#GrecoMonday: Nebraska's Greco legacy is alive and well with talented new wave of wrestlers

Photo of Alex Thomsen after claiming his 60 kg Senior Nationals title courtesy of Sam Janicki.

The University of Nebraska is historically one of the top colleges in the country for producing Greco-Roman talent. Olympic gold medalist Rulon Gardner, two-time Olympian and World silver medalist Brad Vering and current National Greco-Roman Head Coach Matt Lindland, who is an Olympic and World silver medalist, all call themselves Cornhusker alumni.
At the 2020 Senior Nationals, Nebraska showed that their current crop of wrestlers are embracing the University’s Greco legacy and forging their own paths in the style.
Nebraska had seven wrestlers currently on their roster compete in the Greco-Roman portion of the tournament and four of them make the podium, with Alex Thomsen bringing home a title at 60 kg. The other three wrestlers to place included Peyton Robb, who took fourth at 77 kg, Tanner Farmer and Austin Emerson, who took fourth and eighth place, respectively, at 130 kg.
Mark Manning, Nebraska’s head coach is thrilled to have elite Greco talent emerging in his room.
“There’s been a lot of Greco specialists that have come from Nebraska, and I think these guys are the next wave for us. It’s really great,” Manning said.
While many D1 wrestlers go on to pursue freestyle aspirations, not as many tend to try the Greco route. However, Manning is 100% behind supporting his athletes as they chase their goals.
“I think we just happen to have guys that love Greco and they see their future in international wrestling being in Greco-Roman. They’ve got some talent, and we’re going to keep inspiring them to pursue that,” he said.
Going into Senior Nationals, the group trained for a little under two months. Much of it was driven by the athletes themselves, according to Nebraska Associate Head Coach Bryan Snyder.
“We gave them some freedom to explore some Greco drills. Obviously a lot of it is just getting back familiar with the positions. When we’re wrestling matches, they’re just wrestling Greco matches. We’re providing pointers here and there but a lot of it was just on those guys,” Snyder explained.
The team’s performances came as come as no surprise to Snyder, who himself was a four-time All-American and two-time NCAA finalist for Nebraska. Thomsen and Robb in particular managed to impress their coach. While the pair are just entering their redshirt sophomore seasons, Snyder has high expectations.
“I think you’re going to see it definitely in the next cycle. We’re going to make sure we do our part to get Thomsen and Peyton to compete with Senior-level guys. I would imagine you’re going to see those guys nipping at the heels of some of the Senior guys to make World and Olympic Teams next quad,” he said.
Thomsen and Robb were both Junior Fargo champions, but hadn’t competed in the style in several years. To reach the finals, Thomsen defeated Junior World bronze medalist and current National Team member Taylor LaMont, 10-4, in arguably his most impressive victory of the tournament. To claim the title, he downed Northern Colorado’s Mosha Schwartz, another up-coming talent, 5-3.
Robb fell in the quarterfinals to current World Team member Pat Smith, 11-0. He rebounded in the consolation brackets with technical fall victories over Greco-Roman specialists Fritz Schierl, Tommy Brackett and Ryan Epps before falling in the third-place bout to Alec Ortiz, 6-1.
While Robb may not have brought home a title, Snyder still holds him in high esteem.
“I think his tournament showcases how special he is. Peyton Robb is one of the more special guys I’ve been around,” he said.
That’s big praise coming from Snyder, who is a personal coach to Jordan Burroughs, one of the most decorated wrestlers in history.
While the NCAA season will provide limited opportunities to train Greco, the Nebraska coaching staff is looking forward to bringing their athletes to the USOPC training camps in the off-season to work with the National Team staff. Additionally, they are looking to potentially work with Zac Dominguez, the president and head coach of the MWC Wrestling Academy in Papillion, Nebraska. Dominguez has coached with the National Team staff at numerous Senior and age-group World Championships.
“We’re going to be here for them to bounce ideas off of. We want what is best for them and what they feel they really want to do. At the end of the day, we all know it’s going to take a lot of work to make World and Olympic Teams and be World and Olympic champions. It’s tough sledding, not an easy pursuit. They have to do what they feel is in their heart, and we’re just going to make sure that we can do everything in our power to make it happen,” Manning said.
While there is no doubt that Greco-Roman wrestling helps with certain aspects of folkstyle, the correlation between the styles is not as apparent as it is in freestyle, where wrestlers can still grab legs. However, that isn’t a deterrent for the Nebraska coaching staff.
“It’s not going to be a one-off. As a coach, seeing these guys have this level of success at the Seniors with the limited training they had, we have to do the right thing because the potential is there,” elaborated Snyder.
Manning echoed the sentiment.
“I’m really about what these young men want to pursue in their life and meeting that need for them,” Manning said. “What’s good for them is good for our program, is what I see. Their wants and desires come first, and obviously I’m here for them to seek advice and give them an opinion on it, but at the end of the day I want what’s in their best interest.”
While the new crop of Nebraska Greco wrestlers have a long way to go before they can stack up with the legendary Greco figures that litter the program’s history, Manning and Snyder believe these might just be the wrestlers to do it.