NCAA Wrestling: Ranking 2021-2022 weight classes

Parity R Us – No. 4

197

2021 Top 4
1. A.J. Ferrari (Fr.) Oklahoma State
2. Nino Bonaccorsi (Jr.) Pittsburgh
3. Myles Amine (Sr.) Michigan
4. Jacob Warner (Jr.) Iowa

“Hold up, Chris. You think the 197 class which was just won by a true freshman belongs in this group? Don’t you think he will build on the championship, continue to dominate, and win 5 NCAA titles?”

Yes and no.

I absolutely believe the 197 group has as much parity as any other class. A No. 26 seed made the semi final round and the finals was a matchup between the No. 4 seed and the No. 6 seed.

On a side note, I wish we knew how much A.J. Ferrari could deadlift. Does anyone have this information? It would be very helpful.

The top of the 197 class is filled with a vast amount of experience but a mixture of success. The No. 1 seed going into last year’s NCAA’s was Michigan’s Myles Amine. Prior to the 2021 NCAA Championships, Amine had already amassed three top 4 finishes, however these were all down at 174. Can he win it all at 197?

The No. 2 seed, Nebraska’s Eric Schultz, has spent his entire collegiate wrestling career at 197. A guy as talented as him has to have a couple of top 4 finishes in his career, right?

Wrong.

Do you know how many times Eric Schultz has been an All-American? Zero.

What about Arizona State’s junior standout Kordell Norfleet? Same. None.

Now let’s go back to the reigning NCAA Champ at 197. Take a look at the picture above. I have no idea what it screams but the words “modest” and “humble” certainly aren’t any of them.

But here’s what I’m getting at. A.J. Ferrari is unbelievably strong for his weight. I know it. The entire wrestling nation knows it. But according to resident wrestling expert and novice neighborhood bounce house operator, Nick Salerno, the dude isn’t really that great at actually wrestling.

At a young age, he has been able to perfect the ancient technique of out-muscling your opponent early in the match to build a lead and then run around the mat for 4 minutes. So when other wrestlers start to finally figure A.J. out, it’s not going to be great news for him.

Which means parity is going to be the recurring theme at 197 for next season as well. Add in NCAA runner-up Max Dean to the picture at Penn State and now you have a full fledged talent party going on.

So what do you think? Do you agree with my usually wrong opinion? Is this a useless article? Can A.J. Ferrari deadlift my wife’s car?

I guess we’ll find out soon enough.