Penn State wrestling to host Oklahoma in non-conference bout

Penn State wrestling will not release its full schedule for several more months. But over the weekend, we may have learned who the Nittany Lions will face to kick off the 2025-26 campaign.

In a schedule release on Friday, Oklahoma revealed that it will begin its dual season with a road trip to Happy Valley on Friday, November 14. The match is slated to start at 7 p.m. in Rec Hall. The Sooners will then make the 60-mile trek east to battle Bucknell the following day.

Oklahoma is coming off an 8-4 finish in 2024-25, including a 4-4 record in the Big 12. The Crimson and Cream sent five wrestlers to March’s NCAA Championships, placing 38th with 10.5 team points. There, 174-pound qualifier Gavin Sax fell to Levi Haines in the Round of 16.

Of course, the Sooners have a connection to Penn State wrestling in former national champion Mark Hall, who became the program’s director of operations last summer.

A potential season-opener for Penn State?

Penn State head coach Cael Sanderson walks over to check on an injured Tyler Kasak on Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, in State College, Pa. The Nittany Lions won 30-8. © Dan Rainville / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

While the Nittany Lions will release their entire schedule in the coming weeks, it seems likely that the November 14 matchup will serve as the season-opener. Penn State has started the dual season in mid-November in eight of the last ten years. The two outliers are the pandemic-shortened 2020-21 season, which began in January, and the 2023-24 campaign, which began in early December.

The showdown with the Sooners is now the second known non-conference matchup for the Blue and White this season. Previously, we learned that Cael Sanderson and the Nittany Lions will travel to Philadelphia to take on Drexel on December 5.

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