Locked On Hawkeyes - Daily Podcast On Iowa Hawkeyes Football & Basketball - Iowa Men's Wrestling: Three new recruits in four days?!

Episode Date: May 17, 2022

On today's episode I sit down and discuss the Iowa Men's Wrestling team and how the current recruiting process is going for the Hawkeyes as well as a few new recruits/commits that have recently been brought to the team. One of which I have had the pleasure of personally covering in a play-by-play format in his last season at Iowa Central. Today's "Story Of The Day" covers some good news about a recent tragedy that shook the Buffalo, New York Area. Former Iowa Hawkeye running back Micah Hyde has put some hope back into the hearts of the many victim's families though his charitable foundation, Imagine For Youth.Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors!Built BarBuilt Bar is a protein bar that tastes like a candy bar. Go to builtbar.com and use promo code “LOCKED15,” and you’ll get 15% off your next order.BetOnlineBetOnline.net has you covered this season with more props, odds and lines than ever before. BetOnline – Where The Game Starts!Rock AutoAmazing selection. Reliably low prices. All the parts your car will ever need. Visit RockAuto.com and tell them Locked On sent you. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

You are Locked on Hawkeyes, your daily podcast on the Iowa Hawkeyes. Part of the Locked on Podcast Network, your team every day. Welcome back, Hawkeye Nation, to another episode of the Locked on Hawkeyes podcast, your daily podcast covering your Iowa Hawkeyes on the Locked on Podcast Network. As always, I am your host, Wright Hillpiper. And before we get started today, I want to thank you all for making the Locked on Hawkeyes podcast your very first listen every single day. You can find the Locked on Hawkeyes podcast for free wherever you get your podcasts at,

and also on YouTube by searching Locked on Hawkeyes podcast for free wherever you get your podcasts at, and also on YouTube by searching Locked on Hawkeyes. Now, I did say today that we were going to have LaShawn Daniels on the podcast today, but that has since been moved to tomorrow. Just some scheduling issues there. So tomorrow, me and LaShawn will be sitting down and talking about the best and worst case scenarios for the Iowa Hawkeyes football team this upcoming season. But for today, I've got a lot of stuff to cover, a lot, a lot of recruiting news going on within Iowa right now, specifically within wrestling. So this will be a mostly wrestling podcast. I know

we don't do that. I know we don't do that very often, but there has been a lot of recruiting news with wrestling in the last few days. There's been four, excuse me, three new recruits for the Iowa wrestling team within the last four days. So I'd like to take the opportunity to kind of go through and cover all of them. There are two specifically that I want to talk about in a little bit further detail. And then one more that I will also talk about a little bit, uh, somewhere here in the podcast. And then we are going to end today's podcast with a lovely story of the day. Uh, glad to be able to be bringing that back. Um, very heartwarming story that we have today. It's about Micah Hyde, um, helping out with, um, his charitable foundation. Um, so we will get into that later in today's episode.

But the very first thing that I want to talk about today is Iowa's first wrestling recruit. That would be Gage Marty. Comes out of Solon. He is the, as I mentioned, the third recruit in four days. We will talk about the other two here in a minute. One that I do want to mention really quick, Jude Link. He's a senior state champ from Minnesota. And we will talk about him a little bit more later on. So Marty is a projected heavyweight. That's what he wrestled in high school, and that is projected

to be what he will wrestle in college. He also had looks from both Loris and from Coe College before committing to Iowa. He had a 127-25 record from his sophomore through senior seasons. So sophomore, junior, and senior season, he went 127-25. His senior year, he went 48-3, made it to the state finals match, and lost to another of Iowa's recruits for wrestling. That would be West Lyons Easton Fleshman. We won't talk about him today. He is an older recruit, but he is one of Iowa's recruits as well.

