The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1547338
NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2026 ■ 45 157 Pounds Jackson Arrington returns to the Pack's lineup after missing most of the last two years. Arrington was an NCAA quali- fier in each of his first two seasons (2023 and 2024) at 149 pounds and then took a planned redshirt in 2025 to move up to 157. Last year he hurt his shoulder in the offseason and, after giving it a go, was shut down in December and underwent sur- gery. He will start the year ranked No. 10. The future for NC State: A trio of wres- tlers could be in contention for action from 157 to 174 pounds. Sophomores Ja- son Kwaak and Brogan Tucker both saw spot action last year. Tucker was a top-30 recruit two years ago. Freshman Griffin LaPlante was the highest-ranked recruit in this year's freshman class at No. 40. Other ACC Rankings: No. 7 Daniel Cardenas (Stanford), No. 8 Collin Gaj (Virginia Tech), No. 19 Jimmy Har- rington (UVA), No. 23 Laird Root (UNC), No. 29 Vince Bouzakis (Pitt). 165 Pounds Will Denny was the Pack's breakout star last year as a true freshman. He tied for the team lead with 15 dual wins, including a perfect 6-0 record in ACC action. He went into the postseason on a 13-match winning streak and was ranked ninth nationally, but suffered an arm injury in practice before the ACCs. He went 1-2 and then 2-2 at NCAAs while still bothered with the injury. Denny is the highest-ranked Wolf- pack wrestler to start the season at No. 6 heading into his second season. Other ACC Rankings: No. 4 Bryce Hepner (UNC), No. 10 EJ Parco (Stan- ford), No. 20 Mac Church (Virginia Tech), No. 24 Nick Hamilton (UVA), No. 28 Jared Keslar (Pitt). 174 Pounds Matty Singleton will be looking to re- turn to the NCAA podium in his final campaign, but the Pack will have to wait for him to recover from a recent injury. The coaches hope to have him back in the lineup once duals get underway. He was a 2025 All-American but fell in the blood round last year. He has cemented himself as one of the best in the ACC, winning back-to-back titles in 2025 and 2026, and starts the season ranked No. 10 nationally. Singleton won the right to represent the U.S. at the U23 World Championships but was forced to withdraw due to his injury. The future for NC State: Fans will get a good glimpse at the depth at 174 pounds with Singleton expected to miss some early action. Freshman Lucas Ricketts was the No. 69 overall recruit nationally, but his high school career ended at 190 pounds. The Pack hopes he can get down to 174 to fill in for Sin- gleton. North Carolina native Lorenzo Alston is also a choice, as he became only the 16th wrestler in North Carolina history to win four state titles. Other ACC Rankings: No. 11 Hunter Garvin (Stanford), No. 13 Josh Ogunsanya (UNC), No. 18 Ryan Burton (Virginia Tech), No. 29 Dylan Evans (Pitt). 184 Pounds After one season without Dylan Fish- back, who reached the blood round in his two seasons with NC State and then transferred back home to Ohio State, the Pack once again went into the portal to fill this weight and secured a commitment from Jake Dailey, who has three seasons of eligibility left. Dailey came to the Pack after his redshirt freshman season down the road at UNC. He was the No. 18 seed at NCAAs and the ACC runner-up last year. The Pennsylvania native has an im- pressive wrestling background: He at- tended famed Wyoming Seminary, and his dad wrestled at Drexel. Dailey opens at No. 16 in the national rankings. Other ACC Rankings: No. 12 Christian Hansen (UNC), No. 15 Jaden Bullock (Vir- ginia Tech), No. 20 Chase Kranitz (Pitt), No. 23 Abe Wojcikiewicz (Stanford). 197 Pounds Expect to see a pair of Wolfpack wres- tlers at this weight when the season gets underway, with the coaches more likely to think about matchup and style in de- ciding who to send out. Patrick Brophy transferred to the Wolfpack from The Citadel after sitting out the first semes- ter last year, going 7-6 but falling short of an NCAA bid. Cason Howle saw action last year during the first semester as a true fresh- man and has improved while training in the Pack's room. Brophy might offer more scoring on offense, while Howle is very tough to score on and keeps every match close. Other ACC Rankings: No. 6 Angelo Posada (Stanford), No. 8 Sonny Sasso (Virginia Tech), No. 9 Mac Stout (Pitt), No. 26 Robert Platt (UNC). 285 Pounds With 2026 NCAA champion Isaac Trumble exhausting his eligibility, the Pack went into the portal for his replace- ment this season. Bennett Tabor joins the Pack for his final collegiate campaign af- ter spending the last five years at Minne- sota. The Minnesota native was an NCAA qualifier in his lone season in the lineup back in 2024, then was behind Gable Ste- veson and Koy Hopke (currently ranked No. 8). Tabor starts ranked No. 26. The future for NC State: Kai Calcutt joins the Pack for his first season on cam- pus. He was the No. 71 recruit overall in the country. Competing at 215 pounds as a senior, he was a two-time Illinois state champion. NC State also has a com- mitment from Carter Brown (Lafayette, Mo.), who enters his senior campaign ranked No. 3 by MatScouts and No. 7 by Flo-Wrestling at heavyweight — moving up from 215 pounds last year. Other ACC Rankings: No. 11 Day- ton Pitzer (Pitt), No. 14 Jimmy Mullen (Virginia Tech), No. 28 Brenan Morgan (UVA). ■ 2026-27 NC State Schedule Date Opponent Time (ET) Oct. 28 Wrestle Offs 6:30 p.m Nov. 1 Southeast Open* 9 a.m. Nov. 8 JourneyMen Collegiate Classic^ 9 a.m. Nov. 12 Navy 5:30 p.m. Nov. 20 Ohio State 7 p.m. Dec. 6 George Mason Patriot Open+ 10 a.m. Dec. 12-13 National Duals Invitational% 10 a.m. Dec. 18 at Buffalo 7 p.m. Dec. 20 at Cornell 1 p.m. Jan. 2-3 Southern Scuffle# 9 a.m. Jan. 8 Duke 7 p.m. Jan. 15 Stanford 7 p.m. Jan. 22 Appalachian State 7 p.m. Jan. 29 at North Carolina 7 p.m. Feb. 5 at Virginia 7 p.m. Feb. 12 Pittsburgh 7 p.m. Feb. 19 at Virginia Tech 7 p.m. Mar. 6-7 ACC Championship! TBA Mar. 18-20 NCAA Ch ampionships$ TBA * Cregger Center at Salem, Va.; ^ Freedom High School at Bethlehem, Pa.; + George Mason University Field House at Fairfax, Va.; % BOK Center at Tulsa, Okla.; # McKenzie Arena at Chattanooga, Tenn.; ! Fitzgerald Field House at Pittsburgh; $ at St. Louis