NWCA Div. I No. 1 Penn State, No. 2 Iowa set for Friday dual between nation’s top two teams

Manheim, Pennsylvania – Big Ten wins by Penn State and Iowa over the weekend set the stage for Friday’s battle between two of college wrestling’s heavyweights. Both teams remain undefeated and are ranked first and second in the most recent NWCA Division I Men’s Wrestling Coaches Poll released on Tuesday.

Penn State (9-0) won nine of 10 matches to beat then-No. 14 Rutgers 35-3 on Friday, while Iowa (9-0) defeated No. 4 Ohio State 24-13 at Carver-Hawkeye Arena on Saturday.

Friday’s dual will be at Penn State’s Bryce Jordan Center, the site of eight of the top 10 most-attended dual meets in college wrestling history and the top eight indoor crowds. The last time the two teams met inside the BJC, Penn State came away with a 23-14 win on January 27, 2023, in front of 15,998 fans, which is tied for the third-highest attendance all-time and tied for the top indoor crowd, a record Penn State also set against Iowa on February 10, 2018.

Another sellout is expected.

Third-ranked Oklahoma State (11-0) remained undefeated with a pair of wins in Iowa over ranked teams. The Cowboys started out with a gritty 22-14 win over No. 5 Northern Iowa, handing the Panthers their first loss of the season. Oklahoma State then topped No. 13 Iowa State 27-12 in front of a nationally televised audience on ESPN’s flagship channel.

Elsewhere, No. 6 NC State topped then-No. 15 Pittsburgh 22-13, and No. 7 Nebraska swept the mitten, defeating then-No. 18 Michigan 38-6 and Michigan State 38-3. No. 8 Minnesota ran past Northwestern 29-12 and Wisconsin 39-3, while Cornell swept Ivy opponents Brown 35-3 and Harvard 39-3.

In one of the most exciting duals of the season, then-No. 14 Rutgers upended then-No. 10 Illinois 16-15 on criteria in a bout that came down to an overtime takedown by Rutgers heavyweight Yaraslau Slavikouski. Rutgers is up to No. 12 this week, the program’s highest ranking since January 4, 2022.

Bucknell upset then-No. 21 Army West Point 21-13, dropping the Black Knights to 24th, while Maryland re-entered the poll at No. 25 this week.

Methodology: The NWCA Division I 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 points 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.

NWCA Division I Men’s Wrestling Coaches Poll

January 28, 2025

Rank/Team (First)/Record/Points/Conf./Previous

1 Penn State (16) (9-0) 400 Big Ten 1

2 Iowa (9-0) 381 Big Ten 2

3 Oklahoma State (11-0) 370 Big 12 3

4 Ohio State (11-1) 345 Big Ten 4

5 Northern Iowa (10-1) 332 Big 12 5

6 NC State (9-1) 316 ACC 6

7 Nebraska (8-2) 309 Big Ten 7

8 Minnesota (7-1) 292 Big Ten 8

9 Cornell (5-1) 260 Ivy League 9

10 Virginia Tech (5-2) 240 ACC 11

11 South Dakota State (10-3) 232 Big 12 12

12 Rutgers (11-4) 217 Big Ten 14

13 Iowa State (8-4) 207 Big 12 13

14 Illinois (8-3) 199 Big Ten 10

15 Stanford (7-2) 172 ACC 16

16 Pittsburgh (8-3) 168 ACC 15

17 Little Rock (14-2) 153 Pac-12 17

18 North Carolina (6-4) 119 ACC 19

19 Michigan (5-3) 117 Big Ten 18

20 Missouri (5-7) 82 Big 12 23

21 West Virginia (8-5) 76 Big 12 20

22 Oklahoma (6-4) 73 Big 12 22

23 Indiana (6-3) 41 Big Ten 24

24 Army West Point (6-2) 33 EIWA 21

25 Maryland (8-6) 14 Big Ten NR

Others Receiving Votes: Lehigh 13, Navy 12, Penn 11, Arizona State 6, Northern Colorado 3, Wyoming 3, Campbell 2, Utah Valley 1, Virginia 1.

Dropped Out: No. 25 Lehigh (2-4)