if you want to have a top ten team then that team must have a good NIL system in place either through the university or through individual donors. As much as it sucks, WVU won’t put enough money into the program to even hire Coach McBride as a full time coach, which shows me they don’t care about the wrestling team. I do think with what Coach Flynn has had to work with, he is doing a good job and the team is headed in an upward direction.

[dunbar76]

I think you are spot on with the NIL stuff.

[mscoach4]

We all worry about a solid lineup from top to bottom, myself included, Duals are fun and help a school get ranked etc.
But the truth is a program is judged by their point total at the end of the NCAA tourney. WVU finished 17th but all of those points except for 1/2 of a point were scored by 2 guys. Studs are where it is at.

[Pottstd]

We all worry about a solid lineup from top to bottom, myself included, Duals are fun and help a school get ranked etc.
But the truth is a program is judged by their point total at the end of the NCAA tourney. WVU finished 17th but all of those points except for 1/2 of a point were scored by 2 guys. Studs are where it is at.

This is something Penn St. has really succeeded in doing, although you wouldnt see that this year particularly with 8 AA and 10 into at least the blood-round. However, if you look at even last year, Penn State had some weights they didnt qualify and/or didnt win a match at. In 2022 it was even more pronounced with Penn State only having 1 AA outside of their 5 champions, with one one else winning more than a match. While it is hard to compare anyone with Penn St., they may have a guide to follow here. Its going to be very hard for WVU to recruit 10 weight classes that are all AA caliber (or at least challenging for it). However, it is possible for them to pursue and recruit 5-6 of those guys at a time. This would make you good in both aspects of wrestling. If you have 5-6 guys who should win matches in every dual, you will be a good dual meet team. Additionally, putting 5-6 AA through will in alot of years give you success in at least contending for team trophies at the NCAA tournament.

While I would love a good team through and through with 10 quality guys, that doesnt necessarily mean you would be successful at the national tournament with Robin being a great example of that. He was ranked most of if not all the year, is a quality wrestlers with some good wins who many would be happy to have on their team, but he didnt make it to the NCAAs.

It also looks like this might been Flynn's route as he is recruiting. Getting big hammers like Watters, Lawrence, etc.

[Jon Perkins]

I totally agree with the sentiment. It is only realistic to have 5-6 guys in the lineup that can contend for an All American finish, and the others to be qualifiers winning a match or two at the national tournament. This kind of lineup sound a lot like what they have Va. Tech and that aint so bad.

[JohnK73]

Are you sure it’s because of money that they haven’t made coach McBride a full time coach? 184,197, and HWT didn’t qualify for NCAAs this year, whereas last year both Cooley and Wolfgram did. Maybe they aren’t getting the results that they are looking for with McBride and need a different big man coach

[Jon Perkins]

Are you sure it’s because of money that they haven’t made coach McBride a full time coach? 184,197, and HWT didn’t qualify for NCAAs this year, whereas last year both Cooley and Wolfgram did. Maybe they aren’t getting the results that they are looking for with McBride and need a different big man coach

In this particular situation I am 100% positive that the University refuses to add Coach McBride to the full-time coaching staff. You said it yourself, the results were there last year so they had no reason not to add him to the coaching staff this past year when most teams did away with their Volunteer Coaching position. Besides, it is Flynn's staff so if the coaching results are not there, it is on him to make the changes.

[mscoach4]

https://x.com/WVUWrestling/status/1774182689706274981?s=20
I just learned yesterday that WVU added Mason Kernan who was named outstanding wrestler yesterday at the Pittsburgh Classic
https://x.com/WVUWrestling/status/1774199901020119043?s=20

[Letsgooo]

https://x.com/WVUWrestling/status/1774182689706274981?s=20
I just learned yesterday that WVU added Mason Kernan who was named outstanding wrestler yesterday at the Pittsburgh Classic
https://x.com/WVUWrestling/status/1774199901020119043?s=20

Saw this oline. Also finished third in pa states this year. Hope he can make 133

[indywvu]

Besides the 3 wrestlers (Hogan, Lawrence and Taylor) who signed in fall (Flo ranked this class #14), there are 5 other quality wrestlers committed to WVU to join next year:

Brycen Arbogast (VA): 106 - 3rd at National Preps in 2021; 120 - 8th at National Preps in 2022; 132 - 6th at National Preps in 2023; DNP at National Preps in 2024 (Injured).
Anthony Clem (NY): 118 - 2nd in States in 2023; 124 - 4th in States in 2024.
Joseph Clem (NY): 126 - 2nd in States in 2023; 131 - 1st in States in 2024.
Mason Kernan (PA): 133 - 3rd in States in 2024; Won at PWC in 2024. 124-18 record.
TJ Langley (OH): 150 - 8th at National Preps in 2023; 157 - 6th at National Preps in 2024.