Between Penn State's dominant win over Wyoming, Iowa's unconventional lineup changes and Ohio State's continued success, last weekend's college wrestling action produced an endless amount of storylines to follow.
Here are the biggest headlines to know about the leaders in the Big Ten and what they indicate about each team's lineups as 2026 approaches.
New faces and national champs shine for Penn State in 40-7 win over Cowboys
Penn State's depth has been the story of the season for the Nittany Lions, and last weekend was no different.
NATIONAL CHAMPIONS: See how Penn State captured the Division I national title
True freshman Nate Desmond took the mat for the Blue and White at 141 pounds in place of injured All-American Aaron Nagao and All-American redshirt Braeden Davis and nearly majored John Alden, topping the Cowboy 11-4 just three weeks after beating teammate All-American Luke Lilledahl at the Black Knight Invite down at 125 pounds. Desmond could still redshirt if Nagao comes back, but his versatilty and strength across two weights suggests that if he were to start in the postseason, he could make a podium run in his rookie season.
Freshman Marcus Blaze also hasn't needed an adjustment time to college, as the freshman U20 world champ added a win of his own against the Cowboys, pinning No. 22 Luke Willochell in the second period. Blaze holds a 100% bonus rate on the year but could face a tricky Tyler Knox of Stanford next weekend at the Collegiate Duals for his first All-American test of the season.
PJ Duke, who joined Blaze on the U20 world team this year and is also in his first season with the Nittany Lions, impressed as well in just his third dual of the season. He too recorded a pin with his coming against No. 23 Jared Hill in the second period. Duke and teammate Joe Sealy have split time for the Nittany Lions at this weight thus far, though Duke has the head-to-head win against Sealy from the Black Knight Invite that could help inform the starting spot. Duke also has the opportunity to wrestle five duals without burning his redshirt, if the Penn State coaches opt for that route. The fact that the Nittany Lions have Duke, Sealy and two-time All-American and current redshirt Tyler Kasak in one room together at 157 highlights once again how deep this team can be and how these kinds of options allow the program to be flexible across the regular season schedule, especially here in December before Duke's five "free" matches (before burning his redshirt) run out.
Outside of the three new stars, Penn State also saw elite performances from proven stars, including a pin over Sloan Swan from NCAA champion Mitchell Mesenbrink and a tech fall against Riley Davis 18-1 from NCAA champion Levi Haines. All-Americans Luke Lilledahl and Shayne Van Ness notched a tech and pin respectively against Sefton Douglass and No. 30 Gabe Willochell at 125 and 149 pounds while NCAA finalist transfer upperweight Rocco Welsh beat No. 12 Eddie Neitenbach 4-1.
Penn State's only losses in the dual against the Cowboys came up 197 and 285 pounds where Connor and Cole Mirasola lost to All-American Joey Novak and Christian Carroll. Cole Mirasola's matcha against Carroll was closer than his brother's, as he avoided the major for a 10-4 decision loss while Connor Mirasola was bonused 10-2 by Novak. Connor Mirasola is wrestling in place of NCAA finalist Josh Barr who is recovering from an injury, and while Mirasola did take a loss against Wyoming, he's looked sharp more generally and could be a solid option for the Nittany Lions at a historically successful weight for head coach Cael Sanderson.
No. 2 Ohio State keeps momentum rolling with a 26-10 win over a deep NC State squad
Penn State isn't the only stacked team in the country — the Ohio State Buckeyes have also made some early noise and are continuing to prove that their success this year is not a fluke. Their definitive win over No. 10 NC State showed, once again, how powerful this team is up and down the lineup.
NCAA champion Jesse Mendez led the way for Ohio State and continued his Hodge Trophy campaign with a dominant tech fall of NC State All-American Ryan Jack 21-6 at 141 pounds. His pace and fierceness are unmatched at the weight class, and Mendez looks well on his way to a third title. Teammate Brandon Cannon also stood out, notching a major decision over ACC champion Jackson Arrington 9-1 as he rises up the ranks at 157 pounds. Transfer athlete Dylan Fishback and Luke Geog also added bonus point wins with a 12-1 major over Don Cates and a 17-4 win over Cason Howle at 197 pounds.
2025 CLIF KEEN INVITATIONAL: Breaking down the biggest storylines
The strength of the Buckeye lineup this year though doesn't just come from it's stars or upperweights who can find bonus points against their unranked foes. This team has All-American contenders from top to bottom. Fishback and Oregon State 149-pound transfer have brought an infusion of new talent to Columbus and have consistently performed, with Stiles picking up another solid win over a top-five foe in NC State's Koy Buesgens 4-3 to move him to 6-2 on the year. Stiles is dangerous and while he doesn't roll to bonus points in every match, he has an 'it' factor that makes him dangerous against the best guys in the country.
Ohio State's most impressive new addition to the lineup though comes at 133 pounds, as freshman Ben Davino has slotted into this weight and shown that he can compete for a national title as a rookie. Davino, who already has wins over NCAA finalist Drake Ayala and All-American Chris Cannon, is now 10-0 on the year after picking up a win over veteran Zach Redding of NC State 7-1. He could see Iowa State All-American Evan Frost at the Collegiate Duals this weekend, but there's no reason to doubt Davino's ability to win any dual at this point in the season.
