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Dom Munaretto photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com Now that we’re squarely in the collegiate preseason and the fall weather has set it, another rite of passage is upon us. Football season? Yes, and it’s semi-relevant here, as many fall recruiting weekends are built around football Saturdays, especially, at your Power Five (now four) schools. Sure, there are plenty of recruiting visits in the spring and summer, but we saw almost all of the top recruits from the Class of 2025 commit to schools by the end of the calendar year in 2023, so the Class of 2026 recruits have begun to visit campus and probably will start to commit soon. One of the things that makes following recruiting fun is the cloak-and-dagger secrecy surrounding parts of the process. For every Bo Bassett who routinely keeps the public informed on recruiting decisions, there are plenty of others who don’t discuss it as much. Therefore, it can be difficult to follow which recruit is interested in which school and vice versa. I suppose it’s fun, but you’re left wanting more! In order to try and help our fanbase feel more knowledgeable about the process, we’ll have a weekly column that recaps the recruiting weekend. Who has visited where? Maybe some background information on the recruits or the process from the school. If we've missed a recruit or you'd like to provide info on future visits play let me know: earl@matscouts.com For past versions of this feature: October 8th October 1st September 23rd September 16th September 9th Army West Point Cash Colbert: Paul VI, VA - Class of 2026 Sammy McKissick-Staley: Pittsford, NY: Class of 2026 Grayson Woodcock: Dublin, OH - Class of 2026 It was a productive weekend for the coaching staff at Army West Point. They hosted three Class of 2026 recruits and already have one (perhaps two) verbal commitment. The verbal that has been made public is from Ohio state medalist Grayson Woodcock. Woodcock is a two-time 16U national freestyle medalist who is coming off a runner-up finish over the summer in Fargo. Prior to his commitment, Woodcock’s only other visit on record was to Buffalo. Also from New York is Sammy McKissick-Staley. In 2024, McKissick-Staley made the New York DI state finals before finishing fourth at NHSCA Sophomore Nationals and taking seventh at the UWW U17 Trials in Greco. Like Woodcock, Missick-Staley has also taken a visit to Buffalo. A name that might be familiar to followers of the Army program is Cash Colbert from Virginia. His older brother, Brady, is from the Class of 2024 and is currently a freshman at West Point. Cash was an NHSCA Sophomore National finalist at 195 lbs this year. He was seventh at National Prep’s last season. Buffalo Curtis Nelson: Ridley, PA - Class of 2025 After hitting the Class of 2026 hard, the Buffalo staff brought in an underrated prospect from the Class of 2025, in Curtis Nelson. Nelson is a two-time Pennsylvania AAA state placewinner who was a state finalist in 2024. He could be the coveted career 125 lber. Nelson has already taken a visit to West Virginia earlier this fall. Drexel Oumar Tounkara: New York Military Academy, NY - Class of 2025 A week after making it to the Super 32 podium, senior Omar Tounkara made the trip to Drexel University. Tounkara is a Fargo Junior freestyle All-American and an NHSCA Junior National champion. He’s also a product of New York’s Beat the Streets program. Tounkara could also be a long-term solution at 125 lbs, as his Super 32 placement came at 113 lbs. Gardner-Webb Ryder Smith: Chattanooga Christian, TN - #61 Class of 2026 Gardner-Webb was able to host top-100 recruit Ryder Smith - which would be a coup for the Running Bulldogs. Smith is an NHSCA Sophomore National champion and a finalist in Fargo in 16U freestyle. Smith has already visited Chattanooga and Maryland George Mason Roman Belardo: Jefferson, GA - Class of 2026 Joey Favia: Marmion Academy, IL - Class of 2026 Zach Stewart: Marmion Academy, IL: #79 Class of 2026 A pair of Marmion Academy teammates made the trip to George Mason over the weekend as Joey Favia and Zach Stewart made their way to Fairfax. Both Favia and Stewart were state finalists in Illinois’ 3A division in 2024 - with Stewart winning a state title. Favia is a two-time Fargo 16U freestyle All-American and Stewart was fifth at the Super 32 last weekend. Both wrestlers have taken a visit to the University of Virginia. Stewart has also visited Bellarmine and Princeton. Two-time Georgia champion Roman Belardo also paid a visit to George Mason. Belardo has made the medal stand at the Cheesehead Invitational and the Knockout Christmas Classic. He’s already taken visits to Davidson, Hofstra, and Oklahoma. Indiana Dom Munaretto: St. Charles East, IL - #7 Class of 2026 Nicholas Sorrow: Hudson, MI - Class of 2026 With Indiana having Dom Munaretto on campus over the weekend, it marked the highest-ranked recruit to head to Bloomington this recruiting cycle. Over the summer, Munaretto became a two-time U17 freestyle world champion. He’s also placed twice at the Super 32 and Walsh Ironman. Munaretto has been highly sought after with visits to Arizona State, Illinois, and Ohio State, already. Joining Munaretto was two-time Michigan state champion Nicholas Sorrow. Sorrow has earned 16U freestyle All-American honors in Fargo and Greco AA accolades at the UWW U17 Trials. We already noted Sorrow as having taken a visit to Bucknell. Kent State Brycen Arthur: Parkersburg South, WV - Class of 2025 The Kent State staff have quietly put together a solid Class of 2025 and are looking to add to it with two-time West Virginia AAA state third-place finisher Brycen Arthur. Over the spring, Arthur impressed at the national level with a third-place finish at 220 lbs at NHSCA Junior Nationals. Arthur has already taken a visit to Edinboro, along with D2 Fairmont State and Frostburg State. Little Rock Noah Bull: Layton, UT - #99 Class of 2026 Mason Carlson: Syracuse, UT - Class of 2026 CJ Huerta: Buchanan, CA - #73 Class of 2026 Jadyn Johnson: Melissa, TX - Class of 2025 Little Rock has been able to pull in recruits from all over the country so it’s no surprise that they had a pair of recruits in from Utah, plus another from California, and one from Texas - which has been good to them recruiting-wise. California native CJ Huerta is the highest-ranking member of the group. He is a two-time placewinner in California’s extremely competitive 113 and 120 brackets. Huerta’s best national-level credential is an eighth-place finish at the Doc Buchanan last season. He has already taken visits to Princeton and Wyoming, so he’s obviously open to travel. The Utah contingent includes another top-100 recruit in Noah Bull and Mason Carlson. Over the summer, Bull was a double 16U All-American - highlighted by a stop-sign-winning performance in freestyle (and third in Greco). Bull has already visited Nebraska and Oregon State. Carlson was also a double Fargo 16U All-American in July. He was top-four in both styles. The only previous visit we have on file for Carlson is when he stayed home to take in Utah Valley. The only wrestler from the Class of 2025 in this group is Jadyn Johnson. Johnson was a 2024 Texas state champion. It's the first visit we have on record for Johnson. Maryland Devin Downes: Plainedge, NY - Class of 2026 Liston Seibert: Massillon Perry, OH - Class of 2026 Mateo Vinciguerra: Woodstown, NJ - Class of 2026 Maryland is another school that already received good news from a recruit they hosted over the weekend. Monday afternoon, Mateo Vinciguerra gave Alex Clemsen’s team a verbal commitment. Vinciguerra has yet to place at the New Jersey State Tournament, but had a breakout this offseason. After taking fourth at NHSCA Sophomore Nationals, Vinciguerra was third at 16U freestyle nationals. Last week, he was eighth in the 285 lb weight class at the Super 32. Vinciguerra also took a visit to Penn this fall. Maryland also hosted Illinois native Seth Digby over the weekend. Digby is a Class of 2025 recruit who has already given Maryland a verbal. Also aboard for the weekend were Devin Downes and Liston Seibert. Downes is a New York DI state champion at 170 lbs, who was also fourth at NHSCA Sophomore Nationals. Seibert was third in Ohio’s DI classification last season and made the 16U freestyle finals in Fargo. Downes has already visited Buffalo, while Seibert has taken visits to Ohio State and West Virginia. North Dakota State Waylon Cressell: Warren Central, IN - #68 Class of 2026 Layne Kleimann: Herriman, UT - Class of 2025 Wyatt Kosidowski: Fargo Davies, ND - Class of 2026 William Ward: Fargo West, ND - #109 Class of 2026 Perhaps no wrestler in the country saw their stock rise like Layne Kleimann’s did coming out of the Super 32. Kleimann, a six-time All-American in NDSU’s FargoDome, got on the podium for the first time at the Super 32 - placing fourth at 132 lbs. Kleimann has already taken visits to Army West Point and Utah Valley. After Kleimann, Obe Blanc’s staff focused on a trio of recruits with local ties. Wyatt Kosidowski and William Ward were North Dakota state champions as sophomores at upperweights. Ward was a double All-American at the UWW U17 Trials (sixth in FS, seventh in GR) and made the Fargo Junior podium this year in Greco. Though he won an Indiana state championship last season, Waylon Cressell is originally from North Dakota. He was sixth at the Super 32 last week - a few months after placing in both styles in Fargo. Northern Illinois Nic Enzminger: Bismarck, ND - Class of 2026 Evan Gosz: Fremd, IL - Class of 2025 Jase Jaspers: Mount Vernon, IA - Class of 2026 Anthony Kroninger: Alder, OH - Class of 2025 Brayden Teunissen: Marian Central, IL - Class of 2025 Carson Weber: Joliet West, IL - Class of 2025 Northern Illinois had a good mix of current juniors and seniors in over the weekend. The juniors include Nic Enzminger and Jace Jaspers. Nic was a double Junior All-American this summer in Fargo, winning a title in Greco and finishing fifth at 113 lbs in freestyle. Jaspers is a two-time Iowa state runner-up. We’ve already mentioned in these features how NIU has done well at recruiting in Iowa, of late. Enzminger has already visited Minnesota. This is Jaspers first official visit and he is currently lining up other potential trips. The group of seniors is very heavy on in-state talent with Evan Gosz, Brayden Teunissen, and Carson Weber. Gosz and Weber were in the same state tournament bracket last season - 3A 144 lbs. The two did not meet at the state tournament, but Gosz finished second and Weber was third. Teunissen is a two-time Illinois state finalist, who won a 1A state title last season at 120 lbs. Gosz has taken visits to Bellarmine and Michigan State. Weber has also visited Bellarmine. Teunissen has visited Indiana. NIU also hosted Ohio state medalist Anthony Kroninger. Kroninger has excelled in Greco with a fifth-place finish at the UWW U17 Trials and a third-place showing in 2023 in Fargo’s 16U division. This is the first visit we have for Kroninger. Ohio State Jax Forrest: Bishop McCort, PA - #2 Class of 2026 The Buckeyes hosted one of the top recruits in the nation over the weekend as Jax Forrest made the trip from Pennsylvania. Earlier this month, Forrest unveiled his final list of ten schools and Ohio State was featured, so this isn’t a surprising discovery. Forrest recently won his second Super 32 belt (two go along with two third-place finishes). Over the summer, Forrest also won his second straight Junior freestyle championship in Fargo. He is originally from the Chapel Hill, North Carolina area and has a pre-existing relationship with Ohio RTC coach Coleman Scott. Forrest has already taken a visit to the University of Michigan. Oklahoma State Dreshaun Ross: Fort Dodge, IA - #3 Class of 2026 Carlos Stanton: Sunnyside, AZ - #176 Class of 2025 Sergio Vega: Sunnyside, AZ - #19 Class of 2025 Adam Waters: Faith Christian Academy, PA - #17 Class of 2026 Kellen Wolbert: Oconomowoc, WI - #18 Class of 2026 It was already a successful recruiting weekend for Oklahoma State who had #19 from the Class of 2025, Segio Vega, along for this visit as he was in the process of flipping from Cornell. Also from the Class of 2025 was #176 Carlos Stanton, Vega’s high school teammate and is currently an Iowa State commit. Now focusing on 2026, Oklahoma State had a trio of highly sought-after top-20 recruits in Stillwater. Two-time Fargo 16U national freestyle champion Dreshaun Ross headlined the group of visitors. Ross was slated to represent the USA at the U17 World Championships this year until he suffered a shoulder injury. The two–time Iowa state champion has already visited Iowa State, Northern Illinois, Ohio State, and Oklahoma and is slated to visit Iowa next weekend. U17 Greco world team member Adam Waters was also in attendance. Waters is also a two-time Fargo Junior freestyle third-place finisher and a two-time Pennsylvania AA state champion. He has already visited Arizona State, Michigan, Missouri, North Carolina, and Virginia Tech. Waters also has a visit with Rutgers approaching. Last, but not least, is Kellen Wolbert. Wolbert was a UWW U17 finalist in freestyle this year, before taking seventh in Junior freestyle in Fargo. He’s also an Askren Wrestling Academy product - as they’ve emerged to become one of the top clubs in the country, it would be a great pipeline for the new OSU staff to establish. Wolbert has already taken visits to Missouri, Nebraska, and Wisconsin. He also has Cornell, Indiana, and Minnesota on his shortlist. Oregon State Mason Ontiveros: Pitman, CA - #37 Class of 2026 Gavin Rangel: Newberg, OR - Class of 2026 Oregon State has been crushing it with their Class of 2026 recruiting (three Big Boarder’s have already committed) and they are stopping any time soon. All three of their current commits are from California and they had another one in town over the weekend in Mason Ontiveros. As a sophomore, Ontiveros was a California state runner-up at 175 lbs. After that, Ontiveros was an NHSCA Sophomore National runner-up, along with a fourth-place finish at the UWW U17 Trials and a seventh-place showing in Fargo in Junior freestyle. He has already taken a visit to Purdue. The Beaver staff also turned their attention to an in-state prospect with Gavin Rangel. Rangel is a two-time Oregon state placewinner and won a championship as a sophomore. This is his first visit of the fall. Penn CJ Betz: Delbarton, NJ - #115 Class of 2026 Siraj Sidhu - Del Oro, CA - Class of 2026 Sammy Spaulding: Camden Catholic, NJ - #105 Class of 2026 Penn has had plenty of recruiting wins in New Jersey and hopes to add more after hosting a pair of New Jersey studs in CJ Betz and Sammy Spaulding. Betz hasn’t placed at the New Jersey state tournament yet, but did finish third at NHSCA Sophomore Nationals at 160 lbs. Spaulding was fourth in the state and a Beast of the East runner-up last season. Betz has already taken a visit to Ivy rival Princeton. Spaulding has done that as well, plus a visit to West Virginia. He’s scheduled to visit the Naval Academy next week. Coming in from California was two-time state placewinner Siraj Sidhu. In 2024, Sidhu was fourth in the 113 lb weight class. He’s also finished top eight twice at the Doc Buchanan. Sidhu has taken visits to Air Force, Cal Poly, and Stanford. Rutgers Dean Bechtold: Owen J. Roberts, PA - #20 Class of 2026 Brandt Harer: Montgomery, PA - #12 Class of 2026 Rutgers continues to invade Pennsylvania in search of blue-chip talent. They hosted a pair of wrestlers who both fit the bill in Dean Bechtold and Brandt Harer. Both have placed twice, in two chances, at the Pennsylvania state tournament. Harer was second then first at the AA level. Bechtold was sixth and then second in AAA. Just last weekend, Bechtold captured a Super 32 title with a win over U17 world champion Michael Mocco. Both of these wrestlers have older brothers who were highly recruited and entering their freshman year of college. Harer’s older brother, Conner, is slated to be Rutgers 157 lber this season. Bechtold’s older brother, Dillon, is in line to start for Bucknell at 184 lbs. Bechtold has visited NC State and Nebraska, while Harer’s only visit thus far has been to Bucknell. SIU Edwardsville Kiernan Meink: Millard South, NE - Class of 2026 SIU Edwardsville does a sneaky-good job on the recruiting trail and getting Kiernan Meink in for a visit fits along those lines. Meink was a Nebraska state champion as a freshman and was third last season. Prior to the 2023-24 season, Meink was a finalist at Preseason Nationals. Meink has already visited Campbell, which is where his older brother Korbin wrestled and was an NCAA qualifier. Stanford James Bechter: Northfield Mt. Hermon, MA - #50 Class of 2026 Mark Effendian: Faith Christian Academy, PA - #88 Class of 2026 Zeno Moore: Lake Highland Prep, FL - #64 Class of 2026 Jarrett Smith: Lowell, MI - #91 Class of 2026 Gabe Swann: Carroll Central, GA - Class of 2026 Joe Uhorchuk: Signal Mountain, TN - #49 Class of 2026 October continued to be a big recruiting month for Stanford as they hosted a group over the weekend that included five top-100 prospects. The highest-ranked of the bunch is Joe Uhorchuk who was fresh off of a third-place finish at the Super 32. It marked the second time that Uhorchuk has finished top-four at the preseason spectacle. Uhorchuk has already visited Army West Point, Brown, Chattanooga, and Princeton. He has family ties to both the Army and Chattanooga programs. The second top-50 recruit of the bunch was James Bechter, an NHSCA Sophomore National champion at 285 lbs and a double All-American from the UWW U17 Trials. Bechter has already placed four times in Fargo. His visit itinerary already includes trips to Brown, Northwestern, and Virginia. Another heavyweight prospect in the group is Mark Effendian. Effendian was also third at the 2024 Super 32. He was fifth the previous year. Effendian is also coming off a third-place finish at the Pennsylvania AA state tournament. His previous visits include Pittsburgh and Princeton. He’s also slated to visit Rutgers in early November. The other two ranked wrestlers in this crew are Zeno Moore and Jarrett Smith. In 2024, Moore finished third at Sophomore Nationals, fifth in Fargo Junior freestyle, and seventh at the Super 32. Smith has earned Fargo All-American honors four times, headlined by a U16 freestyle title at 94 lbs in the summer of 2023. Moore has previous visits to Cornell, NC State, and Oklahoma. Smith has visited Indiana and Virginia. The final recruit of this group and another lightweight star is Gabe Swann of Georgia. Swann won a Junior freestyle national title this year in a bracket where Smith finished third. It was his fourth time earning hardware in the FargoDome. Swann has already taken visits to Brown, California Baptist, Cornell, and West Virginia. Virginia Tech Tyler Dekraker: Faith Christian Academy, PA - #31 Class of 2026 Jake Hockaday: Brownsburg, IN - #33 Class of 2025 Antonio Mills: Mill Creek, GA - #10 Class of 2026 Rylan Seacrist: Massillon Perry, OH - #106 Class of 2026 Virginia Tech continued to push hard with the Class of 2026 and this week focused on the lightweights. Antonio Mills continues to be a hot commodity after taking second at 120 lbs at the Super 32 last weekend. It was the third time Mills had made the Super 32 podium. He’s also a Junior freestyle All-American and an NHSCA Sophomore National champ. Mills has already visited ACC rival NC State and Nebraska. Though he wrestles out of Pennsylvania, Tyler Dekraker is a Virginia native and no stranger to the Virginia Tech program. Dekraker has enjoyed a strong offseason with a third-place showing at the UWW U17 Trials and taking fifth in Junior freestyle in Fargo. Dekraker has already visited Minnesota, NC State, Oklahoma, and Penn State. The final junior of the group is Ohio’s Rylan Seacrist. Seacrist has placed second and fourth in two tries at the DI state tournament. During the 2023-24 high school season, Seacrist was sixth at the Ironman and after that, he was fifth at the UWW U17 Trials. Seacrist has already taken visits to Iowa, North Carolina, Ohio State, Penn State, and Virginia. Virginia Tech also hosted Class of 2025 star Jake Hockaday. As of now, Hockaday has a verbal out to Oklahoma - but he also recently visited Nebraska. The two-time Fargo Junior freestyle All-American is reportedly down to those three schools. West Virginia #75 Wyatt Bush: Grundy, VA - Class of 2025 James Lindsay: Bishop Watterson, OH - Class of 2026 Dallas Russell: Jefferson, GA - #26 Class of 2026 Braiden Weaver: Altoona, PA - Class of 2026 West Virginia has been as active as anyone on this list at hosting recruiting visits and last week was more of the same. The Mountaineer staff hosted a trio of juniors one of whom is currently on the Big Board. He is Dallas Russell, an NHSCA Sophomore National champion. Russell is two-for-two in winning Georgia state titles. He has already taken a visit to Oklahoma. Russell has a link to the West Virginia staff as Mountaineer head coach Tim Flynn coached his older brother, Sean, at Edinboro. WVU assistant coach Mitchell Port was an assistant at the time, too. WVU frequently hits neighboring Ohio and Pennsylvania on the recruiting trail and hosted a wrestler from each of those states in James Lindsay and Braiden Weaver. Lindsay was an Ohio state finalist in 2024 and fourth as a freshman. Weaver was fifth in Pennsylvania’s AAA state tournament as a freshman and didn’t place in 2024. Lindsay has visited Indiana and Pittsburgh, while Weaver has visited Clarion. Wyatt Bush is one of the few remaining, uncommitted top-100 recruits from the Class of 2025. Bush is a three-time NHSCA age-group national finalist, winning titles as a freshman and junior. He has taken a visit to the other Mountaineers, Appalachian State, in the spring.

