Penn State wrestling notebook: Sanderson talks missing matches, Wisconsin coach and more

Some wrestlers across the nation have sat out matches in NCAA events, but Penn State head coach Cael Sanderson was never one of them.

Sanderson grew up with his father as his wrestling coach. He would consistently wrestle through being hurt, sore and mentally tired. It didn’t matter what opportunity it was, Sanderson wanted to throw himself into battle on a daily basis.

But he also understands the rationale behind taking matches off.

“I wouldn’t miss a match. I don’t care what the situation is. So, that’s my mentality,” Sanderson said Tuesday during media availability. “But I think things kind of change over time. A lot of our guys and why we’ve been successful over the years is because they had that same mentality, like David Taylor. I remember he hurt his ankle pretty bad. ... he wrestled that weekend and he’s just like, ‘Well, I’ll just get on top’.”

The plan for Penn State two-time national champion Roman Bravo-Young was to sit out at the beginning of the season to keep him fresh for the remainder of the year. While he hasn’t wrestled as often as he would have in previous seasons to this point in the year, he’s still earned a 6-0 mark.

Aaron Brooks (184) has periodically taken matches off to allow his teammates an opportunity to see the mat. Also a two-time national champion, he’s 4-1 this season.

Beau Bartlett (141) is one of Penn State’s wrestlers who has completely embraced the mat. While there is no one “right way” to go about it, according to Bartlett, he still wants to fight each day to wrestle and build onto his momentum.

“I think sometimes forfeits might happen as a result of wanting to protect a seed or not give a different opponent a look on how you wrestle yet,” he said. “And I personally don’t believe in seeds or rankings at all. And that’s something I’ve said because people told me to say it, but now I truly do (believe it). The only things that matter are in March. All that I can control is how I carry myself today.”

How to handle a loss

Max Dean (197) is the type of wrestler to never dwell on a loss. The senior lost to Rider’s Ethan Laird 3-1 in a sudden victory decision on Dec. 2 and lost 11-9 to Lehigh’s Michael Beard on Dec. 4. He remains the No. 1 wrestler in his weight class with a 9-2 record and an 81.82% win percentage during the 2022-23 season. There’s still a lot to fight for going forward in the season.

“I think I’ve never really been perfect in anything that I’ve done,” Dean said. “I’ve always had to lose or needed a reminder that I’m a human being just like anybody else. It stinks to lose and I hate losing, but there’s definitely some things personally that need to be reconciled with and I’m grateful that I got to do that and get to go hard with my teammates and my coaches.”

Sanderson on Bono’s impact

Penn State opens up its conference schedule at 9 p.m. Friday in Madison, Wisconsin. Badgers head coach Chris Bono has history with Sanderson and was his assistant coach at Iowa State. Bono wrestled in the 150-pound weight class and was a three-time All-American (1995-97) and won a national championship in 1995. Sanderson won four national titles in the 197-pound class from 1999-2002 at Iowa State.

“Bono was one of my coaches was very impactful to me as a young competitor at Iowa State many years ago,” Sanderson said. “They’re a tough team and like we’ve seen the last few years they’re gonna come in and wrestle hard.”

No. 1 Penn State (7-0) at No. 11 Wisconsin (6-1)

When: 9 p.m., Friday

Where: UW Field House, Madison, Wisc.

Radio: WRSC (93.3 FM) or WQWK (103.7 FM)

Online: Radio, Lionvision at GoPSUsports.com; TV, Big Ten Network

Twitter: @byncobler, @pennstatewrest