By Allen Smith Website and Membership Committees Member
Following is the second installment of a three-part series. An explanation of the series appears in the
first few paragraphs of “Part 1”, so I will not repeat that. I will add to those comments however. It is
obvious to me that one can categorize the stories told so far in Part 1 and below in Part 2. Adversity, in
the way I have chosen to use it can be split into three areas.
First, facing injury – or injuries – and returning to wrestle. So far, including the stories below, I have
written about Jason Nolf, James English, and to some degree Anthony Cassar. Second, facing very, very
long odds in a bout, and coming out on top. To be clear, I have seen plenty of “upsets” in my lifetime
involving Penn State wrestlers, too numerous to mention in fact; The Anthony Cassar, Jordan Conaway
and Zain Retherford bouts just stand out to me. Third, losing a bout or bouts, and showing
championship-caliber meddle, coming back later with wins on the mat. Such is exemplified by the Nico
Megaludis, Tyler Kasak, and John Lange stories. I did add the Bo Nickal story for a unique level of
adversity, which is included here in Part 2. I hope you enjoy!
NICO MEGALUDIS FACES A GAUNTLET TO EARN ALL-AMERICAN HONORS
The year was 2012, and NICO MEGALUDIS was a true freshman at Penn State. The wrestling team had
just won its first national championship in 58 year in 2011, and was looking for a replacement for
graduated and three-time national qualifier Brad Pataky at 125 pounds. Megaludis was just the guy,
highly recruited and one of a somewhat rare example as a true freshman starter for the Lions from the
very first dual meet of the season. Cael-coached teams have plenty of examples of true freshmen
starters, but most earn that right later in the season. Megaludis was clearly the right choice this season
to be the starter at the lightest weight class from the start.
The weight class nationally was loaded with mostly upperclassmen that had already experienced the
rigors of multiple college seasons, as the top eight guys consisted of three seniors, three juniors, and
one sophomore, though there was one other freshman. Megaludis would have to adapt and learn
quickly. Heading into the national championships, Megaludis had seven losses on his record. In an early-
season dual, he lost to No. 2 ranked Zach Sanders of Minnesota 6-2. At the Southern Scuffle, he would
lose to Cornell’s No. 7 ranked Frank Perelli not once, but twice, 9-3 and 6-4. At the Iowa dual Megaludis
lost to No. 1 Matt McDonough 3-1. Another loss to No. 2 ranked Zach Sanders 6-2 and a loss to No. 9
ranked Levi Mele, by fall, both at the Big Ten Wrestling Championships rounded out six of the young
Lions’ seven losses heading into the NCAA Championships. Megaludis did finish fifth at Big Ten’s, a
tournament where he was the No. 3 seed, to earn a spot at the big dance. Megaludis, after a solid
season overall for a true freshman would earn the No. 10 seed in St. Louis, site of the 2012 NCAA
Championships. On the same side of the bracket were No. 2 seed Sanders and No. 6 seed Perelli. On the
other side were No. 1 seed McDonough and No. 9 seed Mele. It was possible, even likely that Megaludis
would have to face several of these four guys that handed him losses previously. He was 0-6 collectively
against them. I call that adversity. Here’s where the wrestling world would find out that Megaludis was a
gamer – known for his effort even when the brightest of lights are shining.
Megaludis started with a bonus point win against an unseeded wrestler on Thursday morning. Thursday
evening, session 2, saw Megaludis take out No. 7 seed Jarrod Patterson of Oklahoma 7-3. We were
starting to see glimpses of a young wrestler who had taken in all of the success AND failures of a
freshman campaign and learned from both! Next up though, on Friday morning was his nemesis, No. 2
seed Zach Sanders, the same Minnesota wrestler that handed Megaludis two of his earlier losses, one of
them just two weeks prior. Megaludis would handle Sanders on this day 7-4 scoring the only two
takedowns of the bout. In the semifinals Friday evening another familiar face, Frank Perelli, would be
waiting, the same Cornell wrestler that also handed Megaludis two earlier season losses. More
adversity! The bout was extremely close throughout, and was tied 1-1 after both regulation and the first
Sudden Victory period. In Tiebreaker 1, Perelli would escape for a 2-1 lead. In Tiebreaker 2, Megaludis
would earn a reversal, and then ride out the remainder of the 30-second period to earn the 3-2 win!
Hard to believe this was a true freshman. Megaludis, on this day, avenged four earlier season losses and
was onto the finals – as the No. 10 seed he could finish no worse than second. Talented and No. 1 seed
Matt McDonough would defeat Megaludis in the final 4-1, but the young Lion made a statement in his
true freshman campaign as Lion faithful were excited to see what would unfold in his next three years of
wrestling.
BO NICKAL’S “THAT’S WHAT WE DO” MOMENT
Arguably the best known and best remembered moment in Penn State wrestling history occurred at the
2018 NCAA Wrestling Championships. I feel like this is (almost) not worth writing about because you as a
Penn State fan, or at least most of you, have the recollection solidly embedded in your memory bank
already, and I’m not sure what I can add. But writing about Bo Nickal in the finals at 184 pounds, and
quoting part of his interview afterwards will give me – and hopefully you – enormous pleasure, so please
allow me to continue.
