Bakersfield College head wrestling coach Brett Clark is heading into his second season with a different modus operandi as opposed to last year.

Not necessarily for his style, but simply because of the fresh new faces on the team.

From the lowest weight division (125 pounds) all the way up to heavyweight (285 pounds), BC won’t see one active returner from last year’s team to defend their weight class – which includes three state qualifiers as they are battling personal reasons.

“We are young,” Clark said. “You look at our roster and you got 30 guys and about half those guys are freshmen…some of those guys are redshirt freshmen who didn’t compete, but I think we’ll be OK.”

With the other half, it includes experienced guys like Torrey Casper. Casper is a 133-pounder who redshirted last season, but he’s making his return to wrestling after taking four years off.

Other key wrestlers include: Josh Davis (285-pounder who took a year off after rehabbing four torn ligaments in his knee), Danny Lopez (Palomar College transfer from Robert F. Kennedy-Delano), and Armando Saldana (sat out last year after redshirting).

“Our guys are in pretty good shape right now – that’s a plus,” Clark mentioned. “I’m eager to see what’s going to happen…it’s going to be a good group.”

The BC wrestling season opens at home where they’ll host West Hills and Victor Valley College on Sept. 11 at 7 p.m., followed by a dual tournament the following morning also here at 9 a.m. inside the Gil Bishop Sports Center.