Penn State Sports Magazine
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M A R C H 2 0 2 5 6 7 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M 'So Many Things Can Happen' The most impressive mark a team can set is placing each of its 10 wres- tlers in All-America status, which is first through eighth place. Minnesota in 2001 is the only team in 93 NCAA Championship tournaments to accom- plish that feat. The Gophers won the team title that year by placing their 10 qualifiers from third through eighth; they had no finalists. To do that, Penn State must first qualify each of its 10 men through the Big Ten Tournament, which is set for March 8-9 at Northwestern. The Big Ten's allotted number of NCAA quali- fiers typically is in the mid-80s — and many times in the 90s after wild cards are allotted — and that is in Penn State's favor. Then, it's a matter of pairings at the NCAAs, winning close bouts, avoid- ing upsets and injury, and advancing through the blood round of 12 to be assured of an All-America medal if an early loss occurs. Nothing to it, right? "First of all, as the record shows, it's an amazing accomplishment to place all 10 wrestlers at NCAAs," said John Fritz, the former Penn State coach and Nittany Lion wrestler who 50 years ago won an NCAA title. "So many things can happen — injuries, upsets, pairings/ draws. Many times, a highly seeded wrestler will get caught in something he just didn't expect because he didn't know much about his opponent, or their style was not easy for him to deal with. "When Minnesota did it," Fritz con- tinued, "they had a very balanced team … and much of that has to do with at- titude, and that is both individual and team. Things certainly have to fall the right way, but rather than use the word luck, I think a wrestler's positive at- titude, along with work ethic, usually accounts for good things happening." That's where Penn State comes in, Fritz explained. "I do think that PSU has a chance to place all 10, as amazing as that is, but lots of things have to happen and most of them are in each wrestler's control," he said. "I think Penn State wrestlers under Cael and the staff all have the same attitude about enjoying the expe- rience and pushing yourself to the limit and doing your best each time out there. "They all want to be national champs. One of the great traits of all Cael and his staff's teams is they win the close ones. Many times in the tightest matches they seem to win because they just keep wrestling. That's a tribute to Cael and his staff for instilling that mentality." Pairings And Per formance With eight wrestlers ranked either No. 1 or No. 2, Penn State has the ad- vantage in the conference seeding pro- cess to push those eight through, bar- ring monumental upsets or injury. The key will be at 125 and 133 — both strong, deep weight classes — with freshman Luke Lilledahl and sophomore Braeden Davis, who won a Big Ten crown last season at 125. Lilledahl finished his initial season with a 15-2 mark and a No. 9 ranking at 125, while No. 7 Davis is just 8-3 at 133 because of a nagging knee injury that has had him in and out of the lineup. The injury has prevented him from hav- ing a coaches ratings percentage index (RPI) ranking because he didn't wres- tle 15 matches or more. A No. 3 or No. 4 conference seed is likely for each. A consistent performance at the Big Ten meet could earn each a top-eight seed at NCAAs, and then it's all about pairings and performance. "With the old 9.9 scholarship rule, it was almost impossible to have 10 All- America threats on a roster," ESPN's Hockensmith said. "Fast forward to to- day, and I truly think Penn State has 15 guys on its roster who could All-Amer- ica right now. "Because of that, plus all their former stars who still train there with freestyle ambitions, I think the Penn State wres- tling room for the past five years has been as talented and competitive as any practice room ever." With an ample supply of high NCAA seeds expected, Penn State will be a prohibitive favorite for its 12th title since 2011. That means placing all 10 is feasible. "There were years Penn State had four or five in the finals. You think back, and they didn't place all 10, though. They have to keep everybody healthy body- wise and then health-wise, it's crazy that it is that difficult," said Missouri coach Brian Smith, whose Tigers lost to Penn State, 41-3, on Dec. 22. "You think back, it's only happened once. It's amazing. You look at a Penn State team right now, and they have a great opportunity to do it. It'll be inter- esting to see." ■ "I think the talent and competitiveness in the wrestling room is unrivaled in wrestling history." E S P N W R I T E R R Y A N H O C K E N S M I T H O N P E N N S T A T E ' S 2 0 2 4 - 2 5 T E A M 2024-25 Penn State Wrestling Schedule Date Opponent Time/TV Nov. 16 NWCA ALL-STAR CLASSIC Individ. Nov. 17 DREXEL W, 41-3 Nov. 24 Army Black Knight Invit'l* Individ. Dec. 8 Lehigh** W, 36-3 Dec. 15 WYOMING W, 54-0 Dec. 22 Binghamton^ W, 52-0 Arkansas-Little Rock^ W, 44-0 Missouri^ W, 41-3 Jan. 10 MICHIGAN STATE W, 55-0 Jan. 17 at Nebraska W, 31-7 Jan. 24 at Rutgers W, 35-3 Jan. 31 IOWA^^ W, 30-8 Feb. 7 MICHIGAN^^ W, 39-0 Feb. 9 MARYLAND W, 35-10 Feb. 14 at Ohio State W, 27-13 Feb. 16 at Illinois W, 29-9 Feb. 21 AMERICAN W, 50-3 Mar. 8-9 Big Ten Championships # Mar. 20-22 NCAA Championships ## * at West Point, N.Y.; ** at PPL Center, Allentown, Pa.; ^ Journeymen Duals at Nashville, Tenn.; ^^ at the Bryce Jordan Center; # at Evanston, Ill.; ## at Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia