How Did Nebraska’s Redshirts and Backups Do This Year?
Wrestling: How Did Nebraska’s Redshirts and Backups Do This Year?
While competing mainly in open tournaments, the Huskers saw a number of impressive seasons from their youngsters that flew under the radar

"Sporting one of the best starting lineups in the country, #3 Nebraska is actually a really young team overall. With two redshirt freshman and three sophomores in the starting lineup, the Huskers’ backups are predominantly underclassmen.
And that doesn’t take into consideration two of the best wrestlers in Nebraska’s huge 2023 class which included six of the top-100 overall prospects in the class. On top of the 15 true freshmen they brought in, the Huskers also have Kael Lauridsen and Camden McDanel taking grayshirts and delaying their eligibility until next year, meaning they could also redshirt the 2024-25 season if need be."
Camden McDanel
McDanel, the #37 overall recruit in 2023, has had a monster 12 months. After winning an Ohio state title, a U20 freestyle national championship and earning a bronze medal at the 2023 U20 World Championships at 97 kg, he went 7-1 in college open tournaments this year. After winning the Rookie Open and the Younes Hospitality Open, McDanel took his only loss at the Reno Tournament of Champions, an 8-5 loss in sudden victory to #25 Justin Rademacher of Oregon State. Camden won Second place in the Last Chance Olympic Team Trials 7 Apr 2024.Kael Lauridsen
"Similar to McDanel, Lauridsen has had a really good year during his grayshirt. The former four-time Nebraska state champ from Bennington, Lauridsen was #64 on the 2023 Big Board.In collegiate opens this year, Lauridsen put together an 8-2 record. After winning the Rookie Open and the Younes Hospitality Open, Lauridsen went 1-2 at the Reno TOC with losses to #16 Jore Volk (9-4 decision) of Wyoming and Conrad Hendriksen of Oklahoma (10-8 decision).
Just like McDanel, Lauridsen competed at the Henri Deglane. A 2022 U17 Pan-American gold medalist, Lauridsen went 0-2 in France but showed a lot of promise in those matches. In his first senior-level match, Lauridsen took on two-time NCAA Champion Roman Bravo-Young. In that match, Lauridsen even held a 4-4 lead at one point when he took down Bravo-Young and turned him with a gut wrench. He eventually dropped the match 14-4, but it was really encouraging. He then fell to Bulgaria’s Ivalyo Tisov in a high-scoring 14-11 match."
REDSHIRTS
Alan Koehler
125 pounds
The #47 overall wrestler on the 2023 Big Board, Koehler had a solid redshirt season. After dealing with an injury early in the season, he finished the year with a 7-1 record.Drew Cooper
133 pounds
A former Nebraska state champion out of Omaha Skutt, Cooper went 4-4 this season in open tournaments.Tanner Frothinger
141 pounds
A three-time state champion out of Idaho, Frothinger was also a Fargo All-American in high school. This season, he’s gone 13-5 in open tournaments.Scott Robertson
149 pounds
A two-time state champion while at Millard South, Robertson took a two-year hiatus while completing his LDS mission after high school. He arrived in Lincoln this past fall and put together a 13-8 record in his redshirt season.Ethan Stiles
157 pounds
Arguably it’s best redshirt this year, Stiles was also Nebraska’s highest-ranked recruit in 2023, coming in at #40 on the Big Board. This season, he has a 15-3 record with all three losses coming to D1 opponents.Weston Dalton
157 pounds
A former Colorado state champ, Dalton was a prized recruit who came in at #51 on the 2023 Big Board.This season, he went 4-1 but had his season derailed by injury.
Griffin Ray
165 pounds
A former state champ out of Missouri, Ray went 6-2 this season with four of his wins via pinfall.Jake Licking
165 pounds
A former Nebraska state champ out of Norfolk, Licking went 4-5 this year with three bonus-point wins.Christopher Minto
174 pounds
Another standout for the Huskers this year as a true freshman, Minto was a three-time state champion out of Cape Coral, Florida.This season, Minto went 18-4 with an impressive 8-2 mark against DI competition.
Cooper French
174 pounds
Another guy who could go 165 or 174 next season, French was a three-time state champion in Arizona. This year, he went 6-5 and 1-2 against DI competition.Ethan DeLeon
184 pounds
A two-time state finalist in Iowa, DeLeon went 17-6 this year while redshirting. He also went 6-2 against DI opponents. He won the Hastings Open and recorded five tech falls on the year.Dominic Thebeau
197 pounds
The younger brother of sophomore Adam Thebeau, Dominic Thebeau went 4-5 this season but 0-2 against DI competition.Matthew Moore
285 pounds
A state champion out of Colorado and an Ironman finalist, Moore was #96 on the 2023 Big Board. This season, he’s 5-2 in open tournaments and 1-2 against DI competition.Hampton Kaye-Kuter
285 pounds
A two-time New England state champ, Kaye-Kuter joined the Husker roster for the second semester but didn’t see any action. He’s been wrestling with the team in the room though.Non-Redshirt Backups
Kyle Burwick (Jr.)
133 pounds
He’s 12-4 on the year, winning the Missouri Valley Open along the way.Hayden Mills (R-Fr.)
133 pounds
A former Kansas state champion, Mills redshirted last year and is 18-8 this season.Blake Cushing (So.)
141/149 pounds
One of the most valuable non-starters on the team, former Nebraska state champion for Grand Island Cushing bounced around from 141 to 149 as he served as the primary backup at both weights. He went 13-4 this year and 5-3 against DI competition.Ismael Ayoub (R-Fr.)
141 pounds
After redshirting last season with a 4-2 recordJagger Condomitti (So.)
165 pounds
A former Pennsylvania state champion, Condomitti was a prized recruit in 2021, coming in at #13 on the Big Board that year, two spots behind Lenny Pinto. He’s battled injuries since arriving in Nebraska, including concussions, but he seems to finally be healthy now.He’s 9-0 on the year with titles at both the Missouri Valley Open and the Hastings Open.
DezMonde Gartrell (So.)
165 pounds
A late addition to the roster, Gartrell went 5-1 this season while competing at the Missouri Valley Open with his only loss that 4-0 decision to Condomitti.Josh Licking (So.)
165 pounds
A former Nebraska state champ from Norfolk, Josh Licking went 2-2 this season while competing at the Grandview Open in November.Elise Brown Ton (Jr.)
174 pounds
One of Nebraska’s most valued backups, Brown Ton started the year as the starter at 174 but later lost the spot to both Adam Thebeau and then Bubba Wilson. He went 22-7 this year and 7-6 against DI opponents.Adam Thebeau (So.)
174 pounds
Briefly a starter this season, Adam Thebeau went 6-4 on the year.Harley Andrews (R-Fr.)
285 pounds
For half of the season, Andrews was Nebraska’s heavyweight starter. After a 4-6 start to the year, Andrews went 6-3 the rest of the way (10-9 on the year).Brandyn Van Tassell (Jr.)
285 pounds
A junior eligibility-wise, Van Tassell will not be taking his final year of eligibility and was honored on Senior Night. Wrestling at three weight classes during his career, Van Tassell has been a valuable backup for years. This season, he went 3-4 while wrestling up at heavyweight after starting his career at 184 and 197.
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