Seeds headed into the tourney:
As mentioned by SWWYOPOKE, Volk is number five and will wrestle the #28 seed from Harvard.
Novak is the #17 seed and will wrestle the #16 seed from Princeton.
Willochell is the #22 seed and will wrestle the #11 seed from Rider.
Release:
These wrestlers represent a sophomore, a freshman, and a redshirt sophomore respectively.
Not making an at a large bid was #33 Cole Brooks (the NCAA takes 33 wrestlers per weight class…so he was close)…also a freshman.
So, there is some really good youth on this team and Branch did a great job with the last class concerning both true freshman and transfers and I hope none transfer out.
One thing I wonder about is the assistant coaches….the two main assistants both being former Wyoming wrestlers and both in their first jobs. They seem to be doing well, but the lack of experience is noticeable at least on paper. Not sure how that compares to OU, OSU, etc….or maybe it is not a concern at all as Branch certainly appears comfortable with them, especially after the last assistant went back to OU and took multiple Wyoming wrestlers with him.
Regardless, Wyoming very much needs to keep climbing the hill and improving. Looking across teams, the following all qualified a wrestler for NCAAs in every weight class: Cornell, Minnesota, Missouri,
Oklahoma State, Penn State, Virginia Tech, NC State. Surprised that Navy even had five qualifiers.
As mentioned by SWWYOPOKE, Volk is number five and will wrestle the #28 seed from Harvard.
Novak is the #17 seed and will wrestle the #16 seed from Princeton.
Willochell is the #22 seed and will wrestle the #11 seed from Rider.
Release:
NCAA Releases Wrestling Championship Brackets - University of Wyoming Athletics
LARAMIE, Wyo. (3/13/24) – The NCAA released its brackets Wednesday for the 2024 Wrestling Championships held March 21-23 in Kansas City, Missouri. All three University
gowyo.com
These wrestlers represent a sophomore, a freshman, and a redshirt sophomore respectively.
Not making an at a large bid was #33 Cole Brooks (the NCAA takes 33 wrestlers per weight class…so he was close)…also a freshman.
So, there is some really good youth on this team and Branch did a great job with the last class concerning both true freshman and transfers and I hope none transfer out.
One thing I wonder about is the assistant coaches….the two main assistants both being former Wyoming wrestlers and both in their first jobs. They seem to be doing well, but the lack of experience is noticeable at least on paper. Not sure how that compares to OU, OSU, etc….or maybe it is not a concern at all as Branch certainly appears comfortable with them, especially after the last assistant went back to OU and took multiple Wyoming wrestlers with him.
Regardless, Wyoming very much needs to keep climbing the hill and improving. Looking across teams, the following all qualified a wrestler for NCAAs in every weight class: Cornell, Minnesota, Missouri,
Oklahoma State, Penn State, Virginia Tech, NC State. Surprised that Navy even had five qualifiers.
