CP's Superdual Breakdown: Minnesota Comes to Carver

CP's Superdual Breakdown: Minnesota Comes to Carver

Jan 24, 2014 by Christian Pyles
CP's Superdual Breakdown: Minnesota Comes to Carver

Iowa v. Minnesota Superdual
Christian Pyles

It’s always great when these two rivals get together. Last year we had the crazy Evans/Storley battle, the Nick Moore domination of Cody Yohn, and Minnesota was just too tough for the Hawkeyes at National Duals.

Fast forward a year later, both teams are coming off fairly poor dual showings. MInnesota fell to Michigan where we saw 3 highly ranked wrestlers for Minnesota fall. Meanwhile in the Iowa v. Nebraska dual, Iowa dropped the 3 biggest matches of the dual at 149, 157 and 174.

Both teams are looking to get back on track. The Hawkeyes will take the mat in the most storied arena in all of wrestling: Carver Hawkeye Arena. While the atmosphere is daunting, Iowa has tasted defeat at Carver this year when PSU rolled to town. Minnesota, the reigning National Duals Champions certainly have the pedigree to leave CHA victorious.

To the matchups!

125-#4 Thomas Gilman-Iowa v. Sam Brancale-Minnesota

Does Cory Clark get another shot for the Hawkeyes, or is the spot the property of Thomas Gilman until he falls? I’m not sure but with every dual Thomas takes the mat I think there’s less of a chance we see Clark return as a starter. Gilman has been a rock this year for the Hawkeyes. Midlands champ, beat Jesse Delgado as well as Jarrod Garnett. He recently dispelled a very tough Tim Lambert, but it was only a one point victory for Gilman.

The Hawkeyes will likely need a combination of an upset and a bonus point to win this dual. When you look at the disparity in ability between these two, you could predict bonus points. However, Gilmans nature is to stay within himself, hold position and pick his spots. He is a great rider, but he focuses a tremendous amount of energy on simply riding the guys ankle and controlling the hips and doesn’t work for the turn. If he is content with a first period takedown and ride out, then getting out on bottom and riding out in the 2nd or 3rd, he’ll come away with a win, but won’t get bonus points. If Gilman wants to win, he needs to go td and release and earn the RT point through attrition.

Brancale is tough, but not ready to notch a big win. He’s wrestled some good wrestlers tough and even majored a solid Pat Rollins. He only gave up bonus to Tyler Cox this year (a tech fall). You may say to yourself SURELY if Tyler Cox can bonus him, Thomas Gilman will. Not so fast my friend, Tyler Cox is a point scorer. Takedowns, throws, tilts, and other turns he can run up the score in a hurry. That’s not Gilmans game. If Gilman goes I expect a lopsided match, but it’s going to be in that 6-9 point win range.
I’ll go with my gut.

Thomas Gilman WBD Sam Brancale

Iowa-3
Minnesota-0

133-#3 Tony Ramos-Iowa v. #9 David Thorn-Minnesota

Has anyone else called the Thorn brothers the Thornadoes? I may consider coining that. David Thorn is a wild man. He looks great at 33 so far, and has done a great job producing for the Gophers. He’s right on the bubble to place right now as the 9th ranked wrestler. That just shows how loaded 133 is this year. He’s got a familiar opponent in Tony Ramos. While it has been some time since they’ve met, the matches have typically been close.

They were both Freshman 133 pounders when they last mixed it up. We all know that Ramos has jumped levels like crazy since then. However, I think there’s something to be said for matchups. I think Thorn matches up well because he’s got a great tank. Even better than Chris Dardanes. While he may not be as skilled or successful as Dardanes, I think he’s flat out a better match up against Tony. David has good lateral movement contrary to Chris and his straight forward brawler style. Most guys Tony has widened the gap against. Thorn is one guy who got a bit closer each time, culminating in a 7-5 defeat at NCAA’s in sudden victory.

Thorn does tend to leave his legs open a bit too often and that will probably be the difference here. I see Ramos getting to his attacks, finishing with little issue for a 5-2 type of win. I don’t see Ramos wearing Thorn out til he breaks and give us another signature pancake. Think Morrison v. Tony. Thorn’s not quite on Jon’s level, but he can make Tony work for it.

