Penn State, Iowa, ASU tabbed as Pre-season Top 3 in WIN’s Rankings

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Updated: October 3, 2022

Photo: Penn State featured five individual champions en route to claiming the 2022 NCAA team title last March in Detroit, Mich. Four return and are ranked No. l in WIN’s pre-season rankings. (WIN photo)

October 3, 2023

NEWTON, Iowa — Penn State, Iowa and Arizona State have been tabbed as the top three programs in WIN Magazine’s 2023 Pres-eason Tournament Power Index and Individual Rankings, presented by Cliff Keen Athletic.

WIN’s Tournament Power Index is a tally of potential NCAA placement points based on where wrestlers are ranked in the pre-season. This year’s NCAA Championships will take place, March 16-18, in Tulsa, Okla. The following is a point breakdown of the TPI, based on a wrestler’s ranking: 20 for 1st, 16 for 2nd, 13.5 for 3rd, 12.5 for 4th, 10 for 5th, 9 for 6th, 6.5 for 7th and 5.5 for 8th. Wrestlers ranked 9-12 earn two points each, followed by 1.5 points for wrestlers ranked 13-16 and 1 point for those ranked 17-20.

The Nittany Lions — the 2022 defending champs — feature six ranked wrestlers in WIN’s ratings. That includes four defending national champions: Roman Bravo-Young (133 pounds), Carter Starocci (174), Aaron Brooks (184) and Max Dean (197). Along with Beau Bartlett (17th at 141) and Greg Kerkvliet (3rd at heavyweight), Penn State earned 97 TPI points.

Iowa edged Arizona State by a 2.5-point margin (74.5-72) for second and third place in the pre-season TPI. The Hawkeyes and Sun Devils finished third and fourth, respectively, in the 2022 NCAAs.

The Hawkeyes have eight ranked wrestlers, including five rated in the Top 8 of their weights, which would earn them All-American honors at the NCAAs. That included three-time NCAA champion Spencer Lee (ranked No. 1 at 125), who missed last season because of injury, as well as 2022 NCAA finalist Jacob Warner (2nd at 197), All-American Anthony Cassioppi (4th at Hwt), Stanford-transfer Real Woods (2nd at 141) and Max Murin (7th at 149).

The Sun Devils also have eight ranked wrestlers, five in the Top 8. That includes heavyweight Cohlton Schultz, who finished second in the 2022 NCAAs and is the top-ranked heavyweight in the pre-season rankings with 2022 Hodge winner Gable Steveson of Minnesota opting out at this point of his last year of eligibility to wrestle professionally.  Other returning All-Americans include Brandon Courtney (ranked sixth at 125), Michael McGee (3rd at 133), Kyle Parco (6th at 149) and Jacori Teemer (2nd at 157).

Eight former champions are ranked in WIN’s pre-season rankings, including Cornell Yianni Diakomihalis (149), who is also shooting for a fourth all-time NCAA title. Meanwhile, 165 pounds features three former national champions: Missouri’s defending champ Keegan O’Toole, Stanford’s Shane Griffith (who won in 2021 and finished second in 2022) and Iowa State’s David Carr (the 157-pound champ in 2021 who has moved up a weight).

Weight classes are subject to change and WIN will update its pre-season rankings on Nov. 1.

WIN’s 2022-23 NCAA Div. I Preseason Tournament Power Index (TPI)

 

Rk. School Total Rank Top 8 TPI Pts
1. Penn State 6 5 97
2. Iowa 8 5 74.5
3. Arizona State 8 5 72
4. Missouri 7 5 53.5
5. Cornell 7 4 52.5
6. Minnesota 7 3 49
7. Michigan 7 4 47
8. Nebraska 4 3 43.5
9. Ohio State 8 3 43
10. Oklahoma State 7 2 39
11. Iowa State 6 3 36.5
12. Northwestern 5 3 36
13. Wisconsin 6 5 35.5
14. Pitt 4 3 33.5
15. Virginia Tech 3 3 31.5
16. NC State 7 2 28
17. North Carolina 5 2 26.5
18. Penn 7 2 25
19t. Northern Iowa 6 1 24
19t. Princeton 4 2 24
21. Stanford 3 1 19
22. Lehigh 6 2 17.5
23. Wyoming 3 1 17
24t. Cal Poly 3 1 15.5
24t. Illinois 3 1 15.5
26. Oregon State 3 2 13.5
27. South Dakota Sate 4 1 13
28t. Appalachian State 2 1 11
28t. Rutgers 4 1 11
30. Utah Valley 2 1 10.5
31. Northern Colorado 1 1 10
32. West Virginia 3 1 9.5
33t. Air Force 1 1 9
33t. Michigan State 4 1 9
35. Oklahoma 5 0 8
36 Purdue` 4 0 7.5
37. North Dakota State 4 0 6
38. Drexel 1 1 5.5
39. Columbia 2 0 3.5
40t. Campbell 3 0 3
40t. Rider 2 0 3
40t. Virginia 3 0 3
43t. Central Michigan 2 0 2
43t. CS Bakersfield 1 0 2
43t Harvard 1 0 2
43t Lock Haven 2 0 2
43t Navy 2 0 2
48t. Army 1 0 1.5
48t. Binghamton 1 0 1.5
50. Cleveland State 1 0 1

