Takedown Report

Why Penn State Wrestling Should Be Even Better in 2027

Cael Sanderson’s roster will be loaded again as the Nittany Lions pursue their sixth straight NCAA title.
CLEVELAND | Penn State’s Masanosuke Ono lifted the NCAA wrestling championship trophy above his head Saturday night at Rocket Arena, a moment of foreshadowing amid another celebration. Ono, a Japanese world champion who didn’t wrestle for Penn State this season, awaits his place in a Nittany Lions lineup that should be even better in 2027.
How is that possible? Penn State won four individual titles at the 2026 NCAA Wrestling Championships, broke its own scoring record for the second straight year and tied an NCAA record with six finalists. The Nittany Lions won a fifth straight NCAA team title after producing one of their most dominant regular seasons for head coach Cael Sanderson. And they lose just one starter from the 2025-26 lineup.
Three national champions went undefeated. Two NCAA runners-up finished the season with one loss. Two true freshmen were All-Americans. Four of the seven finalists for the Hodge Trophy, college wrestling’s Heisman, are Nittany Lions. And eight All-Americans (including one who redshirted) are expected back for Sanderson’s 18th season at Penn State, which might be his best yet — yet again.
College wrestling is pushing hard for Oklahoma State, under former Penn State wrestler David Taylor, to derail the Penn State freight train. The Cowboys had a superb tournament in Taylor’s second season, winning four titles (all by first-year starters) to place second to Penn State. However, here’s how Penn State should maintain its grip on the sport next season.
Penn State’s returning champions … more at … https://www.si.com/college/pennstate/wrestling/why-penn-state-wrestling-should-be-even-better-in-2027

April 9, 2026 Posted by The TakeDown Report | Uncategorized | Leave a comment

By The Numbers: The 2026 NCAA Wrestling Championships

Breaking down the 2025 NCAAs with numbers and graphs and maps and positive vibes!
You don’t need a PhD to understand simple math: three days plus 10 weights plus 330 competitors equals the greatest weekend of the year!
Previous NCAAs By The Numbers: 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014
And with the 2026 edition of the NCAA D1 Wrestling Championships in our rear view, we can now slice and dice and analyze the results from this year’s NCAA D1 Men’s Wrestling Championships! You can find more information about the entire field that was clashing in Cleveland in our 2026 NCAA Men’s Wrestling Championship Qualifiers By The Numbers article.  

More at … https://www.flowrestling.org/articles/15685422-by-the-numbers-the-2026-ncaa-wrestling-championships

April 9, 2026 Posted by The TakeDown Report | Uncategorized | Leave a comment

NCAA Host City Review (Cleveland 2026)

Rocket Arena
Cleveland, OH
March 20-23, 2025
Two weeks have passed since the first takedown happened at the 2026 NCAA Wrestling Championships, which I think is enough time to have recovered from all the mayhem that went down in Cleveland, Ohio. One thing is common every year, and that is the quality & excitement of the actual wrestling that occurs over six sessions in three days. What DOES change, year after year, is the host city.
Each city is unique, with its pros and cons, and every individual or group of fans reacts to it differently. For the past few years, I have given my review on the host city, with my experiences and takes. Do with that what you will.
So in this quick article, I’ll give my thoughts, critiques, highlights, and some personal interactions of this year’s host city based on a few usual criteria: … more at … https://intermatwrestle.com/articles.html/college/ncaa-host-city-review-cleveland-2026-r100931/?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email

April 9, 2026 Posted by The TakeDown Report | Uncategorized | Leave a comment