Penn State wrestling notebook: Lions land a big-time commitment; Southern Scuffle results, more

Penn State wrestling is preparing to open its Big Ten season.

The Nittany Lions sit at 8-0 after the November and December portions of the schedule. Their unblemished mark is even more impressive when one considers that the team dealt with the flu, and it took multiple starters out of the lineup over some of the first eight matches of the year. Head coach Cael Sanderson’s team also faced some big-time opponents at the Collegiate Wrestling Duals. Penn State went 3-0 in Niceville, Fla., to end 2021.

Before the 2022 part of the schedule starts at Maryland on Friday night, it’s time to take a closer look at what the Lions have been up to over the last few weeks.

Barr is latest big commitment for Penn State

Penn State wrestling fans received an extra special treat on Sunday to officially close out the holiday season.

Junior Josh Barr has picked the Lions over Ohio State, Iowa, Virginia Tech, and Michigan. Ranked as the nation’s No. 10 junior recruit FloWrestling, the Davidson, Mich., native is a Fargo champion and will compete in the upper weights once he arrives in State College.

“Extremely excited and blessed to announce that I will be furthering my athletic and academic career at Penn State University,” Barr told FLO.

“I am honored to be joining the legacy at Penn State and to be given the opportunity to help carry on that legacy.”

The Lions also have Class of 2023 commitments from future lightweight wrestlers in Braedan Davis, who hails from Michigan as Barr does, and also Cael Nasdeo, who competes for Williamsport.

Beard leads Lions at Souther Scuffle, but will he be available moving forward?

The Southern Scuffle was not needed to determine whether or not Penn State has the nation’s best one-two punch at 197 pounds. But, the annual tournament still further cemented that.

Michael Beard, who backs up starter Max Dean for the Lions, took second place at the event in Chattanooga, Tenn. After racking up two technical falls and a decision victory on day one, the former All-American topped ranked Michigan State grappler Cameron Caffey to reach the finals. Once there, however, he lost by medical forfeit to Missouri’s Rocky Elam, who is top-five in the weight class.

There was no immediate word regarding what Beard’s injury was or the severity of it.

Head coach Cael Sanderson doesn’t speak until Tuesday this week, but he’ll be asked early on what Beard’s status is moving forward. Depth is critical, as we’ve seen over the last couple of months and of course years.

Other Penn State at the Southern Scuffle results

Here is how the other members of the roster fared:

125: Baylor Shunk finished the tournament 0-3.

133: Brandon Meredith reached the quarterfinals, where he lost by decision. He then fell to a non-college wrestler in the consolation bracket. All told, he was 3-1 against collegiate foes. David Evans, then, was 2-2 in this weight class.

157: Joe Lee also reached the quarters, where he lost by major decision before exiting the tournament following a decision setback in a consolation bout. Terrell Barraclough finished with a 3-2 mark that included a victory by fall.

165: Alex Facundo went 2-2. He won his first match and then lost the second but topped teammate Matt Lee in a consolation bracket match. Facundo fell out of the tournament in his next bout, however. As for Lee, he finished 1-2.

184: Donovan Ball lost his first match but then posted back-to-back victories in the consolation bracket. He then lost by decision in the round of eight and was eliminated, finishing the tournament at 2-2.

285: Seth Nevills, who wrestled first, then joined the football roster, and is now back as a heavyweight for Sanderson’s program, went 3-2. He did have a fall in the consolation bracket. It was his first action of the season.

Final thoughts

–Iowa star Spencer Lee is done for the year. The 125-pound standout announced Saturday that he would undergo knee surgery and not finish the season.

–In case you missed it last week, Penn State added a big piece at 125 pounds when Drew Hildebrandt joined the roster via the transfer portal. He was a two-time All-American at Central Michigan.

–Penn State’s Friday night match at Maryland will be streamed on BTN+. The same can be said of its Sunday date opposite Indiana at Rec Hall. That match will start at 2 p.m.