Mike Poeta was named Head Coach of the Illinois wrestling program in April of 2021. Having been a fan of his for many years as a competitor, and in his early days as an assistant with the program, I was very excited about this move. The other day I had the honor of connecting with him to talk through what we can expect from his program heading into this season. I was very excited to talk through the potential for this season, who to watch, plans for their team, new additions to the roster, and some of their additions to the coaching staff. Without further ado, allow me to share some of the highlights from that conversation. Last season was expected to be a strong one for Illinois, but a series of unforeseen events caused the team to call an audible to some postponed plans. In the end, this should end up as a real positive for this group for the 2024/2025 season. I asked Coach Poeta about the messaging to the team as they prepared for this season: “The messaging for everyone was to push yourself and to try to get the best version of everybody. The team we have this year is really lined up to be successful. This is the team we thought we were going to have last year, so I had to be a little more patient. The Braunagels started having a ton of success, and they wanted to take the Olympic year and I wanted to allow them to have that life-changing experience. One of the bright spots from last season was Kannon Webster who showed in his limited action that he could be a real force at 149. Here is what Coach Poeta had to say about their young thoroughbred, along with his thoughts on more experienced returners to the lineup, Lucas Byrd and Luke Luffman: “Kannon Webster was able to wrestle in five events and was able to get up to being ranked seventh in the country. Then you had the unfortunate part of Lucas Byrd and Luke Luffman being hurt, which can happen any year. Losing them, I look at it as having five potential All-Americans, and they were on the bench last year. These guys are the hungriest that they’ve ever been. Luffman physically looks like a different person. He looks more intimidating and tougher. Braunagels spent the year wrestling primarily Greco and came back and their shots were better. Webster is a year older and has another year of maturity, and he’s ready for the best four years moving forward. Lucas Byrd had a bad injury over the summer, so we knew he was going to be out, but he’s very ready. Additionally, Byrd has stepped up as a leader. He seems to have grown into a great leader for the younger guys.” I asked Coach Poeta about Zac Branuagel and the upcoming All-Star Classic opportunity he will have: He has another year of experience at 197 pounds. He moved up the last season in Folkstyle. He had some enormous wins over guys like Jacob Warner (Iowa), Yonger (Iowa State), and Beard (Lehigh) he showed where he could be in the country. He’s more confident in the weight and ready to go. The All-Star Classic is a prestigious invite, and he can look back and be proud to be chosen to wrestle in this event. We are really excited for him. Getting back to Kannon Webster, I asked Coach Poeta about what we can expect to see and where he feels he’s had the most progression. He already has shown that he can compete with the best in the country, but more specifically I wanted to know what he’s seeing day to day that has impressed him the most: “He is composed and more mature. In the beginning, he was hard on himself with any mistakes, but he’s been able to relax and be more calm and patient, and his wrestling is better because he’s not as concerned with a potential mistake. Austin O’Connor was wrestling with him the other day and Kannon had him on the ropes. He’s going toe-to-toe with him.” Great time to talk about the addition of two-time NCAA Champ, Austin O’Connor, returning to his home state of Illinois to help coach the Fighting Illini: “I think he’s a rockstar. He has brought such incredible ownership in wanting the program to be great. He grabs guys and does extra work once or twice daily above the coaching responsibilities that I have for him. Illinois wrestling right now is bad for an introvert. There is never a time when you come into the room and there aren’t other guys in the practice facility. Guys are in here nonstop throughout the day doing stuff on their own. The kids are obsessed on their own and that leads to success. Austin is a big piece of that.” I would be remiss if I didn’t ask Coach Poeta about their returning All-American, Edmond Ruth. I don’t like to be remiss, so I asked him about Edmond and specifically around what he’s been working on coming off of a strong season: “We are trying to get him to unleash his offense a little bit more. He has a great arsenal, and we need him to not keep it in his pocket. He shows such glimpses of greatness, and we want him to give himself more opportunities to score, and to unleash that greatness.” Illinois also will be bolstered by a couple of transfers at 125 and 157 pounds. They were able to bring in two grad student transfers from Iowa State with Ramazan Attasauov and Jason Kraisser. Here coach talks about their impact thus far: “Great situations and great kids. Wrestlers being obsessed, I got here at 7:30am to our facility, and Ramazon was already here working out. Being a 125-pounder, we have an RTC guy from Mongolia, Zane Richards, and Lucas Byrd, he has three world-class guys whenever he wants. Same with Jason, if he looks down he has Kannon Webster, if he looks up he has Danny Braunagel, and AOC the NCAA Champ at his weight class. We are lucky to have them and they are taking advantage of this opportunity.” To wrap it up, I wanted to ask Coach Poetta about the postponed upgrade to their wrestling facilities. He was able to share some excellent news regarding their funds and the future of the Illinois facility upgrades: “The positive part is that we fundraised all the money ourselves, so the money is there and we are ready. We aren’t waiting on a handout, wrestling people take ownership and we worked really hard to get the money ourselves. This will be a facility deserving of these guys, who exemplify what a student-athlete is, and they deserve something in return at that same level. When we are ready to get this going again, it’ll be ready to be built.” I knew ahead of this interview that Illinois was in a great position to challenge for a trophy this season. Upon speaking with Coach Poeta, I’m even more convinced. Their returning guys are all in a great spot to battle for a podium finish, and their transfers have put themselves into a positive environment for one last run at the podium themselves. The future is bright in Champaign, Illinois. Friends of the program should have a bottle of their own Champagne ready to open in March to celebrate a team that is prepared to attack this season and expects results.

