Updates: Cael Sanderson news conference

[GregPickel]

The Penn State coach talked with reporters at 11 a.m. ET. Updates can be found below.

Also, will make its own dedicated thread, but here's a story: https://www.on3.com/teams/penn-stat...g-cael-sanderson-talks-drew-hildebrandt-more/

 

[GregPickel]

On the Scuffle

The Scuffle, I wouldn't say we were real excited about the results, but it was nice to have guys competing down there and getting matches. But, I'm not sure it showed us a whole lot. Good for younger guys to get matches. I don't know if we got any true answers or those middle weights. Always have a weight class you need someone to step up. We're still hoping in there.

Adds he likes the way the break schedule worked out.

 

[GregPickel]

On Drew Hildebrandt:

He's been in the area for over a month. Obviously a tough competitor last year and he's been on the circuit for awhile now. We're excited obviously to add him to the roster and hopefully we can get him going here soon. The plan is getting him out there competing as quickly as possible. He fits in nicely and we're happy to have him.

He could possibly wrestle this weekend. They're trying to get him to where he can compete this weekend, but they're not quite there yet.

"If we can get him competing, we'll certainly do that. There's a lot of factors that play in there, but we're working on it."

 

[GregPickel]

On Alex Facundo:

Alex wasn't very pleased with the way he competed, but he's able to get to the leg and is a very good athlete. He just has to create a little bit better angle on his shot and be quicker to his finish. If you're not quick to your finish, you're giving kids an opportunity to slide back and defend. He's going to finish his shots. He's a competitor. I think it's just a little different. In our room he's wrestling guys who come at him all the time. When in a match, that's not always the case. You have to go get them. You can see what he's capable of.

 

[GregPickel]

On Beard:

He got back last night, so he'll be seeing the doctor today. He wrestled really well and beat a guy or two that beat him last year. He continues to improve and that's no secret. I think Beard is getting better and better and he wrestled tough. That match in the final you'd love to se seven minutes, but Mike's done a great job and he's getting better. Just having seen the progress that he's made since a year ago, that has to be a confidence builder for him. We'll find out later today about his knee. Hopefully it's not a long-term thing."

 

[GregPickel]

On UMD and IU:

We're trying to just focus on getting our guys better and that they're doing the little things to make our guys better. Both teams are tough and well coached and we're expecting some good matches. At this point, I'm not really the scout guy. We want to do what we do. We want to go out and compete with a little bit of fire. We're good to go and looking forward to it."

 

[GregPickel]

On 57:

I think we have three guys that have a lot of potential, but it's just kind of, I think Negron needs more experience, and Joe and Terrell need to get out of their own way and try and compete, but they all have a lot of potential. At this time, we're leaning toward Negron because he's been competing well, but it's tough because he's only had a few matches. There's nothing set in concrete at this point. We got a lot of potential there but that's a weight class that we feel like we're showing."

 

[GregPickel]

On learning anything from the flu issues/lineup challenges:

"It's life. There were some times when we're missing three starters or so and wrestling tough teams, and that's not the best feeling as a coach going into those matches, but we're just going to keep doing the best we can, and compete with honor and enthusiasm, and try to get better every match. If we do that, we'll be fine here."

 

[GregPickel]

Special procedures or protocols for health and safety?

We try. You tell these guys just to be smart and do all the same things that you're reading about and hearing about, but it's up to them. The holidays have been the toughest. Coming back here, you just have to be smart and do the. best you can, but you still might get COVID or the flu. Hopefully they're just being as smart as they can and whatever happens, we'll deal with it."

 

[GregPickel]

On Collegiate Wrestling Duals and Cornell match and then ASU

They have a lot of depth, but they also have some superstar kids that are obviously really good. Going into the third day, we needed a full team effort there, and the team saw and knew of the challenge and stepped up, and our guys competed at every weight, even if they're avoiding giving up a major or something, because every point matters. Our guys that needed bonus points were wrestling with a little more urgency. I think that was probably the best that we competed as a team in awhile. We're excited about that and want to keep moving forward. ASU is a really good team. They beat us the last time we wrestled. I felt like this team was better than the team that beat us. Our guys kind of stepped up and competed, and that's what they're going to have to do."

 

[GregPickel]

On his opinion on the portal:

"I think you can't get in trouble if you don't talk. The NCAA is just kind of really, it's like 100 percent leans toward the student-athlete. Is that good or bad? I guess it depends if you're the student athlete or the coaches or program. I'm not really in a place where I'd want to jump in and share my opinion, but we're just going to deal with the circumstances that we have because it's a two-way street. That's just the way that college sports have gone, and there's not really a lot of rhyme or reason I guess, but we'll do the best we can under the circumstances, and we're just going to compete. We're just going to do the best we can, make adjustments as we go, and when we get beat, we adjust and try to do a better job next time."

 

[GregPickel]

That's it from Cael.

 

[crockster]

thanks forthe information. Hope to see Hildebrandt soon!

 

[SonnyAbeFan]

Greg, next time, can you ask Cael if he expects his team to compete hard, to improve throughout the season, to always try to score points, to be grateful, and to have fun out there? I’d really to know his thoughts on this.

 

[GregPickel]

Greg, next time, can you ask Cael if he expects his team to compete hard, to improve throughout the season, to always try to score points, to be grateful, and to have fun out there? I’d really to know his thoughts on this.

I'll see if I can shoehorn that into one tidy question, sure! Lol.

 

[AK1967]

The Penn State coach talked with reporters at 11 a.m. ET. Updates can be found below.

Also, will make its own dedicated thread, but here's a story: https://www.on3.com/teams/penn-stat...g-cael-sanderson-talks-drew-hildebrandt-more/

Thanks Greg,
You were the first to ask about Drew. So what couple things could keep him from wrestling on Friday ? Cael said it’s not an NCAA rule just because the semester doesn’t start till Monday. Hopefully our admissions office is not screwing up again or holding him back. They may have already cost us a NC not accepting Wick. Will see. Any ideas Greg ?

 

[GregPickel]

Thanks Greg,
You were the first to ask about Drew. So what couple things could keep him from wrestling on Friday ? Cael said it’s not an NCAA rule just because the semester doesn’t start till Monday. Hopefully our admissions office is not screwing up again or holding him back. They may have already cost us a NC not accepting Wick. Will see. Any ideas Greg ?

Honestly, I'm not sure. For the record, he was asked if not starting classes yet would prevent him from wrestling, and Cael said it's not black and white and that it's not an NCAA rule that he can't wrestle before classes start. Sounds to me that they have to figure something out on the administrative side but I don't know enough about that to be able to offer any specifics. Sorry.

 

[AK1967]

Honestly, I'm not sure. For the record, he was asked if not starting classes yet would prevent him from wrestling, and Cael said it's not black and white and that it's not an NCAA rule that he can't wrestle before classes start. Sounds to me that they have to figure something out on the administrative side but I don't know enough about that to be able to offer any specifics. Sorry.

Okay. Yes I’m thinking our admission office again. Idk for sure. Thank you for the honest response Greg.