Penn State max testing review, Wrestling preview: BWI Daily
It’s a busy end to the week for Penn State football, with winter workouts in the books and spring break officially here. The team also has several former players competing in the NFL Combine this weekend. But the winter sports landscape is heating up, too, with the Big Ten Wrestling tournament taking place this weekend in Ann Arbor.
To cover all that ground, reporter Greg Pickel joins the BWI Daily Edition to discuss who stood out at max testing and what to expect from the Big Ten tournament.
Check out the full show at 5:30, when it airs on YouTube. Be sure to subscribe to the channel, so you don’t miss any shows or breaking news from Blue White Illustrated.
Penn State Max testing day
Several highly impressive players were performing in front of the media and their teammates on Thursday afternoon. Players from Chop Robinson to Abdul Carter and sophomore Kaleb Artis all had remarkable lifts in the main event; squats. However, Penn State’s strongest player was clear because he was one of the two last lifts of the evening.
“First off, we’ll get to the last one first, and that is Jordan van den Berg. This is where he shines. I don’t think people understand how great of an athlete he is,” host Thomas Frank Carr says on the show.
Most of the players lifted between 495 pounds and 515 pounds (Zane Durant). While some did more repetitions, nobody could match van den Berg’s weight total. But it’s not just the strength; T-frank has always been impressed with van den Berg’s total athletic package.
“Nobody touched 565, and he did it, I think, four reps. He’s not a guard that’s big and burley that doesn’t move. He moves so athletically. So, when it comes to the physical side of stuff, I’m always really impressed with van den Berg in that setting.”
Since recording the show, Penn state released an updated roster in which the defensive tackle checked in at 286 pounds.
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Big Ten Championship wrestling preview
As always, Penn State wrestling is a heavy favorite to win whatever contest they enter. This weekend is no different, according to Pickel. The team wrapped up the regular season dual meet title a few weeks ago and has their sights set on another prize. But it’s not the one right in front of them.
“Penn State is always focused on winning the national title. That’s why there was no, you know, booing and complaining really from the Penn State camp when they finished second at Big Ten’s last year because that isn’t the ultimate goal of this program. The ultimate goal of this program is to win as many national individual titles as possible and to win the team national title,” Pickel said.
“So this is a tune-up. It’s basically a qualifier if you’re into NASCAR and you watch the qualifying heats. I mean, that’s what this is.”
So with that in mind, how many wrestlers can the team send to the NCAA tournament based on the results of this weekend?
“I think nine to guarantee just based on the way that pre-seeding works. The only question you have is at 125 pounds. Can Gary Steen do enough to get over the hump and be able to find his way into the nine that go to nationals, and can he do it? Cael Sanderson’s been very bullish on the fact that he is very close to turning the corner, so to speak, and just needs to be confident in himself and push to score points.”
