New NWCA Div. I Poll released; Cy-Hawk Dual captures nation’s attention; Gophers move past Jackrabbits

Manheim, Pennsylvania – Two of the three Division I duals in action over the Thanksgiving holiday featured ranked teams and the biggest came in Ames as No. 4 Iowa knocked off No. 8 Iowa State 18-14 before 14,267 fans at Hilton Coliseum.

Neither team moved in the most recent NWCA Division I Men’s Wrestling Coaches Poll released on Tuesday, but Minnesota’s 19-13 win at home over South Dakota State did impact the rankings.

The Cy-Hawk dual was the first regular season dual in college wrestling history to be aired on ESPN’s main channel. The NCAA Division I Men’s Wrestling Championships have been shown live on ESPN since 2004 and duals have been featured on ESPN2 and ESPNU in recent years. The crowd was the fifth-largest in Hilton Coliseum history and the first dual in Ames to draw over 14,000 fans since February 19, 1982, which was also an Iowa-Iowa State dual.

Minnesota (4-0) moved up to No. 12 this week, leapfrogging Rutgers and South Dakota State. The Gophers were slight underdogs coming in against the then-No. 12 Jackrabbits. South Dakota State (3-1) settled at No. 14 in this week’s rankings.

Maryland did slide into the Top 25 for the first time this season after an off week. The Terps are 1-1 this season. Wisconsin (1-1) dropped out of the poll this week.

Methodology: The NWCA Division I Men’s 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 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. Teams who are not competing this season are not included in the voting process.

NWCA Division I Men's Wrestling Coaches Poll

November 28, 2023

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

1 Penn State (0-0) 350 Big Ten 1

2 NC State (7-0) 320 ACC 2

3 Missouri (1-0) 318 Big 12 3

4 Iowa (3-0) 301 Big Ten 4

5 Ohio State (4-0) 290 Big Ten 5

6 Cornell (1-0) 274 EIWA 7

7 Michigan (2-0) 270 Big Ten 6

8 Iowa State (3-1) 252 Big 12 8

9 Nebraska (2-0) 250 Big Ten 9

10 Virginia Tech (2-1) 236 ACC 10

11 Oklahoma State (1-0) 212 Big 12 11

12 Minnesota (4-0) 195 Big Ten 13

13 Rutgers (2-1) 172 Big Ten 14

14 South Dakota State (3-1) 171 Big 12 12

15 Oregon State (3-1) 140 Pac-12 15

16 Northern Iowa (0-0) 135 Big 12 16

17 Navy (4-0) 119 EIWA 17

18 Oklahoma (3-0) 116 Big 12 18

19 Pittsburgh (4-1) 90 ACC 19

20 Lehigh (0-1) 65 EIWA 20

21 West Virginia (4-0) 60 Big 12 21

22 Arizona State (1-2) 41 Pac-12 23

23 North Carolina (5-2) 40 ACC 22

24 Stanford (2-0) 25 Pac-12 25

25 Maryland (1-1) 15 Big Ten NR

Others Receiving Votes: Indiana 14, Penn 14, Campbell 13, Northwestern 11, Wisconsin 11, Illinois 10, Cal Poly 9, Northern Colorado 6, Purdue 5.

Dropped out: No. 24 Wisconsin (1-1)