Ohio State's Carson Kharchla rounded out the victors for the Bucks against the Wolfpack with an impressive, gritty 8-4 win against All-American Matty Singleton, while teammates Brendan McCrone, Paddy Gallagher and Nick Feldman dropped their matches to NCAA finalist Vincent Robinson, Will Denny and All-American Isaac Trumble.
These kinds of top-ten non-conference matches are a wrestling fan's dream, and Ohio State has had a schedule full of such duals this year. The Bucks have delivered every time too.
Gabe Arnold bumps up to help the Hawkeyes outscore Chattanooga and Utah Valley and 70-13
Iowa draws headlines every time it competes, especially as the Hawks near closer to the Solider Salute, the tournament that has served as an unofficial site of wrestle-offs for them team in contentious weights over the last few seasons. The Hawkeyes have a talented lineup that, when firing on all cylinders, can take down teams like the No. 4 Oklahoma State Cowboys and be competitive with the best in the country. The takeaway from the first half of the season though is that Iowa is still tweaking that lineup and assessing options at some weight classes before Big Ten competition.
The most notable lineup change from Iowa's duals against Chattanooga and Utah Valley over the weekend was the successful bump up of sophomore Gabe Arnold to 197 pounds in place of Mo Endene. Arnold qualified for the NCAA tournament at 184 pounds last year but has also wrestled down at 174 pounds in his career and has been clear about his intentions to compete for that spot against All-American Patrick Kennedy. He weighed in over the weekend just under 180 pounds but still managed to pick up two wins, topping UT-Chattanooga's Kade Rule 17-4 and notching a win over Utah Valley's Kael Bennie 4-2. Arnold's strength is undeniable — the big question will be how that strength translates down half a dozen pounds against his tough-as-nails teammate.
MEET THE ALL-AMERICANS: These are the 80 guys who finished on the podium last season
The other weight class with the most intrigue for the Hawks is 157 pounds where senior Victor Voinovich went 2-0 on the weekend in place of transfer Round of 12 finisher Jordan Williams. Voinovich and Williams have split time this year, with the Voinovich competing against Oklahoma State, Ohio State and Pitt before this weekend but Williams getting the start at the Cy-Hawk dual. In Voinovich's three years with the Hawks, he's qualified for the tournament once and posted a 9-7 overall record, but his ability to get bonus points this weekend against Chattanooga in his 11-3 victory Cavarius Liddie is one way to show that he's ready to be the guy. This will be another weight battle to watch both at the Soldier Salute and as the season progresses, but Iowa has two national qualifier athletes at 157 pounds.
The Hawks also have depth at 133 pounds, so this weight is certainly Drake Ayala's for the postseason and was merely lented to NCAA qualifier Joey Cruz for the weekend. Cruz, who finished 13-12 last year at 125 pounds, got his shot over the weekend at 133 pounds, but went 0-2 against Bryce Luna of UT-Chattanooga and Geronimo Rivera of West Virginia by scores of 4-1 and 8-3, respectively.
Heavyweight Easton Fleshman also had an opportunity against the Mocs and the Wolverines in place of All-American Ben Kueter, though he similarly went 0-2 against Jack Forbes of Utah Valley 17-4 and Ethan Vergara of Chattnooga 4-2.
Outside of these unexpected lineup additions, Iowa did Iowa things with Dean Peterson, All-American Nasir Bailey, Ryder Block, NCAA finalist Michael Caliendo, All-American Patrick Kennedy and Angelo Ferrari all going 2-0. Block, Caliendo and Kennedy earned bonus points in both of their wins, with Caliendo Block teching Yuta Otero and pinning Kayd Craig, Caliendo pinning Tavian Camper and Zyon Trujillo and Kennedy notching two tech falls against Kamdyn Munro and Tanner Lofthouse. That's Iowa style wrestling, and that's the kind of offense the Hawks are going to need to see from all their team heading into Big Ten competition in the new year.
Rutgers drops to Oklahoma 19-14, looks ahead to Drexel and Penn State
The biggest headline of the weekend came from Piscataway, NJ when the No. 19 Sooners topped the No. 13 Scarlet Knights behind a major decision win from DJ Parker at 197 pounds and a top-five win against 2025 Blood Round finisher Lenny Pinto from Cliff Keen champion Carter Schubert at 174 pounds. Oklahoma is now 4-1 after getting shutout out by Penn State earlier this year but now finding its groove against another Big Ten foe.
Rutgers — which picked up individual victories against the Sooners from former Big Ten champion Dylan Shawver at 133 pounds, NCAA qualifiers Andrew Clark and Anthony White at 149 pounds and 157 pounds and Ryan Ford at 165 pounds— moves to 6-2 following a loss the NC State the following weekend.
The big challenge for Rutgers is still to come though as the Scarlet Knights have a winnable dual against Drexel before taking on the No. 1 Penn State Nittany Lions. For Shawver, that means a shot against U20 World Champion Marcus Blaze, while Clark, White and Ford will have All-Americans Shayne Van Ness, senior world team member PJ Duke and NCAA champion Mitchell Mesenbrink. Nothing gets easier on the schedule as the calander turns to the new year.
🤼♂️ STAY UPDATED: Rankings | Latest videos |
🏆 CHAMPS: History | Format
🎟️ TICKETS:
