Reigning Big Ten champion Ohio State kicks off its wrestling season this weekend as the second-ranked dual-meet team in the country, trailing rival Penn State and just ahead of Iowa in the first NWCA Division I Coaches Poll of the year.
Penn State, coming off its seventh NCAA championship of the past eight years, received all 16 first place votes. The Big Ten features four of the nation's top five teams, and 11 of the top 25 in the inaugural poll, administered by the National Wrestling Coaches Association.
The Buckeyes finished last season with a dual-meet record of 14-1, and were again national runners-up to Cael Sanderson's juggernaut Nittany Lions. Ohio State is the only team to interrupt Penn State's string of national titles, having earned the 2015 tournament crown.
Buckeye head coach Tom Ryan leads a team featuring five returning All Americans and led by past NCAA champion Myles Martin. The Buckeyes received 376 total points in the NWCA poll, ahead of Iowa's 365; the resurgent Hawkeyes finished 12-3 last season, and are headlined by 125-pound title contender Spencer Lee.
| Rank | Team (First) | 17-18 Rec. | Points | Conference |
Final Dual Rank 17-18 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Penn State (16) | 14-0 | 400 | Big Ten | 1 |
| 2 | Ohio State | 14-1 | 376 | Big Ten | 2 |
| 3 | Iowa | 12-3 | 365 | Big Ten | 7 |
| 4 | Oklahoma State | 13-2 | 353 | Big 12 | 5 |
| 5 | Michigan | 11-3 | 331 | Big Ten | 4 |
| 6 | Lehigh | 12-3 | 305 | EIWA | 8 |
| 7 | Missouri | 19-0 | 298 | MAC | 3 |
| 8 | NC State | 15-2 | 295 | ACC | 6 |
| 9 | Cornell | 13-2 | 259 | EIWA | 11 |
| 10 | Arizona State | 11-3 | 254 | Pac-12 | 9 |
| 11 | Virginia Tech | 14-3 | 245 | ACC | 10 |
| 12 | Nebraska | 10-4 | 230 | Big Ten | 13 |
| 13 | Minnesota | 10-8 | 203 | Big Ten | 18 |
| 14 | Northern Iowa | 6-5 | 201 | Big 12 | 15 |
| 15 | Illinois | 7-4 | 167 | Big Ten | 16 |
| 16 | Rutgers | 8-7 | 148 | Big Ten | 19 |
| 17 | Northwestern | 11-4 | 132 | Big Ten | 17 |
| 18 | Purdue | 9-7 | 114 | Big Ten | 21 |
| 19 | Wisconsin | 7-5 | 102 | Big Ten | 22 |
| 20 (tie) | South Dakota State | 13-2 | 85 | Big 12 | 12 |
| 20 (tie) | Lock Haven | 12-4 | 85 | EWL | 23 |
| 22 | Wyoming | 13-3 | 72 | Big 12 | 14 |
| 23 | North Carolina | 9-11 | 71 | ACC | 24 |
| 24 | Duke | 7-7 | 17 | ACC | NR |
| 25 | Appalachian State | 9-4 | 16 | SoCon | NR |
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.
Ohio State kicks off its dual-meet schedule Saturday versus the United States Naval Academy at McDonogh School in Owings Mills, Md., the alma mater of senior captain Myles Martin. Streaming will be available via FloWrestling. Five Buckeye meets will be televised this season, the most of any team in the country.
