Troy Nickerson entered the college wrestling scene as one of the most decorated high school wrestlers ever and is still the only wrestler to win 5 New York State Titles. Troy sits down with Sudden History to discuss his injury plagued, yet still successful collegiate career, which included an NCAA Title and 4 top 4 finishes. Nickerson was also one of the first blue chip recruits for Cornell and helped make Ithaca, New York a destination for wrestlers to win NCAA titles and compete on top ten...

Sudden History is lucky enough to feature it's most highly credentialed guest thus far when 2008 World Champion and 2012 Olympic Bronze Medalist Clarissa Chun stops by. Currently a coach on the Women's National Team, Clarissa talks about the current state of the women's program, as well a recap on the recent World Championships. As we normally do on Sudden History, Earl turns back the clock with Clarissa and discusses her career competitively.  Subscribe to Sudden History iTunes | Stitcher...

One of the mainstays of the D1CW website is the Coaches Poll which is reborn on this episode of Sudden History. Earl has surveyed DI coaches and asked them questions like the "Best Pound for Pound" wrestler, "Best Incoming Freshman" and "Best Pinner". Who did the coaches select? Is there anyone they missed? Listen to find out. In addition to the survey, the coaches also provided answer to two questions that routinely come up on the message boards. One is "What is your ideal National Duals...

The Back to the Future Part II episode. Earl explores how some situations and decisions changed wrestling history, or at least could have. What were some possible obstacles that 4x NCAA Champs Kyle Dake and Logan Stieber managed to avoid? Who could have won the 2009 NCAA Team Title? Could David Taylor's storied collegiate career have been even more legendary? How Jordan Burroughs almost never was Jordan Burroughs. The grand finale includes a big decision by a big man that may have shaped the...

Sudden History sits down with 2x Oklahoma State All-American Kyle Crutchmer to discuss his recently completed career as a wrestler. Kyle talks about his love for competing having to get tough in order to rise through the ranks of the storied Cowboy wrestling program. He also shares a John Smith story from his recruiting days. Currently Kyle is training with AKA for a future in MMA. He shares with Sudden History his timetable for his fighting career. 

A week after the stunning news that Boise State would be eliminating its wrestling program, Sudden History sat down with the Broncos most recent (and hopefully not last) NCAA Champion Ben Cherrington. Ben gives a behind the scenes look into the interview process with the current athletic administration, the hollow promises that followed, and an unprofessional way to find out that he was not hired. He is very forthcoming in sharing his feelings towards the program that he poured his heart and...

Sudden History sits down and explores the career of 2x Wisconsin All-American Tom Clum. Tom shares his unique outlook on the great sport of wrestling. He has a blend of passion and love for the sport, yet at the same time he doesn't let his achievements or shortcomings on the mat define him as a wrestler or person. Clum shares his memories from being on the receiving end of the biggest upset in Colorado High School wrestling history, though it didn't seem to phase him. Currently Tom is able...

Boise State's 2x All-American and current NC State assistant coach Adam Hall sits down with Sudden History to explore his career leading up to and competing for the Broncos. Hear firsthand the highs and lows of wrestling in the Round of 12 four consecutive seasons. Adam also gets into his early experiences in the sport and his opinions on the state of youth wrestling today. We finish with the closing of Adam's competitive career and the answer to the question, "Who is the Wolfpack's Best...

With the 2017 NCAA Championships in the books, Sudden History has to go back through those books to see some of the facts, stats, and anomalies that went along with the tournament. As you would expect some National Championship and All-American related tidbits. After all of the stats, pay attention for the homework assignment, it's a good one

After a long hiatus Sudden History is back!!! Since Cael Sanderson pulled Mark Hall from his redshirt in mid-January, it got Earl to thinking. He looks into the precedent for moves involving high profile true Freshman so late in the year. A list of 15 top 100-ish recruits are mentioned and Earl looks into the circumstances surrounding their shirts being pulled, their debuts, how their Freshman season concluded and finally the results of their career overall. Some of them are households names,...

We wrap up the Big Ten preview by talking with three excellent assistant coaches. First up is Purdue's head assistant coach Tyrel Todd. Tyrel makes his second appearance on the podcast which makes him the first person to be a guest multiple times. He goes in depth to discuss the Boilermakers highly ranked recruiting class and his vision for the Purdue progam. Next up is Nebraska's volunteer assistant Matt Meuleners. Matt talk about the depth and competition that the Cornhuskers now have at...

In this weeks edition of Sudden History we travel to the heart of collegiate wrestling, the toughest conference in the country, the Big Ten. This will be the first part of a two part series. We start with a first year head coach, Michigan State's Roger Chandler. Though not a stranger to the MSU program Coach Chandler takes us through the changes surrounding the team and the circumstances that led to him being designated the teams next head coach.  Next up is Rutgers head coach Scott...

