Six teams will bring all ten athletes to NCAAs, with four of those teams punching their tickets via conference finishes and two teams — Nebraska and Iowa State — needing a wild card for the tenth athlete.
Here are the profiles of each of these deep, talented squads:
Penn State Nittany Lions
The Penn State Nittany Lions are the team to beat heading into the 2026 NCAA tournament. Last year, Penn State set the NCAA scoring record and put all ten athletes on the podium.
Braeden Davis' seventh-place bracket win over Billy DeKraker 8-1 at this year's Big Ten tournament ensured that all ten Nittany Lions will return to nationals with the hopes of chasing and surpassing their achievements from last year. With a program record of seven Big Ten champions, there's an argument to make that this is the best team in program history.
PENN STATE HISTORY: Complete history of the program and its records
Five Penn State wrestlers — Luke Lilledahl, Shayne Van Ness, Mitchell Mesenbrink, Levi Haines and Rocco Welsh — will enter NCAAs undefeated as likely top seeds. Mesenbrink and Haines will chase their second titles, while Welsh will aim to return to the finals and Lilledahl and Van Ness will look to improve on previous All-American finishes and earn the opportunity to compete on Saturday night.
Complete Penn State roster:
125 pounds: Luke Lilledahl (1st at Big Tens)
133 pounds: Marcus Blaze (2nd at Big Tens)
141 pounds: Braeden Davis (7th at Big Tens)
149 pounds: Shayne Van Ness (1st at Big Tens)
157 pounds: PJ Duke (1st at Big Tens)
165 pounds: Mitchell Mesenbrink (1st at Big Tens)
174 pounds: Levi Haines (1st at Big Tens)
184 pounds: Rocco Welsh (1st at Big Tens)
197 pounds: Josh Barr (1st at Big Tens)
285 pounds: Cole Mirasola (5th at Big Tens)
Ohio State Buckeyes
After picking up Big Ten Freshman of the Year, Big Ten Athlete of the Year and Big Ten Coach of the Year honors, Ohio State has exactly the kind of momentum the Buckeyes need heading into NCAAs. Taking down Penn State is a tall task, but the Bucks make a strong case to be the nation's second-best team and could put up some serious team points in Cleveland. Ohio State's strength at Big Tens came from its depth and grittiness, particularly on the backside of the bracket. Nic Bouzakis, Carson Kharchla, Luke Geog and Nick Feldman all rallied from losses to finish third, and similar kinds of performances from these four could help all of them fight for podium spots at nationals. Bouzakis and Geog have yet to earn All-American honors in their careers, but put themselves in prime position to do so with their conference results. Returning Ohio State All-American Ethan Stiles also stepped up at Big Tens and finished second — Ohio State fans likely expect a similar finish from him at nationals.
The backbone of this team, though, is the leadership and savagery of two-time NCAA champion and likely Hodge trophy contender Jesse Mendez. His clutch gene at 141 pounds combined with the talents of his teammate and fellow Big Ten champion Ben Davino and additional qualifiers Brandon Cannon, Paddy Gallagher and Dylan Fishback make this a lineup more than capable of holding off the likes of Oklahoma State, Virginia Tech and Nebraska in the team race.
Complete Ohio State roster:
125 pounds: Nic Bouzakis (3rd at Big Tens)
133 pounds: Ben Davino (1st at Big Tens)
141 pounds: Jesse Mendez (1st at Big Tens)
149 pounds: Ethan Stiles (2nd at Big Tens)
157 pounds: Brandon Cannon (4th at Big Tens)
165 pounds: Paddy Gallagher (7th at Big Tens)
174 pounds: Carson Kharchla (3rd at Big Tens)
184 pounds: Dylan Fishback (7th at Big Tens)
197 pounds: Luke Geog (3rd at Big Tens)
285 pounds: Nick Feldman (3rd at Big Tens)
Oklahoma State Cowboys
The theme all year for the Oklahoma State Cowboys has been the magic that David Taylor has brought to Stillwater via his talented freshman class. The team's results at Big 12s furthered this narrative. While the most accomplished collegiate wrestler in Taylor's lineup is newly-minted Big 12 champion and returning NCAA finalist Troy Spratley, who could absolutely compete for a title again at 125 pounds this year, the focus of the second semester has been on phenom Jax Forrest, who won his weight at the conference tournament and earned Most Outstanding Wrestler as a rookie. Forrest enrolled a semester early at Oklahoma State in January, and he's brought funk and spunk to this already deep roster. With his undefeated record, he could make the case to be the top seed in a deep 133-pound weight class.
