Last season, Michigan had a champion with Derek Gilcher. They have a couple kids who could contend for it this season, but it would be a bit surprising if so.
I think you’d have to say Darius Marines is the leader of the contender pack. With top seed Joe Sealey out at 157, it does open up the bracket a little. Still has some formidable opponents for sure, but that’s true for every bracket here.
If not Marines, perhaps it’s Grayson Fuchs at 113 or Wyatt Lees at 106. These lighter weights have a lot of chaos in them usually so maybe one of these two is the beneficiary.
If you said Justin Gates is one of the best pound for pound from Michigan this weekend, you wouldn’t get much protest from me, however, his weight is an absolute beast at the top so it’s a daunting task ahead.
Like Gates, Chinavare is a Great Lakes State hammer but at 132, whooo, better him than me against that field. But, unseeded, he’s a definite live dark horse.
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