North Dakota State breaks into Top 25 of NWCA Div. I Coaches Poll after weekend upset
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by Jason Bryant, NWCA

Manheim, Pennsylvania – The first weekend of Division I college wrestling came and went with North Dakota State making the biggest early-season statement with its 20-16 upset of then-No. 8 Nebraska on Friday in Lincoln.
The Bison (1-0) vaulted into the Top 25 for the first time this season at No. 19 as the latest NWCA Division I Wrestling Coaches Poll was released on Wednesday.
It’s the first time North Dakota State has been ranked in the NWCA Division first time since January 9, 2019 when they were ranked No. 23.
Missouri was the only Top 5 team in dual action over the weekend. The Tigers blanked Lindenwood 55-0 in a unique dual meet held outside at the school’s softball facility, The Diamond. The Tigers (1-0) moved up to No. 3 this week. There was some reorganization in the Top 10 as Iowa State went 3-0 in Jacksonville, Florida, including a resounding 26-6 win over then-No. 12 Wisconsin at The Battle in River City.
NC State (1-0) opened its season with a 26-12 home win over Appalachian State. Wisconsin slid one spot after the Iowa State loss, but the Badgers did pick up wins over Buffalo and Chattanooga to start the season. Lehigh went 2-0 with home wins over then-No. 19 Oregon State (20-13) and Sacred Heart (44-0). The only other ranked team in action was No. 25 Cal Poly, which defeated California Baptist 38-9.
Duals this Week
Nov. 11: It’ll be a battle of Top 10 squads as No. 4 Ohio State will host No. 10 Virginia Tech; Campbell will welcome No. 5 Michigan and No. 16 North Carolina in a unique event held at Fort Bragg in North Carolina. Rutgers will host Clarion, Pittsburgh is at Cleveland State, while top-ranked Penn State hosts Lock Haven.
Nov. 12: A number of ranked teams will be in action at Liberty High School in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania for WrangleMania. Nebraska will face Army West Point and NC State; NC State will also face Lock Haven, Rutgers will take on Arizona State and Sacred Heart, while Lehigh will face Oklahoma. Lehigh will face Oklahoma State at home prior to wrestling Oklahoma, and the Cowboys will head west after facing Lehigh to wrestle at Bucknell. California Baptist’s inaugural run in Division I gets tougher as they will face Iowa State in Ames.
Nov. 13: Second-ranked Iowa will host well-traveled California Baptist, Michigan will head to Chapel Hill to face North Carolina and Oregon State will host Division III Linfield and perennial NJCAA power Clackamas.
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 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.
Rank |
Team (First) |
Record |
Points |
Conf. |
Previous |
1 |
Penn State (12) |
(0-0) |
348 |
Big Ten |
1 |
2 |
Iowa (2) |
(0-0) |
337 |
Big Ten |
2 |
3 |
Missouri |
(1-0) |
310 |
Big 12 |
4 |
4 |
Ohio State |
(0-0) |
290 |
Big Ten |
6 |
5 |
Michigan |
(0-0) |
289 |
Big Ten |
5 |
6 |
Arizona State |
(0-0) |
285 |
Pac-12 |
3 |
7 |
Cornell |
(0-0) |
266 |
EIWA |
7 |
8 |
NC State |
(1-0) |
247 |
ACC |
9 |
9 |
Iowa State |
(3-0) |
236 |
Big 12 |
14 |
10 |
Virginia Tech |
(0-0) |
222 |
ACC |
11 |
11 |
Oklahoma State |
(0-0) |
221 |
Big 12 |
10 |
12 |
Minnesota |
(0-0) |
186 |
Big Ten |
13 |
13 |
Wisconsin |
(2-1) |
171 |
Big Ten |
12 |
14 |
Lehigh |
(2-0) |
151 |
EIWA |
17 |
15 |
Northwestern |
(0-0) |
149 |
Big Ten |
15 |
16 |
North Carolina |
(0-0) |
118 |
ACC |
16 |
17 |
Nebraska |
(0-1) |
117 |
Big Ten |
8 |
18 |
Pittsburgh |
(0-0) |
98 |
ACC |
18 |
19 |
North Dakota State |
(1-0) |
96 |
Big 12 |
NR |
20 |
Penn |
(0-0) |
78 |
EIWA |
21 |
21 |
Rutgers |
(0-0) |
77 |
Big Ten |
22 |
22 |
Northern Iowa |
(0-0) |
63 |
Big 12 |
20 |
23 |
Princeton |
(0-0) |
49 |
EIWA |
23 |
24 |
Oregon State |
(0-1) |
44 |
Pac-12 |
19 |
25 |
Cal Poly |
(1-0) |
23 |
Pac-12 |
24 |
Others receiving votes: South Dakota State 16, Purdue 15, Stanford 14, West Virginia 7, Appalachian State 6, Central Michigan 5, Wyoming 5, Campbell 4, Michigan State 4, Illinois 3.
Dropped out: No. 25 South Dakota State (0-0).