Knockout 2020 - 195-285
In my opinion - 138 and 195 were the two best weights of the tournament. Each had 3 nationally ranked wrestlers and had depth that included State Champs that were not seeded until #7 or #8. That said - 195 did not disappoint. Top seed and current Maryland signee Jaxon Smith was outstanding on his way to the title. His match vs. Harper was the one final I was most interested in watching. Both are top 195’s in the country, but both have been out for part of the fall because of injuries. Both looked great as they headed for a showdown in the Knockout final.
Smith had 4 falls on the top side of the bracket including an impressive semi vs. The Master’s Academy’s Ryan Cody (who ended up 4th). Harper was equally as impressive on the bottom side with 3 falls including a fall of Florida State Placer Jeremiah Mauras in the quarters and then a 14-6 major of Mikey Tal Shahar of American Heritage Delray Beach. The final was great, but not as close as I thought it might be. Smith dominated on his feet - scoring 4 takedowns and cruising to an 8-5 win over Harper. Vidalia’s Thomas Godbee was outstanding on the backside as he reeled off 4 wins to finish 3rd including a win over Cody who he lost to in the quarters the day before and a 1-0 win over Tal Shahar in the consi semis.
Not many were as dominant as Harley Andrews and Chase Horne up at 220 and 285. Andrews ran through the 220 lb. bracket with ease - only wrestling into the 2nd period once (in his semi vs. Evan Guyton - which he was leading 9-1 after the 1st). Marshall and Thompson locked horns in the bottom semi with Marshall coming out on top 6-3. There some was very good wrestlers at 220, but the depth wasn’t comparable to many of the weights at the Knockout. Still Snodgrass made the most of his opportunity and really helped his squad by coming back and taking 4th. Snodgrass lost to Marshall in the bottom quarters and then went 3-1 on the backside to help his team stay in the team race. His pin of Higdon after being behind was huge for Baylor.
As I stated at 220 - not many were as dominant as Chase Horne at 285. Early on we had opportunity to see Andrews, McCallie’s James Howard, and Horne all in the same bracket, but that never materialized. As a result - Horne ran through the bracket with relative ease. Four of his 5 falls came in the 1st period and he was never challenged. Collins looked good on the bottomside and Florida 285’s better watch out as he makes a run for a state title this season. Vergara was 3rd, with Vidalia’s Burns 4th, Jimenez 5th, and Christensen 6th. Christensen (like Snodgrass at 220) wins on the backside were important to Baylor staying in the team race.