Iowa State wrestling preview: heavyweight

Iowa+State+redshirt+junior+Marcus+Harrington+gets+taken+down+by+Iowas+Sam+Stoll.+Stoll+is+ranked+No.+5+in+the+nation+and+beat+Harrington+14-4+via+major+decision.+The+Hawkeyes+rolled+over+the+Cyclones+35-6.%C2%A0

Jack MacDonald/Iowa State Daily

Iowa State redshirt junior Marcus Harrington gets taken down by Iowa’s Sam Stoll. Stoll is ranked No. 5 in the nation and beat Harrington 14-4 via major decision. The Hawkeyes rolled over the Cyclones 35-6. 

Trevor Holbrook

Editor’s note: This is part 10 of a 10-part series breaking down the Iowa State wrestling roster weight-by-weight. While athletes switching to different weights is inevitable, for the sake of simplicity and consistency, this series will base the weights off of past weights.

After news broke of Marcus Harrington’s decision to forgo his senior season of collegiate eligibility at Iowa State, the Cyclones were left with little depth at heavyweight.

Kevin Dresser added a heavyweight recruit in October and he plucked another Southeast Polk graduate in Oklahoma State transfer Ethan Andersen.

Gannon Gremmel

The two-time Fargo National Champion and 2016 state champion should see more action in duals this season.

As a redshirt freshman, Gremmel went 19-7 with a 0-1 record in his only dual match. Gremmel finished third at the Cyclone Open, won the UNI Open and added a pair of second-place finishes at the Sioux City Dave Edmonds Open and the Willie Myers Open.

In April, Gremmel made some noise in freestyle. After cruising to the finals at the U.S. Open, Gremmel fell behind 8-0, but rebounded, finishing the match with 16 unanswered points.

In May, Gremmel wrestled Minnesota’s Gable Stephenson in a best two-of-three format for a spot on the U.S. Junior World Team. Gremmel fell short, losing in two matches.

Looking ahead to the 2018-19 season, Gremmel will be a strong candidate to compete at Iowa State’s heavyweight spot.

Ethan Andersen

Andersen should compete with Gremmel for heavyweight. Last season, Andersen redshirted, finishing 10-4 in tournaments. Six of the 10 wins came through pins.

At Southeast Polk, Andersen finished with a 184-14 record with two state titles.

Francis Duggan

With Andersen and Gremmel on the roster, Duggan will likely redshirt. Duggan — an Iowa City West graduate — finished his high school career with a 3A 220-pound state title.

Duggan will benefit from a redshirt season behind Andersen and Gremmel.