While last year's historic showing will not be easy to duplicate, Team Michigan still brings plenty of firepower to Fargo. 

The contingent boasts four of last year's seven All-Americans, including national champions Braeden Davis and Josh Barr, who helped Michigan place third in Junior freestyle for its best team finish since 1975. 

One of the state's 16U All-Americans is also back, along with two other nationally-ranked performers, which means seven wrestlers on Michigan's roster are either returning All-Americans, nationally-ranked, or both.  

2021 Team Freestyle Finishes 

16U — 25th 

Junior — third 

2021 Fargo All-Americans  

16U freestyle 

Jackson Blum  — sixth at 106

Adam Haselius — sixth at 195 

Junior freestyle 

Braeden Davis — first at 113

Caden Horwath — eighth at 113

Drew Heethuis — seventh at 113

Casey Swiderski — second at 138

Jacob Gonzalez — seventh at 152

Josh Barr — first at 160

Manny Rojas — first at 170 

Hammers To Watch 

#3 Braeden Davis (Junior/120) — A year ago, the Penn State recruit became just the second member of a very exclusive club when added a junior title to the cadet crown he captured in 2019, knocking off four-time Fargo All-American Ben Aranda (Illinois) in the title match. Davis also beat Minnesota's Alan Koehler, currently ranked #14 at 120. Davis, a Dundee product, and St. Johns legend Ben Whitford, a four-time state champion, are the only Michigan wrestlers to capture both 16U freestyle and Junior freestyle titles in Fargo. Davis won his third state championship last season, finishing the season 41-2. His only losses were to three-time state champion Caden Horwath (Davison), who is ranked #6 in the nation at 125. Davis, #16 on the Class of 2023 Big Board, owns a 108-6 high school record.  In September, Davis knocked off New Jersey's Leo Deluca, ranked #10 nationally at 120, at Who's #1, and was fourth at Super 32 in 2020.

#6 Josh Barr (Junior/170) — The Penn State commit, who is ranked #16 pound-for-pound, finished atop the 160-pound freestyle division last season after taking down several state champions. He bested Aiden Riggins, a two-time Iowa state champion, in the title match. Riggins is #5 at 160. Barr also knocked off two-time Wisconsin state champion Braeden Scoles, who is #8 at 160. Barr was fourth in the 16U competition in 2019. Last month, he bested some big names during the U20 World Team Trials, including four-time Georgia State champion and 2021 Super 32 winner Matt Singleton, who is ranked #13 pound-for-pound and #1 at 182. Barr then beat four-time Oregon state champion James Rowley, who is #8 at 170, and three-time Pennsylvania state champion Joey Milano, who went 23-6 in open competition during his true freshman season at North Carolina State. During the high school season, Barr beat Detroit Catholic Central's Manny Rojas (#17 pound-for-pound, #7 at 170) twice, including in the state title match which gave Barr his third state championship while denying Rojas a third. Barr, #8 on the Class of 2023 Big Board, finished 28-1  last season and owns a 95-1 high school mark. 

#5 Caden Horwath (Junior/120) — The University of Michigan commit, was a bit dinged up going to Fargo last year and finished below his expectations in eighth. Horwath was second in the 16U competition in 2019. Still, the three-time state champion beat some quality competition in Fargo last year, including four-time Wyoming state champion Sefton Douglass, three-time Arizona state champion James Armstrong Jr. and state titlists Guy Clevenger (Oklahoma) and Saoul Prado (New Mexico). Last month, Horwath edged Ohio's Marcus Blaze, ranked #9 at 120, by a 3-2 scoreat Beat The Streets Detroit Gala.  During the last high school season, Horwath beat 2021 Fargo winner, three-time state champion Braeden Davis twice, including in the Grappler Gold final. The #15 prospect on the Class of 2023 Big Board, Horwath finished last season 30-0 and boasts a 100-2 high school mark. He was a Super 32 champion in 2020. 

#5 Dylan Gilcher (Junior/138) —The three-time state champion was fourth in U20 freestyle nationals in April. He beat NCAA qualifier Ryan Jack, a North Carolina State sophomore, and Arizona's Kaleb Larkin, an Arizona State commit who is #4 in the national rankings at 145. Gilcher cemented his national reputation with wins over nationally-ranked state champions Tyler Kasak (Pennsylvania, #2 at 145) and Ryder Block (Iowa, #10 at 138) at last year's Cadet World Trials. #38 on the Class of 2023 Big Board, Gilcher was seventh at Super 32 in 2020 and fifth in 2019, beating three-time Minnesota state champion and Fargo All-American Jore Volk, who is #1 at 126. He was also fourth at the 2020 Grappler Fall Classic. Gilcher, who has committed to Michigan, owns a 108-4 high school record.

#15 Remy Cotton (Junior/195) — The state champion and three-time state medalist hopes to grab a podium spot after going 1-2 last year. Cotton's lone win came against Tennessee state champion Gervacio Gonzalez. In May, Cotton won a freestyle regional title by pinning Indiana state runner-up Conner Barket. #76 on the Class of 2023 Big Board, Cotton boasts a 97-14 high school record and was Grappler Gold champion last season. 