WIN’s 2022-23 Preseason Individual Rankings

125 pounds                                                                                                                                                                    

Wt Name School Year 2022 NCAA
1 Spencer Lee Iowa Sr Injured/3-time champ
2 Pat Glory Princeton Sr. 2nd
3 Vitali Arujau Cornell Jr. 3rd
4 Michael DeAugustino Northwestern Sr. 4th
5 Pat McKee Minnesota Sr. 5th
6 Brandon Courtney Arizona State Gr. 6th
7 Eric Barnett Wisconsin Sr. 7th
8 Brandon Kaylor Oregon State Jr. 8th
9 Killian Cardinale West Virginia Sr. R12
10 Noah Surtin Missouri So. R12
11 Trevor Mastrogiovanni Oklahoma State Jr. R24
12 Matt Ramos Purdue So. R12/133
13 Joey Prata Oklahoma Gr. R12
14 Malik Heinselman Ohio State Sr. R24
15 Dylan Shawver Rutgers So. R16
16 Jakob Camacho NC State Jr. R16
17 Jaret Lane Lehigh Sr. Injured
18 Anthony Noto Lock Haven So. R24
19 Jack Medley Michigan Gr. NQ in 2021
20 Kysen Terukina Iowa State Jr. R32

133 pounds                                                                                                                             

Wt Name School Year 2022 NCAA
1 Roman Bravo-Young Penn State Gr. 1st
2 Daton Fix Oklahoma State Sr. 2nd
3 Michael McGee Arizona State Sr. 4th
4 Lucas Byrd Illinois So. 5th
5 Chris Cannon Northwestern Jr. 7th
6 Dylan Ragusin Michigan So. R12
7 Micky Phillippi Pitt Sr. R12
8 RayVon Foley Michigan State Gr. R24
9 Michael Colaiocco Penn Jr. R24
10 Kyle Biscoglia Northern Iowa Jr. R24
11 Kai Orine NC State So. R16
12 Chance Rich CS-Bakersfield Jr. R16
13 Haiden Drury Utah Valley So. R24
14 Richie Koehler Rider Sr. R16
15 Malyke Hines Lehigh So. R32
16 Jamie Hernandez North Carolina Gr. Reserve
17 Cullan Schriever Iowa So. Reserve
18 Josh Konderhandt Navy So. R24
19 Sammy Alvarez Rutgers Jr. NQ in 2020
20 Anthony Madrigal Oklahoma Gr. R32

141 pounds                                                                                                                             

Wt Name School Year 2022 NCAA
1 Cole Matthews Pitt Sr. 5th
2 Real Woods Iowa Sr. 6th (Stanford)
3 Jakob Bergeland Minnesota Gr. 7th
4 CJ Composto Penn Jr. 8th
5 Andrew Alirez Northern Colorado Jr. R12
6 Clay Carlson South Dakota State Sr. R12
7 Allan Hart Missouri Sr. R24
8 Ryan Jack NC State So. R16
9 Carter Young Oklahoma State So. R32
10 Dylan Droegemueller North Dakota State Sr. R16
11 Matt Kazmir Columbia Sr. R24
12 Joseph Zargo Wisconsin So. R24
13 Frankie Tal Shahar Northwestern Jr. R24
14 Dylan D’Emilio Ohio State Jr. R24
15 Quinn Kinner Rider Jr. R24
16 Parker Filius Purdue Gr. R24
17 Beau Bartlett Penn State Jr. R24/149
18 Cole Mattin Michigan Jr. Reserve
19 Shannon Hanna Campbell Sr. R32
20 Jesse Vasquez Arizona State So. Injured

