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The postseason is finally here and Big 12’s are right around the corner. While there are the expected top teams and wrestlers, there are always some sleepers waiting to pull off a late upset or two. This year has seen extreme volatility at 125, but few weights feel firmly established nationally and the Big 12 is no different. While I enjoy focusing on the big names and expected matches, my favorite is a chance to highlight sleepers and guys that I think could really surprise people. While some are deeper cuts than others, I think every wrestler on this list could make things interesting in Tulsa. Air Force: 125lbs - Tucker Owens (11-10) A 2023 NCAA qualifier as a redshirt freshman, I thought Owens could be a breakout wrestler for a solid Air Force team and build off his 33 seed. Unfortunately, after going 22-14 last year he is sitting at 11-10 and outside of the rankings this year. His record isn’t great, but outside of a loss to NC State’s Troy Hohman, all of his other losses are to ranked wrestlers. His losses to some of the top Big 12 wrestlers have been by bonus points, but he’s had close matches with Eli Griffin, Jett Strickenberger, and Tanner Jordan. With only six allocations, he’ll need some upsets to repeat as a qualifier but again, 125 is crazy and if he goes on a run he could find himself in Kansas City. California Baptist: 133lbs - Hunter Leake (16-6) Last year Leake was the only CBU wrestler to get a win in their first Big 12 tournament. This year he is outside the rankings but looking much improved from last season. He’s struggled with consistent results but has had close matches with wrestlers like Dylan Ragusin and Julian Farber. Add in recent pins against Fernando Barreto and Kase Mauger, and Leake could be an upset or two away from potentially being the Lancer’s first NCAA qualifier. Eli Griffin is also a strong option for CBU, but I didn’t want to have too many 125’s on the list. Iowa State: 174lbs - #19 MJ Gaitan (16-5) It’s tough to call Gaitan a “sleeper”, but it’s a testament to Iowa State’s depth as a team. A redshirt freshman, Gaitan has won his last ten consecutive matches including four falls. He was majored by likely top seed Cade DeVos at CKLV, but has a lot of upside with his wide-open style. Gaitan is must-watch TV in every match and isn’t afraid to give up some points to score some of his own. With Iowa State looking for a Big 12 title, Gaitan going on a run and/or scoring some bonus points will be a storyline to look out for. Missouri: 133lbs - #22 Kade Moore (10-3) After not beginning the year as the starter Kade Moore burst onto the national scene with a pin over Sam Latona earlier this year. The last match we saw him in was a barnburner with NCAA and World champ Vito Arujau, where Moore lost a 10-9 decision. Moore had an off-the-mat injury that has kept him out of the lineup since late January, so the lack of mat time could be a factor. His only conference matches are over Gavin Caprella and Davin Rhoads, so where he fits into the seeds makes him an intriguing threat. North Dakota State: 285lbs - Devon Dawson (9-12) The Bison are a young team that has a lot of upside at multiple weights with redshirt freshmen Fernando Barreto, Gavin Drexler, and Max Petersen who all have ranked wins this year. However, I went with a name fans may not be as familiar with, in Devon Dawson, a three-time NJCAA All-American at Pratt CC before transferring this season. His resume doesn’t show it, but recently he’s had some impressive takedowns and moments against Zach Elam and Wyatt Hendrickson. He’ll need to put together a full seven minutes for any upsets, but is someone to keep an eye on in the right matchup. Northern Colorado: 197 - Xavier Vasquez (10-7) 197lbs is deep in the Big 12 with multiple All-Americans, returning qualifiers, and young talent breaking through. Northern Colorado has big names with Stevo Poulin, Vinny Zerban, and Dom Serrano representing them, but Vasquez could be a factor as well. He doesn’t have any huge wins this season but has a recent 3-2 loss against two-time qualifier Evan Bockman. If Vasquez can flip the rematch and potentially build, he could score some points for the Bears in Tulsa. Northern Iowa: 125lbs - #26 Trever Anderson (11-10) Another gritty Big 12 team that could have numerous names on here, Anderson was too tempting as someone who could be a big-time bracket buster. He’s been close in one-point losses to conference opponents Troy Spratley and Conrad Hendricksen while also getting impressive wins over Eli Griffin and