Takedown Report

NCAA DI Rankings Updated (1/13/2026)

We mentioned yesterday in our recap, that this was unexpectedly a great weekend of wrestling. What ensued were lots of high-profile changes in the rankings. Here’s a weight-by-weight look at some of the more notable changes: Surprisingly, 125 lbs was a weight where there were very few changes this week. Typically, this weight is full of chaos, but it was relatively normal for a week. Drexel’s Desmond Pleasant makes his debut after a 4-0 weekend at the National Duals and two ranked wins.
Ryan Crookham returns and slots in at #5. Based on his past body of work, it could be higher; however, he had been away for over a year and hasn’t had any massive wins over the weekend. We decided to rank Jax Forrest for Oklahoma State. Ultimately, I think that’s where David Taylor will turn. #15 is conservative. We know his results on the freestyle scene domestically and abroad. Let’s see it on the collegiate mat. His only win thus far is over a non-starter. Inserting those two bumps almost everyone down a spot or two, so that’s why the rest of the weight might look wonky and guys may drop despite winning.
Luke Stanich and Braeden Davis have been inserted here. Stanich gets a higher ranking initially because of his win over a top ten opponent in his debut. Davis has slightly more of a body of work this year, but no wins of the caliber of Stanich, yet.
With Kaleb Larkin moving up to 157 and more upsets this week, we basically started from scratch at 149. Caleb Tyus is the big beneficiary. He’s officially unbeaten and has wins over Ethan Stiles and Casey Swiderski, so he slides into that #3 slot. It looks like Virginia Tech will be going with Collin Gaj at 149 and Ethen Miller at 157. Remember, only four of Gaj’s seven losses have come at 149 lbs.
We have a new #1. It’s probably could have been either Brandon Cannon or Kaleb Larkin, but we went with Cannon. He is still officially undefeated and all of his wins have  included bonus points – even one over returning champion Antrell Taylor. Larkin starts off his time at 157 with wins over the previous #1 and #3. PJ Duke doesn’t necessarily have the high-caliber wins like Cannon/Larkin, but is lurking at #3.
There’s always a question about how we handle injury defaults. The answer is on a case-by-case basis, with more of a lean towards ignoring the result. That was the case with Charlie Millard’s win over Kannon Webster. It was actually quite a scary situation as Webster appeared to be knocked out on his feet.
Ethen Miller reappears at #16 after his win over Dylan Evans. That area is consistent with his prior work at this weight. Kai Owen makes his debut in the 157 lb rankings after pinning DJ McGee.
There wasn’t much work needed at 165 lbs. There was some shuffling after Brock Woodcock’s win over Ryan Burgos and a loss from Cesar Alvan at the F&M Open. With his win in the Bedlam dual over CKLV champion Carter Shubert, Alex Facundo moves into the top ten. His only losses this year have come to opponents in the top six and he’s generally wrestled a tough schedule. Garrett Thompson is reinserted after his perfect weekend at the National Duals. … more at … https://intermatwrestle.com/articles.html/college/ncaa-di-rankings-updated-1132026-r100754/

January 16, 2026 Posted by The TakeDown Report | Uncategorized | ncaa, sports | Leave a comment

10 Tight NCAA Team Races That Went Down To The Wire

10 Tight NCAA Team Races That Went Down To The Wire
Most NCAA championships are decided before the individual finals, with rare team races that come down to the wire. The following 10 were decided by two points or less. 
10. 1999 Division I NCAA championships
First place: Iowa – 100.5
Second place: Minnesota – 98.5
Spread: 2 points
The grand finale of the 1999 NCAA championships came down to two of the most famous heavyweights in college wrestling history: Stephen Neal of Cal-State Bakersfield and Brock Lesnar of Minnesota. 
Neal won the highly anticipated match, 3-2, over Lesnar, giving Iowa a two-point victory over Minnesota. Neal earned a freestyle World title later that year before snagging three Super Bowl rings with the New England Patriots. Lesnar became a successful professional wrestler before a short stint in the UFC.  Minnesota head coach J Robinson would have to wait two more seasons until he won his elusive NCAA team title. Typically, the second-place team analyzes the ways it could have won. Minnesota had several mishaps, but coaches and athletes from the team will likely mention two.
1. Iowa’s Wes Hand was chosen to attend the NCAA championships over Minnesota’s Chad Erikson, even though both placed eighth at the Big 10 championships. The top seven finishers from the Big 10s earned a berth to the NCAA tournament, with two wildcards selected by coaches. Hand scored 2.5 points at the NCAA championships, and Iowa won by 2 points. 

