Fantasy Duals

[Gold]

These can be interesting. Because of the hatred he caused to well up in my soul during the draft, I will start by matching myself against RD149-2.

125: Bonnano dec. Pataky (3-0)
This is really a tossup and Pataky might very well win it. However, I gave my guy the victory based on their lone match last year, which Bonnano won in OT.

133: Hochstrasser dec. Mitcheff (3-3)
Probably by 4-5 points.

141: Humphrey maj. Mangrum (3-7)
I would have started Garrett Scott here, but apparently he is going 149. I think Mangrum could make some noise this year, but he hasn't proven anything yet, and Hump is my pick to win it all.

149: Palmer dec. Borshoff (6-7)
If Lance stayed aggressive the whole time, he might be able to major him. That's not really how Lance does it, though. He would probably get 1 or 2 take downs and ride very hard for a 5-0 victory.

157: Sanderson dec. Nemec (9-7)
I actually hope Nemec has a great year and wins this type of match, but I've got to go with the more experienced, proven guy at this point.

165: Vallimont dec. Meade (12-7)
In most years, Meade would be a good candidate to AA as a freshman. At 165 this year, there are about 10 guys he may have a very hard time beating. Vallimont is one of them.

174: Miller dec. Erwin (12-10)
This is a "rivalry on paper" that has been going on since their early years of HS--everyone always wondered who the better one was. Erwin actually won the only time they have met, which was 2 years ago. I like them both a lot, and I'm hoping Erwin has the AA year that Quentin Wright had during Erwin's injury last year. For now, it's hard to argue with the returning runner-up.

184: Kilgore dec. Foster (12-13)
It's hard to know what to expect from Foster, who is dropping down from 197 this year. If he has no energy, Kilgore will probably major him.

197: Varner pin Starks (18-13)
This should at least be a major, but I think Varner would maul him.

285: Dudziak dec. Monteiro (21-13)
Dudziak deserves respect as a returning finalist. Monteiro had a real hot Vegas tourney last year, so he might be able to pull off the upset.

Yayyyyy I win.

[vaisforlovers]

Me v. Goldie

125 Martinez d. Bonamo-Close match, but Martinez would be better by a td or 2.(3-0)

133-Ness Maj Mitcheff-Ness gets bonus at just about anyone who isnt elite. Mitcheff isnt elite, so Ness bonuses(yes i know ness beat him 6-1 previously).(7-0)

141 Jamal Parks d. Mangrum- I don't really believe Scott will be at 141 this year. Parks will beat Mangrum.(10-0)

149 Palmer D. Ruschell I guess I have to say this since Palmer has won more. (10-3)

157-Hall D. Sanderson-This is really push since they both own 1 pt. wins over each other and neither AA'd last year. I'll take Hall because I picked him (13-3)

165-Vallimont d. Brown- Who knows what Vallimont we'll see..but Brown certainly has beaten better.(13-6)

174-Lewnes maj. Erwin- Lewnes is better by a lot, so he'll win by a lot. (17-6)

184-Foster d. Bradshaw-Don't necessarily believe this but Ill give him benefit of the doubt. (17-9)

197-Varner d. Beatty-I don't see this being bonus points for Jake. Chad is not the kind of guy you can rack points up on and Varner sometimes just does enough to win. (17-12)

285-Dudziak d. Steele-Guess this could go either way but i'll give Dudz the benefit of the doubt being a finalist and all. (17-15)

I win by 2. Scott at 141 would mean an 18-14 point win for Gold. However, I would probably then pick Steele over Dudziak Or maybe Bradshaw over Foster. There are all kinds of fun ways to make it so I win.

[Gold]

Now I will face off against a man who I think drafted very smart and gave me a very close run for my money last year at NCAAs: Gold vs. tigerfan

125: Bonanno dec. Beebe (3-0)
A tossup about which I have little to say. Naturally, I give myself the edge.

133: Jordan Oliver dec. Mitcheff (3-3)
Oliver had an excellent summer and has a lot of hype. I will show him some respect by giving him the 'W' over a very solid AA candidate.

141: Thorn dec. Mangrum (3-6)
This is kind of a tossup. Thorn had some good wins last year, but also had a lot of losses. Mangrum will be a very highly-touted freshman. Since he hasn't proven anything yet, I give Thorn the edge. I wouldn't be surprised to see Mangrum win this, though.

149: Palmer maj. Vinson (7-6)
Apparently Vinson puts up a lot of bonus points (though I admit I've never heard of him). That won't happen against Palmer, who I think wins in dominant fashion.

157: O'Connor dec. Sanderson (7-10)
This is a tossup. During the draft, I was sort of hard pressed in my decision to pick between O'Connor and Sanderson (they were both available and I had them ranked side by side). I went with Sanderson, but O'Connor may have been the better choice.

