Penn State Wrestling: How the 2027 recruits can shape the roster in the near future
Penn State Wrestling continues to set fire to the recruiting trail as they’ve already landed commitments from two standout wrestlers in the 2027 cycle.
I know, I know. Shocking, right?
In other news, the only difference between surfing and snowboarding is the temperature of the water.
One of the greatest collegiate wrestlers of all-time, who leads one of the most dominant winning-machines ever created, tends to draw the attention of highly ranked and uber-talented recruits.
But look, one thing is for sure. Cael Sanderson and what he has created inside the walls of Rec Hall goes well beyond simply winning. Penn State Wrestling has been painstakingly built upon his tremendous coaching staff and the core values he brings to the Nittany Lions.
Conversely, Penn State fans see it, recruits see it, and frankly, anyone who simply follows wrestling sees it.
And before we dive into the most recent Nittany Lions commits, let’s take a look at the two most recent classes.
Class of 2025
Credit – Lloyd McCully
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)
Class of 2026
No. 3 Jayden James (157/165)
No. 27 Sam Herring (141/149)
As you can clearly see from above, Penn State Wrestling isn’t going away anytime soon.
In fact, with the insane talent already assembled inside of the Rich Lorenzo Wrestling Complex, you could make a compelling argument that the Nittany Lions are actually pulling away from their competition. Which is an insane proposition when you think about it.
But maybe we’ll save that for a future article.
For now, let’s focus on the 2027 recruits and what Penn State Wrestling fans can possibly see from them in the near future.
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Class of 2027 Recruits for Penn State Wrestling
No. 17 Gavin Mangano
Mangano got the ball rolling for the Nittany Lions when he offered up his commitment back in late September. Additionally, he continued to keep the pipeline from KD Wrestling to Happy Valley completely wide open.
Prior to landing Mangano, Cael Sanderson and crew picked up both PJ Duke and Rocco Welsh from the KD Training Center based out of New York.
Accolades
-Suffolk Country Wrestling Champion
-Long Island Wrestling Champion
-Two-time New York State Champion
-National High School Coaches Association Champion
Projected Weight
Gavin won his second New York State Title just this past March at 138 pounds. And based on his frame and size he will most likely project to 149 or 157 once he matriculates to Happy Valley in a couple of years.
Roster Fit
Unfortunately, this upcoming season will be the last one for Shayne Van Ness. Furthermore, the Nittany Lions are fairly light at 149. So bringing in Mangano in the not too distant future appears to be a great move.
As for the log jam at 157 and 165? Maybe that’s a discussion for another time.
But, Gavin Mangano isn’t just a great fit in terms of where Penn State Wrestling may need to fill in some holes down the road. Nope. He’s a great fit in terms of the type of guy they’re bringing into the wrestling room.
As I mentioned earlier, Mangano wrapped up his second New York State Title this past March. However, I didn’t mention the fact that he won it while breaking his fibula in the first period of the finals match.
With his leg heavily taped up and his ankle holding on by a thread, Mangano was able to beat Ashten Haley (46-2) on literally a single leg.
So yeah, that’s the type of guy the Nittany Lions are getting.
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No. 2 Landon Sidun
Sidun was then the second 2027 recruit to announce he was heading to Penn State as he broke the news on October 6th.
And the Penn State Wrestling coaching staff didn’t have to travel far. As Landon wrestles for Norwin High School just outside of Pittsburgh.
Accolades
-2024 PIAA State Champion
-2024 Powerade Tournament Champion
-2025 Who’s Number One Winner
Projected Weight
Landon has wrestled at both 113 and at 120 in high school so far. But based on his frame and height, unless he grows a ton, he will most likely project to be at 125 or 133 for Penn State.
Roster Fit
The Nittany Lions are fairly young and currently have a ton of talent at both 125 and 133. Between Luke Lilledahl, Nathan Desmond, and Marcus Blaze, there’s potentially a lot of wins in the near future for Penn State Wrestling.
However, Landon Sidun isn’t just “another guy”. Obviously having a “No. 2” next to your name tends to tell you that. But this dude is for real.
Keeping with trend of bringing in some of the most “college ready” wrestlers in the country, Cael has most likely done it once again.
I mentioned that Lilledahl was arguably the most “college ready” recruit in Penn State Wrestling history. But then PJ Duke is practically shattering that notion with what he’s done on the mat in the past year.
And make no mistake about it, Landon Sidun fits this mold as well.
If it wasn’t for suffering a broken hand this season (30-0 at that point in the year), he would have for sure won his second straight PIAA title. And following a short break from the mat, Sidun came out and wiped the floor with Oklahoma State recruit Rocklin Zinkin several days ago in the WNO tournament.
As for where he fits into the lineup, he’ll most likely start his career at 125. Of course that’s assuming Lilledahl will bump up to 133 in the future. But if not? Well, let’s just slot this in the “Good problems to have” column.
And all I can say is this, the future certainly continues to look bright for Penn State Wrestling.
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.