COLUMBIA, Mo. - Mizzou Wrestling has added 12 Tigers to the 2015-16 team, as announced by the coaching staff on Thursday (July 23). Between the new additions and Mizzou’s eight incoming freshmen who previously signed National Letters of Intent in November of 2014, the Tigers will have 20 fresh faces to round out a deep and talented roster next season for the three-time defending MAC Champions.The 12 latest signees include four transfer student-athletes (Aaron Assad, Blaise Butler, Grant Leeth, and Quinn Smith) and eight incoming freshmen (Jayden Bears, Nicholas DeLoach, Phyllip DeLoach, Chanley Foley, Seth Pesek, James Romero, Nicholas Scherer and Dalton Voyles). The 2015-16 squad boasts three returning All-Americans as Mizzou reloads in pursuit of a National Championship. "I'm pleased with the talent and depth my staff was able to bring in,” head coach Brian Smith said. “With only a handful of juniors and seniors in the room, senior Blaise Butler will be a welcome addition to our team. He has great abilities and he is an outstanding young man and leader. I'm excited to get a talented Grant Leeth to come home and transfer back from Duke. He had an amazing high school career and I am looking forward to having him be a part of TigerStyle for the next four years. The incoming freshmen have been with us all summer and are showing a lot of intensity in the open mats. The team is growing up quickly and does not expect to be in a rebuild mode. The student-athletes have set the bar high for next season."Aaron Assad // Purdue University // Brecksville, OhioAs a redshirt freshman at Purdue University, Assad picked up 10 wins and three dual victories at 125 pounds. He transfers to Mizzou after averaging 4.5 points per match last season, setting a Boilermaker season-high for points scored in a single match when he beat Cal State Bakersfield’s Kyle Anderson, 23-7. Assad was a four-time Ohio high school state placewinner. As a senior, he posted a 44-4 overall record and won the state title at 113 pounds.
Blaise Butler // University of Virginia // Belvidere, Ill.Butler joins the TigerStyle program with an impressive résumé at the collegiate level. He recorded a 56-20 record at Virginia and qualified for the NCAA Championships twice as a Cavalier. In 2014, he won an individual ACC Championship at 157 pounds and followed that by advancing to the NCAA’s round of 12 in 2015 at 174 pounds. Butler was a two-time all-state and two-time All-American wrestler at Boylan Catholic High School in Illinois. He was an all-conference selection all four years of his high school career.
Grant Leeth // Duke University // Kearney, Mo.Leeth returns to his home state following his redshirt freshman campaign at Duke. Last season, he went 14-4, defeating three eventual NCAA qualifiers. He placed third at the Appalachian Open (149 pounds) and fifth at the Hokie Open (141 pounds). Before attending Duke, Leeth went to Kearney High School and won three consecutive Missouri state titles from 2012-14. He also won a USAW Junior Folkstyle Championship and a 2013 Kansas City Stampede Championship while in high school.
Quinn Smith // South Dakota State University // Columbia, Mo.Smith went 2-2 as an unattached wrestler during his freshman year at South Dakota State. The son of Mizzou head coach Brian Smith, Quinn is a Columbia, Mo., native and a graduate of Rock Bridge High School. He went 126-25 and finished in the top 5 of the Missouri state tournament three different times as a Bruin. After finishing fifth in 2012 and fourth in 2013, Smith placed third to cap off his senior campaign in 2014.
Jayden Bears // Staley High School // Staley, Mo.Bears posted a 142-25 overall record at Staley High School. He racked up three top 5 finishes in the Missouri state tournament. Bears placed second in 2013, first in 2014 and fourth in 2015. He also wrestled at the 2015 USAW Junior Folkstyle Nationals at 182 pounds and finished eighth overall.
Phyllip & Nicholas DeLoach // Alton High School // Alton, Ill.Phyllip and Nicholas are twins from Alton High School near St. Louis who are both coming to Mizzou for the fall. Phyllip went 155-29 in his high school career and finished fourth in the 2015 Illinois Class 3A tournament at 145 pounds. He clinched three consecutive Illinois Class 3A regional titles and grabbed a seventh-place finish at the 2013 USAW Cadet Freestyle Nationals.
Nicholas wrapped up his career with a 142-30 record. He joined his brother with a fourth-place finish in the 2015 Illinois Class 3A tournament, competing at 152 pounds. Nicholas secured his first regional title as a senior this past season.
Chandley Fohey // Hannibal High School // Hannibal, Mo.Fohey went 53-2 as a senior, winning his third consecutive Missouri title to cap his high school career. After finishing runner-up in the Class 3 106-pound class as a freshman, Fohey won three titles in a row, one at 106 pounds and a pair at 120 pounds. He’s one of only three wrestlers in Hannibal High School history with three state titles. Fohey also earned the 2014 Midwest Army Nationals Championship.
Seth Pesek // Gardner Edgerton High School // Gardner, Kan.Pesek wrapped up his high school career with a 99-17 overall record, including an 81-5 mark over his final three seasons. In those three dominant
seasons, Pesek secured a state championship in Kansas three times. He is a two-time Rocky Mountain All-American and was selected to the Kansas City Star’s All-Metro All-Star Team twice. He’s also earned a spot on his school’s academic honor roll multiple semesters.
James Romero // Atrisco Heritage Academy High School // Albuquerque, N.M.Romero is a two-time New Mexico state champion as a heavyweight, completing high school with a 114-17 career record. He collected a fifth-place finish as a freshman and a second-place finish as a sophomore before claiming back-to-back titles in 2014 and 2015. Additionally, Romero competed at the 2015 Rocky Mountain Nationals and the USAW Junior Folkstyle Nationals, winning the Rocky Mountain title and placing fourth at the Folkstyle Nationals.
