2018-19 Depth Chart: Nebraska Cornhuskers Entering A New Era

2018-19 Depth Chart: Nebraska Cornhuskers Entering A New Era

An examination of Nebraska's 2018-19 depth chart shows a new generation of Huskers leading the way in Lincoln.

Aug 15, 2018 by Wrestling Nomad
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One of the sneaky good moves by the Big Ten was adding Nebraska to the conference. Now, the Cornhuskers' depth chart is built from a roster being crafted to compete and win the Big Ten.

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One of the sneaky good moves by the Big Ten was adding Nebraska to the conference. Now, the Cornhuskers' depth chart is built from a roster being crafted to compete and win the Big Ten.

The Big Red fans have been treated to four straight years of top-10 finishes, but the majority of the guys from those teams are gone. Mark Manning and his coaching staff have assembled a strong, young team and are consistently replenishing their reserves on the recruiting trail.

Below is a snapshot of the current Huskers' roster, broken down by weight and grade.

With no verbals yet from the class of 2019, the long-term outlooks below center heavily on the last two recruiting classes. For more on who the Nebraska staff might be targeting among the current crop of rising high school juniors and seniors, please check out Willie's article tomorrow.

125 Pounds

Weight

Spot

Name

Grade

125

1

Zeke Moisey

SR

125

2

Alex Thomsen

FR

This Season: The transfer of Zeke Moisey for his final year gives the team a strong All-American contender. Moisey enters this season with the second most career team points of anyone at 125, and he’s now paired up with a fellow District XI legend in assistant coach Bryan Snyder. If Moisey closes out his career as a three-time AA, it will be Nebraska's first 125 to make the podium since Paul Donahoe in 2008.

Long-Term Outlook: The Big Red are set for the next few years here with Alex Thomsen, a native of Underwood, right on the border with Nebraska and Iowa. Thomsen, who finished #27 on the 2018 Big Board, has been about the same size for most of high school and has some of the best level changes and cleanest leg attacks of any incoming lightweight. He'll also fit right in with the NWTC's freestyle program in the offseason.

133 Pounds

Weight

Spot

Name

Grade

133

1

Brian Peska

SR

133

2

Zak Hensley

SR

133

3

Tucker Sjomeling

FR

133

4

Christian Miller

FR

133

5

Jevon Parrish

FR

133

6

Josh Mason

FR

133

7

Jordan Kelber

FR

This Season: The short- and long-term took a major hit this offseason when NCAA qualifier Jason Renteria transferred out with three years of eligibility remaining. They do have two seniors to man the spot for 2018, Brian Peska and Zak Hensley. Peska wrestled in five duals last year, and Hensley wrestled in two. Hensley, a junior college transfer, did pin Peska at the start of the 2016-17 season when he was still at Iowa Central.

Long-Term Outlook: Right now, there are three freshmen who could battle to take the reins after this season. Tucker Sjomeling had a so-so redshirt season, while Josh Mason and Jevon Parrish will soon be arriving on campus. The coaches will have the data soon enough, but I imagine the staff will deem this an area of strong need in the next couple recruiting cycles.

141 Pounds

Weight

Spot

Name

Grade

141

1

Chad Red

SO

141

2

Aris Shino

SR

This Season: It may seem like it took Red all season to finally put it together at NCAAs and live up to his blue-chip hype, but more likely it was just the result of Red taking less impactful losses during the regular season at a weight that was one of the toughest in the country last year. He’ll once again be in the hunt to land on the podium next March in Pittsburgh.

Long-Term Outlook: Including this year, Red has three more seasons of eligibility left in Lincoln, but will he move up to 149? Mark Manning and Bryan Snyder will need to target the lower and middle weights over the next few years, and even if Red stays at 141, a 2020 target would be needed anyway to slot in after Red graduates.

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149 Pounds

Weight

Spot

Name

Grade

149

1

Collin Purinton

JR

149

2

Jordan Shearer

JR

149

3

Kyle Ruettiger

SO

This Season: Collin Purinton takes over for Colton McCrystal. Purinton had two good seasons competing primarily unattached as a non-starter, but went 11-15 during the year he was the starter. Now in his fourth year on campus, Purinton will be called upon to do better than go 0-2 at Big Tens as he did in 2017.

Long-Term Outlook: This is where the Huskers may have an ace in the hole. If Ironman champ Brock Hardy doesn’t grow during his two-year Mormon mission, he’ll come in right away as an older, blue-chip freshman. In the meantime, they can make due with Purinton and Kyle Ruettiger, as well as some spot starts from Jordan Shearer if Chad Red doesn’t go up in weight.

