Each year we are seeing more and more young talent join the college ranks ready to compete with the nations best wrestlers. In this article we will take a look at some of those freshman.
125 Lilledahl, Luke of Penn State
Luke is already a 2x age group world champion, that alone makes him worthy of this list. He’s also won just about every major high school folkstyle tournament you can think of, including: Super 32, Journeymen, Ironman, National Preps, and more. With the nickname Lightning Luke, I suggest you don’t blink when this kid takes the mat.
133 Tyler Knox of Stanford
A 3x Massachusetts state champion. During his Junior year he was a perfect 47-0 with 45 first period pins. That is just incredible. He was also a 2x NHSCA champion, as well as a Beast of the East Champion. He is currently ranked 19th in the preseason rankings. He recently scored a huge upset over former NCAA finalist Drake Ayala.
141 Ryder Block of Iowa
One of the best wrestlers to come out of Iowa in a long time. He is a 3x state champion, and only lost one match his entire high school career and that was in the state finals his sophomore year against Drake Ayala. He had beaten Drake just a few weeks prior. Finished his HS career with a 159-1 record. He was also a 2x Fargo National Champion.
149 Kannon Webster of Illinois
This is one kid i’m very excited to see wrestle this year Kannon is a fantastic wrestler and is a serious threat to win a NCAA title this season. He was 20-1 during his redshirt season. In high school he was a 3x Illinois state champion and a 2023 Fargo National Champion.
184 Ferrari, Angelo of Iowa
Ranked as the No. 1 pound for pound wrestler in the country in 2024 by both FloWrestling and Mat Scouts. He was a 1x Texas state champion and a 2x Oklahoma State Champion in high school. As well as a 3x Ironman Tournament Champion. The sky’s the limit for this Ferrari.
174 Zack Ryder of Penn State
Ryder had a high school career record of 160-7 in New York where he was a 3x state champion. At the 2024 U20 World Championships he won a silver medal at the 79 kg weight class. He will redshirt this year, but will be an immediate title contender next season.
174 Gabe Arnold of Iowa
Gabe burst onto the scene last season for the Hawkeyes, Helping them secure a huge dual meet victory over Iowa State when he bumped up in weight and defeated #6 ranked Will Feldkamp. He also captured championship victories at the Soldier Salute and Luther Open. He went 12-1 on the season. Prior to college he was a 2x National Prep Champion as well as an Iowa State champion. Gabe was also a 2023 US Open champion. It will be exciting to watch him the next fw years.
184 Max McEnelly of Minnesota
Max had an incredible high school record of 181-1, while winning 4 state titles. He is also a Fargo National champion and U17 World Bronze Medalist. Last season while wrestling unattached he was a perfect 15-0 and captured tournament titles at 3 different tournaments. Last season his biggest win came against No. 22 Brian Soldano of Rutgers. For perspective, Soldano recently pinned Edmond Ruth.
197 Barr, Josh of Penn State
Josh was a 4x Michigan state champion with a 125-1 career record in high school. Over the summer he competed at the United World Wrestling U20 World Championships in Pontevedra, Spain earning a silver medal at 86 kg. Prior to that outstanding performance overseas, he went a perfect 15-0 while redshirting and wrestling unattached for Penn State during the 2023/2024 season. He looks to fill in at 197 this year and should be an instant all-american contender.
HWT Ben Kueter of Iowa
Possibly the best Iowa athlete ever, I know that’s quite a statement, but this kid won state in Track and Field as well as wrestling and is also a highly touted football player. On the mat he was a perfect 111-0 with 4 state titles, with 74 career pins. In addition to that he was a Junior freestyle world champion and a 2022 U20 world champion. The only knock against Ben is that he is fairly small for a heavyweight.
197 McDanel, Camden of Nebraska
In high school Cam was an Ohio state champion, and a Cadet Fargo National Champion. Since high school he has gone on to win the 2023 US Open, and is also a US Men’s National Freestyle Champion. In addition to that he was the U20 Pan-Am Champion in 2023 and 2024. He is currently undefeated on the year.
197 Carroll, Christian of Iowa State
A 2x Indiana state champion in high school, he was also a 2x Super 32 champion, and a 2021 freestyle national champion. Prior to college he was the 2023 US Open freestyle champion. At the 2024 Olympic trials he notched impressive wins over All-Americans Tony Cassioppi, Jacob Warner, and Trey Munoz. So far this season he is a perfect 2-0 and recently defeated #13 Nick Stemmet of Stanford.