2. Penn State’s Clint Musser won a 2-1 tiebreaker over Minnesota’s Chad Kraft in the 157-pound semifinals. A coin flip decided which wrestler was given the choice of top or bottom in the 30-second tiebreaker. The coin appeared to flip in Kraft’s favor, but at the last second, it took an awkward bounce, and Musser was given his choice. He took down and got away. Musser placed second, and Kraft placed fifth. 
Doug Schwab (141) and T.J. Williams (149) won titles for the Hawkeyes. Minnesota’s Brandon Eggum dropped his match to Cael Sanderson at 184 pounds, while Tim Hartung defeated Iowa’s Lee Fullhart, giving the Golden Gophers a chance at heavyweight.
Neal won his match over Lesnar, giving Iowa a two-point win.
9. 1999 Division III NCAA championships
First place: Wartburg – 117.5
Second place: Augsburg – 116
Spread: 1.5 points
Everything that could go wrong did go wrong for Augsburg in 1999. The Auggies won the previous three NCAA championships and were on the cusp of winning four in a row, had it not been for a complete meltdown. 
Augsburg led 112-109.5 entering the finals. The Auggies sent five to the finals compared to two for the Knights, with two head-to-head match-ups.  Augsburg won both head-to-head matches by major decision earlier in the season.  For Wartburg, those results didn’t matter. 
Zac Weiglein beat Darin Bertram (125), and Ben Shane beat Josh Cagle (149), 7-5, to give Wartburg a 117.5-116 lead after Augsburg’s John Marchette … more at … https://www.flowrestling.org/articles/15171818-10-tight-ncaa-team-races-that-went-down-to-the-wire

January 14, 2026 Posted by The TakeDown Report | Uncategorized | ncaa, sports | Leave a comment

NCAA DI Rankings Updated (1/6/2026)

Welcome to the first set of rankings for 2026! Since the Midlands was contested on Monday/Tuesday of last week, this edition contains the Midlands results and everything from over the weekend. With the lack of star power at some of these holiday tournaments, there was little movement in the top ten at most weights. There was lots of shuffling in the back half of most weights.
125 lbs
Not much movement in the top tier. Kysen Terukina fell to Mack Mauger in the Soldier Salute finals – he drops a few spots. After making the finals and having a pretty solid resume, it was time for Zeke Witt to get a bump.
133 lbs
We finally got to see a lot of Dom Serrano, and he looked good, winning both the dual and the Scuffle title. He was in danger of being dropped for inactivity. Evan Mougalian gets a sizable boost after a good Scuffle performance, losing only by a point to Serrano. Mougalian has had an excellent season with a handful of quality wins and losses only to Serrano and Matty Lopes (not considered for the rankings, but a very tough competitor this season).
141 lbs
That 5-6 range (not 6-7) has been difficult to fill this year. The top four have separated themselves from the rest of the weight. With a Scuffle title and a win over Composto (and others over Crook, Pucino) Cornella flies up to the #6 position. The tier after Cornella/Composto continues to be nasty as Nagao returned but medically forfeited after a match and Bailey/Romney suffered losses.
I felt it was the right time to move Wyatt Henson up. He lost twice on the opening weekend to Eli Griffin and Lorenzo Frezza. Both have been pretty consistent; those losses look fine in hindsight. More mat time and evaluation can give us a better picture for rankings.
149 lbs
The second tier at this weight is in flux, a bit, as Cross Wasilewski, Jacob Frost, and Eligh Rivera all suffered losses during this rankings period. With all of the craziness around him, Caleb Tyus moves up to #8. He had a win in week one over Ethan Stiles.
157 lbs
No changes to the top 14. We have removed … more at … https://intermatwrestle.com/articles.html/college/ncaa-di-rankings-updated-162026-r100739/

