157-Pound Pre-Season NCAA D1 Wrestling Preview & Predictions
157-Pound Pre-Season NCAA D1 Wrestling Preview & Predictions
A preview with predictions for the 2024-25 season at 157-pound weight class in Division 1 college wrestling.
Last year's 157-pound champ, Levi Haines, has moved on to greener, heavier pastures, and is currently projected to ply his trade at the 174-pound division this upcoming season. That means that the 2025 157-pound national champ will be making their first trip to the top of the NCAA podium.
Weight Class Previews
125 | 133 | 141 | 149 | 165 | 174 | 184 | 197 | 285
Technically it's possible that Henson or Mendez bumps up and wins their second NCAA title at 157 but we're not going to spend any longer considering such preposterous hypotheticals - we are simply getting ahead of anyone trying to "well-actually" that previous sentence.
And there is plenty to discuss at this weight without getting into hypotheticals!
Current Top 10
(Carrer NCAA Placements in parentheses)
#1 Jacori Teemer, Iowa, Senior (RS, NQ, 4th, 6th, MedRS, 2nd, ?)
#2 Meyer Shapiro, Cornell, Sophomore (3rd, ?, ?, ?)
#3 Daniel Cardenas, Stanford, Junior (R12, 4th, ?, ?)
#4 Tyler Kasak, Penn State, Sophomore (3rd, ?, ?, ?)
#5 Peyten Kellar, Ohio, Junior (RS, DNP, 5th, ?, ?)
#6 Ryder Downey, Northern Iowa, Sophomore (RS, R12, ?, ?, ?)
#7 Antrell Taylor, Nebraska, Sophomore (RS, 8th, ?, ?, ?)
#8 Ed Scott, NC State, Senior (DNQ, R12, 5th, R12, ?)
#9 Paddy Gallagher, Ohio State, Junior (RS, R16, DNS, ?, ?)
#10 Tommy Askey, Minnesota, Senior (DNS, RS, DNP, R12, ?, ?)
Check out the entire preseason rankings starting with the 157ln NCAA Rankings.
*DNP = did not place; DNQ = did not qualify; DNS = did not start
Teemer is back for a seventh season, an occurrence that used to generate a lot of takes and commentary but has become rather common over the last couple of years. Teemer is also in a new singlet, having traded his Sun Devil uniform for Hawkeye togs.
The next three ranked wrestlers, Shapiro, Cardenas, and Kasak, all have a redshirt available, although Shapiro likely won't take one as per Ivy League rules.
Kasak is also coming up a weight class, having competed last season at 149 as he filled in for an injured Shayne Van Ness, who placed third at 2023's NCAAs. Kasak did a pretty good job filling in as he got third at 2024's NCAAs.
Watch Tyler Kasak wrestle Beau Bartlett at the 2023 Black Knight Invite, which precipitated Kasak's move up to 149:
Peyten Kellar returns after a breakout performance for the Bobcats last season, as does Ryder Downey who fell one match away from the podium in his redshirt freshman campaign.
Antrell Taylor is moving down from 165 as the top half of Nebraska's lineup is all squeezing into lower weight classes, so Allred to 184, Pinto to 174, Wilson to 165, and Taylor to 157.
Ed Scott returns for a final season. The Buckeyes won't miss a beat after losing Isaac Wilcox to graduation with Paddy Gallagher returning to the lineup. And a former App State Mountaineer rounds out the top 10, as Askey moved from Boone, North Carolina to Minneapolis, Minnesota over the summer. He also may have another year of eligibility, although who can say anymore.
Other Notable Wrestlers Returning From Redshirts
Paniro Johnson, Iowa State, Sophomore
Alex Facundo, Penn State, Sophomore
Rafael Hipolito, Virginia Tech, Freshman
More info can be found in our Middleweight Redshirt Report.
Paniro Johnson and Alex Facundo are both national qualifiers returning after a year of deferred eligibility. There was more to the story of Paniro not wrestling last season, but that'll all behind him now and the year will functionally serve as a redshirt season.
