Wrestling Alumni Wyatt Hendrickson Wins Dan Hodge Trophy
3/31/2025 1:33:00 PM | Wrestling
USAF ACADEMY, Colo. – Falcon wrestling alumni and second lieutenant Wyatt Hendrickson is the winner of the 2025 WIN Magazine/Culture House Dan Hodge Trophy, presented annually by ASICS Wrestling to the nation's top NCAA Division I wrestler. He is the first airman to win the Hodge trophy. Hendrickson beat out Penn State's Mitchell Mesenbrink and Carter Starroci for this year's recognition.
Hendrickson capped off his perfect 27-0 campaign with a historic upset over Minnesota's top-seeded Gable Steveson, who holds an Olympic gold medal, two NCAA titles, a pair of Hodge trophies and was on the brink of a fourth consecutive undefeated season. That performance came after Hendrickson's semifinal victory over Penn State's Greg Kerkvliet, the weight's reigning national champion.
Those two wins counted towards Hendrickson's nine total victories over All-Americans throughout the year, a group that had combined for 18 All-American seasons altogether. He scored bonus points 22 times despite facing a 2025 national qualifier in 17 of his 27 matches, tallying eight technical falls, one default and 13 pins, which was tied for fourth-most in the country.
"It's been a lot of hard work compiled over the past five years," Hendrickson said. "Being a dominant wrestler is something I've really embraced and the biggest award you can get for that is this one. It's an absolute blessing. It feels great. It's been a lot of hard work and a lot of people that have poured a lot of effort into me."
Hendrickson's only decisions came against top-six national finishers in Steveson, Kerkvliet, Arizona State's Cohlton Schultz and Isaac Trumble of NC State. Only six of his matches went the distance and he allowed just four to even reach the third period after the conclusion of the first semester. In all, Hendrickson produced an impressive takedown ratio of 60:3, scored near fall points 23 times and went 13-0 throughout the dual schedule to complete his career on a 48-match winning streak in dual competition.
His dominant run through March began at the Big 12 Championships, where he defeated Schultz in the final bout of the tournament to secure his third career conference title and the team championship for Oklahoma State. Combined with his efforts at the national tournament, Hendrickson posted pins in six of his nine postseason matches. He also earned Outstanding Wrestler honors at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational, the sport's toughest regular season tournament.
Along with this year's Hodge Trophy, Hendrickson was named the Big 12 Wrestler of the Year and the NCAA Most Dominant Wrestler for the third time in his career.
Hendrickson concluded his storied career with a 127-11 record, three All-America honors, 49 wins in 51 dual matches, 60 wins over ranked opponents, 72 pins, 16 technical falls and 16 major decisions.
The coveted Hodge Trophy was created in 1994 by former WIN founder Mike Chapman and named after Dan Hodge, the late three-time national champion from the University of Oklahoma. This year, it was voted on by former winners, a retired coach from each region, a representative of each national wrestling organization, national media members and a fan poll worth five first-place votes.
Like the Heisman Trophy in football, the Hodge is a single-season award based on record, dominance, bonus-point percentage, quality of competition and sportsmanship.
Hendrickson capped off his perfect 27-0 campaign with a historic upset over Minnesota's top-seeded Gable Steveson, who holds an Olympic gold medal, two NCAA titles, a pair of Hodge trophies and was on the brink of a fourth consecutive undefeated season. That performance came after Hendrickson's semifinal victory over Penn State's Greg Kerkvliet, the weight's reigning national champion.
Those two wins counted towards Hendrickson's nine total victories over All-Americans throughout the year, a group that had combined for 18 All-American seasons altogether. He scored bonus points 22 times despite facing a 2025 national qualifier in 17 of his 27 matches, tallying eight technical falls, one default and 13 pins, which was tied for fourth-most in the country.
"It's been a lot of hard work compiled over the past five years," Hendrickson said. "Being a dominant wrestler is something I've really embraced and the biggest award you can get for that is this one. It's an absolute blessing. It feels great. It's been a lot of hard work and a lot of people that have poured a lot of effort into me."
Hendrickson's only decisions came against top-six national finishers in Steveson, Kerkvliet, Arizona State's Cohlton Schultz and Isaac Trumble of NC State. Only six of his matches went the distance and he allowed just four to even reach the third period after the conclusion of the first semester. In all, Hendrickson produced an impressive takedown ratio of 60:3, scored near fall points 23 times and went 13-0 throughout the dual schedule to complete his career on a 48-match winning streak in dual competition.
His dominant run through March began at the Big 12 Championships, where he defeated Schultz in the final bout of the tournament to secure his third career conference title and the team championship for Oklahoma State. Combined with his efforts at the national tournament, Hendrickson posted pins in six of his nine postseason matches. He also earned Outstanding Wrestler honors at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational, the sport's toughest regular season tournament.
Along with this year's Hodge Trophy, Hendrickson was named the Big 12 Wrestler of the Year and the NCAA Most Dominant Wrestler for the third time in his career.
Hendrickson concluded his storied career with a 127-11 record, three All-America honors, 49 wins in 51 dual matches, 60 wins over ranked opponents, 72 pins, 16 technical falls and 16 major decisions.
The coveted Hodge Trophy was created in 1994 by former WIN founder Mike Chapman and named after Dan Hodge, the late three-time national champion from the University of Oklahoma. This year, it was voted on by former winners, a retired coach from each region, a representative of each national wrestling organization, national media members and a fan poll worth five first-place votes.
Like the Heisman Trophy in football, the Hodge is a single-season award based on record, dominance, bonus-point percentage, quality of competition and sportsmanship.
Players Mentioned
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