This year’s U.S. Open hasn’t gonna to plan for a pair of Penn State wrestling stars.
During his semifinal matchup against Virginia Tech’s Caleb Hansen at 70 KG, Tyler Kasak had to injury default 1:27 in.
At 92 KG, Josh Barr made it through his semifinal matchup, but favored his right knee following a scramble against Michael Macchiavello of the Lehigh Valley Wrestling Club. Barr continued the match, but lost 4-1.
It’s yet to be determined whether Barr will wrestle in the consolation semifinals.
Penn State certainly would love to have Barr and Kasak healthy. Barr is the defending national champ at 197, going 24-0 with 23 bonus point wins. If healthy, Barr will surely be Penn State’s 197-pounder again in 2026-27.
Kasak’s case is more complicated.
He’s proven himself to be more than capable at 157 pounds, having finished third at the National Championships in 2024 and ‘25.
Add Nittany Sports Now as a preferred source in Google! Click here to add us.In 2025, Kasak won the Big Ten title and entered the National Championships as the No. 1 seed.
Then, a freshman phenom named PJ Duke came along, and coach Cael Sanderson and company decided to redshirt Kasak and start Duke at 157.
Duke ended up doing quite well, also winning the Big Ten Championship, entering nationals as the No. 1 seed and taking third (and he was robbed of a chance to compete in the national championship match).
So there are a few possibilities here. Duke could redshirt and Kasak could come back to the lineup, Duke could start again or, if Hodge Trophy winner Mitchell Mesenbrink moves from 165 to 174, both could be in the lineup.
Find more coverage of Penn State wrestling at the U.S. Open here.
