Penn State wrestling confirms first dual opponent for 2024-25 season

We now know the first opponent for Cael Sanderson and Penn State wrestling as the Nittany Lions look to complete its quest for a four-peat National Championship run for the third time in program history in the 2024-25 season.

Late last week, the Nittany Lions confirmed they will host American University inside Rec Hall this winter.

The announcement was first made by American head coach Jason Borelli on X last Thursday.

“We heard ‘iron sharpens iron!’ Excited to announce that [American wrestling] will be taking on the returning NCAA champions, Penn State wrestling, this upcoming season in State College,” Borelli wrote. “Curious, what’s the biggest dual meet upset you recall in college wrestling?!”

The official Penn State wrestling social media account confirmed the news the next day, responding, “Excited to have [American wrestling] and coach [Jason Borrelli] coming to Happy Valley this coming season!”

Excited to have @AU_Wrestling and coach @Jason_Borrelli coming to Happy Valley this coming season!#PSUwr

— Penn State WRESTLING (@pennstateWREST) June 14, 2024

While Borelli may have been teasing a little with his comment about pulling an upset, this matchup will still be unique.

The two sides have only faced off once, on February 23, 2020, when the Nittany Lions defeated the Eagles 40-3.

Mark Hall, Vincenzo Joseph, and Shakur Rasheed all recorded pins in their Senior Day duals in Rec Hall, while No. 17 Jarod Verkleeren took down No. 8 Kizhan Clarke via a counter-takedown with three seconds remaining to win 3-1 in the 149-pound match.

American is coming off an 8-14 (0-5) 2023-24 dual season. The Eagles qualified one wrestler for the 2024 NCAA Championships, with Maximilian Leete making the trip at 133 pounds as the No. 31 overall seed in the 33-wrestler bracket.

Potential Penn State wrestling 2024-25 dual opponents

Penn State wrestling should be head and shoulders above the rest of the country in 2024-25, but that doesn’t mean there won’t be some intriguing dual matchups to watch this upcoming season.

Big Ten schedule

© Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports

The Big Ten slate is always a bit unpredictable since the Nittany Lions don’t face every team in the conference each year.

Last season, Penn State wrestling finished 8-0 in conference play, taking down Indiana, Michigan, Michigan State, Maryland, Ohio State, Iowa, Rutgers, and Nebraska. The schedule featured four of the five teams that finished behind the Nittany Lions in the dual standings with wins over Ohio State, Iowa, Nebraska, and Michigan.

This upcoming season, you can expect to see teams like Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Northwestern, and Purdue on the schedule. Illinois, Purdue, and Northwestern all finished at the bottom of the Big Ten a season ago. So, the question will be how many of the top teams Penn State wrestling fans will get to see out of those three remaining matchups.

Non-conference schedule

© Dan Rainville / USA TODAY NETWORK

The non-conference schedule is harder to predict. Rumors swirled ever since David Taylor took the Oklahoma State about a potential dual between the Cowboys and Nittany Lions. Penn State wrestling superstar Carter Starocci even floated the idea of having the matchup inside Beaver Stadium.

However, there are plenty of other big-time opponents that Penn State could schedule a home-and-home with for the next two seasons. Iowa State, Arizona State, Cornell, and Virginia Tech are all projected to have solid squads this year, and would create exciting matchups.

Major early tournaments could also be a way for Cael Sanderson to get his team ready for the dual season, which could feature some of the other power programs from across the country.

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