The All-330 projections are back for the 2024-25 preseason. The All-330 is a series of educated guesses on who will be the 330 wrestlers who make the trip to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to compete at the 2025 NCAA Championships. So, how are these different than the national rankings, which go down to #33? There's a little bit of guesswork, projection, and opinion that goes into these, which is generally frowned upon with rankings. In some cases, we think a particular wrestler is poised for a big year (or not-so-big). Another factor for these is conference allocations. Right now we can just speculate allocations for each conference and weight, but you can get an idea of how many each league will get based on rankings. For instance, in a Big Ten weight class with 10 of the top-15 wrestlers in the country (133), you can also assume that the conference probably steals an at-large berth as a lower-ranked wrestler only needs one win to lock up a national qualifying bid. Wrestlers are listed by conference, in alphabetical order, based on school name, so they are not conference rankings. The good news is that if someone is not listed or in the "just missed" category, they have the entire regular season action to go, along with a conference tournament. There's still plenty of time left to change a narrative or impress the masses. 125 lbs The differences between these and the rankings are more evident at 125 than at most other weights. There are a handful of true and redshirt freshmen that are projected to go to Philadelphia, but we don’t have the ability to rank them…yet. The true freshman are the #1 overall recruit from the Class of 2024, Luke Lilledahl and Chris Vargo of Edinboro. Marc-Anthony McGowan was a huge recruit for Princeton last year but was injured in the preseason and didn’t enroll. He’s counted as a true freshman. Freshmen of the redshirt variety include Kale Peterson and Vinny Kilkeary. Peterson had a limited sample size at 133 lbs, but is attempting to go 125 for Iowa. Kilkeary is in a battle for the starting role at 125 lbs for the Buckeyes with 2024 national qualifier Brendan McCrone. Also, we have Iowa State’s Osmany Diversent. With Kysen Terukina moving up to 125 lbs, Diversent looks like he could have the inside track at 125 lbs. Some may be unsure about the Cuban’s transition to folkstyle; however, fellow countrymen Anthony Echemendia and Yonger Bastida didn’t have much of a learning curve. If he’s good, he’s good. One name omitted from the rankings is Clarion’s Joey Fischer. Fischer is moving up to 133 lbs and is possibly taking a redshirt. 133 lbs This was the most difficult weight to project as it is incredibly deep with NCAA qualifier-tier talent. There were nine other quality wrestlers on the list that couldn’t fit in the “just missed” category. The two wrestlers in this projection who are not in the current rankings are Cael Hughes and Mason Leiphart. Whoever starts for Oklahoma State should have a good shot at NCAA qualification, Hughes was a massive recruit for the Cowboys and redshirted last year. He’s likely a beneficiary of new high-quality practice partners. Leiphart has put together a pair of quality seasons for F&M, but has yet to qualify for nationals. Franklin & Marshall has done well of late developing overlooked talent. James Conway and John Crawford may have snuck up on some people last year, I think Leiphart is “that guy” in 2025. 141 lbs NC State will do some weight/redshirt shuffling from 133-149 lbs, so the wrestlers considered at those weights are different from these projections and will be reflected in next week’s preseason rankings update. Here two-time All-American Kai Orine moves up. One factor that may bump someone from the rankings into the “just missed” category is the Pac-12 at 141 lbs. They currently do not have anyone ranked at the weight. We have Nash Singleton as the conference’s representative. Singleton had a solid 2023-24 season at 149 lbs, but didn’t qualify. He would turn out to be a great option for the Beavers and work his way into the rankings anyway. Keep an eye on that second qualifying slot in the MAC. The conference only earned one bid in 2024. If that’s the case again, that might make room for someone in the “just missed” category to secure a spot. 149 lbs With the movement on the NC State front, Koy Buesgens is inserted in place of Jackson Arrington, who is reportedly taking a redshirt. Buesgens was solid at 141 lbs during his redshirt season and made the finals of the U20 World Team Trials Challenge tournament in freestyle. We’re taking a leap with California Baptist’s true freshman Paul Kelly. He has excellent freestyle credentials and will likely get the starting nod for the Lancers in year one. Maryland is noted here with a Miller brother; however, it’s a different one from the rankings. It appears the plan is now to have Kal Miller at 149 lbs and Ethen moves up to 157. A situation we’re watching is Arizona State who will likely start Mykey Ramos, but could turn to true freshman Pierson Manville. Ramos is in the “just missed” category, but Manville might have the potential to make the big tourney in year one. 157 lbs We left 2024 All-American Daniel Cardenas out of the preseason rankings because the Cardinal will start the season under the assumption that he will redshirt. In his place is redshirt freshman Zach Hanson, who had a very good redshirt year himself. Rutgers true freshman Conner Harer is one of the highest-ranked true freshmen who has a path to starting immediately. We see him delivering with an NCAA berth. Recently, we got word that Lehigh intends on redshirting Max Brignola, which leaves this weight without a ranked wrestler from the EIWA. Both Army and Navy give their wrestlers plenty of opportunities in open tournaments to meet good competition, while also padding their W/L record against DI competition. I think that helps starters from both of their squads earn NCAA qualification. 165 lbs It looks like Iowa State’s MJ Gaitan is moving down to 165 lbs in order for the team to field their strongest lineup. He was listed at 174 lbs in the preseason rankings. Illinois is very high on redshirt freshman Braeden Scoles and he was the only starter for the Fighting Illini who was not mentioned in our preseason rankings. Staying in the Big Ten, our rankings had Bryce Hepner as the representative for Ohio State. He’ll be in the mix, along with Sammy Sasso. We’re still not sure “where” Sasso is at this point in time, but he intends on winning the spot and we’re not counting him out. Veterans Luka Wick and Kaya Sement were the last wrestlers added at this weight. Wick is coming off an injury that disrupted his entire 2023-24 campaign, while Sement gets his first shot at being the full-time starter for the Quakers. 174 lbs Last week, he brought you news from Nebraska - that their returning starters at 184 and 197 lbs, were planning on moving down for the 2024-25 campaign. That puts Lenny Pinto here. Also, the movement in the Iowa State lineup leaves an opening at 174 lbs. Tate Naaktgeboren and Aiden Riggins are the most likely candidates to fill the void. The weight is probably more ideal for Riggins, but we’ll see how it plays out. This weight has a lot of depth for the EIWA and MAC. As you can see between their projected qualifiers and those in the “just missed” category. There are also a handful of others from both conferences who have an argument and wouldn’t be a shock to see in Philadelphia. One of them that we’ve bought in on is from one of the Philadelphia schools - Drexel’s Jasiah Queen. He’s one of the more highly-rated recruits of late for the Dragons and had some good moments during a .500 redshirt season. We left Dom Baker out of the preseason rankings because there was the possibility of him taking a redshirt. Now, we’ll likely see him compete at 174 lbs. 184 lbs Aside from the Nebraska movement - Silas Allred at this weight, there isn’t much difference between these projections and our rankings. One minor difference is having AJ Heeg included. Heeg had a really solid redshirt year for Oklahoma State, despite only a few matches against DI competition. 197 lbs After 184 lbs, this is a weight with lots of differences between the rankings and this projection. We mentioned in our lineup battles article, that Virginia Tech’s 197 and 285 lb wrestle-off’s will be among the most intriguing in the nation. We’ve got the youngster going in Sasso, but Andy Smith is a returning Round of 12 finisher. Reading between the lines, with Nebraska’s 184 and 197 lber moving down, you have to assume that Camden McDanel is as good as advertised - maybe better. He’s included. This weight also had a pair of true freshmen in the projections and another in the “just missed” portion. Dillon Bechtold and Tucker Hogan are in, while Max Shulaw lurks in the first out. Bucknell had success with a pair of true freshmen in 2024 (Noah Mulvaney/Myles Takats), could they do it again with Bechtold? Hogan is one of the highest-ranked recruits to sign with Lock Haven in the Scott Moore-era - I see him winning right away. Shulaw has a tough ACC weight class with plenty of tough opponents at every turn. Speaking of Hogan and the MAC, there isn’t a MAC wrestler listed in the preseason rankings, so we have him and Spencer Mooberry going. 197 could also be the deepest weight in the SoCon. It wouldn’t surprise me if a third wrestler earned a qualifying spot. Four seems like it may be too much to ask for; however, there are enough quality wrestlers to make that happen. 285 lbs In the ACC, we’ve gone with the younger guys rather than the returning starters for NC State and Virginia Tech. That might be a tall leap when you’re talking about the two-time defending conference champion and an NCAA Round of 12 finisher, but Isaac Trumble and Jimmy Mullen are excellent in their own right. The Ivy League did not have any ranked wrestlers at this weight, so we’ve chosen Ashton Davis to get the only bid from the conference. Another new face is Navy’s Jamier Ferere. He’ll take over for 2023 EIWA champion Grady Griess. Ferere was 22-7 as a sophomore and finished his season with a dual win over national qualifier Dorian Crosby of Bucknell.

