Report: Stephen Buchanan expected to enter NCAA transfer portal, will wrestle for Iowa

Oklahoma wrestling All-American Stephen Buchanan is set to enter the transfer portal and is reportedly heading to Iowa, according to Willie Saylor of MatScouts.

Buchanan spent the last two years with the Sooners, but took a redshirt in 2022-23. Last season, he went 27-3 at 197 pounds and finished in 3rd place at the NCAA Tournament.

But now, he’s reportedly going to the Big Ten to wrestle for the Hawkeyes.

What’s interesting is Iowa’s starter at 197, Zach Glazier, is back for the 2024-25 season. Glazier was a Big Ten finalist and an NCAA qualifier.

Last season, there was buzz that Iowa would finally add 2021 NCAA champion AJ Ferrari to the roster considering his youngest brother committed to the school. Ferrari trained in Iowa but never wrestled for the hawkeyes and is currently searching for a new school.

So as far as Buchanan is concerned, there’s a reported offer in NIL earnings, per Saylor.

“Buchanan is getting $500k for what essentially will be 1 semester,” Saylor wrote on Twitter. “Same offer is out to (Jacori) Teemer.”

Buchanan started his career at Wyoming during the 2019-20 season qualifying for the eventually canceled NCAA Tournament. The next season, he finished 8th at NCAAs, becoming an All-American.

Buchanan followed it up with a third place finish in 2022 before transferring to Oklahoma. He redshirted in 2023 and went on a tear this past season.

Overall, Buchanan has a 86-25 record and is a three-time All-American.

Stephen Buchanan to leave Oklahoma for Iowa?

With Buchanan reportedly out the door according to Saylor, it’s a big blow to Oklahoma’s lineup under Roger Kish. But the future is still bright.

The Sooners finished with the No. 3 overall recruiting class, per InterMat, only trailing Stanford and Penn State. Oklahoma’s class under Kish included two Top 20 Big Board recruits coming to Norman this season.

When speaking with On3, Kish dove into what it meant to land this class going into Year 2 of his head coaching tenure.

“I tell you what, first off, it’s a real big credit to our coaching staff who are able to identify and build relationships with our incoming student athletes,” Kish told On3. “Their coaches, their club coaches, their families, you know, there’s such a large amount of relationship building that takes place in the recruiting process, and they’ve done a great job.

“I mean, our staff is second to none I believe and, you know, the work that they put in is unbelievable. The amount of time that they invest into the process and building the relationships is a really important aspect for us.”