Takedown Report

Men’s College Notebook: Rutgers Upsets Minnesota; Ohio State Tops Iowa

#RelentlessPursuit

#17 Rutgers had the best dual win of the weekend, as the Scarlet Knights protected their home mat with a 23-15 win over #6 Minnesota in front of 3,702 fans.
The win was Rutgers’ first over Minnesota since they became Big 10 foes in 2015. The Scarlet Knights also defeated their highest-ranked opponent since 2016 (#4 Nebraska).
Starting at 125 pounds, and a big upset by #28 Ayden Smith over #10 More Volk (7-2), Rutgers won four of the first five bouts to take a 13-5 lead into the break. Minnesota won two of the next three to close it to 17-12 going into the final two matches.
At 197 pounds, #16 Remy Cotton closed out any Golden Gophers comeback, as he scored a fall in extra time over #25 Gavin Nelson to clinch the home victory.
#GoBucks
#1 Penn State looms large next week for #2 Ohio State, but the Buckeyes did not look ahead and took care of business against #5 Iowa, 24-9. 
It was their ninth top-10 win of the season. Also, their 17-0 overall start to the 2025-26 season is the best in program history. The Buckeyes finished 7-0 at the Covelli Center for the first time.
Starting at 157 pounds, Iowa took a 9-0 lead with three straight decisions. It would be the Hawkeyes’ only wins of the night. Ohio State closed with 24 unanswered points for the win.
The key stretch came with three straight top-10 wins at heavyweight, 125 and 133 pounds. #2 R-Fr. Ben Davino picked up his second win of the season over two-time NCAA finalist Drake Ayala, this time 4-2.
Coupled with their 21-16 loss to #9 Minnesota last week, the Hawkeyes have dropped back-to-back Big 10 duals for only the second time (2023-24) in the last eight years. The five dual losses on the season are now the most in a single season for an Iowa team since 2006-07 (five). … more at … https://www.themat.com/news/2026/february/10/men-s-college-notebook-rutgers-upsets-minnesota-ohio-state-tops-iowa

February 17, 2026 - Posted by The TakeDown Report | Uncategorized | ncaa, sports