January 12, 2026 Posted by The TakeDown Report | Uncategorized | ncaa, sports | Leave a comment

NC State Wrestling Gains One Starter, Loses Another

Just as NC State welcomed transfer Patrick Brophy to the lineup, the Wolfpack lost NCAA qualifier Jackson Arrington for the season.
ACC action gets underway this weekend as the NC State Wolfpack will host Virginia in Friday night action. After competing in many different events the first semester — tournaments, multiple duals in a day — the NC State schedule will now focus on the routine of taking the mat each Friday night against a conference foe for the next six weeks. “What we learned from last year is we just want to keep improving every week,” NC State coach Pat Popolizio said. “If we can do that as individuals, obviously it’s going to help our team. We want to keep building to when we go to the national tournament, because I really do believe we have multiple guys that can compete to win a national title.”
Recently, the Pack has received both good news and bad news about a couple of spots in the lineup. Brophy Makes Wolfpack Debut
First the good news: NC State recently added an NCAA qualifier at the upperweights.
After having to finish up academic responsibilities at The Citadel during the first semester, Patrick Brophy has now joined the Pack and has been inserted into the lineup at 197 pounds for the rest of this year. The week that he was cleared by the NC State compliance office, Brophy hit the mat for three dual wins the weekend before Christmas. With a mid-summer coaching change at The Citadel, the transfer window reopened and Brophy placed his name in it. What led him to come to Raleigh and join the Wolfpack? “Just the opportunity to train with the highest caliber of people,” Brophy said. “Here it was too good to pass up. I have not only some of the best people in the nation, but literally the best guy at my weight class in the world (Trent Hidlay), the current World champ.
“I asked myself how much can I learn? How far can I go with it when you’re around that caliber of training partners and great coaches that NC State has to offer? Just in my short time around this team, I’ve been learning a ton from the coaches and from my training partners.”
Brophy only got serious about wrestling in high school. Before that he was focused on a myriad of other sports, mainly baseball.  “I tried (wrestling) when I was really young, because my dad was a wrestler (a two-time All-American at Loras College), so I think he always wanted me to wrestle,” Brophy said. “I don’t think I really liked it when I was younger, but for whatever reason, I just ended up loving it when I was in high school.”
Brophy reconnected with wrestling once again as a sophomore and he saw the potential to compete into college and started his journey at The Citadel. He was a starter each of his two seasons there, and earned an NCAA bid in 2025, winning a match. The jump he has taken since his first days in a college practice room has been very noticeable. “I think it’s been night and day,” Brophy said. “I’m sure most people would say this, but I would destroy my freshman self. Coming out of high school, … more at … https://www.flowrestling.org/articles/15117905-nc-state-wrestling-gains-one-starter-loses-another

January 11, 2026 Posted by The TakeDown Report | Uncategorized | ncaa, sports | Leave a comment