Nicholas Scherer // Mary Institute at Country Day School // St. Louis, Mo.Brother of Mizzou linebacker Mike Scherer, Nicholas starred at Country Day High School in St. Louis. He earned first team all-conference and first-team all-county honors in 2014. That followed up a second-team all-conference campaign as a freshman and a first-team all-conference season as a sophomore.
Dalton Voyles // Pacific High School // Pacific, Mo.Voyles completed his high school career with a 155-37 overall record, going 54-2 as a senior. He polished off his four years at Pacific High School in style, winning the 2015 Class 3 Missouri state championship at 182 pounds. The title earned him 2015 Class 3 Senior Wrestler of the Year honors. Voyles garnered Academic All-State recognition and was named an Army Reserve Scholar Athlete for his efforts in the classroom.
For all the latest on Mizzou Wrestling, stay tuned to MUTigers.com and follow the team on Twitter @MizzouWrestling.
For info on the 8 early signees see my previous thread
Blaise Butler // University of Virginia // Belvidere, Ill.Butler joins the TigerStyle program with an impressive résumé at the collegiate level. He recorded a 56-20 record at Virginia and qualified for the NCAA Championships twice as a Cavalier. In 2014, he won an individual ACC Championship at 157 pounds and followed that by advancing to the NCAA’s round of 12 in 2015 at 174 pounds. Butler was a two-time all-state and two-time All-American wrestler at Boylan Catholic High School in Illinois. He was an all-conference selection all four years of his high school career.
Grant Leeth // Duke University // Kearney, Mo.Leeth returns to his home state following his redshirt freshman campaign at Duke. Last season, he went 14-4, defeating three eventual NCAA qualifiers. He placed third at the Appalachian Open (149 pounds) and fifth at the Hokie Open (141 pounds). Before attending Duke, Leeth went to Kearney High School and won three consecutive Missouri state titles from 2012-14. He also won a USAW Junior Folkstyle Championship and a 2013 Kansas City Stampede Championship while in high school.
Quinn Smith // South Dakota State University // Columbia, Mo.Smith went 2-2 as an unattached wrestler during his freshman year at South Dakota State. The son of Mizzou head coach Brian Smith, Quinn is a Columbia, Mo., native and a graduate of Rock Bridge High School. He went 126-25 and finished in the top 5 of the Missouri state tournament three different times as a Bruin. After finishing fifth in 2012 and fourth in 2013, Smith placed third to cap off his senior campaign in 2014.
Jayden Bears // Staley High School // Staley, Mo.Bears posted a 142-25 overall record at Staley High School. He racked up three top 5 finishes in the Missouri state tournament. Bears placed second in 2013, first in 2014 and fourth in 2015. He also wrestled at the 2015 USAW Junior Folkstyle Nationals at 182 pounds and finished eighth overall.
Phyllip & Nicholas DeLoach // Alton High School // Alton, Ill.Phyllip and Nicholas are twins from Alton High School near St. Louis who are both coming to Mizzou for the fall. Phyllip went 155-29 in his high school career and finished fourth in the 2015 Illinois Class 3A tournament at 145 pounds. He clinched three consecutive Illinois Class 3A regional titles and grabbed a seventh-place finish at the 2013 USAW Cadet Freestyle Nationals.
Nicholas wrapped up his career with a 142-30 record. He joined his brother with a fourth-place finish in the 2015 Illinois Class 3A tournament, competing at 152 pounds. Nicholas secured his first regional title as a senior this past season.
Chandley Fohey // Hannibal High School // Hannibal, Mo.Fohey went 53-2 as a senior, winning his third consecutive Missouri title to cap his high school career. After finishing runner-up in the Class 3 106-pound class as a freshman, Fohey won three titles in a row, one at 106 pounds and a pair at 120 pounds. He’s one of only three wrestlers in Hannibal High School history with three state titles. Fohey also earned the 2014 Midwest Army Nationals Championship.
Seth Pesek // Gardner Edgerton High School // Gardner, Kan.Pesek wrapped up his high school career with a 99-17 overall record, including an 81-5 mark over his final three seasons. In those three dominant
seasons, Pesek secured a state championship in Kansas three times. He is a two-time Rocky Mountain All-American and was selected to the Kansas City Star’s All-Metro All-Star Team twice. He’s also earned a spot on his school’s academic honor roll multiple semesters.
James Romero // Atrisco Heritage Academy High School // Albuquerque, N.M.Romero is a two-time New Mexico state champion as a heavyweight, completing high school with a 114-17 career record. He collected a fifth-place finish as a freshman and a second-place finish as a sophomore before claiming back-to-back titles in 2014 and 2015. Additionally, Romero competed at the 2015 Rocky Mountain Nationals and the USAW Junior Folkstyle Nationals, winning the Rocky Mountain title and placing fourth at the Folkstyle Nationals.
Nicholas Scherer // Mary Institute at Country Day School // St. Louis, Mo.Brother of Mizzou linebacker Mike Scherer, Nicholas starred at Country Day High School in St. Louis. He earned first team all-conference and first-team all-county honors in 2014. That followed up a second-team all-conference campaign as a freshman and a first-team all-conference season as a sophomore.
Dalton Voyles // Pacific High School // Pacific, Mo.Voyles completed his high school career with a 155-37 overall record, going 54-2 as a senior. He polished off his four years at Pacific High School in style, winning the 2015 Class 3 Missouri state championship at 182 pounds. The title earned him 2015 Class 3 Senior Wrestler of the Year honors. Voyles garnered Academic All-State recognition and was named an Army Reserve Scholar Athlete for his efforts in the classroom.
For all the latest on Mizzou Wrestling, stay tuned to MUTigers.com and follow the team on Twitter @MizzouWrestling.
For info on the 8 early signees see my previous thread
