If you look at a list of every Maryland wrestling All-American, most of their pictures are in black and white.
Of the Terps’ 20 All-Americans in program history, 12 were before 2000 — some in weight classes that no longer exist. The most recent one was Youssif Hemida in 2018, meaning no Terp has finished in the top eight of their weight class under coach Alex Clemsen.
Multiple Terps have a chance to change that this year.
Braxton Brown, Ethen Miller, Jaxon Smith and Seth Nevills are all ranked in the top 12 in their respective weight classes, with Miller leading the way. The 157-pound is ranked sixth by Intermat, and the coaches’ ranking has him fourth.
Braxton Brown
Brown spent most of last season in the high teens and low 20s of the rankings at 133 pounds after moving up from 125. He dominated unranked opponents but went 3-4 against ranked wrestlers in the regular season and finished 4-5 at the Big Tens and NCAAs.
Those struggles have lessened this year, and Brown finds himself as the 11th-ranked 133-pounder. The redshirt junior is 15-2 with five ranked wins, and his only losses were in decisions to wrestlers currently ranked in the top five. Brown’s defense has been a huge key to his success — he’s surrendered takedowns in only two of his seven ranked matches.
That defense will be heavily tested over the next few matches. Iowa, Penn State and Rutgers — Maryland’s next three opponents — all have top-10 wrestlers at 133 pounds
Ethen Miller
Miller found slightly more success than Brown last season against tough opponents, going 4-3 against ranked wrestlers and finishing the Big Ten and NCAA Championships with a 4-4 record. Now up a weight class, he’s been a whole different animal. Miller is 6-0 against ranked opponents and 16-0 overall, with his best win coming against Purdue’s Joey Blaze, the No. 7 at 157 pounds.
[Maryland wrestling secures best Big Ten season with 24-13 win over Wisconsin]
His physicality and conditioning are among his biggest weapons, especially in close matches. Four of Miller’s six ranked wins have been decided by a single takedown, and the redshirt junior has overpowered opponents no matter what stage the match is in.
Miller’s next four matches are brutal. He takes on the No. 1, No. 30 and No. 3 wrestlers at 157 pounds before a rematch with Blaze. How he fares against some of the nation’s best will give a better indication of where he stands at the weight — and whether his ceiling is an All-American candidate or a serious contender for a national championship.
“We’re looking at Big Ten preparations and NCAA tournament preparation,” Clemsen said “I think he’s got another gear — I think he’s got another level.”
Jaxon Smith
Smith is another Terp who made a weight change, but he went down while Brown and Miller went up. Smith was ranked as high as the No. 4 197-pounder in last year, but struggled against bigger, more physical opponents late in the season, going 3-4 at the Big Ten and NCAA tournaments.
Now, Smith gets to be one of the bigger and more physical down a weight class at 184. The redshirt junior won his first eight matches, including a pair of top-15 wins, but then lost three straight. He responded with a six-match winning streak that’s still active. His last six ranked matches have all been low-scoring, with neither wrestler scoring more than four points in that stretch.
[No. 10 Illinois halts Maryland wrestling’s 4-game winning streak, 33-7]
“I get to see a lot of great wrestlers early on in the season,” Smith said. “I think it best prepares me to peak at the right time towards the end of the season and at NCAAs.”
Smith still has upcoming matches against the No. 1, No. 5 and No.18 wrestlers at 184 pounds — all opponents that will give him opportunities to improve his No. 11 ranking.
Seth Nevills
Nevills didn’t change weight classes, but he did drop weight within his heavyweight class. The Penn State transfer came into last season weighing about 310 pounds and spent a lot of the season trying to get back in wrestling shape.
Nevills came in at about 280 pounds this summer, and his improved condition has shown on the mat.
The graduate student is off to a 13-2 start, with his best win coming against Pittsburgh’s No. 13 Dayton Pitzer in a dominant 7-0 victory. His two losses were against top-10 wrestlers, and in both matches Nevills got taken down late and lost a 4-2 decision. Nevills is currently the 12th-ranked heavyweight.
Clemsen wants Nevills to trust his offense more considering how strong he is on that end. His next three opponents are all ranked in the top 11 — finding success against them on offense would be big for Nevills as he approaches the end of his collegiate career.