InterMat’s Top Wrestling Stories for 2025

We’ve only got a few hours left in 2025 and are ready to look forward to a big 2026. Before changing the calendar (or letting it update on your phone), let’s take a quick look back at some of the biggest wrestling-related stories of the year for InterMat. Please let us know if you have some that we might have missed!
10. Ohio State wins National Duals Invitational
The college wrestling needs more juice. We need events that excite and energize the fanbases, creating arguments and debate, and hypotheticals. Those things are healthy. It needs to be more than just focusing on those three days in March.
The National Duals Invitational came along and filled that void very nicely. Coming into the event, one of the main storylines was whether or not Oklahoma State’s freshman-laden lineup could win it all. Maybe Nebraska could build off their second-place finish at nationals in 2025. Or trusty Iowa.
What happened was Ohio State’s lightweights blitzed the field and the Buckeyes disposed of Wyoming, Minnesota, Nebraska, and Iowa. Nic Bouzakis debuted at 125 lbs, Ben Davino beat a returning national finalist, and Jesse Mendez prevailed in an NCAA finals rematch.
And for the 400 lb elephant in the room (or not in the room), Penn State. The Nittany Lions declined an invitation to participate. Their absence spurred plenty of debate between fans on social media and on the message board- maybe they should go in the future vs. why do they need to go, would it be better with them or without them, do they have an obligation to go? Those were all questions thrown around by fans in the days leading up to the event and in the aftermath. Whichever side you fall on in the debates, just the conversation and interest is good for our sport.

9. Recruiting/NIL/Transfer Portal
This is a bit of a catch-all for a couple of different topics. Basically, the new-era of collegiate sports wrapped up into one point. Like the “Penn State at National Duals Invitational” topic, you may not agree with one side in the debate; however, there are plenty of people interested in the overall conversation.
As someone who looks at the metrics of articles and social media, recruiting battles, recruiting flips, NIL rumors, and transfer decisions move the needle.
Some of the important stories of the year related to these categories are:

• Bo Bassett’s recruiting graphic/commitment to Iowa/decommitment and signing with Virginia Tech.
• The Hokies, along with Oklahoma State, Penn State, Iowa, and Cornell amassing huge recruiting classes.
• Three 2025 NCAA DI champions transferred in the prior offseason.
• The game of musical chairs at 184 lbs with the Rocco Welsh/Zack Ryder transfers.
• The potential for Jax Forrest to join the Oklahoma State team instead of finishing his final HS season.
• Some notable transfers are not faring as well in their new homes.
• The portal helped make Iowa State into a top-three team after missing the top 20 in Philly.

8. Iowa State finally wins the CyHawk Dual
For the first time since 2004, Iowa State has beaten their in-state rivals, Iowa, in dual meet competition. Iowa head coach Tom Brands had been in his current position since 2006-07 … more at … https://intermatwrestle.com/articles.html/college/intermats-top-wrestling-stories-for-2025-r100729/

January 4, 2026 Posted by The TakeDown Report | Uncategorized | ncaa, sports | Leave a comment

Top-ranked Nittany Lions set new Division I win streak record; Second-ranked Buckeyes handle third-ranked Cyclones in Nashville

Manheim, Pennsylvania – A major college record that stood since the early 1950s fell over the weekend as top-ranked Penn State improved to 6-0 and won the program’s 77^th dual meet in a row at the Journeymen Collegiate Duals in Nashville, Tennessee.  
Penn State (6-0) shutout North Dakota State and then-No. 23 Stanford and remained atop the most recent NWCA Division I Men’s Coaches Poll released on Tuesday. The Nittany Lions are now tied with Division II St. Cloud State for the longest win streak in NCAA wrestling history. The Nittany Lions can take hold of the NCAA mark on January 10 at Rec Hall when they host Rutgers.  
No. 2 Ohio State continued its perfect start, moving to 10-0 with wins over Little Rock, 34-9, and Iowa State, 21-13 also at the Collegiate Duals.  
Iowa State split its weekend, defeating then-No. 20 Lehigh 26-11.  
Fifth-ranked Oklahoma State added another ranked win with a 22-12 victory over No. 6 Nebraska in Lincoln. The dual drew 7,094 fans, setting a new home attendance record for the Huskers. Nebraska picked up a ranked win on Friday, defeating then-No. 16 North Carolina 27-9. North Carolina would pick up a solid win on the road in Cedar Falls, beating then No. 12 Northern Iowa 19-13. The Tar Heels (7-1) jumped to No. 13 this week, the highest the program has been ranked since it checked in at No. 7 in the final poll of the 2019-20 season.  
No. 8 South Dakota State moved to 3-0 with a 45-3 win over Campbell. No. 9 NC State went 3-0 on the week, defeating The Citadel, George Mason and Buffalo.  
Back in Nashville, No. 10 Illinois earned two ranked wins, edging then-No. 18 Cornell 21-18 and defeating Lehigh 24-12. Other ranked teams in action saw No.14 Pittsburgh earn a 23-12 win over Edinboro. Oklahoma posted two wins, defeating SIU Edwardsville 23-13 and Duke 40-6.  
Cornell split its weekend, picking up a win over Little Rock. Wisconsin (8-0) remained unbeaten with three wins, defeating Lock Haven, Utah Valley and Arizona State.  
Stanford earned a win over North Dakota State, while Oregon State … more at … https://nwcaonline.com/news/2025/12/23/national-wrestling-coaches-association-top-ranked-nittany-lions-set-new-division-i-win-streak-record-second-ranked-buckeyes-handle-third-ranked-cyclones-in-nashville.aspx

