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Wrestling: B1G Announces 2023-24 Conference Duals, and MN Signs Morvari and Wells!!!

U
The B1G announced the conference wrestling schedules this past week, and we have a favorable schedule this year with no duals against PSU, OSU, or MI!!

We will have home duals against MD, NE, NW and WI, and away duals at IL, IA, PU, and RU.

Our entire 2023-24 schedule will be announced in September.


Here's the article on our Conference opponents, followed by articles on new 2023 recruiting class signings of Brandon Morvari and Tyler Wells, all from Gophersports.com:


Big Ten Announces Conference Opponents for 2023-24​


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Gophersports.com
7/11/2023
Wrestling

MINNEAPOLIS – The Minnesota wrestling team knows its conference opponents for the upcoming 2023-24 season after the Big Ten released the names of the schools Tuesday.

The Golden Gophers are set to host Maryland, Nebraska, Northwestern and Wisconsin. Minnesota is scheduled to travel to Illinois, Iowa, Purdue and Rutgers.

Of the eight conference matchups, programs face six divisional opponents, which are predetermined and have the home and away designations flipped from last season.

In addition, there are two crossover opponents which were determined considering the results of the 2023-24 preseason coaches' ranking poll. The crossover opponents for Minnesota this year are Maryland and Rutgers.

The complete 2023-24 Big Ten wrestling schedule with dates will be announced in September.



Brandon Morvari Becomes Sixth Member of Signing Class​


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Gophersports.com
7/7/2023
Wrestling

MINNEAPOLIS – Minnesota wrestling head coach Brandon Eggum announced Friday that Brandon Morvari has signed a National Letter of Intent to become the sixth member of the Golden Gophers' 2023 recruiting class.

"Brandon comes from one of the premier in-state programs where he was coached by Gopher alum Will Short," Eggum said. "He has had success at the state and national level and will be a great addition to our lightweights."

A Richfield, Minn., native, Morvari won two individual state titles and four team titles at Simley High School where he was teammates with fellow signee Gavin Nelson and current redshirt sophomore Bennett Tabor.

After coming in third at 106 pounds as a sophomore, Morvari moved up to 113 pounds as a junior for his first state championship. This past season as a senior, he moved up again to 120 pounds and claimed his second straight state title. In his final three years of high school competition, Morvari posted a record of 135-12.

Ranked No. 15 in the state's pound-for-pound rankings by The Guillotine prior to the start of last season, Morvari won the 2022 Minnesota/USA Wrestling Junior Freestyle title at 120 pounds and was sixth at the 2022 USA Wrestling Junior Freestyle Nationals. In 2021, he placed second at the USA Wrestling Junior Freestyle Nationals and added a fifth-place finish at the same event for Greco-Roman.

Last month, the Gophers announced Tyler Wells as the fifth member of a class that already included Nelson, Rhett Koenig, Max McEnelly and Ethan Riddle. Like Morvari, Wells (Princeton), McEnelly (Waconia) and Nelson (Inver Grove Heights) are also in-state products.



Tyler Wells Added to 2023 Recruiting Class​


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Gophersports.com
6/23/2023
Wrestling

MINNEAPOLIS – Minnesota wrestling has added another piece to its 2023 recruiting class as Tyler Wells has signed a National Letter of Intent, head coach Brandon Eggum announced Friday.

Wells becomes the fifth member of a class that includes previously announced Rhett Koenig, Max McEnelly, Gavin Nelson, and Ethan Riddle. A Princeton, Minn., native, Wells joins McEnelly (Waconia) and Nelson (Inver Grove Heights) as in-state products.

"We are excited to add Tyler to an already great recruiting class," Eggum said. "Tyler is a four-time Minnesota state champion and holds the best career winning percentage for the state of Minnesota. It's always our goal to keep the best in-state kids home and are excited for the opportunity for Tyler to compete for his home state."

Wells is one of the top prep wrestlers in state history. According to the Star Tribune, he is one of 31 wrestlers all-time with at least four individual state titles, while his career record of 162-1 gives him a winning percentage of .994, the best in state annals. He was undefeated as a freshman, junior and senior.

In addition, he ranks sixth all-time with 976 takedowns in his career.

Projected to compete at either 133 or 141 pounds for the Gophers, Wells won his last two state titles at 132 pounds, while as a sophomore he captured the 113-pound crown after winning at 106 pounds as a freshman.

