Penn State wrestling tied at No. 2 in latest NWCA coaches poll ahead of its season debut
Editor’s note: The Centre Daily Times will publish weekly updates based on NWCA coaches team and InterMat individual rankings to give readers a glimpse into how Penn State wrestling fits into the bigger picture.
Penn State wrestling has yet to begin its season but remains at No. 2 in the country heading into its first scheduled dual this weekend, with one caveat. This week, the team is tied with Michigan.
The Nittany Lions were ranked alone as the No. 2 in the country in last week’s National Wrestling Coaches Association’s coaches poll, which is released each Tuesday, behind only Iowa. But with three wins now under their belt, the Wolverines moved up a spot this week.
Penn State was scheduled to begin its season Jan. 16 against Rutgers, but that was postponed due to positive COVID-19 tests among the Nittany Lions’ Tier 1 personnel. As of Tuesday, coach Cael Sanderson said “we’re planning on wrestling Sunday” against Michigan State.
The Big Ten has 12 ranked teams for the second week in a row, after setting a record by having that many schools ranked last week.
Iowa continues to be the top-ranked team in the country, with the Nittany Lions and Wolverines occupying the aforementioned second spot. Those three schools are joined in the top 10 by No. 7 Nebraska and No. 10 Illinois. The Illini moved up after defeating two ranked team — Ohio State and Wisconsin — in the last week.
Those five top-10 programs are joined by Ohio State (No. 11), Minnesota (No. 15), Purdue (No. 16), Rutgers (No. 17), Wisconsin (t-No. 22), Michigan State (No. 24) and Wisconsin (No. 25).
The Nittany Lions are now set to open their season Sunday when they take on the No. 24 Michigan State Spartans at Rec Hall.
Penn State head coach Cael Sanderson said his team isn’t going to underestimate the Spartans this week.
“Michigan State has a very strong team,” Sanderson said Tuesday morning. “They have a number of individual stars and highly ranked guys. ... Michigan State’s a strong program and they’ve got a great coach and a lot of energy, a lot of new energy, especially over the last couple years, and they’re going to come in here and wrestle great.
“Obviously Big Ten wrestling is very competitive, as it is in most sports, so it’s just time to go, it’s time to compete.“
Despite having yet to wrestle, nine Nittany Lions continue to be ranked as individuals, the same number as last week. Eight of the nine maintained their spots, but one was able to move up slightly.
Freshman heavyweight Greg Kerkvliet moved up one spot from No. 6 to No. 5 in his weight class as Wisconsin’s then-No. 5 Trent Hillger fell to No. 7 after losing 4-3 to Illinois’ then-unranked Luke Luffman on Sunday. The Illini moved all the way up to No. 6 after wins over both Hillger and Ohio State’s No. 8 Tate Orndorff this past weekend.
With Kerkvliet’s bump up to No. 5, the Nittany Lions have five wrestlers ranked in the top five of their respective weight classes.
Penn State has 141-pounder Nick Lee (No. 2), 133-pounder Roman Bravo-Young (No. 3), 184-pounder Aaron Brooks (No. 3) and 174-pounder Carter Starocci (No. 5) all in the top five of their respective weights, while 165-pounder Joe Lee sits just outside the top five at No. 6.
The Nittany Lions have three other ranked wrestlers heading into the season opener: junior Jarod Verkleeren (No. 10, 149 pounds), junior Brady Berge (No. 11, 157 pounds) and freshman Michael Beard (No. 13, 197 pounds).
Sunday’s dual could feature three ranked matchups. At 165 pounds, No. 6 Joe Lee is expected to take on No. 18 Jake Tucker, at 184 pounds, No. 3 Brooks is set to face off with No. 20 Layne Malczewski and No. 13 Beard could wrestle No. 7 Cameron Caffey at 197 pounds. The Spartans also have the No. 6 wrestler at 125 pounds, Rayvon Foley.
The Nittany Lions will still be defending their title from the 2019 NCAA Wrestling Championships after last season’s postseason was cut short due to the coronavirus pandemic.
NWCA Division I Coaches Poll
(Jan. 19, 2021)
| Rank | Team (First) | Record | Points | Conf. | Previous |
| 1 | Iowa (14) | (1-0) | 350 | Big Ten | 1 |
| 2 (tie) | Michigan | (3-0) | 326 | Big Ten | 3 |
| 2 (tie) | Penn State | (0-0) | 326 | Big Ten | 2 |
| 4 | NC State | (3-0) | 298 | ACC | 4 |
| 5 | Oklahoma State | (4-0) | 289 | Big 12 | 5 |
| 6 | Missouri | (7-0) | 279 | MAC | 9 |
| 7 | Nebraska | (1-1) | 265 | Big Ten | 6 |
| 8 | Virginia Tech | (4-0) | 251 | ACC | 8 |
| 9 | Arizona State | (2-0) | 211 | Pac-12 | 11 |
| 10 | Illinois | (3-0) | 209 | Big Ten | 24 |
| 11 | Ohio State | (1-1) | 200 | Big Ten | 7 |
| 12 | Pittsburgh | (3-0) | 193 | ACC | 12 |
| 13 | Iowa State | (3-1) | 179 | Big 12 | 10 |
| 14 | North Carolina | (1-0) | 173 | ACC | 13 |
| 15 | Minnesota | (2-1) | 168 | Big Ten | 14 |
| 16 | Purdue | (1-0) | 143 | Big Ten | 16 |
| 17 | Rutgers | (0-1) | 109 | Big Ten | 15 |
| 18 | Oklahoma | (2-1) | 98 | Big 12 | 19 |
| 19 | Northern Iowa | (2-1) | 93 | Big 12 | 20 |
| 20 | Northern Colorado | (3-0) | 91 | Big 12 | 23 |
| 21 | Stanford | (0-0) | 73 | Pac-12 | 17 |
| 22 (tie) | Army West Point | (1-0) | 37 | EIWA | NR |
| 22 (tie) | Wisconsin | (0-2) | 37 | Big Ten | 21 |
| 24 | Michigan State | (1-1) | 35 | Big Ten | 25 |
| 25 | Northwestern | (0-1) | 27 | Big Ten | 22 |
Others Receiving Votes: Navy 20, Central Michigan 19, Lehigh 14, Appalachian State 10, Virginia 9, Binghamton 4, Campbell 4, Wyoming 4, Rider 2, West Virginia 2, Hofstra 1, North Dakota State 1
Dropped Out: No. 18 Lehigh (0-2)
