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Iowa leads Division I men’s wrestling in home attendance for 18th straight season

New Brighton, Minnesota – The University of Iowa once again led the nation in NCAA Division I men’s wrestling attendance, averaging 13,640 fans per dual across seven home meets, as the National Wrestling Media Association released its annual attendance report on Thursday.
Iowa drew a capacity crowd of 14,897 twice last season, filling Carver-Hawkeye Arena for duals against rivals Iowa State and Oklahoma State.
Penn State ranked second, drawing an average of 9,007 fans, including a season-high 15,998 for its dual with Iowa. That figure ties the indoor attendance record Penn State set in 2018 and matched in 2023 at the Bryce Jordan Center.
Oklahoma State moved up one spot from last season to finish third with an average of 7,597, highlighted by a crowd of 10,740 against Missouri. The David Taylor effect was clearly evident, as this marked the program’s highest home attendance average at Gallagher-Iba Arena since record-keeping began in 2002. The previous high average was in 2019 (5,226.6).
There were 10 duals with over 10,000 fans nationwide, marking the first time in recorded history there were at least 10 duals surpassing five figures. Iowa’s Carver-Hawkeye Arena hosted seven duals surpassing 10,000, while Penn State’s Bryce Jordan Center hosted two and Oklahoma State’s Gallagher-Iba Arena had one. The previous high for most duals with over 10,000 fans in a season is nine, set in 2023 and tied in 2024.
Of the 127 Division I men’s duals with over 10,000 fans historically, more than half (67) have come in the last 12 college wrestling seasons. There were no attendance records kept for the 2020-21 season.
Iowa State, which ranked third last season, slid to fourth but still drew over 33,000 total fans. The Cyclones averaged 5,533.5, with a high of 9,470 coming against Oklahoma in a co-hosted event with the Iowa State gymnastics team at Hilton Coliseum. Rutgers continued its reputation for lively home duals, jumping from ninth to fifth with an average of 4,228, including 8,097 fans for its home dual against Penn State.
The closure of historic West Gym forced Northern Iowa to move its home duals to the McLeod Center, resulting in an attendance surge that propelled the Panthers into the top 10. UNI leaped from 12th to sixth with a school-record average of 4,222. Ohio State improved slightly from eighth to seventh, averaging 3,975 at the Covelli Center. Nebraska climbed from 11th to eighth, averaging 3,817.5, with a high of 6,661 at the Devaney Center against Iowa.
Note : N.C. State placed 13th with a 2,530 average and North Carolina Univ. placed 21st with an average attendance of 1,652 which is up from being listed 41st the year before. … more at … https://www.nationalwrestlingmedia.com/2025/05/iowa-leads-division-i-mens-wrestling-in-home-attendance-for-18th-straight-season/

June 2, 2025 Posted by | Uncategorized | , | Leave a comment