NCAA Preview & Predictions: 174 Pounds

NCAA Preview & Predictions: 174 Pounds

Preview and predictions for the 174-pound weight class for the 2017-18 NCAA DI wrestling season.

Oct 23, 2017 by Andrew Spey
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The 2017-18 NCAA wrestling season is officially underway, which means it's time to start rolling out our weight class previews.

A couple two-time All-Americans at 174 are lost to graduation in Zach Epperly and Kyle Crutchmer, as well as three-timer Brian Realbuto, athough two of his podium placements were down at 157. Several other one-time top eight finishers have also completed their collegiate careers. And while perhaps 174 is not as deep as 157 and 165, it still returns a good amount of its high-caliber talent. Additionally, a few quality 165-pounders are bumping up, infusing the division with fresh contenders. With the top tier being as good as any other weight, 174 should provide plenty of compelling storylines at this season's NCAA Tournament.

Other 2017-18 weight class previews: 125 Pounds | 133 Pounds | 141 Pounds | 149 Pounds | 157 Pounds | 165 Pounds

For our previews, we'll run down the top contenders, then make some way-too-early All-American and bloodround predictions and include an explanation.

Check out our 174 preview from last year.

Title Contenders

Mark Hall, Penn State
Bo Jordan, Ohio State
Zahid Valencia, Arizona State

The 174 weight class is a lot like 165 in that three guys have clearly distanced themselves from the rest of the pack. With all due respect to everyone else, it would come as a huge surprise if someone outside the top three came home with the 174 national championship.

Watch Mark Hall hand Zahid Valencia his only loss of the season in the NCAA semifinals:


Spey's Spredictions

1: Zahid Valencia, Arizona State
2: Mark Hall, Penn State
3: Bo Jordan, Ohio State
4: Daniel Lewis, Missouri
5: Myles Amine, Michigan
6: Ryan Preisch, Lehigh
7: Jacobe Smith, Oklahoma State
8: Ethan Ramos, North Carolina
R12: Taylor Lujan, Northern Iowa
R12: Brandon Womack, Cornell
R12: Drew Hughes, Michigan State
R12: Jadaen Bernstein, Navy

Deciding on the top three picks provided for ample tergiversation. I previously wrote an article where I predicted BoJo to finish first and Mark Hall to come in second. But a foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds, so I'll contradict today what I said yesterday and change up the order.

Hall had about as good a year as any 20-year-old could, winning an NCAA title and a UWW junior world championship. Zahid Valencia's year was almost as good, finishing third at the NCAAs and second at the junior worlds. Valencia was competing at a weight class 22 pounds heavier than Hall at worlds and may have beaten Mark in St. Louis if it weren't for an errant headgear grab. Both guys are must-see wrestlers and any match between them is essentially a coin flip. So today I'm feeling Valencia, while tomorrow I may be thinking Hall.

The same calculus can be applied to Bo Jordan. He's a toss-up in head-to-head matches with Valencia and Hall, and for the first time since his freshman year his wife won't be giving birth during the season. BoJo focused and having fun could be a big problem for the rest of the NCAA.

Watch BoJo eke out a victory in overtime against Mark Hall in the Big Ten finals:


Now that J'den Cox has graduated, the rest of Missouri's upper weights are all bumping up. Daniel Lewis is already a two-time All-American at 165, and I think he'll continue the streak up at his more natural weight.

Myles Amine had a tremendous 2017 tournament, finishing fourth from the No. 9 seed and blitzing past Brian Realbuto in the consolation semis. Amine has the speed to hang with anyone in the weight and should finish close to where he ended last season.

Lehigh's Ryan Preisch made a big leap from his second to third season on campus. He fell to Amine in the bloodround last year but racked up enough quality wins to earn a No. 6 seed at the tourney. He also came within moments of beating Hall, who is purportedly pretty decent at wrestling.

Watch Ryan Preisch come this close to beating Mark Hall in the semifinals of the 2017 Southern Scuffle:


Jacobe Smith doesn't have a long resume of DI matches, but he is a two-time junior college champ and went undefeated last season while redshirting at Oklahoma State. Division I was always the plan for Smith, and expect him to climb the rankings in short order.

Ethan Ramos had a superb 2015 NCAA tournament, finishing sixth from the No. 15 seed. He stumbled on his next two trips, failing to place both times, but his only losses last year were to guys that either I predicted to finish ahead of him in 2018 or that graduated in 2017. I think Ramos finds his way back to the podium in 2018.

I wish there were more eight All-American honors so I could find a place for Taylor Lujan. The Northern Iowa sophomore has one of the most fun styles to watch, and the more of his funky scrambles we get to see in Cleveland the better.

Brandon Womack was a bit of a surprise All-American last year at 165 pounds, finishing eighth form the No. 13 seed. I think the field at 174 is a little too crowded for him in 2018, but I would not be surprised if Womack found a way to break into the top eight now that he's at his more natural weight class.

Drew Hughes is also bumping up and I would similarly not be shocked if this physical wrestler brawled his way to an All-American honor. Jadaen Bernstein completes our top 12. A bloodround finisher in his last two appearances at NCAAs, the New Jersey native will be wrestling in his fourth NCAA Tournament if he qualifies. Needless to say I will be rooting for him to prove me wrong and finally earn an All-American medal.


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