Heard a few murmurs that Joe Rossi's name is coming up in a few defensive coordinator searches this month and that one school is potentially closing on trying to poach him from the Gophers. Working on trying to confirm that school.

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MN has a home dual tomorrow with the NDSU Bison at 2pm. It should be an easy win, I have it at MN 28 - NDSU 6!!

There will be a very large contingent of MN high school wrestlers, who got in free after their HS Coach submitted their team rosters!! So this should be fun!!

So come on down to the Pav, or watch live on BTN+


Here are articles on MN vs NDSU and on the Jim Koch Wi Open from Gophersports.com, followed by a new Coach's Corner:

Wrestling Returns Home to Battle the Bison​

Gophersports.com
12/9/2023
Wrestling

MINNEAPOLIS -- After stepping back into open tournaments for last weekend's Cougar Clash, No. 12 Minnesota (4-0, 0-0 B1G) returns to dual action as it hosts North Dakota State (0-3, 0-1 Big 12) Sunday at Maturi Pavilion. The match is scheduled to start at 2 p.m. and will be available to stream on B1G+ with live results on TrackWrestling.com.

Minnesota is 4-0 on the dual season for the second straight season. Prior to that, it had not happened since the 2014-15 campaign when they opened the year with 10 straight dual wins. The Golden Gophers are looking to move to 5-0 for the second time in as many years.

Since the beginning of last season, Minnesota has won seven of its last eight home duals at Maturi Pavilion.

Minnesota leads the all-time series with North Dakota State, 20-2, including 18 straight wins dating to 1976.

Last season in Fargo, the Gophers' top work was on full display in the contest as they earned a riding time point in all but one of their victories in 24-9 win. Minnesota also outscored the Bison 13-3 on takedowns to help the "U" claim seven of the ten bouts on the night. Among current Gopher wrestlers, Patrick McKee scored an 8-0 major decision at 125 pounds, Michael Blockhus prevailed 2-1 at 149, Isaiah Salazar secured an 18-1 tech fall victory at 184 pounds, and Garrett Joles won 6-2 at heavyweight.

Sunday's dual is expected to feature one ranked dual, with No. 21 Drew Roberts taking on No. 10 Kellyn March at 141 pounds.


#12 MN vs NDSU

My Predictions:
125 - #19 Patrick McKee major dec. over Carlos Negrete (MN 4 - NDSU 0)
133 - Tyler Wells wins over Fernando Barreto (7-0)
141 - Benn Lunn loses to #29 Gavin Drexler (7-3)
149 - #21 Drew Roberts loses to #10 Kellyn March (7-6)
157 - #11 Michael Blockhus major dec. over Landen Johnson (11-6)
165 - #31 Blaine Brenner wins over Brendan Howes (14-6)
174 - #15 Andrew Sparks wins over Gavin Fox (17-6)
184 - #10 Isaiah Salazar major dec, over Adam Cherne (21-6)
197 - #16 Garrett Joles major dec. over Spencer Mooberry (25-6)
285 - Ben Tabor wins over Devon Dawson (28-6)
Final Team Score MN 28 - NDSU 6

FAN PROMOTIONS
T-Shirt Giveaway: The first 200 fans in attendance will receive a free Gopher Wrestling t-shirt.

Pre-match Youth Clinic: For $12, your child will receive a ticket to the dual and a chance to participate in a pre-match youth clinic taught by the Gophers. All participants will receive a Gopher Wrestling water bottle.

MEETING AGAIN
Minnesota opened the season at the Bison Open in Fargo on Nov. 11, resulting in many Gophers having already faced members of the NDSU roster.

Among the probable starters for both teams: Michael Blockhus defeated Boeden Greenley by a 14-1 major decision to win the 157-pound title, Blaine Brenner scored a 7-1 decision over Brendan Howes to take the crown at 165, and Max McEnelly recorded tech fall victories at 184 pounds over both Adam Cherne and Aidan Brenot by identical scores of 19-4.

Meanwhile, Vance VomBaur dropped a 6-4 decision to Gavin Drexler in the 141-pound championship, and Drew Roberts was topped by Max Peterson, 10-8, for the 149-pound title. In addition, Hunter Lyden lost to Howes in the 165-pound semifinals and Brandon Morvari fell to Carlos Negrete Jr., 2-0 at 125 pounds.

SCOUTING NDSU
The Bison enter Sunday's dual with an 0-3 record. Two of the three losses came to ranked opponents, including a 31-12 loss in the season opener to No. 9 Nebraska on Nov. 4, and a 29-7 setback at No. 20 Oklahoma on Nov. 19.