I will set the scene. As Bo Nickal and Myles Martin, Ohio State, approached the raised mat inside
Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, Ohio, Penn State held the team lead 136.5 to Ohio State’s 131.5.
Three bouts remained; Nickal vs Martin at 184, a 197 pound bout where neither wrestler could impact
the team score, and Kyle Snyder (Ohio State) vs Adam Coon (Michigan) at 285 pounds. If both Ohio State
wrestlers won, the 2018 team trophy would sit in Columbus, Ohio, home of the Buckeyes, who were
also national champs in 2015. If Nickal won, the team trophy would end up in State College,
Pennsylvania, and Penn State will have earned a third consecutive title. I believe the fan bases for both
schools were more nervous than the wrestlers.
Nickal owned a 6-2 career record against Martin, and had won the last two. One of Martin’s wins was
for a national championship in 2016 and he was wrestling well now, with a technical fall and a major
decision earlier in the tournament while Nickal had one bonus point win, a major decision. A battle was
expected, a team title hung in the balance. The first period started as most do in the championship
finals, in a feeling out process despite the familiarity between these two wrestlers. This was the national
finals! At the 40 second mark of the first period, the bout arena went from nervous energy to euphoria –
for both fan bases. Martin almost hit a blast double, settling for a single leg, and quickly took Nickal
down – straight to the Lions’ back. The Ohio State fans were roaring their approval. The referee quickly
awarded the takedown and appeared to be starting a count for backpoints when in the blink of an eye,
using his right leg as leverage, Nickal horsed Martin over onto his back. With Nickal on top, he got
control of Martin’s head, and settled in chest-to-chest for the pin. It was now the Penn State fans who
roared their approval! The entire sequence took less than 15 seconds. It was SO amazing, I recommend
you find the bout on YouTube and watch for yourself. It is worth it.
The team score was now 141.5 to 131.5 after a team point was deducted for Nickal throwing his head
gear, albeit in delight (a rule they should abolish), and the Lions had the team title wrapped up,
regardless of what happened at 285. It is worth mentioning that Kyle Snyder won that day, and the final
team score was Penn State 141.5, Ohio State 134.5.
Truth be told, I debated including this story in this series. The word “adversity”, and what Nickal had to
overcome pales in comparison to James English’s six year journey, for example, and doesn’t hold up
against the other stories either, even when I consider what is to come in Part 3. However, I do think that
finding oneself on your back in an arena of 20,000 screaming fans, with hundreds of thousands watching
on television or listening on radio, does constitute some adversity. The story stays (smiley face goes
here)! To continue, the story doesn’t end with the pin. The post-bout interview with Nickal was epic, so
you should watch that too (it is included in all of the bout videos I’ve seen). “That’s What We Do” was a
small piece of what was said by Nickal, and those short four words have found itself on t-shirts, and
maybe other items as well.
JASON NOLF WINS THE NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP ON ONE GOOD LEG
JASON NOLF is among the greatest to ever wear a Penn State singlet. With an unassuming physique, he
was arguably the greatest technician EVER to wear a Penn State singlet, and I can’t think of another
wrestler that owned his stamina, or as they call in in wrestling, a “gas tank”, though maybe I should
rethink that after watching Mitchell Mesenbrink wrestle for the past couple of years. He is also the only
wrestler – at least I cannot think of another – that has a move named that he created; in this case, the
Winn Dixie. But this Lion faced adversity from a late-season injury that can only be matched by a Carter
Starocci injury that happened several years later; and is included in my stories. Starocci’s story shall be
in Part 3 of this series.
For more background, Nolf’s career record is 117-3, with two of those losses against two-time national
champion Isaiah Martinez of Illinois during the Lions’ freshman season, one at the Big Ten
Championships, another at the NCAA Championships in the finals. Both were one point losses. To give
one example of Nolf’s dominance, 103 of his 117 wins were bonus point wins. That’s 88%!! Nolf would
not be challenged in his sophomore campaign, going 27-0 and winning his first individual championship.
He was on his way to a repeat performance in his junior year with a 19-0 mark heading into the Rutgers
dual on January 28, 2018. Here’s where the adversity started. In a bout against John Van Brill of Rutgers,
Nolf’s leg bent awkwardly during an exchange. He lay on the mat in obvious knee pain, accompanied by
Dan Monthley, Penn State Trainer, and Coach Cael. The decision was made to discontinue the bout.
While nothing official was announced later, enough reliable, albeit somewhat general information was
heard through the grapevine – the injury was serious. The Big Ten Wrestling Championship was less than
five weeks away. Nittany Nation was at best cautiously optimistic about Nolf wrestling in the post-
season. Obviously Nolf would not wrestle during the remaining month of the regular season. Then came
day 1 of the Big Ten Championships, and there was Nolf, on the mat for his first round bout! Not
recovered completely by any stretch, Nolf’s had to change his style to protect his injured and heavily
bandaged leg. On this day, Nolf would wrestle two bouts. First was a first period fall, next was a major
decision. He had earned his way to the big dance as he could finish no worse than 6 th . His next two bouts
were forfeited. Less than two weeks later, at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, Ohio, and the rubber
would hit the road. Could Jason Nolf, injured leg and all, hold up against the 157 pound field of the best
college wrestlers in the country? The tournament started out great, as even on an injured leg, No. 2
seed Nolf could bonus most opponents. One awkward position though, and his season could end. In the
second round, Thursday evening, Nolf faced the 14 th seed, winning a solid but unspectacular bout 6-1.
