2021-22 Dual Record: 6-6 overall, 3-5 GPAC (T-6th); 6th at GPAC tournament
2022 NAIA National Championships finish: 42nd
Head Coach: Chase Clasen (1st year)
Other Key Returners: 157 Issiah Burks; 197 Mason Garcia; 133 Thomas Ivey; 165 Jose Sanchez; 149 Jeaven Scdoris; 165 Tavoris Smith.
Key Losses: 141 Conner Burrus; 174 TJ Huber; 285 Jacob Telles; 133 Mario Ybarra.
2022 GPAC All-Conference: Jacob Telles (Second Team); Mario Ybarra (Second Team); Issiah Burks (Honorable Mention).
Outlook
The head coaching transition has been a major storyline this offseason for the Concordia University Wrestling program, which is undergoing a bit of a makeover. A young coach just a couple years removed from his own All-America run at the NCAA Division II level, Chase Clasen has been tabbed as the new leader. The expectation is that Clasen will provide needed stability while building a winning program. The blueprint is there for a Concordia outfit that celebrated GPAC championships in five of six seasons from 2014-15 through 2019-20.
Clasen and assistant coach Tyree Cox have retooled the roster. Nineteen of the 35 student-athletes in the program are new to the Bulldogs in 2022-23. The influx of talent will help supplement a roster that said goodbye to its two national qualifiers from last season, Mario Ybarra and Jacob Telles.
Everything starts with the right mentality. Says Clasen, “Anybody who knows me or spends any time around me knows that I don’t do anything to take second, whether it’s a sprint, homework or anything. I’m always competing. That’s the same mentality I want out of our guys. We’re not going to put a number on it or say we’re going to win the national title. I don’t think that’s the right way to go about it to accomplish your goals. It’s about the process. We’re going to focus on improving and getting better. We’re going to focus on the small details and hopefully win some championships. That’s the goal every single time, but we’re going to enjoy the process for sure.”
There’s work to be done as Concordia comes off back-to-back sixth-place GPAC tournament finishes. For the first time since 2013, the program did not put an individual on the All-America podium, snapping an eight-year streak. The question becomes: who starts a new streak? As one of six returners from last year’s GPAC tournament roster, 165-pounder Issiah Burks has come back for a sixth year and another shot at a national tournament berth. Burks won 23 matches in 2020-21 and is one of the team’s most prominent leaders.
Meanwhile, the buzz is building for one newcomer in particular: Creighton Baughman, already ranked No. 2 in the GPAC at 141 pounds. Baughman claimed two All-America awards at perennially strong Iowa Western Community College, where he went a combined 40-11. Burks referred to his new teammate as a “superstar” and as someone who sets the tone for the way Concordia wrestlers should carry themselves within the room.
Said Clasen, “He’s showing those other guys: if you want to achieve your goals, this is how you have to train. This is how you have to do things. I’ve been relying on him for that. He’s not much of a talker. He’s a walk-the-walk kind of guy. Having a guy like that to be able to show these young freshmen the right way to do things is huge for us. He’s a 4.0 student and does everything right off the mat. He’s just a perfect example of what we’re trying to look for here and what we’re trying to build. It’s been great having him.”
As part of the building process, Clasen has instituted daily 6 a.m. practices and after class study hall. Naturally, there was an adjustment period, especially for the veteran wrestlers who have trained under the tutelage of multiple head coaches. Clasen is someone who exudes confidence and can command the room. The team is responding to his teaching.
“The energy in the room feels really good,” Burks said. “Everyone is competing really hard since he’s been there. He’s brought a different kind of atmosphere from the previous year. Coach Clasen is an awesome coach. He’s helped guys individually a lot. It’s a good mix between him and Coach Cox. They both bring different dynamics to the team. It was a different transition from always having practice at 3:45 and now having practice at 6 a.m. every single day. It’s a more structured and rigid schedule.”
In addition to Baughman being ranked No. 2 in the GPAC in his weight class, the following Bulldogs are also rated at the conference level this preseason: Burks (fifth at 165), Jose Sanchez (fourth at 174), Hunter Weimer (sixth at 174), Garret Moser (sixth at 184) and Clayton Laabs (sixth at 197). At the 2022 GPAC Championships, Burks took fourth place at 165 and Sanchez placed fifth at that same weight. The lineup of key returners also features Mason Garcia (197; 13-5 record in 2021-22), Thomas Ivey (133; 14-4 record in 2021-22), Jeaven Scdoris (149) and Tavoris Smith (165), among others.
Clasen has leaned upon these upperclassmen while getting acclimated with life as a Bulldog within the NAIA wrestling world. Considering the absence of returning national qualifiers, Concordia has a roster full of wrestlers with something to prove. Some even find themselves seeking redemption after seasons ended too soon, for a variety of circumstances. Clasen is raving about the dedication he’s seen so far from the veteran group.
“They’ve been absolutely fantastic,” Clasen said. “They all lead in different ways, but when push comes to shove those guys are willing to outwork anybody. That’s really rubbing off on our freshmen. We’ve had talks about it being time for those guys to step up and be leaders. They’re doing a fantastic job. If they just keep doing what they’re doing and build that culture it’s going to be great.”
The group of 19 newcomers includes eight freshmen – four that were Nebraska state high school medalists. It also features 11 transfers, three of which arrived via nearby York College. Clasen also brings in one from his alma mater, Chadron State, in Kobe Lyons. York transfer Garret Moser picked up a win against a Bulldog wrestler last season when the Panthers visited Friedrich Arena for a dual.
The newcomers will certainly have a say in how successful this 2022-23 season ends up. Says Clasen, “We’re very young, but I think that’s a good thing. We can get our mentality of wrestling we want into these guys and have them live it out. We’re probably projecting six (combined) freshmen and sophomores in the starting dual lineup. We’re working every single day and we don’t care who you are, how big you are or what you’ve done. I can promise our guys are going to fight through every single position.”
Owner of 55 career wins, Burks hopes to put together victories at the right time and punch his ticket to nationals. Since the start of the 2013-14 season, the program has sent 56 qualifiers to nationals and has placed 15 wrestlers on the All-America podium.
Burks appears to be in the best shape of his career. Said Burks, “It means the world to me right now. I’ve come so close to going to nationals the last couple of years and fell a little bit behind. I get one last chance. I want to make it worth it and prove that I can compete with those guys. I know I can.”
Clasen’s team will start this season in an underdog role. The Bulldogs were ranked sixth in the GPAC preseason rating (according to the cumulation of individual points). At least for right now, Clasen would rather focus on the process as opposed to discussing any type of grand expectations. In the early stages, it’s about laying the groundwork for future championships and All-America awards.
“As long as they wrestle their hardest for the entirety of the match, I’ll never be mad about the result,” Clasen said. “The only time I’ll ever be mad at a result is if we didn’t wrestle our best because we laid down or we didn’t push the pace and didn’t do the things we work on. As long as a guy goes out and fights through every position, I’ll be satisfied. If you lose the match, that’s okay. We’ll learn from it. Sometimes that happens. Overall, it’s about fighting for every position, wrestling as hard as you can, doing the right things off the mat and getting good grades. If you do those things, I’ll never be mad at any result.”
The official start to the season is less than two weeks away. The Bulldogs will open 2022-23 by taking on Midland in dual action on Nov. 1. Concordia is slated to make its first home appearance when it hosts Bethany College (Kan.) on Dec. 2.