"To say that we're excited about this class would be a huge understatement. To be able to sign not one, but two guys with this kind of achievement, pedigree and wrestling ability, is a fantastic indicator of the direction of our program. Gerrit and Jake are outstanding additions to our room and have very bright futures ahead of them." - Tony Ersland
gerrit nijenhuis
Projected to wrestle at 174 or 184 pounds for the Boilermakers, Nijenhuis comes to Purdue from Canonsburg, Pennsylvania, where he won the 2019 state championship for Canon-McMillen High School. He's one of the most highly-recognized recruits to join Ersland's squad in his six years at Purdue, and already has 134 high school victories to warrant the attention. He most recently won the prestigious Super 32 Tournament in Greensboro, North Carolina, and was the runner-up at the Fargo Freestyle National Championships this past summer.
NATIONAL RANKINGS
FloWrestling's #14 Pound-For-Pound wrestler in the country
Ranked #2 in the nation at 182 pounds by FloWrestling
#12 Overall Recruit in the Class of 2020 - FloWrestling
Ranked #3 in the nation at 182 pounds by The Open Mat
Tabbed the #29 Overall Recruit in the Class of 2020 by TrackWrestling.com
Ranked #3 in the nation at 182 pounds by InterMat
coach speak
"Gerrit is an extremely aggressive wrestler, which is a great fit for our program. He has an outstanding single-leg attack that creates most of his offense, has a great arm-bar series on top and his ability to scramble makes him dangerous in every position. His mullet has already garnered a ton of media attention, and we think his wrestling is bound to do the same thing." - Tony Ersland
Jake Rundell
Aiming to compete at 125 pounds for the Boilermakers, Rundell comes to Purdue from Oak Park & River Forest High School in Illinois. A 2018 Illinois High School State Champion with 92 career victories, Rundell was third at this year's Super 32 Tournament at 126 pounds, is a four-time Fargo Freestyle All-American, won FloNationals at 55 kgs in freestyle and Greco and earned a gold medal in the Pan-American Games. He owns national rankings in every poll available and is regarded as a top lightweight prospect in the nation.
national rankings
coach speak
"It's incredible to see an athlete of Jake's size and stature that has as much strength and power that he does. He's an animal on top and will be very impressive in that position in his career. Jake is an outstanding competitor and every time he puts his foot on the line you know you're going to get every once of everything he's got." - Tony Ersland
Cooper Noehre
The third member of our Class of 2020, Cooper Noehre adds some instate flavor, hailing from nearby Greenfield, Indiana. The 2019 Indiana High School State Runner-Up at 152 pounds, Noehre has 102 wins over his first three high school seasons and is ranked second at 160 pounds (IndianaMat.com) to open 2019-20. He won the Greco-Roman state title at 160 pounds this summer, and won the Indiana freestyle title at 145 pounds in 2018.
Coach Speak
"I'm excited to add a young man from the state of Indiana to our 2020 class, and I'm fired up that it's Cooper. He's an incredibly focused wrestler and student, who knows what he wants to do and wants to achieve, and we're ready to help him pursue those goals, both on and off the mat." - Tony Ersland