Friday morning, session 3, and Nolf would face fellow Young Guns and Pennsylvania star No. 6 seed
Micheal Kemerer of Iowa. In fan’s minds, this would be the best test yet, even though Kemerer was
battling his own injury. Nolf survived, winning 6-2. Friday evening, session 4, and next up would be No. 7
seed Micah Jordan of Ohio State. Keeping his leg safely away from the Buckeye, Nolf managed a
dominating 16-0 technical fall. Nolf the technician was alive and well. Then came the finals Saturday
night, against No. 1 seed Hayden Hidlay from NC State. There, Nolf did enough to win 6-2. With a leg
wrapped from thigh to ankle, Nolf dominated the first period with two takedowns to lead 4-1. That was
all it took, as the rest of the bout was wrestled to protect the leg, defend against Hidlay’s shots, and do
enough offensively to prevent any stalling calls. Adversity was defeated, Nolf winning his second
national championship, this one basically with one good leg. Nolf’s collegiate career ended the following
year, as he won his third national championship in his final season of eligibility.
ZAIN RETHERFORD BEATS A FUTURE FOUR-TIME NATIONAL CHAMP
Setting the scene for you; the date was December 15, 2013. Freshman sensation ZAIN RETHERFORD was
set to tackle arguably the toughest wrestler he would EVER face in college, as the young Lion would
wrestle Ohio State’s No. 1 ranked Logan Stieber at the Penn State vs Ohio State dual meet. Retherford
was but a TRUE FRESHMAN, with a total of 10 bouts under his belt, five at an early season tournament
where the competition was not very strong. He was 10-0, but none of those 10 wrestlers came close to
approaching a top-20 ranking. Logan Stieber was already a two-time national champ and had not lost a
bout since January 2012. On the season he was 9-0, with six pins, two technical falls and one major
decision. His domination at 141 pounds was unmatched at the time and he would go on to win two
more national titles. At the time of this bout, Stieber was in his fourth season of college wrestling (he
had an early redshirt of sorts), Retherford in his first.
Every bout wrestled is a learning experience for wrestlers. One can gauge their progress by what
happens on the mat, and while drilling/practice/training are indicators, it is COMPETITION that is a truer
measure of progress. And while wins and losses are important at some level, the best coaches teach a
concept that it is more, much more, about “the process”. Train hard, eat right, keep up with your studies
even, improve every day, and the wins and losses will take care of themselves. Too much emphasis on
winning, it is preached, and the basics and fundamentals of success are often overlooked. This bout,
between Retherford and Stieber, win or lose for the young Lion would be a terrific measure of where he
was at that moment, but the adversity of facing one of the best all-time was lost on no one – Stieber
was favored.
The wrestlers moved to their starting positions, the whistle blew; the bout was underway. Stieber struck
early, with a takedown about 30 seconds into the bout. One minute later, give or take, and Retherford
escaped; the bout was 2-1 in Stieber’s favor when the first period ended, though Retherford showed his
meddle with a single leg attack midway through the period, evidence that he could muster offense
against Stieber even though this attack resulted in no points. Stieber chose bottom for the second
period, expecting an escape at some point to extend his lead. The escape never came, Retherford riding
Stieber the entire period! Not only did Retherford keep the bout closer, he also had over one minute of
riding time advantage, which would be a factor later in the bout. Retherford chose neutral to start the
third period. In the first minute, Retherford would hit a single leg attack that was eventually countered
by Stieber. Both wrestlers during this sequence had a chance to score. Neither did and the bout
remained 2-1 in favor of the Buckeye. The rest of the third period was wrestled on their feet. With the
riding time point added for Retherford, regulation time ended 2-2; the bout would head to Sudden
Victory. The whistle blew, Retherford went on the attack. Ten seconds into the extra period, he would
hit a single leg, but the battle for a takedown was only beginning. Stieber’s defense was very good, as
Retherford continued to work; slowly, methodically. Then, at the mat’s edge, after nearly one minute of
fighting, Retherford secured the other leg; the deciding takedown and the victory 4-2 were earned by
the young Lion. Rec Hall erupted into cheering that is in my top two all-time for its decibel level.
The future was bright for Retherford. He would lose three times on the season, twice to Stieber (at Big
Ten’s and NCAA’s) and once to Mitchell Port (Edinboro, at NCAA’s). However, the announcement that he
had arrived on the college scene on December 15, 2013 was heard loud and clear by fans of college
wrestling. After a redshirt season in 2014, Retherford would never lose again, going 93-0 in his
remaining three years of eligibility and winning three NCAA individual national championships. He would
also win the Hodge Trophy, given to the most outstanding wrestler each year, TWICE.
