It’d be easy for Penn State wrestling fans to take recruiting for granted when the current program is so good but the strength of the 2025 class is hard to ignore.
In baseball, fans of winning major league teams generally don’t spend much time worrying about what in the minors (or “on the farm” as the lingo goes).
After all, why worry about the future when the present is so good?
Although Penn State’s present (12 national titles in 14 years) is beyond good or even great, the future might be even better, which is bad news for everybody else.
Here’s a breakdown of the 2025 and 2026 Penn State wrestling recruiting classes thus far.
CLASS OF 2025
PJ DUKE
Duke is the No. 2 recruit in the country from the Class of 2025 and the No. 2 recruit in Penn State’s class.
How’s that for dominance?
Although Duke is behind Marcus Blaze (more on him later), if he were No. 1 and Blaze No. 2, it’s not likely many would argue. Duke won four New York State Championships (including one when he was in the seventh grade) at Minisink Valley High School. He also just beat two reigning NCAA champions in the same day.
Thatโs 2 Thus Far: Penn State Commit Knocks Off 2nd National Champ in Same Day
Yeah, he’s going to be a problem.
MARCUS BLAZE
As good as Duke is, Blaze is No. 1 for a reason. The Perrysburg, Ohio star also just won his fourth state championship and did so jumping up from 138 to 150 pounds. This versatility is part of why many feel Blaze has a shot to start for Penn State right away. In college, Blaze projects to compete at either 133 and 141. Penn State has world champ Masanosuke Ono coming in, and he will not be sitting on the bench. Assuming he’s healthy, Ono will start at, well, either 133 or 141 for Penn State. But wherever Ono isn’t, Blaze just might be. To get in the lineup, Blaze would have to beat out Braeden Davis, who just took fifth at 133 at this year’s NCAA Championships in Philly.
For those who don’t know, Penn State wrestling has a lot of depth.
ASHER CUNNINGHAM
The son of Cael Sanderson’s second-in-command, Penn State head assistant coach Casey Cunningham, Asher Cunningham carved out a legacy at State College High School. He won two PA state titles, with the first one coming at 160 pounds and the second at 172. Intermat projects Cunningham to compete in the 165-pound class. If this ends up coming to fruition, Cunningham would have a hard time cracking the lineup for his first and potentially second season. Penn State has reigning national champ and Hodge Trophy finalist Mitchell Mesenbrink locked in at 165. Mesenbrink has two seasons of eligibility left, and if he uses both, there’s a good chance he will win his second and third national titles. Regardless, Cunningham has a bright future ahead of him, and his dad has established himelf as perhaps college wrestling’s top assistant, which doesn’t hurt, either.
NATE DESMOND
Desmondโs career has been hindered somewhat by injury, but he still ended the 2025 ranking cycle as the No. 39 overall recruit in America. ย When Desmond was healthy, there werenโt many better in the high school ranks. He won state championships in each of his first three seasons. But this past season amounted to just 10 matches due to injury, and Desmond wasnโt healthy for the postseason.
Now, he’s ready to go, and before he gets to Penn State, he’ll be competing in the U20 World Team Trials in Geneva, Ohio. Competing at 57 KG, Desmond most recently competedย at the U.S. Open,ย where he fell in the quarterfinals.
WILL HENCKEL
Henckel has already put together quite the wrestling resume. This past February, he won his second national prep championship and placed for the fourth time. In the years he didnโt win, he finished second and third, respectively. Heโs also a two-time Beast of the East champion, with features wrestlers from more than 20 states. This season, he beat Ryan Burton, also from New Jersey, in the finals. At this yearโs national prep championships, Henckel went 5-0 with four pins and a tech fall. In the finals, he pinned Brown commit Maximums Norman.
Henckel is the No. 13 overall recruit in the Class of 2025. In most classes, he would be the top dog. But this is Penn State wrestling we’re talking about.
DALTON PERRY
Perry was the first to commit to Penn State’s 2025 Class, doing so in March of 2022. He won the state title at 126 for Central Mountain that year, then took third (139), second (139) and second again (145) over the next three years. Perry projects to compete either at 141 or 149.
CLASS OF 2026
JAYDEN JAMES
MatScouts ranksย James who flipped from Virginia Tech to PSU in late March, No. 3.
Penn State missed on the top two recruits inย Jax Forrestย (Oklahoma State) andย Bo Bassettย (Iowa).
But in James, the program landed what it hopes will be a future star. James, who wrestles at Delbarton High School in New Jersey, is coming off a state championship at the 150-pound weight class. So, yeah, heโs pretty good. Heโs also been good at Folkstyle, recentlyย winning a U17 U.S. Open Championship.
Not long after James committed to Penn State, NSNย caught up with his trainer, Khaled Dassan of the KD Training Center.
Dassan described James as โa perfect fit for Penn State.โ
โHeโs a relentless competitor whoโs fully committed to improving every day,โ he said. โHe genuinely loves the sport, and that passion, combined with his work ethic, makes him an ideal match for Caelโs room.โ
Dassan feels Jamesโ โmost significant growthโ has come within the past year.
โAfter taking a few tough losses at states and the World Team Trials, he made a major shift in mindset โ moving away from being outcome-focused to prioritizing performance and striving to become the best version of himself,โ Dassan said.โ
The โbest versionโ of James, per Dassan, is pretty darn good.
โJayden is incredibly positive and a great teammate,โ Dassan said. โHe brings energy to every room he walks into and lifts up the people around him. Heโs the kind of person who makes the environment better.โ
SAM HERRING
It’s been tough for Herring to get attention even on his high school team. This is because the top two ’26 recruits in the country, Forrest and Bassett, both wrestle with Herring for Bishop McCourt. But Herring is hardly a slouch. He ranks No. 24 in the Class of ’26 and finished his high school career 89-17. It’s another solid recruiting get for Penn State wrestling.
