We finally know the 10 wrestlers headed to the postseason for Iowa wrestling.
As expected, Dean Peterson (125 pounds), Drake Ayala (133), Ryder Block (149), Michael Caliendo (165), Patrick Kennedy (174) and Ben Kueter (285) will go at their respective weight classes. As for some of the contested weights, for injury purposes or lack of a standout guy, Nasir Bailey draws the nod at 141, Victor Voinovich starts at 157, Angelo Ferrari returns at 184 and Gabe Arnold is admirably making the bump up to 197 pounds.
For much of the season, there’s been a lack of clarity on those spots, but Iowa head coach Tom Brands confirmed those 10 will be the ones heading to State College, Pennsylvania, this week for the Big Ten Championships. Alternates can be submitted until 11:30 a.m. on March 6 and seeding can be altered up to 11:30 a.m. on March 7, so exact paths for each wrestler is still a bit unclear.
In any case, some of the biggest questions for Iowa were answered and Brands gave some insight on those decisions.
Before the postseason begins, let’s shed a light on Brands’ words on the key weights and break down what that means.
Nasir Bailey confident at 141 pounds
The 141-pound spot came down between Bailey and Kale Petersen. During the Minnesota dual on Jan. 30, Bailey had to take extensive injury time to have the wrap on his hands worked on. Since, Petersen wrestled the final five duals, but ultimately didn’t do enough to unseat Bailey from his spot.
“After that Minnesota match, we had to heal up,” Brands said of Bailey. “Kale Petersen had a chance and the decision making was that we’re going to ride the guy we were riding before.”
Bailey’s takedowns into turns from the top position are what allows him to separate from others. He’s also difficult to score on with his speed and leg defense. His win over Braeden Davis of Penn State, a former NCAA All-American, saw him score early in the first period with a high-single attack and then defend his way to a win by decision. Add in some more scores from neutral or some turns from the top position, and the path to being an All-American for the second time in his career is there when Bailey is at his best.
Bailey will now go as the No. 4 seed at the Big Ten Championships for his first-ever Big Ten Championships. Despite being off the mat for a while, he sounds like a confident wrestler ready to make noise in the postseason.
“Nothing really changed for me,” Bailey said. “I’ve been training, staying on the mat, getting in better shape, better conditioning. Might be a little bit better than I was before.”
Victor Voinovich III goes at 157 pounds on Tom Brands’ call
Voinovich got 14 matches in before the postseason, Jordan Williams got 15. That suggested the decision between the two was close, and Brands confirmed so before the Big Ten Championships.
“Very close, it’s my call” Brands said. “We went with Voinovich for maybe one reason. And that one reason is, a little bit more fight there maybe. Other than that, pretty even.”
Williams started the season at 8-2, but lost his final five matches to close the regular season. Williams was within striking distance in losses by decision or sudden victory to Penn State’ PJ Duke, last year’s national champion Antrell Taylor of Nebraska and Oklahoma State phenom Landom Robideau, but failed to have the signature win vs. those podium contenders.
As for Voinovich, he’s the starter and No. 10 seed after missing all of last season. His defense and positioning on the mat are what make him difficult to wrestle and how he reached the round of 16 at NCAAs in 2023. His trouble, at times, has been finishing attacks when in position. We saw him very little vs. the top-tier competition this year, so it’ll be an interesting storyline to follow at Big Tens to see how far he’s come in that regard since he and Williams were as close as Brands said.
Angelo Ferrari will return at 184 pounds
This one wouldn’t have been a question except for Ferrari’s absence since his loss to Rocco Welsh in the Penn State dual, but Ferrari will be back for the postseason. Brands disclosed they were working with the medical team to get him back earlier this season, but Brands did not add any further clarity on Ferrari’s injury status in his press conference on March 3 outside of saying they submitted their best lineup.
His key for Ferrari is to rack up points and widen the gap. For as good as he has been in Iowa City, opening up his matches with his skill level and getting bonus points in more matches is where Ferrari can improve. As the No. 8 seed, he’ll face top-tier competition right away, but Brands expressed confidence in his 184-pounder.
“Mom and dad have raised him to be a super competitor,” Brands said. “Go do what you were born and bred to do. He can score points. Everybody in our lineup can. It’s a matter of going out and winning tough matches and they don’t have to be close.”
Gabe Arnold admirably makes the bump to 197
Arnold said it best earlier this season about his flexibility from 174-197 pounds this season.
“It’s just wrestling, that’s all it is,” Arnold said. “There’s different weight classes, there’s this, there’s that. ‘Well, this guy’s huge. ‘Well, he weighed in this.’ Man, who gives a s—-? It’s just wrestling.”
Arnold will now be taking on the 197-pound weight class, having wrestled there just twice this season vs. UT Chattanooga and Utah Valley. He went 2-0 in those matches, despite at the time trying to descend to 174 pounds. At just 5-foot-7 according to the roster, wrestling at 197 will be a challenge. Add in that he is the No. 13 seed, his path will be a challenge from the start.
Even so, Arnold’s willingness and confidence to go anywhere they needed this season has been admirable, and his teammates’ words have spoken volumes. 174-pounder Patrick Kennedy, who has trained with Arnold the last few years by virtue of being similar weights, had high praise ahead of Big Tens.
“If he wrestles the way you should, and he makes guys wrestle him, I feel really good about Gabe Arnold. Always have,” Kennedy said.
It’s quite the shift from where Arnold was this summer. Iowa briefly announced he was off the roster but he was never technically removed. Arnold later said he needed to buy back into the reasons he came to Iowa. Now bumping from 174 to 197 pounds, it’s fair to see he’s committed to helping the team in whatever way he can this postseason.
“He has reset,” Brands said. “The low’s aren’t quite as low. You go through things as a competitor, you don’t want to be in certain roles as a competitor, you want to be the man. Sometimes when you’re not the man and you don’t get what you want, it’s easy to go to sucking your thumb or whatever. He has moderated that very well.”
Iowa wrestling’s seeding for the Big Ten Championships
Eli McKown covers high school sports and wrestling for the Des Moines Register. Contact him at Emckown@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @EMcKown23.
This article originally appeared on Hawk Central: Breaking down Iowa wrestling’s lineup decisions for the postseason
Reporting by Eli McKown, Des Moines Register / Hawk Central
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