STATE OF THE WEIGHT: Who to watch at 133 pounds
Fellow freshman Sergio Vega also won a Big 12 title for the Cowboys to stay undefeated at 141 pounds, and he'll now be in line for a shot against the reigning champ at the weight: Jesse Mendez. Freshman Landon Robideau and LaDarion Lockett earned silver at the Big 12s, while Cody Merrill earned bronze and ensured that all three middle and upperweight freshman qualified for their first NCAA tournaments, while Penn State transfers Alex Facundo and Zack Ryder booked their second and first trips to nationals, respectively, with 2nd and 8th-place finishes. Veteran Konner Doucet rounds out the squad with his second-place finish at Big 12s, and he's in an ideal position to chase his first All-American honors in Cleveland.
Complete Oklahoma State roster:
125 pounds: Troy Spratley (1st at Big 12s)
133 pounds: Jax Forrest (1st at Big 12s)
141 pounds: Sergio Vega (1st at Big 12s)
149 pounds: Casey Swiderski (1st at Big 12s)
157: Landon Robideau (2nd at Big 12s)
165 pounds: LaDarion Lockett (2nd at Big 12s)
174 pounds: Alex Facundo (2nd at Big 12s)
184 pounds: Zack Ryder (8th at Big 12s)
197 pounds: Cody Merrill (3rd at Big 12s)
285 pounds: Konner Doucet (2nd at Big 12s)
Virginia Tech Hokies
The fourth and final team to punch all ten athletes to Cleveland after the conference tournament comes out of the ACC. The Virginia Tech Hokies have been on a tear all year, and now they're in prime position to bring this deep championship team to Cleveland to compete for a team trophy. Much like the Cowboys, Virginia Tech's most proven veteran comes in the form of two-time All-American Eddie Ventresca, even as much of the focus has centered on true freshman, ACC champ and Most Outstanding Wrestler Aaron Seidel at 133 pounds. With just one loss to Forrest on his resume and wins over All-Americans Tyler Knox and Dylan Shawver, Seidel is a finalist contender at the weight, even given the competition that comes from Penn State's Marcus Blaze, Ohio State's Ben Davino, Forrest, returning champ Lucas Byrd of Illinois and returning two-time finalist Drake Ayala from Iowa.
🗣️ LET'S GO ‼️
— Virginia Tech Wrestling (@HokiesWrestling)
Heard it all day. Felt it all night.
Know we had to put the city on. 🦃
The big task for the Hokies will be to see how many of their ACC champs they can get on the podium this year. Freshman Collin Gaj will make his NCAA debut in a funky 149-pound bracket where he has the chance to place if he wrestles like he did when he beat NC State's Koy Buesgens for the title. He also has an impressive bonus-point win over three-time All-American Lachlan McNeil of Michigan, proving that he's at the level needed to bring home individual honors in 10 days. Sophomore conference champs Mac Church, Sonny Sasso and Jimmy Mullen will all return to nationals for the second time in their careers and look to advance to at least the Round of 16 to improve upon their previous finishes, while veteran transfers Ethen Miller and Jaden Bullock are primed to fight for All-American honors in their final ride as seniors. Junior Sergio Desiante helped his seed tremendously with his ACC runner-up performance after posting an 18-13 overall record. He finished in the Round of 16 last year, but he showed that the margins are thin between himself and All-American Matty Singleton of NC State, who beat him out for the conference title in tie-breakers. Tom Crook rounds out the team after finishing fifth at ACCs, and he'll chase the podium in his third nationals appearance with Virginia Tech.
