Philadelphia— Make no mistake, Penn State wrestling star Carter Starocci was thrilled to become the first Division I wrestler ever to win five national championships.
But he wasn’t happy about being the first match of the night, not the last.
Many felt that Starocci— competing at 184 pounds— would end the night by competing against Northern Iowa’s Parker Keckeisen.
After all, Starocci was going for history and Keckeisen— last year’s national champ at 184– is hardly a slouch. So it only seemed logical for Starocci-Keckeisen to go on last.
Instead, ESPN decided to have it go on first.
Many people were confused about this, and it turned out, Starocci was one of them.
Add Nittany Sports Now as a preferred source in Google! Click here to add us.WHAT CARTER SAID
“I’m not sure why ESPN elected for the 184-pound match to be the first one of the night,” Starocci said. “I mean, you have a guy going for his fifth title. You have the reigning champ and I think whoever wins that match is the Hodge Trophy winner. We’ve been talking about it all year.”
“For whatever reason, ESPN or whatever… it kind of makes me laugh and giggle. Just because some of the rules that wrestling has in place, it’s no surprise why wrestling isn’t mainstream.
Carter Starocci was not happy about being the first match on the card tonight instead of the last.
The Penn State wrestling legend who just became the first five-time champ feels it’s a sign that wrestling needs to do a better job of marketing. pic.twitter.com/3p2bFXP8u6
— Joe Smeltzer (@joesmeltzer775) March 22, 2025
‘ASK YOURSELVES QUESTIONS’
For Starocci, the reporters who cover Penn State wrestling and other schools should be the ones figuring out why the sport doesn’t help itself as much as it should.
“That’s for (you guys) to figure it out,” he said. “You guys are the ones that have influence on that. So I think you guys have to look yourselves in the mirror and ask yourselves questions.”