Oklahoma State did it again! The Cowboy staff has seen another notable recruit from the Class of 2025 flip his commitment and give OSU a verbal. The latest is Tucson Sunnyside, Arizona’s Sergio Vega, who was previously committed to Cornell. Just last weekend, Vega was in action at the Super 32. Vega won the championship belt at 138 lbs - after finishing as a runner-up in 2023. Vega was also recently in action at the Who’s Number One dual meet. He defeated rival Drew Gorman (Buford, GA) 12-5 to make his case for a number one ranking at 138 lbs. Vega currently sits at number two in the nation at the weight. His win over Gorman was the second in three months. Vega also prevailed over the Virginia Tech recruit in the Junior National freestyle finals in Fargo. It was his second All-American honor (4th in 2023) in that style and age group. Also in 2024, Vega captured a national title at NHSCA Junior Nationals. The addition of Vega will give Oklahoma State a pair of Sunnyside High School products in the room. Former Penn State two-time national champion, Roman Bravo-Young, has joined the Cowboy RTC while training for international competition. He represented Mexico at the 2024 Olympic Games. Vega is now the fourth top-60 recruit to switch his commitment to Oklahoma State since the hiring of David Taylor as head coach. He is currently ranked #17 overall in the Class of 2025. #16 Cody Routledge (OK), #20 Landon Robideau (MN), and #56 Austin Johnson (PA) are the three others. A verbal from Vega might give Oklahoma State the best Class of 2025 in the country. They have 11 verbals from ten Big Boarder’s. Five of the 11 are ranked in the top-20 among high school seniors. Seven are ranked in the top-100. Vega projects at the 141/149 lb weight class for the Cowboys. There is youth and talent at both weights for Oklahoma State; however, under Taylor, there is a renewed intensity in regaining their billing as college wrestling’s top team, so they’ll need all the firepower they can get. For the current recruits from Oklahoma State’s Class of 2025, Click Here.

Sunnyside

Rockwall

University of Virginia head coach Steve Garland sits down with Robbie Wendell to discuss the Cavaliers heading into the 2024-25 season. Garland's team was ravaged by injuries last year, but persevered. He talks about the season and the reflection that followed for himself and his staff. After years of strong recruiting, Garland is very excited about the depth and potential lineup battles he'll have at most weights this season. They also discuss some important dates on the Cavaliers 2024-25 schedule. Garland even takes a few minutes to acknowledge the impact of the recent retirement of his colleague and friend, UVA's NCAA title-winning basketball coach, Tony Bennett. For the full interview:

Malvern Prep

Pope John XXIII

Temecula Valley

Berlin Brothersvalley

I started this last year and found it to be another good way to look at the overall conference and highlight individuals, teams, and a preview for the upcoming season. While some of the weight classes have multiple title contenders, others appear to be a little more open and harder to predict. With that, let’s see how the Big 12 is looking this season. #10) 157 lbs 2024 All-Americans: None Ranked Wrestlers: #7 Ryder Downey (UNI), #9 Teague Travis (OKST), #11 Paniro Johnson (ISU), #14 Cobe Siebrecht (SDSU), #17 Vinny Zerban (UNCO), #25 Jared Hill (WYO), #28 Kaleb Larkin (ASU), #32 J Conway (MIZZ) The only weight without an All-American still has an impressive amount of depth and potential contenders. Returning Big 12 Champ Ryder Downey returns after a breakout 2024 and bloodround finish. Paniro Johnson was a conference champ in 2023 at 149 lbs and returns at 157 looking to repeat. He had a solid redshirt year amidst the now-dropped gambling probe, with an overtime sudden victory loss to Cael Swensen being the only loss. Teague Travis and Vinny Zerban also had breakout years last season but struggled in the postseason with DNP finishes. Siebrecht is an intriguing addition to the Big 12 and SDSU. After qualifying in 2023 he didn’t compete last season but filled a spot after a Cael Swensen injury. Jared Hill has quietly been a two-time qualifier for OU. He has excelled at the Big 12 tournament to earn a bid and will look to do that again at Wyoming. Kaleb Larkin and J Conway are new faces in their respective lineups. Larkin has sky-high expectations after a stellar freestyle season in 2024. Conway had appearances in four duals last season and faced off against Mekhi Lewis, Chris Moore, Cody Chittum, and Ryder Downey. This weight doesn’t have national accolades just yet, but that could look quite different by the end of the year with a number of young wrestlers. #9) 133 lbs 2024 All-Americans: #5 Evan Frost (ISU) Ranked Wrestlers: #17 Cleveland Belton (OU), #21 Julian Chlebove (ASU), #24 Dominick Serrano (UNCO), #26 Derrick Cardinal (SDSU), #28 Julian Farber (UNI), #32 Kade Moore (MIZZ), #33 Kyle Burwick (NDSU) A weight with only one returning All-American, this weight is filled with wrestlers ranked near the bubble looking to take the next step this year. Evan Frost became the conference’s first All-American at this weight not named Daton Fix since Seth Gross in 2018. Cleveland Belton and Julian Chlebove have both had success as veterans but are looking to contend for a podium spot this season. Belton made the bloodround last season while Chlebove was a first-time qualifier. Dom Serrano had a great regular season and is one of my sleeper picks to look out for this season. He finished third at Big 12’s and went from 5-13 at Nebraska in 2022 to 23-6 at UNCO after a redshirt year. Derrick Cardinal made a similar jump from his first season, improving his win percentage over 20%. Kyle Burwick and Julian Farber are both seniors and the types of wrestlers no one wants to get matched up with in the first round. Kade Moore is another sleeper at this weight. Last season, he pinned Sam Latona and had a 10-9 loss to Vito Arujau to give a glimpse of his ceiling. He had an off-the-mat incident that kept him out for almost six weeks and struggled after returning in the postseason. When healthy, his dynamic style makes him one to watch. Frost is the clear favorite to repeat at this weight but has some intriguing talent to challenge him along the way and attempt to make the podium. #8) 197 lbs 2024 All-Americans: #4 Rocky Elam (MIZZ) Ranked Wrestlers: #8 Zach Glazier (SDSU), #16 Wyatt Voelker (UNI), #17 Joey Novak (WYO), #21 Luke Surber (OKST), #24 Bradley Hill (OU), #33 Christian Carroll (ISU) There’s only one returning All-American with Rocky Elam, but several contenders behind him. If Elam can stay healthy then he is a title contender, trading wins over Stephen Buchanan and Jacob Cardenas last season. Zach Glazier was a Big Ten runner-up at Iowa and immediately allowed SDSU to reload with another contender. Wyatt Voelker, Joey Novak, Bradley Hill, and Christian Carroll are four young wrestlers who have a lot of upside to enter the podium conversation by year's end. Luke Surber struggled with injuries last season but has the wins and style that keeps him in the conversation for upsets every year. With only seven ranked wrestlers this weight is low now, but could look top-heavy for the Big 12 tournament. #7) 149 lbs 2024 All-Americans: #3 Ty Watters (WVU), #7 Anthony Echemendia (ISU) Ranked Wrestlers: #16 Gabe Willochell (WYO), #18 Colin Realbuto (UNI), #23 Willie McDougald (OU), #27 Logan Gioffre (MIZZ), #28 Alek Martin (SDSU), #33 Maxwell Petersen (NDSU) This weight is another top-heavy one but has two potential title contenders. Ty Watters was one of the most impressive true freshmen last season. He finished 4th at NCAA’s, won Big 12’s, and had an absurd 69% bonus rate. Echemendia was also a Big 12 champ, but at 141. There’s a chance he will return to that weight, but right now it’s looking like he will look to repeat up at 149. Sign me up for a potential Watters vs Echemendia match this season. After the top two, there’s great depth and some interesting names to look out for. Gabe Willochell thrived in the postseason last year, upsetting Willie McDougald and making the round of 16 at NCAA’s. Colin Realbuto returns as an intriguing prospect to outplace his current ranking after an Olympic redshirt. Willie McDougald has a tendency to get some solid upsets along with unexpected losses. If the former Big 12 finalist can put it together he can go on a run. Gioffre was another Missouri wrestler who struggled with injury, breaking ribs and wrestling with a flak jacket in the postseason. He had a big win over Jaden Abas in a dual and tight matches with several All-Americans. Alek Martin qualified for the first time last season and had a solid win over Gabe Willochell. Maxwell Petersen stepped into the lineup with an injury to Kellyn March and was razor close to qualifying as a freshman. This weight has great depth at the top with Watters and Echemendia but don’t be surprised to see some of these lower-ranked wrestlers get upsets and make their way into the top half or higher. #6) 165 lbs 2024 All-Americans: #4 Peyton Hall (WVU) Ranked Wrestlers: #6 Cam Amine (OKST), #7 Terrell Barraclough (UVU), #23 Cam Steed (MIZZ), #26 Connor Euton (ISU), #28 Jack Thomsen (UNI), #29 Tate Picklo (OU), #30 Nicco Ruiz (ASU), #32 Clayton Ulrey (UNCO) Last season this was one of the strongest weight classes in the Big 12; headed into this season there aren’t as clear title contenders but a good mix throughout. Peyton Hall is the only returning All-American at this weight and the current favorite to win his first Big 12 title. Cam Amine is as experienced as they come and surprisingly these two All-Americans haven’t faced off yet. The wildcard at the top of the weight is Terrell Barraclough, who consistently impressed while spot-starting at PSU and will have an opportunity to establish himself and UVU’s new coaching staff. Seven of the ranked wrestlers at this weight are outside the top 20 with a number of new faces which is why this weight class isn’t higher. Steed, Euton, and Ruiz are all new faces expected this season. Steed and Ruiz are two wrestlers I’m on the hype train for and think they will have opportunities to work into the top 16 or higher this year. Picklo is a massive question mark after missing the tournament at 174 last season. If the weight cut is tolerable, he could have highlight matches throughout the year. #5) 285 lbs 2024 All-Americans: #2 Wyatt Hendrickson (OKST), #4 Cohlton Schultz (ASU) Ranked Wrestlers: #6 Yonger Bastida (ISU), #24 Seth Nitzel (MIZZ), #25 Michael Wolfgram (WVU), #26 Sam Mitchell (WYO), #28 Luke Rasmussen (SDSU) One of two weight classes with only seven ranked wrestlers, this weight is buoyed by three potential title contenders at the top. Hendrickson, Schultz, and Bastida all suffered upsets at the NCAA tournament after strong regular seasons. Hendrickson and Bastida battled in the Big 12 finals with Bastida coming out on top, but failing to make the podium. Schultz didn’t look 100%, at times, but finished sixth and could be in line for a healthy bounceback year. Look for these three to battle for the top spot in the Big 12 and a shot at returning champ Greg Kerkveliet. After those three there are a handful of more experienced wrestlers with one new starter in the mix. Nitzel has had solid wins behind Zach Elam and will get a shot this season. Wolfgram is a two-time qualifier but missed out last season. Mitchell qualified at 197 at Buffalo last season and could give Wyoming a strong bookend this season. Rasmussen didn’t qualify last season but had a win over Nitzel and showed flashes in his first year in the lineup. While I don’t expect these four to challenge for a title this season, they all have some interesting upside and could be important point scorers if they can qualify this year. #4) 141 lbs 2024 All-Americans: None Ranked Wrestlers: #1 Andrew Alirez (UNCO), #7 Cael Happel (UNI), #10 Jesse Vasquez (ASU), #11 Jordan Titus (WVU), #12 Josh Edmond (MIZZ), #13 Tagen Jamison (OKST), #18 Mosha Schwartz (OU), #29 Kellyn March (NDSU), #31 Haiden Drury (UVU) The margins are thin at this level, and I went back and forth on how high to place this weight class. On one hand, you have 2023 national champ Andrew Alirez returning and looking to repeat and have five wrestlers ranked in the top 12. At the same time, there are no returning All-Americans from last season at the moment, with Echemendia being the only possibility. Cael Happel and Josh Edmond both made the bloodround last season and finished 2nd/3rd at Big 12’s. Jesse Vasquez and Jordan Titus struggled with injuries last season but had solid wins. Tagen Jamison had a stellar regular season, including a victory over Echemendia in the dual. Mosha Schwartz was someone I had penciled in as a strong contender, but an early injury ended his season. I wouldn’t be surprised to see any of the top seven place this year. Added to the depth of this weight are two now veterans with Kellyn March and Haiden Drury. March was another wrestler who suffered an injury last year at 149. He is making the move to 141 and his 2023 season where he went 24-9 shows what his ceiling could be. Haiden Drury started his year at 133, but made the move up to 141 in mid-December. He didn’t qualify but with a full offseason at the weight could make him another Wolverine to look out for this year. #3) 174 lbs 2024 All-Americans: #1 Keegan O’Toole (MIZZ), #4 Cade DeVos (SDSU) Ranked Wrestlers: #6 Dean Hamiti (OKST), #9 Gaven Sax (OU), #14 Jared Simma (UNI), #23 Brody Conley (WVU), #30 Cael Valencia (ASU) This weight returns Big 12 champ and All-American Cade DeVos but is strengthened even more with the addition of two-time NCAA champ and four-time All-American Keegan O’Toole. While those two will be a popular conference finals pick, there’s a good group behind them that will present new challenges. Dean Hamiti is expected to make the move up after a bloodround finish last season, and the weight change could supercharge his high-paced offense even more. Gaven Sax was a conference finalist last season, albeit in a different singlet. Another NDSU to OU transfer, Sax is reunited with Roger Kish and looking to make the podium after a breakout season last year. Right behind him are some young wrestlers looking to make a similar jump. Jared Simma both made the bloodround in his first year as a starter and Brody Conley is one of my sleeper picks to take a jump this season. Cael Valencia is a two-time qualifier and an intriguing prospect who has the potential to go on a run or score some upsets. This weight class has a good mix of top-end talent and young depth that will be contenders for seasons to come. #2) 184 lbs 2024 All-Americans: #2 Parker Keckeisen (UNI), #3 Dustin Plott (OKST), #5 Bennett Berge (SDSU) Ranked Wrestlers: #15 Colton Hawks (MIZZ), #17 Evan Bockman (ISU), #24 Dennis Robin (WVU), #27 Nathan Haas (CBU), #29 DJ Parker (OU) This weight returns not only three All-Americans but both national and Big 12 finalists from last season with Keckeisen and Plott. Right behind them is Bennett Berge, who surged to a 4th place finish last year as a freshman. With Keckeisen and Plott being seniors, look out for Berge to attempt to establish himself as a title contender this year and in the future. Closer than the rankings may show are Colton Hawks and Evan Bockman. Hawks wasn’t the starter for most of the season but won the spot late and had a bloodround finish at NCAA’s. He had some odd losses balanced by wins over Isaiah Salazar and Will Feldkamp. Bockman is making the descent to 184 after becoming a three-time qualifier at 197 for Utah Valley last season. Either of these wrestlers has the ability to challenge those at the top and score some upsets along the way. Dennis Robin was controversially not awarded an At-Large bid after going 2-2 at Big 12’s but having a solid 16-9 record. Nathan Haas missed out on qualifying as well but had a highlight major decision over Ryder Rogotzke. DJ Parker is a sleeper I’m keeping an eye on. After starting as a true freshman in 2022, he was a qualifier in 2023 for NDSU. He transferred with Kish last season and redshirted without wrestling any matches. Parker had some solid wins in 2023 and a number of tight losses to qualifiers and All-Americans. Depending on how his development went last season I expect him to outperform his current ranking. Overall this is another weight led with great strength at the top and multiple potential title challengers. Add in a number of wrestlers behind them that could climb the rankings and make a podium run and this is easily one of the strongest weights for the conference. #1) 125 lbs 2024 All-Americans: #1 Richie Figueroa (ASU), #3 Jore Volk (WYO), #6 Tanner Jordan (SDSU) Ranked Wrestlers: #7 Troy Spratley (OKST), #9 Stevo Poulin (UNCO), #15 Jett Strickenberger (WVU), #18 Noah Surtin (MIZZ), #28 Trever Anderson (UNI), #33 Antonio Lorenzo (OU) This weight was not only one of the craziest weights in years last season, but it was stacked in the Big 12 with this year being no different. Returning champ Richie Figueroa leads the weight, followed closely behind by All-Americans Jore Volk and Tanner Jordan. Troy Spratley is a popular finals pick with the new coaching staff and made the bloodround last season. Stevo Poulin struggled in the regular season but peaked at NCAA’s with a bloodround finish. Noah Surtin had wins last year over Jore Volk, Tanner Jordan, and Nico Provo but an injury-filled February led to an 0-2 finish at NCAA’s. Strickenberger and Anderson are huge wildcards. All three had high-level wins but some lower-ranked losses kept them lower in the rankings. If any of these three get hot at the right time, they can make a run. Antonio Lorenzo is a question mark after transferring to OU but not wrestling in any matches last season. He’s a two-time qualifier so look for him to make an impact for the Sooners this season. This weight class is bound to be chaotic again, with any number of Big 12 wrestlers having the potential to finish on top.

