Wrestling

The first day of the 2022 NCAA wrestling championships is in the books after the nation's best grapplers hit the mats at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit.

Penn State, which saw its run of four straight national championships end at the hands of Iowa in 2021, looks like it might be headed for another title under head coach Cael Sanderson.

The Nittany Lions sit atop the team standings already.

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2022 NCAA Wrestling Championships Team Standings

1. Penn State, 27.5

2. Arizona State, 22.0

3. NC State 21.5

4. Michigan, 21.0

4. Iowa, 20.5

6. Northern Iowa, 15.0

T7. Nebraska, 14.5

T7. Virginia Tech, 14.5

T9. Oregon State, 14.0

T9. Cornell, 14.0

Full standings available at TrackWrestling.com

Day 1 Recap

Oregon State is sitting ninth in the standings thanks in no small part to Hunter Willits, who delivered the biggest upset of the opening day.

Willits overcame Penn State's Brady Berge in the morning session, which put him on a collision course with top-seeded David Carr of Iowa State. Carr was the 157-pound national champion in 2021 and was a perfect 21-0 this year entering the tournament.

Carr's 55-match winning streak is no more after Willits escaped during their first tiebreaker to deal the decisive blow. The Beavers junior understandably was almost at a loss for words immediately after his stunning victory:

That result was also indicative of how unpredictable the tournament can be:

Jaydin Eierman fought his way to the 2021 final, falling to Penn State's Nick Lee. His quest for gold ended much earlier in Detroit as the Iowa standout was stopped by North Carolina's Kizhan Clarke via sudden victory.

That makes the path to a repeat a little easier for Lee.

All in all it was a good day for Lee and his Nittany Lions teammates, as evidenced by their position in the team standings. Roman Bravo-Young (133 pounds), Carter Starocci (174 pounds), Aaron Brooks (184 pounds), Max Dean (197 pounds) and Greg Kerkvliet (285 pounds) are all still alive in addition to Lee.

If you're curious to know how Olympic gold medalist Gable Steveson is faring, he's well on his way to a successful title defense at 285 pounds.

The Minnesota star overcame Northern Iowa's Tyrell Gordon and Missouri's Zach Elam by technical fall. Steveson showcased his incredible athleticism when he leapt over Elam and sealed the win.

Northwestern's Lucas Davison, Steveson's opponent in the next round, will have to add that to the laundry list of things to prepare for when he takes on the top seed.

The action in Detroit will resume Friday with the morning session at 11 a.m. ET. The night session will get underway at 8 p.m. ET.

Wisconsin wrestler Austin Gomez said a fan directed a racial slur at him during this past weekend's match against Iowa at Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

"Iowa fans are some of the most loyal and passionate fans in the country who will back their team no matter what and I love that," Gomez tweeted. "But there comes a time where certain fans (not all fans) cross a line that doesn't need to be crossed."

He also said he wasn't surprised by the treatment since he experienced something similar in front of Hawkeyes fans when he wrestled for Iowa State from 2017 to 2020.

"Hopefully there is action taken so other student-athletes and families don't have to have the same experience in the future," Gomez added while pointing out his mother and 16-year-old sister were in the stands when fans were verbally abusing his family.

The Associated Press (h/t ESPN) reported the Iowa athletic department formally apologized to Gomez and released a statement that said, in part, "The University of Iowa denounces any act of hatred and is committed to providing a safe and equitable environment. Any individual found in violation of our fan behavior policy is subject to being banned from attending future Hawkeye athletic events."

Wisconsin athletic director Chris McIntosh also responded to the situation and appreciated Iowa's response.

"This behavior has no place in the Big Ten and college athletics as a whole," McIntosh said. "It is totally unacceptable. We have been in contact with Austin, his parents and the Iowa athletics administration and I am thankful that our colleagues at Iowa are investigating the incident. I appreciate the Gomez family having the courage to bring this to light. They have our complete support."

While Iowa won the overall match 29-6, Gomez earned a 3-2 decision over Vince Turk in the 149-pound match.

Two Oklahoma State athletes, wrestler AJ Ferrari and distance runner Isai Rodriguez, were injured in a car crash Monday night near Perkins, Oklahoma.

ESPN's Dave Wilson reported Tuesday the Oklahoma Highway Patrol said a vehicle driven by Ferrari "attempted to pass three vehicles while cresting a hill," which led to a crash with an oncoming car that caused Ferrari's SUV to overturn multiple times before landing in a ditch. Rodriguez was a passenger in the vehicle.

Both Ferrari and Rodriguez are in fair condition at separate hospitals. The driver of the other vehicle, Valenda McKee, was not injured in the crash, per Wilson. Officers said all three were wearing their seatbelts.

Oklahoma State told ESPN neither athlete is dealing with life-threatening injuries.

The Oklahoma Highway Patrol listed the cause of the crash as "passing in a no-passing zone," but it's unclear whether criminal charges will be filed in the case.

Robert Allen of Pokes Report noted Cowboys football offensive coordinator Kasey Dunn was a witness to the crash and helped remove Ferrari from the SUV after it caught fire.

Ferrari most recently competed Sunday when he scored a 12-2 win over JT Davis as part of OSU's victory over Lehigh. He's the reigning NCAA champion in the 197-pound weight class and signed a name, image and likeness (NIL) deal with WWE in December.

Rodriguez helped the Oklahoma State men's track and field team win the Big 12 cross country championships in October with a second-place finish in the 8K. He finished 22nd in the 10K at the NCAA championships in November as OSU finished third as a team.

The University of Iowa made history on Thursday.

