Wrestling Adds To Impressive Recruiting Class
6/26/2007 12:00:00 AM | Wrestling
June 26, 2007
EAST LANSING, Mich. - Michigan State wrestling head coach Tom Minkel has announced the signing of four more student-athletes to National Letters of Intent, including 112-pound high school national champion Eric Olanowski (Virginia Beach, Va.). Dave Cheza (Grand Blanc, Mich.), Phil Khozein (Hesperia, Mich.) and Curran Jacobs (Owosso, Mich.) also inked NLI's to attend Michigan State University beginning in the fall of 2007. MSU signed Tyler Dickenson (St. Johns, Mich.), Collin Dozier (Virginia Beach, Va.), Ian Hinton (Mishawaka, Ind.) and Anthony Jones (Highland Park, Mich.) in the fall, bringing the impressive recruiting class to eight student-athletes.
"This is one terrific group of young men joining our wrestling team," said Minkel. "They have some remarkable accomplishments and I look forward to their future in green and white."
Olanowski, the 2007 high school national champion at 112 pounds, is the top-ranked senior nationally in his weight class. In the all-class rankings at 112 pounds, Olanowksi is ranked third by Amateur Wrestling News and InterMat. Wrestling for Kellam High School in Virginia Beach, Va., Olanowski was a three-time state finalist and 2007 Virginia state champion. He also won this year's Beast of the East and Super 32 wrestling tournaments. At the National High School Coaches Association (NHSCA) Senior Nationals held in Virginia Beach, Va., in the spring, Olanowski won all five of his matches and defeated Nektoe Demison of California in the championship match, 9-3. Olanowski will wrestle at 125 pounds for the Spartans.
Cheza, a three-time state place winner, became a 2007 NHSCA All-American at 140 pounds with a fourth-place finish at the Senior Nationals. He is ranked eighth among all seniors in the nation in his weight class and No. 11 for all classes at 140 pounds. Cheza is projected to wrestle at 157 pounds for the Spartans.
Khozein is a two-time state champion from Hesperia, Mich. He won his first state title in 2005 at 125 pounds and his second in 2007 at 140 pounds. His projected weight class in college is 149 pounds.
Jacobs, an Owosso, Mich., native, placed second at the Michigan High School State Championships at 171 pounds. He is projected to wrestle at 174 pounds at MSU.
The four student-athletes who signed in the fall also had excellent senior seasons. Collin Dozier, a four-time Virginia state champion, is listed as the No. 6 senior in his weight class of 130 pounds (InterMat) and No. 11 for all classes, while Ian Hinton is ranked the No. 8 senior and No. 9 for all classes at 189 pounds (InterMat). According to Amateur Wrestling News, Hinton is seventh in the nation at 189 pounds. Hinton, a state finalist as a sophomore, won the Indiana state title as a junior with a 42-0 record at 171 pounds and as a senior, he again recorded a perfect record (48-0) en route to winning the 189-pound state title. Anthony Jones won the Michigan state title for Division 3 at 145 pounds, while Tyler Dickenson was named to the Division II all-area team at 189 pounds.