This week's episode of Sudden History will take us cross country to the West Coast, as we cover the Pac 12. This is a conference that is changing rapidly. Three of the six schools will feature new head coaches. Sudden History was able to speak to two of these new head coaches and a assistant from the third school.  The podcast will start with Cal Poly's new head coach Jon Sioredas. Jon explains what brought him to San Luis Obispo and how his number one priority has been building...

Sudden History moves from the East Coach to the Midwest to talk MAC wrestling in the latest preview. With additions from Missouri, Northern Iowa and Old Dominion over the past few seasons, this has become one of the toughest leagues in the nation.  We start off by talking to Buffalo Head Coach John Stutzman. The Bulls leader has a enthusiasm about Buffalo wrestling and his student-athletes that is evident from just ten seconds of listening. Listen to the entire interview though, as Coach...

We wrap up the EIWA with part two of the preview. All the interviews in this episode feature coaches from the Ivy League.  Our leadoff hitter is the most recent hire first year Head Coach of Columbia Zach Tanelli. Coach Tanelli explains what stood out about Columbia when he applied for the position and his hopes for the future of Lion Wrestling using his hands-on, physical approach. Princeton's Head Coach Chris Ayres is next in line on the podcast and possibly in the standings. The Tigers...

Sudden History next preview takes place in the EIWA, the largest conference in the country with 16 teams. We decided that this deserves a giant podcast, so this will be part one in a two part series. This episode will focus on a few of the "non-Ivy League" school in the conference. These will be Bucknell, Army West Point and Lehigh. Bucknell Head Coach Dan Wirnsberger gets it started and he gives us a description of the school's new state-of-the art facility, which he hopes will catapult the...

Wrestling season is almost upon us! What better way to get ready for the season, than to hear some of the nation's top coaches talk about their programs and their outlook for the upcoming season.  This episode features the ACC and contains four interviews with coaches from the conference. We lead off with Virginia Head Coach Steve Garland. Coach Garland's passion for the Cavalier program is contagious and he drops a bomb about a weight change which has gone unnoticed up to this point. Next...

Sudden History gets a chance to speak with the fourth wrestler so far from the our list of the "Best Non-NCAA Champions" of the 2000's, Mack Lewnes. Along with Travis Lee, Troy Nickerson and Mike Grey, Lewnes made Cornell a destination where top recruits could flourish and would become a part of a consistent national powerhouse. Mack is very appreciative and understanding of his place on Sudden History's list and in the history of our sport. He is also very open about one of the lowest points...

From Bozeman, Montana to the Big Ten and buying a house in the suburbs of Indiana, Tyrel Todd is in the process of an unbelievable journey. He established himself as one of the top upperweights of his era in the tail end of the 2000's first decade. Todd was a 3x All-American and Big Ten Champion for the Michigan Wolverines wrestling at 184 and 197lbs. Todd gives Sudden History a glimpse into his biggest influences from a wrestling standpoint and even the story behind how wrestling brought him...

It's time again for another crazy breakdown episode. Earl discusses four of the best NCAA Championship teams from the 2000's and what facts made each team unique and memorable. He mentions each NCAA Qualifier from each team and their championship accomplishments. There are also a few teams that garner honorable mentions, too.  In a possible new segment for the show Earl answers a tweet from a listener which leads him into a look at some seeding anomalies and errors at recent NCAA...

Lehigh's 3x NCAA All-American Cory Cooperman shares his thoughts on "The Art of Wrestling". Cooperman has been praised for his coaching style by past Sudden History guests and speaks of his passion for the sport and passing it along to another generation of wrestlers. Cory gives insight into his experiences on the legendary Blair Academy teams, his love for studying tape, bad experiences with weight cutting, and his short lived career as a reality TV star. Though he may be out of the...

Ohio State 4x All-American turned MMA star Lance Palmer talks with Sudden History about his competitive career wrestling, as well as fighting. He walks us through the time period leading up to his last fight, where he lost the World Series of Fighting Featherweight Belt. One of only two wrestlers to defeat Brent Metcalf in collegiate competition, Palmer discusses his victory over Metcalf and also his prior matches with the Iowa 149lber. Lance uses his blend of humor and "in your face" honesty...

In a break from the normal formal of Sudden History, special guest Kyle Dake stops by to talk about professional wrestling.  Kyle would love to participate in such a league, so we have decided to discuss some of the possibilities for a pro league. Also mentioned are the missteps of prior attempts at professionalizing our sport and how to correct those errors. After talking about pro leagues, the conversation then drifts to the overall health of our sport and the best methods for attracting...

Terry Brands labeled him "The Toughest 125lber in the Country" and not in those exact words. After a few months Matt McDonough believed it himself and set out to prove it to the rest of the college wrestling world. Two NCAA Championships and three finals appearances later, we were believers. Matt talks to Sudden History about his mentality, the mentality of competing for Iowa and the allure of the Hawkeye wrestling program. He also addresses how it feels to be the guy "on the other side of...