Tony Ramos WBD David Thorn
Iowa-6
Minnesota-0

141-#5 Chris Dardanes-Minnesota v. #12 Josh Dziewa-Iowa

Hoping we see Dardanes here. He missed the Michigan dual. Minnesota absolutely needs him here. Their backup Shupe won’t be adequate here. Dziewa has been alright, but it’s never a dull moment. He can wow you with his ducks and his riding ability, and can absolutely baffle you with some of the points he gives up. I admire his “go for it” spirit, but he needs to make a few adjustments to avoid giving up key points.

To call Dziewa v. Dardanes a style clash is an understatement. Chris Dardanes is going to pull on your head, battle for ties and look to get to his single. He’s very physical, extremely fundamental and can struggle from bottom. Dziewa is slicker, funky and likes to be on top. Dziewa’s style is somewhat similar to Joe Spisak of UVA who pulled a big upset over Dardanes. I think Spisak is a bit more fundamental and stingy with giving up points, however.
If Dardanes wrestles, I see him controlling the pace and ties and getting a few takedowns. Perhaps he gets ridden, but I don’t think it will matter.

Chris Dardanes WBD Josh Dziewa

Iowa-6
Minnesota-3

149-#2 Nick Dardanes-Minnesota v. #6 Brody Grothus-Iowa

Tough one to project here. Dardanes looked quite average against Grajales and really struggled from bottom. Grothus is akin to Dziewa in that he’s good on top, but can give up a lot of points in the process. Grothus was handled by Jake Sueflohn last week and is looking to show his run of wins over Tsirtsis, Habat and Kindig were not flukes.

I like Dardanes here. I think he’s fundamental enough from his feet to get a takedown. He needs to be careful on the mat. Maybe he will consider staying neutral with Grothus? Perhaps I’m even overstating Grothus’ top abillity a bit. This is a really really tough one for me. Just don’t know which Dardanes we will get!

Nick Dardanes WBD Brody Grothus

Iowa-6
Minnesota-6


157-#11 Dylan Ness-Minnesota v. #2 Derek St. John-Iowa

Both guys looking to rebound from losses last week. Ness fell in SV to Brian Murphy of Michigan. DSJ fell to a familiar foe in James Green.

Over time Ness seems to be getting scouted more and more. His elevator stuff isn’t working with as much regularity, and I think guys are figuring out how to attack his legs and finish. Ness has shown he can slow it down and wrestle tough guys close: Dieringer this year, JO last year. But when he does that, he really limits his scoring opportunities.

Kind of a darned if you do darned if you don’t situation. I see Dylan keeping it close with DSJ. He won’t be able to out-scramble DSJ who is possibly one of the best scramblers in D1 right now. A takedown or 2 will be the difference here.

Derek St. John WBD Dylan Ness

Iowa-9
Minnesota-6

165-Danny Zilverberg v. #5 Nick Moore-Iowa

Nick Moore has looked great all year. I had high hopes for Zilverberg moving up a weight. He was really good at 157 a year ago, but to this point he has done little to suggest he’s the same guy he was at 157 when he beat David Bonin, Dylan Alton, Joey Napoli, Taylor Walsh, Nestor Taffur and Kyle Bradley. That’s a pretty nice list of studs and Danny beat them all. However, it’s a new year and he’s a different guy.

Moore has looked improved from a year ago. Was darn close to beating Monk at Midlands and his only other blemish is David Taylor. He’s been one of the most consistently offensive Hawkeyes, frequently getting to the legs. He prefers to shoot with his head outside and has improved his finishes. I think this is a win for Moore with little issue, but Zilverberg is a tough guy to score on. Between Zilverbergs top game and scrambling ability, I think it’s just a decision.

Nick Moore WBD Danny Zilverberg

Iowa-12
Minnesota-6


174-#5 Logan Storley-Minnesota v. #6 Mike Evans-Iowa

Alright, I’ve been a bit critical of Evans for his lack of progression/evolution. He’s tough, very physical but can be too reliant on his defense. He struggles to set up his shots at times and hasn’t been able to ride elite guys. He and Storley have had their battles, but Storley has always had the edge. 4-3, 3-1 and 3-2 are the scores. Evans was closest in their first meeting.

Storley himself hasn’t had a banner season either. He’s won the matches he should win but fell to Perry and Brown, two guys he’s beaten. Storley is solid on his feet, very tough to takedown. He likes slides and ducks and can attack both legs well. However, like Evans, he prefers to pick his spots in lieu of consistent attacks.