NDSU took home two titles as it played host to the Bison Open on Nov. 11. Gavin Drexler won at 141 pounds with a 6-4 decision over Minnesota's Vance VomBaur, while Max Petersen topped the Gophers' Drew Roberts at 149 pounds, 10-8.

North Dakota State features 11 Minnesotans on its roster: Walker Bents (Glenwood, Belgrade-Brooten-Elrosa HS), Adam Cherne (Medina, Wayzata HS), Devon Dawson (Brooklyn Park), Mason Gode (Browerville, Browerville HS), Ryan Henningson (Winona, Winona HS), Brendan Howes (Ramsey, Anoka HS), Landen Johnson (Owatonna, Owatonna HS), Macray Klohs (Buffalo, Buffalo HS), Max Petersen (Byron, Byron HS), Zach Silvis (Cottage Grove, Park HS) and Pedro Velazques (Victoria, Chanhassen HS).

IN THE POLLS
The Golden Gophers stayed put in the latest NWCA Coaches Poll at No. 12. Minnesota is also tied for 26th in the WIN Tournament Power Index and tied for 27th in the InterMat TPI.

Eight Gopher wrestlers are ranked in at least two of the major polls, while 11 Gophers appear in at least one.

Patrick McKee (125 pounds), Michael Blockhus (157), Andrew Sparks (174), and Isaiah Salazar (184) lead the way by appearing in all four: Intermat, WIN, Flo and OpenMat. Salazar appears in the Top-10 in all four polls, ranking seventh by OpenMat, eighth by Flo and 10th by Intermat and WIN.

Full rankings for Minnesota can be found on Page 6 of the notes.

Cha, Wasley Win at Jim Koch Wisconsin Open​

Gophersports.com
12/4/2023
Wrestling

MINNEAPOLIS -- In addition to its two titles at the Cougar Clash, Minnesota wrestling also brought home a pair of titles Saturday at the Jim Koch Wisconsin Open in Kenosha, Wis.

The Golden Gophers sent a six-man contingent to the event, hosted by UW-Parkside. Redshirt junior Theo Cha won the 149-pound title, while redshirt freshman Devin Wasley captured first place at 174 pounds.

Cha opened his run with three straight wins over UW-Parkside wrestlers, winning first by a 16-1 tech fall and then multiple decisions. In the finals, he faced off with Northern Iowa's Cael Rahnavardi, and Cha captured his first individual title with a pin at 5:59.

At 174 pounds, Wasley competed for the first time since the season-opening Bison Open. After an opening-round Bye, Wasley scored an 18-1 tech fall over Findlay's Andrew Knick, then scored a 6-3, sudden victory decision over Parkside's Brody Hemauer in the semifinals. In the finals, Wasley topped McKendree's Zeke Waltz by a 12-7 decision to join Cha in earning his first individual title.

Also at the tournament, Gophers freshman Rhett Koenig made his collegiate debut by placing second at 141 pounds with a 2-1 record, while redshirt junior Tim Stapleton placed third at 165 pounds with a 3-1 mark.

At 125 pounds, freshman Brandon Morvari came in fifth place while redshirt freshman Quincy Hulverson did not place.

Minnesota is back in action on Sunday as it hosts North Dakota State at Maturi Pavilion. Match time is set for 2 p.m. on B1G+.

High schools that submit current rosters by Friday, Dec. 8 to GSM@umn.edu will receive free admission, while the first 200 fans get a free t-shirt. In addition, the Gophers will be hosting their second pre-match youth clinic prior to the dual.


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Montana wins over Furman in OT. The Griz had a KO and punt return for TD's. Was Fleck watching?
Exciting game filled with lots of D inspite of 35-28 score.

USD, SDS and NDSU play tomorrow.

Fun!

My blood boils. She has offered Maddyn Greenway a scholarship. Maddyn and crew have won two straight state titles with Providence Academy. She's only a sophomore. She scored 31 points in the title game against Albany last year. Lindsay offered her in the eighth grade. If she goes to Maryland, it might be worse than when Brenda Frese abandoned Minnesota to coach Maryland. Maddyn has lots of other scholarship offers, including one from UCLA.

Any on the level of Homeland? Wrapped up Jack Ryan, would not recommend it .

I believe college athletics is on a fast track toward imploding.

The NIL and portal are absolutely spinning out of control, and its not the players' fault.

The NCAA has allowed a system to be created where everybody is chasing after money. Any sense of loyalty to a school or a coaching staff is long gone, and under the current landscape, it's never coming back.

