Josh Barr now projected to make NCAA Finals

Josh Barr is having about as good of a season as anyone could have hoped for after being named the Penn State wrestling starter at 197 pounds. The redshirt freshman is 16-1, cruising toward a top seed in the Big Ten and NCAA Tournaments.

Last weekend, Barr took care of both his opponents easily, starting with a 20-5 tech fall victory over No. 23 Seth Shumate (Ohio State), followed by a 15-4 major decision over No. 17  Zac Braunagel (Illinois). Barr now has seven victories over wrestlers projected to make the NCAA Championships. The decisive weekend also bumped the Nittany Lions’ 197-pounder from No. 3 to No. 2 in the latest InterMat rankings.

Barr becomes latest Penn State wrestler projected NCAA Finalist

Both Barr and 141-pounder Beau Bartlett are now projected to make the NCAA Finals next month based on the latest InterMat projections. The Nittany Lions have a record eight wrestlers projected to compete for a national title.

Barr is the fourth second-year Penn State wrestler with a strong chance to win the title, joining sophomores No. 2 Shayne Van Ness (149), No. 1 Tyler Kasak (157), and No. 1 Mitchell Mesenbrink (165).

Cael Sanderson must be pleased with how Barr has performed in his first year as a starter. With an 82.5% bonus, Barr has victories over three top-1o wrestlers: No. 3 Jacob Cardenas (Michigan), No. 5 Michael Beard (Lehigh), and No. 7 Stephen Little (Little Rock). His only loss of the season was to top-ranked Stephen Buchanan of Iowa, who sits with a perfect 18-0 record heading into the final weekend of the dual season.

With one more dual remaining on the schedule for Penn State wrestling, Barr will soon shift his focus to the Big Ten Championships. As it stands, he will be seeded as the No. 2 wrestler in that tournament and is one of the favorites to finish atop the podium along with Buchanan, Cardenas, and Isaiah Salazar (Minnesota).

Penn State wrestling battles American in the dual season finale on Friday night in Rec Hall. The match can be streamed on BTN+ at 7:00 p.m. ET.

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