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Big Ten champ Penn State picked to also win NCAAs

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Updated: March 7, 2016

NEWTON, Iowa — One day after Penn State returned to the top of the Big Ten Conference, the Nittany Lions have been picked to also win the 2016 NCAA Division I Championships, based on WIN’s March 7 national rankings, presented by Cliff Keen Athletic.

The Nittany Lions, who yielded the top spot in both the Big Ten and NCAA tournaments in 2015 … after winning four straight conference and national titles (2011-14) … are projected to produce as many as two champions and six All-Americans (resulting in 97.5 points) at the 2016 Nationals, March 17-19, in New York City. That prediction is from WIN’s Tournament Power Index (TPI), which is based on WIN’s individual rankings and the NCAA points associated with those eventual national finishes, including Top 8/All-American placements.

WIN’s TPI point totals are broken down as follows: 1st – 20 (16 AA points + 4 advancement points); 2nd – 16 (12+4); 3rd – 13.5 (10+3.5); 4th – 12.5 (9+3.5); 5th – 10 (7+3); 6th – 9 (6+3); 7th – 6.5 (4+2.5); 8th – 5.5 (3+2.5). Additional points for other rankings include: 9th/12th – 2; 13th/16th – 1.5; 17th-20th – 1. TPI points will be lower than the final actual NCAA tournament points because it does not include bonus points.

Ranked behind Penn State is Big 12 champion Oklahoma State with six predicted All-Americans and 85.5 points and defending national champion Ohio State (5/76). The Buckeyes are followed by Virginia Tech, which is projected to claim the most All-Americans (7), tallying 71. 5 points.

There were also changes at the top of three individual weight classes: Big Ten champ Zain Retherford is picked No. 1 at 149 pounds after beating Iowa’s Brandon Sorensen; Illinois’ defending national champ Isaiah Martinez returned to number one at 157 pounds after edging Penn State’s Jason Nolf; and 2014 national champ J’den Cox of Missouri is tabbed to win a second national title at 197 after dominating the MAC tournament.

 

WIN’s March 7 Tournament Power Index

Rank College Top 8 TPI Pts
1 Penn State 6 97.5
2 Oklahoma State 6 85.5
3 Ohio State 5 76
4 Virginia Tech 7 71.5
5t Iowa 5 68.5
5t Missouri 6 68.5
7 Cornell 4 66
8 NC State 4 57.5
9 Illinois 4 54.5
10 Michigan 3 44.5
11 Lehigh 3 29
12 North Carolina 3 27
13 Wisconsin 2 26
14 Nebraska 3 25.5
15 Rutgers 2 23.5
16 Stanford 1 21.5
17 Oklahoma 1 19
18 Edinboro 1 17.5
19t Duke 1 16.5
19t Minnesota 1 16.5
21 Arizona State 1 16
22 Kent State 1 15.5
23t CSU Bakersfield 1 12
23t Oregon State 2 12
25 Northwestern 1 11.5
26 Virginia 1 10.5
27 Ohio U. 1 10
28 Appalachian State 1 9
29t Central Michigan 0 7
29t Navy 1 7
29t Purdue 1 7
29t South Dakota State 1 7
33t Iowa State 0 6.5
33t Northern Iowa 0 6.5
35 Old Dominion 0 4.5
36t Bucknell 0 4
36t Harvard 0 4
38t American 0 3.5
38t North Dakota State 0 3.5
38t Penn 0 3.5
38t Rider 0 3.5
42t Princeton 0 3
42t Indiana 0 3
42t West Virginia 0 3
45t Cleveland State 0 2.5
45t Wyoming 0 2.5
47t Boise State 0 2
47t Drexel 0 2
47t Franklin & Marshall 0 2
50t Army 0 1.5
50t Maryland 0 1.5
50t Michigan St 0 1.5
50t Campbell 0 1.5
54t Pitt 0 1
54t Northern Illinois 0 1
54t Clarion 0 1
54t Chattanooga 0 1
54t Northern Colorado 0 1
54t Lock Haven 0 1
54t Utah Valley 0 1
54t Columbia 0 1