The Hawkeyes athletics department announced it will add women's wrestling as an intercollegiate program, becoming the first Division I, Power Five school to do so. The team will begin competing in the 2023-24 season.

"Our wrestling history and success makes this a perfect fit," Iowa's athletic director Gary Barta said in a press release. "We are confident that at Iowa, our women’s wrestling student-athletes will have the opportunity to compete at the highest level athletically and academically."

In 2020, women's wrestling became recognized as an emerging sport by the NCAA for Division I, Division II and Division III. There are 45 intercollegiate women's wrestling programs, with five in the state of Iowa. At least 40 NCAA varsity programs are required to gain full championship status.

"This is historic," Iowa wrestling head coach Tom Brands said. "This needed to happen and it’s appropriate that it is happening first at the University of Iowa. There is no greater place in the world to wrestle than Iowa City, Iowa, and with our new wrestling facility we are prepared to offer world-class training for both our Hawkeye men and women."

The Hawkeyes are one of the best wrestling programs in NCAA history with 24 team championships, the second-most all time, with their most recent win coming in 2021.

Some 32 states have sanctioned high school girl's wrestling championships. As the first Power Five school to offer women's wrestling, Iowa will have a huge head start in recruiting.

"We are committed to gender equity and Title IX compliance," Barta said. "As the national landscape related to enrollment continues to change, adding women’s wrestling puts us in a better position for the future."

Iowa will begin its search for a women's wrestling coach this fall.     

CM Punk believes now is the time for the professional wrestling business to get shaken to its core.

In an interview with Scott Fishman of TVInsider.com on Thursday, Punk gave his opinion on what needs to be done to breathe new life into pro wrestling:

"I think the older the stuff is the better. I think it's partly unfortunate that WWE owns the super good libraries in pro wrestling. I think that stuff is classic and they don't even put it on their network. They are sitting on it. I want to watch Austin Idol versus Jerry Lawler in Memphis. I do think the landscape of pro wrestling in general really needs a kick in the d--k. I think we are about there. I think there are people out there stirring the pot and causing trouble in a good way. It's a fun world. There is nothing like it. Pro wrestling gets crapped on by a number of people. But when it's done on a high level and it’s really good, there is nothing better."

Punk did the interview to promote his involvement with the Starz series Heels, which is based on the world of small-town pro wrestling, but his comments also came amid rumors that he may be the one to turn the wrestling world as a whole on its head.

Rumors are running rampant that Punk has signed with AEW and is set to debut for the company soon. It would mark his first appearance on a major pro wrestling show in more than seven years since leaving WWE after the 2014 Royal Rumble.

Punk's AEW debut could come as soon as next week on the Aug. 20 episode of Rampage, which will emanate from the United Center in Punk's hometown of Chicago.

That show is being branded as "The First Dance," which has led to speculation on a Punk appearance. The mere possibility of Punk debuting played a big role in the show selling out in short order.

For the past seven years, Punk has been viewed as one of the biggest--if not the biggest--free agents in wrestling. While Punk undoubtedly received his fair share of offers during that time, he resisted the urge to come back.

The fact that Punk left WWE on bad terms likely meant he wanted to wrestle somewhere other than WWE, although no company had established itself as a strong No. 2.

AEW undoubtedly has, and it seems to be on an upward trajectory to the point that it could rival WWE's television viewership numbers in the near future.

Given his popularity, Punk's arrival would give AEW a significant boost and even more momentum than it already has.

WWE is firmly established and has likely entered "too big to fail" territory thanks largely to multiple billion-dollar television deals, but if Punk believes a legitimate and serious alternative is needed, he can play a big role in AEW being that alternative.

Listen to Ring Rust Radio for all of the hot wrestling topics. Catch the latest episode in the player below (warning: some language NSFW).

An elite boarding school in New Jersey is being sued by a former student wrestler over claims coaches and administrators allowed the team to haze him despite repeated claims of harassment and sexual assault. 

The unnamed wrestler is suing the Blair Academy, four administrators and four coaches—including former head coach Brian Antonelli—for unspecified damages, according to Lori Comstock of the New Jersey Herald. 

The alleged hazing began in 2016 when the plaintiff was a freshman. During a December road trip with the nationally recognized wrestling program, the student claims two teammates forced him into a bed before stripping his clothes and pulling him in a hotel shower. 

Antonelli "merely laughed the incident off," the suit claims, and told the wrestler the hazing was a "rite of passage" and would only last "the first few months." 

The plaintiff—identified as John Doe in the lawsuit—claims he suffered through repeated incidents of harassment throughout his four years at the boarding school, reportedly requiring him to step away from the team on occasion. 

Now a wrestler at a nationally ranked program in college, the plaintiff said Antonelli convinced him to rejoin the team as a freshman by explaining they needed him for qualifying points. 

Per Comstock:

"Antonelli allegedly witnessed one incident in which the boy was tackled to the ground on campus but did nothing about it. The boy said he also received explicit threats from a wrestler that he would be victimized by gangs. Someone also set up a 'fake web account' in the boy's name on a Blair Academy computer server and filled it with pornographic images and threats, the suit said.

"The boy said he had a meeting during his senior year with Christopher Fortunato, then the academy's head of school, and other administrators, but that they refused to look into the incidents. Fortunato, who left the school last December, told him to 'fight through it and take a few days off,' the lawsuit says." 

Blair coaches are alleged to have also called the wrestler's soon-to-be college coach encouraging them to revoke their scholarship offer to the plaintiff, arguing he was a "baby" and had to "toughen up." 

Fortunato nor Antonelli responded for comment to the New Jersey Herald. A Blair Academy spokesman said the school does not comment on pending litigation.