NWCA Div. I Coaches Poll update: No. 1 Penn State, No. 2 Iowa unbeaten heading into Friday’s Big Ten clash

Manheim, Pennsylvania – Penn State and Iowa both passed conferences tests this past week that kept them atop the most recent NWCA Division I Wrestling Coaches Poll released Tuesday.


Penn State’s Bryce Jordan Center hosted the 8th largest dual crowd in NCAA wrestling history and the Nittany Lion faithful came away pleased as top-ranked Penn State (10-0) won eight out of 10 bouts to blast third-ranked Michigan 30-8.


Nearly 800 miles due west, second-ranked Iowa improved to 12-0 after thumping No. 11 Nebraska 33-6 in front of a sellout crowd of 14,905 at Iowa’s Carver-Hawkeye Arena. The two best-drawing schools will tangle this Friday at 8:30 Eastern at the Bryce Jordan Center.


It will be the third straight meeting between the two teams during the regular season where the teams are ranked No. 1-2 in the nation but it will be the first meeting between the two teams at the Bryce Jordan Center with the teams holding the top two spots in the rankings. Penn State holds the NCAA indoor dual meet attendance record at 15,998 on February 10, 2018 in a 28-13 win over No. 7 Iowa.


Penn State followed the Michigan win by beating No. 20 Michigan State 34-6 at Rec Hall while Iowa needed criteria to get past No. 16 Wisconsin 19-18 in front of a record crowd of 5,256 in Madison.


Despite the loss to Penn State, Michigan stayed at No. 3 as the Wolverines (8-1) got back on track with a 24-9 win at the-No. 24 Rutgers on Sunday. Iowa State remained fourth. The Cyclones (10-2) were idle.


The ACC had a top-10 showdown with then-No. 8 Virginia Tech edging fifth-ranked NC State 16-14 before a record crowd of almost 6,000 fans in Cassell Coliseum in Blacksburg, Virginia. The Hokies slid up to seventh while the Wolfpack slid one slot behind the Hokies at No. 8. Cornell (7-2) swept a pair of Ivy League duals to move up to No. 5. The Big Red beat Brown 35-6 and Harvard 27-12.

Ohio State improved to 9-1 after beating Maryland 38-6. Injury-plagued Arizona State (3-4) split this weekend’s action, falling at home to Cal Poly 18-15 before getting back on track with a 25-14 win at Stanford. The Sun Devils slid seven spots to No. 17 this week.

Oklahoma State (8-1) moved back into the top 10 after winning a pair of Big 12 duals. The Cowboys topped then-No. 23 West Virginia 28-7 and Northern Colorado 24-10.


Minnesota moved up to No. 12 as the Gophers beat then-No. 22 Indiana 28-6 and Purdue 20-12. No. 14 Northwestern needed criteria to get past rival Illinois 18-17 in Evanston. Pittsburgh (7-2) re-entered the Top 25 this week. The Panthers beat Virginia 25-6.

Ranked Teams in Duals This Week

Tuesday: Duke at No. 19 Appalachian State.

Friday: No. 2 Iowa at No. 1 Penn State, No. 6 Ohio State at No. 3 Michigan, No. 13 Wisconsin at No. 14 Northwestern, No. 18 South Dakota State at Northern Colorado, No. 21 Lehigh at Columbia, Oklahoma at No. 4 Iowa State, Duke at No. 5 NC State, No. 24 Pittsburgh at No. 7 Virginia Tech and Maryland at No. 22 Michigan State.

Saturday: No. 5 Cornell at Army West Point, No. 17 Arizona State at Lehigh, No. 10 Oklahoma State at No. 15 Northern Iowa, No. 20 Illinois at Minnesota.

Sunday: No. 5 Cornell at Columbia, No. 10 Oklahoma State at Northern Iowa, No. 14 Northwestern at No. 23 Rutgers, No. 13 Wisconsin at No. 11 Nebraska, No. 18 South Dakota State at Air Force, No. 22 Michigan State at No. 6 Ohio State, No. 25 Indiana at Purdue, Maryland at No. 3 Michigan, Oklahoma at Northern Iowa.

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.

NWCA Division I Wrestling Coaches Poll

January 24, 2023


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

1 Penn State (13) (10-0) 349 Big Ten 1

2 Iowa (1) (12-0) 337 Big Ten 2

3 Michigan (8-1) 320 Big Ten 3

4 Iowa State (10-2) 302 Big 12 4

5 Cornell (7-2) 281 EIWA 6

6 Ohio State (9-1) 276 Big Ten 7

7 Virginia Tech (7-2) 270 ACC 8

8 NC State (10-1) 266 ACC 5

9 Missouri (6-2) 242 Big 12 9

10 Oklahoma State (8-1) 211 Big 12 12

11 Nebraska (6-3) 209 Big Ten 11

12 Minnesota (10-2) 185 Big Ten 13

13 Wisconsin (7-5) 165 Big Ten 16

14 Northwestern (3-2) 161 Big Ten 14

15 Northern Iowa (4-2) 160 Big 12 15

16 North Dakota State (8-2) 143 Big 12 17

17 Arizona State (3-4) 125 Pac-12 10

18 South Dakota State (9-2) 123 Big 12 18

19 Appalachian State (6-2) 68 SoCon 21

20 Illinois (5-4) 62 Big Ten 25

21 Lehigh (6-7) 44 EIWA 19

22 Michigan State (7-4) 42 Big Ten 20

23 Rutgers (9-4) 41 Big Ten 24

24 Pittsburgh (7-2) 40 ACC NR

25 Indiana (6-2) 29 Big Ten 22

Dropped Out: No. 23 West Virginia (7-3).

Others Receiving Votes: West Virginia 28, Penn 23, Northern Colorado 12, Stanford 10, Maryland 8, Cal Poly 7, North Carolina 6, Oklahoma 3, Oregon State 2.