 

 

WIN’s March 7 Individual Rankings

125 pounds

Rank Name School Year Prev
1. Nathan Tomasello Ohio State So. 1st
2. Nico Megaludis Penn State Sr. 4th
3. Thomas Gilman Iowa Jr. 2nd
4. Joey Dance Virginia Tech Jr. 3rd
5. Darian Cruz Lehigh So. 7th
6. Eddie Klimara Oklahoma State Sr. 5th
7. Barlow McGhee Missouri So. 11th
8. Ronnie Bresser Oregon State So. 8th
9. Ryan Millhof Oklahoma So. 9th
10. Tim Lambert Nebraska Jr. 12th
11. Dylan Peters Northern Iowa Jr. 6th
12. Paul Petrov Bucknell Sr. 14th
13. Josh Rodriguez North Dakota State Jr. 15th
14. Connor Schram Stanford So. 18th
15. Sean Fausz NC State RSFr. 17th
16. David Terao American U. Sr. 10th
17. Drew Templeman Wyoming Jr. 16th
18. Conor Youtsey Michigan Jr. NR
19. Zeke Moisey West Virginia So. 13th
20. Elijah Oliver Indiana Fr. 20th

 

133 pounds

Rank Name School Year Prev
1. Nahshon Garrett Cornell Sr. 1st
2. Cory Clark Iowa Jr. 3rd
3. Zane Richards Illinois Jr. 2nd
4. Cody Brewer Oklahoma Sr. 4th
5. Ryan Taylor Wisconsin Jr. 10th
6. George DiCamillo Virginia Jr. 6th
7. Jordan Conaway Penn State Sr. 5th
8. Eric Montoya Nebraska Jr. 8th
9. Earl Hall Iowa State Sr. 7th
10. Johnni DiJulius Ohio State Sr. 13th
11. Mack McGuire Kent State Jr. 9th
12. Anthony Giraldo Rutgers RSFr. 17th
13. Cameron Kelly Ohio U. Fr. 12th
14. Nathan Kraisser Campbell Jr. 18th
15. Geoffrey Alexander Maryland Sr. 11th
16. Dom Malone Northwestern Sr. 20th
17. Jade Rauser Utah Valley Sr. NR
18. Gary Wayne Harding Oklahoma State So. 16th
19. Dom Forys Pittsburgh So. NR
20. Rossi Bruno Michigan Sr. 14th

 

141 pounds

Rank Name School Year Prev
1. Dean Heil Oklahoma State So. 1st
2. Joey McKenna Stanford Fr. 2nd
3. Kevin Jack NC State So. 3rd
4. Micah Jordan Ohio State Fr. 4th
5. Solomon Chishko Virginia Tech RSFr. 5th
6. Anthony Ashnault Rutgers So. 6th
7. Joey Ward North Carolina Jr. 7th
8. Matt Manley Missouri Jr. 8th
9. Tommy Thorn Minnesota RSFr. 9th
10. Richard Durso Franklin & Marshall Sr. 10th
11. Todd Preston Harvard Sr. 11th
12. Randy Cruz Lehigh Jr. 13th
13. Chris Mecate Old Dominion Sr. 15th
14. Jimmy Gulibon Penn State Jr. 19th
15. Javier Gasca Michigan State So. 16th
16. Danny Sabatello Purdue Sr. NR
17. Steve Bleise Northern Illinois RSFr. NR
18. Zach Horan Central Michigan Sr. 17th
19. Anthony Abidin Nebraska Sr. 20th
20. Brock Zacherl Clarion Fr. NR

 

