PHILADELPHIA, PA • The University of Illinois wrestled themselves into a Top 10 finish on the wings of a Byrd, the additional experience of five redshirt seniors, an wunderkind redshirt junior, and the hunger of two redshirt freshman—all led by a head coach who has rechanneled the culture of the Fighting Illini and a staff that pulled a core of wrestlers into one focused group that fights for one another day in and day out.
In what is now Mike Poeta’s fourth season at the helm of the Illini program, the Orange and Blue have achieved a finish that could very easily catapult the program forward as a number of young and talented wrestlers have now witnessed and been part of the excitement and all of the energy that goes into the magic of wrestlers making deep runs into the national tournament and having their training affirmed through the crowning of a national champion.