December 29, 2025 Posted by The TakeDown Report | Uncategorized | ncaa, sports | Leave a comment

NCAA D1 Wrestling Week 8 Roundup: 2nd Semester-ers

The world’s finest collection of noteworthy happenings from the 8th week of the 2025-26 NCAA D1 wrestling season.
Merry Christmas from the Caption Hotel in Nashville, where I am currently filling the lobby with the pitter-patter of little fingertips as I type out the latest roundup of noteworthy happenings from the 8th week of the 2025-26 NCAA D1 college wrestling season!
Week 7 Rankings | Week 8 Box Scores
Roundups: Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5 | Week 6 | Week 7
I’m going to be totally real with everyone: It’s already 9:00pm on Sunday night, and I’m just now starting the Roundup. As such, it’s going to be a very truncated edition, due in part (although this is not an excuse!) to me leaving for Nashville on Friday and then being enmeshed with the Journeymen Collegiate Duals almost exclusively since then. 
So consider it your Christmas gift to me to not give me a hard time this week for leaving out some noteworthy happening that you, the wise and learned fan, thought should have been included. I’m sure I will agree with you that the omission was regrettable! 
I will make it up to you next Monday, when there will be literally no NCAA D1 wrestling to round up, with something special, the likes of which I will determine in the interim. 
With that housekeeping out of the way, let us turn our attention to…

The Dual of the Century of the Week

Cowboys Spoil the Huskers Record-Setting Crowd

Nebraska hosted North Carolina on Friday and were victorious to the tune of 27 to 9. Sunday, however, was a different story, as most of the 7,094 fans in the Devaney Center left disappointed due to Oklahoma State placing the proverbial lump coal in the stocking by beating the home team 22-12.  Still, that crowd, plus having a raised stage, and a national audience on the Big Ten Network, in addition to all the star power on the mat, is enough to earn the DotCotW this week. 
#2 Sergio Vega pinning #3 Brock Hardy in the first period set the Cowpokes up for the dub. Antrell Taylor, Chris Minto and Silas Allred all got top ten wins for Nebraska, but it would not enough, especially with Nebraska being without the services of AJ Ferrari. … more at … https://www.flowrestling.org/articles/15042666-ncaa-d1-wrestling-week-8-roundup-2nd-semester-ers

December 27, 2025 Posted by The TakeDown Report | Uncategorized | ncaa, sports | Leave a comment

Men’s College Notebook: Penn State Snaps Dual-Meet Record, Ohio State and Oklahoma State notch top-10 wins

