Five Thoughts on a Wild Weekend For OSU Wrestling in New Jersey

OSU knocked off Princeton and Rutgers in a New Jersey road trip over the weekend where Daton Fix won a big match over Nick Suriano in overtime. Here are my thoughts on it all.

1. The hands to the face call was the right call

Daton Fix won in overtime when Nick Suriano was given a hands to the face call, giving Daton a point and the win. It was a weird way to end a match. Even Daton said he didn’t want to win it in that fashion. But it was the right enforcement of the rule. Suriano did put his hands to the face of Fix. In a physical sport like wrestling it’s just a bad rule that really does nothing for the safety of the wrestlers or betterment of the sport. It’s not happening anytime soon, but it’s really something they should get rid of.

2. The biggest officiating problem in the Fix-Suriano match

The hands to the face call got the most attention, but the biggest problem with the marquee Fix-Suriano match was the 20 minutes spent just before that call reviewing locked hands calls. Again, I think they got the hands to the face right. What sucked the wind out of the room was the huge break in action while they were deciding whether or not each guy locked hands. I know they want to get the call right, but those decisions shouldn’t take that long.

3. I’m good with Gfeller shoving Ashnault

Don’t take this one the wrong way. I don’t want these kids getting in fights, getting points taken off the board for unsportsmanlike conducts, or taking cheap shots, there’s a line between that and what happened here in my opinion. I understand the emotion and in a lot of ways I like the fire and edge that Kaden brings to this team. And as long as he’s not taking a swing or some sort of cheap shot that can truly get someone hurt, I’m good with him letting the other guy know he’s not going to let him mock him by shooting the pistols to the crowd.

The exchange that got team points taken from both teams. pic.twitter.com/LLqDHPox5l

— FloWrestling (@FloWrestling) January 13, 2019

4. Joe Smith came up limping after his match vs. Rutgers

Hope it’s nothing, but with an already beat up lineup, Joe, who’s had his share of injury issues, was definitely walking gingerly and doing his best to avoid putting any weight on his knee as he walked off the mat. The Cowboys have a pretty quick turnaround as they wrestle WVU on Friday, so we should know pretty soon if it’s anything significant.

5. 157 seems like it still up for grabs

John Smith has left a bit of an open door as to who he thinks will be the starter at 157. He’s indicated that all three of Jonce Blaylock, Andrew Shomers, and Wyatt Sheets are still vying for what he feels is an open weight that any of them could lay claim to. With Blaylock going 0-2 this weekend at 157 and Shomers going 1-1 at 165 it seems like it’s still probably open and will continue to be contested as neither had a really dominant weekend to claim the spot, nor did they have some horrendous showing that would take them out of the running. I probably give Shomers an edge though as Blaylock needed to win this weekend to leapfrog him.