Drew Heethuis (Junior/126) —The two-time state champion hopes to improve on last year's seventh-place finish. Among those the Princeton recruit knocked off in Fargo last year were four-time Idaho state champion Kade Orr, two-time Indiana state champion Ashton Jackson, Georgia state champion Hunter McCullough and past Fargo All-American Caleb Thoennes (Minnesota). Heethuis was a Grappler Fall Classic champion last year and runner-up in 2020. He also went 4-2 at Super 32. Heethuis has a 102-11 high school record.

Jackson Blum (16U/120) — The state champion is hoping to improve on last year's sixth-place finish during which he bested two-time Alabama state champion Brodie Christmas and one-time state titlists Jack Nelson (Minnesota) and Matthew Martino (Idaho). Blum, who was 37-3 during his first high school season last winter, went 5-0 in freestyle and was named to the All-Tournament team at the Junior Nationals Duals. Among those he defeated are two-time Minnesota state champion Jack Nelson (5-2), Texas state champion Ashton Bennert (13-5) and Georgia state titlist Hunter McCullough (8-0). Blum was also a Grappler Fall Classic champion last year, beating Indiana state champion Justin Bradford in the title match. 

Marcello Milani (Junior/120) — After placing third in 16U Greco-Roman competition and going 5-2 in freestyle last year, Milani hopes to place in both styles this time. His top freestyle Fargo wins last year came against two-time state champions Carter Freeman (Iowa) and Carson Exferd (Idaho). Interestingly, Milani, a Highland Township resident, has not wrestled in high school and spent last season competing in open events representing Lansing-based Simmons Academy of Wrestling, which is run by four-time Michigan State All-American and two-time world team member Nick Simmons. Competing mostly against NCAA Division II and III wrestlers, Milani placed second at the John Carroll Open and third at the Purple Raider Open hosted by the University of Mount Union. At John Carroll, he beat Baldwin-Wallace College starter David Panda. At Mount Union, Milani knocked off Division I wrestler Ben Aranda (Cleveland State), a four-time Fargo All-American. In May, Milani bested three-time Kansas state champion Nick Treaster. Last month, he defeated Michigan state champion Jackson Blum at Beat The Streets Detroit Gala. 

Nathan Jerore (Junior/138) — The Michigan signee is focused on making the podium after going 3-2 a year ago and beating Florida state champion Jakob Smith. Jerore was named to the Junior National Freestyle Duals All-Tournament team last month, recording six technical falls by a combined margin of 67-5, including shutting out state runner-ups Joseph Jernegan (Oklahoma) and Smokey McClure (Washington) by a combined 21-0 score. Jerore was fourth at last year's Grappler Fall Classic, beating two-time Virginia state champion Evan Holloway. Jerore went 38-1 during the high school season winning a Division 1 state title and was beaten only by Division 3 state champion Aiden Davis (Dundee). Jerore finished with a 128-10 high school record. 

Up-And-Coming Prospects Who Need To Be On Your Radar 

Aaron Lucio (Junior/132) — The Michigan state champion hopes to reach the podium in both styles after finishing fourth in 16U Greco-Roman competition a year ago. Lucio was 4-2 in freestyle, knocking off two-time Kansas state champion Tucker Cell and Georgia state champion Logan Paradice. Lucio went 54-0 during the high school season and owns a 116-8 career record, 77-1 the past two seasons. 

Caden Ferris (Junior/220) — The two-time Michigan state champion went 4-2 last year in Fargo, beating three-time Virginia state champion Dominik Vacura. Last fall, Ferris was second in the Grappler Fall Classic and eighth at Super 32. No other Michigan wrestler placed in the top eight in both events last year. At Super 32, Ferris pulled a huge win over California's Nicholas Sahakian, who is ranked #16 in the nation at 220 pounds. He also beat two-time Oregon state champion Riley Godek and Nevada state champion Nathan Glass. Ferris, who is headed to Central Michigan, went 7-1 at Junior National Freestyle Duals last month, including a win over Utah state champion Damon Armenta. 

Aiden Davis (Junior/145) — After finishing the high school season 43-0 with a second state championship, the Bucknell signee appears to be poised for a breakthrough Fargo performance. He went 2-2 last year, including a win over Oregon state medalist and Kent State recruit Ethan Barr. Davis also knocked off two-time Georgia state champion David Panone at last year's Grappler Fall Classic. Davis owns a 112-6 high school record, 70-1 the past two years. Last season, he handed Michigan recruit and fellow state champion Nathan Jerore his lone loss of the season in the Grappler Gold Invitational title match. 

Talan Parsons (16U/106) — The Michigan state champion was 4-2 at Fargo last year and hopes to reach the podium this time. Parsons also finished fourth at last year's Grappler Fall Classic. He has been dominant at the high school level with a 61-2 record during the past two seasons.