Manheim, Pennsylvania –Several upsets at the Journeymen Collegiate Duals earlier this week in Nashville, Tennessee provided just enough chaos to mix up the final NWCA Division I Men’s Wrestling Coaches Poll for the 2023 calendar year, which was released on Thursday.
Ohio State and Iowa State each went 3-0 in the event and won their respective pools. The Buckeyes (7-1) topped then-No. 2 NC State using three first-period falls to build an 18-0 lead after the first three weights and hung on to win 21-20 in a rare four-match dual victory. Ohio State also beat then-No. 25 Northern Iowa and Lock Haven. Ohio State moved up to No. 8 this week.
Iowa State (6-1) moved back into the Top 5 after topping then-No. 5 Cornell 26-15 in the deciding dual of their Collegiate Duals pool. The Cyclones also topped No. 13 Pittsburgh and Little Rock.
Coupled with the results in Nashville, Missouri (4-0) moved up to No. 2 after beating Air Force 38-3. Idle Penn State (2-0) remained No. 1, while idle Iowa (5-0) moved up a spot to No. 3. N.C. State fell two spots to No. 4.
Other action before the holiday: Nebraska beat South Dakota State 21-17, Oklahoma State beat Wyoming 31-9, Virginia Tech beat Stanford 29-7, Oregon State beat CSU Bakersfield 48-0 and West Virginia beat Division II Fairmont State 56-0.
Stanford rebounded from its loss at Virginia Tech to sweep the Campbell Duals. The Cardinal (5-1) beat Purdue 24-13, North Dakota State 26-17 and host Campbell 19-17.
Appalachian State (1-1) moved into the Top 25 for the first time this season following a 24-14 win over then-No. 21 North Carolina in Boone. Idle Maryland moved back into the Top 25 as North Carolina and then-No. 25 Northern Iowa dropped out of the poll this week.
NOTE: The next poll will be released on Tuesday, January 9, 2024.
Methodology: The NWCA Division I Men’s Wrestling Coaches Poll is voted on by two coaches from each Division I wrestling conference. Each first-place vote is worth 25 points, 24 points for a second-place vote, 23 for a third-place vote and so on through to one point for a 25th-place vote. The poll is based on dual meet results. Teams who are not competing this season are not included in the voting process.
NWCA Division I Men’s Wrestling Coaches Poll
December 21, 2023
Rank/Team (First)/Record/Points/Conf./Previous
1 Penn State (14) (2-0) 350 Big Ten 1
2 Missouri (4-0) 332 Big 12 3
3 Iowa (5-0) 317 Big Ten 4
4 NC State (9-1) 282 ACC 2
5 Iowa State (6-1) 281 Big 12 6
6 Michigan (2-0) 275 Big Ten 7
7 Nebraska (3-0) 271 Big Ten 8
8 Ohio State (7-1) 264 Big Ten 10
9 Oklahoma State (4-0) 239 Big 12 9
10 Cornell (3-1) 238 EIWA 5
11 Virginia Tech (3-1) 202 ACC 11
12 Minnesota (5-0) 197 Big Ten 12
13 Pittsburgh (7-3) 168 ACC 13
14 Rutgers (5-1) 163 Big Ten 15
15 South Dakota State (3-2) 151 Big 12 14
16 Navy (5-0) 144 EIWA 17
17 Oregon State (4-1) 133 Pac-12 16
18 Stanford (5-1) 100 Pac-12 19
19 Oklahoma (4-2) 99 Big 12 18
20 West Virginia (7-1) 80 Big 12 20
21 Arizona State (1-2) 48 Pac-12 22
22 Indiana (3-0) 38 Big Ten 24
23 Lehigh (0-3) 37 EIWA 23
24 Appalachian State (1-1) 29 SoCon NR
25 Maryland (2-1) 28 Big Ten NR
Others Receiving Votes: North Carolina 17, Northern Iowa 17, Cal Poly 13, Penn 12, Illinois 7, Northern Colorado 5, Campbell 4, Wisconsin 4, Little Rock 2, Virginia 2, Utah Valley 1.
Dropped out: No. 21 North Carolina (6-3), No. 25 Northern Iowa (1-3).
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