At the national level, Wells won the 2019 United World Wrestling Championships U15 freestyle title at 41 kg, and he came in third at the 2021 USA Wrestling Nationals 16U freestyle at 120 pounds.
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Football Media Day Takeaways: Offense

Sean_Williams
Minnesota held their local football media day on Wednesday, here are some takeaways from the interviews with the offensive players.

Athan Kaliakmanis:

- Says he's been working on improving everything about his game this offseason
- Says his confidence has always been there. Always acts like "they guy" whether he was playing or not
- Really happy with Minnesota's NIL initiative
- Says he felt like he let his teammates down getting injured in the bowl game, but keeps the Kobe Bryant mantra of always getting back up and moving forward

Cole Kramer:

- Says he felt the most confident in his career throughout spring practice
- The mental side really clicked for him - was more decisive in his decision making
- Says Greg Harbaugh is energetic and passionate. Focused a lot on individual routes and being accurate

Chris Autman-Bell:

- Almost there in terms of total recovery
- Not cleared yet, but says he's right there. Planning to be play against Nebraska
- Says Corey Crooms and Elijah Spencer will surprise a lot of people
- WR room has so much depth
- Says Daniel Jackson is an NFL receiver
- Calls Lemeke Brockington the strongest receiver he's seen since Rondale Moore
- Says Kaliakmanis has really stepped up, getting bigger, and growing in confidence every day

Daniel Jackson:

- Says his performances against Wisconsin and Syracuse took him into the offseason to continue to build that momentum
- Worked on high-point catches and tracking the ball during the offseason
- Says it means a lot to hear Autman-Bell call him an NFL receiver

Brevyn Spann-Ford:

- Got cleared in the beginning of the summer, feels great. Has had a lot of fun this offseason
- Calls decision to return a "big decision"
- Takes the preseason praise he's received with a "grain of salt" and says there is always work to be done

Quinn Carroll:

- Says his spring at guard went "really well" and likes himself at guard a lot
- Worked a lot with Nathan Boy and Karter Shaw at center to get a comfort level of playing inside
- Has learned "a lot" from Brian Callahan since he's been at Minnesota

Nathan Boe:

- Been playing center since the 3rd grade and was a tremendous opportunity to start in the bowl game
- Always fun to play with his teammates, cherishes every moment he gets to interact with them
- Says he learned a consistent work ethic every single day and how to be a leader from JMS
- Describes his play as "physical and tough"
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Football Media Day Takeaways: Defense

Sean_Williams
Some takeaways from the defense during Wednesday's media day session with the Gophers...

Jalen Logan-Redding, DL:

- Credits working with DeLattiboudere, Dott, GA's and others to help transform his game and his body
- Knowing your opponent is key when you are sliding both inside and outside, both guards and tackles
- Being consistent is the next step he wants to take

Jah Joyner, DL:

- Gained confidence in himself as the season went along last year
- Says Coach DeLattiboudere has brought a different approach with the pass rush
- Going back to basics on pass rush but learning about opposing offensive linemen as well
- Emphasized learning depth of the quarterback this offseason and finishing off the top of his rush
- Says he's twitchy on the snap of the ball
- He's 260 pounds now and has gotten a lot faster this offseason due to the S&C coaches
- Learning the opposing tackles and their tendencies will be a big emphasis for him this season

Danny Striggow, DE:

- Says he learned a lot about himself and getting comfortable from playing in actual games
- Very key to develop hand combat techniques as a rush end. Reaction time is critical. Have to figure out a stance where your hands are ready
- Says wrestling and football go hand-in-hand
- Anticipation and experience are the two things that will help them improve in the pass-rush
- Says they are twitchy across the board along the defensive line
- Key to know tendencies of the offensive lineman you are facing in each situation

Kyler Baugh, DT:

- A lot of pass rush emphasis since DeLattiboudere has come on board this offseason
- Focusing on the details of get-off and angles
- Small town Oklahoma kid, first player from his HS to play division one ball, so always has a chip on his shoulder

Cody Lindenberg, LB:

- Thomas Rush and Sori-Marin are elite examples of leadership at the linebacker spot
- Says he's seen a lot of grown from Ryan Selig. Has done a good job of coming into a new system.

