Honestly, if you weren't in Evanston this past March, you missed arguably the most chaotic weekend in recent college wrestling history. People love to talk about the "Penn State dominance" like it’s a foregone conclusion. And yeah, the Nittany Lions walked away with the trophy. But looking at the Big Ten wrestling championships 2025 brackets, the scoreboard doesn't actually tell the whole story of how close the wheels came to falling off for the favorites.
It was March 8-9 at Welsh-Ryan Arena. Northwestern hosted. The air in that gym was thick, mostly because half the brackets got flipped on their heads by Saturday night. You've got guys like Carter Starocci chasing history, but then you've got these "landmine" seeds in the middle of the brackets that basically ruined everyone's Pick 'Em pools.
The Penn State Statistical Wall
Cael Sanderson’s squad put up 181.5 points. That’s a new school record. They didn't just win; they essentially built a fortress. But if you look at the individual paths, it wasn't exactly a cakewalk. They pushed six guys into the finals and came away with five individual titles.
Penn State's champions:
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- 125: Luke Lilledahl (The freshman everyone was worried about? He's real.)
- 157: Tyler Kasak
- 165: Mitchell Mesenbrink (Defended his title, still looks untouchable.)
- 174: Levi Haines (Now a three-time champ.)
- 184: Carter Starocci (Also a three-time B1G champ now.)
Lilledahl's run was the one that felt different. Being a true freshman at 125 in this conference is usually a recipe for a "learning year." Instead, he takes out Nebraska’s Caleb Smith in a 4-3 grinder. It was tactical. Boring to some, maybe, but a masterclass in post-season positioning.
The Gable Steveson Factor at Heavyweight
Most of the talk going into the weekend was about the return of the king. Gable Steveson coming back to Minnesota for one last ride basically froze the 285-pound bracket. Greg Kerkvliet is a world-class athlete—he’s the reigning NCAA champ—and Gable handled him 10-3 in the finals.
It sorta felt like watching a pro among college kids again. Gable became the program's second four-time Big Ten Champion. If you were looking at that bracket hoping for an upset, you were probably disappointed, but you were watching history. Kerkvliet is incredible, but Gable’s movement at that size is just... it’s not normal.
Where the Brackets Broke: Upsets and Near-Misses
The 133 and 141 brackets were where the real madness happened.
At 133, Drake Ayala from Iowa was the top seed and looked like he was cruising. Then he hits Lucas Byrd from Illinois in the final. Byrd didn't just win; he stuck him. A pin at 3:16. The Illinois bench went absolutely feral. It was the loudest the arena got all weekend. Byrd had never won a Big Ten title before, and to do it by pinning the #1 seed from Iowa is the stuff of legends.
Then you have 141. Nebraska’s Brock Hardy has been the "almost" guy for a bit. He finally got his moment, pinning Minnesota's Vance Vombaur in under two minutes. Nebraska actually finished second as a team with 137 points. People keep sleeping on the Huskers, but they put five guys in the top four.
The 197-Pound Shakeup
If you want to talk about a bracket that didn't go to plan, look at 197. Jacob Cardenas from Michigan took out Stephen Buchanan of Iowa. 4-2 decision. Michigan has had a bit of a transition year, but Cardenas becoming their first champ since 2021 was a huge bright spot for the Wolverines. Buchanan was the #1 seed and hadn't lost a match all year (21-0) until that final whistle.
Reality Check: The Team Race
While Nebraska and Iowa (112 points) fought for the scraps, Penn State was playing a different game.
- Penn State: 181.5
- Nebraska: 137.0
- Iowa: 112.0
- Minnesota: 108.5
- Illinois: 105.5
Illinois finishing fifth is actually a massive deal. They haven't been in that top-five conversation for a minute. Lucas Byrd's title and Kannon Webster’s run to the 149 finals (where he lost a 1-0 heartbreaker to Ridge Lovett) proved they’re building something legit in Champaign.
What This Taught Us About the 2025 Post-Season
The Big Ten wrestling championships 2025 brackets basically served as a blueprint for the NCAA tournament in Philadelphia. A few things became crystal clear:
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First, the "Freshman Wall" is a myth for elite programs. Lilledahl (PSU) and Max McEnelly (Minnesota) proved that. McEnelly lost to Starocci in sudden victory (8-5) in the 184 final, but he looked like a future multiple-time champ doing it. He won Big Ten Freshman of the Year for a reason.
Second, the Big Ten is still top-heavy but deeper than ever. Look at the 157-pound bracket. Tyler Kasak won it, but the guys finishing 3rd through 6th (Joey Blaze, Antrell Taylor, Tommy Askey, Ethen Miller) could all arguably be All-Americans. There are no "easy" rounds in this conference.
Actionable Insights for Fans and Bettors
- Watch the 149 weight class: Ridge Lovett is the king of the 1-0 win. If you're tracking him, don't expect fireworks; expect a suffocating ride and zero mistakes.
- Heavyweight isn't settled: Even though Gable won, the battle for 2nd and 3rd between Kerkvliet and Ben Kueter (Iowa) is where the real intrigue is for the national podium.
- The Illinois "Byrd" Effect: Lucas Byrd is a momentum wrestler. When he gets a turn or a pin early, he becomes a nightmare for the rest of the tournament.
The most important thing to remember about these brackets is that they are living documents. A guy who finished 5th in Evanston usually finds a way to finish 3rd or 4th in the country because they've already survived the hardest tournament on the planet.
If you're looking to analyze the results further, keep an eye on the "true placement" matches. Guys like Matt Ramos (Purdue) at 125, who took 3rd, are often more dangerous in the NCAA back-draw than the guys who lost in the finals. They've already had their "bad" match and recovered.
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Moving forward, the focus shifts to how these Big Ten allocations (like the 10 spots at 133 and 285) impact the national seeds. The conference dominates the at-large bids, but the internal "meat grinder" of the Big Ten tournament often leaves teams battered right before the biggest weekend of the year.