157 Pounds

Weight

Spot

Name

Grade

157

1

Tyler Berger

SR

157

2

Luke Weber

SO

157

3

Zemua Baptista

SO

157

4

Caleb Licking

SO

157

5

Peyton Robb

FR

157

6

Jake Silverstein

FR

This Season: Going into NCAAs, Husker fans probably wouldn’t have been excited at Tyler Berger’s chances of playing. But then he went and got third, two rungs up from his fifth place finish as a sophomore. Berger will be the senior leader of the program as Nebraska transitions to the next phase from the 2017 and 2018 recruiting classes.

Long-Term Outlook: With Isaiah White’s senior year coming next year, one of Jake Silverstein or Peyton Robb will still be at 157 next year. Beyond that, one will move up in weight and the other will man the spot held by James Green once upon a time. Robb was #31 on this year's Big Board and Silverstein #100, so there is a certain expectation of level of output from them in their college careers.

165 Pounds

Weight

Spot

Name

Grade

165

1

Isaiah White

JR

165

2

Dustin Williams

SR

165

3

Johnny Blankenship

SO

165

4

Dalton Peters

SO

This Season: Although Chad Red and Isaiah White may possibly be the two best wrestlers on the Nebraska roster, they also reside in the two toughest weights right now. Meaning, they could both place in March, but it's not necessarily wise to bet on it given the fields they'll be encountering. However, White will be ranked all year and, in the matches where he will be an underdog, upsets will still be possible.

Long-Term Outlook: See the 157 breakdown above. I believe it will be Robb who grows into 165 over Silverstein, but the Huskers staff should feel comfortable in their prospects here for the next four years.

174 Pounds

Weight

Spot

Name

Grade

174

1

Mikey Labriola

FR

174

2

Beau Breske

SO

This Season: Once a big-time recruit, Breske only won one match after the new year and did not come close to qualifying for NCAAs. Enter Labriola, a terror on his feet who made the JR trials finals with little to no freestyle experience. Combine that with his workout partners of White and Venz, not to mention Burroughs and Green, and Labriola should be one of this season's best freshmen.

Long-Term Outlook: Labriola has four years of eligibility left, and has done nothing but impress in his time in Lincoln. Any looks at 174 by the staff will be for the post-Labriola years, likely after several times placing at NCAAs and scoring team points in the teens or greater.

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184 Pounds

Weight

Spot

Name

Grade

184

1

Taylor Venz

SO

This Season: That's right, there's only one 184 listed on the Nebraska roster. Venz placed fourth at the national tournament last year, so it's reasonable to bet on him to get on the podium again this year. The Minnesota native had a 50-percent bonus rate last year, so picking up on that in duals and tournaments would show a nice progression in producing reliable points for the team.

Long-Term Outlook: There's absolutely no reason to do anything but start looking for the man after Venz, because he's not going anywhere and may be a national champ one day.

197 Pounds

Weight

Spot

Name

Grade

197

1

Eric Schultz

SO

197

2

Anthony Gaona

FR

197

3

Colton Wolfe

FR

197

4

Cade Svoboda

SO

This Season: Schultz will start the season ranked after going 2-2 at NCAAs. The #35 recruit on the 2016 Big Board has lived up to the billing in his first two years of college, losing only three matches in his redshirt year and successfully navigating his first go-round as a starter in the Big Ten.

Long-Term Outlook: As you can see, all four 197s are in their first or second year of eligibility, and Schultz only needs to pull off a couple wins to be an All-American contender by his senior year. The staff in Lincoln shouldn't shy away from guys in this range, but they should be set enough to focus their attention on freshmen and sophomores.

285 Pounds

Weight

Spot

Name

Grade

285

1

David Jensen

JR

285

2

Patrick Grayson

JR

285

3

Wyatt Wriedt

FR

285

4

Christian Lance

JR

285

5

Tanner Farmer

SR

285

6

Austin Emerson

FR

This Season: Jensen and Grayson split time last year, with the majority of duals going to Jensen, as well as the spot for Big Tens. Jensen has just one win over an NCAA qualifier so far in his career, but that's one more than Grayson has. So it's a long shot that the Huskers get a heavyweight to Pittsburgh, let alone score team points. However, it should be noted that Jensen finished third at 125kg at U23 Trials with wins over Garrett Ryan and Tate Orndorff.

Long-Term Outlook: The circumstances that had Emerson landing in Lincoln were unfortunate, but he ended his high school career as a top-five-ranked heavyweight, so expectations could be high. However, both Jensen and Grayson were Big Board recruits coming out, so it is important to remember how difficult it can be to project big men at the DI level.