149 pounds                                                                                                                             

Wt Name School Year 2022 NCAA
1 Yianni Diakomihalis Cornell Sr. 1st
2 Ridge Lovett Nebraska Jr. 2nd
3 Austin Gomez Wisconsin Sr. 4th
4 Sammy Sasso Ohio State Sr. 5th
5 Jon Millner Appalachian State Sr. 6th
6 Kyle Parco Arizona State So. 8th
7 Max Murin Iowa Sr. R12
8 Anthony Artalona Penn Sr. R12
9 Yahya Thomas Northwestern Gr. R12/3rd in 2021
10 Willie McDougald Oklahoma So. R16
11 Jaden Abas Stanford Jr. R24
12 Michael Blockhus Minnesota Sr. R24
13 Zach Sherman North Carolina Gr. R24
14 Dom Demas Cal Poly Sr. Transfer/Oklahoma
15 Jarod Verkleeren Virginia Gr. Transfer/Penn State
16 Colin Realbuto Northern Iowa Jr. R16
17 Corbyn Munson Central Michigan Sr. R32
18 Marcus Robinson Cleveland State So. R24
19 Manzona Bryant Lehigh Jr. Reserve
20 Marshall Keller Princeton Sr. R32

157 pounds                                                                                                                             

Wt Name School Year 2022 NCAA
1 Brayton Lee Minnesota Sr. Injured
2 Jacori Teemer Arizona State Jr. 6th
3 Peyton Robb Nebraska Jr. 4th
4 Austin O’Connor North Carolina Gr. 8th
5 Bryan Andonian Virginia Tech Sr. 3rd/149
6 Will Lewan Michigan Sr. 5th
7 Brock Mauler Missouri Jr. RS/AA in 2021/149
8 Josh Humphreys Lehigh Sr. R12
9 Ed Scott NC State So. R12
10 Jared Franek North Dakota State Sr. R12
11 Kendell Coleman Purdue Sr. R32
12 Wyatt Sheets Oklahoma State Gr. R24
13 Jake Keating Virginia Sr. R16
14 Jacob Wright Wyoming Gr. R24
15 Dazjon Casto Pitt Sr. R12/Citadel
16 Doug Zapf Penn Sr. R24
17 Johnny Lovett Central Michigan Jr. R16
18 Andrew Cerniglia Navy Jr. R32
19 Chase Saldate Michigan State Jr. R32
20 Derek Holschlag Northern Iowa Sr. R32

165 pounds                                                                                                                             

Wt Name School Year 2022 NCAA
1 Keegan O’Toole Missouri So. 1st
2 Shane Griffith Stanford Sr. 2nd
3 David Carr Iowa State Sr. 3rd/157
4 Cameron Amine Michigan Jr. 4th
5 Dean Hamiti Wisconsin So. 6th
6 Carson Kharchla Ohio State Jr. 7th
7 Peyton Hall West Virginia Jr. 8th
8 Quincy Monday Princeton Sr. 2nd/157
9 Julian Ramirez Cornell So. R12
0 Justin McCoy Virginia Sr. R12
11 Izzak Olenjnik Northern Illinois Sr. R16
12 Austin Yant Northern Iowa Sr. R16
13 Brevin Cassella Binghamton Jr. R24
14 Josh Ogunsanya Columbia Jr. R24
15 Bubba Wilson Nebraska So. R24
16 Matt Olguin Oregon State So. R24
17 Lucas Revano Penn Jr. R24
18 William Formato Appalachian State Jr. R24
19 Patrick Kennedy Iowa So. Reserve
20 Cael Carlson Minnesota Jr. R32