Both of these guys have had similar seasons. If they faced someone real tough, they’ve lost. Evans fell to Perry, Brown and Kokesh. I’d say Storley has the best win between the two with a 7-3 win over Tyler Wilps of Pittsburgh.

I am really struggling with this one. We’ve got history on the side of Storley, the seasons they’ve had are probably a wash, and we’ve got the Carver Hawkeye factor. Should it be a factor? Almost every dual there has at least one big, unexpected win for the Hawkeyes, so why not this one? Evans has to be chomping at the bit to finally get a big win under his belt this year.
I’ve been burnt a bit going with history over who is looking better. I’ll take a flyer here on Evans. This is the most anti-CP prediction I’ve ever made.

Mike Evans WBD Logan Storley

Iowa-15
Minnesota-6


184-#7 Kevin Steinhaus v. #4 Ethen Lofthouse

Huge one here. I love Steinhaus, always have. His motion is electric, and his attacks are dynamic. He’s got ducks and leg attacks to both sides of the body. In the dual last year Steinhaus beat the mess out of Lofthouse. Ethen got the last laugh at NCAA’s, but I maintain Steinhaus is the better guy. I’ll take Kevin to get the win here. Maybe we see Brooks go for the Hawkeyes, but I’m guessing we’ll see Ethen.

Ethen has been looking good this year. The two time All American has looked solid and has shored up some of his inconsistencies from a year ago. He shoots both a single and high crotch. He is a good finisher who likes to hold position once he gets to the leg and works his way to the takedown.

If I had to give an advantage to anyone on the mat it’d have to be to Steinhaus. He rides with good forward pressure, gets wrists and likes to work tilts.

I like Steinhaus here. He’s had some problems and fell to Sam Wheeler, but I still think he’s the better guy.

Kevin Steinhaus WBD Ethen Lofthouse

Iowa-15
Minnesota-9

197-#1 Scott Schiller-Minnesota v. #17 Nathan Burak-Iowa
I know, big ranking disparity, right? But seriously, this should be a close one. In their first meeting Burak absolutely lived on Schillers legs. He simply couldn’t finish. In the rematch Burak was out-schemed by Schiller who re-attacked him for takedowns the whole match.

Schiller has been phenomenal all season long and is the clear favorite to win a title at 197. He got over the hump with Meeks, has beaten Gadson twice and hasn’t lost since the All Star match against Meeks. Schiller, who has always been offensive, is taking more and more attacks than before. He loves his double leg and does a nice job of finishing with a single if the guy feeds him one leg.
Schiller isn’t the biggest 197, but he makes up for it with his attacks and ability to create angles. He is serviceable enough on the mat, but neither of these guys make their money there.

It’s a one or two takedown match and I see it going Schiller’s way.

Watch more video of Cliff Keen National Duals Finals 2013 on flowrestling.org

Scott Schiller WBD Nathan Burak

Iowa-15
Minnesota-9

285-#2 Tony Nelson-Minnesota v. #4 Bobby Telford-Iowa
Nelson is coming in off a loss to Adam Coon here and will have an opportunity for another big win as he takes on a very familiar opponent.

I won’t belabor the point. Nelson is 5-0 against Telford. Telford has struggled to solve Nelson’s riding on top and has never taken him down. I don’t see a real change in that trend. Nelson probably won’t get a TD, but Telford certainly won’t. Nelson is better on the mat and that’s the difference.

Tony Nelso WBD Bobby Telford

Iowa-15
Minnesota-15

This is a weird dual. Because on paper, in a vacuum I like Minnesota in 6 of 10. I gave the edge to Evans, for reasons I can't really describe.  I just like how Iowa has been wrestling by and large.  I see a lot of opportunities where Iowa could pull upsets.  I do not see those opportunities for Minnesota in the matches they arent favored (25, 33,57 and 65).  For that reason, I see Iowa finding a way to win.  I think they have some bonus opportunities as well with 25 and 65.  I'll take Iowa on criteria 16-15.

My order of outcome from most confident to least:

Thomas Gilman
Nick Moore
Tony Nelson
Tony Ramos
Derek St. John
Scott Schiller
Kevin Steinhaus
Chris Dardanes
Nick Dardanes
Mike Evans