I had some requests to start a new thread, and I'm going to try keeping this strictly recruiting-focused (I'll start other threads for preseason wrestling news, buzz, etc.) and I ask that you all do the same.
If you want to check out the in-depth thread on the incoming freshmen, check that out here. Below are the most recent rankings out there with 2019 commits, targets with NC State on their lists, etc.
As of July 25, NC State has five top-100 commits from FloWrestling's big board. The only other school with more than three is Cornell, with six.
According to The Open Mat — which is the only outlet I've seen try ranking the 2019 classes this early — NC State's class was ranked second nationally, as of Aug. 7.
Rankings explainer/updates:
• Big boards are the top 100 recruits in the senior class, regardless of weight.
• Weight class rankings include all prep wrestlers, regardless of age.
• Flo's big board was last updated June 5, while its weight class rankings were updated July 23 after Fargo (THE summer tournament). I've also included Flo's "NCAA Prospect Rankings," which have been updated this month but they have only released 125-165 so far.
• InterMat's big board was updated Aug. 20, but its weight class rankings are still the final 2017-18 listings with incoming college freshmen still included.
• The Open Mat's weight class rankings were updated Aug. 8.
2019 COMMITS
113 Sammy Alvarez (attends St. Joseph's Regional in N.J.)
• Likely career 125-pounder, which along with heavyweight is probably one of hardest things to recruit.
• Finished second in NJ as a junior, went 35-2.
• I heard glowing reviews of him at NC State's summer camp.
• Flo ranks — No. 79 on big board; No. 17 at 125 in NCAA Prospect Rankings
• The Open Mat ranks — No. 17 at 120
• InterMat ranks — No. 54 big board, No. 6 at 113 (No. 6 if you take seniors out)
126 Kai Orine (Seckman High in Missouri)
• Fits the NC State "blueprint" — long and very good on top
• Won the Missouri class 4 (largest division) state title at 120 pounds as a junior and gave his coach the "Stone Cold Stunner" in celebration. He finished the year 50-2.
• Placed 3rd as frosh (48-7 on the year at 106), won his first state title as a sophomore (48-1 at 113)
• Placed fifth in 2018 Fargo freestyle (105 entrants, had quite the shiner on the podium)
• Won NHSCA Junior Nationals at 120 pounds in March (impressive 8-0 victory); also finalist at 2018 FloNationals, where he beat Fargo Champ Jesse Ybarra
• Beat Fargo champ Julian Tagg in Nov. 2016; I've also heard he has beaten a world silver medalist before
• Flo ranks — No. 61 big board, No. 10 at 126, No. 11 at 133 in NCAA Prospect Rankings
• InterMat ranks — No. 100 big board, No. 18 at 120 (No. 7 if you take 2018 seniors out)
• The Open Mat ranks — No. 8 at 126
132 Mike Madara (Blair Academy in N.J.)
• 2x national prep placer
• Wrestles at Blair, national powerhouse wrestling program, where he is teammates with fellow NCSU commit Owen Trephan and several other studs
138 Anthony Rice (Steubenville High in Ohio)
• Cousin of rising redshirt sophomore Tariq Wilson, who placed third at the 2017 NCAA Championships
• Very tall, I was told he was well over 6-feet tall wrestling at 138 pounds this year, so he definitely fits the NC State “mold”
• Sectional/district champ this year, 7th in the state as junior.
152 Kiernan Shanahan (Shenendehowa in N.Y.)
• Two-time NY state finalist — both times lost to four-time NY champ and Flo top-35 recruit Frankie Gissendanner (lost 7-1 as sophomore, 7-6 as junior)
• Wrestles for Pat Popolizio's brother Frank's club Journeymen
• Cadet freestyle All-American in Fargo
• Flo ranks — No. 77 big board
195 Christian Knop (Alexandria in Alabama)
• 3x Alabama state champ, hasn’t lost HS match
• Placed second wrestling up (from his high school weight) at 195 at NHSCA Junior Nationals
• Former Fargo double All-American (5th freestyle junior/6th junior Greco)
• Fifth at 2018 Flo Nationals (182/freestyle)
• Flo ranks — No. 13 at 195, No. 74 big board
• The Open Mat ranks — No. 10 at 195
• InterMat ranks — No. 97 big board
Owen Trephan (Blair Academy in N.J. but originally from SC)
• In South Carolina — placed second in state as frosh and undefeated state champ at soph.
• Won NHSCA Freshman and Sophomore Nationals
• Now at Blair Academy in N.J., arguably the top wrestling school in the country.
• Won Prep Nationals at 220 pounds as a junior and was finalist at Beast of the East, one of the top prep in-season tourneys.
• Flo ranks — No. 6 at 220, No. 95 big board
• InterMat ranks — No. 77 big board, No. 13 at 220 (No. 5 if you take 2018 seniors out)
• The Open Mat ranks — No. 7 at 220
2019 TARGETS
Daniel "Greg" Kerkvliet (Simley in Minn.) — I've seen him referred to as both names
• Former cadet world champion
• No. 1 recruit in the class of 2019 (regardless of weight) per Flo and InterMat
• Will officially visit NC State Sept. 29
• Flo ranks — No. 1 at 220, No. 1 on big board
• Was committed to Minnesota and, most recently, Oklahoma State; has the who's who of college wrestling after him, including still Oklahoma State.
