After a 3-0 start to ACC dual action, #8 NC State will step out of conference action this weekend with a top-10 dual inside Reynolds Coliseum. The Wolfpack will host #9 Cornell this Friday night in a dual that has 19 of the 20 probable starters all ranked this week.

“I think both of our teams are in a similar boat when it comes to the schedule,” NC State head coach Pat Popolizio said. “Both of us have wrestled a really good, competitive schedule and both of us have been going conference-heavy for a few weeks. I think this dual will benefit both teams.

“I know we wanted to get a really good dual before we zone in on our conference and national tournaments. You look up and down these lineups, there are going to be a lot of good individual matchups.”

Lineup Decisions

Coming into the season, it appeared on paper there was only one weight class up for grabs in the NC State starting lineup. Now here in mid-February that may still be the case, but it now appears the lone question surrounding the postseason lineup has shifted to a different weight class.

Last year’s starter at 165 pounds, Matty Singleton, underwent offseason surgery and the intent was to redshirt him this year after he competed as a true freshman a year ago. He has not seen action in any open tournaments this year, but the Pack is eager to get him back in the starting lineup next year, right now it looks like that will be at 174 pounds with two-year starter Alex Faison out of eligibility at that weight.

“He just got cleared a couple of weeks ago, and has been looking really good in training,” Popolizio said. “He has put on some size, and I think next weekend he will get his first action of the year at an open tournament. We are really going to see a lot of good things over the next few years here at NC State out of him.”

That meant the preseason competition at 165 pounds was between A.J. Kovacs and Derek Fields, with neither having starting experience prior to this season. Kovacs won the match-up during the preseason wrestle-off with a takedown in OT and he won again in a practice room wrestle-off once the season was underway.

Kovacs was rewarded with starting the first five duals of the year and seven of the first eight. But lately, it has been Fields in the lineup at 165 pounds, starting all three ACC duals and five of the last six duals overall.

Fields is a perfect 3-0 in conference action, including knocking off then-#14 Holden Heller of Pitt, 7-1. He has gone on to add wins against North Carolina and Virginia. This week, Fields is ranked #16 nationally at 165 pounds with a 13-2 record on the season.

“I’ve been very impressed with both of them, doing a phenomenal job developing throughout the year,” Popolizio said. “That weight was a question mark for us before the season, but both of those guys have elevated their game and progressed very well to this point.

“Derek was able to take advantage of his schedule and get some ranked wins, which people have noticed. Having those three conference wins puts us in a really good spot. I like where we are at, having them both as an option.”

One of Fields’ two losses this year was to #4 Julian Ramirez of Cornell, a 16-1 tech fall, a rematch we could see Friday night.

But just as it appears a starter has been established at 165 pounds, Popolizio and the staff will now have a decision to make regarding which former ACC champion gets the nod at 125 pounds.

After missing last season with a knee injury, Jakob Camacho opened the season with a win over 2023 NCAA finalist and current #1 Matt Ramos, and Camacho himself ascended to the top of the rankings at 125 pounds.

But a four-match losing streak in December and January pushed Camacho down in the rankings, and he was forced to refocus and took some duals off. In his absence, 2023 ACC champion Jarrett Trombley stepped in and scored a major decision over Pitt’s Colton Camacho and a 2-0 decision over then-#29 Spencer Moore of UNC to open conference action.

Camacho was back out on the mat last weekend against Virginia. He recorded a 21-6 tech fall over Kyle Montaperto, Camacho’s first dual win November 17. It is expected Camacho will face #16 Brett Ungar in Friday’s dual against Cornell.

“We still face some really good 125-pounders here down the stretch, so we can see where we are at,” Popolizio said. “I really liked what we saw out of Camacho last week, he worked well hitting the reset and getting his mind focused and then went out and competed the way he did.

“Both of them have had a huge impact on our program over the years. Trombley made that cut down to 125 pounds last year and then going out and winning ACCs was huge. Both are really good at what they do. We are very thankful to have both of them this season.”

Camacho will have one season of eligibility left after receiving a medical redshirt last year, while Trombley is in his final year of eligibility.

A Return to Reynolds

When the Big Red invades Reynolds Coliseum this week, a pair of familiar faces will be on Cornell’s bench in a coaching capacity.

After winning a pair of national championships at NC State, followed by a pair of World medals in freestyle with the Wolfpack’s RTC, Nick Gwiazdowski started his coaching career by taking a volunteer position on newly named head coach Mike Grey’s Cornell staff in the summer of 2021.

“It will be good to have him come back here,” Popolizio said. “Knowing what he has done for NC State wrestling and all the success that he has had both within our program and internationally, I know it has only benefitted Cornell and helped them get to the level they are at.

“I told him our fans are going to be pretty rowdy on him. I’m not sure he will get a whole lot of love on Friday wearing that other share of red.”

Gwiazdowski started his collegiate career by earning All-American honors as a freshman under Popolizio at Binghamton, the Gwiazdowski transferred to NC State for Popolizio’s first season at NC State back in 2013 and redshirted. He remains the lone NC State wrestler to win two national titles, having won the heavyweight title in both 2014 and 2015. He was also an All-American in all three of his seasons at NC State, a NCAA finalist in 2016, and remains tops in school history with a 97.3% winning percentage (110-3).

In addition to Gwiazdowski’s return, former Wolfpack assistant coach Donnie Vinson will also be making a return to face off against the former team he coached for four seasons. Vinson has served as Cornell’s associate head coach for the last three years. In addition to coaching under Popolizio, Vinson was also a former All-American wrestler under Popolizio when they both were at Binghamton (149 pounds in 2012).

“You love seeing those guys have success, you want to see them do well,” Popolizio said. “I’m happy and proud to see those guys continue to do extremely well in their coaching careers.

“I think it will be a healthy, competitive rivalry we will have for two hours come Friday night. After that, we can all go out and get a meal together.”

Hot ACC Start

NC State has had an incredible start to ACC action this year. The Wolfpack has outscored its first three conference opponents by a combined 102-15 — at Pitt (31-6), vs. North Carolina (33-6) and vs. Virginia (38-3). A Wolfpack wrestler has seen his hand raised in 25 of the 30 individual ACC bouts, with 18 going for bonus points.

“We are in a good spot, we continue to work week-to-week to get better and aim to hit full stride as we head into the postseason,” Popolizio said. “I think we are getting good momentum right now, and you want to be wrestling your best over the next few weeks.

“We have been wrestling aggressive, and that is something we have been preaching and working on.”

The Pack will close out ACC action with Duke this Sunday and host Virginia Tech next weekend with the ACC Dual Championship going to the winner of the season finale. NC State has won eight straight matchups against Duke, while the Pack and Virginia Tech have split the last four meetings each winning at home.

“We have a great opportunity facing these teams down the stretch,” Popolizio said. “This is the time of year that you have to stay focused and be ready against some good competition.”

Sitting atop the ACC standings with two duals left, if the Wolfpack wins out, NC State will capture its sixth regular season title over the last seven years. Dating back to the 2017-18 season, NC State is 30-3 in ACC duals.