The No. 4 Nebraska wrestling team began the new season with a 32-7 dismantling of Utah Valley, a trend they’d like to see continue. Four of the Huskers’ eight wins came with bonus points including technical falls from No. 4 Antrell Taylor (157) and No. 5 Lenny Pinto (174) as well as a season-opening pin for No. 5 Ridge Lovett (149).
Before returning to action at the Devaney Center on Dec. 20, the Huskers travel to the East Coast for a pair of duals Saturday against Campbell and North Carolina.
Here’s all you need to know as Nebraska faces off against the Fighting Camels and Tar Heels.
***All rankings are from TheOpenMat.com
How to Follow Along
Campbell Scout
Head Coach: Scotti Sentes | 4th Season | 42-19 (.689) School Duel Record | 16 NCAA Qualifiers, 1x All-American | Spent four seasons as an assistant at Campbell before taking over in March 2020.
2023-2024 Record: 14-3 (8-0 SoCon, 2nd in SoCon Tournament) | 1x All-American, 5x NCAA Qualifiers | 3x SoCon Champions.
All-Time Series: Nebraska Leads 2-0 (2023 last duel, 37-4 NU)
Fun Fact: TJ Dudley is an assistant on Campbell’s staff. Dudley was a three-time All-American at Nebraska at 184 pounds, which was highlighted by a runner-up finish as a junior.
NCAA QF Returners: Taye Ghadiali, Gr., 285 lbs | Domenic Zaccone, Gr. 133 lbs. | Dom Baker, Jr., 165 lbs. | Levi Hopkins, Gr., 197 lbs.
Key Departures: Austin Murphy, 174 lbs. (Eligibility)
Outlook: Scotti Sentes enters his fourth season with Campbell after making history during the 2023-2024 season. The former Fighting Camel assistant helped the program send at least five wrestlers to the NCAA Tournament in all three of his seasons, including the second All-American in program history.
Heavyweight Taye Ghadiali returns to Campbell for his graduate student season after finishing eighth last season in Kansas City. Three other returning NCAA qualifiers join the Fighting Campbell as they look to win the SoCon for the second time under Sentes after winning it in his debut season in 2021-2022. Domenic Zaccone (133), Dom Baker (165) and Levi Hopkins (197) give Campbell a solid core to build around with their most lethal stretch in the heavier weights leading up to Ghadiali.
This is a mismatch on paper against a No. 4 Nebraska team who will have too much for the Camels to counter, but there are still plenty of intriguing matchups. 165 pounds with Baker and Husker Bubba Wilson could be intriguing with both coming back after making trips to the NCAA Tournament. Heavyweight has been a sore spot for the Huskers over the years, but Harley Andrews will aim to pull the upset over No. 7 Ghadiali to gain some early season confidence before Big Ten duels begin in January.
How to Follow Along
North Carolina Scout
Head Coach: Rob Koll | 2nd Season | 13-7 (.650) School Duel Record | Spent past two seasons at Stanford (2021-23) and previous 28 at Cornell (1993-2021) | Coached 1 Hodge Trophy winner, 16 NCAA Champions, 24 NCAA Finalists, 75 All-Americans & 190 NCAA Qualifiers.
2023 Record: 11-7 (3-2 ACC, 3rd at ACC Tournament) | 1x All-American, 5x NCAA Qualifiers.
All-Time Series: Nebraska leads 14-2 (2021 last matchup, Nebraska won 27-6)
Fun Fact: The Tar Heels have a pair of recent NCAA Champions on their staff under head coach Rob Koll. Tony Ramos, 2014 NCAA Champ at 133 pounds for Iowa, is the Associate Head Coach while two-time NCAA Champion Vincenzo Joseph from Penn State is the Recruiting Coordinator.
NCAA QF Returners: Lachlan McNeil, R-Jr., 149 lbs. | Sonny Santiago, R-Jr., 157 lbs. | Spencer Moore, R-Jr., 125 lbs.
Key Additions: Ethan Oakley, R-Jr., 133 lbs. (Appalachian State).
Key Departures: Max Shaw, 197 lbs. (Eligibility) | Tyler Eischens, 174 lbs. (Eligibility).
Outlook: A coaching legend in college wrestling, Rob Koll aims to elevate his alma mater in his second season in charge after leading Cornell for 28 seasons and Stanford for two before coming back to Chapel Hill. Koll was the program’s first four-time All-American, capping off his career with an individual national championship in 1988. He ended his career as the ACC’s winningest wrestling of all-time with a 155-20-1 record, while becoming a three-time conference champ.
Koll came back to Chapel Hill after dealing with support issues at Stanford for his two lone seasons. He led the Tar Heels to their most dual victories since the 2019-20 seasons with an 11-7 record. UNC failed to get a conference champion, but sent five wrestlers to the NCAA Tournament with Lachlan McNeil notching his second-straight All-American honor.
He returns for 2024-25 and is the highest-rated Tar Heel at No. 7 at 149. Spencer Moore (No. 16) at 125 pounds and Appalachian State transfer Ethan Oakley (No. 20) at 133 pounds are the other two currently ranked wrestlers for UNC. Redshirt junior Sonny Santiago also returns after making it to Kansas City a season ago.
Nebraska is once again the heavy favorite to win the overall dual, but 149 pounds will be the match to watch between McNeil and No. 7 Lovett, a two-time All-American and NCAA Finalist. 125 and 133 offer two more ranked matches. Nebraska’s Caleb Smith (No. 4) is projected to take on Moore at 125 lbs while Oakley gets No. 12 Jacob Van Dee.
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