The Missouri Tigers wrestling team enters the 2011-12 season with high expectations, returning seven of the team-record nine wrestlers the team sent to the NCAA Championship a year ago.
Former captain Todd Schavrien, who was seeded No. 10 in the NCAA Tournament last season with a 26-6 record, graduated in the spring. Meanwhile, after a breakout junior season in the heavyweight division, Dom Bradley is taking an Olympic redshirt in preparation for the 2012 U.S. Olympic Team Trials.
Redshirt freshman Devin Mellon is the favorite to replace Bradley in the lineup after taking down junior Jake Glore in the Black and Gold Wrestle-Off on Sunday.
“Devin has really progressed after wrestling well as a true freshman last year,” coach Brian Smith said. “He’s gotten to work out with Dom a bit, and he’s a very explosive kid. He just has to learn to win at this level and stay focused. We have a lot of confidence in him.”
With Dorian Henderson as the only senior in the lineup, Missouri will once again be a young team, but the team is not short on experience or leadership.
“This is a young team, but we have some guys that have been into the fire,” Smith said. “We have some guys that are really stepping up and we have some great young players that know what it takes.”
Sophomore Alan Waters is the highest ranked Tiger coming into the season. InterMat Wrestling has him ranked fifth nationally in the 125-pound division. Waters finished with a 1-2 record at the 2011 NCAA Championship.
“Last season I showed that I can be a leader on this team,” Waters said. “I think most of the kids on our team don’t need leaders. We’re a pretty self-motivated group.”
Sophomore Zach Toal and junior Brent Haynes round out the strong core of Missouri’s team. Toal is a 165-pound sophomore who also went just 1-2 at the NCAA tournament. Haynes also qualified for the NCAA Tournament after posting a 25-8 record last season.
“I’m a little bit older and a little bit stronger this season,” Toal said. “I worked really hard this offseason, and I’m just going to try to keep setting a good example for the younger guys.”
Missouri opens up the season at home on Nov. 13 against the Purdue Boilermakers, who took down the Tigers 18-15 last season. The team will then begin a six-match road trip, which includes conference tilts against both Oklahoma and Oklahoma State, before coming home to take on Iowa State.
The Tigers who qualify for postseason play will enjoy the luxury of having those contests close to home this season. MU hosts the Big 12 Championships on Saturday, March 3. Meanwhile, the NCAA Championships will be hosted at the Scottrade Center in St. Louis.
The Big 12 features some of the strongest wrestlers in the country in all weight classes, Smith said, so Missouri has a tall task ahead if it hopes to improve upon the No. 12 national ranking it finished with in 2011.
“We want to separate ourselves from the pack this season,” Smith said. “Our goal is to win the Big 12 this year. There are still some things that we need to work on, but these guys have been battling all offseason. They are ready for a strong season.”
