Penn State Wrestling Recruiting: 2026 Big Board for the Nittany Lions (Updated)
We’ve thrown out the crystal ball and are instead shuffling a deck of Tarot cards to slap together a brand new 2026 Recruiting Big Board for Penn State Wrestling.
Just over a month and a half ago, I put together a list of prospects who were considering the Nittany Lions. Furthermore, this list of talented guys would also be a great fit on the team.
Consequently, some time has passed. And in that span of 47 days, a handful of the guys committed elsewhere. Here is the list:
No. 1 Bo Bassett (149/157) – Iowa
No. 2 Jax Forrest (141/149) – Oklahoma State
No. 18 Adam Waters (174/184) – Ohio State
No. 24 Zach Stewart (133/141) – Purdue
However, at the time of the article, I was fairly certain Penn State Wrestling wouldn’t land either Bo and Jax. As a result, no real surprise there.
And as far as Adam and Zach? Well, those are great gets for the Buckeyes and Boilermakers.
But, as I noted in the previous Big Board, this class is going to be small.
The reason?
Because of the following list of commitments in the past two classes.
Class of 2024
Credit – Lloyd McCully
No. 1 Luke Lilledahl
No. 5 Zack Ryder
No. 6 Joseph Sealey
No. 7 Connor Mirasola
No. 15 Cole Mirasola
No. 75 Brock Weiss
Class of 2025
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No. 1 Marcus Blaze (141)
No. 2 PJ Duke (157/165)
No. 15 William Henckel (174/184)
No. 18 Asher Cunningham (174/184/197)
No. 32 Nathan Desmond (125/133)
No. 41 Dalton Perry (141)
Additionally, here is a look at head coach Cael Sanderson’s lone commitment for 2026. And after that we’ll dive into our updated Big Board for the 2026 class.
Sam Herring
Recruiting Rank: 20
High School: Bishop McCort
State: PA
Projected Weight: 141/149
Projected fit:
As a result of Herring settling into either 141 or 149, he will be a perfect fit for the Nittany Lions. Because PSU is fairly thin at both 141 and at 157. Therefore this allows for more flexibility if any of the 149 guys move up to 157. In three seasons for Bishop McCort, Herring sports an career record of 73-16. Additionally, he finished fourth in the 2024 Ironman and won a title at the 2024 PAUSAW State Championships.
Penn State 2026 Recruiting Big Board
Michael Mocco
Recruiting Rank: 9
High School: Cardinal Gibbons
State: FL
Projected Weight: 285
Projected fit:
As a result of Greg Kerkvliet using up his last year of eligibility this season, Mocco would be a great addition.
Furthermore, the Nittany Lions only have one other guy on the roster who’s even wrestled a match this season. And that’s true freshman Cole Mirasola. Mocco recently took home a U17 World Championship title. Additionally, he’s looking to win his third straight state title. So for obvious reasons, the dude is a talented wrestler.
Peter Snyder
Recruiting Rank: 29
High School: Blair Academy
State: NJ
Projected Weight: 197/285
Projected fit:
Snyder recently finished second in this past year’s Beast of the East Tournament. Furthermore, he followed that up with a solid 21-8 record his junior season at Blair Academy.
While Snyder does appear to be an up-and-comer on the recruiting trail. He would be a great fit for the Nittany Lions at the back end of their lineup.
Conversely, whether or not he could round into form to crack the starting lineup, Snyder would also add some really good depth in the wrestling room.
Penn State Football Recruiting: 2027 WR Bryan Porter Eyes National Championship
Jay’Den Williams
Recruiting Rank: 42
High School: La Jolla High School
State: MI
Projected Weight: 165/174
Projected fit:
As you can see from the video above, if you’re being compared to LeBron James, then you’re obviously pretty dang good.
Williams posts a career high school record of 116-5. Additionally, this includes four major decisions, 70 technical falls, and 33 pins. Which then means *grabs calculator* of his 116 wins, only nine were by decision.
Therefore his career bonus point percentage is a staggering 88%.
Williams capped off a perfect junior season (53-0) by winning the 2025 Michigan State title. But unfortunately this was only his first one as he finished runner-up the prior two seasons.
While Penn State Wrestling currently has a plethora of guys in the 174/184 range, Williams would fit in nicely down the road.
Alex Reyes
Recruiting Rank: 64
High School: Holmdel
State: NJ
Projected Weight: 197
Projected fit:
Reyes doesn’t exactly have the high school pedigree that you normally see for recruits. However this doesn’t mean he’s not a good fit. Furthermore, this doesn’t mean he won’t be a good addition to the wrestling room.
Alex had a rough start his freshman year at Holmdel. But he followed that up with a seventh place finish in the 2024 New Jersey State Championships. And then this past season, Reyes put together a 36-6 campaign and finished fifth in states.
Even with guys like Josh Barr, Connor Mirasola, and Cole Mirasola in the room, the roster is still a bit light at the heavier weights. Therefore from a logistical standpoint, Reyes would be a good fit for the roster.
MORE Penn State Wrestling News from NittanyCentral:
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Education: Penn State University
Location: State College, PA
Even though he had no prior journalism experience, Chris has now covered Penn State Wrestling and Penn State Football for the past three years, including as the Penn State Wrestling Beat Writer for VictoryBellRings.com, part of the FanSided network.
And it's clear he also likes constant torture as he's been a PSU Basketball fan for way too long.
Several years back, Chris made the seamless transition from PGA Professional to computer programmer and thoroughly enjoys following and writing about all things related to Penn State sports during his spare time.
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