The 2025 NCAA Wrestling Championships are onto the national finals and the matchups are set. We saw heavy favorites and some upstarts who managed to make the big stage.
The 2025 NCAA wrestling finals are set for Saturday, beginning at 7 p.m. ET. You can find the action on ESPN.
Without further ado, let’s dive into the matchups featuring a lot of history. Only 10 guys can lay claim to a national title and they’ll do battle tomorrow.
No. 4 Vince Robinson (NC State) vs. No. 7 Troy Spratley (Oklahoma State)
Both guys won by two points respectively. Robinson is in the finals in his first year in the varsity lineup, whole Oklahoma State got their first finalist with new head coach David Taylor at the helm. Expect fireworks between these two on Saturday.
No. 1 Lucas Byrd (Illinois) vs. No. 2 Drake Ayala (Iowa)
Bryd and Ayala are bound to scrap again right? Yup, it’s happening after both advanced Friday evening. This is a rematch of the Big Ten finals, won by Byrd who got the pin. One of these guys will be a first time champion.
No. 1 Brock Hardy (Nebraska) vs. No. 3 Jesse Mendez (Ohio State)
Hardy saw all the talk about Andrew Alirez returning this year and just ran through his side of the bracket. Mendez beat Beau Bartlett (Penn State) 2-1 in tiebreakers in another epic chapter of their rivalry and will look to repeat on Saturday night.
No. 1 Caleb Henson (Virginia Tech) vs. No. 2 Ridge Lovett (Nebraska)
These two will run it back after wrestling in last year’s semifinals. Lovett made the NCAA finals in 2022 as a runner-up while Henson will look for two straight NCAA titles, becoming the first one in Virginia Tech history to do so if he wins.
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No. 3 Antrell Taylor (Nebraska) vs. No. 8 Joey Blaze (Purdue)
Blaze continued his, well, blaze of glory en route to the finals, giving Purdue a finalist for the second time in three years. Taylor upset Cornell’s Meyer Shapiro to become the third Nebraska finalist in 2025 at the time of his win.
No. 1 Mitchell Mesenbrink (Penn State) vs. No. 3 Mikey Caliendo (Iowa)
So Mesenbrink and Caliendo are going to run it back, again. Mesenbrink edged Caliendo in the Big Ten finals by just one takedown and is 5-0 against the Hawkeye. Will it be six in a row?
No. 1 Keegan O’Toole (Missouri) vs. No. 3 Dean Hamiti (Oklahoma State)
O’Toole edged Cade DeVos (South Dakota State) and will go to the NCAA finals for the third time, looking to win his third title. Hamiti took out last year’s 157 pound champion Levi Haines (Penn State) 4-2 and the Cowboy’s return to prominence has been a sight to behold. After transferring from Wisconsin, Hamiti returned to All-American status and will wrestle for his first national title.
No. 1 Carter Starocci (Penn State) vs. No. 2 Parker Keckeisen (Northern Iowa)
Starocci controlled Oklahoma State’s Dustin Plott 9-3 and is going back to the NCAA finals for the fifth time, the first wrestler to ever do so. He’ll look to become a five-time champion Saturday night. Keckeisen won an absolute thriller over Minnesota’s Max McEnelly in sudden victory with scrambles that should make SportsCenter’s “Top 10.”
No. 2 Stephen Buchanan (Iowa) vs. No. 4 Josh Barr (Penn State)
Barr won the rubber match against Michigan’s Jacob Cardenas, 5-3. He held off a late flurry to get the win and punch his ticket to the 2025 NCAA wrestling finals. Buchanan got it done against 2021 NCAA champion AJ Ferrari, 3-0, shutting out the other worldly defensive wrestler. Ferrari couldn’t quite finish his attacks.
No. 1 Gable Steveson (Minnesota) vs. No. 2 Wyatt Hendrickson (Oklahoma State)
Steveson is back in the NCAA finals looking for his third title. He rolled to a major decision over Lehigh’s Owen Trephan. The heavyweight GOAT gets an interesting opponent. Hendrickson finally get over the hump and beat defending national champion Greg Kerkvleit (Penn State) 8-2 with over three minutes of riding time.