So in his announcement, Marty said, quote, I'm super excited to announce I've committed to the University of Iowa. I can't thank my coaches and family enough. I can't wait to get started. So a little bit more general of a commitment statement out of Marty, but still, nonetheless, he's a great wrestler. I have not seen him wrestle in person, but I've seen a few of his tapes on Huddle as well as 24-7 Sports,

so you can go check those out as well if you would like. He's a great, he's a very solid wrestler. Like I said, out of Solon, Solon's a tough wrestling team. I believe they wrestle in class 3A in Iowa, which is obviously, you know, higher in class as you go. It's going to be a little bit tougher opponents. And he did get beat out this past season in the finals match against another Iowa recruit. So he will join incoming freshmen for this Iowa wrestling team. By the way, the Iowa men's wrestling team is what we were talking about today.

The other incoming freshmen are Waverly Shell Rocks Aiden Riggins, Bettendorf's Bradley Hill, Des Moines Lincolns Mickey Griffith, Southeast Polk Brothers Carter and Carson Martinson, also from Southeast Polk, Joel Jessaroga, Mason City's Jace Rhodes, and Lisbon's Cade Seabrook. Now, Iowa's recruiting class currently, right now, ranked number 15 in the country, now has 14 wrestlers, those that I mentioned just now, as well as Drake Rhodes, who is a state champ from Montana, as well as Kobe Franklin, who was originally from Wyoming Seminary,

which, by the way, we have talked about quite a bit on this podcast, more so having to do with the women's wrestling team. He is now a wrestler for Iowa City High, or he was this past season anyway, so he transferred there. But we have talked about Wyoming Seminary quite a bit on this podcast when it comes to women recruits for the women's wrestling team over at Iowa. Lots and lots of great female wrestlers, great female talent coming out of Wyoming Seminary,

apparently, as well as great male talent for the Iowa men's wrestling team. And the guy we will talk about next will be another incoming commit for the University of Iowa. Before we get into that, though, I want to talk about Bilt Bar really, really quick. Imagine dipping your finger into a tub of birthday cake frosting that, you know, that tubs that you get from the store that like, I think they call it like confetti cake frosting. So, so good. I just received my birthday cake puffs personally from Bilt Bar. They are so, so good. I've received my birthday cake puffs personally from Built Bar. They are so, so good. I've tried them. They're amazing. You've got to go give them a shot. I've never seen anything like this before. They're available right now and we cannot promise that they're

going to be there tomorrow. So you got to go check them out today. You got to go, got to go on that built.com. Use our promo code, which we'll get to in just a minute here and use that promo code to get 15% off your order at built.com. 150 calories, 16 grams of protein, only 9 grams of sugar in this limited time flavor. It's an amazing option if you're looking for a healthy way to get flavor and variety back into your day. They are made with 100% collagen protein, which your body absorbs more efficiently and provides tons of health benefits. So go to built.com, get those birthday cake puffs now. As I mentioned, the promo code for 15% off at checkout is locked 15. Once again, that is L O C

K E D one five. One more time for the people in the back L O C K E D one five to get 15% off your order at built.com. Now the next recruit that I want to talk about for Iowa this upcoming season, this guy, I wouldn't say he holds a special place in my heart, but I have personally done some live play-by-play announcing for his wrestling matches. I've had the opportunity to do that up at college up at Iowa central there in Fort Dodge, uh, go Tritons by the way. Um, anyway, as I mentioned, I've gotten the chance to seen this guy wrestle in person. I know how good of a wrestler he is. I know that he will bring a tremendous amount of talent to this Iowa men's wrestling team. As I mentioned, I've gotten to do some live play by play, uh, for his wrestling

matches before. And that is Aiden Harris. Uh, technically he is a third, he will be a third year college student, um, in technical terms as he did complete two years of education over at Iowa central, but I'm assuming he will be going for, um, to complete, I guess his bachelor's degree over at the university of Iowa. So as I mentioned, two years of wrestling in Iowa central, he wrestled at one 25, one 33 and one 41. Um, In his time wrestling at the 125-pound weight class, he got fourth at the NJCAA National Championships. If you don't know what that is, that is the National Junior College Athletic Association,

kind of like the NCAA, just without the junior in there. After winning six straight wrestlebacks, two coming off of a first-round loss, managed to get fourth, which if you don't know a whole lot about wrestling, most of the time in tournaments, in national tournaments especially, if you lose in the first round, you go to the loser's side of the bracket. And I believe the best you could do is either second or third at that point.

