HineyBuck;2128518; said:
Good question, and RB probably knows more than I do. But I remember hearing that Hellickson somehow had alienated the St Ed's coaching staff (don't know the background). Then when Ryan was hired and we immediately brought in Lance Palmer, Collin Palmer, and Sean Nemec, people were excited thinking the logjam had been broken and St Ed's best would now be headed to tOSU. But since then, have we brought anyone else in from St Ed's? Now you've got me wondering what's up.
Well we landed Eds (arguably) best wrestler in Martin, who will be a freshman next year. Personally, it is a bit of a pick and choose...though Ohio is likely the most stacked wrestling state (or PA), the styles vary greatly and to me, the PA wrestlers and elsewhere tended to be better from top, which is greatly important for riding time at the next level. So in terms of strategy, I would never suggest stocking up on just Eds and Graham kids, or simply just Ohio.
However, OSU certainly has not tapped into those programs like they should have but much of that does fall on Hellickson. He had a HORRIBLE rap in both schools. Ryan has done better with Eds, but I just do not see a Graham kid going to OSU anytime soon (this coming from wrestling there). It is not so much the current staffs fault, as they have put in the effort, but a pattern of Graham kids going elsewhere...the Jordans will always go to Wisconsin and the rest will wind up at VTech, Wisconsin, or some other Big Ten school usually. That being said, with the exclusion of David Taylor (who was going wherever Sanderson was), I think OSU has landed the same caliber of wrestlers elsewhere. Regardless, me and my family are hoping to see some Falcons start heading to Columbus...I hate rooting against my friends
Looking forward, the three top wrestlers on Eds are Dean Heil (OKSU commit), plus Domonic Abounader and Edgar Bright (both uncommitted). OSU should be legit contenders for Abounader and Bright, who should both be top 50 overall. The top two on Graham are Bo Jordan (likely the #1 overall recruit nationally, but also likely headed to Wisky, although OSU stands an outside chance) and his younger brother Micah Jordan, who is a sophomore. Graham is going to be way, way down next year barring transfers.