Iowa Wrestling Recruiting Breakdown: Biggest Targets In The Class Of 2025
Iowa Wrestling Recruiting Breakdown: Biggest Targets In The Class Of 2025
A breakdown of the Iowa Wrestling team's biggest roster needs and the recruits they should target from the class of 2025.
As of June 15, recruiting season for the graduating class of 2025 is officially underway! That means college coaches across the country can now call and recruit the top-ranked wrestlers entering their junior year of high school. While it will still be over 2 years until any of these student-athletes step foot in a college classroom, it’s not too early to evaluate the weight-class needs of some of the top programs across the country.
In the below article, we’ll break down the Iowa Hawkeyes. Lately, Iowa has made headlines by recruiting some of the top wrestlers in the transfer portal. Over the past few weeks, the Hawkeyes have received commitments from transfers Victor Voinovich (149), Jared Franek (157), and Michael Caliendo (165). However, that doesn’t mean they don’t need to recruit the class of 2025 or have any weight class needs. In fact, as we dive deeper into their roster, a few weights begin to emerge as needs that the Hawkeyes need to recruit for right now.
Current Hawkeye Roster Breakdown
First, it’s important to consider who Iowa already has in their room and who they’ve received commitments from in the class of 2023 and 2024. After that, we can begin to project their lineup out and evaluate where holes might emerge. Obviously, there is some guesswork in this but the below table gives a breakdown of what Iowa’s lineup might look like over the course of the next 5 seasons.
125 Pounds
125 is the first glaring need for Brands and company to recruit from the class of 2025. Drake Ayala will likely man the spot for this season and has eligibility through 2025-26. That means if Iowa were to land a top 125-pound recruit from the class of 2025, they could redshirt in 25-26 and be ready to go for the 2026-27 season.
Who are the top 125-pound recruits the Hawkeyes might be targeting this summer? Nathan Desmond and Leo DeLuca. We got a chance to catch up with both Desmond and DeLuca to talk about their early recruiting experiences - you can read those articles here (Desmond Article - DeLuca Article). Both shared it’s too early for them to release a top school list and are keeping all of their options open. That means Iowa should go all-in on Desmond or DeLuca.
DeLuca's win over Marcus Blaze at the 2022 Ironman:
Desmond is currently a two-time Pennsylvania state champion and ranked #7 in the class of 2025. DeLuca is a Fargo and National Preps champ ranked #9 in the class of 2025. Both project to be 125-pound wrestlers at the next level and are valuable blue-chip recruits. After DeLuca and Desmond, Carter Pearson looks to be a realistic prospect for the Hawkeyes at 125. A Southeast Polk wrestler, Pearson has back-to-back third-place finishes at the Iowa State tournament and has big-time wins over Dom Munaretto, Paul Kenny, and Hudson Loges. Beyond that, Pearson is the #32 ranked wrestler in the class of 2025 and currently ranked #3 at 113.
Nathan Desmond's win in the 2023 Pennsylvania state finals:
141 Pounds
141 is the next big area of need for the Hawkeyes. 2023 NCAA runner-up Real Woods is entering his final year of eligibility. After Woods, Iowa doesn’t have a clear “next in line” 141-pounder. They could potentially bump either Kale Peterson or Cullan Schriever, however, both Peterson and Schriever appear to be more natural 133-pounders. After those wrestlers, we could see Joel Jesuroga, Cade Siebrecht, or Koye Grebel as contended for the 141 starting position.
With the uncertainty at 141, top recruits Marcus Blaze and Anthony Knox should be targets for the Hawkeyes. It’s hard to project where both Blaze and Knox could end up in two years as both are currently ranked as #1 (Blaze) and #2 (Knox) at 126 pounds. However, they also both have the frame to grow into a perfect-sized 141-pound wrestler at the next level.
Marcus Blaze recently defeated Anthony Knox at the 2023 US Open to earn the U17 world team spot at 55kg. Blaze is also a two-time Ohio State champion out of Perrysburg and won a Fargo title last summer also over Knox. While Knox has fallen short to Blaze a few times, he’s also won just about everything a Sophomore in high school can win - Fargo, Super 32, 2 New Jersey state titles. Blaze and Knox are top-tier recruits and the Hawkeyes should put everything they can into recruiting them to Iowa City.
Marcus Blaze's win over Anthony Knox to make the U17 world team:
Get an inside look at Anthony Knox's first day of recruiting here:
197 Pounds
With the graduation of 4-time All-American Jacob Warner, there’s a definite hole in the lineup at 197 pounds for the Hawkeyes. Either Zach Glazier or Kolby Franklin will look to step up as the starter this season and have significant eligibility left - Glazier will be a junior and Franklin is just a freshman. However, neither has yet shown to be legitimate All-American threats making this a definite area of recruiting emphasis.
So who should the Hawkeyes go after in the class of 2025? Jude Correa. He’s the #5 overall ranked recruit in the class and also ranked #5 at 195. Beyond his ranking, Correa is a two-time National Preps champ for Wyoming Seminary and has also won Super 32, NHSCAs, Powerade, and Beast of the East. Along with those first-place finishes, Correa has wins over Jack Weymeyer, De’Alcapon Veazy, Rune Lawrence, Camden McDanel, and a host of other ranked wrestlers. Correa is the clear top 197-pound recruit in the class and should be a top priority for the Hawkeyes.
Correa's win over Camden McDanel at the 2022 Beast of the East:
285 Pounds
Three-time All-American Tony Cassioppi is entering his final season for the Hawkeyes this year at heavyweight. After Cassioppi’s gone, Ben Kueter will look to step into the starting spot at 285 pounds. Kueter is a U20 World champion and the #2 overall recruit in the class of 2023 - Kueter's potential is through the roof. So why should Iowa focus on recruiting heavyweight wrestlers? Kueter is also a top football recruit for Iowa and if he turns into a star on the gridiron, there’s a chance we might never see him take the mat in Carver-Hawkeye Arena. At this point, Kueter has been vocal about competing in both football and wrestling, but Brands and company should be looking for some big man depth just in case.
Heavyweight isn’t the deepest weight class in the class of 2025. However, Sampson Stillwell and Nicholas Sahakian appear to be two big men with great potential at the next level. Stillwell and Sahakian reached the finals of the U17 world team trials where Stillwell came out on top winning 2 matches to 1 over Sahakian. Along with winning the U17 world team spot, Stillwell is a Missouri state champion and finished 3rd last year at Fargo in freestyle and first in Greco. Sahakian won a California state championship this past year at 220 pounds after placing 3rd last year. Either Sahakian or Stillwell would add great depth for Iowa at heavyweight and give them some needed security if Kueter prioritizes football over wrestling.
Sampson Stillwell's win over Nicholas Sahakian to make the U17 world team at 110kg:
Check out our Class of 2025 Big Board rankings here.