It’s an emotional time when your favorite athlete retires. The flood of memories of watching them compete, reminiscing about the highs and lows, the bittersweet feeling of never being able to see them in action again. Well, for wrestling fans, that moment came with the retirement of Jason Nolf from the sport last August. Winning NCAA titles from 2017 to 2019, he was indeed one of the best college wrestling had ever seen. Nolf wasn’t just dominant—he made every match feel electric. But for those who’ve missed his presence in the sport, well, Nolf is back. But not in the way you’re imagining.

Now before anyone gets their hopes up too high, Jason Nolf has not by any means unretired. He is very much still off mat and no doubt enjoying retired life after all the time and energy he’d given to the sport. He’s now fully focused on his coaching career, Brazilian jiu-jitsu, and growing his business. But that doesn’t mean he’s forgotten his roots.

In a brief message posted on his X account, Nolf wrote, “See you at the US open.” The 2025 US Open Wrestling Championships are set to take place on April 23-27 in Las Vegas, featuring some of the best American wrestling has to offer. But with no further context to his words, fans were sent into a frenzy of speculation regarding that “retired” label.

But their bubble was burst shortly when Nolf put out a follow-up tweet with more clarification. “Not competing lol. I’ll be there as a coach.” Well, it looks like Jason Nolf has no intention of returning as a competitor to the wrestling scene, and who can blame him? He wrapped up his wrestling career as one of the most decorated, dominant, and entertaining college wrestlers the NCAA has seen and is now a budding BJJ athlete.

Jason Nolf brought a mix of high-level technique, aggression, and style that made him a fan favorite. His career was nothing short of legendary, and the sport felt different when he was on the mat. But as they say, it’s always good to go out on a high, and that’s exactly what Nolf has done. And as his appearance at the US Open will attest to, you can take the man out of wrestling but can’t take the wrestling out of the man. He was one cog in the machine that is the Penn State Nittany Lions, and well, that machine continues to roll on, as well-oiled as ever.

Jason Nolf returns, while Penn State finesses some big acquisitions

After an awe-inspiring, record-breaking NCAA Championship run in Philadelphia, where the Nittany Lions set a new team points record at 177, the program has not stopped for a breather. With no wrestling to focus on till the fall, it’s all about the off-mat moves, and the Lions have wasted no time in reshuffling. In just a handful of days, they lured two of the strongest wrestling recruits to the program: Masanosuke Ono and Jayden James.

On Monday, March 24, the 21-year-old Japanese wrestler Masanosuke Ono went on Flowrestling Radio Live and made it official that he is heading to Penn State for the 2025-2026 season. Ono has already proven him to be a star in the wrestling world, winning both U20 and senior world titles. Those wins came against some serious competition, including world champ Vito Arujau, Olympic gold medalist Zaur Uguev, and future teammate Marcus Blaze.

And then Penn State received another addition on March 25. The team managed to convince Jayden James to switch allegiances from Virginia Tech to Penn State. Another testament to their dominance. James, ranked No. 4 nationally by FloWrestling in the 2026 class, is the reigning 150-pound New Jersey state champ and a two-time 16U national titleholder.

But he’s not the new wrestler on the Penn State block, with Rocco Welsh also joining their ranks. It is amidst all that, that Zach Ryder, one of the top talents from the team, chose to depart. Cael Sanderson, however, remained unfazed. “Yeah, everything’s changed a lot. But our values haven’t changed. What we focus on as coaches and what we offer and bring to the table, that’s not going to change.”

Jason Nolf is enjoying his retired life, and the Penn State empire is thriving. What’s new, really? But while Nolf takes on the challenges of coaching, his alma mater will be busy making the most of their roster changes. But one thing’s for sure, and it’s that it’s a good time to be a college wrestling fan.