Navy head coach Cary Kolat hits on a variety of topics including some lineup battles for tonight's wrestle-off's, David Key becoming his first All-American at Navy, the new faces on the Navy staff, the schedule for the 2024-25 season, the Star Match, and NIL/recruiting in this landscape. Listen to the full interview with Coach Kolat:

This year’s preview will not include the typical, boring “here’s the lineup for each team.” Half the time, these lineups change by the 2nd semester anyway. Let’s ask some questions about the conference, as a whole, including one directed at each team. 1. What will the first-ever Ivy League Wrestling Conference Championship look like? With the championships being held at Princeton this year, what will the atmosphere be like? What sort of attendance can we expect? With only six teams participating, one would imagine the numbers being less than the 17-team EIWA conference championships. Not that any of this matters, just questions I am thinking about. With a single-day tournament, in lieu of the EIWA multi-day event, maybe more fans will make the trip when things like a hotel may not be required. For some diehard wrestling fans like me, we will attend EIWAs on Friday March 7th, and Saturday, March 8th at Lehigh University and then attend the Ivy Championships on Sunday, March 9th. Unfortunately, the Pennsylvania high school state championships run from Thursday through Saturday of the same weekend. Coaching staffs have already complained about this timing – as it puts a damper on a fantastic recruiting weekend. Once more details emerge, we can revisit this one. 2) Will BROWN improve on last season’s lone NCAA qualifier? Last season, Michael Joyce took many by surprise by qualifying for NCAAs. He went on a run at the conference tournament to place fourth in a loaded bracket. He was the first qualifier for the Bears since 2019 – where zero wrestlers on the team last season were on the 2019 roster to witness it. Coach Jordan Leen explained to me how Joyce has lit a fire for many of these guys to follow in his footsteps. Brown has been hard at work in many aspects to improve the program’s results while building a winning culture. NCAA qualifiers are just the first step in the process. To answer the question, Brown had a handful of EIWA place finishers who missed out on an allocation by a placement or two. Expect Hunter Adrian to be in the mix to qualify at 133 lbs. He was eighth at EIWAs while wrestling as the starter for multiple years. At 157 lbs, Blake Saito placed fifth at EIWAs, which is typically good enough to qualify for NCAAs in most years. Last year was an exception, unfortunately. Alex Semenenko placed tenth in a bracket that qualified the top eight and saw the ninth-place finisher earn the first alternate bid. Even if multiple qualifiers do not happen this season, it will only be a matter of a few years until Brown catches up with the rest of the conference. Coach Leen and his staff are building something special. 3) Will the new staff at COLUMBIA continue its upward trajectory? Columbia has been improving every year under former Head Coach Zach Tanelli. Tanelli’s departure for Virginia Tech left a vacant position at the helm. Rutgers’ longtime assistant, Donny Pritzlaff, accepted the job along with a brand new staff. He took on Jeff Buxton, Sebastian Rivera, and Greg Bulsak to take control of the Lions. With a brand-new staff and many wrestlers forced to find new homes due to Ivy League eligibility rules, the Lions will have many new faces. Kai Owen and Cesar Alvan look to be the only returning starters with previous NCAA tournament experience - (as Aaron Ayzerov and Jack Wehmayer will take Ivy shirts). Alvan took an Olympic redshirt last season and will be slated to be up one weight at 165 lbs this season. Much like Brown, we may need to give this team a few years to develop young talent and get some recruiting classes under their belt. If there’s one thing that Columbia has always done well, it’s a tough schedule. This year is no different. Expect a young lineup to take a few lumps this season. The Lions will be fun to follow this year, but keep your eye on them in the upcoming years. 4) Does CORNELL have the firepower to earn a team trophy again? With only one All-American returning from last season, it’s hard to imagine they have the points to do so. Meyer Shapiro is the lone All-American with a third-place finish after racking up a ton of bonus point wins. Chris Foca has seen the podium in the past – he will be back again. Two-time NCAA Champ, Vito Arujau, graduated while two-time All-American Jacob Cardenas has run out of eligibility in the Ivy League and will compete at Michigan this season. Obviously, these are some big shoes to fill. However, the line-up is full of so many wrestlers who have been so close. Brett Ungar has been a top-12 finisher in the past. This year, he will be up a weight class at 133lbs. Vince Cornella has seen a top-16 finish before missing NCAAs last season with an injury. Julian Ramirez has won two EIWA titles, finishing in the top 12 three times in his career. He’s been ranked as high as #3 in the nation. Some new faces will include Greg Diakomihalis slated to be the full-time starter at 125lbs. Although he has experience, being an everyday wrestler is something that will be new to him. Freshmen like Simon Ruiz (174 lbs) and Mike Dellagatta (197 lbs) will be first-time starters looking to contribute to team points at both conferences and nationals. Expect to see Ethan Fernandez (149 lbs) return to NCAAs after winning EIWAs a season ago. Ashton Davis will be the heavyweight this season looking to score points at NCAAs as well. 5) Is this the year HARVARD earns its first All-American since 2012? The Crimson had high hopes for Phil Conigliaro the past few seasons. Finishing in the round of 12, he was one match away from a podium finish. They had a talented heavyweight in Yara Slavikouski, who barely missed the podium also. Although he earned NWCA All-American honors in 2020 during the canceled tournament, it just is not the same as wrestling the gruesome three-day event and earning it the old-fashioned way. The drought is the longest since Jay Weiss took over the program over 30 years ago. At one time, Harvard had at least one podium finisher from 2002 – 2012 except in the 2005 season. The last All-Americans from Harvard were Walter Peppelman and Steven Keith in 2012, both finishing in 8th place. The best opportunity to end this streak is probably Diego Sotelo at 125lbs. Last season, he had wins over All-Americans, Anthony Noto of Lock Haven and Jore Volk of Wyoming. At the NCAA Championships, he came in as the 28th seed and knocked off #5 Volk in the first round. Volk wrestled all the way back to earn seventh while Sotelo ended the season in the top 16. He’s been to NCAAs twice now and is looking to finish on the podium in his senior year. With the way the 125 lbs weight class was last year (and looks to be this year), you cannot count anybody out. He can scramble with the best, and his skills on the mat are exceptional. If he can stay healthy, expect to see him on the podium. 6) Will PENN produce an All-American as they co-host NCAAs? Penn, along with Drexel, will co-host the 2025 NCAA Championships in Philadelphia. You know they will want to be well-represented, as is the case for any host school. As if this isn’t enough motivation, this will be the last time we see Roger Reina as the Head Coach. He will be stepping down after the season. The Quakers will want him to go out with a bang, Although, they had eight qualifiers last season – they only accumulated six wins at the championships. CJ Composto claimed AA honors in 2022 and will look to repeat that achievement. We’ll see a proven winner in Nick Incontrera, back for another season at 174 lbs. He’s been ranked in the top 10 for much of the past two seasons. They have the capacity to put at least one person on the podium in front of the home crowd. Plus, with many returning NCAA qualifiers, it’s very possible to have someone catch fire at the right time and earn All-American honors. We see it every year. With new coaches, Matt Valenti (slated to become the head coach next season) and Darian Cruz, expect a bump from the lightweights. Doug Zapf was a fan favorite as a competitor – he’s now on staff showing the young guns the ropes on how to push the pace and press the action. This team will be primed and ready come March. 7) Who will be the new face(s) of PRINCETON wrestling? The Tigers of Princeton University have been an impressive story to follow over the last decade plus. The program is undergoing a bit of a revamp. Long-time coach Chris Ayres moved out west to take the job at Stanford. He took his assistant Sean Gray with him. That opened the door for Joe Dubuque to become the Head Coach after serving as the head assistant under Ayres for a while. He brings in a whole new staff in Anthony Ashnault, Cody Brewer, and Nate Jackson. Jackson has been an assistant in the past while training at the RTC as well. The wrestling team has seen a bit of change also. The Tigers have gained so much attention thanks to guys like Pat Glory. Pat was a multiple-time All-American, and NCAA Champion. He’s since graduated and moved into post-wrestling life. We can’t forget about Quincy Monday, who graduated in 2023 after being a multiple-time All-American. These two really led the way for Princeton, helping propel the program into the national spotlight. This year’s lineup does not have the notoriety of years past, at least on paper. Yet. With so much young talent waiting to showcase, how many guys will make an immediate impact on the national stage? Luke Stout has been to NCAAs multiple times – will he break through and earn a spot on the podium? Kole Mulhauser and Ty Whalen have made names for themselves – will it be their turn? Princeton has multiple options to be a new “face” or “faces.” Many are excited to see what Marc-Anthony McGowan will bring to the table at 125lbs after missing last year due to injury. The excitement for the program has always been there, and maybe now more than ever with a new staff on board. Plus, with so many potential breakout stars – it adds to the excitement. 8. How many NCAA allocations will we expect? When the Ivy League was still part of the EIWA last season, they accounted for 29 of the 62 qualifiers for the conference. Now that they are a six-team conference, will these allocations hold? On paper, they seem to have lost a lot of firepower. Your gut reaction is to expect less this year. Simple math would show that’s an incredible feat – as nearly half of the overall participants (29 of 60) would qualify for NCAAs. On the face of it, that seems awfully high. It’s a personal opinion that last year’s luxury of a large conference tournament may have helped them achieve more qualifiers – simply due to a higher probability of a bracket-buster causing havoc. With a small conference tournament this season, many of the wrestlers may need to lean more on a better body of work throughout the season in lieu of qualifying via automatic placement at conferences. Position battles, injury bugs, or any reason for missing mat time will be more critical at the end of the year. Lastly, when at-large bids are discussed after conference weekend, adding an additional conference into the mix is another aspect. Remember, placement at your conference tournament is a factor, albeit a small factor. This gives more “wild card” options for the algorithm to choose from. 9) Which weight class will be the deepest? Looking at potential lineups, 125 lbs jumps out to me. It’s entirely possible we see five qualifiers from this weight in Philadelphia. Three potential starters have already qualified, plus Cornell’s Diakomihalis and Princeton’s McGowan make five studs in this weight. Bah of Columbia was at 133lbs last year and had some good battles. Moving down to his natural weight makes him a complete wild card. Joyce of Brown, Sotelo of Harvard, and Gallagher of Penn will look to return to NCAAs once again. This will be a fun class to watch and see how it plays out. 10) What do the lineups look like? That’s a great question! See potential line-ups below. These are super early projections, and we will know more once they see mat time.