174 pounds                                                                                                                             

Wt Name School Year 2022 NCAA
1 Carter Starocci Penn State Jr. 1st
2 Mekhi Lewis Virginia Tech Sr. 2nd
3 Dustin Plott Oklahoma State Jr. 6th
4 Mickey Labriola Nebraska Sr. 7th
5 Clay Lautt North Carolina Gr. 8th
6 Demetrius Romero Utah Valley Sr. Inj/6th in 2021
7 Jackson Turley Rutgers Jr. Inj/AA in 2021
8 Michael O’Malley Drexel Sr. R12
9 Peyton Mocco Missouri Jr. R12
10 Ethan Smith Ohio State Sr. R12
11 Hayden Hastings Wyoming Gr. R12
12 Philip Conigliaro Harvard Jr. R12/165
13 Lance Runyon Northern Iowa So. R16
14 Ben Pasiuk Army Jr. R24
15 Adam Kemp Cal Poly Jr. R24
16 Chris Foca Cornell Jr. R24
17 Nick Incontrera Penn So. R24
18 Cade DeVos South Dakota State Jr. R24
19 Tyler Eischens Stanford Sr. R24
20 Joel Devine Iowa State Sr. R32

  

184 pounds                                                                                                                             

Wt Name School Year 2022 NCAA
1 Aaron Brooks Penn State Sr. 1st
2 Parker Keckeisen Northern Iowa So. 3rd
3 Trent Hidlay NC State Jr. 5th
4 Kaleb Romero Ohio State Sr. 6th
5 Marcus Coleman Iowa State Sr. 7th
6 Jonathan Loew Cornell Sr. 8th
7 Trey Munoz Oregon State So. R12
8 Hunter Bolen Virginia Tech Sr. R12/7th in 2021
9 Travis Wittlake Oklahoma State Sr. AA in 2020 and ’21/165
10 Tate Samuelson Lehigh (Wyoming) Sr. R16
11 Keegan Moore Oklahoma Sr. R16
12 John Poznanski Rutgers So. R16
13 Anthony Montalvo Arizona State Jr. Transfer/Oklahoma St.
14 Abe Assad Iowa Jr. R24
15 Isaiah Salazar Minnesota Jr. R24
16 Travis Stefanik Princeton Sr. R24
17 Caleb Hopkins Campbell Sr. R24
18 Matt Finesilver Michigan (Duke) Gr. R16/174
19 Layne Malczewski Michigan State Sr. R32
20 Gavin Kane North Carolina So. R32

197 pounds                                                                                                                             

Wt Name School Year 2022 NCAA
1 Max Dean Penn State Sr. 1st
2 Jacob Warner Iowa Sr. 2nd
3 Stephen Buchanan Wyoming Sr. 3rd
4 Bernie Truax Cal Poly Jr. 4th/184
5 Rocky Elam Missouri So. 4th
6 Yonger Bastida Iowa State Jr. 5th
7 Michael Beard Lehigh So. AA (7th) in 2021 (Penn State)
8 Nino Bonaccorsi Pitt Sr. R12/2nd in 2021
9 Gavin Hoffman Ohio State Sr. 6th
10 Kordell Norfleet Arizona State Sr. R16
11 Thomas Penola Purdue Sr. R16
12 Isaac Trumble NC State Jr. R24
13 Tanner Sloan South Dakota State Sr. R24
14 Braxton Amos Wisconsin So. R24
15 Luke Surber Oklahoma State Jr. R24/Hwt
16 Cameron Caffey Michigan State Gr. R16
17 Jacob Cardenas Cornell Jr. R24
18 Zac Braunagel Illinois Jr. R12/184
19 Owen Pentz North Dakota State Jr. R24
20 Michael Foy Minnesota Gr. R32

Heavyweight                                                                                                                          

Wt Name School Year 2022 NCAA
1 Cohlton Schultz Arizona State So. 2nd
2 Greg Kerkvliet Penn State Jr. 4th
3 Mason Parris Michigan Sr. 5th
4 Tony Cassioppi Iowa Sr. 7th
5 Lucas Davison Northwestern Sr. 6th
6 Wyatt Hendrickson Air Force Jr. R16
7 Zach Elam Missouri Jr. R12
8 Lewis Fernandes Cornell Jr. R12
9 Tate Orndorff Ohio State Sr. R12
10 Trent Hillger Wisconsin Gr. R24
11 Sam Schuyler Iowa State Sr. R32
12 Luke Luffman Illinois Jr. R24
13 Tyrie Houghton NC State Sr. R24
14 AJ Nevills South Dakota State Gr. R24
15 Josh Heindselman Oklahoma Jr. R32
16 Ben Goldin Penn Sr. R24
17 Isaac Reid Lock Haven Jr. R24
18 Taye Ghadali Campbell Jr. R24
19 Brandon Metz North Dakota State Sr. R32
20 Michael Wolfgram West Virginia Jr. R32