Resilience on Full Display

After trailing 14-0 four bouts into the dual, Husker wrestling displayed plenty of heart Sunday afternoon. It wasn’t even 48 hours after a deflating 22-14 loss to No. 4 Friday night. However, No. 6 Nebraska (9-5, 2-2) responded in empathic fashion against No. 2 Ohio State (14-0, 3-0). But it still wasn’t enough as the Big Red fell in a 17-16 gut-punch.

Despite the result, Nebraska proved it still belongs among the nation’s elite programs.

Key Takeaways from the Heartbreaker

The first major takeaway from the match was the display of resilience by the Huskers. Similar to Friday night, Nebraska lacked any sense of offensive momentum to start the dual. In fact, it took until the fifth bout before the Huskers scored their first takedown, coming from No. 5 Antrell Taylor (157). However, it wasn’t against No. 1 Brandon Cannon. Instead, the Buckeyes rested the top 157-pounder and deployed freshman Maddox Shaw. Still, that didn’t stop Taylor from landing three takedowns to secure an 11-3 major decision, which gave NU hope.

That win jump-started the first of five consecutive victories as the Huskers led 16-14 before the final bout at heavyweight, and the Bob Devaney Sports Center was roaring with hype. No. 4 AJ Ferrari (HWT) had the stage set to cap off the college wrestling comeback of the season, and it was a dandy bout against No. 3 Nick Feldman. Feldman edged out Ferrari 5-4 at the National Duals, but this time it took a sudden victory to decide the winner, tied at one apiece. Yet Feldman once again came out victorious after landing a takedown to break Nebraska’s heart.

While the loss stung, head coach Mark Manning was proud of the way his team fought back against the No. 2 Buckeyes. “A lot of resilience, and we knew that,” the NU wrestling coach said post-dual. “Sometimes, your faith has to get tested, and you’ve got to persevere. And then, that’s how you get tough-minded. That’s what we showed today. We didn’t wrestle great. We didn’t wrestle our best, but that team is really good.”

Clutch Performances Fueled Comeback

Without these four Nebraska athletes’ drive, the fight back wouldn’t have been possible. Those four consecutive wins following Taylor were as gritty as it gets. No. 7 LJ Araujo (165) scraped by e’Than Birden 1-0 to keep the fight alive. Meanwhile, No. 6 Christopher Minto (174) and No. 7 Silas Allred (184) picked up back-to-back sudden victories over top-5 opponents and avenged their losses from earlier in the season. Tied 1-1 in a sudden victory, Minto landed a takedown to defeat No. 4 Carson Kharchla. For Allred, Devaney’s “Allred” chants lifted him to hold off No. 5 Dylan Fishback 2-1 in six periods.

While their victories were beyond impressive, No. 9 Camden McDanel (197) ensured no overtime was necessary. With it tied 6-6 with eight seconds remaining, McDanel found the strength to score a takedown and defeat No. 10 Luke Geog 9-6. At that point, it felt like Nebraska was going to win it.

Slow Starts at Lower Weights Must Improve

The lack of attack from the starting grapplers must improve if Nebraska wants to be a contender come March, and bonus points must be earned, not given. The two major decision losses wound up being the difference. Sure, Kael Lauridsen’s (125) 13-2 major decision loss against No. 2 Nic Bouzakis wasn’t a surprise. However, No. 3 Brock Hardy (141) dropping a 14-3 major decision to No. 1 Jesse Mendez was. Mendez entered 1-4 all-time against the three-time NU All-American, and lost at the National Duals 4-1 to Mendez. Hardy got crushed in a 14-3 major decision by the OSU 141 this time around.

From 125 to 149 this weekend, the Huskers only came out on top in one of its seven bouts — that’s the difference.

Other Results

• No. 8 Jacob Van Dee (133) lost his second straight bout on Sunday. This time coming in a 7-2 decision against No. 2 Ben Davino.
• While No. 14 Chance Lamer (149) came up short before Taylor took the mat, he battled against No. 4 Ethan Stiles. Lamer came close to landing single-leg takedowns on several occasions, but couldn’t get behind Stiles to secure any takedowns. Stiles — a former Husker — ultimately was too much for Nebraska’s 149 to hold off, as Lamer lost 6-3 in sudden victory.

Nebraska returns to the mat when it travels to No. 1 Penn State (11-0, 5-0) next Friday. The Nittany Lions have won an NCAA record 82 consecutive duals. First bout starts at 7 p.m. CT and can be seen on the Big Ten Network.