Kysen Terukina. A redshirt freshman that excels from the top position, he has also shown some impressive strength in positions that can break a match wide open. He would need to string multiple matches together to make the top-six, but I wouldn’t count him out against anyone at this weight in the Big 12. Oklahoma State: 149lbs - #18 Jordan Williams (14-6) Another team that’s tough to find a true sleeper, Williams is in a tough weight class where he hasn’t wrestled the top two of Casey Swiderski and Ty Watters. A top-ten recruit in the class of 2022, Williams had to beat out Rutgers transfer Sammy Alvarez for the starting spot. While it’s taken some time, Williams has looked like he may be rounding into the flashy winning wrestler he was in high school. He’s lightning quick, has the definition of slickness to his style, and has shown development through the season. He did drop two matches to OU’s Willie McDougald this season, but Williams is a wrestler built for the big stage. If he can get hot at the right time he could surprise some people and go on a run. Oklahoma: 174lbs - #31 Tate Picklo (13-11) At the start of this season, I felt great about Picklo being a big-impact wrestler for the Sooners after a strong finish to his redshirt freshman season. Unfortunately, he has had struggles throughout this year, losing to wrestlers he has beaten before, giving up bonus points, and even dropping five consecutive matches at one point. Despite all that, however, I still think he has what it takes to be dangerous in Tulsa. He avenged a previous 9-0 loss to Brayden Thompson and had a close loss to Cade DeVos. While I don’t expect him to win the Big 12, I do think that he could be someone who performs well later in the season and flip more of his losses at the tournament. South Dakota State: 141lbs - #22 Clay Carlson (11-5) It’s hard to call a two-time All-American a sleeper, but Carlson has had a tough season dropping him in the rankings. He didn’t make his season debut until the Soldier Salute and dropped matches there to Vance Vombaur and Zeke Seltzer. His best win this season is likely over NDSU’s Gavin Drexler, but he hasn’t had the results you’d expect from someone of his caliber and is likely outside the top five, as far as seeds go. However, he is still someone who could outperform that and even contend at this weight. He hasn’t hit many top-ranked guys lately, but had an 8-5 overtime loss to Tagen Jamison in a match where he had the lead late. With SDSU looking to have one of their strongest seasons yet, look for Carlson to peak late in his last season. Utah Valley: 141lbs - #29 Haiden Drury (16-8) 141 is so tough in the Big 12 and Haiden Drury will have an uphill battle to qualify outright after moving up from 133 in the middle of the season. He qualified in 2022 for the Wolverines but missed most of last season due to injury. After mixed results at 133, he made the move to 141 and has now won his last eight matches. Again, there are only five allocations at this weight and you have wrestlers like Clay Carlson, Cole Brooks, and Gavin Drexler all battling to get an upset or two to make that spot on the podium. If Drury can keep adjusting to the weight and keep his winning streak going, he could qualify for his second tournament here. West Virginia: 125lbs - Jett Strickenberger (13-3) I did my best to just not put every team’s 125 on here, but some are just too tempting and Strickenberger is one of my favorite dark horses. A 2023 NJCAA champ, he made an immediate impact for the Mountaineers with wins over Brandon Kaylor and Stevo Poulin showing his potential. He made a brief move to 133 but almost immediately came back down to 125. He’s got a lot of length with good scrambling that can be tough for opponents to deal with. He hasn’t been able to find the consistency at the weight to stay in the rankings yet, but I won’t be shocked by any upset he may cause. Wyoming: 197lbs - #19 Joey Novak (18-10) Anytime a true freshman can come in and end up in the rankings, I think they’re one to watch late in the year as they continue to develop. Novak had a good CKLV run and continued to build off of it with multiple ranked wins this season. As expected with young wrestlers, there have been ups and downs, but he has more than flashed his potential already. He had a 5-3 loss against returning Big 12 champ Rocky Elam, showing that he is right there with top wrestlers. Winning this top-heavy weight class is a big challenge, but Novak is one that I wouldn’t be shocked to score an upset or two and rise in the rankings.