Facundo will have to battle it out with Kasak, who placed third last year, to make the Nittany Lion lineup at 157, or stay at 165 and win the spot over Mitchell Mesenbrink, who is a 2024 NCAA runner-up. Facduno is a two-time U17 world bronze medalist and a U20 world teamer, to give you an idea of how deep Penn State's wrestling room is.
Rafael Hipolito may be one of the best kept secrets in D1 wrestling, though that will likely end this season. Hipolito is from Manaus, Brazil grew up participating in Brazillian jiu-jitsu, adding some dangerous techniques to his arsenal.
Last Year's Top 8
1st: Levi Haines, Penn State
2nd: Jacori Teemer, Iowa
3rd: Meyer Shapiro, Cornell
4th: Daniel Cardenas, Stanford
5th: Peyten Kellar, Ohio
6th: Bryce Andonian, Virginia Tech
7th: Peyton Robb, Nebraska
8th: Jared Franek, Iowa
Notable 157lb Graduates And Departures
(Career NCAA placements in parentheses)
Levi Haines, Penn State (2nd, 1st, ?, ?)
Bryce Andonian, Virginia Tech (NQ, R12, 3rd, 7th, 6th)
Peyton Robb, Nebraska (NQ, R16, 4th, 6th, 7th)
Jared Franek, Iowa (NQ, R12, R12, 4th, 8th)
Will Lewan, Michigan (NQ, R16, 5th, 8th, DNP)
Michael Blockhus, Minnesota (NQ, DNP, DNP, 8th, R16)
Brayton Lee, Indiana (NQ, 6th, Inj, DNQ, R16)
Brock Mauller, Missouri (6th, NQ, 5th, RS, 7th, DNP)
Sammy Sasso, Ohio State (NQ, 2nd, 5th, 2nd, Inj, ?)
Cody Chittum, Iowa State (DNP, ?, ?, ?)
Cael Swenson, South Dakota State (RS, R12, R16, MedRS, ?, ?)
A lot of talent clears out of this weight, as five multiple-time All-Americans are out of eligibility.
Sasso is projected to return to wrestling after a horrible accident, though word out of Columbus is that Sammy will be up at 165 this season.
Chittum and Swenson are both projected to take redshirt seasons but otherwise would have started the season in the top 20.
Title Contenders
Jacori Teemer, Iowa
Meyer Shapiro, Cornell
Daniel Cardenas, Stanford
There's no runaway favorite at 157, but these three contenders have separated themselves from the pack.
There's no guarantee that another contender won't arise as the season progresses, but then there are very few guarantees in life and even fewer in sports. However, Teemer, Shapiro, and Cardenas all wrestled full seasons and did not shy away from competition. While they all took multiple losses during the season, they also proved to be the most accomplished 157-pounders in the field going into the new season.
All three were at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas and the NCAA Championships, and Cardenas wrestled both Shapiro and Teemer at both the CKLV and NCAAs. As they were both in the Pac-12, Teemer and Cardenas faced off four times last season, with Teemer winning all four.
Cardenas daw Shapiro three times, with Daniel winning in Las Vegas and on the championship side of the NCAA tournament, though it was Shapiro who prevailed in the thrid-place match in Kansas City.
Watch Cardenas defeat Shapiro in Vegas:
Check out Teemer and Cardenas' match from the CKLV semifinals:
Teemer joined a new conference when he transferred to Iowa but even if he had stayed at Arizona State he'd have been in a new conference championship tournament, as ASU joined the Big 12 over the summer. Cadenas and Shapiro will also start their postseasons in new tournaments, as Cornell left the EIWA will wrestle in the inaugural Ivy League Championship this March, and Stanford participated in the realignment party by joining the ACC.
