133-pound Big Ten champ, Sebastian Rivera set to transfer to Rutgers
The SeaBass will be swimming along the banks of the Raritan in 2021. It was announced today on Twitter that Sebastian Rivera will be transferring from Northwestern University to Rutgers for the 2020-21 season.
Rivera was a two-time All-American and ranked number one in the country at 133-pounds heading into the 2020 NCAA tournament. He was unquestionably a front-runner to win the national title, but Rivera was unable to accomplish the feat due to the tournament being cancelled because of the COVID-19 virus.
Speculation of a move for Rivera was already buzzing throughout the wrestling community after an interview Rivera did following his 2020 Big Ten tournament final. With a big “Jersey” shout-out, the Jackson, New Jersey native went on to exclaim his love for wrestling in the Garden State, and how cool it was for him to wrestle in the RAC.
With Rivera’s move back home, it bolsters what was already a promising 2021 lineup for Rutgers wrestling. However, it does create an interesting dynamic with the possibility of Nick Suriano being back in the line-up next season.
Suriano, the 2019 national champion; Rivera, the 2020 national championship front-runner; and Sammy Alverez, Rutgers best wrestler in the 2020 season all wrestle at the 133-lb spot. Rivera has been quite vocal on social media about growing out of the weight class, and it is likely he finds his way to 141-lbs in 2020-21.
If Rivera does bump up and Suriano returns, Rutgers will have some decisions to make. Regardless of what those decisions are, it can be assumed that Rutgers will have one of the best 1-2 punches in the country between 133 and 141 pounds.
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