For my first blog of 2024 I am going to go through the weights and team overall for an update and get ready for the upcoming Big Ten and tournament season.

But first…

There has been more said about Iowa Wrestling online in the last four days than in any stretch over the last twenty years. I will just say in the history of the internet.

Everybody has an opinion of A.J. Ferrari and what went on after the finals of Soldier Salute. I will be brief.

Do I like what happened? No. Nobody does including A.J. He apologized on social media. Unlike critics of Ferrari I have done some things I am not proud of, especially when I was in college.

I will wait and see if Ferrari even gets into the University of Iowa. I am sure that what happened hurt his chances. Classes begin on Tuesday, January 16 so we will know soon enough.

I will tell you that I hope A.J. Ferrari does get into Iowa and has a chance to prove himself in the Black and Gold as an Iowa Hawkeye. 

Judge me as you wish.

Onward…

Now, on to the Iowa Wrestling team.

Overall Iowa had a real good tournament at Soldier Salute. For starters Iowa was scoring more points, wrestling with more sense of urgency, and finishing takedowns. My initial reaction is that Iowa is a better team than I thought. Still a lot of work to do but I did see an improvement from the beginning of the season.

Let’s take a look:

125 – This is the Drake Ayala that I have been waiting for. Ayala looked much better this past weekend. He avenged at least four defeats to McKee of Minnesota in the semifinals before topping #7 Jore Volk of Wyoming in the finals, 4-2. 

Even with the improvements I believe Ayala has more in him. Confidence will come with success and success will come with confidence for Drake Ayala. I like what I am seeing.

133 – There was a lot going on at 133 for the Iowa Hawkeyes at Soldier Salute. It is rare to have three wrestlers compete at a weight like that.

Brody Teske came away with the title and will be tough to get out of the lineup the rest of the season. In round 3 true freshman Kale Petersen defeated #12 Angelo Rini of Columbia, 12-5. That is a signature win for Petersen. Teske then defeated Petersen by a 15-0 tech fall in the semifinals. In the consolations Cullan Schriever won by a 2-1 decision over Petersen. 

141 – #1 Real Woods has looked good all season and yet I believe he will take it up another notch at the Big Tens and NCAA’s. He had two tough opponents that will help prepare for the Big Ten schedule. I like to watch this guy wrestle.

149 – This was a contested weight that turned out to be a wrestle off for a varsity spot. In the semifinals Caleb Rathjen defeated Victor Voinovich, 6-3. In the finals Rathjen defeated Anthony Ferrari, 7-2. Rathjen now has his shot in the varsity lineup.

157 – Jared Franek won the title at Soldier Salute much the way he has wrestled this season. Nothing flashy and some close matches. As long as he keeps getting his hand raised that is more than good enough for me. I do expect him to pick up the pace for scoring though.

165 – I was wrong on my prediction in the finals where Michael Caliendo defeated Patrick Kennedy, 7-3. Caliendo was impressive and looked the best so far as a Hawk in that finals match. Will Kennedy move up to 174? I would think so.

174 – Gabe Arnold won the title as a true freshman wrestling unattached. He had a close match in the finals. Arnold is so hard to score on and shows a lot of discipline for a young wrestler. The big question is will Arnold come out of redshirt and compete? I would say that is dependent on who else is in the lineup at 197 and Hwt. Should Ferrari and Kueter be in the lineup then I expect Arnold to compete this year.

184 – It is easy to see that Aiden Riggins is wrestling up one if not two weight classes. Tough road when giving up that much size in Division I. I do believe we will see Riggins improve as the season progresses.

197 – What has been lost in all of the drama is that there were two very good wrestlers going at it in the finals of Soldier Salute. Zach Glazier has improved a lot from last season. Whoever takes the mat for Iowa at 197 is going to be fun to watch.

Hwt. – Brad Hill is a grinder that will keep improving. I predict that Hill will score an upset to win a dual meet for us this season. He is always ready to go. Fans like me are anticipating that Ben Kueter will join the team now that football is over. 

As I said earlier I believe Iowa is better than I thought. I for one am not reading much at all into any drama from Soldier Salute. It’s wrestling. Iowa Wrestling. 

The Hawks now have time to train and come together as a team before rolling into Lincoln to face Nebraska on Friday, January 12.

Iowa Wrestling is my entertainment and I plan on being entertained the rest of the season.

Let’s get ‘em in the middle.

It is great to be an Iowa Wrestling fan.

Go Hawks!