Sergio Vega, Landon Robideau and Dee Lockett combined to win all 12 of their matches at the National Duals Invitational sponsored by Paycom, elevating the trio of Oklahoma State true freshmen into an elite class. 

But nobody in the Cowboy camp is astonished by the immediate impact the rookies are making. 

“None of that is a surprise to us,” Oklahoma State coach David Taylor said. “I don’t think it’s a surprise to them. That’s just the mentality we’re wrestling with… After this weekend, we had some young kids that stepped up in some big moments.”

Their performance in Tulsa vaulted Vega (141), Robideau (157), and Lockett (165) to #2 in their respective weight classes in FloWrestling’s NCAA DI Rankings.

Lockett’s weekend was highlighted by a win against Iowa’s Michael Caliendo, an NCAA finalist and three-time All-American. Vega also picked up a major decision victory over a three-time All-American and NCAA finalist in Nebraska’s Brock Hardy. Robideau put together three bonus-point victories, with the lone decision coming against two-time NCAA qualifier Jackson Arrington. But they’re not the only true freshmen making waves in Stillwater.

Ronnie Ramirez stepped into the lineup after Richie Figueroa dropped his first match of the tournament and went 2-1 with a win over NCAA qualifier Zach Redding and battled two-time NCAA finalist Drake Ayala in a 7-4 sudden victory loss. Taylor said Ramirez handled the moment well.

“We talk about competing with excitement, enthusiasm,” Taylor said. “For Ronnie to step in that moment against a returning national finalist, that’s a pretty big opportunity for him. What was cool about Ronnie is he responded really well in the next match. Kind of came out there, got after the guy and got a couple takedowns.”

With Ramirez now in the mix, the true freshmen group is no longer a trio. It’s what fans and some of the wrestlers themselves are hashtagging: The Fantastic Four.

While that’s not the nickname Taylor uses to his characterize his core of youngsters, he used another that describes their tight-knit nature.

“That whole group, they’re like a wolfpack,” Taylor said. “They just all go together all the time. They definitely are inspiring and motivating each other, which is good. Just good to have that inner competition, friendly competition on the team.”

Taylor Reverting To Old Strategies?

Figueroa — the 125-pound NCAA champion in 2024 for Arizona State — transferred to Oklahoma State after placing third at the Big 12 Championships and missing out on the podium in March during his final season with the Sun Devils.  

Now at 133, Figueroa entered the season ranked #12 and faced returning All-American Tyler Knox from Stanford in the first dual of the year. After jumping out to a 9-2 lead in the first period, he gave up 11 unanswered points to drop a 13-9 decision. 

In Figueroa’s opening-round match in Tulsa against Cornell’s Tyler Ferrara, it was a similar story. Figueroa led 8-3 in the second period before dropping an 11-9 decision. 

Though the wins haven’t been there yet for Figueroa with the Cowboys, he’s still supremely skilled. However, Taylor may not be able to ignore Ramirez’s upside, either. The Oklahoma State coach said he may go back to a familiar strategy with the 133-pound spot moving forward. 

“We’ll see, I guess,” Taylor said. “Honestly, it’s just kind of like, maybe 133 will be a little bit like 133 last year. We got two good guys there. We’ll kind of see how things continue to materialize. Never gonna really give the opponents something to get ready for… Get ready for both. They’re both really freaking good. So, we’ll see what happens.”