Koi Perich is vising Ohio State this weekend. How much money are the Buckeyes going to offer him? Is seven figures the going market now? Should we blame the kid for taking it? Ditto for Jide visitng USC.

Have you seen all the current Gopher players posting videos on social media asking fans to pony up and support Dinkytown Athletes? The subliminal message is, "if you want us to compete, you better dig deep into your pockets." But how much is enough? Supporting them through season ticket purchases and membership in an alumni association is no longer enough.

How do coaches recruit when they literally don't know from one day to the next, or even one hour to the next, which player might walk out the door in search of greener pastures?

And then there's this: https://www.sportico.com/leagues/co...-title-ix-lawsuit-division-street-1234749110/

The NCAA has created a monster that is on a path that is NOT sustainable.

The only new addition to the portal is a Lawrence who never played at all. Ersery announced he will be back. U of M at least so far has not lost one starter to the portal or leaving early for the NFL.

Gophers look to earn first conference win of the season against Nebraska​

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Marquise Williams

Max Grand. (walk on)

Zach Jorgensen (walk on)

Been busy today, so late with the updates

Ohio State currently leads 58-44 at the U12 timeout. Minnesota shot poorly in the first half. Playing a little more spirited in the second half, but they've dug themselves a large hole

Dawson Garcia with 20 points currently

MN is at Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville (SIUE) tomorrow for the Cougar Clash, a small 8 team tournament. Besides MN, the others are #3 Missouri, Northern Colorado, Army, Lindenwood, Little Rock, Northern Illinois and SIUE. This event will be live streamed on ESPN+.

There will also be 8 Gophers competing in the Jim Koch Wisconsin Open tomorrow, which will be streamed live on FloWrestling.com.

Tune in, it should be a fun weekend of very good D1 College Wrestling!!


Here's an article on this weekend's action from Gophersports.com:

Wrestling Heads to Cougar Clash​

Gophersports.com
12/1/2023
Wrestling

MINNEAPOLIS -- No. 12 Minnesota takes a break from dual competition to take part in the Cougar Clash this weekend, hosted by SIU-Edwardsville at First Community Arena. The event starts Saturday at 10 a.m. with finals scheduled to begin at 4 p.m.

Live results can be found on TrackWrestling.com and ESPN+ will stream Mat 1.

Minnesota is one of eight schools in action at the Cougar Clash along with No. 3 Missouri, Northern Colorado, Army, Lindenwood, Little Rock, Northern Illinois and SIUE.

The Golden Gophers are scheduled to send 15 wrestlers to the Clash, including six who appear in the latest Intermat rankings: No. 6 Isaiah Salazar (184 pounds), No. 16 Andrew Sparks (174), No. 17 Garrett Joles (197), No. 19 Drew Roberts (149), No. 20 Jake Gliva (133) and No. 27 Blaine Brenner (165).Here are all the MN competitors:

133
#20 Jake Gliva 6th 0-0
Tyler Wells Fr. 4-1
141 Ben Lunn R-Jr. 1-0
149 #19 Drew Roberts R-So. 7-1
157 Sebas Swiggum R-Sr. 3-2
165
#27 Blaine Brenner R-So. 6-1
Hunter Lyden R-Fr. 6-1
174
#16 Andrew Sparks Sr. 2-1
Sam Skillings R-Jr. 6-1
184
#6 Isaiah Salazar Sr. 4-0
Max McEnelly Fr. 7-0
197
#17 Garrett Joles 6th 6-1
Rowan Morgan R-Sr. 4-2
Gabe Nagel R-So. 0-0
285 Bennett Tabor R-So. 6-1

Depending on who is sent by the other schools, there could be as many as 28 ranked wrestlers competing this weekend, according to Intermat's rankings. Missouri leads the way with nine ranked wrestlers, followed by Minnesota's six and then Army (5), Little Rock (5), Northern Colorado (2) and SIUE (1).

In addition to the Cougar Clash, the Gophers are also sending a small contingent to the Jim Koch Wisconsin Open Saturday. Hosted by UW-Parkside, the event takes place at the Frank Petretti Fieldhouse in Kenosha with streaming on FloWrestling.org.

Expected to represent Minnesota at the Jim Koch Wisconsin Open are Brandon Morvari (125 pounds), Quincy Hulverson (125), Jager Eisch (133), Rhett Koenig (141), Theo Cha (149), Tim Stapleton (165), Devin Wasley (174) and Gavin Nelson (197).

Here's the latest Coach's Corner from HC Brandon Eggum:


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Great news!