Penn State Wrestling Great David Taylor Lands 1st Big Commitment at Oklahoma State

The man who won the heavyweight championships is Penn State’s Greg Kerkvliet, who handled Hendrickson 11-0 at the Olympic Trials in Happy Valley weeks later.

Kerkvliet also beat Hendrickson 18-2 last November at the NWCA All-Star Classic, also held in State College, and 4-2 in the semis of the 2023 NCAA Championships on Des Moines, Iowa.

Unless Minnesota great and two-time Hodge Trophy (wrestling’s Heisman) winner/2021 Olympic Gold Medalist Gable Steveson uses his last season of eligibility, Kerkvliet, who announced decision to use his last season earlier this month, will be the man to beat at 285.

But Hendrickson is still formidable. He was a two-time All-American and twice was honored with the distinction of “most dominant wrestler,” which is bestowed on the individual with the highest bonus-point average throughout the season. Hendrickson had a year of eligibility, but due to academy rules, needed to get approval from Air Force to enter the transfer portal since the academy ends eligibility after four years.

He got that approval, and now is gonna be a Cowboy.

Taylor and company still have a long time to go to approach Penn State wrestling, let alone catch it. But this is a solid start for the new staff in marching toward that goal.