A native of Kansas City, Missouri, Elam amassed a career high school record of 156-17 and was a two time Missouri State champion and four time qualifier. Elam won the cadet folkstyle nationals in 2017 and won the cadet freestyle nationals in 2018. In 2019, Elam won the USA wrestling preseason nationals, and junior freestyle nationals. Elam finished third at the Super 32 championships in 2018 and was third at the cadet UWW world team trials in 2019. Rated as the 11th ranked recruit in the nation, Elam committed to the Missouri Tigers in 2019.
The 7 Most Surprising NCAA Wrestling Championship Seeds
Mar 14, 2024
Happy NCAA bracket day! You can view all the brackets HERE. Seeding is always a hot topic of debate, so let’s see where the seeds messed up.
Over 150 Upsets From Conference Tournament Weekend
Mar 11, 2024
It's hard to overstate how much exciting college wrestling took place this past weekend. All seven conferences held their championships over the last few days and determined the majority of the qualifiers for the 2024 NCAA Championships that will take place in less than two weeks in Kansas City, Missouri.
2024 Missouri vs Cornell Wrestling Dual Preview & Predictions
Jan 24, 2024
The #2 Missouri Tigers will travel to Ithaca, New York, to take on the 11th-ranked Cornell Big Red on Sunday afternoon. The dual will be streamed on ESPN+. The last time these two teams met was December 30th, 2019. Missouri had an 18-3 lead going into 174, but Cornell won the last four matches with bonus points from Ben Darmstadt and Brendan Furman to win 19-18. With several toss-up matches and multiple top-10 matchups, this dual has the potential to be just as exciting.
197 Pounds Preseason NCAA Wrestling Preview & Predictions
Oct 18, 2023
When a sport that is closer to the heart than others, such as NCAA wrestling, is in the offseason and removed from the limelight, it can often feel like time stands still.
Early Line-up Look: Missouri Tigers
May 10, 2023
Head coach: Brian SmithAssistants: Tyrel Todd, Kendric Maple, Dom Bradley2023 NCAA tournament finish: 5th2023 NCAA tournament points: 64.52023 NCAA tournament record: 28-182023 Big 12 tournament finish: 1st2023 dual record: 8-3 (7-1)Returning national qualifiers: 8 (Noah Surtin, Josh Edmond, Brock Mauller, Keegan O’Toole, Peyton Mocco, Colton Hawks, Rocky Elam, Zach Elam)Returning All-Americans: 5 (Brock Mauller, Keegan O’Toole, Peyton Mocco, Rocky Elam, Zach Elam)Returning NCAA champion: Keegan O’Toole (2022, 2023)Last NCAA champion: Keegan O’Toole (2023)Highest NCAA team finish: 3rd (2007)Highest NCAA team finish under Smith: 3rd (2007)Most place winners under Smith: 5 (2009, 2013, 2015, 2023)
2023 NCAA Wrestling Championship Preview & Predictions - 197 Pounds
Mar 12, 2023
Similar to last year, the 197-pound bracket has no clear favorite and no wrestler’s seed will likely mean much. Returning champion Gabe Dean enters as the nine-seed following a 20-3 season where he lost, 6-3, in the Big Ten finals to Nebraska’s Silas Allred. This weight is a tangled plate of spaghetti that should be the most chaotic bracket of the tournament.
Big 12 Wrestling Championships Preview, Team Race, & Qualifying Projections
Feb 27, 2023
The Big 12 Wrestling Championships take place in Tulsa, Oklahoma March 4-5. Not only will team and individual conference champions be crowned, but 64 wrestlers will also automatically qualify for the NCAA Championships which will be held in Tulsa two weeks later.
Yonger Bastida vs Rocky Elam Could Decide Iowa State-Missouri Dual
Feb 14, 2023
The match between Iowa State’s Yonger Bastida and Missouri’s Rocky Elam could be another memorable moment in the wild and wacky 197-pound class. No wrestler appears to be safe from a weird twist or a surprising turn.
Where Every Ranked Wrestler Could Compete Week 16 Of NCAA Wrestling
Feb 14, 2023
It's the last big week of the NCAA season, and it should be a great one! We'll start off with the most anticipated match of the year between NCAA champions David Carr and Keegan O'Toole during an incredible Iowa State vs Missouri dual, we'll see Cornell vs Ohio State on Saturday, and we'll wrap up with a legacy dual between Oklahoma State and Iowa on Sunday.
Nearly 50 Upsets In A Scintillating Week 14 Of NCAA D1 Wrestling Duals
Feb 6, 2023
We've completed the antepenultimate week of duals (just two left!) and the upsets haven't slowed down.
Where Every Ranked Wrestler Could Compete Week 14 Of NCAA Wrestling
Jan 31, 2023
The action doesn't slow down on week 14 of the NCAA wrestling season. Get ready for Ohio State vs Penn State, Iowa vs Minnesota, and a whole lot more. Below is a list of all the division 1 wrestling events on this week's calendar plus every time we could see all 330 ranked wrestlers in action. Times listed are in Eastern Standard Time.
Where Every Ranked Wrestler Could Compete Week 11 Of NCAA Wrestling
Jan 10, 2023
A whole bunch more duals are on tap for week 11 of NCAA wrestling. Here's every event on the NCAA D1 calendar along with every place we could see all 330 ranked wrestlers compete.
2023 Southern Scuffle Upperweight Preview
Dec 27, 2022
We're back in Chattanooga to ring in the new year with yet another star-studded Southern Scuffle.
Where Every Ranked Wrestler Could Compete Week 6 Of NCAA Wrestling
Dec 7, 2022
This weekend, international wrestling takes center stage as Team USA's men's and women's freestyle teams will compete against the world's best on December 10 and 11. On top of that, we'll see one of the top high school tournaments of the year at Ironman. College fans shouldn't worry though, we'll still see several enticing duals including Bedlam and Missouri vs Virginia Tech. Here's a list of every college event on this week's calendar (compiled by Britt Malinsky) along with all the ranked wrestlers who could compete at each event. Times listed are Eastern Standard Time.
Where Every Ranked Wrestler Could Compete Week 5 Of NCAA Wrestling
Nov 29, 2022
December is upon us, and that means it's CKLV week! Throw in Iowa vs Iowa State and a bunch of other great duals, and week 5 of the season is shaping up to be the most consequential week of the season so far. Below is a list of every D1 event on the calendar along with all the ranked wrestlers we could see at those events. All times listed are Eastern Standard Time.