165: Marable dec. Vallimont (7-13)
Another very close tossup. Both had verrry impressive seasons and finished 3rd two years ago. I will give Marable the edge because he has more success at 165, but Vallimont started to bring things together towards the end of last year, and I think a new coaching staff helps him add a lot to his repertoire.

174: Erwin dec. Letts (10-13)
Letts has been getting a lottt of respect, and frankly I don't see it. I'm sure he's a very good wrestler and I know he's a lot of matches in his career, but I don't think he has done anything to establish himself as the class of this weight like some suggest. I'll take Erwin in another tossup.

184: Askren dec. Foster (10-16)
Interestingly, both of these Big12 guys are dropping down from 197 after spending their careers at 197. Askren has consistently beaten Foster in the past, and there's no reason to think that will stop now.

197: Varner maj. Taylor (14-16)
Maybe Hudson keeps this closer, but I take this from their All-Star match where Varner absolutely dominated every aspect. Hudson does pull off a lot of pins, but then again he also ends up giving up a lot of pins.

285: Dudziak dec. Brantley (17-16)
Dudziak should definitely win. I don't think he puts up bonus against a guy as big as Brantley, though.

I win again. There are about 5 legitimate tossups in this dual, though, so I'm sure tigerfan wouldn't have trouble predicting a victory for himself.

[Gold]

Me v. Goldie

125 Martinez d. Bonamo-Close match, but Martinez would be better by a td or 2.(3-0)

133-Ness Maj Mitcheff-Ness gets bonus at just about anyone who isnt elite. Mitcheff isnt elite, so Ness bonuses(yes i know ness beat him 6-1 previously).(7-0)

141 Jamal Parks d. Mangrum- I don't really believe Scott will be at 141 this year. Parks will beat Mangrum.(10-0)

149 Palmer D. Ruschell I guess I have to say this since Palmer has won more. (10-3)

157-Hall D. Sanderson-This is really push since they both own 1 pt. wins over each other and neither AA'd last year. I'll take Hall because I picked him (13-3)

165-Vallimont d. Brown- Who knows what Vallimont we'll see..but Brown certainly has beaten better.(13-6)

174-Lewnes maj. Erwin- Lewnes is better by a lot, so he'll win by a lot. (17-6)

184-Foster d. Bradshaw-Don't necessarily believe this but Ill give him benefit of the doubt. (17-9)

197-Varner d. Beatty-I don't see this being bonus points for Jake. Chad is not the kind of guy you can rack points up on and Varner sometimes just does enough to win. (17-12)

285-Dudziak d. Steele-Guess this could go either way but i'll give Dudz the benefit of the doubt being a finalist and all. (17-15)

I win by 2. Scott at 141 would mean an 18-14 point win for Gold. However, I would probably then pick Steele over Dudziak Or maybe Bradshaw over Foster. There are all kinds of fun ways to make it so I win.

Dudziak beat Steele twice last year when Steele was actually healthy. With Steele's shoulder very questionable that is a safe pick for me. I think Erwin will surprise people this year--I would still pick Lewnes to win, but not by a major. 157 is definitely a tossup. Last year, I definitely would have taken Hall because he was on my team. This year, Sanderson would definitely win because he is on my team. Haha. A close dual no matter how you cut it.

[vaisforlovers]

Dudziak beat Steele twice last year when Steele was actually healthy. With Steele's shoulder very questionable that is a safe pick for me. I think Erwin will surprise people this year--I would still pick Lewnes to win, but not by a major. 157 is definitely a tossup. Last year, I definitely would have taken Hall because he was on my team. This year, Sanderson would definitely win because he is on my team. Haha. A close dual no matter how you cut it.

yes quite. With the most inriguing matchup being 57.

[r.payton@att.net]

These can be interesting. Because of the hatred he caused to well up in my soul during the draft, I will start by matching myself against RD149-2.

125: Bonnano dec. Pataky (3-0)
This is really a tossup and Pataky might very well win it. However, I gave my guy the victory based on their lone match last year, which Bonnano won in OT.

133: Hochstrasser dec. Mitcheff (3-3)
Probably by 4-5 points.

141: Humphrey maj. Mangrum (3-7)
I would have started Garrett Scott here, but apparently he is going 149. I think Mangrum could make some noise this year, but he hasn't proven anything yet, and Hump is my pick to win it all.

149: Palmer dec. Borshoff (6-7)
If Lance stayed aggressive the whole time, he might be able to major him. That's not really how Lance does it, though. He would probably get 1 or 2 take downs and ride very hard for a 5-0 victory.

157: Sanderson dec. Nemec (9-7)
I actually hope Nemec has a great year and wins this type of match, but I've got to go with the more experienced, proven guy at this point.