The Big Ten Network today announced the 2024-25 Big Ten wrestling broadcast schedule, as the nation's premier wrestling conference looks for an 18th consecutive NCAA Championship. This season, 24 duals and Big Ten Wrestling Championships coverage will air live on the Big Ten Network and the FOX Sports App, with more than 80 contests airing on B1G+. Coverage begins on Saturday, Nov. 9, with No. 2 Iowa hosting No. 15 Stanford from Iowa City. Conference wrestling on BTN begins on Friday, Dec. 6, with a matchup between No. 12 Illinois and No. 30 Indiana. Coverage continues in the new year with a primetime doubleheader on Friday, Jan. 10, featuring No. 14 Michigan hosting No. 27 Maryland at 6 p.m. ET, followed by Michigan State traveling to face No. 1 Penn State at 8 p.m. ET. Throughout January and February, Friday night wrestling will be featured on BTN with primetime matchups between the best programs in the country, including a battle between No. 1 Penn State and No. 2 Iowa at 7 p.m. ET on Friday, Jan. 31. Other highlights of the wrestling season on BTN include a tripleheader on Friday, Feb. 7, beginning with No. 1 Penn State hosting No. 14 Michigan at 6 p.m. ET. The second leg of the tripleheader features No. 3 Nebraska visiting No. 2 Iowa at 8 p.m. ET, followed by Wisconsin hosting No. 29 Purdue at 10 p.m. ET. To conclude the conference schedule on BTN, No. 29 Purdue hosts No. 3 Nebraska on Sunday, Feb. 23, at 6:30 p.m. ET, followed by a non-conference matchup between No. 5 Oklahoma State and No. 2 Iowa at 8:30 p.m. ET. Additional coverage includes the return of On The Mat, BTN's multi-platform, behind-the-scenes look at Big Ten wrestling. Fans can also follow @B1GWrestling on X, Instagram and YouTube for updates throughout the season. All television programming on BTN can be streamed via the web, smartphones, tablets and connected devices on the FOX Sports App, with a complete schedule below. According to Intermat's preseason rankings, 12 Big Ten teams are ranked in the top 30, including the top three teams in the poll. Defending national champion Penn State leads the way at No. 1, followed by No. 2 Iowa, No. 3 Nebraska, No. 7 Ohio State, No. 9 Minnesota, No. 12 Illinois, No. 14 Michigan, No. 18 Rutgers, No. 26 Northwestern, No. 27 Maryland, No. 29 Purdue and No. 30 Indiana. 2024-25 Big Ten Network Wrestling Television Schedule (All Times ET) Day Date Away Team Home Team Time (ET) Saturday Nov. 9 Stanford at Iowa TBD Friday Dec. 6 Illinois at Indiana 5 p.m. Friday Jan. 10 Maryland at Michigan 6 p.m. Friday Jan. 10 Michigan State at Penn State 8 p.m. Saturday Jan. 11 Minnesota at Nebraska 4:30 p.m. Sunday Jan. 12 Rutgers at Ohio State 6 p.m. Friday Jan. 17 Illinois at Iowa 7 p.m. Friday Jan. 17 Penn State at Nebraska 9 p.m. Friday Jan. 24 Nebraska at Michigan 6 p.m. Friday Jan. 24 Penn State at Rutgers 8 p.m. Saturday Jan. 25 Ohio State at Iowa 2 p.m. Friday Jan. 31 Iowa at Penn State 7 p.m. Friday Jan. 31 Wisconsin at Nebraska 9 p.m. Saturday Feb. 1 Ohio State at Michigan 2 p.m. Saturday Feb. 1 Northwestern at Indiana 4 p.m. Sunday Feb. 2 Rutgers at Minnesota 1 p.m. Friday Feb. 7 Michigan at Penn State 6 p.m. Friday Feb. 7 Nebraska at Iowa 8 p.m. Friday Feb. 7 Purdue at Wisconsin 10 p.m. Friday Feb. 14 Penn State at Ohio State 7 p.m. Friday Feb. 14 Iowa at Minnesota 9 p.m. Sunday Feb. 16 Michigan at Michigan State Noon Sunday Feb. 23 Nebraska at Purdue 6:30 p.m. Sunday Feb. 23 Oklahoma State at Iowa 8:30 p.m. Saturday March 8 Session 1 at B1G Championships 11 a.m. Saturday March 8 Session 2 – Semifinals at B1G Championships 8 p.m. Sunday March 9 Championships at B1G Championships 5:30 p.m.

Though it seems the COVID years have extended eligibility indefinitely for many, we saw the departure of several ACC stars after last season. The strength and depth of many programs have also led to additional exodus via the transfer portal. We’ll take a look today at a couple wrestlers from each school that we could see breakthrough this season. These are all wrestlers who I can see making a jump to the next level for them--be that qualifying for NCAAs, making the podium at NCAAs, or seeing them wrestling on Saturday night in Philly. Duke Connor Barket has been named a captain for the season and has embraced the leadership role within the program. He had an up-and-down season finishing with a 17-14 record. I trust that with the run of success that Coach Lanham and Coach Erikson have had with the heavyweights in Raleigh, we could see another standout in the making. Vincent Lee is one of the bigger recruits for the Blue Devils in recent years. He was a New Jersey State Champion at 215 last season and we could see him starting for Duke at 184 as a true freshman this year. North Carolina Spencer Moore has been a solid starter at the bottom weight for the Tar Heels for two years, notching several ranked wins. He was small as a true freshman but has grown into the weight well. He will come into this season with a veteran mentality and will be well-situated in a pretty deep weight in the conference. Sonny Santiago was one of the biggest surprises for the Tar Heels last season. He finally settled at 157 after bouncing between 149 and 165, and the consistency was good for him. He picked up a huge win over Ed Scott and was an ACC Finalist, qualifying for his first NCAA Tournament. NC State Matty Singleton came to Raleigh as a highly-rated recruit out of Georgia. He started his freshman season at 165, which was not an optimal weight for him. He finished at 10-7 on the year and was 2-1 in ACC duals. He competed in one tournament at 184 during his redshirt season and went 3-0. Singleton will step in at 174 this year and will be a threat for an ACC title. Isaac Trumble used his redshirt year to hit the weight room and make the ascent to 285; the Nebraska native was a two-time NCAA qualifier at 197. He had a very productive redshirt year, earning a U23 World Title at 97kg, then followed that up with a Midlands title at 285 and finished the freestyle season with a runner-up finish at the Olympic Team Trials. Trumble has already shown how dangerous he can be at 285 and should immediately be considered a podium contender. Pittsburgh Luca Augustine has been on the edge of breaking through for the past two seasons when he was a two-time NCAA qualifier. He is 30-18 in his two years as a starter and doesn’t really have any “bad” losses. Coach Gavin has been speaking very highly of his offseason and I like his trajectory and how he lines up in the weight within the conference. Mac Stout is another wrestler that the coaching staff has highlighted as making big gains in the offseason. He had a strong freshman season going 22-8 and finishing 1-2 at the NCAA tournament. Five of his losses last season were to All-Americans with his final loss in sudden victory to John Poznanski. With the graduation of Trent Hidlay, 197 will be a highly competitive weight in the ACC and Stout is well-positioned to fight for the title. Stanford Nico Provo has put up two 20-win seasons and qualified for the NCAA tournament in both of his seasons as a starter. He will transition into the new conference in a solid weight class, but has the goods to establish himself in the top tier quickly. Nick Stemmet has steadily improved in his time in Palo Alto and is a three-time NCAA qualifier. He will be looking to break through to end his career on the podium in Philly. He had a strong season last year finishing at 31-10 overall and 1-2 at the NCAA tournament. I’m interested to see how he fares in the new conference competition. Virginia Marlon Yarbrough announced himself to the country last year with wins over All-Americans Sam Latona and Aaron Nagao and found himself in a dogfight with Nasir Bailey at NCAAs. Yarbrough made big strides last season and is in position to break through to wrestling on Saturday in Philly. The lightweights coming out of the Cavalier room could really surprise some people this year. Jack Gioffre is another of those lightweights who is primed to make some big gains this season. Jack and his twin brother Michael were both big recruits out of Buchanan, with both winning California State Championships their senior year. Jack was 14-7 last season--like a large chunk of the UVA lineup, he missed extended time due to injuries. He has looked great and healthy through the postseason and will be in contention for an ACC title. Virginia Tech Rafael Hipolito may be the only wrestler in the country who could take over a weight from Bryce Andonian and be able to match his freakish athletic ability and big-move potential. Hipolito is still growing his wrestling arsenal - which is a scary thought. After spending his early years earning world titles in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, he transitioned to wrestling during his sophomore year in high school. He was 11-4 in his freshman season, including a 1-1 record in ACC duals. Keep a close eye on Hipolito, his potential is through the roof. Connor McGonagle is the lone transfer to make this list but he has a load of potential in his final year in Blacksburg. He was a two-time NCAA qualifier for Lehigh at 141 but had his best season at 133 in 2022-2023. He was 12-3 overall but was injured at the EIWA tournament and turned down his third NCAA qualifying berth. He wrestled now-teammate Sam Latona at the NWCA All-Star Classic last year, winning 7-5 in tiebreakers in a great battle between the two. With Latona making the move up to 141, McGonagle will play a big role in the team success of the Hokies at 133.