• Will compete at the World Junior Championships in September at 97 kg.
Kevon Davenport (Detroit Catholic Central in Mich.)
• 3-time Michigan state champion
• Will officially visit NC State Sept. 13 and was on campus for camp this summer
• Also will OV to UVA (Aug. 24), Nebraska (Sept. 8) and Michigan (TBD), per Flo.
• 2017 Fargo national champion in greco and freestyle runner-up
• Wants to decide by Sept. 20, per Flo.
• Flo ranks — No. 15 big board, No. 5 at 145, No. 3 at 157 in NCAA Prospect Ranks
• The Open Mat ranks — No. 4 at 145
• InterMat ranks — No. 7 at 145 (No. 3 if seniors are removed) and No. 23 big board
Ridge Lovett (Post Falls in Idaho)
• Will officially visit NC State Sept. 14
• Also OVing to Nebraska (Sept. 7), Purdue (Sept. 21), Iowa State (Oct. 12) and Oklahoma State (TBD) … has been to each already except OK St.
• Wants to decide in October
• 2018 Fargo freestyle runner-up; three-time Fargo All-American
• Took out his weight class' No. 1 at Fargo this year
• Flo ranks — No. 38 big board, No. 3 at 132, No. 3 at 149 in NCAA Prospect Ranks
• The Open Mat ranks — No. 3 at 132
• InterMat ranks — No. 11 at 126 (No. 5 if seniors are removed), No. 13 big board
Carson Kharchla (Olentangy Liberty in Ohio)
• Will officially visit NC State Sept. 14.
• According to Flo, he's also visiting UVA Aug. 31, Ohio State Sept. 7, Minnesota Sept. 21, Oklahoma State Oct. 12.
• Won Fargo freestyle title this past summer at 170 (arguably the most stacked weight class in the tourney, with half of Flo's top 10 entered)
• Will wrestle No. 1 Julian Ramirez at Who's No. 1 Oct. 7.
• Flo ranks — No. 24 big board, No. 2 at 170
• The Open Mat ranks — No. 1 at 170
• InterMat ranks — No. 5 at 170 (No. 2 if seniors are removed) and No. 5 big board
Some, if not many, of these guys will likely compete at the Super 32 in Greensboro Oct. 27-28.
One final note — this is nowhere close to a full listing of targets, just ones that I have confirmed will officially visit at this point.
If you want to check out the in-depth thread on the incoming freshmen, check that out here. Below are the most recent rankings out there with 2019 commits, targets with NC State on their lists, etc.
As of July 25, NC State has five top-100 commits from FloWrestling's big board. The only other school with more than three is Cornell, with six.
According to The Open Mat — which is the only outlet I've seen try ranking the 2019 classes this early — NC State's class was ranked second nationally, as of Aug. 7.
Rankings explainer/updates:
• Big boards are the top 100 recruits in the senior class, regardless of weight.
• Weight class rankings include all prep wrestlers, regardless of age.
• Flo's big board was last updated June 5, while its weight class rankings were updated July 23 after Fargo (THE summer tournament). I've also included Flo's "NCAA Prospect Rankings," which have been updated this month but they have only released 125-165 so far.
• InterMat's big board was updated Aug. 20, but its weight class rankings are still the final 2017-18 listings with incoming college freshmen still included.
• The Open Mat's weight class rankings were updated Aug. 8.
2019 COMMITS
113 Sammy Alvarez (attends St. Joseph's Regional in N.J.)
• Likely career 125-pounder, which along with heavyweight is probably one of hardest things to recruit.
• Finished second in NJ as a junior, went 35-2.
• I heard glowing reviews of him at NC State's summer camp.
• Flo ranks — No. 79 on big board; No. 17 at 125 in NCAA Prospect Rankings
• The Open Mat ranks — No. 17 at 120
• InterMat ranks — No. 54 big board, No. 6 at 113 (No. 6 if you take seniors out)
126 Kai Orine (Seckman High in Missouri)
• Fits the NC State "blueprint" — long and very good on top
• Won the Missouri class 4 (largest division) state title at 120 pounds as a junior and gave his coach the "Stone Cold Stunner" in celebration. He finished the year 50-2.
