Penn State wrestling laps field in resources yet again. Will the Nittany Lions ever run out of money?

The Penn State wrestling dynasty hasn’t slowed down, winning its 12th national title a few short weeks ago in Kansas City. Cael Sanderson and the Nittany Lions have adapted to the new age of college athletics, using the NIL and the Nittany Lion Wrestling Club to keep the program firing on all cylinders. But as the Nittany Lions keep pushing forward, one podcast recently debated if the money well will ever dry up for Sanderson and Penn State.

The NLWC advantage

The NLWC is a U.S. Olympic Regional Training Center (RTC) and includes coaches Cael Sanderson, Cody Sanderson, Casey Cunningham, Jake Varner, Mark McKnight, and Jimmy Kennedy. Practices take place year-round in the Penn State wrestling room.

Having a good wrestling club associated with Penn State is crucial in both training the Nittany Lions collegiate team and attracting top talent to Happy Valley. The NLWC has top athletes like Olympic gold medalist David Taylor, silver medalist Kyle Snyder, and bronze medalists Kyle Dake and Thomas Gilman. The wrestling club made up 40% of the USA Olympic Team for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

Having all of this talent in the Penn State wrestling room allows for members of the current team to compete against Olympic medalists regularly. The NLWC has developed such a good reputation that it has picked up wrestlers from other schools, such as Ohio State, Cornell, and Iowa.

Money is pouring into the program because of the talent and overall production we have seen from Nittany Lion wrestlers over the past decade. The NLWC’s total revenue exceeded $4.6 million in 2022. That’s over twice as much as the Hawkeye Wrestling Club, the second-highest RTC in the country, at just under $2 million. Over the past seven years of available records, the NLWC has brought in over $14 million in revenue, which is more than the next two RTCs combined in that time.

The success of the club, both on the mat and at the bank, is part of the reason why Penn State wrestling has become even more dominant recently compared to the early years of the Cael Sanderson era. Add in the fact that the Nittany Lions have the No. 1 ranked wrestling budget in the NCAA, and you get a record-breaking result like we saw at the 2024 NCAA Championships.

Will Penn State wrestling ever run out of money?

The question of whether Penn State wrestling will ever run out of money is something that some have wondered as the NLWC grows and NIL becomes even more prevalent in college sports. As NIL war chests continue to evolve, it wouldn’t be shocking to see programs across the country try to pick away at the top talent amassed in Happy Valley.

This exact question was debated on a recent episode of Flo Wrestling Live, highlighting that Penn State has the biggest RTC, NIL program, and wrestling team budget.

“No, they are not going to run out of money,” Co-host Ben Askren responded immediately. Fellow host JD pointed out that Penn State can attract top-tier wrestlers because of the program’s track record of success.

However, the question of funding is valid when looking at the big picture. The more top wrestlers that join the NLWC, the more money will have to be distributed. Everyone will expect a certain payout, and that money needs to come from somewhere.

Penn State wrestling benefits from being in the most competitive and passionate state for wrestling in the country. The most All-Americans and National Champions in almost every season wrestle in Pennsylvania. Having that support and passion fuels an Olympic RTC. It’s a big reason why the money just keeps flowing into Penn State’s NIL coffers and to the NLWC.

A contributing factor to why Cael Sanderson has seen so much success at Penn State is the passionate fanbase. For years, the team was thought to be a sleeping giant, with all its talent pouring out of the state to other schools.

But the giant has been awoken. And with the NLWC atop Olympic wrestling, it appears that Happy Valley will be the center of the American wrestling universe for years to come.

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