Penn State Breaks 74-Year-Old Record 

Not only did Penn State set a new DI team record, but they also did it in style. With a pair of wins at the Journeymen Collegiate Duals, the Nittany Lions won their 76th and 77th consecutive duals, breaking the record set by Oklahoma State in 1951.
In Nashville, Penn State shut out both North Dakota State (46-0) and then #23 Stanford (42-0). The last Penn State dual loss was January 31, 2020, at Iowa (19-17).
Nittany Lion Freshmen Shine 
There was a lot of discourse this week on social media about ranking true freshmen—predictions versus season results. One thing is for sure, a pair of freshmen in the Penn State starting lineup will be national title threats come March.
Both Marcus Blaze and PJ Duke earned top-10 wins in the Stanford dual. At 133 pounds, Blaze earned a fall over 2025 All-American #6 Tyler Knox (he was up 12-2 at the time). At 157 pounds, Duke downed 2024 All-American Daniel Cardenas, 5-2.
Blaze (10-0) and Duke (9-0) are both undefeated through the first couple of months in their collegiate careers.
Barr’s Season Debut 
Returning NCAA finalist Josh Barr made his season debut for Penn State at 197 pounds. He was a perfect 2-0 on the day, as both of his matches ended in the second period via technical fall. His first bout was a 19-3 tech over North Dakota State’s Devin Wasley. In his second bout of the day, Barr scored a dominant, 19-3, tech fall over #20 Angelo Posada of Stanford. In the bout, Barr reeled in five takedowns and a turn before ending the match early in the second period.
Ohio State Reigns Supreme 
For the fifth time this season, Ohio State racked up a top-10 win. Even more impressive, the Buckeyes 21-13 win over #3 Iowa State was their third top-5 victory in the first two months of the season. Ohio State once again dominated in the first half of the dual, winning four of the first five bouts to take a 15-3 lead midway through the dual after … more at … https://www.themat.com/news/2025/december/22/men-s-college-notebook-penn-state-snaps-dual-meet-record-ohio-state-and-oklahoma-state-notch-top-10-wins

December 27, 2025 Posted by The TakeDown Report | Uncategorized | ncaa, sports | Leave a comment

Nebraska Cruises Past North Carolina, 27-9

The No. 6 Nebraska wrestling team earned a 27-9 victory over No. 16 North Carolina on Friday night at the Devaney Center. The Huskers recorded three major decisions and a pin in the heavyweight division to improve to 6-2 on the season.
Nebraska opened the dual with a strong start at 157 pounds, as No. 6 Antrell Taylor picked up a 13-2 major decision to give NU an early 4-0 lead. 
At 165 pounds, redshirt freshman No. 10 LJ Araujo earned a hard fought 2-0 decision over Bryce Hepner after three tightly contested periods. No. 6 Christopher Minto followed at 174 pounds with a dominant performance securing a 17-3 major decision against Collin Carrigan. 
North Carolina picked up its first points of the night at 184 pounds after No. 24 Jake Dailey defeated Tyler Eise by decision. Nebraska responded at 197 pounds after No. 10 Camden McDanel took a 10-2 major decision win and secured the Husker’s third major of the night.
In the heavyweight match, No. 4 AJ Ferrari accentuated the Husker’s lead with a dominant match leading to his first pin of the season before Alan Koehler fell by decision at 125 pounds to No. 16 Kysen Terukina.  At 133 pounds, No. 8 Jacob Van Dee put up a strong contest to win 5-1 and secure his 50th career victory while No. 3 Brock Hardy (141 pounds) pulled out a 5-1 decision over No. 19 Luke Simcox. 
The dual concluded at 149 pounds where Scott Robertson and Nate Askew were tied 1-1 at the end of the third before Askew secured a 4-1 win in sudden-victory. 
Up Next
The Huskers will take on No. 5 Oklahoma State on Sunday, Dec. 21. The top-10 dual is set for 1 p.m. (CT), and will be televised on BTN. 
No. 6 Nebraska 27, No. 16 North Carolina 9
157 | No. 6 Antrell Taylor (N) major dec. No. 33 Laird Root (UNC) 13-2 (NEB 4, UNC 0)
165 | No. 10 LJ Araujo (N) dec. Bryce Hepner (UNC) 2-0 (NEB 7, UNC 0) … more at … https://huskers.com/news/2025/12/19/nebraska-cruises-to-a-27-9-victory-over-north-carolina

December 24, 2025 Posted by The TakeDown Report | Uncategorized | ncaa, sports | Leave a comment