149 pounds

Rank Name School Year Prev
1. Zain Retherford Penn State So. 2nd
2. Brandon Sorensen Iowa So. 1st
3. Alex Pantaleo Michigan So. 6th
4. Lavion Mayes Missouri Jr. 4th
5. Jason Tsirtsis Northwestern Jr. 5th
6. Anthony Collica Oklahoma State Jr. 7th
7. Jake Sueflohn Nebraska Sr. 3rd
8. Evan Henderson North Carolina Sr. 9th
9. Matt Cimato Drexel Jr. 11th
10. Michael DePalma Kent State Sr. 19th
11. Justin Oliver Central Michigan RSFr. 8th
12. Geo Martinez Boise State So. 12th
13. Alex Richardson Old Dominion Sr. 10th
14. Jake Short Minnesota So. 15th
15. Tyson Dippery Rutgers So. 20th
16. Mitch Finesilver Duke So. 13th
17. Dan Neff Lock Haven Sr. NR
18. B.J. Clagon Rider So. 14th
19. Matt Kraus Arizona State Sr. 17th
20. Davion Jeffries Oklahoama Fr. NR

 

157 pounds

Rank Name School Year Prev
1. Isaiah Martinez Illinois So. 2nd
2. Jason Nolf Penn State RSFr. 1st
3. Thomas Gantt NC State Sr. 3rd
4. Joe Smith Oklahoma State Fr. 8th
5. Ian Miller Kent State Sr. 4th
6. Dylan Palacio Cornell Jr. 7th
7. Nick Brascetta Virginia Tech Sr. 6th
8. Cody Pack South Dakota State Sr. 5th
9. Brian Murphy Michigan So. 10th
10. John Boyle American U. Sr. 12th
11. Dylan Cottrell West Virginia Jr. 13th
12. Edwin Cooper Iowa Sr. 15th
13. Richie Lewis Rutgers Jr. 9th
14. Austin Matthews Edinboro So. NR
15. Bryce Steiert Northern Iowa Fr. 14th
16. Jake Ryan Ohio State RSFr. 17th
17. May Bethea Penn So. 20th
18. Chad Walsh Rider So. 18th
19. Markus Scheidel Columbia Jr. 19th
20. Luke Smith Central Michigan Sr. 16th

 

165 pounds

Rank Name School Year Prev
1. Alex Dieringer Oklahoma State Sr. 1st
2. Isaac Jordan Wisconsin Jr. 2nd
3. Bo Jordan Ohio State So. 3rd
4. Daniel Lewis Missouri RSFr. 5th
5. Stephen Rodriguez Illinois Sr. 4th
6. Max Rohskopf NC State Jr. 6th
7. Anthony Perrotti Rutgers Sr. 7th
8. Chad Welch Purdue Sr. 8th
9. Tanner Weatherman Iowa State Sr. 9th
10. Austin Wilson Nebraska Sr. 10th
11. Devon Gabbo Harvard Sr. NR
12. Jim Wilson Stanford Jr. 14th
13. Ryan Preisch Lehigh Fr. 12th
14. John Staudenmayer North Carolina Sr. 15th
15. Cooper Moore Northern Iowa Jr. 13th
16. Jake Faust Duke So. 17th
17. Duke Pickett Cornell Sr. 11th
18. Clark Glass Oklahoma Jr. 18th
19. Dave McFadden Virginia Tech Fr. 19th
20. Adam Fierro CSU Bakersfield Sr. NR

 

174 pounds

Rank Name School Year Prev
1. Bo Nickal Penn State RSFr. 1st
2. Brian Realbuto Cornell Jr. 2nd
3. Ethan Ramos North Carolina So. 5th
4. Zach Epperly Virginia Tech So. 3rd
5. Blaise Butler Missouri Sr. 8th
6. Zac Brunson Illinois Jr. 4th
7. Cody Walters Ohio U. Sr. 7th
8. Myles Martin Ohio State RSFr. 15th
9. Bryce Hammond CSU Bakersfield Sr. 10th
10. Mike Ottinger Central Michigan Sr. 11th
11. Nate Jackson Indiana Jr. 12th
12. Alex Meyer Iowa Jr. 6th
13. Brian Harvey Army Sr. 17th
14. Lelund Weatherspoon Iowa State Jr. 20th
15. Matt Reed Oklahoma Jr. 16th
16. Jadaen Bernstein Navy So. 18th
17. Chandler Rogers Oklahoma State RSFr. NR
18. Casey Kent Penn Sr. 13th
19. Nick Wanzek Minnesota So. 19th
20. Jon Schleifer Princeton So. 14th