ROSEMONT, Ill. - The Big Ten Conference announced the preliminary seeds for the 2024 Big Ten Wrestling Championships presented by Air National Guard, which are set for March 9-10 at Maryland. Six schools boast at least one top-seeded wrestler, with Penn State leading the way with five No. 1 seeds. The pre-seeds, as voted on by the conference’s coaches, rank 14 starters in all 10 weight classes. The Nittany Lions have five top-seeded wrestlers, with 141-pounder Beau Bartlett, 157-pounder Levi Haines, 174-pounder Carter Starocci, 197-pounder Aaron Brooks and 285-pounder Greg Kerkvliet. Purdue’s Matt Ramos (125), Michigan’s Dylan Ragusin (133), Nebraska’s Ridge Lovett (149), Wisconsin’s Dean Hamiti (165) and Minnesota’s Isaiah Salazar round out the group of top-ranked wrestlers. This year’s field contains a combined 10 Big Ten individual championships (seven wrestlers) and six NCAA individual championships (two wrestlers). For more information on the 2024 Big Ten Wrestling Championships, visit the Big Ten Championships Central page here. The complete list of Big Ten Championships pre-seeds can be found below. 125 lbs 1. Matt Ramos (PUR) 2. Drake Ayala (IOWA) 3. Eric Barnett (WIS) 4. Patrick McKee (MINN) 5. Caleb Smith (NEB) 6. Braeden Davis (PSU) 7. Michael DeAugustino (MICH) 8. Brendan McCrone (OSU) 9. Dean Peterson (RUT) 10. Tristan Lujan (MSU) 11. Justin Cardani (ILL) 12. Massey Odiotti (NU) 13. Tommy Capul (MD) 14. Blaine Frazier (IND) 133 lbs 1. Dylan Ragusin (MICH) 2. Dylan Shawver (RUT) 3. Nic Bouzakis (OSU) 4. Jacob Van Dee (NEB) 5. Aaron Nagao (PSU) 6. Tony Madrigal (ILL) 7. Braxton Brown (MD) 8. Tyler Wells (MINN) 9. Nicolar Rivera (WIS) 10. Cayden Rooks (IND) 11. Dustin Norris (PUR) 12. Andrew Hampton (MSU) 13. Patrick Adams (NU) 14. Brody Teske (IOWA) 141 lbs 1. Beau Bartlett (PSU) 2. Jesse Mendez (OSU) 3. Real Woods (IOWA) 4. Brock Hardy (NEB) 5. Sergio Lemley (MICH) 6. Danny Pucino (ILL) 7. Mitch Moore (RUT) 8. Jordan Hamdan (MSU) T9. Dan Fongaro (IND) T9. Vance VomBaur (MINN) 11. Kal Miller (MD) 12. Greyson Clark (PUR) 13. Kolby McClain (NU) 14. Felix Lettini (WIS) 149 lbs 1. Ridge Lovett (NEB) 2. Austin Gomez (MICH) 3. Caleb Rathjen (IOWA) 4. Tyler Kasak (PSU) 5. Dylan D’Emilio (OSU) 6. Ethen Miller (MD) 7. Joseph Zargo (WIS) 8. Graham Rooks (IND) 9. Drew Roberts (MINN) 10. Michael Cetta (RUT) 11. Marcos Polanco (PUR) 12. Braden Stauffenberg (MSU) 13. Aiden Vandenbush (NU) 14. Jake Harrier (ILL) 157 lbs 1. Levi Haines (PSU) 2. Michael Blockhus (MINN) 3. Brayton Lee (IND) 4. Jared Franek (IOWA) 5. Peyton Robb (NEB) 6. Chase Saldate (MSU) 7. Will Lewan (MICH) 8. Joey Blaze (PUR) 9. Trevor Chumbley (NU) 10. Isaac Wilcox (OSU) 11. Al DeSantis (RUT) 12. Michael North (MD) 13. Luke Mechler (WIS) 14. Logan Swaw (ILL) 165 lbs 1. Dean Hamiti (WIS) 2. Mitchell Mesenbrink (PSU) 3. Michael Caliendo (IOWA) 4. Caleb Fish (MSU) 5. Antrell Taylor (NEB) 6. Cameron Amine (MICH) 7. Stoney Buell (PUR) 8. Bryce Hepner (OSU) 9. Tyler Lillard (IND) 10. Blaine Brenner (MINN) 11. Chris Moore (ILL) 12. Maxx Mayfield (NU) 13. Anthony White (RUT) 14. AJ Rodrigues (MD) 174 lbs 1. Carter Starocci (PSU) 2. Shane Griffith (MICH) 3. Patrick Kennedy (IOWA) 4. Edmond Ruth (ILL) 5. Rocco Welsh (OSU) 6. Jackson Turley (RUT) 7. Max Maylor (WIS) 8. DJ Washington (IND) 9. Andrew Sparks (MINN) 10. Brody Baumann (PUR) 11. Dominic Solis (MD) 12. Bubba Wilson (NEB) 13. DJ Shannon (MSU) 14. David Ferrante (NU)? 184 lbs 1. Isaiah Salazar (MINN) 2. Lenny Pinto (NEB) 3. Bernie Truax (PSU) 4. Ryder Rogotzke (OSU) 5. Jaden Bullock (MICH) 6. Layne Malczewski (MSU) 7. Shane Liegel (WIS) 8. Brian Soldano (RUT) 9. Troy Fisher (NU) 10. Roman Rogotzke (IND) 11. Dylan Connell (ILL) 12. James Rowley (PUR) 13. Aiden Riggins (IOWA) 14. Chase Mielnik (MD) 197 lbs 1. Aaron Brooks (PSU) 2. Jaxon Smith (MD) 3. Zach Glazier (IOWA) 4. Silas Allred (NEB) 5. Garrett Joles (MINN) 6. Luke Geog (OSU) 7. John Poznanski (RUT) 8. Evan Bates (NU) 9. Ben Vanadia (PUR) 10. Gabe Sollars (IND) 11. Kael Wisler (MSU) 12. Isiah Pettigrew (ILL) 13. Bobby Striggow (MICH) 14. Josh Otto (WIS) 285 lbs 1. Greg Kerkvliet (PSU) 2. Nick Feldman (OSU) 3. Lucas Davison (MICH) 4. Yaraslau Slavikouski (RUT) 5. Seth Nevills (MD) 6. Nick Willham (IND) 7. Bradley Hill (IOWA) 8. Bennett Tabor (MINN) 9. Josh Terrill (MSU) 10. Nash Hutmacher (NEB) 11. Jack Jessen (NU) 12. Gannon Rosenfeld (WIS) 13. Peter Marinopoulos (ILL) 14. Hayden Filipovich (PUR)

Brackets for the 2024 Big 12 Championships have been released! The tournament will take place at the BOK Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma, on Saturday and Sunday.