“MATNESS” RanKINGs:
“The Kings of Matness” can be described as the Royal Family of Wrestlers who bring Style, Personality, Point-scoring, Sportsmanship, and most importantly Entertainment Value. This Fraternity of Nobles includes recent grapplers like Cary Kolat, Jason Nolf, Spencer Lee, Greg Jones, Jordan Burroughs, Bo Nickal, Kyle Snyder, Jordan Oliver, David Taylor, Ben Askren, and of course Our King of Kings Minnesota’s Dylan Ness! 🐐
Here are our Top-Ten (or so) Active Wrestlers doing their part to grow the sport for the casual fans and maybe even reeling in new ones.
Bryce Andonian [Virginia Tech] 157 lbs. - This “Wizard on the Resilite” creates moves and holds (from all positions) that we have never seen before. Mr. Andonian should whisper in each opponent’s ear while shaking hands “It is not safe for you here.” HIs combination of length and strength nearly scored him a Fall over Levi Haines in the 2023 NCAA Quarterfinals. Unfortunately, “BA” has been injured for much of the season but he’s BACK and just in time!
Mitchell Mesenbrink [Penn State] 165 lbs. - Dynamic Freshman is only #2 on this list because Andonian has done it longer. Mitchell “On the…” MesenBRINK of scoring and chaos is a joy to behold. At any moment, he can create a masterpiece move while you’re blinking. His wide torso allows him to reach to faraway lands and shift weight simultaneously. His Championship match in the BIG TEN Finals against Dean Hamiti is an Instant Classic. Fan favorite, who looks like your IT guy, grateful and respectful on all occasions.
Ridge Lovett [Nebraska] 149 lbs. - Oh how we missed you in 2023. Ridge “Lyle” Lovett used his redshirt and the 149 lbs. division wasn’t quite the same. The battles with Austin Gomez alone earn him a spot on this list. As a fan, you’ll never see Ridge “shut it down” and stall his way to a narrow victory. What you might see is a clever or adorable victory pose while getting his hand raised. Always looking to score and taking losses with grace, Lovett is a spectacle who wants to add NCAA Champion to his résumé.
…And for the rest of our list:
Austin Gomez [Michigan] 149 lbs.
Yonger Bastida [Iowa State] 285 'lbs.
Vitali “Vito” Arujau [Cornell] 133 lbs.
Matt Ramos [Purdue] 125 lbs.
Keegan O’Toole [Mizzou] 165 lbs.
Aaron Brooks [Penn State] 197 lbs.
Wyatt Hendrickson [Air Force] 285 lbs.
Parker Keckeisen [UNI] 184 lbs.
Lenny Pinto [Nebraska] 184 lbs.