Shea Foster's 23'-24' Cowboy Wrestling Season in Review

By Shea Foster

5/6/2024

Gabe Willochel (right), Photo courtesy of UW Athletics

Hey there, Cowboy Fans!

What a remarkable turnaround this team has had this year, overcoming the challenge of 14 different line-ups in 14 duals. The new rule allowing first-year students to wrestle five matches and still be able to redshirt early in the season gave Wyoming the flexibility to experiment with its line-up. The addition of Coach Devon Schroeder has been a game-changer, particularly for the lighter weights on the team. This is a testament to the team's resilience and adaptability, making us all proud and hopeful for the future.

125 Volk – This kid has everything he needs to win a national title next year. He had a yo-yo mid-season where he lost some matches but had been battling injuries. He put that aside, won a Big 12 title, and got to silence the OSU fan base in Tulsa. He then decided to take the long road to the AA by losing his first match and reeling off four wins to garner AA honors and a 7thplace finish. Right after he beat the #1 seed, he had to face the #2 seed, and he just seemed gassed to fight even higher, but what a great season, and I am stoked to see what is in store next year as he can get healthy and another year with Devon in the room.

133 Birdwell/Ricks – Birdwell started the year as the starter, but Ricks eventually took over. This weight is confusing, and I would like to see someone come out and start taking over. Ricks got disqualified in the Big 12, but I didn’t see what happened. It was against an OU kid, so that would be two years in a row. A UW kid would be disqualified because of an OU wrestler. Ricks has the energy to press the guy for 7 minutes. I am not sure about the COVID year stuff so that he could be back, or this could be Birdwell’s weight.

141 Brooks – Cole Brooks is going to be dangerous. He is tough on his feet and brings a lot of offense. He was a true freshman, so the grind of the year and some injuries probably derailed his season. Cole beat Gabe Willochel 12-2 to garner the 141 spot, while Gabe bumped up to 149 after the WWCC dual. Cole wrestles with a chip on his shoulder, and if he can stay healthy, he will be a problem in Big 12 and can compete against the likes of Alirez.

149 Willochel – Gabe might have the most extended arms I have ever seen. His ability to take shots from space and collect ankles frustrates opponents. After the NDSU and SDSU duals, I was concerned that the year had ground on him and he was fading, but he came out in Big 12 and immediately upset the #2 seed with a throw and pin. After a great Big 12 showing, he would then pull up his teammates after the Volk lost and pull an upset win. He was one win from the blood round, and his losses were close. I was looking forward to him getting more training at elevation, and he should be ranked in the top 10 to start next year.

157 Swan—Originally, this was Vorhees's spot, but Cooper bumped to 165, and Sloan stepped in. He is another true freshman to the line-up. In his limited action this year, you can see he is going to be a tough top wrestler, which has served guys well in the program. He was a fringe Top 33 guy.

165 Vorhees – McIntosh started the year at 165, but Cooper bumped up. Cooper seemed better at 165 and more comfortable. I know he wants to be an AA like his dad and showed some offense at 165.

174 Davis—Riley Davis (True Freshman) started the year but was lost for the year in Reno. In Vegas, he was down 12-0 entering the third period and came back to win 22-15. The kid has a big gas tank and just presses on guys. Short would fill in at 174 with mixed results, but he had to bump down from 184, so that could have been tough.

184 Ducca—Ethan got hurt in the Campbell dual, and we didn’t see him again until right before the Big 12 when he was wearing a big knee brace. He is a transfer from Edinboro, and Coach Branch had talked about him prior to the season. Tyce Raddon filled in at 184 for the year, and you can tell he had improved in terms of offense from last year.

197 Novak—Joey Novak, another true freshman, was also one match from the blood round. He gave Buchanan everything he could handle in his matches this year. He wrestled against NDSU coming off the flu and strep throat while weighing in in the 180s as a 197. He would win that match even after puking during blood time. 197 in the Big 12 should be fun between him and Buchanan.

HWT—It seems sickness and injury just brought everyone out of the lineup. It's hard to gauge anything as Zimmer, Ding, and Bradley saw action in the duals. Lane wrestled in Reno, but it appears they kept his RS intact. I'm interested to see how this pans out next season with a few HWT wrestlers in the room.

Transfers—Sonnentag (133/141) only saw action in the Cowboy tourney late, and Paolo Salminen (157) is in the portal. Paolo saw action in Cali and got a win via pin. Austin Richens was signed late but was never on the roster this year, so I'm not sure why he never came to Laramie.

Other News: With the Pac-12 imploding, there are talks of some teams leaving the Big 12 as the Big 12 is getting big. Coach Branch has made it known that he wants to stay in the Big 12, as it also helps with recruiting.

My 2024/25 Line-up predictions:

125 Volk and will be Top-5

133 Ricks (if he has eligibility)

141 Brooks will start outside Top-33, but will be ranked in the Top-20 post CKLV

149 Willochel should be ranked Top-10

157 Swan

165 Vorhees

174 Davis – will be ranked after CKLV

184 Ducca

197 Novak – will be Top-10

It's hard to predict this, Zimmer, but I'm just going with the starter from this year here.

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Meet Shea Foster: A devoted University of Wyoming Athletics enthusiast and passionate fan of UW Wrestling. Shea proudly serves in the Navy, having served for nearly two decades and counting.