But winning six matches to begin with is extremely hard at the national level, but winning six straight wrestlebacks, even to come back and get fourth is absolutely mind blowing. So congratulations to him for that. He qualified for the NJCAAs, uh, again this year, but managed to finish only two and two. So he did not place, but regardless, he's originally from Layton, Utah. Uh, he is a three-time medalist in the class 6A over in Utah. I know absolutely zero about Utah high school wrestling, so I cannot tell you what that

kind of compares to within the Iowa standards of classes of wrestling. I'm assuming it's right up there with like a 3 or a 4 a, uh, type, um, you know, class within the, or within Iowa at least. Um, but regardless, he won the state title his senior year in 2020 at the 120 pound weight class, repping out one 20, like I used to do back in high school, took second the year before his junior year at one 13 as well. Harris said in his, um, commitment to Iowa, he posted via Instagram, by the way, this quote will stick with me for a very long time because it speaks volumes about not only Harris as a wrestler, but as well as just wrestling as a whole and life pretty much.

It's an amazing quote. It reads, sometimes I feel as if hard decisions are meant to remind you who you really have or who really has your back and easy decisions are meant to put those people in your life. I have decided to continue my academic and athletic career at the University of Iowa, and I would like to thank everyone who has my back. That quote right there, when I read it, it speaks volumes to me. Sometimes I feel as if hard decisions are meant to remind you who really has your back and easy decisions are meant to put those people in your life. I understand this is not a motivational podcast by any means. This is a sports podcast,

an informational sports podcast. But if you're looking for a little inspiration in your day, a little motivation, a little something to get you out of bed, uh, in the morning, a little something to get your day started. Read that quote right there. That's an amazing, amazing way to put things. Once again, I'll read that. Sometimes I feel as if hard decisions are meant to remind you who really has your back and easy decisions are meant to put those people in your life. So amazing quote by Harris. Obviously pales in comparison to his wrestling talents, but I'm excited to see what this kid's going to be able to do at the University of Iowa. He's an amazing, amazing, talented wrestler.

He's going to have to beat out Drake. Granted, granted, he will have to beat out Drake if he does want to go all the way down to that 125 spot, but we'll have to wait and see. We'll have to wait and see what happens. I think that Drake might beat him out. Um, as you know, Drake, uh, Ayala, I hate saying his last name wrong. There's, I mean, I've heard people pronounce it a hundred different ways. Um, I say Ayala. I don't know if that's wrong. I've been told, um, that that is correct. Um, but you know,

if I'm wrong, let me know. So, uh, Drake Ayala, as you know, wrestled at Fort Dodge community, um, which is where Iowa central is that he wrestled there in high school, eventually went on to the university of Iowa to wrestle in the lightweight, uh, 125 weight pound class. Uh, so it's going to be, it's, it's going to be exciting to see those two fight it out. Obviously Harris has a little bit more wrestling experience, um, at the college level anyway. I don't know, uh, what his previous background is having to do with younger days, like junior high and elementary and stuff like that. But obviously Harris has just a little bit more of an advantage when it comes to

the whole college wrestling atmosphere. But granted, keep in mind, Ayala has more experience at the D1 level. He's wrestled D1 wrestlers. Harris does not. So I'm very excited to see how this will play out. I'm excited to see those two battle it out this winter. Obviously, Spencer Lee coming back.

So, I mean, Lee's going to beat out both of them. Obviously, that's going to happen. That's how it is. But, I mean, it's Spencer Lee. Come on. Come on. Come on. Come on.