165: Vallimont dec. Meade (12-7)
In most years, Meade would be a good candidate to AA as a freshman. At 165 this year, there are about 10 guys he may have a very hard time beating. Vallimont is one of them.

174: Miller dec. Erwin (12-10)
This is a "rivalry on paper" that has been going on since their early years of HS--everyone always wondered who the better one was. Erwin actually won the only time they have met, which was 2 years ago. I like them both a lot, and I'm hoping Erwin has the AA year that Quentin Wright had during Erwin's injury last year. For now, it's hard to argue with the returning runner-up.

184: Kilgore dec. Foster (12-13)
It's hard to know what to expect from Foster, who is dropping down from 197 this year. If he has no energy, Kilgore will probably major him.

197: Varner pin Starks (18-13)
This should at least be a major, but I think Varner would maul him.

285: Dudziak dec. Monteiro (21-13)
Dudziak deserves respect as a returning finalist. Monteiro had a real hot Vegas tourney last year, so he might be able to pull off the upset.

Yayyyyy I win.

Me want some ..
125 tnick beat Bonano twice by majors last year -4-0
133 Dennis by a point or two --------------------7-0
141 Diaz over the youngster until he's proven otherwise -10-0
149 Palmer dec Cathell--------------------------------------------10-3
157-Erisman dec Nemec-------------------------------------------13-3
165-M* boringly wins 2-1 TB--------------------------------------16-3
174-I really like Blanton but Miller is the returning runner up-16-6
184 Keddy will beat everyone not named Pucillo---------------19-6
197-Varner beats Byers , but it will be a hellacious match----19-9
hwt -This is a toss up-but you can have it .............................19-12

I may wrestle Mason at 49 because of the style match up-Mason has a MOTOR ....

THAXTON RULES

[vaisforlovers]

VA v. Thaxton

125-Nickerson maj. Martinez-Not positive about this, but seems possible.(0-4)

133-Ness d. Dennis-Ness will have his chance at the minny dual, and I'll take him.(3-4)

141- Diaz d. Parks-Not really sure about this really, but Diaz did beat him by 1 last year, he had some weird losses though too.(3-7)

149-Ruschell d. cathell- Basic win here couple takedown difference(6-7)

157- Hall d. Erisman-Hall is better so he will win.(10-7)

165-M* d. Brown-Even though Brown has beaten an iowa great at this weight before...(10-10)

174 Lewnes maj. Blanton-Lewnes gets rolling and majors here.(14-10)

184 Keddy d. Caputo-Keddy will be a scary man this year.(14-13)

197 Beatty d. Byers-Beatty is going to be nails this year.(17-13)

285-Zabriske d. Steele-Z is a takedown better.(17-16)

Wow, while i was doing this i thought I was losing, and I won by one. Weird.

If Parks beats Diaz I win by 7. If Dennis beats Ness I lose 19-14.

[r.payton@att.net]

NO WAY Beatty beats Byers.And Tnick will pin Martinez .And 157 is Erisman is a stud . No way Lewnes Majors Blanton .he may win , but I think Blanton can and will beat Lewnes . But these are fantasy .

[Herkey#1]

Herky's Hated Hawkeye's Vs VA's Venomous Vipers

125 Sanders maj Martinez 4-0 Herky
133 Ness wbf Kubec 4-6 VA
141 LeClere dec Parks 7-6 Herky
149 Metcalf TF w/bp Ruschell 12-6 Herky
157 Hall dec Pami 12-9 Herky
165 Reader dec Brown 15-9 Herky
174 Borschel dec Lewnes 18-9 Herky
184 Beatty dec Jones 18-12 Herky
HWT Erekson/Raising dec Berhow 21-12 Herky

141 will be a good match but parks has no offense and gasses quick. He probably has more raw talent but it has yet to be harnessed by OSU's underperforming coaching staff.

149 At first glance it would seem that Ruschell is a guy that could hold tight with Metcalf but I checked and theyve wrestled twice resulting in a maj and a pin for Metcalf

157 Pami and Hall split their two meetings last year so I gave VA a mercy win.

174 Borschel and Lewnes could be a good one as well. Lewnes will have to show that he can handle the extra weight and Borschel will have to show that he is back to sophomore form. I think Borschel wins em all this year.

184 Smith beat Caputo 3-1 in their only meeting and the results stays the same in my fantasy.

197 Jones is a pinner but Beatty is a Hawkeye and Hawkeye > pinner. C'Mon BEATTY!

HWT Berhow is 1-5 against Iowa HWTs. His only win came in a very close match that Jordan Johnson (Iowa's third string HWT) almost won. He has also lost to Erekson twice and Blake Raising once. So, judging by past performances I will say that Berhow loses even if Raising is the Iowa HWT in that dual. Looks like Iowa's 285 lb class has lapped MN's.