The Big Ten pre-seeds have been revealed, and for a third consecutive time, Cael Sanderson’s Penn State squad is perched on top. With multiple No. 1 seeds, the Nittany Lions are stating why they remain the team to beat heading into the NCAA Championships. Penn State continues to raise the bar in college wrestling yearly, and the 2025 Big Ten championship looks no different.

With elite grapplers committed to upper echelons in multiple divisions, Penn State sends a message for a third consecutive season: to win an NCAA championship, you must go through them. A Big Ten championship will be a final tuneup before the pursuit for a national title gets underway, and Sanderson’s squad is poised to deliver yet another statement. It is not a question of whether Penn State will deliver—it is merely a question of how overwhelming they will be.

It should not be a surprise that Penn State has a monopoly on college wrestling, and pre-seeds reflect just how deep and dangerous this team is. With six wrestlers seeded No. 1 in their respective divisions, the Nittany Lions are stocked with title contenders.

Leading the pack is 141-pound Beau Bartlett, who takes the top seeding after a season for the ages in which he proved he can battle through tough competition. Right behind him, 149-pound Shayne Van Ness is in the No. 1 position as well, continuing to demonstrate that Penn State’s lighter weights are as deadly as their usually dominant upper weights.

Moving to the middleweights, Mitchell Mesenbrink at 165 and 174-pounder Levi Haines are both poised for a serious postseason push. Haines, a veteran commodity, is set to end a fine season, while Mesenbrink’s offense has him as a serious candidate to capture a Big Ten championship.

Then there is Carter Starocci at 184, perhaps the country’s most dominant wrestler and one who has been one of the all-time greats in collegiate competition for a while. Greg Kerkvliet rounds out Penn State’s No. 1 seeds in the heavyweight class, and with him, what may be a dominant performance in all aspects for the Nittany Lions.
While these No. 1 seeds provide good matchups and early control of their brackets to Sanderson’s team, Penn State’s squad has depth beyond their No. 1 seeds. With other highly ranked wrestlers in favorable positions to move on far, the Nittany Lions are more than a few powerhouse names—they are an entire machine built for championship success.

What this means for the NCAA tournament

The Big Ten has been a proving ground for NCAA Championships for history, and Penn State’s dominance in conference competition has consistently translated to national championships. With a roster full of high seeds, the Nittany Lions are in a great position to take hold of the NCAA tournament in March.

Comparisons to other powerhouse programs only serve to solidify their grip. Ohio State, Michigan, and Iowa all have talented rosters, but none match what Penn State is taking to the mat this season. Their talent and best-in-class depth have them as overwhelming favorites, and unless something unexpected occurs, a different NCAA team championship is well in the making.

The formula for Sanderson’s success has always been simple—recruit elite talent, mold them into championship-level competitors, and have them reach their pinnacle in time. The pre-seeds are merely a reminder that Penn State is once more the team to beat, and with wrestlers in all but a handful of weight classes set to score big points, it is hard to see any program dethroning them this season. The Big Ten pre-seeds don’t just give you rankings—they give you a preview. With Penn State’s roster stacked from head to toe, this tournament will be a springboard to a return trip to the NCAA championship. Sanderson’s team has all the talent, experience, and dominance to go far, and history being what it is, this is just a preview of what will be a legendary postseason for Penn State.