We’re right in the middle of the collegiate preseason which means coaches around the country are starting to figure out how their 2024-25 lineup might sort itself out. Sure, they have their own personal depth charts and preferences for how an ideal lineup could play out, but it doesn’t always work that way. Sometimes the injury bug bites. Other times there’s a late, unexpected weight change. Or maybe a freshman is even better than expected. However these things may occur, this time of year can also be used to sort out lineup battles between teammates. The best teams tend to have at least a couple of second-stringers who are capable of pushing starters and potentially taking their spots. Below are 12 scenarios where a team has multiple quality options at a particular weight. Pay attention as these battles might get decided in the coming weeks or they might play out for a portion of the regular season. Iowa State (133 lbs) - Evan Frost/Kysen Terukina Last season’s 125 lb starter, Kysen Terukina, is moving up for Iowa State and will have to go through All-American Evan Frost to earn the starting role in his final year of eligibility. Terukina is a three-time national qualifier who comes into the season with a 43-28 career record. Last year, Terukina picked up wins over two eventual All-Americans (Eric Barnett/Tanner Jordan). Frost did not come into the 2023-24 season with as much fanfare as many freshmen; however, he quickly established himself as a key player at the weight. He was a runner-up at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational and Big 12’s before taking sixth place at NCAA’s. Oklahoma State (133 lbs) - Cael Hughes/Reece Witcraft Aside from 125 lbs, the first four weights for Oklahoma State could contain some moving parts. The veteran is Reece Witcraft who has been a team player and moved up and down between 125 and 133 throughout his collegiate career. Witcraft can get the job done and has proven as much with a pair of NCAA berths on the resume. Last year, while filling in for Daton Fix, Witcraft posted a win over #21 Julian Chlebove (Arizona State) at the CKLV Invitational. Cael Hughes is a redshirt freshman who was ranked #8 overall in the Class of 2023. Hughes was excellent while redshirts and accumulated a 12-1 record between 133 and 141 lbs. Hughes certainly has the talent to warrant a preseason ranking; however, most of his action last year came against non-DI competition. Iowa State (141 lbs) - Jacob Frost/Zach Redding The larger of the two Frost twins, Jacob, will also be in a battle for a starting spot in the Cyclone lineup. This weight is expected to be open with All-American Anthony Echemdenia moving up to 149 lbs. Jacob saw action in a pair of duals last season and in one open tournament - going 5-2 overall. Zach Redding is a veteran who has qualified for nationals twice for the Cyclones and even made the NCAA Round of 12 in 2023 at 133 lbs. Redding has gone up and down, as needed, throughout his ISU career. Last season, he was at 149 lbs and notched a win over the eventual EIWA champion Ethan Fernandez (Cornell). These two met in the wrestle-offs last year and Frost recorded a 10-5 victory. Lehigh (141 lbs) - Malyke Hines/Carter Bailey The returning starter for Lehigh at 141 lbs is four-time national qualifier Maylke Hines, who started the preseason ranked #20 in the nation and is a past EIWA champion. Hines was a NCAA Round of 12 finisher in 2023 at this weight. Last season for Hines was highlighted by a Princeton Open to start the season and a pair of wins over past All-American CJ Composto (Penn). After spending his first two years moving between 125 and 133, Carter Bailey jumped up to 141 lbs and turned in his finest collegiate season, to date. At the F&M Open, Bailey pinned national qualifier Kal Miller (Maryland) and edged teammate Connor McGonagle (Lehigh) in sudden victory. He finished the year with a 21-8 record. Iowa (141 lbs) - Ryder Block/Cullan Schriever 141 lbs is one of a few weights for Iowa without a clear-cut favorite. They have Cullan Schriever, a veteran who has been their starter for stretches of the season, but never in the postseason - down at 133 lbs. Schriever has been able to generally beat the guys you’d expect him to beat, but hasn’t consistently been able to knock off the real All-American threats. Ryder Block was a top-30 recruit from the Class of 2023 who finished his high school career with back-to-back Junior National freestyle titles in Fargo. Block came to Iowa as a 149 lber but did not see any action during his redshirt year in 2023-24. He’s said to be moving down to challenge at 141 with multi-time All-American transfer Kyle Parco now at 149. We don’t have any college history to go on for Block, but he’ll likely be a good 141 lber if the weight cut isn’t much of an issue. North Dakota State (149 lbs) - Maxwell Petersen/Gavin Drexler This is a battle between a pair of wrestlers who have never made the NCAA Tournament; however, each has shown flashes during the prior campaign, where it looks like they could be on their way to nationals. Maxwell Peterson is the returning starter and coming off a 20-10 redshirt freshman year. He finished eighth at the Big 12 Championships and lost a consolation quarterfinal matchup to Willie McDougald (Oklahoma) in sudden victory with an NCAA berth hanging in the balance. Throughout the regular season, Petersen had wins over two eventual qualifiers. Gavin Drexler was 14-9 as a redshirt freshman at 141 lbs and also had two wins over national qualifiers - one of which came over All-American Vance Vombaur (Minnesota). Drexler ended up missing the podium at the Big 12 Championships. Penn State (157 lbs) - Tyler Kasak/Alex Facundo Of course, a former 149 lber (or even 141 lber) meeting a former 165 lber in the middle at 157 lbs! You know the story already, Tyler Kasak was called into action early last season after a season-ending injury to All-American Shane Van Ness. Up a weight and in his true freshman year, Kasak lost in the first round of the NCAA Tournament and battled all the way back to finish third. Facundo was an even more highly-regarded recruit than Kasak and was 19-6 as a true freshman at 165 lbs. He had an overall solid season that was obscured by an 0-2 finish at NCAA’s. Facundo took the 2023-24 campaign off as an Olympic redshirt. Kasak has a redshirt available, so that could be an option. Indiana (165 lbs) - Tyler Lillard/Derek Gilcher Indiana had the same situation last year - a young Tyler Lillard and a veteran Derek Gilcher; however, the dilemma sorted itself out as Gilcher suffered a season-ending injury in late-December at the Sheridan Invitational. Lillard went on to finish ninth in a deep Big Ten weight class and pick up a win in Kansas City. Lillard starts the preseason ranked #15 in the nation. Gilcher is a 2023 national qualifier, who looked excellent in his return over the summer at U23’s. These two met last year at the Keystone Classic and Gilcher prevailed 4-1, before winning the tournament. Iowa (174/184 lbs) - Patrick Kennedy/Gabe Arnold/Nelson Brands This could be the most interesting and followed positional battle of any this preseason. Patrick Kennedy is the returning starter for the Hawkeyes at 174 lbs. He was 18-8 last season and finished fifth in the Big Ten. At Nationals, Kennedy was a match shy of earning All-American honors which has made for two trips to the Big Show without an All-American honor in either. Gabe Arnold was a top-20 recruit from the Class of 2023 who ultimately redshirted last season, but was strategically deployed in key dual situations. In his first two dual appearances, Arnold picked up wins over returning All-Americans….up at 184 lbs. The second of the two was a crucial piece in defeating Iowa State. Arnold also picked up a win over the eventual EIWA champion and NCAA semifinalist Lennox Wolak (Columbia) during his run through the Soldier Salute. If that isn’t enough, Nelson Brands has a final year of eligibility and has stated his desire to compete at 174. Brands was fifth in the nation at the weight, in 2023, but missed all of last season due to a gambling suspension. Should all three continue to pursue the 174 lb weight class, it could leave a massive hole at 184. Brands has competed there in the past and with his age and injury history, eliminating an extra ten pounds from a weight cut could be a prudent move. However, it shakes out, Iowa should still have a high All-American threat at both 174 and 184 lbs. Virginia Tech (197 lbs) - Andy Smith/Sonny Sasso At the beginning of the 2023-24 season, it seemed like a foregone conclusion that the incumbent, Andy Smith, would start for Virginia Tech at 197 lbs and Sonny Sasso would take a redshirt. After Sasso’s sixth-place showing at the CKLV Invitational, that plan wasn’t so clear. Sasso picked up five wins over wrestlers who were ranked at the time and fell only to top-ten opponents. A few weeks later, Sasso was used in a dual meet and picked up a very solid win over national qualifier Nick Stemmet (Stanford). Ultimately, the Virginia Tech staff resisted the urge to use Sasso and it proved to be a good call. Smith stunned Big Ten runner-up Zach Glazier (South Dakota State) in the opening round at nationals and advanced to the bloodround. Virginia Tech (285 lbs) - Hunter Catka/Jimmy Mullen It will be interesting in the Hokie upperweights with 197 having two great options and the same at heavyweight. Like his teammate Smith, Hunter Catka had a fine regular season, but saved his best for the NCAA Tournament. Catka fell in the first round but reeled off three straight wins (two with bonus points) to wrestle in the Round of 12. Jimmy Mullen was a top-15 recruit in the Class of 2023, who was able to redshirt but still amassed a 15-4 record. Mullen got the nod in the all-important dual against NC State, but suffered a close loss. Among his 15 wins were two of NCAA qualifiers. NC State (285 lbs) - Isaac Trumble/Owen Trephan So, both NC State and Virginia Tech have multiple high-quality options at 285 lbs? Can we have a heavyweight tag team matchup during their dual? Owen Trephan is the returning starter. He’s the winner of the last two ACC championships at this weight. Both wins helped him earn a top-eight seed at the last two NCAA Tournaments; however, he wasn’t able to advance farther than the consolation Round of 16 in either appearance. Trephan’s most impressive win from the 2023-24 campaign came at the Collegiate Duals where he downed super-freshman Nick Feldman (Ohio State), 8-6. Isaac Trumble qualified for nationals twice at 197 lbs before taking an Olympic redshirt during the 2023-24 season. At the same time, Trumble’s freestyle career really took off. He dominated his way through the U23 World bracket - his closest match was a nine-point win in the opening round. Trumble then earned a bronze medal at the Zagreb Open and made the finals of the Olympic Trials.

Walnut