5 storylines at the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships

University of Iowa, Iowa State, University of Northern Iowa and a handful of others with state ties will compete at the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships at Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia from Thursday through Saturday. Here are five storylines to follow at the national tournament.

IOWA IN THE TEAM RACE

The only team race is for second place. Penn State is a clear-cut favorite to win its 13 th NCAA team title and fourth straight, which would be the third four-peat since 2011 when the national tournament was last held in Philadelphia.

Second-ranked Iowa is among a handful of teams capable of teams that can earned that runner-up finish, joining No. 3 Oklahoma State, No. 4 Minnesota and fifth-ranked Nebraska, who was second to the Nittany Lions at the Big Ten Championships.

The Hawkeyes need a mix of big point scorers and balance from nine qualifiers. The point scorers will have to come from their highest seeds. Returning NCAA finalist Drake Ayala and three-time All-American Stephen Buchanan are the No. 2 seeds at 133 and 197, respectively. They have defeated the top seeds in the bracket so they are capable of making the finals and winning titles. Michael Caliendo has been one of the top Hawkeyes and he is the No. 3 seed at 165. Caliendo’s losses have been to top-seeded Mitchell Messenbrink, closing the gap to a decision in the conference finals. Caliendo has decisively beaten most of his opponents this year. He has a good chance to wrestle Saturday night. Those three alone could produce a majority of the points needed.

The rest of the lineup needs to contribute and reach the podium. No. 5 Kyle Parco (149) is a four-time All-American. He suffered some rough losses at the Big Ten tournament but has the ability to place as high as third. Freshman Ben Kueter is also a No. 5 seed after his strong run to third in the qualifier. If he can join Parco, NCAA finalist Jacori Teemer (No. 18 at 157), No. 11 seeds Patrick Kennedy (174) and Gabe Arnold (184) on the podium, the Hawkeyes will be able to place second to Penn State for the second time in three seasons.

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UNI’S POSITIONED FOR BEST FINISH UNDER SCHWAB

UNI qualified all 10 wrestlers for the first time in Doug Schwab’s 15-year tenure as head coach and the second time the whole team advanced to the Division I program. The last time was 1986.

The Panthers placed 10 th in the D-I team race in 1982 under Chuck Patten and in 1983 and 1992 for Don Briggs. The best finish under Schwab was a tie for 13 th in 2019, finishing 14 th last season.

UNI pushed No. 3 Oklahoma State to the brink at the Big 12 Championships. The teams were tied with one match remaining, which was won by Cowboys’ heavyweight Wyatt Hendrickson. Can UNI manufacture the same number of points in the larger event?

NCAA champion, two-time national finalist and four-time All-American Parker Keckeisen (184) leads the way as the No. 2 seed. He enters with a 24-0 record and 55-match win streak but will likely face two stiff challenges in Minnesota’s No. 3 Max McEnelly in the semifinals and a showdown with four-time NCAA champion Carter Starocci looms in a possible finals meeting. Keckeisen reaching the finals will be key for the Panthers to crack the top-10.

UNI’s success at the Big 12s came from their work in consolation matches, receiving points from all 10 competitors. The Panthers need more of the same with projected medalists, like Cael Happel (141), Ryder Downey (157) and Wyatt Voelker (197) to reach or surpass their seeds to make the podium. Happel is the No. 5 seed with a win over Nebraska’s top-seeded Brock Hardy. Downey, who was 3-2 at nationals last year, is seeded sixth. Voelker is the No. 7 seed.

Getting a couple can overachieve, like No. 10 Colin Realbuto (149), No. 18 Julian Farber (133) or No. 19 Jared Simma (174), then the Panthers will be in position for a single-digit team finish.

FAMILIAR FOES FOR IOWA’S CALIENDO

Has anyone ever faced two former teammates in the first two rounds of the NCAA D-I Championships? Caliendo could do just that this year. Caliendo (20-2) opens against Iowa State’s No. 30 Aiden Riggins (14-17) in the first round. The winner will face the winner of UNI’s No. 19 Jack Thomsen (19-10) and South Dakota State’s Drake Rhodes (20-5) in the second round at 165.

Riggins, a former Waverly-Shell Rock prep, wrestled at Iowa last season and was the Hawkeyes postseason starter at 184. Rhodes also wrestled for Iowa last season but transferred to SDSU with national qualifiers Cobe Siebrecht at 157 and 197-pounder Zach Glazier. Rhodes was a backup to Caliendo last year.

Caliendo owns a 24-5 record against wrestlers in the bracket (all five losses are to Messenbrink), including a 1-0 mark against Rhodes. He beat Rhodes 20-4 for in the Luther Open last season. Caliendo and Riggins have not wrestled a college match but Kennedy posted a 19-4 technical fall over Riggins in the Cy-Hawk Series dual on Nov. 23.

FOLLOWING FERRARI

To say that A.J. Ferrari is a polarizing figure is a big understatement over the last few years. Ferrari, to his credit, has had a successful and uneventful season with Cal-State Bakersfield. He is 17-0 and earned the No. 3 seed at 197. But his return to the national tournament has a few interesting possibilities.

Ferrari, who wrestled for two seasons at Oklahoma State and won the 2021 197-pound NCAA title as a true freshman, could face Glazier in the second round, if both win. No match sent shockwaves through college wrestling as their first meeting in the finals of the 2023 Soldier Salute. Ferrari won the title bout in sudden victory but was disqualified after a brief fracas between the wrestlers after the match. The crowd reaction didn’t set well with Ferrari, who did the splits and flashed middle fingers to spectators.

Ferrari is also on the same side of the bracket as Buchanan. The two could meet in the semifinals. Ferrari’s brother, Angelo, is in his first season with the Hawkeyes and is expected to be one of the team leaders in future seasons. Angelo and Buchanan have been workout partners throughout the season. It would already be a classic matchup but Angelo’s connection to both makes it more dramatic.

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KEEPING AN EYE ON FORMER IOWA PREPS

Former Iowa preps are in the field for out-of-state programs. The most notable is Stanford’s Hunter Garvin. The former Iowa City West three-time state champion and four-time finalist had an impressive performance at the NCAA tournament last year in Kansas City. Garvin placed sixth at 165 for All-American honors. He is the No. 7 seed with a 19-6 record and opens against Ohio State’s No. 26 Paddy Gallagher (17-8).

Siebrecht (13-8) is a two-time NCAA qualifier and faces Penn’s No. 14 Jude Swisher (23-7) in the first round.

SDSU’s Cade DeVos was a two-time state champion for Southeast Polk. He was a Big 12 champion and All-American, placing fifth at 174, last season. DeVos enters the tournament as the No. 13 seed with a 19-7 mark. He takes on Illinois’ No. 20 Danny Braunagel (12-9) for his opening bout.

Comments: kj.pilcher@thegazette.com