Penn State wrestling: True freshman Braeden Davis on All-American bubble after another rankings drop

No. 1 Penn State wrestling picked up its third consecutive Big Ten Dual Championship on Sunday when the Nittany Lions defeated No. 4 Nebraska 22-13 inside Rec Hall. While it was a memorable day for the program, not every Nittany Lion in the lineup had a successful outing. One such wrestler, 125-pound true freshman Braeden Davis, dropped in the national rankings this week and is now on the All-American bubble after his latest defeat.

Braeden Davis drops in rankings for second straight week

Braeden Davis fell from No. 6 to No. 8 in the latest edition of the InterMat 125-pound rankings released on Tuesday. It is the second consecutive week that the true freshman has taken a tumble, ranked No. 2 just two weeks ago. The drop is a result of an 11-3 major decision loss to Caleb Smith of Nebraska on Sunday at Rec Hall.

The loss was the biggest of the season for Braeden Davis, and most of the points scored by Smith were in the third period. Davis now sits with a 15-2 record and a 47.06% bonus percentage heading into Penn State’s final dual against Edinboro on Sunday at Rec Hall.

Penn State true freshman on All-American bubble

Ranking at No. 8 puts now Braeden Davis squarely on the All-American bubble. The expectations for the true freshman may have grown a little too much with his undefeated start to the year. The tougher competition of the last few weeks has likely reset reality.

The unpredictability of the 125-weight class in the NCAA Tournament could either help or hurt Davis. While getting a high seed is always the goal heading into the postseason, that doesn’t mean that upsets won’t happen. There are currently no undefeated wrestlers within the weight class, with the No. 1 ranked wrestler Matt Ramos from Purdue holding a 22-3 record.

How Braeden Davis does in the Big Ten Tournament could be telling for if a deep NCAA run is a possibility. There are currently five wrestlers ranked ahead of the true freshman in the Big Ten alone, so making the semifinals or finals of the conference tournament is not guaranteed. But a successful showing in the Big Ten Tournament could show Penn State wrestling that Davis can achieve All-American status at 125 this season.

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