The Free Press, Mankato, MN

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    MSU Brady Wilson

November 3, 2009

MSU heavyweight has sizeable goals this season

Wilson ranked second in Division II

By Jim Rueda

MANKATO — He weighs 270 pounds, almost all of it muscle.

Minnesota State University heavyweight wrestler Brady Wilson can literally claim to a big man on campus (BMOC), but that’s just one of the many hats he hopes to wear this year. The senior enters the 2009-2010 season as the second-ranked wrestler in Division II. When its all over, he’s hoping to be a conference champion, a regional champion and the NCAA national champion.

“That’s the ultimate goal,” Wilson said before a practice session this week. “I’ve already accomplished a lot of that other stuff, I just need to take that next step and be a national champion.”

Wilson says he’s done more offseason preparation than he’s ever done in his collegiate career. One of the major steps he took over the summer was to work at a wrestling camp in Nebraska, where he was able to practice with a number of Division I wrestlers and even a U.S.A. World Team wrestler on a regular basis.

“That helped me a lot,” the Faribault native said. “You don’t see that caliber of wrestler in most practice rooms so it’s a great way to improve.”

Wilson said he probably didn’t learn any new moves during his stint in Nebraska, but he believes he’s still a better wrestler.

“I think I’m mostly just perfecting the moves I already have,” he said. “My major focus is to be more aggressive, especially on my feet. I need to get more single-leg takedowns; I need to keep my opponent on the defensive.”

Mavericks coach Jim Makovsky said Wilson’s confidence level is the best it’s ever been. He’s also blossomed into a team leader the last couple of years and has the respect of all his teammates.

A few years ago, Wilson had a locker next to Jason Rhoten and all he could talk about was trying to get Jason a national team championship, as well as an individual championship.

“Now Brady’s that guy,” Makovsky said. “He wants to go out on top.”

Wilson, who went 33-4 last year, is one of five ranked wrestlers on the MSU roster entering the season. The others are Andy Forstner (fourth, 125 pounds, 30-12 last season), Travis Elg (seventh, 157, 20-6), Ben Becker (eighth, 174, 13-13), and Pat Mahan (sixth, 197, 22-11).

The other top returner is Aaron Norgren of Mapleton. He went 13-10 as a freshman last year and is again penciled in as the starter at 184 pounds.

Makovsky is confident he’s going to end up with a very competitive team this season. His biggest concern is trying to figure out who will be wrestling at what weights, as there is stiff competition in the practice room from a number of younger wrestlers at a number of weights.

Among the top newcomers will be Brandon Eichman (165 pounds) from Hastings, Robby Fischer (133 or 141) from Bloomington, Tel Todd (165) from Bozeman, Mont., and Janesville-Waldorf-Pemberton grad Jesse Westphal (149), who was a redshirt last season.

“We’ll have to see during the open season where these guys end up,” Makovsky said. “One guy moving up or down a weight can cause a ripple effect with a lot of other guys.”

The Mavericks (12-4) begin the season Saturday at the South Dakota State Open in Brookings, S.D. Their first home meet is Wednesday, Nov. 11, against Waldorf College at Bresnan Arena.

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