Nebraska wrestling crowns two national champs, takes second as a team

Penn State might have cruised to the team national championship at the NCAA wrestling tournament, but that didn’t take any shine off a truly historic weekend for Nebraska wrestling.

For the first time in 14 years, Nebraska wrestling came away with two individual national champions. Ridge Lovett won the 149-pound championship.

Antrell Taylor followed that up by winning the 157-pound national championship. It was the first national title for both wrestlers, although Lovett was making his second finals appearance.

Brock Hardy finished as the runner-up in the 141-pound weight class. Beyond that, five other Nebraska wrestlers placed and earned All-American honors in the process.

A historic NCAA tournament for Nebraska wrestling

Nebraska wrestling didn’t seriously contend with Penn State for the national title but that’s not a shock. However, the Huskers bested powerhouse Oklahoma State for second after scoring the most points and getting the most All-American finishes in program history.

Taylor, a sophomore from Millard, Nebraska, won a 4-2 decision over Joey Blaze of Purdue to capture the first of what is hopefully multiple national titles with the Huskers.

Lovett, the No. 2 seed in his bracket, earned a 1-0 victory in an epic final over Caleb Henson of Virginia. The senior is now a three-time All-American. The good news for Nebraska wrestling fans is that this run likely isn’t over.

Lovett will move on but six of the eight All-Americans will be back including two of the three finalists, led by Taylor, who will anchor the lineup as a defending national champion. Caleb Smith (125), Jacob Van Dee (133), Christopher Minto (165), Silas Allred (184), and Camden McDaniel (197) were the others to find the podium for Nebraska wrestling and all but Smith have eligibility remaining.

It might be time to give head coach Mark Manning a raise. He proved that his program is among the elite and right now, it’s the only major men’s sport competing for national titles.

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