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

No weight division saw a larger exodus of talent over the offseason than 184. The 2017 NCAA tournament was laden with seniors. Four-time All-American and two-time champion Gabe Dean is gone. Three-time All-American TJ Dudley has finished his collegiate career, as have two-time All-Americans Nolan Boyd, Sam Brooks, and Nate Jackson. Though "only" a one-time All-American, Jack Dechow is a four-time national qualifier and received a seed on three occasions. His absence this year will be a relief to the rest of the 184-pound field. Two different NCAA champions are still planning on wrestling at 2018's tournament, but expect some new faces on the podium.

Other 2017-18 weight class previews: 125 Pounds | 133 Pounds | 141 Pounds | 149 Pounds | 157 Pounds | 165 Pounds | 174 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 184 preview from last year.

Title Contenders

Bo Nickal, Penn State
Myles Martin, Ohio State

In last year's preview, the title contenders list was just the two guys mentioned above plus Gabe Dean. With Dean out of eligibility, our 2018 list shrinks to two. There's always an outside shot one of the many other quality contenders finds a way to pull off an improbably title run, but Bo Nickal and Myles Martin, by dint of the NCAA championships they already possess, have separated themselves from the next tier of competitors.

Watch Myles Martin defeat Bo Nickal for the second time in his career at the 2017 Big Ten Tournament semifinals:

Spey's Spredictions

1: Bo Nickal, Penn State
2: Myles Martin, Ohio State
3: Peter Renda, North Carolina State
4: Zack Zavatsky, Virginia Tech
5: Domenic Abounader, Michigan
6: ​Drew Foster, Northern Iowa
7: Emery Parker, Illinois
8: Cash Wilcke, Iowa
R12: Nick Gravina, Rutgers
R12: Jordan Ellingwood, Central Michigan
R12: ​Bryce Carr, Chattanooga
R12: Steven Schneider, Binghamton

Bo Nickal is always a treat to watch. He's fearless and has a killer instinct. Nickal is as comfortable with upper body throws as he is with low-risk ankle picks. The junior from Allen, Texas, also has a long frame that can lock up cradles from nearly anywhere. He's only got three losses in his career, and it would not surprise me if that's the highest that total climbs.

Two of those aforementioned three losses Nickal suffered were to one guy, Myles Martin. The true junior from New Jersey is still only 2-4 in his varsity career against Nickal, although those two matches were two of the biggest in Martin's career, the 2016 NCAA finals and the 2017 Big Ten semis. Now that Martin is in his third year in the vaunted Ohio State room, I think he gets a handle on the rest of the weight class but falls just short of a third upset over his nemesis.

Watch Nickal leave no doubt as he hands Martin an 8-2 defeat at a dual meet in Columbus, Ohio:


Pete Renda comes off of his redshirt at an opportune time. Now a senior, Renda notched victories over Domenic Abounader, Zack Zavatsky, and Nolan Boyd during his third-place run in the 2016 NCAAs as a true junior. Renda had a relatively quiet redshirt season but also stayed busy on the freestyle circuit. I believe the field is ripe for another deep run by the Wolfpacker by way of Topton, Pennsylvania.

Virginia Tech's Zack "ZZTop" Zavatsky has had two excellent regular seasons, earning the No. 5 seed in his first two trips to the NCAAs. The junior has unfortunately yet to reach the podium; however, I think he remedies that this season in Cleveland.

Drew Foster was Northern Iowa's best-kept secret until he found his groove at the NCAA tournament and placed seventh. The junior from Burlington, Iowa, is in prime position to repeat this year. I think Illinois' Emery Parker will join Foster for the first time. The junior from Wadsworth, Illinois, came up just short in St. Louis, falling in the bloodround to Nate Jackson.

Watch Drew Foster take out fellow All-American contender Bryce Carr in the quarterfinals of the 2017 Southern Scuffle:


Cash Wilcke's appearance on this list should clue you into my having penciled Pat Downey in at 197 for the Hawkeyes. Pat Downey won't appear on the Iowa roster until the second semester, and there is still a chance he goes 184. But for now the tea leaves say Wilcke will be at his more natural weight of 184 and Downey will be back up to 197 where he competed when he placed fifth at the 2016 NCAA tournament. After Wilcke's surprise qualification and heroic round of 12 finish in St. Louis, I think he is ready to take the next step and earn his first All-American honor in 2018.

Nick Gravina is one of the toughest wrestlers in the NCAA, and leaving him off the podium is one of the toughest decisions I've had to make. Gravina has pulled off some big upsets before, thanks to a devastating slide-by and tenacious leg-riding. If he deploys them effectively in Cleveland, expect to see him in the final eight.

Jordan Ellingwood, Bryce Carr, and Steven Schneider are also all capable of earning All-American honors. You can add Ricky Robertson and Michael Coleman to that list of names as well. It gets very murky towards this end of the 184-pound talent pool, in that there are any number of talented competitors that have all proven themselves capable of taking it to the next level. Someone will inevitably emerge, however, and that will be one of the most entertaining aspects of the upcoming season.

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