It's Spencer Lee. Anyways, I'm excited to see these two duke it out next year, specifically for the starting spot. I don't know who's better. I've seen Ayala wrestle more than I've seen Harris wrestle. And I know that Ayala is a great wrestler. And I know that Harris is a great wrestler as well. So, I mean, like I said, I'm very, very excited to see how that is going to turn out. Before we get into Jude Link, who is the third recruit that I want to talk about today,

I want to mention BetOnline really fast. Our partners at BetOnline continue to be the number one source for all of your betting needs and sports info. You can find all of the latest odds, news, and sports developments, including this year's basketball playoffs, Major League Baseball news, scores, fights, and even next season's NFL futures. BetOnline is your continued source for all of your sporting wagering information, from live betting to playoffs to esports and more.

Head to the website today or use your mobile device to learn more about the trends and action. BetOnline, it's where the game starts. Once again, that is BetOnline.net. Now, as I mentioned, Jude Link, another commit to I or recruit, I guess he also committed, um, three within the last four days, which is quite a bit for recruits slash commitments. Uh, anyway, he's predicted to wrestle at one 65. He's a three-time state finalist in Minnesota's two a class. I believe they call it double a it's not called two a like Iowa or Utah, but regardless, there's two A's.

So I'm going to call it 2A. He won a state title at 160 this past season, his senior season. 155 and 16 record throughout four years of high school. And if you don't know much about wrestling or about high school wrestling, that's pretty good. Gable Stevenson, if you don't know who he is, look him up. Learn because he's a very influential member of the wrestling community. That's pretty good. Gable Stevenson, if you don't know who he is, look him up. Learn, because he's a very influential member of the wrestling community.

One, or excuse me, not one, lost two matches in college throughout his five years of wrestling in college. Two matches, which is more insane than this, obviously. But just wanted to mention that there's guys out there who do stuff like this. Through his sophomore through senior season, he was 122-6, meaning 10 of those losses came from his freshman year of high school. Link said, quote, about his commitment, I'm excited to announce that I will be continuing my academic and athletic career

through the University of Iowa. I would like to thank my family and every single one of my coaches for making this possible. Again, a little bit more of a generalized commitment statement. But regardless, another fantastic wrestler with amazing talent that's going to be coming to Iowa. As I mentioned earlier, Iowa's recruitment class for next year

is currently ranked 15th in the nation. And with guys like this coming in at this rate, like I said, three in the last four days, I can't say that enough. That number is going to rise. Obviously, obviously Iowa is not the number 15 wrestling program in the country. Right. And I mean, if you, if you look at, um, like sports like football and baseball and basketball and wrestling, you know, like the four major ones, if you take the four major sports currently, Iowa's wrestling team is the best team that Iowa has overall. Uh, and I mean, there's arguments to say for, um, I was, um, women's dance team as well,

because they are very talented at what they do. I don't know very much about them, but I do know that they are very, very good. Um, as well as Iowa's baseball team is not half bad. I believe they're third in the big 10, uh, right now, um, when it comes to baseball and they just passed the 30 win milestone, I believe over Michigan state. Uh, but regardless, we're not here to talk about baseball or about the dance team today. Um, Iowa's men's wrestling team is extremely, extremely talented recruiting class ranked 15th in the nation right now that that's only going to rise. I don't think that's going to go anywhere below 15 before this winter comes up. So I'm excited to see how Iowa is going to be able to do this year. Obviously they were very talented last year. Ended up coming a little short at the NCAAs

last year, placing third behind Michigan and Penn State, but they won it. They won the whole thing the previous year. So I'm excited to see with Iowa. Obviously, they have quite a few guys that are going to be leaving, but they have quite a few guys that are going to be returning as well. So Iowa is definitely going to make a case to be the number one wrestling team in the nation once again this year as they have done consistently. So the story of the day.

Now, I read this. I've been following this subject in the news the last few days. Personally, I don't watch the news a whole lot just because I don't understand a whole lot of things and I don't like politics. So if you didn't know that about me, now you do. I don't like politics of any kind. Just, I mean, a lot of that stuff's confusing, but this is not a political podcast and it never will be. So with that aside, I don't watch the news very often, um, because most of the time the news is pretty sad. And, uh, the thing that I've been following the last few days is obviously very sad as well.

