Six Huskers are seeded 10th or better for the 2024 NCAA Wrestling Championships as the NCAA released the brackets Wednesday evening. This year’s tournament is set for March 21-23 in Kansas City, Mo., at the XFINITY Center.
Ridge Lovett leads the group of Huskers with the top-seed at 149 pounds after his impressive season and recent Big Ten Championship. Lovett will face the winner of Rutgers’ Michael Cetta and The Citadel’s Jeffrey Boyd first. Lenny Pinto received a five-seed at 184 pounds to earn his second NCAA Tournament appearance and will meet Campbell’s Caleb Hopkins in the opening round.
Peyton Robb punched his fifth ticket to the NCAA Championships with an eighth seed at 157 and will wrestle Northwestern’s Trevor Chumbley in the first round. Also seeded eighth in his respective weight class is Nebraska native Antrell Taylor at 165. Taylor will compete at his first career NCAA Tournament and meet Pittsburgh’s Holden Heller first.
2023 NCAA All-American Brock Hardy will make his second-straight NCAA Tournament appearance as a ninth seed at 141 and will wrestle Cornell’s Vince Cornella in the opening round. At 197, Silas Allred rounds out the group of Huskers in the top 10 with his 10th-place seed. In his second career NCAA Championships, Allred will meet Ohio State’s Luke Geog first.
Redshirt freshman Jake Van Dee (133) looks to build off his fourth-place finish at the Big Ten Tournament and will wrestle Northern Iowa’s Julian Farber as the 14th seed. 125-pounder Caleb Smith makes his third NCAA Tournament appearance as a 15th seed and will meet Michigan’s Michael DeAugustino in the opening round. At heavyweight, Nash Hutmacher received the 29th seed and will face Arizona State’s Cohlton Schultz in Round One.
Nebraska’s NCAA Championship Lineup
125: No. 15 Caleb Smith
133: No. 14 Jake Van Dee
141: No. 9 Brock Hardy
149: No. 1 Ridge Lovett
157: No. 8 Peyton Robb
165: No. 8 Antrell Taylor
184: No. 5 Lenny Pinto
197: No. 10 Silas Allred
HWT: No. 29 Nash Hutmacher