Kornacki: Wolverine Wrestlers 'Getting Traction' in Season of Promise

By Steve Kornacki

ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- This has been a season of high expectations for the University of Michigan wrestling team.

Wolverines head coach Joe McFarland is returning three dynamite wrestlers who redshirted last season in All-Americans Adam Coon (heavyweight) and Alec Pantaleo (157 pounds) and Domenic Abounader (184 pounds), the 2015 Big Ten champion.

Things started out well with a tight dual-meet victory over Arizona State, currently ranked No. 11 nationally. But then Michigan got beat, 27-8, at Lehigh. The Wolverines recovered from that with a second-place finish at the highly competitive Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational.

What happened Sunday (Dec. 10) at Cliff Keen Arena was a sign that Michigan could be headed toward a special season after all. It completely dominated Oregon State, 48-0, for its first shutout against a Division I foe since Northern Colorado on Jan. 4, 2009. It was the first shutout versus anybody since Olivet on Nov. 1, 2012.

McFarland said that the overwhelming performance against the Beavers was the result of effective practices in the three weeks since that disappointing loss to No. 5 Lehigh.

"We got beat on basic fundamentals out there," he said. "We needed to go back and change up some things in our practices. We did, and saw a lot of those improvements tonight. So, it was fun to see that, just fun. It was fun for me and my coaching staff to see the guys embracing the things we've been working on, and executing."

The energetic crowd at Keen had plenty to enjoy and shouted in unison when one of their favorites strode onto the mat: "Cooooon!" He responded by pinning Cody Crawford for the perfect ending to an avalanche of a victory.

"That was a fun dual," said Coon, who ran his record to 12-0. "It was fun to watch everybody working their tails off on the mat, it shows up on the scoreboard, and just all-around everyone going nuts.

"We have some things to work on, but overall it was just fun. Sometimes, you get a dominant win where one or two people didn't quite perform or get the win. The whole team is like, 'Hurrah!' But those kids are going, 'Oh, I wish I could be part of that.' When I went to wrestle (the final match), I didn't want to be that one guy."

Crawford, who finished second in the Pac-12 last season, was a formidable opponent who couldn't score a point before getting pinned in the second period.

Coon, ranked No. 2 nationally, got Michigan's third pin of the third annual Joe Wells Classic, named for the former Wolverine and Beaver coach who died of cancer in 2015.

Sal Profaci (141 pounds) and Kevin Beazley (197 pounds) also won with pins, while Michigan registered three technical falls.

Abounader said the Wolverines compete to get their name on "The Hammer of Thor" by scoring the most points in a week, noting that it's added "incentive" this season. Since he had to settle for a technical fall rather than getting one of the pins, Abounader missed that honor this week.

"Still," he said, "it's fun when we can have performances like this as a team. You could see this is the kind of dual we are capable of. When we put everything together, we can be the best team in the country. If we can put it all together, we are going to be a team trophy winner at the end of the year. We're definitely capable."

McFarland liked that true freshman Reece Hughes from Hartland (Michigan) High stepped in for Logan Massa, who finished third in the NCAA last year at 165 pounds, and scored a 5-0 victory in his collegiate debut.

"Reece weighed in at 157 and so he was wrestling a bigger guy," said McFarland. "But he had a really smart and solid match. He wore the kid down from the top position and wouldn't let him go. He'd also come through some minor bumps and bruises. So, to see him perform the way he did, I was so proud of him. I could see he had a huge smile on his face."

The No. 9 Wolverines won't compete again until Jan. 5-7 at Indiana and Purdue, respectively, but head into the break in a good frame of mind.

"It's a nice way to finish off this first semester," said Coon. "But we have a lot of training ahead of us, and then in January we get into the Big Ten season. It's a rollercoaster, and we're on a high right now, and we're trying to ride that through break and keep it on a high through the whole Big Ten season and NCAAs. There are always dips, but you don't want the dips going too far down.

"It's a grueling season -- especially in the Big Ten."

No. 1 Penn State and No. 2 Ohio State lead a group of five conference teams in the Top 10, and there are 10 Big Ten teams in the Top 20. No other conference has more than two Top 10 teams.

Coon is an example of how difficult the road is for Big Ten wrestlers. He finished No. 2 in the NCAA in 2015, but was third in the conference. Coon was No. 3 at the NCAA meet in 2016, and second in the Big Ten.

"It's a challenge," Coon said of his elusive national championship. "We all know who's the favorite -- Kyle Snyder from Ohio State."

Snyder, a gold medalist at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics, is a two-time NCAA champion. Their only previous meeting has been in the 2016 Big Ten finals, when Snyder won, 7-4.

Both Coon and Abounader are returning from shoulder surgeries.

"It was really tough to sit back and watch, but it was a great learning experience," said Domenic Abounader, who -- like teammate Adam Coon -- is returning to the Wolverines this season after shoulder surgery.

"That was definitely tough going through that season," said Coon, "and it was tough coming back. I wanted to get into those matches last year, and tight matches come down to heavyweight. When I had to sit on the sideline, you can't control anything, and I had to figure out a way to take a step back or I was going to wear myself down.

"But, when it came to this season, I had stepped back. So, I had to step forward to get to that fight mentality at all times. That's a real big transition. I'm still a little rusty, but the Cliff Keen was a big step for me."

Pantaleo, who finished sixth in the 2016 NCAA meet before opting to redshirt as a junior last season, also won the 157-pound title at the Cliff Keen tourney -- evidence that he was getting back on track, too.

Abounader said, "It was really tough to sit back and watch, but it was a great learning experience. I just tried to mentor the rest of the guys on the team."

He very nearly won with a pin on Sunday.

Coon was up, 5-0, on Crawford when he pinned him.

"It was more riding and wearing him down," said Coon, now 99-13 for his career. "Getting him in that bow-and-arrow at the end finished him off. You secure that back leg and try to take that foot up to back of his head. That puts him in a nice back bow. You put pressure on the hips and take him over to the side. It's just enough pressure for him to say, 'Yeah, I'm going to go over.'

"It's a little convincing. You make him say, 'Uncle.' I'm not trying to hurt the guy, just making him uncomfortable enough that he wants to go on his back."

McFarland said he's "getting great leadership" from his captains, fifth-year senior Abounader and graduate student Coon, and added that "they are getting traction now" after their year-long layoffs.

"Today was another step forward for us," said McFarland. "It was fun watch the way these guys competed today, and we have to bring that heat all the time with that kind of energy.

"That was championship wrestling, no question about it."