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Wyatt Hendrickson Named Finalist for Dan Hodge Trophy

Wyatt Hendrickson could take home some more hardware.

Taylor Skieens

Mar 22, 2025; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Wyatt Hendrickson of the Oklahoma State Cowboys reacts after defeating Gable Steveson of the Minnesota Golden Gophers during the Division I Men's Wrestling Championship held at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-Imagn Images
Mar 22, 2025; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Wyatt Hendrickson of the Oklahoma State Cowboys reacts after defeating Gable Steveson of the Minnesota Golden Gophers during the Division I Men's Wrestling Championship held at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-Imagn Images / Eric Hartline-Imagn Images

The magic of this past weekend has yet to diminish for many Oklahoma State Cowboy fans. The wrestling world was turned upside down when Oklahoma State heavyweight Wyatt Hendrickson took down the mighty Gable Steveson to win the 2025 NCAA National Championship.

Oklahoma State may not have won the National team title but all of the weekend hype was centered around the Pokes. Dean Hamiti and Hendrickson polished off national championship seasons for O-State while the good news continued to roll in for the Cowboys wrestling program.

On Tuesday, it was announced that Wyatt Hendrickson was named a finalist for the 2025 WIN Magazine/Culture House Dan Hodge Trophy presented annually by ASICS Wrestling to the nation's top NCAA Division I wrestler.

For the brand new collegiate wrestling fan, the Hodge Trophy can be described as the 'Heisman' of NCAA wrestling. The Hodge is a season-to-season award given to the wrestler who gets the most amount of first-place votes from the Hodge Trophy Voting Committee and fan vote based on these criteria; record, bonus point percentage, quality of competition and sportsmanship.

The three finalists for the 2025 Hodge Trophy were announced on Tuesday. The three finalists are Penn State sophomore Mitchell Mesenbrink, Penn State senior Carter Starocci and Oklahoma State senior Wyatt Hendrickson.

The wrestlers combined for 80 victories this season and zero losses. The three wrestlers each won the 2025 national championship in their respective weight classes and each has an impressive resume heading into the announcement of the Hodge Trophy winner.

Hendrickson may have the edge following one of the most historic victories in NCAA wrestling history. With the Gable Steveson win under his belt this year, it was his other numbers that shined. He finished his final collegiate season on the mat with a perfect 27-0 victory to go along with 13 pins. Hendrickson had eight technical falls and a bonus percentage of 81.5.

His win quality on the season set him apart from the rest. Hendrickson was 17-0 against 2025 NCAA Championship qualifiers. He had eight wins against 2025 All-Americans including three victories over Isaac Trumble of NC State and a pair of wins over Arizona State's Cohlton Schultz.

Hendrickson also took down a pair of National Champions this season when he defeated former champion Greg Kerkvliet of Penn State and 2x NCAA Champion Gable Steveson of Minnesota in back-to-back matches.

Only two Cowboys have won the Dan Hodge Trophy, Alex Dieringer won the award win 2016 and Steve Mocco took home the honor in 2005. Hendrickson's current head coach, David Taylor won a pair of Hodge Trophies during his wrestling days at Penn State.

The 2025 Hodge winner will be announced at 12 PM CST on Monday, March 31.

Published
Taylor Skieens
TAYLOR SKIEENS

Taylor Skieens has been an avid sports journalist with the McCurtain Gazette in Idabel, Oklahoma for seven years. He holds the title of Sports Editor for one of the oldest remaining print publications in the state of Oklahoma. Taylor grew up in the small lumber town of Wright City Oklahoma where he played baseball and basketball for the Lumberjax.

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