As of Jan. 25, 2022, there were 25 past NCAA Division I All-American wrestlers who remained undefeated on the 2021-22 season … and are still considered contenders to eventually capture the 2022 WIN Magazine/Culture House Dan Hodge Trophy, presented by ASICS.
This year’s trophy, created in 1994 by WIN founder Mike Chapman and named after Oklahoma’s late three-time NCAA champion Dan Hodge, will be presented to the nation’s most dominant NCAA Division I wrestler, following the March 17-19 NCAA Championships in Detroit, Mich.
Dan Hodge
three-time NCAA champ (1955-57) Oklahoma
In addition to former Hodge Trophy winners, a retired coach from each region, and national media members, wrestling fans can once again be part of the voting as well. Shortly after the NCAAs, fans will be able to vote online at WIN-Magazine.com with the winner earning five first-place votes.
The criteria for winning the award, in priority order, will include: a wrestler’s record, number of pins, dominance, past credentials, quality of competition, sportsmanship/citizenship and heart. The first three criteria are the primary criteria. The others are secondary criteria used to guide voters in a situation where two finalists have similar statistics.
Updated Statistical Look at Notable 2022 Hodge Trophy Candidates
The following list shows wrestlers who have earned All-American status before and are currently undefeated. The list also includes how many pins (P), technical falls (TF), major decisions (MD) and Forfeits/Defauts (F/Def) each wrestler has through Jan. 24. The final column shows the % of matches in which they’ve scored bonus points.
| Name | School | Year | W-L | Pins | TF | MD | F/Def | Bonus % |
125 pounds
| Vito Arujau | Cornell | So. | 6-0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 83.3% |
| Pat Glory | Princeton | Jr. | 6-0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 50% |
133 pounds
| Roman Bravo-Young | Penn State | Jr. | 10-0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 60% |
| Daton Fix | Oklahoma State | Jr. | 10-0 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 80% |
| Austin DeSanto | Iowa | Sr. | 12-0 | 0 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 75% |
141 pounds
| Nick Lee | Penn State | Sr. | 10-0 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 70% |
| Jaydin Eierman | Iowa | Sr. | 12-0 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 50% |
| Sebastian Rivera | Rutgers | Gr. | 18-0 | 2 | 11 | 3 | 2 | 100% |
149 pounds
| Yianni Diakomihalis | Cornell | Jr. | 11-0 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 81.2% |
| Tariq Wilson | NC State | Sr. | 7-0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 28.5% |
157 pounds
| David Carr | Iowa State | So. | 12-0 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 75% |
| Ryan Deakin | Northwestern | Gr. | 7-0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 42.8% |
| Jacori Teemer | Arizona State | Jr. | 11-0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 36.3% |
165 pounds
| Evan Wick | Cal Poly | Sr. | 10-0 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 70% |
| Keegan O’Toole | Missouri | RSFr. | 14-0 | 5 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 85.7% |
174 pounds
| Carter Starocci | Penn State | RSFr | 13-0 | 2 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 76.9% |
| Michael Kemerer | Iowa | Gr. | 5-0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 60% |
| Mekhi Lewis | Virginia Tech | So. | 13-0 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 69.2% |
| Hayden Hidlay | NC State | Sr. | 7-0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 71.4% |
184 pounds
| Aaron Brooks | Penn State | So. | 11-0 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 72.7% |
| Trent Hidlay | NC State | So. | 8-0 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 87,5% |
197 pounds
| A.J. Ferrari | Oklahoma State | RSFr | 10-0 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 70% |
Heavyweight
| Gable Steveson | Minnesota | Jr. | 6-0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 100% |
| Cohlton Schultz | Arizona State | RSFr. | 11-0 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 72.7% |
| Greg Kerkvliet | Penn State | RSFr. | 11-0 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 81.8% |
Source: wrestlestat.com
All-Time Hodge Trophy Winners
| Year | Name | School |
| 2021 | Spencer Lee | Iowa |
| & | Gable Steveson | Minnesota |
| 2020 | Spencer Lee | Iowa |
| 2019 | Bo Nickal | Penn State |
| 2018 | Zain Retherford | Penn State |
| 2017 | Zain Retherford | Penn State |
| 2016 | Alex Dieringer | Oklahoma State |
| 2015 | Logan Stieber | Ohio State |
| 2014 | David Taylor | Penn State |
| 2013 | Kyle Dake | Cornell U. |
| 2012 | David Taylor | Penn State |
| 2011 | Jordan Burroughs | Nebraska |
| 2010 | Jayson Ness | Minnesota |
| 2009 | Jake Herbert | Northwestern |
| 2008 | Brent Metcalf | Iowa |
| 2007 | Ben Askren | Missouri |
| 2006 | Ben Askren | Missouri |
| 2005 | Steve Mocco | Oklahoma State |
| 2004 | Emmett Willson | Mont. State-Northern |
| 2003 | Eric Larkin | Arizona State |
| 2002 | Cael Sanderson | Iowa State |
| 2001 | Cael Sanderson | Iowa State |
| & | Nick Ackerman | Simpson College |
| 2000 | Cael Sanderson | Iowa State |
| 1999 | Stephen Neal | CSU Bakersfield |
| 1998 | Mark Ironside | Iowa |
| 1997 | Kerry McCoy | Penn State |
| 1996 | Les Gutches | Oregon State |
| 1995 | T.J. Jaworsky | North Carolina |
