Image Taken at the 2025 NCAA Wrestling Championships, Day 3 Session 2 (Finals), Saturday, March 22, 2025, Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia, PA. Bruce Waterfield/OSU Athletics
Falcon Wrestling Alumni Wyatt Hendrickson Wins NCAA Title in Thrilling Upset
3/25/2025 11:34:00 AM | Wrestling
USAF ACADEMY, Colo. – Air Force second lieutenant and 2024 USAFA graduate Wyatt Hendrickson battled to a heavyweight national title at the 2025 NCAA Wrestling Championships, March 22, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Hendrickson, a graduate student at Oklahoma State, became the Cowboys' 145th national champion in program history.
As the most heavily favored wrestler in the finals, Minnesota's Gable Steveson entered the title bout already holding an Olympic gold medal, two Hodge Trophies, multiple NCAA titles, needing one more win to complete a fourth consecutive undefeated collegiate season and with a cemented record as one of the best collegiate wrestlers ever.
Hendrickson entered with an undefeated record of his own this season (30-0), but it was his first time reaching an NCAA final.
In a thrilling match that came down to wire, Steveson scored a takedown in the first and Hendrickson followed with a quick escape and another to start the second to make it, 3-2, Steveson, entering the final period. Steveson escaped to start the third and held a 4-2 lead for a majority of the last frame. With time expiring, however, Hendrickson got to Steveson's leg and finished a takedown with less than 20 seconds remaining to the most thunderous roar from the crowd in recent memory of the NCAA Championships. He held on in the final second to prevent a match-tying escape and came away with a 5-4 win and the most memorable moment of the 2025 wrestling season.
As the most heavily favored wrestler in the finals, Minnesota's Gable Steveson entered the title bout already holding an Olympic gold medal, two Hodge Trophies, multiple NCAA titles, needing one more win to complete a fourth consecutive undefeated collegiate season and with a cemented record as one of the best collegiate wrestlers ever.
Hendrickson entered with an undefeated record of his own this season (30-0), but it was his first time reaching an NCAA final.
In a thrilling match that came down to wire, Steveson scored a takedown in the first and Hendrickson followed with a quick escape and another to start the second to make it, 3-2, Steveson, entering the final period. Steveson escaped to start the third and held a 4-2 lead for a majority of the last frame. With time expiring, however, Hendrickson got to Steveson's leg and finished a takedown with less than 20 seconds remaining to the most thunderous roar from the crowd in recent memory of the NCAA Championships. He held on in the final second to prevent a match-tying escape and came away with a 5-4 win and the most memorable moment of the 2025 wrestling season.
During his time at the Academy, Hendrickson earned NCAA All-American honors in 2023 (3rd) and 2024 (3rd), becoming Air Force's first All-American since Kevin Hoy in 2003. Hendrickson is a five-time national qualifier, a two-time Big 12 Champion, three-time NCAA falls leader, two-time NCAA Most Dominant Award recipient, and a U23 UWW Freestyle World Champion. Hendrickson concluded his career at USAFA with 104 career wins and was the program's all-time leader in pins. Hendrickson, currently serving active duty in the Air Force World Class Athlete Program, maintains his commitment to service as an acquisitions officer at the conclusion of his time with the AFWCAP.
Players Mentioned
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