WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – Four Purdue wrestlers appeared in the first edition of the NCAA coaches' rankings for the 2024 NCAA Wrestling Championships released on Monday morning.
Matt Ramos (No. 2 at 125), Greyson Clark (No. 30 at 141), Joey Blaze (No. 18 at 157), and Stoney Buell (No. 30 at 165) represent the Boilermakers in the initial list.
It is the second straight season for Ramos to wrestle his way into the top-5 at his weight. He was No. 4 in the first coaches' rankings this time last year. The votes were submitted prior to this weekend's action, therefore his win over Iowa's Drake Ayala, who the coaches placed at No. 1 at 125, was not factored in.
Clark and Blaze are only the third and fourth true freshmen Boilermakers to be included in the rankings since the NCAA began releasing them in 2012. They are highest ranked in the first week of the poll, beating out Garrett Nijenhuis' No. 32 ranking in 2019. Blaze coming in at No. 18 is the highest ranking by a true freshman Boiler at any point in the poll's history.
The redshirt-sophomore Buell rounds out the Boilers in the rankings, checking in at No. 30. He is consistently improving in his second season in the starting lineup. Earning the first two ranked wins of his career and already doubling his number of dual wins.
The coaches' rankings are determined by a vote of 14 coaches in each weight class with two head coaches from each of the seven conferences. Two more sets of rankings will be released prior to the NCAA tournament in March.
The coaches' ranking is one of several criteria that will be evaluated by the NCAA Division I Wrestling Committee during the at-large selection and seeding process along with head-to-head competition, quality wins, Ratings Percentage Index (RPI), conference tournament placement, results versus common opponents and win percentage. The first RPI will be released with the second batch of rankings.
Matt Ramos (No. 2 at 125), Greyson Clark (No. 30 at 141), Joey Blaze (No. 18 at 157), and Stoney Buell (No. 30 at 165) represent the Boilermakers in the initial list.
It is the second straight season for Ramos to wrestle his way into the top-5 at his weight. He was No. 4 in the first coaches' rankings this time last year. The votes were submitted prior to this weekend's action, therefore his win over Iowa's Drake Ayala, who the coaches placed at No. 1 at 125, was not factored in.
Clark and Blaze are only the third and fourth true freshmen Boilermakers to be included in the rankings since the NCAA began releasing them in 2012. They are highest ranked in the first week of the poll, beating out Garrett Nijenhuis' No. 32 ranking in 2019. Blaze coming in at No. 18 is the highest ranking by a true freshman Boiler at any point in the poll's history.
| TRUE FRESHMEN IN COACHES' RANKINGS | |||
| First Edition | Highest | ||
| Joey Blaze | 18 (1/22/24) | 18 (1/22/24) | |
| Greyson Clark | 30 (1/22/24) | 30 (1/22/24) | |
| Gerrit Nijenhuis | 33 (2/11/21) | 28 (2/25/24) | |
| Christian Brunner | NR (1/20/17) | 22 (3/7/17) | |
The redshirt-sophomore Buell rounds out the Boilers in the rankings, checking in at No. 30. He is consistently improving in his second season in the starting lineup. Earning the first two ranked wins of his career and already doubling his number of dual wins.
The coaches' rankings are determined by a vote of 14 coaches in each weight class with two head coaches from each of the seven conferences. Two more sets of rankings will be released prior to the NCAA tournament in March.
The coaches' ranking is one of several criteria that will be evaluated by the NCAA Division I Wrestling Committee during the at-large selection and seeding process along with head-to-head competition, quality wins, Ratings Percentage Index (RPI), conference tournament placement, results versus common opponents and win percentage. The first RPI will be released with the second batch of rankings.