• Placed 3rd as frosh (48-7 on the year at 106), won his first state title as a sophomore (48-1 at 113)
• Placed fifth in 2018 Fargo freestyle (105 entrants, had quite the shiner on the podium)
• Won NHSCA Junior Nationals at 120 pounds in March (impressive 8-0 victory); also finalist at 2018 FloNationals, where he beat Fargo Champ Jesse Ybarra
• Beat Fargo champ Julian Tagg in Nov. 2016; I've also heard he has beaten a world silver medalist before
• Flo ranks — No. 61 big board, No. 10 at 126, No. 11 at 133 in NCAA Prospect Rankings
• InterMat ranks — No. 100 big board, No. 18 at 120 (No. 7 if you take 2018 seniors out)
• The Open Mat ranks — No. 8 at 126
132 Mike Madara (Blair Academy in N.J.)
• 2x national prep placer
• Wrestles at Blair, national powerhouse wrestling program, where he is teammates with fellow NCSU commit Owen Trephan and several other studs
138 Anthony Rice (Steubenville High in Ohio)
• Cousin of rising redshirt sophomore Tariq Wilson, who placed third at the 2017 NCAA Championships
• Very tall, I was told he was well over 6-feet tall wrestling at 138 pounds this year, so he definitely fits the NC State “mold”
• Sectional/district champ this year, 7th in the state as junior.
152 Kiernan Shanahan (Shenendehowa in N.Y.)
• Two-time NY state finalist — both times lost to four-time NY champ and Flo top-35 recruit Frankie Gissendanner (lost 7-1 as sophomore, 7-6 as junior)
• Wrestles for Pat Popolizio's brother Frank's club Journeymen
• Cadet freestyle All-American in Fargo
• Flo ranks — No. 77 big board
195 Christian Knop (Alexandria in Alabama)
• 3x Alabama state champ, hasn’t lost HS match
• Placed second wrestling up (from his high school weight) at 195 at NHSCA Junior Nationals
• Former Fargo double All-American (5th freestyle junior/6th junior Greco)
• Fifth at 2018 Flo Nationals (182/freestyle)
• Flo ranks — No. 13 at 195, No. 74 big board
• The Open Mat ranks — No. 10 at 195
• InterMat ranks — No. 97 big board
Owen Trephan (Blair Academy in N.J. but originally from SC)
• In South Carolina — placed second in state as frosh and undefeated state champ at soph.
• Won NHSCA Freshman and Sophomore Nationals
• Now at Blair Academy in N.J., arguably the top wrestling school in the country.
• Won Prep Nationals at 220 pounds as a junior and was finalist at Beast of the East, one of the top prep in-season tourneys.
• Flo ranks — No. 6 at 220, No. 95 big board
• InterMat ranks — No. 77 big board, No. 13 at 220 (No. 5 if you take 2018 seniors out)
• The Open Mat ranks — No. 7 at 220
2019 TARGETS
Daniel "Greg" Kerkvliet (Simley in Minn.) — I've seen him referred to as both names
• Former cadet world champion
• No. 1 recruit in the class of 2019 (regardless of weight) per Flo and InterMat
• Will officially visit NC State Sept. 29
• Flo ranks — No. 1 at 220, No. 1 on big board
• Was committed to Minnesota and, most recently, Oklahoma State; has the who's who of college wrestling after him, including still Oklahoma State.
• Will compete at the World Junior Championships in September at 97 kg.
Kevon Davenport (Detroit Catholic Central in Mich.)
• 3-time Michigan state champion
• Will officially visit NC State Sept. 13 and was on campus for camp this summer
• Also will OV to UVA (Aug. 24), Nebraska (Sept. 8) and Michigan (TBD), per Flo.
• 2017 Fargo national champion in greco and freestyle runner-up
• Wants to decide by Sept. 20, per Flo.
• Flo ranks — No. 15 big board, No. 5 at 145, No. 3 at 157 in NCAA Prospect Ranks
• The Open Mat ranks — No. 4 at 145
• InterMat ranks — No. 7 at 145 (No. 3 if seniors are removed) and No. 23 big board
Ridge Lovett (Post Falls in Idaho)
• Will officially visit NC State Sept. 14
• Also OVing to Nebraska (Sept. 7), Purdue (Sept. 21), Iowa State (Oct. 12) and Oklahoma State (TBD) … has been to each already except OK St.
• Wants to decide in October
• 2018 Fargo freestyle runner-up; three-time Fargo All-American
• Took out his weight class' No. 1 at Fargo this year
• Flo ranks — No. 38 big board, No. 3 at 132, No. 3 at 149 in NCAA Prospect Ranks
• The Open Mat ranks — No. 3 at 132
• InterMat ranks — No. 11 at 126 (No. 5 if seniors are removed), No. 13 big board
Carson Kharchla (Olentangy Liberty in Ohio)
• Will officially visit NC State Sept. 14.
• According to Flo, he's also visiting UVA Aug. 31, Ohio State Sept. 7, Minnesota Sept. 21, Oklahoma State Oct. 12.
• Won Fargo freestyle title this past summer at 170 (arguably the most stacked weight class in the tourney, with half of Flo's top 10 entered)
• Will wrestle No. 1 Julian Ramirez at Who's No. 1 Oct. 7.
• Flo ranks — No. 24 big board, No. 2 at 170
• The Open Mat ranks — No. 1 at 170
• InterMat ranks — No. 5 at 170 (No. 2 if seniors are removed) and No. 5 big board
Some, if not many, of these guys will likely compete at the Super 32 in Greensboro Oct. 27-28.
One final note — this is nowhere close to a full listing of targets, just ones that I have confirmed will officially visit at this point.
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