By Brendan Wagner – Onward State
As Penn State wrestling gets further into its deep conference schedule, the emergence of two true freshmen has not only raised eyebrows from their performances but also questions about their future.
NCAA wrestling rules state a wrestler can compete in up to five matches before having to forgo their redshirt, meaning the current year of eligibility they are wrestling under cannot be taken back. Last season, head coach Cael Sanderson was faced with a similar problem regarding the redshirt status of now All-American Levi Haines, a decision in which he seemed to make the right call.
This year, freshmen Braeden Davis and Tyler Kasak have found themselves on a dominant run, but with one redshirt already burnt and the other hanging on by a thread, the question facing Sanderson and the rest of the team is a tough one: will these young wrestlers continue their season?
After the team’s last match against Indiana, when both Davis and Kasak took home bonus point victories, Sanderson met with the media to discuss the future of the two young stars.
“We are going to have some difficult discussions this week on who will continue to wrestle,” Sanderson said. “We’ve seen Davis attacking with a couple of different things over the last few matches. It’s really good to see.”
Davis now has 10 wins in his undefeated freshman campaign and will be classified as a sophomore come next season, whether he continues to wrestle or not.
On the other hand, despite Kasak performing well filling in for the injured Shayne Van Ness at 149 pounds, Sanderson still acknowledged the ongoing competition for the starting spot.
“We still have a couple of guys that can go out and wrestle at 149 pounds,” Sanderson said, referencing roster depth. “However, all indications point to Kasak being their guy down the road.”
“I’d say there’s a pretty good chance for that,” Sanderson continued on the likelihood of Kasak burning his redshirt.
As the team moves on from last week’s dominant performance, the Nittany Lions will hit the road on a three-dual road trip, including two matches later this weekend. Sanderson remarked that he enjoyed these road trips and the allowance of 15 wrestlers to travel. However, several questions still loom regarding the freshmen personnel.
“It’s still kind of up in the air for us,” Sanderson said. “We probably won’t really know until they run out onto the mat.”
With Davis’ red shirt status officially gone and Kasak having just one match remaining, this weekend’s duals could paint a clear picture of the Nittany Lion roster moving forward.
The Nittany Lions will wrestle next No. 11 Michigan at 6 p.m. on Friday, January 19, in Ann Arbor, Michigan. The dual will be broadcast on the Big Ten Network.
