Penn State wrestling freshman sensation PJ Duke is turning a lot of heads, and one of the NFL’s best players is among them.
During Duke’s commanding 12-4 major decision over defending national champion and top seed Antrell Taylor at 157 pounds, Duke received a shoutout from Micah Parsons.
7 Champions Power Penn State Wrestling To 4th Straight Big Ten Title
Parsons is a four-time All-Pro (three-time first team) who, for those who don’t know, played his college ball at Penn State.
Parsons is also a former wrestler who remains a big fan of the sport, and in shouting out Duke, referenced his first bout with Taylor, which he lost.
“Pj duke mentality from the first match is way different,” Parsons posted to X, “he knows he gave way too much respect to taylor ! He’s wrestling today!!”
Indeed, the differences in the two matches were apparent.
In the first matchup, which took place Jan. 30 in the Bryce Jordan Center, Duke fell to Taylor 2-1 in a second tiebreaker, with many feeling that Duke was too passive.
Add Nittany Sports Now as a preferred source in Google! Click here to add us.In this meeting, Duke took Taylor down three times, and no overtime periods were needed.
Duke earned the Big Ten Tournament’s outstanding wrestler honors for his efforts, which also included a 20-7 win over Ohio State’s Brandon Cannon, who came into the weekend ranked No. 1 in the country.
Last February, Penn State coach Cael Sanderson discussed Parsons’ impact on the program.
“We love Micah,” Sanderson said.
“He’s been a great supporter, and it means a lot. Obviously, you know, he’s been to matches in the past. He’s been (to) some duals, he came out to the Olympic Trials. And when he was in school, you know, he was the guy that was trying to get Franklin, coach (James) Franklin to let him come over here and wrestle, which obviously didn’t really make a lot of sense.”
“But he is who he is, so you kind of entertain those things and play with it, I think, and just more for fun. But yeah, we appreciate that.”
Duke will look to win his first national championship in Cleveland. The tournament is scheduled for Thursday, March 19, and runs through Saturday, March 21.