 

184 pounds

Rank Name School Year Prev
1. Gabe Dean Cornell Jr. 1st
2. Victor Avery Edinboro Sr. 2nd
3. Blake Stauffer Arizona State Sr. 4th
4. Domenic Abounader Michigan Jr. 5th
5. Nathaniel Brown Lehigh Sr. 3rd
6. Zack Zavatsky Virginia Tech So. 6th
7. Sammy Brooks Iowa Jr. 12th
8. Matt Miller Navy Sr. 10th
9. Nolan Boyd Oklahoma State Jr. 9th
10. Timothy Dudley Nebraska Jr. 7th
11. Hayden Zillmer North Dakota State Sr. 8th
12. Pete Renda NC State Jr. 11th
13. Jack Dechow Old Dominion Jr. 14th
14. Matt McCutcheon Penn State So. 17th
15. Lorenzo Thomas Penn Sr. 15th
16. Willie Miklus Missouri So. 13th
17. Jordan Ellingwood Central Michigan So. NR
18. Nicholas Gravina Rutgers So. 19th
19. Jeff Koepke Illinois Jr. 16th
20. Kenny Courts Ohio State Sr. 18th

 

197 pounds

Rank Name School Year Prev
1. J’den Cox Missouri Jr. 2nd
2. Morgan McIntosh Penn State Sr. 1st
3. Conner Hartmann Duke Sr. 4th
4. Nathan Burak Iowa Sr. 5th
5. Brett Pfarr Minnesota Jr. 3rd
6. Reuben Franklin CSU Bakersfield Sr. 6th
7. Jared Haught Virginia Tech So. 7th
8. Aaron Studebaker Nebraska Jr. 9th
9. Phillip Wellington Ohio U. Sr. 11th
10. Mike Boykin NC State So. 10th
11. Max Huntley Michigan Sr. 8th
12. Brett Harner Princeton Jr. 13th
13. Zach Nye Virginia Sr. 14th
14. Kyle Conel Kent State RSFr. 16th
15. Ryan Wolfe Rider Jr. 20th
16. Nate Rotert South Dakota State So. 15th
17. Preston Weigel Oklahoma State RSFr. NR
18. Sam Wheeler Cleveland State Sr. 18th
19. Pat Downey Iowa State Jr. NR
20. Trent Noon Northern Colorado Sr. 17th

 

Heavyweight

Rank Name School Year Prev
1. Kyle Snyder Ohio State So. 1st
2. Nick Gwiazdowski NC State Sr. 2nd
3. Ty Walz Virginia Tech Jr. 3rd
4. Adam Coon Michigan Jr. 4th
5. Austin Marsden Oklahoma State Sr. 5th
6. Denzel Dejournette Appalachian State Sr. 6th
7. Amarveer Dhesi Oregon State So. 8th
8. Max Wessell Lehigh Sr. 9th
9. Michael Kroells Minnesota Jr. 10th
10. Billy Smith Rutgers Sr. 11th
11. Joe Stolfi Bucknell Sr. 14th
12. Nathan Butler Stanford So. 15th
13. Tanner Hall Arizona State Fr. 12th
14. Blaize Cabell Northern Iowa Sr. 13th
15. Riley Shaw Cleveland State Sr. 16th
16. Tanner Harms Wyoming xx NR
17. Ross Larson Oklahoma Jr. 18th
18. Jared Johnson Chattanooga Jr. 20th
19. Brooks Black Illinois Jr. NR
20. Colin Jensen Nebraska Jr. 19th