Hodge Trophy Watch: A Case for Each Finalist and How to Vote

The Hodge Trophy is awarded to the most outstanding Division I wrestler for the entire season.

It’s basically the Heisman of collegiate wrestling.

And this year, two Penn State Wrestling stars are finalists, Carter Starocci and Mitchell Mesenbrink, along with Wyatt Hendrickson of Oklahoma State.

The winner is decided by who gets the most first-place votes between the Hodge Trophy Voting Committee and a fan vote. The fan vote is accessible here, and open until 5 pm Central Time on March 28th .

The criteria for voting is record, dominance/bonus-point percentage, quality of competition and sportsmanship. Details for each finalists criteria can be found on the voting website, but there is no specific criteria for sportsmanship. Additionally, there are no negative reports of sportsmanship for any of these finalists so I will deliver any examples of positive sportsmanship stories they may have.

Let’s take look at each finalist and their case for a 1st place vote.

Carter Starocci

The Dominance factor is very even between all three finalists and sitting at almost 85% bonus point percentage.

Starocci has asserted his dominance in his weight class. The competition he has faced is also a high degree as he faced six different All-Americans throughout the season going 8-0 against them.

Being able to dominate at the same rate consistently against other top-level wrestlers speaks to how great his season really was. For sportsmanship I’m looking at his legacy as the only five-time Division I Champion.

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Mitchell Mesenbrink

Mitchell Mesenbrink won the Most Tech Falls Award for the 2025 Season and had the highest bonus point percentage at 89%. This shows he was one of the most consistent, dominant wrestlers across the board.

Mesenbrink also was undefeated against All-Americans this year as he face three throughout the season going 5-0 against them overall.

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Wyatt Hendrickson

Wyatt Hendrickson was slightly less dominant than the finalists from Penn State, finishing with an 81% bonus point percentage.

Hendrickson also faced 6 different All-Americans and two former champs in Steveson and Kerkvliet. And just like Carter and Mitchell, Wyatt was also undefeated on the season against them. Hendrickson had one of the greatest upsets of all time in the NCAA final over Gable Steveson and he beat the defending champ, Greg Kerkvliet, on his way to that final.

It’s also worth noting that Wyatt is a 2nd Lieutenant in the US Air Force after starting his career at the Air Force Academy.

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Kolin Hurlbut

Penn State Wrestling Reporter at NittanyCentral

Kolin Hurlbut covers Penn State Wrestling for NittanyCentral.

New to sportswriting, Hurlbut Launched his personal blog, The Casual Fan in the past year.

He has a passion for sports, growing up in the midwest watching AFC North and Big Ten Football.

Kolin Attended THE Ohio State University and Purdue University earning a BS in Communication and MS in IT Project Management. Kolin also enjoys writing short stories based on his 12 year career in the US Army.