With the 2024-25 wrestling season done and over with, it’s never too early to look ahead to next season. So, here’s a list of the Top 30 Big Ten wrestlers going into the 2025-26 season in three segments.
We started with Nos. 21-30 and had 11-20 last week. Now, here are the Top 10.
Big Ten’s 30 Best (Nos. 1-10)
Rankings by FloWrestling
10. Drake Ayala – Iowa
#3 at 133 pounds
His career has been kind of unorthodox in Iowa City, but Drake Ayala is back for his final year of eligibility looking to finish on top of a stacked 133-pound weight class.
Ayala was set to redshirt as a freshman in 2021-22 behind senior Spencer Lee, but a season-ending injury to Lee thrust Ayala into the starting lineup at 125 pounds. He qualified for NCAAs and finished the year with a 16-8 record. Ayala then went 13-1 while redshirting the following year.
In 2023-24, Ayala went 23-5 at 125 pounds while making it to the NCAA final — losing to Arizona State’s Richard Figueroa 7-2. Last season, Ayala moved up to 133 pounds where he went 21-3 on the year, again making it to the NCAA final — this time losing to Illinois’ Lucas Byrd 3-2 in tiebreakers. Ayala beat Byrd 4-2 in their dual matchup before falling to him in both the Big Ten final and the NCAA final.
After making the national final two years in a row at two different weight classes, anything less than another trip to the final will feel like a disappointment for Ayala.
9. Max McEnelly – Minnesota
#1 at 184 pounds
A top-10 recruit coming out of high school in 2023, Max McEnelly came in with high expectations and has exceeded them at every turn so far for the Golden Gophers.
McEnelly came in and redshirted with a perfect 15-0 record. As a redshirt freshman this past season, McEnelly won his first 20 matches — taking his perfect record into the Big Ten final against Penn State legend Carter Starocci. McEnelly took his first collegiate loss there via 8-5 decision in sudden victory.
At the NCAA Championships, McEnelly made it to the semifinal round where he fell to NCAA Champion Parker Keckeisen of UNI 4-1 in sudden victory — McEnelly went on to beat two All-Americans to finish third.
With both Starocci and Keckeisen graduated, McEnelly is the favorite at this weight. To solidify things, McEnelly just won a gold medal at the U20 World Championships this fall at 86 kg for Team USA. Also a U17 World bronze-medalist in 2022, McEnelly is the kind of prospect that schools dream of landing.
It’ll be a changing of the guard this year at 184 pounds with the mantle looking like McEnelly’s to take.
8. Brock Hardy – Nebraska
#2 at 141 pounds
Speaking of unorthodox careers…enter Brock Hardy.
The #9 overall prospect in the 2018 class, Hardy took a two-year LDS mission out of high school to Rio De Janeiro, Brazil. He arrived on campus for the Covid-shortened 2021 season before using his redshirt in 2021-22.
Hardy then took the open starting spot at 141 pounds as a redshirt freshman in 2022-23 — going 30-8 and placing sixth at NCAAs. Hardy suffered a rib injury in the semifinal round that led to his losses on the back side.
As a sophomore, Hardy went 24-9 and placed third at NCAAs. This past season, he went 27-4 — winning a Big Ten Championship (see below) before making it to the NCAA final where he fell to Ohio State’s Jesse Mendez 12-9.
In freestyle, Hardy won a tough bracket at the 2023 U23 US Open and went on to the U23 World Championships where he finished as a bronze medalist. This past summer, Hardy finished fourth in Team USA’s pecking order at 65 kg, making it to the World Team Trials finals where he fell to Real Woods 10-6 — Woods went on to earn bronze at the World Championships last month.
A three-time All-American, a Big Ten champion, and an NCAA finalist — there’s really only one thing his collegiate resume is missing before he fully turns his attention to freestyle.
7. Michael Caliendo – Iowa
#2 at 165 pounds
Michael Caliendo spent his first two years at North Dakota State — he redshirted before going 29-5 as a freshman while placing seventh at NCAAs. He then transferred to Iowa where he’s been one of the best 165-pounders in the country ever since.
In 2023-24, Caliendo went 24-6 while placing fourth at NCAAs. Last season, Caliendo went 24-3 while making it to the NCAA final where he lost to Penn State’s Mitchell Mesenbrink 8-2. All three of Caliendo’s losses last year came to Mesenbrink — 19-4 tech fall in the dual, 4-1 decision in the Big Ten final, and the 8-2 decision.
The year prior, Caliendo’s six losses came to either NCAA champs or soon-to-be champs — Mesenbrink three times, Keegan O’Toole of Missouri, David Carr of Iowa State, and Dean Hamiti (then of Wisconsin) each once.
Caliendo is 77-14 for his career and 48-9 in Iowa City — I look for another deep tournament run to end his college career.
6. Antrell Taylor – Nebraska
#1 at 157 pounds
After placing up a weight class at 165 as a redshirt freshman, Antrell Taylor saved his best work for his sophomore season — and all indications are that he’s only improved going into this season.
Last season, Taylor went 26-4 while capturing his first NCAA title down at his natural weight class of 157. It wasn’t a perfect season — he twice lost to Penn State’s Tyler Kasak — but he put it all together when it counted most. He knocked off Cornell’s Meyer Shapiro, a guy who had beaten Taylor before in freestyle, 7-2 in the semis on the way to downing Purdue’s Joey Blaze in the NCAA final 4-2.
In freestyle, Taylor is seen as one of the future contenders for Team USA at 70 kg — he’s been to the finals at the U20 US Open and the U20 World Team Trials as well as making it to the semifinal round of the Senior-level World Team Trials this summer.
With two year of eligibility left, Taylor could join the great Jordan Burroughs as Nebraska’s only multi-time NCAA champions.
