Penn State's Carter Starocci Is 'Ready to Roll Now'

The Nittany Lions' three-time NCAA wrestling champ, who fought illness this season, is gearing for another title run.

Penn State's Carter Starocci hasn't wrestled enough this season. Not for rankings or win streaks or even NCAA Tournament preparation. He just hasn't wrestled enough for himself and for the No. 1 Nittany Lions.

"When I'm not wrestling," Starocci said recently, "I'm not really happy."

Starocci, the top-ranked 174-pound wrestler in the country, should enter the NCAA Championships next month as the weight class' overwhelming favorite despite his relative lack of bouts this season. Starocci holds the nation's longest active Division I win streak (63) and could become Penn State's first four-time national champ, as long as he wrestles before teammate Aaron Brooks. 

Yet Starocci has been a quiet force in Penn State's lineup this season, wrestling just 11 bouts and missing three Big Ten matches. Starocci did not travel to Michigan in January for duals against Michigan and Michigan State because of illness and also did not wrestle against Rutgers in February.

Starocci (11-0) returned to the lineup last week against Nebraska, delivering his ninth bonus-point win of the season as Penn State clinched the Big Ten regular-season title. After the match, Starocci explained what matters to him.

"It's not a good feeling being out there not wrestling, especially seeing your guys suit up and you're just laying low," Starocci told reporters in State College. "But if things escalate outside the mat, I'll be right there."

That made Penn State coach Cael Sanderson laugh. Sanderson won a commitment from Starocci, a state champ from Erie Cathedral Prep, in 2018. FloWrestling then ranked Starocci as the No. 3 prospect at 174 pounds. Starocci has outwrestled that projection, winning three consecutive national championships and compiling a 72-2 record so far at Penn State. 

This year has been subdued for Starocci, though he does have an 11-0 major decision over second-ranked Mekhi Lewis at the NWCA All-Star Classic. And Sanderson knows what to expect when Starocci takes the mat.

"It’s frustrating for him just because he just wants to wrestle really well every time," Sanderson said at his weekly media availability in State College. "I don't know that he missed matches before this year. That was something he wasn’t really excited about. Obviously we weren’t, either.

"... He’s ready to roll now. He’s going to compete. He’s a tough kid and he’s always been a ferocious competitor. Even when he didn’t wrestle well, maybe he was sick or maybe he just didn’t manage his weight right or sometimes you just aren’t the best that day, he still gives you great effort. He’s a very, very special competitor."

And a potentially fresh one. Of the 10 wrestlers that top InterMat's rankings, just two have wrestled 11 bouts: Starocci and teammate Greg Kerkvliet (ranked No. 1 at 285). Penn State wrestled a unique schedule with only four non-conference duals and an early season tournament that its top wrestlers skipped to prepare for the NWCA Classic.

Starocci echoed Sanderson's favorite saying ("You're best wrestling is in March," he said), while his coach reminded that the streak falls far below winning at the NCAA Championships.

"It doesn't really matter because that’s not really his goal," Sanderson said. "His goal is to be a national champion. He's been sick for over a month, he’s starting to get better now thankfully and starting to figure out what the problem is. He’s just trying to dominate and be the best he can be every time he steps out onto the mat. He’s a little bit beyond that [the streak]. He’s trying to score points as often as he can when he’s wrestling."

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AllPennState is the place for Penn State news, opinion and perspective on the SI.com network. Publisher Mark Wogenrich has covered Penn State for more than 20 years, tracking three coaching staffs, three Big Ten titles and a catalog of great stories. Follow him on Twitter @MarkWogenrich. And consider subscribing (button's on the home page) for more great content across the SI.com network.