Justin Walley, CB:

- Fast and physical are the words he used to describe transfers Tyler Bride and Tre'Von Jones
- Very energetic, always screaming, running and congratulating guys - on his description of Nick Monroe

Tyler Nubin, S:

- There is a bunch of hard workers on this team, a lot of grinders
- On Darius Green - more growth, leadership, he's going to be a monster
- Sees the schedule as an opportunity to really do something special at Minnesota

Mark Crawford, P:

- On Coach Wenger - very passionate, driven, strives to get the best out of everyone
- Says Dragon Kesich has grown in "every way possible"
- Says it's about the process with Coach Wenger, controlling the controllables, and reduce some of the negative attributes like return yards or blocked punts
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Riley Gaines

homesite2
Met Riley Gaines last Thursday when she was in town to speak to a sold out group at the Metropolitan in Golden Valley. Quite the impressive young lady who is determined to fight for fairness for women's sports. Her story of how an mediocre 6' 4" fully intact male swimmer(462nd male swimmer), competed with college women and was allowed to undress in front of the women in the same locker room was incredible to hear. Riley testified before Congress a few days before coming to Minnesota...many women who fought for Title IX are silent on the subject now, few are speaking out.

Riley tied with the male swimmer and he was given the photo op with the trophy not her...at that point she said she didn't care about a trophy, the trophy mean't nothing, it was about the fairness of the system for women sports.

People are afraid to speak out for what is right, Riley is definitely not afraid...glad to see someone stand up for what is right!
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Other Sports Baseball: George Klassen/Brett Bateman

Sean_Williams
MINNEAPOLIS -- The University of Minnesota baseball team had a pair of Gophers selected in the Major League Baseball Draft on Monday. George Klassen (Round 6, No. 193) and Brett Bateman (Round 8, No. 236) were both chosen during day two of the draft at Lumen Field in Seattle, Wash.

The selections extend the Gophers Big Ten record of consecutive draft picks to 36 straight years. No other conference opponent has a draft streak longer than 12 years.

Right-handed pitcher George Klassen was selected by the Philadelphia Phillies with the 193rd overall pick in the sixth round. He is the 11th Gopher pitcher to be drafted since 2017, and the highest drafted pitcher since Max Meyer (No. 3 overall, 2020).

The 6-foot-2 Saturday starter for Minnesota made 14 appearances (13 starts) in 2023, striking out 49 batters. He allowed 36 earned runs in 53.1 innings and held opponents to a .222 average. His performance on March 18 against Houston garnered him Big Ten Pitcher of the Week honors after he punched out eight batters, allowing just one hit and zero earned runs in 7.2 innings.

Heading into the 2023 season, Klassen was ranked as top 10 B1G prospect by both D1Baseball and Perfect Game. After returning from a season-ending injury in his first season, he has made 25 appearances (17 starts), striking out 57 batters in 64.1 innings pitched for his career.

Klassen joins Brett Schulze (2017-2019) and former Head Student Manager Thomas Knauss (2018-2020) in the Phillies organization.

Outfielder Brett Bateman was selected by the Chicago Cubs in the eighth round of the MLB Draft with the 236th pick. He is the highest drafted Gopher center fielder in the John Anderson era since Jay Kvasnicka (1986-1988) was drafted with the 207th pick in the eighth round of the 1988 MLB Draft.

A native of Arden Hills, Minn., Bateman earned his first career All-Big Ten honor for the Gophers in 2023. In 50 games this season, he led the team in batting average (.354), hits (67), and stolen bases (17). On the defensive side, the center fielder had a perfect 1.000 fielding percentage and five outfield assists.

Named a 2022 Collegiate Baseball Newspaper Player to Watch, Bateman was ranked by Perfect Game as the No. 35 Big Ten prospect prior to the 2023 season. In 128 career games, he has maintained a .319 average, collecting 153 hits in 480 at bats.

Bateman is the first Gopher to be drafted by the Cubs since Brian Glowicki (Round 10, 2017). He joins former teammate Zack Raabe (2019-2021) as the last two position players to be drafted out of Minnesota. Raabe was selected with the 237th pick, one slot behind Bateman, in the 2021 MLB Draft.

The final day of the MLB Draft will begin July 11 at 1:00 p.m. CT with rounds 11-20.
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