2 months ago
Tiger Style ended its 2nd consecutive play pinch a 14th-place decorativeness astatine nan NCAA Championships. Some would spot nan aforesaid consequence arsenic complacency, but erstwhile nan 8 caller superior starters and injuries are factored in, nan 2025-26 play tin beryllium seen arsenic a beardown building artifact for nan young program.
Team record: 12-8 (5-3 Big 12)
Tournament squad wins: Tiger Style Invite, Soldier Salute
National qualifiers: R-Fr Mack Mauger (125lbs), So Gage Walker (133lbs), R-Jr Cam Steed (174lbs), R-Fr Aeoden Sinclair (184lbs), R-Sr Evan Bates (197lbs), R-So Jarrett Stoner (285lbs)
All Americans: R-Jr Cam Steed (fifth place, 174lbs) and R-Fr Aeoden Sinclair (third place, 184lbs)
Big 12 Champs squad finish: Fourth place, 84.5 points
NCAA Champs squad finish: 14th place, 34 points
Mizzou often has a “Guy” successful nan programme who is caput and shoulders supra nan pack. It was Keegan O’Toole from 2020-24 and J’den Cox from 2013-2017. He whitethorn not person won a nationalist title successful his premier starting season, but Aedoen Sinclair has nan talent and moxie to beryllium nan Tigers’ superstar. The redshirt freshman only mislaid 2 matches nan full play – some to Iowa’s Angelo Ferrari – and was a changeless threat to those classed supra him.
If Sinclair was nan premier wrestler, past Cam Steed was nan cleanable co-star, moreover if it didn’t ever look that way.
Steed began his play astatine nan Tiger Style Invite, wherever he went 2-2 and was emotionally beaten down successful nan Hearnes Center. Head coach Brian Smith alluded that nan redshirt inferior was battling done an unwellness successful nan event.
He began to look for illustration nan wrestler who placed seventh astatine nationals successful 2025 astatine nan National Duals Invitational, but suffered an wounded successful nan last dual against Illinois that near him sidelined for astir 2 months. Steed returned for nan last 8 convention duals of nan regular season. He went 7-1 pinch 3 wins by tech autumn and 2 by fall. Success spilled complete into nan postseason pinch a Big 12 title and his champion placement ever astatine nationals.
Outside of nan All-Americans, Mizzou had a brace of young lightweights gain their first nationalist qualifications successful Mack Mauger and Gage Walker. It was Mauger’s first play arsenic a full-time starter, and Walker was unexpectedly thrust into nan starting lineup successful January pinch nan season-ending wounded to Kade Moore.
Mauger’s marquee triumph ever seemed to elude him, often being connected nan incorrect extremity of upsets, but his awesome takedown powerfulness for a lightweight leaves plentifulness of room for progression.
Walker’s communicative successful his existent sophomore play wasn’t overseas to him. He was thrown successful arsenic nan starter astatine 125lbs past play erstwhile Noah Surtin medically retired, going 11-11 overall. The move up to 133lbs saw Walker connected nan redshirt way down Moore, but erstwhile he was called upon, he stepped up. Walker earned an automatic bid to nationals pinch a fifth-place decorativeness astatine nan Big 12 Tournament and won his first-round matchup successful Cleveland, Ohio.
Most wrestling programs’ shortcomings are rooted successful injuries, and nan Tigers person go acquainted pinch this successful nan past 2 seasons. While not connected nan aforesaid level arsenic a play ago, Mizzou still had to woody pinch injuries to cardinal contributors.
Joshua Edmond, J Conway, Max Mayfield, Steed and Moore each missed important time. Steed managed to get past his absences and still suffice for nationals, but nan others weren’t truthful lucky. Between nan quartet of upperclassmen who didn’t gain NCAA qualification for this past postseason, they had a mixed 9 NCAA qualifications.
In Edmond’s case, location was thing disconnected since nan commencement of his season. Only a fewer matches weren’t close, and he lacked nan powerfulness that fans had been accustomed to seeing from him. He ended his profession pinch Tiger Style, missing retired connected nationals pinch a seventh-place decorativeness astatine nan Big 12 Championship.
Conway’s play was 1 that was perpetually changing. He started nan play astatine 157lbs aft a nationalist qualifying 2024-25 campaign, but was swiftly injured astatine nan Tiger Style Invite. He was only retired for 2 weeks earlier coming backmost and wrestling powerfully into nan caller year. Even then, nan coaching unit decided to bring successful Teague Travis for nan outpouring semester to bolster nan roster, taking Conway’s starting spot successful nan process.
His absence from nan starting lineup was short-lived aft Mayfield sewage injured successful nan Soldier Salute. Conway made nan move up to 165lbs and filled successful admirably, but erstwhile Mayfield came backmost successful nan regular play finale against Iowa State, it was clear that he gave Mizzou a amended changeable astatine a postseason berth, which fundamentally ended Conway’s season.
The letdown was that Mayfield and Travis faltered successful nan Big 12 tourney anyway, leaving nan Tigers pinch nary NCAA qualifier successful nan 157lbs aliases 165lbs divisions.
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Moore is personification who fans person to empathize pinch aft his play ended successful precocious December. Consistency was a mobility for nan redshirt junior, but he had immoderate elite performances done his mini sample size of matches. Most notably, Moore astir pinned, astatine nan time, No. 1 Lucas Byrd (ILL).
A mediocre show from Mizzou, unrelated to injuries, came successful nan shape of nan deficiency of a reliable starter astatine 141lbs. Easton Hilton, Zeke Seltzer, Owen Uhls and Seth Mendoza divided clip successful nan division. The 141lbs bout was astir a guaranteed nonaccomplishment successful each convention dual.
The Tigers person plentifulness of turnover going into adjacent season. They’re losing 4 starters to exhausted eligibility successful Edmond, Travis, Mayfield and Bates. The transportation portal opened today, and it tin beryllium expected that immoderate of Mizzou will hunt for replacements/upgrades, arsenic good arsenic person immoderate extent pieces transportation retired successful hunt of caller opportunities.
Nine seniors are graduating successful total, which leaves 9 known roster spots pinch nan 30-man cap. The Tigers person a six-man incoming freshman class.
Tiger Style’s 2025–26 play wasn’t a plateau; rather, it laid nan groundwork for a return to nationalist contention arsenic its young halfway demonstrated its potential.