So if you have not heard, there was a, a racially motivated shooting, uh, in the Buffalo, New York area in the last couple of days, um days in which 10 people were shot and killed at a, I believe, a Topps market up there in Buffalo, New York. So obviously a very, very sad, very, very tragic incident that occurred. There are, there's one guy, one former Iowa player in particular that is making a very, very large difference, uh, to try to, um, you know, help make light, uh, help, you know, bring some good out of this very, very tragic situation. That player is Micah Hyde. Obviously you've heard of him. He plays for the Buffalo Bills now.

He's running back for Iowa. Um, Hyde has a charity, if you did not know, called the Imagine for Youth Foundation. And they had a charity softball game, an annual charity softball game planned for the day after the shooting occurred. And the foundation received a $200,000 donation from the event's sponsors, and a portion of which will go to the families of the victims of the shooting. and a portion of which will go to the families of the victims of the shooting. More than 10,000 Buffalo Bills fans, as well as various other people, showed up to the softball game to support Hyde's foundation,

as well as the victims' families and the Buffalo Bills. So it's absolutely amazing to see that Micah Hyde is, you know, making light of a bad situation, trying to find some good in it and help others out. So amazing to see. Hyde said, quote, Yesterday, to be honest, we didn't feel right even having this game, but then having conversations with some people, we felt it was important to get the community out and put a smile on their face, get the players in front of them, and we're doing it for a good cause. If we stopped and canceled everything because of hate, we wouldn't be moving forward to this. Excuse me to see this.

It just means the world to me from the bottom of my heart that they're coming out to support the foundation support the kids of western new york and support the bills as well so as i said it's a very very tragic event that happened i'm sure that you've heard about it there's been quite a few um tragic events like this that have happened in the news recently um so it's nice to see that, I mean, especially a former Iowa player is bringing some good, excuse me, out of this situation and is supporting this cause in the best way that he possibly can, raising money for the victims' families

and bringing awareness to this kind of thing. Obviously, as I mentioned, it was a racially motivated shooting. We've talked about on this podcast before, you know, that sort of subject. And I won't get into it again because, as I said, this is not a political or news-related podcast. This is a sports podcast. But I felt like I should mention it because it's a very tragic situation. And a former Iowa player in Micah Hyde is helping make light of this bad situation. So, with that being said, that is today's episode.

Again, like I said, let me switch back over here. Like I said, tomorrow we will have LaShawn Daniels on the podcast. We'll sit down, talk about the best and the worst case scenario for Iowa's football season, uh, this upcoming or this upcoming football season. Um, and I apologize. I knew I said I was going to have him on today. There was a scheduling issue. Um, and I I'm recording this fairly late, so I apologize for that.

Um, but we will get him on the podcast tomorrow. Hopefully you'll be seeing a lot more of him. Um, and I, you guys know just as well as I do, whenever LaShawn comes on the podcast, we get into it, we get to talking about things and it usually ends up with, you know, a 45, 50, 55 minute long podcast. But I love doing that for you guys. I love doing those, you know, those longer episodes trying to get, um, you know, a little bit more content in there because me and LaShawn, we talk about a lot of stuff. Usually it's the same topic. Um, but LaShawn, especially having that college or that division one college at Iowa, having that, you know, that NFL experience,

it's great to hear, uh, from him as a person and as a former player himself. So like I said, we will have him on the podcast tomorrow as well. Um, we'll talk about that best and kind of worst case for Iowa this upcoming season. So thank you all for taking the time to tune in to today's episode. You are welcome to follow me and Locked on Hawkeyes on Twitter as well. My handle is right down there. And the Locked on Hawkeyes podcast Twitter handle is at Locked on Iowa. So go check those out as well.

Give those a follow. And I will see you all tomorrow.