Nittany Lion Career:

 1997-98 - NCAA Championships (5th, 5-2) - The fifth seed at 142 pounds, Billman proved he was the real deal in his freshman season as he grabbed a fifth place finish and his first All-America honor...he opened with a pair of wins, including a 2-1 thriller against No. 12 seed Dorian Hager before falling 8-5 to No. 4 seed and eventual runner-up Casey Cunningham in the quarterfinals...he returned to post a pair of wins in the consolation bracket over seeded wrestlers, including a 7-5 win over No. 1 seed Steven Schmidt of Oklahoma State...was victimized by No. 3 seed Jason Davids of Minnesota for the second time in the post-season 12-5 to drop into the fifth place bout which he won 9-8 over No. 8 seed Mike Harp of Missouri. Big Ten Championships (3rd, 3-1) - After opening with an impressive 10-2 win over Malik Elliott in the first round, the No. 3 seeded Billman appeared primed to make a run at a conference title before No. 2 seed Jason Davids avenged an earlier season loss with an 8-6 win in the quarterfinals...he responded by winning his next two bouts over No. 4 seed Willie Wineberg (6-5) and No. 5 seed Adam Tirapelle (5-3) to claim third place and Big Ten Freshman of the Year Honors...Billman posted one of the most impressive freshman seasons in Nittany Lion history as he lead the team with a 35-6 mark and a 19-2 dual meet record...his 69 dual meet points ranked second on the team and he lead all Penn State wrestlers with nine major decisions and added two falls...he opened the season winning his first 12 matches and claimed first at the Mat Town Tournament and second in the Penn State Open...his only losses on the season came to eventual NCAA champion Jeff McGinness of Iowa (in a pair of tiebreakers), NCAA runner-up Casey Cunningham and All-American Jason Davids, all of whom where ranked in the top five at the time...he wrestled 20 ranked opponents on the season posting a 14-6 mark which included victories over seven Top 10 wrestlers...he climbed as high as the No. 4 ranking at 142 pounds.

Background
Jamarr Billman comes to Penn State from the wrestling hot bed of the Lehigh Valley...a two-time state champion and four-time state place winner at Easton Area HS...he was the team captain his last three seasons and was named a first-team Asics Tiger All-American following his senior campaign...he was named the outstanding wrestler of the PIAA state tournament in 1997 and also garnered those honors at the Reno, Manheim and Ironman tournaments...he led his team to two state titles and was a member of the 1996 team named the No.1 public school team in America...he was selected to compete in the Dapper Dan, Pennsylvania vs. U.S.A. and Dream Team All-Star Classics.

Sunderland Says

 "Jamarr is deceivingly strong and has really good hips and quick, explosive techniques. He brings a great deal of confidence to the mat, which is why he did so well last year. He believes he can beat anybody in the country, and I don't think he'll settle for anything less than a national title."

Career Stats

Season	Overall	Duals	Big Ten
1997-98	35-6	6-2

Tournaments

Season	Overall	Big Ten	NCAA	Maj/MT	Falls
1997-98	16-4	3-1	5-2	9-0	2-0