UNI, Illinois move up as NWCA Div. I Coaches Poll has changes heading into Thanksgiving

Manheim, Pennsylvania – Illinois and Northern Iowa were the top movers in this week’s NWCA Division I Men’s Wrestling Coaches Poll, released on Tuesday, after the teams picked up ranked wins last week.

Northern Iowa (1-0) moved up to No. 10 after a 16-15 criteria victory over then-No. 13 South Dakota State on Sunday at the UNI-Dome. The Panthers broke into the Top 10 for the first time since February 25, 2014, when they finished the season ranked fifth in the nation.

Illinois defeated a pair of ranked teams, topping then-No. 9 Missouri 23-14 in Champaign before hitting the road on Monday and beating then-No. 25 North Carolina 24-14. The Fighting Illini climbed to No. 13 this week.

In other dual meet action, No. 2 Iowa improved to 4-0 after a home win in the annual Cy-Hawk dual over No. 12 Iowa State, 21-15. It was Iowa’s 20th straight win over the Cyclones.

Oklahoma State improved to 4-0 after a pair of wins in the Big 12. On Friday, the Cowboys defeated Wyoming 32-6, followed by a 33-6 win over then-No. 23 Arizona State on Sunday, welcoming the Sun Devils into the conference.

No. 5 Ohio State topped Hofstra 38-6. No. 6 NC State beat visiting Utah Valley 23-16. No. 7 Virginia Tech dominated No. 17 Rutgers 26-1. No. 8 Michigan hit the road for a pair of duals, beating Duke 35-11 and Virginia 29-12. No. 10 Minnesota shut out back-to-back opponents and moved up to No. 9. The Gophers defeated North Dakota State 39-0 on Friday and Campbell 44-0 on Sunday.

In other action, No. 11 Cornell blanked Buffalo 37-0. West Virginia beat Appalachian State 37-8 and moved up one spot to No. 18 this week. No. 20 Little Rock defeated Northwestern 29-10. Pittsburgh climbed two spots to No. 19 after beating then-No. 18 Lehigh 21-12. The Mountain Hawks dropped to No. 21 after the loss. No. 22 Oklahoma defeated visiting Wyoming 27-6. Then-No. 24 Arizona State beat a pair of NAIA opponents, Arizona Christian and Embry-Riddle, on Friday. Then-No. 25 North Carolina defeated Division III Greensboro 47-3.

Methodology: The NWCA Division I 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 points 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.

NWCA Division I Men’s Wrestling Coaches Poll

November 26, 2024

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

1 Penn State (16) (1-0) 400 Big Ten 1

2 Iowa (4-0) 384 Big Ten 2

3 Oklahoma State (4-0) 359 Big 12 3

4 Nebraska (3-0) 353 Big Ten 4

5 Ohio State (3-0) 337 Big Ten 5

6 NC State (5-0) 316 ACC 6

7 Virginia Tech (3-0) 309 ACC 7

8 Michigan (3-0) 278 Big Ten 8

9 Minnesota (3-0) 272 Big Ten 10

10 Northern Iowa (1-0) 231 Big 12 14

11 Cornell (1-0) 229 Ivy League 11

12 Iowa State (1-2) 217 Big 12 12

13 Illinois (5-0) 213 Big Ten 16

14 South Dakota State (1-1) 196 Big 12 13

15 Missouri (1-2) 187 Big 12 9

16 Stanford (4-1) 160 ACC 15

17 Rutgers (3-2) 143 Big Ten 17

18 West Virginia (3-0) 127 Big 12 19

19 Pittsburgh (2-0) 112 ACC 21

20 Little Rock (3-0) 107 Pac-12 20

21 Lehigh (1-1) 76 EIWA 18

22 Oklahoma (2-0) 70 Big 12 22

23 Oregon State (1-2) 26 Pac-12 24

24 North Carolina (3-2) 23 ACC 25

25 Arizona State (3-2) 22 Big 12 23

Others Receiving Votes: Indiana 13, Maryland 12, Army West Point 11, Northern Colorado 9, Wyoming 6, Cal Poly 1, George Mason 1