125 pounds: Eddie Ventresca (1st at ACCs)
133 pounds: Aaron Seidel (1st at ACCs)
141 pounds: Tom Crook (5th at ACCs)
149 pounds: Collin Gaj (1st at ACCs)
157 pounds: Ethen Miller (2nd at ACCs)
165 pounds: Mac Church (2nd at ACCs)
174 pounds: Sergio Desiante (2nd at ACCs)
184 pounds: Jaden Bullock (1st at ACCs)
197 pounds: Sonny Sasso (1st at ACCs)
285 pounds: Jimmy Mullen (3rd at ACCs)
Nebraska Cornhuskers
After finishing second in the country last year with eight All-Americans, the Huskers will return to nationals with all ten athletes in the mix for the podium. Chance Lamer was the lone Husker to need a wildcard, and he earned it by way of his solid 15-8 record. Lamer has finished in the Round of 12 twice in his career, and, despite his 10th-place finish at Big Tens, has a shot at the podium in an open, unpredictable 149-pound weight class. Because of the depth of the Big Ten, All-Americans Jacob Van Dee and Silas Allred, who also finished outside the Top 5 at the conference tournament, are also podium threats again this year.
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For the Huskers to top teams like Oklahoma State and Virginia Tech in the team race, they'll likely need to get Big Ten finalists Brock Hardy, Antrell Taylor, Chris Minto and AJ Ferrari into the finals. Hardy, Taylor, Ferrari all have wins over the athletes that beat them in the conference tournament, and Minto has given Penn State's Levi Haines his toughest challenges this year. Throw in Kael Lauridsen at 125 pounds, LJ Araujo at 165 pounds, and All-American Camden McDanel at 197 pounds, and this is a team with the kind of potential that head coach Mark Manning pulled out of his runner-up squad last year. Qualifying all ten athletes always makes the push for a team trophy that much easier.
125 pounds: Kael Lauridsen (7th at Big Tens)
133 pounds: Jacob Van Dee (8th at Big Tens)
141 pounds: Brock Hardy (2nd at Big Tens)
149 pounds: Chance Lamer (10th at Big Tens)
157 pounds: Antrell Taylor (2nd at Big Tens)
165 pounds: LJ Araujo (4th at Big Tens)
174 pounds: Chris Minto (2nd at Big Tens)
184 pounds: Silas Allred (6th at Big Tens)
197 pounds: Camden McDanel (2nd at Big Tens)
285 pounds: AJ Ferrari (2nd at Big Tens)
Iowa State Cyclones
Iowa State qualified nine wrestlers through the Big 12 tournament. Vinny Zerban, a returning All-American transfer from Northern Colorado, earned the final wildcard that the team needed to send a full squad to NCAAs. The Cyclones have a team that, on the right day in good health, could finish second with previous podium finishers in Stevo Poulin, Anthony Echemendia, Jacob Frost, Zerban, Rocky Elam and Yonger Bastida. The latter two in that last — Elam and Bastida — are both title threats as well.
A late season withdraw from Evan Frost at 133 pounds hurt the team, but junior Garrett Grice stepped up in his first year as a starter and did what he needed to do to keep his season alive. Iowa State's ability to win a team title will likely come down to the grittiness of athletes like Connor Euton, MJ Gaitan and Isaac Dean who have not yet placed in their careers, but, if they navigate their brackets right, could be threats in the Blood Round. Gaitan and Dean have both been in the Round of 12 before, and if the Cyclones can punch at least one through on Friday night, they should be in the mix to take home some hardware.
125 pounds: Stevo Poulin (2nd at Big 12s)
133 pounds: Garrett Grice (6th at Big 12s)
141 pounds: Anthony Echemendia (2nd at Big 12s)
149 pounds: Jacob Frost (4th at Big 12s)
157 pounds: Vinny Zerban (DNP at Big 12s)
165 pounds: Connor Euton (3rd at Big 12s)
174 pounds: MJ Gaitan (3rd at Big 12s)
184 pounds: Isaac Dean (6th at Big 12s)
197 pounds: Rocky Elam (1st at Big 12s)
285 pounds: Yonger Bastida (1st at Big 12s)
