Wrestling season is almost here, folks.

Penn State wrestling finally revealed its full 2026-27 schedule last Monday after a long wait, with 16 dual-meet opponents evenly divided between Big Ten play and non-conference.

As we count down the final few weeks until the home and season opener at Rec Hall on Thursday, November 12 against Bloomsburg, let’s break down the eight unfamiliar foes that’ll define the early tune-up to the rigors of conference play:

November 12 vs. Bloomsburg

Conference: MAC
2025-26 Record: 10-18 (0-7 MAC)
2026 Conference Tournament Finish: 10th out of 13
2026 NCAA Championships: Zero points (2 qualifiers)

The 2026-27 season will begin with the home opener at Rec Hall against Bloomsburg, where the team will raise its latest NCAA championship banner.

It will be the 23rd all-time meeting between the two in-state foes dating back to 1976. The Nittany Lions are 16-5-1 in the prior 22 meetings, having won the last six. The Huskies last won the series on February 22, 1991.

Bloomsburg, just 75 miles east of State College, competes in Division II in all other sports but takes advantage of the tremendous Northeast talent pool to compete as a Division I program in wrestling, where it competes in the MAC.

They have one wrestler currently ranked in the inaugural InterMat rankings, No. 30 heavyweight Mason Rebuck.

November 15 At Oklahoma

Conference: Big 12
2025-26 Record: 10-6 (3-5 Big 12)
2026 Conference Tournament Finish: Seventh out of 14
2026 NCAA Championships: 10 points (30th)

This is the return trip to Norman, Oklahoma, for last year’s season opener at the Bryce Jordan Center, where Penn State won 45-0.

The meet will be the Nittany Lions’ 28th all-time meeting with the Sooners, with the Nittany Lions holding the all-time edge, 15-11-1. It’s the first trip to Norman since February 3, 1995. Oklahoma’s last win in the series came at the 2010 Virginia Duals on January 9, 2010.

The Sooners failed to get anyone on the podium at the NCAA Championships despite seven qualifiers in a disappointing postseason, but Brian Soldano finished second at the Big 12 Championships.

All 10 of their wrestlers are ranked, which will provide the season’s first real test.

• No. 16 Conrad Hendriksen at 125
• No. 12 Tyler Wells at 133
• No. 15 Isaiah Powe at 141
• No. 17 Jack Gioffre at 149
• No. 13 Rafael Hipolito at 157
• No. 7 Paddy Gallagher at 165
• No. 30 Tyler Eise at 174
• No. 11 Brian Soldano at 184
• No. 28 Jersey Robb at 197
• No. 24 Bradley Hill at 285

If the lineup shakes out that way, we could see PJ Duke get his first chance to truly prove himself at a new weight against a former Buckeye in Gallagher. Gallagher wrestled Mitchell Mesenbrink three times last season.

November 22 At Black Knight Invitational

The Black Knight Invitational — an annual open tournament in West Point, New York — is the only planned open that the Nittany Lions will send much of their lineup to. There will be others, but the team usually sends the entire starting lineup and several key backups to compete with each other and other regional lineups.

The Black Knight Invitational is a good early-season tournament that simulates what the lineup will see in March, while also giving backups a chance to face other teams’ starters. Folks might remember from last year how Nate Desmond stunned Luke Lilledahl for the title in what would be the latter’s only loss of the season.

The following teams sent at least one wrestler to Black Knight last year: Colombia, Army, UT Chattanooga, LIU, Gardner-Webb, and Buffalo.

December 6 At Lehigh

Conference: EIWA
2025-26 Record: 11-7 (5-0 EIWA)
2026 Conference Tournament Finish: First out of 12
2026 NCAA Championships: 26.5 points (16th)

The highest finisher at the NCAA Championships on the non-conference slate, Lehigh is an age-old in-state rival that will host the Nittany Lions in Bethlehem in early December.

This marks the 112th all-time meeting between the Nittany Lions and Mountain Hawks, dating back to 1911. Excluding the 2020-21 season, which restricted schedules due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Penn State and Lehigh will compete for the 92nd consecutive season.

Lehigh is the predominant power in the EIWA, routinely finishing atop the conference standings and contending in the NCAA Championships. Luke Stanich finished third at 141 pounds in Cleveland as the Mountain Hawks sent six wrestlers to nationals.

Heading into 2026-27, they have seven ranked wrestlers:

• No. 11 Matt Lopes (133)
• No. 1 Luke Stanich (141)
• No. 23 Jayden Scott (149)
• No. 14 Logan Rozynski (157)
• No. 13 Rylan Rogers (184)
• No. 29 Caden Rogers (197)
• No. 5 Nathan Taylor (285)

The two blockbuster matches will be between Stanich and whoever Penn State wrestles at 141 pounds (Masanosuke Ono?) and a heavyweight bout between Taylor and whichever Mirasola wins the heavyweight job.

In last year’s meeting, Taylor beat Cole Mirasola at Rec Hall, 7-2.

December 13 vs. West Virginia

Conference: Big 12
2025-26 Record: 11-5 (5-3 Big 12)
2026 Conference Tournament Finish: Fifth of 14
2026 NCAA Championships: 17 points (T-23rd)

Penn State always embraces in-state rivalries in its non-conference wrestling schedule, but it hasn’t been scheduling many regional rivals that show up more in other sports. This dual against West Virginia at the Bryce Jordan Center will be fun.

It is the 37th all-time meeting between the Nittany Lions and West Virginia, dating back to 1931, but it’s the first time the two teams have squared off since Penn State traveled to Morgantown, West Virginia, in November 2012.

