Podcast thinks Penn State wrestling will ‘kill everyone’ in 2025

Penn State wrestling has been one of the most dominant dynasties in the history of college sports. The Nittany Lions have won 11 of the last 13 National Championships, and show no sign of slowing down. While what Cael Sanderson and Penn State have accomplished thus far has been thoroughly impressive, the best may be still to come. According to one wrestling podcast, the stranglehold that the Nittany Lions have on the sport may only tighten in 2025.

Penn State wrestling could be even better in 2025

Cael Sanderson has the Penn State wrestling program rolling. The Nittany Lions are fresh off breaking the NCAA Championships scoring record, tallying 172.5 points in the 2024 tournament. The program also has increasingly separated itself from the field in the past few years. Nothing was more evident than the record-breaking 100-point winning margin at this year’s NCAA Championships.

Despite all of the success over the past decade, FloWrestling Radio Live (FRL) seems to think that Penn State will be even more dominant in 2025. When discussing how good the Nittany Lions team would be next year, host Christian Pyles was emphatic in his response.

“Yes, they are gonna kill everyone next year,” Pyles said. The response stemmed from a conversation where the group of hosts was debating the Nittany Lions’ options at heavyweight next season, pending a decision on an extra year of eligibility from Greg Kerkvliet.

Penn State wrestling returns at a minimum of six starters from the 2024 roster, regardless of whether Beau Bartlett returns at 141 pounds or not. The Nittany Lions have the possibility of Bartlett, Starocci, and Kerkvliet returning for an extra year of eligibility, which could potentially make the team more dangerous in 2025, with two returning National Championship winners and a National Runner-Up.

Add in Levi Haines, Mitchell Mesenbrink, Shayne Van Ness, and Braden Davis, and Cael Sanderson could be looking at seven national title contenders entering the 2025 season. That doesn’t include potential freshman stars such as Josh Barr, who has been on a tear during his redshirt season.

Cael Sanderson has maintained assistant coach stability

Part of what has made Penn State wrestling so dominant in the Cael Sanderson era is the consistency and talent of the coaching staff. It has allowed the Nittany Lions to dig in and take over the sport.

“It feels like it is going to be awhile and there is going to need to be some gigantic shakeup before Penn State is challenged…like a bunch of assistant coaches leave, or something to that effect,” FRL cohost Ben Askren said when looking at the outlook of the sport.

The show pointed out how Cael Sanderson has kept his staff together over his entire tenure at Penn State, with both Casey Cunningham and Cody Sanderson following him from Iowa State. Neither assistant coach has left for a head coaching position, despite the fact they would be in high demand by many high-level programs.

Why haven’t they left? Well, for starters, the coaches have put down roots in Happy Valley and raised their families in the area. It is arguable that they may not necessarily want to move and disrupt the lives of their wives and children.

Money is also another factor; Penn State has one of the highest salary pools and RTC pools in the entire sport. An assistant coach at Penn State wrestling pays more than plenty of head coaching positions at other schools.

The assistant coaching staff has also garnered a significant amount of respect and prestige over the past decade. Plenty of recruits have come to Penn State because of Cody Sanderson and Casey Cunningham. It is an added layer that has helped Cael Sanderson and the Nittany Lions stay on top of the sport for the past decade and a factor that will keep them at the pinnacle for years to come.

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