Other Contenders
Tyler Kasak, Penn State
Peyten Kellar, Ohio
Ryder Downey, Northern Iowa
Antrell Taylor, Nebraska
Ed Scott, NC State
Paddy Gallagher, Ohio State
Paniro Johnson, Iowa State
Cobe Siebrecht, South Dakota
As returning All-Americans who also had full, consistent seasons, Tyler Kasak and Peyten Kellar could work their way into title contenders this year. The same can be said for Ryder Downey, who made the bloodround as a freshman.
Watch Kellar defeat Ed Scott at the 2023 Cliff Keen Las Vegas:
Antrell Taylor is perhaps the most intriguing new addition to the division. He placed eighth at 165-pounds and it was widely assumed that he was often giving up some size in many matches and that he would've been down at 157 if it weren't for senior Peyton Robb, a three-time All-American at 157-pounds who ran out of eligibility last March. Could Taylor make a title run at his more natural weight? It should surprise no one if he does!
After a promising true freshman campaign on redshirt, Paddy Gallagher had a brutal schedule that still saw him go 2-2 at NCAAs, despite a nearly .500 record. Gallagher's only losses last season were to guys ranked 8th or better, or to Bryce Andonian, and could be due for a bounce-back season in 2025.
Watch Gallagher defeat Kellar at the 2023 Cliff Keen Las Vegas:
One of those losses was to Ed Scott, who's been a consistent feature in the Wolfpack lineup over the last four seasons. Scott is looking to return to his fourth NCAA tournament and earn his second All-American honor.
A stellar true freshman season in 2022 brought Paniro Johnson a lot of attention and expectations from Cyclones fans. Unfortunately, Johnson wasn't able to compete for Iowa State last season, however he did enter several opens as an unaffiliated competitor, dropping only one match in 14, to South Dakota State's Cael Swensen.
Finally, don't sleep on Cobe Siebrecht, the 2023 NCAA qualifier for Iowa who has since transferred to South Dakota State. He brings a lot of funk and length to 157-pounds.
Sleepers and Landmines
Trevor Chumbley, Northwestern
DJ McGee, George Mason
Kaleb Larkin, Arizona State
#2 ranked Meyer Shapiro took three losses last season. Two of them were at the hands of #3 Daniel Cardenas, the third was to #14 Trevor Chumbley, a competitor as dangerous as anyone in the division.
DJ McGee could be George Mason's best shot at an All-American since Cayle Byers made the round of 12 in 2009. McGee was a runner-up at the MAC Championships, giving eventual All-American Peyten Kellar a tough 2-0 match. He also pushed Jacori Teemer into overtime at the Midlands. He'll need more than close losses to climb the podium, but McGee is also just a redshirt sophomore and has time to make the necessary jumps.
Kaleb Larkin has some big shoes to fill if he's taking over 157 from Jacori Teemer. Thankfully for the Sun Devil faithful, Larkin is a blue-chip recruit whose dad, Eric, is a former national champ for Arizona State.
Predictions
1st: Meyer Shapiro, Cornell
2nd: Daniel Cardenas, Stanford
3rd: Jacori Teemer, Iowa
4th: Antrell Taylor, Nebraska
5th: Peyten Kellar, Ohio
6th: Tyler Kasak, Penn State
7th: Ryder Downey, Northern Iowa
8th: Paniro Johnson, Iowa State
I'd be the furthest thing from shocked if either Cardenas or Teemer win a national championship. I picked Shapiro, however, based on what I perceive to be a slightly higher ceiling, with his youth and international freestyle success suggesting he has higher levels to which he might ascend. Of course, is Cardenas redshirts, which is an option, he would obviously not be placing at this season's NCAA tournament.
I'm most intrigued by Antrell Taylor, an incredible talent who I believe could also have the highest ceiling among the rest of the contenders now that he is down to 157.
The prognostication gets hazier the further down podium you go, however I feel comfortable saying Kellar, Kasak, Downey and Johnson are All-American threats, though I could just as easily see another wrestler earning a spot on the podium.