The Nittany Lions dominate the all-time series, 29-7, with the last Mountaineers win coming on January 5, 2002.

In 2025-26, West Virginia did well in the Big 12, with big dual victories over Wyoming, Oklahoma, and Northern Iowa en route to a fifth-place finish, their best finish since 2015. At the NCAA Championships, the Mountaineers got Ty Watters on the podium, finishing sixth at 157 pounds.

Heading into this season, the Mountaineers have eight ranked wrestlers:

• No. 29 Louie Gill (125)
• No. 10 Gunnar Andrick (133)
• No. 33 Luke Satriano (141)
• No. 6 Ty Watters (157)
• No. 27 Brody Conley (174)
• No. 24 Ian Bush (184)
• No. 15 Rune Lawrence (197)
• No. 23 Max Vanadia (285)

The two top-10 bouts to watch will be Andrick likely facing off with All-American Marcus Blaze at 133 and a likely NCAA Championships appetizer between Watters and whoever comes out at 157 pounds for Penn State.

Could it be Tyler Kasak, who beat Watters for third place at 149 pounds in 2024?

December 20 vs. Oregon State (Journeyman Collegiate Duals)

Conference: Pac-12
2025-26 Record: 7-2 (3-0 PAC12)
2026 Conference Tournament Finish: First out of 4
2026 NCAA Championships: Four points (43rd)

The Nittany Lions will return to the Journeyman Collegiate Duals, held in Binghamton, New York, this year. Teams usually compete in pods and compete two or three times in one day, and Penn State will be fortunate enough to see three different duals on the same day.

They start with Oregon State, a hard team to gauge with how turbulent their conference situation is. The Beavers dominate the Pac-12 every year, but it rarely translates to the NCAA Championships.

It’s the fifth all-time meeting between the Nittany Lions and Beavers, dating back to 1994. Penn State has swept all four previous matchups, most recently on a trip to Corvallis, Oregon, on January 5, 2024, when it won 36-3.

The Beavers have six ranked wrestlers in the inaugural InterMat rankings:

• No. 31 Gabe Whisenhunt (133)
• No. 22 Nash Singleton (141)
• No. 24 Noah Tolentino (149)
• No. 25 CJ Hamblin (157)
• No. 24 Daschle Lamer (174)
• No. 11 Justin Rademacher (197)

Rademacher will be the stiffest test for the Nittany Lions against reigning national champion Josh Barr, but this could be an opportunity to try out other wrestlers with the format.

I would be surprised if Cael Sanderson had all 10 starters wrestle in all three duals.

December 20 vs. Duke (Journeyman Collegiate Duals)

Conference: ACC
2025-26 Record: 6-14 (0-6 ACC)
2026 Conference Tournament Finish: Seventh out of 7
2026 NCAA Championships: 1.5 points (T-52nd)

The second dual of the day will be the lone dual against an ACC opponent this year, as Duke will face the Nittany Lions at an undetermined time in the middle of the day.

The Nittany Lions are set to face the Blue Devils for the first time ever, with their only major meeting coming at the 2006 Penn State Open, a folkstyle open tournament hosted in State College similar to the Black Knight Invitational.

Duke is coming off a rough season, sending only one wrestler to the NCAA Championships and struggling in conference play. Heavyweight Connor Barket, the team’s only wrestler who qualified last year, lost to Mirasola in the first round before being eliminated in the second round of wrestlebacks.

The Blue Devils have zero ranked wrestlers. Could this be an opportunity to get more time for the backups?

December 20 vs. Binghamton (Journeyman Collegiate Duals)

Conference: EIWA
2025-26 Record: 7-4 (4-1 EIWA)
2026 Conference Tournament Finish: Seventh out of 12
2026 NCAA Championships: 2.5 points (50th)

The finale of the Journeyman Collegiate Duals will be against the hosts, but with how Nittany Nation travels, I doubt it’ll be much of a road dual.

This marks the fifth meeting between the Nittany Lions and Bearcats, with Penn State winning all four previous meetings dating back to 2009. The most recent matchup also came at the Journeyman Collegiate Duals in Nashville on December 22, 2024, a 52-0 shutout victory.

Binghamton had a solid regular season in 2025-26, but finished the season with a whimper in the postseason. They sent two wrestlers to the NCAA Championships, both of whom earned points, but neither came close to the podium.

The Bearcats have four ranked wrestlers, albeit none in the top 20:

• No. 33 Carson Wagner (125)
• No. 32 Carson DesRosier (141)
• No. 30 Thomas Snipes (165)
• No. 21 Carter Baer (174)

February 19 vs. Northern Colorado

Conference: Pac-12
2025-26 Record: 3-10 (2-6 Big 12)
2026 Conference Tournament Finish: 14th out of 14
2026 NCAA Championships: One point (T-57th)

Big Ten play begins in January and will make up the entire second half of the season, except for Senior Day, which has been a non-conference bout at Rec Hall for several years. While usually against a regional foe, the Nittany Lions will face Northern Colorado this year in their first year in the rebuilt Pac-12.

The meeting marks the first matchup between the two programs and will take place toward the end of the season. The timing closely matches the recent trend of hosting non-conference opponents to close the regular season in American, Edinboro, and Princeton over the last three seasons.

The Bears are coming off a rough season, going 3-10 in dual meets and finishing 14th and dead last in the Big 12 Championships.

The Bears had two NCAA qualifiers, going 1-3 combined, with the graduating Dominick Serrano claiming the only victory.

Northern Colorado has only two ranked wrestlers, both at lighter weights:

• No. 31 Daniel Guanajuato (125)
• No. 29 Carter Schmidt (133)