Penn State vs. Michigan wrestling: Preview, probable lineups, how to watch

125 pounds: No. 14 Braeden Davis vs. No. 5  Michael DeAugustino

This first bout is a must-win for Michigan, as All-American Michael DeAugustino takes on true freshman Braden Davis in one of the three weights at which Michigan is favored. DeAugustino, a Northwestern transfer, is 6-1 on the year with a lone injury default loss to No. 15 Brett Ungar of Cornell at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational. He made his Michigan Big Ten dual debut last weekend with two wins over Tommy Capul of Maryland and Tristan Lujan of Michigan State, but Braeden Davis will be a tougher test than both of those athletes.

No. 3 at 125 Michael DeAugustino closes out the @umichwrestling victory with a home debut dub! 🙌 pic.twitter.com/jr5dJMaQUc

— Big Ten Wrestling (@B1GWrestling) January 14, 2024

Davis, a Michigan native who was initially expected to redshirt this year and serve as a backup to Robbie Howard, is now 10-0 this season with 70%. His victory against All-American Brandon Kaylor of Oregon State showed that he’s a podium threat, and he’ll have a chance to notch another top win this weekend in his home state. 

133 pounds: No. 4 Aaron Nagao vs. No. 6 Dylan Ragusin

While Penn State had a lineup shuffle at 125 pounds this year, Michigan also shifted its starters, with the Wolverines making a big change at 133 pounds by pulling three-time NCAA qualifier Dylan Ragusin out of a redshirt last week. Ragusin replaces All-American Chris Cannon, another Northwestern graduate who transferred to Ann Arbor in the offseason. Cannon went down with an injury against Angelo Rini in mid-November and has not wrestled since. 

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Ragusin will have his hands full with Penn State’s Big Ten finalist Aaron Nagao, but this is exactly the kind of challenge the Wolverine needs now if he’s going to make a podium run this March. With a 13-0 record and now the two recent dual wins over Maryland’s No. 21 Braxton Brown and Michigan State’s Andrew Hampton, Ragusin has rocketed to sixth in the country. He’s fast and tough, but his opponent, Nagao, is also known for his slickness. Nagao’s best win so far this year is No. 26 Gabe Whisenhunt, but he also notched wins over All-Americans Kai Orine, Jesse Mendez, Lucas Byrd, Rayvon Foley and Taylor LaMont last year while representing Minnesota, before transferring to Penn State. The edge here belongs to Nagao, but we’ll see what Ragusin can do to keep this close. 

141 pounds: No. 2 Beau Bartlett vs. No. 25 Sergio Lemley

This is one of two weights in this dual where Penn State’s starter is ranked over 20 spots higher than his Michigan opponent in the rankings, and it’s a weight where the Nittany Lions will be looking for bonus points, regardless of how the first two bouts go. 

Penn State’s No. 2 Beau Bartlett comes into this bout 10-0 on the season with wins over national qualifiers Vince Cornell, Malyke Hines and Cleveland Bolton, and he’s looking every bit like an All-American performer, and perhaps even a title contender, though he hasn’t had to face anyone inside the top 10 yet. The match will have to wait, too, as Michigan’s Sergio Lemley enters his meeting with Bartlett ranked No. 25 after a 10-3 start to his year. Lemley, a freshman, has proven himself to a valuable asset for the Wolverines this year, topping All-American Clay Carlson. He’s tough, but topping some as defensively strong and fundamental as Bartlett will be a challenge. 

149 pounds: No. 12 Tyler Kasak vs. No. 6 Austin Gomez

The Wolverines have reloaded their roster since last season, and one of the latest additions is none other than All-American and 2022 Big Ten champion Austin Gomez at 149 pounds. After finishing off the medal stand at nationals last year due to injury, Gomez retired from college wrestling and moved to Ann Arbor to train for freestyle while on his quest to earn an Olympic spot at 65kg for Mexico. Months later, Gomez announced that he would actually be returning to college wrestling to compete in his final year of eligibility for the Wolverines. 

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The former Iowa State and Wisconsin wrestler is now 3-0 on the year with two ranked decision wins and a fall against Michigan State. He’ll now meet Penn State freshman Tyler Kasak, a new addition himself after slotting in for All-American Shayne Van Ness after Van Ness’ injury. Kasak has been stellar in his role for Penn State, posting a 6-1 record with his only loss coming against teammate Beau Bartlett down at 141 pounds. He’ll have his chance against a title contender now, though, when he meets Gomez in Ann Arbor. 

157 pounds: No. 1 Levi Haines vs. No. 9 Will Lewan

This 157-pound match between No. 1 Levi Haines and No. 9 Will Lewan is one of the few matches from last year’s dual that we’ll see again this year, as both Haines and Lewan are back looking for more All-American honors. In 2023, Haines squeaked out the victory over Lewan in this dual during a breakout moment for the trust freshman in sudden victory, and the Nittany Lion would go on to finish second at NCAAs while Lewan finished eighth.

The big question this year is less about where Haines stacks up against the Wolverine and more about the health of Lewan. The Michigan All-American has not wrestled since the Cliff Keen Invitational in early December where he took three consecutive losses to Peyton Robb, Ed Scott and Daniel Cardenas. Michigan fans want to see Lewan at full health because a healthy Lewan is a dangerous Lewan, but if he takes the mat feeling less than 100%, Haines could pose a real problem for the Michigan middleweight. 

165 pounds: No. 9 Mitchell Mesenbrink vs. No. 7 Cameron Amine

Michigan has the rankings advantage at 165 pounds, but, after Michigan’s Cameron Amine’s loss to Michigan State’s Caleb Fish last weekend, and Mitchell Mesenbrink’s 80% bonus rate this year, the Nittany Lion could be perceived as the favorite in this bout. Since making his Penn State dual debut on Dec. 5, Mesenbrink has scored at least five team points in every one of his bouts, teching Jake Logan and Matthew Olguin, pinning Matt Waddell and winning by injury default against Tyler Lillard. He’s been slowing rising in the rankings and entered the top 10 for the first time in his career this week. Mesenbrink’s trajectory suggests he’s a title contender, but Amine will have experience and the home crowd on his side. 

One of the underrated aspect about Amine’s wrestling history too is his ability to win big matches when it counts. He’s navigated a tough 165-pound bracket the last three seasons to finish on the podium in back-to-back-to-back years, and he’s found ways to avenge loses on that stage too. He’s a clutch performer, and while the Fish loss is notable, Amine’s track record suggests that, if he’s healthy, he’ll bounce back. Mesenbrink will be a tough rebound match for the Wolverine though. 

174 pounds: No. 1 Carter Starocci vs. No. 4 Shane Griffith

There’s an argument to make that 174 pounds is the biggest weight of the dual. After all, it is the only weight where two NCAA champions — Michigan’s Shane Griffith and Penn State’s Carter Starocci — will face off against one another. But, that being said, it’s hard to ignore just how dominant Carter Starocci has been against every single of his opponents this year when considering the competitiveness of this match. Starocci shutout 2019 NCAA champion Mekhi Lewis in the All-Star dual, he teched All-American Travis Wittlake in the Oregon State dual and he’s bonused the other five foes he’s faced. 

Griffith, meanwhile, has already taken a loss this year, as he dropped to Lorenzo Norman of Stanford at the Cliff Keen Invitational. Griffith’s strength though is his calmness under pressure, and he’ll need to be on his A-game to take on the pressure that Starocci is known to deliver. 

184 pounds: No. 5 Bernie Truax vs. No. 15 Jaden Bullock 

Jaden Bullock has been a Wolverine team guy for the last four years, starting as a freshman at 184 pounds and then serving as a backup at 174 and 184 pounds the following season before earning his spot against this year. He’s strung together an impressive 11-4 record and looks to be on track to qualify for his first national tournament. The next obstacle in front of him on that journey though is a serious one: Penn State’s Bernie Truax. 

A three-time All-American at Cal Poly, Truax transferred to Penn State for graduate school and is currently 5-1 on the year with his only loss coming to All-American Trey Munoz of Oregon State. Truax is skilled in all positions, and his experience and wrestling IQ make him particularly challenging to compete against. Michigan will want to avoid bonus points at all costs at this weight class before heading into 197 and 285 pounds, two weights where Penn State will be expected to field the No. 1-ranked wrestlers in the country. 

197 pounds: No. 1 Aaron Brooks vs. Bobby Striggow

Like 141 pounds, 197 pounds is a weight where Penn State will be looking to win with bonus. Three-time All-American Aaron Brooks of Penn State is undefeated on the year with 100% bonus, while his opponent Bobby Striggow of Michigan is 5-5 on the season. These two have never wrestled in their collegiate careers as Striggow is in his first year as a starter at 197 pounds and Brooks wrestled down at 184 pounds for his first three years as Penn State’s rep. 

Striggow will also enter this dual on a two-match losing streak after dropping to Jaxon Smith of Maryland 5-2 and Kael Wisler of Michigan State 5-0. There’s a toughness to Striggow’s style that allows him to keep matches close, even against top-5 athletes like Smith, but Brooks is a different tier of talent. He’s ended all of his matches early this year and averaged 19 points in each bout that did not conclude with a pin. He’ll no doubt aim to keep this trend going against his Wolverine foe. 

285 pounds: No. 1 Greg Kerkvliet vs. Lucas Davison

This might be the most interesting match of the dual. Penn State’s Greg Kerkvliet is one of four No. 1-ranked Nittany Lions, but he’ll have perhaps the hardest test of any of his teammates when he squares off against three-time NCAA All-American Lucas Davison. A transfer from Northwestern, Davison’s biggest strength is his athleticism, a skill shared by Kerkvliet. These two big men know how to move. 

Kerkvliet is 6-0 with his best win of the year coming in the NWCA All-Star Classic when he bonused 2023 third-place national finisher Wyatt Hendrickson of Air Force. Davison, meanwhile is 9-1 with top-20 wins over Taye Ghadiali of Campbell and Hunter Catka, but he does have a loss to All-American Yonger Bastida on the year in what was a fun, crazy, impressive bout. Kerkvliet and Davison have met just once in their college careers with Kerkvliet pulling out the 5-3 win, and this match will be expected to be similarly close.