Penn State Vs. Michigan Wrestling Preview: What to Watch From the No. 1 Nittany Lions

Penn State, which has won 66 straight matches, hosts the Wolverines in its second consecutive match at the Bryce Jordan Center.

Penn State’s Luke Lilledahl, top, wrestles Iowa's Joey Cruz in the 125-pound bout of their Big Ten match in State College. / Dan Rainville / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

After routing Iowa in college wrestling's most anticipated match of the season, what does Penn State do for an encore? The No. 1 Nittany Lions return to the Bryce Jordan Center for the first of two weekend matches. Penn State wrestling hosts Michigan on Friday night before shifting to Rec Hall for a Sunday match vs. Maryland.

Penn State can stretch its win streak to 68 consecutive matches, a streak that dates to 2020. The Nittany Lions (10-0) reached win No. 66 with a 30-8 rout over Iowa last week, a match puntcuated by sophomore Tyler Kasak's epic celebration. With five matches remaining, Penn State now turns toward completing its fifth consecutive unbeaten season and preparing for the postseason, which begins March 8 at the Big Ten Championships.

Until then, here's what you need to know about Friday's Penn State vs. Michigan match.

No. 1 Penn State (10-0, 4-0) vs. No. 19 Michigan (5-4, 2-4)

• When: 6 p.m. ET Friday

• Where: Bryce Jordan Center

• TV: Big Ten Network

About the Nittany Lions: Penn State minted its third top-ranked wrestler this week in Kasak, the Big Ten wrestler of the week who upended the former No. 1, Jacori Teemer of Iowa, 5-2. Kasak (12-0) has won 19 consecutive bouts since the first round of the 2024 NCAA Championships. That includes seven straight at NCAAs to place third, a run that shot him into national-championship contention this season. Kasak demonstrated his dominance over Teemer by accumulating more than 2 minutes of riding time. Paired with his offensive skillset, that strength will make Kasak a postseason threat. Penn State's starting lineup has a combined record of 117-6, with five of the 10 starters still unbeaten. Among them is top-ranked Mitchell Mesenbrink, who has scored technical falls against all 12 wrestlers he has faced. Redshirt senior Beau Bartlett, the defending NCAA runnerup at 141, remains unbeaten as well.

About the Wolverines: Michigan brings five top-15 wrestlers to the Bryce Jordan Center, led by No. 2 Jacob Cardenas (14-0) at 197 pounds. Cardenas has eight ranked wins this season and seven victories by technical fall. He will wrestle in the night's main event. Heavyweight Josh Heindselman (14-1) is ranked No. 8 but faces a tall upset order against No. 1 Greg Kerkvliet of Penn State. Heindselman has a career record of 99-47, so what better way to reach the 100-win milestone? At 165, Beau Mantanona sustained a knee injury in November that Michigan initially thought might require surgery. He rehabbed instead and has returned to the starting lineup. He'll face Mesenbrink, seeking to avoid being technical fall victim No. 13.

Penn State vs. Michigan bouts to watch

According to the InterMat rankings, Penn State is favored in nine of 10 bouts, so the team score won't be close. But the projected card includes one tantalizing bout. Cardenas is scheduled to meet Penn State's Josh Barr at 197 pounds, a projected No. 2 vs. No. 4 bout. Cardenas is coming off an 11-2 major of Ohio State's Seth Shumate. Barr returns to the mat after sustaining his first loss of the season, a 5-1 decision vs. Iowa's top-ranked Stephen Buchanan. These are immensely valuable regular-season moments for Barr, who is facing the nation's 1-2 in consecutive matches. The redshirt freshman can evaluate these performances for March.

How to watch Penn State vs. Michigan

The Penn State-Michigan match is scheduled for a 6 p.m. ET start on Big Ten Network. Streamers can watch on the Fox Sports App. Check out the Penn State Sports Network for the radio call.

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