NCAA Wrestling: Coaches’ Panel Wrestling Rankings Released – 197lbs Weight Class

imageedit_68_8144555088The Division-1 college wrestling coaches’ panel rankings have been released. The Big Ten claims five of the top Ten No. 1 ranked wrestlers in the nation. Five of the ten No. 1 wrestlers in the nation are former national champions. Nathan Tomasello of Ohio State (125 pounds), Isaiah Martinez of Illinois (157), Alex Dieringer of Oklahoma State (165), Gabriel Dean of Cornell (184) and Nick Gwiazdowski of North Carolina State (heavyweight).

The additional top-ranked wrestlers at each weight class in the inaugural rankings are: Nahshon Garrett, Cornell (133 pounds); Dean Heil, Oklahoma State (141); Zain Retherford, Penn State (149); Bo Nickal, Penn State (174) and Morgan McIntosh, Penn State (197).

Wrestlers in each weight class will be measured by winning percentage, rating percentage index (RPI) and coaches’ rankings to earn spots in their qualifying tournaments for the 2016 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships. The coaches’ rankings are compiled by a vote of coaches representing each qualifying tournament. For ranking purposes, coaches may only consider a wrestler that has been designated as a starter at a respective weight class. In order to be eligible for the rankings, wrestlers must have participated in at least five matches against Division I opponents in the weight class and have wrestled within the last 30 days.

The first of four coaches’ panel rankings for the 2015-16 wrestling season were released Thursday out of Indianapolis. The final rankings will be one of the components used as part of the selection process to determine the qualifiers for the 2016 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships. This year’s event is March 17-19 at Madison Square Garden in New York City.

Morgan McIntosh is a two-time All-American senior at Penn State. Last year he finished 3rd in the nation after a 6-1 run at the NCAA national championship tournament. The No.2 ranked wrestler, J’Den Cox is a former national champion, during his True Freshmen campaign two seasons ago.

Rankings are through matches of Jan. 17th, 2016.

197 1 Morgan McIntosh Penn St. Big Ten
197 2 J`Den Cox Missouri MAC
197 3 Nathan Burak Iowa Big Ten
197 4 Brett Pfarr Minnesota Big Ten
197 5 Conner Hartmann Duke ACC
197 6 Maxwell Huntley Michigan Big Ten
197 7 Brett Harner Princeton EIWA
197 8 Jacob A. Smith West Virginia Big 12
197 9 Ruben Franklin CSU Bakersfield Pac 12
197 10 Jared Haught Virginia Tech ACC
197 11 Aaron Studebaker Nebraska Big Ten
197 12 Zachary Nye Virginia ACC
197 13 Nate Rotert South Dakota St. Big 12
197 14 Phil Wellington Ohio MAC
197 14 Kyle Conel Kent St. MAC
197 16 Shawn Scott Northern Ill. MAC
197 17 John Bolich Lehigh EIWA
197 18 Trent Noon Northern Colo. Big 12
197 19 Michael Boykin North Carolina St. ACC
197 20 Anthony Abro Eastern Mich. MAC
197 21 Derek Thomas Utah Valley Big 12
197 22 Bryce Barnes Army EIWA
197 23 Chip Ness North Carolina ACC
197 23 Scottie Boykin Chattanooga SoCon
197 25 Nick Bonaccorsi Pittsburgh ACC
197 26 Michael Woulfe Navy EIWA
197 27 Marshall Haas The Citadel SoCon
197 28 Parker Hines Air Force Big 12
197 29 Mark Martin Ohio St. Big Ten
197 30 Brad Johnson Oklahoma Big 12
197 31 Jeric Kasunic American EIWA
197 31 Sam Wheeler Cleveland St. EWL
197 31 Ryan Wolfe Rider EWL
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Kyle Carroll
Kyle Carroll is a Long Island, N.Y. native and avid MMA and amateur wrestling fan. He has been a part of the wrestling community for nearly 20 years. Carroll has six years of experience coaching high school wrestling. His father coached high school wrestling over 35 years, passing on his strong knowledge. Carroll has been reporting MMA news since January 2011. The former wrestler’s coverage includes the 2012 U.S. Olympic Wrestling Team Trials, 2013 & 2016 NCAA D1 Wrestling Championship, and numerous MMA events (Bellator MMA, King of the Cage, North American Fighting Championship, and Glory).