Where Penn State wrestlers are in the latest NCAA coaches' rankings ahead of the postseason
Penn State has four top-ranked wrestlers in the second NCAA coaches rankings of the season.
Roman Bravo-Young (133 pounds), Nick Lee (141), Carter Starocci (174), and Aaron Brooks (184) lead their respective weight classes. All are defending national champions.
The NCAA also released its latest ratings percentage index (RPI) rankings. Those are less instructive at this time, however, as it requires a 15-match minimum to be ranked. Many Penn State wrestlers have missed matches this season due to illness or injury. Thus, they are not yet over that threshold. Most if not all will be by the time March arrives, however.
For those unaware, the NCAA explains how it uses the poll and RPI as follows:
“The coaches ranking and RPI are two of several criteria that will be evaluated by the NCAA Division I Wrestling Committee during the at-large selection and seeding process along with head-to-head competition, quality wins, conference tournament placement, results versus common opponents and win percentage.
“The first two rankings are used primarily for educational purposes to promote the selection criteria to coaches, student-athletes, media and fans. The third ranking will be the ranking that will be used by the NCAA Wrestling Committee to assist in determining the advance allocations to each qualifying tournament. The final ranking following conference tournaments will be used to provide the most accurate and up-to-date rankings to the committee as an important element of the selection criteria during the in-person selection meeting.”
In other words, wrestlers who qualify for the national tournament based on where they finish in their conference event are seeded via these rankings.
And, at-large spots, or ones that are given to those who didn’t wrestle their way into the national tournament but are still deemed worthy of a spot, are awarded based on them, as well.
Where do Penn State wrestlers rank?
There’s one important note before we get to the rundown: The coaches’ rankings have a qualifier, too.
“The coaches’ rankings are determined by a vote of 14 coaches in each weight class with two head coaches from each of the seven conference. For ranking purposes, coaches may only consider a wrestler that has been designated as a starter at a respective weight class. Wrestlers must have five Division I matches in the weight class to be considered with at least one within the last 30 days.”
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Here’s the list. Rankings are listed with the coaches’ rankings first and RPI second.
Drew Hildebrant, 125 pounds: 9 | NR
Roman Bravo-Young, 133 pounds: 1 | 1
Nick Lee, 141 pounds: 1 | 1
Beau Bartlett, 149 pounds: 16 | 6
Terrell Barraclough, 157 pounds: NR | 26
Creighton Edsell, 165 pounds: 33 | NR
More: 4 Penn State wrestling thoughts during the Lions’ first February week off from competition
Brady Berge, 165 pounds: NR | NR
Carter Starocci, 174 pounds: 1 | 1
Aaron Brooks, 184 pounds: 1 | 1
Max Dean, 197 pounds: 2 | 2
Greg Kerkvliet, 285 pounds: 5 | NR
What the rankings tell us?
It’s important to note that Penn State wrestlers have plenty of time to change their standing. The last set of rankings is the one that matters most.
Terrell Barraclough has plenty of work to do if he wants to earn an at-large bid. That assumes he does not wrestle his way in at Big Tens, of course. It’s possible but unlikely.
Beau Bartlett, then, can work his way into a better part of the national bracket with a strong run at the conference tournament. We’d expect Drew Hildebrandt to move up in the next iteration, as well.
Finally, Kerkvliet being behind Mason Parris of Michigan was surprising. The Penn State wrestler has a head-to-head win over the Wolverine. Time will tell how that shakes out.
Penn State has one match to go before the Big Ten tournament. It wrestled Rider next Sunday.
