Tsirtsis Leaves Northwestern
2014 National Champion and 2015 NCAA 3rd Place 149-lberJason Tsirtsis is no longer enrolled at Northwestern per the Northwestern athletic department , according to iawrestle.com reporter Tony Hager:
National Champ Jason Tsirtsis is no longer enrolled @NorthwesternU per Northwestern Athletic Department. pic.twitter.com/m0A9KLri9n
— Tony Hager (@hagertony) August 1, 2016
Wildcat wrestling fans are hoping this is rock bottom after a tumultuous twelve months in which they fired Head Coach Drew Pariano, who had been fantastic on the recruiting trail, and replaced him with Matt Storniolo, who led them to a dismal tied-for-49th finish at the National Championship Tournament--a season in which the Wildcats forfeited weights in multiple dual meets. Tsirtsis himself was never really healthy last year; he was the returning national champion, but failed to return to the podium in 2016 in a weight class that Zain Retherford mauled this past season, and will look to return to his national championship form in the 2016-2017 while wearing someone else's singlet.
The seemingly way-to-early front-runner? Somewhere in Iowa. But not the Hawkeyes.
NWCA Proposes Changes to Schedule
The National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA) put out their five year plan last Friday and suggested some major changes to the NCAA Wrestling schedule and format. The highlights of these changes are moving the practice start date back from October 10 to November 1, and moving the competition start date back from late November to around Christmas. The biggest was an official endorsement of an NCAA dual team championship tournament, which should not come as a surprise since the NWCA has been trying to run one of their own (Penn State won the NWCA dual title last year.) While our own Cael Sanderson opposes a dual meet tournament, many in the wrestling community are in favor of it to bring more meaning to dual meets and give increased exposure to the sport.
Look for a piece in the future from Clay Sauertieg and I discussing the pros and cons of an NCAA dual tournament.