Why fans should be excited about 77 kg at the Olympic Team Trials

Photo of Pat Smith and Kamal Bey battling at Final X: Rutgers courtesy of Tony Rotundo

Last week I wrote about how loaded the 60 kg weight class will be for the Olympic Team Trials. This week, I'm tackling another weight class I can't wait to watch, 77 kg.

Unlike 60 kg, however, 77 kg has not yet been qualified for the Olympic Games. Whoever comes out at the top of the heap will have immediate work to do by qualifying the weight class at the Last Chance Olympic Qualifier tournament.
Current National Team members expected to compete at 77 kg
No. 1 at 77 kg Patrick Smith
No. 2 at 72 kg Alex Mossing
No. 2 at 77 kg Kamal Bey
No. 2 at 82 kg Kendrick Sanders
No. 2 at 87 kg Ben Provisor
No. 3 at 77 kg Peyton Walsh
No. 3 at 82 kg Geordan Speiller
Pat Smith was last year’s World Team member at the weight class. Smith bumped up from 72 kg in 2019 and found immediate success defeating the incumbent World Team member Kamal Bey for the spot in a thrilling three-match series at Final X: Rutgers. Smith had previously made a Senior World Team in 2017 at 71 kg and is also a 2014 World University Championships silver medalist.
Smith was the 2019 Pan Am Games champion. He placed second at the 2020 Pan Am Championships and third at the Pan Am Olympic Qualifier, one spot away from qualifying the weight class. With another full year to grow into 77 kg, Smith should be better than ever and considered one of the front runners in the bracket.
Kamal Bey is one of the most exciting wrestlers on the planet regardless of style and someone fans should not take their eyes off of. After winning a Junior World title in 2017, Bey made the 2018 Senior World Team and finished seventh at the World Championships in Budapest, Hungary. To make the team, Bey defeated the returning World Team member Mason Manville in the World Team Trials finals. The pair had also clashed in the 2017 World Team Trials finals, where Manville bested Bey.
Manville, a 2014 Youth Olympic Games silver medalist, took an Olympic redshirt at Penn State last season to focus solely on Greco-Roman. Since making the World Team in 2017 at 75 kg, Manville has consistently been one of the top competitors at 77 kg.
Two-time Olympian Ben Provisor is making a big cut in what is most likely his last go-round before retirement. Currently No. 2 at 87 kg, which is an Olympic weight class, Provisor is dropping 10 kg to try his hand at 77 kg instead. In 2012, Provisor competed at the Games at 74 kg, and in 2016 he was the U.S. representative at 85 kg. He followed it up in 2017 by making the World Team at 85 kg. The past two years Provisor has finished runner-up at the World Team Trials at 87 kg.
The big weight cut combined with the fact that this could be the last time we see Provisor on the mat, gives a very “Vision Quest” feel to his run at the Olympic Team, so count out Provisor at your own peril.
Another wrestler cutting down to 77 kg is No. 2 at 82 kg Kendrick Sanders. While he did not place at the 2019 Senior Nationals, his first tournament down at 77 kg, Sanders is a four-time National Team member and a two-time U.S. Open champion (2014, 2019). A savvy veteran, Sanders has the ability to make some noise in this weight class.
Alex Mossing, who is currently No. 2 at 72 kg, could be a dark horse that turns some heads. A 2019 graduate of the Air Force Academy, Mossing immediately established himself on the scene by earning a spot on the National Team. A 2017 U23 World Team member, Mossing is still adjusting to the new weight class, failing to place at the 2019 Bill Farrell International or the 2019 Senior Nationals.
No. 3 at 82 kg Geordan Speiller could be another wrestler moving down to compete at 77 kg. Speiller was runner-up to Andy Bisek at the 2016 Olympic Team Trials and was a member of the 2018 World Team at 82 kg. Speiller also represented Team USA at the Junior World Championships in 2012 and 2013 as well as the World University Games in 2013.
Peyton Walsh, the current No. 3 at 77 kg, has made the National Team the past two years. Walsh, a 2018 U.S. Open runner-up, finished fourth at the 2019 Senior Nationals. While he wouldn’t be considered a favorite, Walsh has shown he can hang in what is usually considered one of our deepest weight classes.
Another former World Team member to keep an eye on is Jake Fisher. The 2019 Senior Nationals runner-up, Fisher competed in the 2010 World Championships and also won the World Team Trials in 2011. While some may have been counting Fisher out, his run to the Senior Nationals finals as the No. 10 seed before falling to Kamal Bey should be a wakeup call to the field.
The 2016 Olympic Team Trials champion at 66 kg RaVaughn Perkins has also entered the fray at 77 kg. Given that Perkins was unable to qualify his weight class for the Rio Games, you can rest assured that he is particularly hungry for a shot at redemption. Perkins was the 2018 World Team member at 72 kg and placed third at the 2019 Senior Nationals, only falling to Jake Fisher in the semifinals. Perkins is a two-time Pan Am Champion (2018, 2019) and a two-time U.S. Open champion (2014 and 2018).
Another up-and-comer looking to stake his claim is 2018 Junior World silver medalist Andrew Berreyesa. Also a member of the 2019 U23 World Team, Berreyesa placed sixth at the 2019 Senior Nationals.
Similarly to 60 kg, I don’t envy anyone trying to figure out who will end up where in this bracket, but I do know I will enjoy watching it all shake out.

*Editor's Note - This article was originally intended to be a #GrecoMonday feature but was released on Tuesday due to the USOPC website update.