Minnesota’s Steveson earns No. 1 ranking at HWT in his return to college wrestling

Photo: Gable Steveson (right) appeared before the media with his Minnesota coach Brandon Eggum on Nov. 18 to officially announce that the two-time NCAA champ and Hodge Trophy winner and 2021 Olympic champions was returning to college wrestling after a two-season departure. (Mike Finn photo)

NEWTON, Iowa — Minnesota’s two-time NCAA champion Gable Steveson, who officially announced on Monday that he was returning to college wrestling after a two-season departure, has earned the No. 1 national ranking at heavyweight in WIN Magazine’s Nov. 19 Rankings and Tournament Power Index, presented by Cliff Keen Athletic.

Steveson, whose NCAA titles came in 2021 and 2022 and bookended an Olympic gold medal in 2021, had an extra year of eligibility when he left to compete in professional wrestling after his second NCAA title. The Gopher is expected to return this Sunday against Campbell’s Taye Ghadiali, who moved from No. 9 to No. 4 at his weight class with his 8-3 victory over the Ohio State’s Nick Feldman in last Saturday’s NWCA All-Star Classic that was held at Penn State’s Rec Hall.

Otherwise, the higher-ranked wrestlers in the nine other All-Star matches won their matches, including Penn State’s four-time NCAA champion Carter Starocci, who edged Northern Iowa’s Parker Keckeisen, also a defending national champ, in sudden victory at 184 pounds to also hold his top ranking over the No. 2-rated Panther.

Another defending champ who found success at the All-Star Classic was Ohio State’s Jesse Mendez, who defeated Penn State’s Beau Bartlett, 4-1, in a rematch of last year’s NCAA final. The Buckeye remained No. 1 at 141 and the Nittany Lion held onto his No. 3 ranking at that weight.

Penn State, which saw three other wrestlers — Shayne Van Ness (149), Tyler Kasak (157) and Levi Haines (174) — win matches at the All-Star Classic, remains the top-ranked team in WIN’s Tournament Power Index, which projects where schools will finish in next March’s NCAA Division I Championships. The Nittany Lions feature nine ranked wrestlers, seven in the Top 8 of their weight class, for 122 TPI points.

The following is a breakdown of those individual TPI points per ranking: 20 for 1st, 16 for 2nd, 13.5 for 3rd, 12.5 for 4th, 10 for 5th, 9 for 6th, 6.5 for 7th and 5.5 for 8th. Wrestlers ranked 9-12 earn two points each, followed by one and a half points for wrestlers ranked 13-16 and one point for those ranked 17-20.

The return of Steveson also moved Minnesota into fourth place in WIN’s TPI (52 points) behind No. 2 Iowa (86) and Oklahoma State (64.5).

WIN’s first dual team rankings will be announced in its Dec. 2 rankings.

Nov. 19 Team Tournament Power Index

Nov. 19 Individual Rankings

125 Pounds

133 pounds

141 Pounds

149 Pounds

157 Pounds

165 Pounds

174 Pounds

184 Pounds

197 Pounds

Heavyweight