5. Lucas Byrd – Illinois
#1 at 133 pounds
A three-time All-American going into his senior season, Lucas Byrd finally put it all together last season — he won an NCAA title at 133 pounds with a 23-1 record on the year. His only loss came to Iowa’s Drake Ayala in their dual matchup before avenging that loss twice in the Big Ten and NCAA final — he won via pinfall at Big Tens and 3-2 in tiebreakers at nationals.
Byrd twice finished fifth in his first two years before falling in the blood-round in 2023. An injury derailed his 2024 season, giving him a medical redshirt. His career record is 96-16.
Byrd is the top guy going into the season, but he’ll have to hold off a slew of contenders to keep his crown.
4. AJ Ferrari – Nebraska
#1 at 285 pounds
Here’s another guy that’s followed a winding path in college — AJ Ferrari has landed in Lincoln to be Nebraska’s new heavyweight.
Ferrari originally went to Oklahoma State out of high school where he won an NCAA title as a true freshman at 197 pounds with a 19-1 record in 2021. He then started off the next season 10-0 before a car accident ended his season and off-the-mat troubles led to him being kicked off the team.
Ferrari then flirted with programs like Iowa and Northern Colorado before landing at Cal State Bakersfield for his sophomore season in 2024-25 — he went 21-1 there while finishing third at NCAAs. His only loss was a 3-0 decision to eventual champion Stephen Buchanan of Iowa in the NCAA semi.
After announcing his transfer this summer to North Carolina, Ferrari was denied admission and later committed to Nebraska where he will move up to 285 pounds.
For one thing — Ferrari has never lacked confidence.
A guy with a lot of personality and the wrestling chops to back it all up — he is 50-2 for his career — Ferrari may have landed with the right crop of coaches in Lincoln. Head Coach Mark Manning and assistant Tervel Dlagnev look to be up to the task of keeping Ferrari on the straight and narrow while maximizing his potential on the mat.
3. Levi Haines – Penn State
#1 at 174 pounds
One of the anchors for the high-powered Penn State lineup, Levi Haines was an NCAA champion in 2024 and is looking to end his career back on top.
As a freshman and sophomore, Haines wrestled at 157 pounds where he went 48-2 in winning an NCAA title while making it to the finals twice. This past season, Haines moved up two weight classes to 174 where he took third with a 25-2 record on the year. With a stellar 73-4 career record, Haines doesn’t lose very often.
This summer, Haines made the Senior World Team for Team USA at 79 kg — he made it through a brutal bracket, winning a tough match against Russia along the way (see below), making it to the World final. He came home with a silver medal. He lost to Greece’s Georgios Kougioumtsidis 3-2 in the final.
Not only is Haines a top-shelf NCAA talent, but he’s already a star on the international level too. He’s the predominant favorite to win an NCAA title this year at 174. It’s entirely possible that he could put together his second career unbeaten season.
2. Jesse Mendez – Ohio State
#1 at 141 pounds
A top recruit for the Buckeyes in 2023, Jesse Mendez started right away as a true freshman down at 133 pounds. He had to make a pretty tough cut to get there, but Mendez still secured All-American honors by placing sixth at NCAAs. After an early loss, Mendez stormed back in the consolation bracket.
As a sophomore, Mendez moved up to a more natural weight class for him at 141 pounds — he’s been dominant ever since. He’s 58-5 at the weight and has won back-to-back NCAA titles.
In 2024, Mendez beat Penn State’s Beau Bartlett 4-1 in the NCAA final. In 2025, he beat Hardy in a back-and-forth 12-9 decision.
Mendez also has a lot of potential for the Senior level after this season. A three-time age-level world team member, Mendez won a U20 silver medal in 2023 at 65 kg. He also finished fourth at the 2024 Olympic Team Trials. Seemingly a perfectly sized 65 kg wrestler, Mendez will be in the mix for World and Olympic teams for years to come.
This year, he’s the heavy favorite to win his third national title, and it looks like it’ll be him and Hardy again. These two could meet up to four times this season — at National Duals, their dual matchup, at Big Tens, and at NCAAs. Mendez currently has a 3-1 record against Hardy.
1. Mitchell Mesenbrink – Penn State
#1 at 165 pounds
If you haven’t seen Mitchell Mesenbrink wrestle, you should. He wrestles like he was shot out of a cannon with seemingly endless cardio. He shoots a lot, and he finishes on most of his shots. If he can’t put you away early, he then melts you with his pace.
A junior this year, Mesenbrink has only lost one match in college — a 9-8 decision to NCAA Champion David Carr of Iowa State in the 2024 NCAA final. He’s currently 53-1, and I could see him finishing his career without another loss. With Carr gone, there’s really nobody there to challenge him.
This past season, Mesenbrink went a perfect 27-0 with an absurd 89% bonus rate. The first non-bonus win he had all year was in the Big Ten final — a 4-1 decision win over Caliendo. He had 18 technical falls on the year — he won by tech in each of his first 12 matches.
In freestyle, Mesenbrink was on the cusp of making a Senior-level World Team this summer. After winning the US Open and beating Carr in the finals there, Mesenbrink took on Carr again in a best-of-three final at Final X — Carr won those matches 4-4 and 4-3. Carr went on to place fifth at Worlds, dropping razor-thin matches to the two best wrestlers in the world at 74 kg — Zaurbek Sidakov of Russia and Chermen Valiev of Albania (a Russian transfer).
On the age-level circuit, Mesenbrink is a U20 World Champion (2023) and silver medalist (2022), and a U23 bronze medalist (2024). He’s set to compete at the U23 World Championships again next week and will be one of the favorites to win gold.
Mesenbrink will again be in the mix for the World Team next year with his sights set for the Olympics in Los Angeles in 2028.
