NEWTON, Iowa – When Wyatt Hendrickson emerged from the Wells Fargo Center tunnel and into the spotlight, the American flag draped around his shoulders, he knew the 285-pound NCAA title would soon belong to him.

In fact, the Oklahoma State fifth-year senior, who spent his previous four seasons at the Air Force Academy, knew it well before that historic Saturday night in Philadelphia.

It did not matter who he would have to go through to stand atop the podium. A two-time national champ, two-time previous Dan Hodge Trophy recipient and Olympic gold medalist stood between him and the realization of a lifelong dream, as did the reigning 285-pound NCAA champion. Having been tech falled by both foes in previous collegiate seasons, it still did not matter.

From the moment he committed to rookie head coach David Taylor’s Cowboys, the persistent incoming text messages from his new coach became his mantra. “Wyatt Hendrickson 2025 national champion.”

He read it, comprehended it, believed in it, and willed it into existence.

Hendrickson’s high-crotch takedown, executed with 23 seconds to go in the final on Minnesota’s Gable Steveson for a 5-4 lead and the eventual win, will go down as arguably the most dramatic points in NCAA collegiate wrestling history. On the year, he finished 27-0 with 13 pins, eight tech falls and a bonus-point percentage of 81.5. He took out Penn State’s defending national champion, Greg Kerkvliet, 8-2, in the NCAA semis and the legendary Steveson for the title.

And now, the Kansas native Hendrickson and his season will even further be etched in college wrestling’s history books, as he has been named the recipient of the 2025 WIN Magazine/Culture House Dan Hodge Trophy presented by ASICS Wrestling.

Hendrickson will be presented the Hodge Trophy at the Oklahoma State University wrestling banquet. Like in past seasons, Hendrickson will then publicly be presented the Hodge at a football game this fall. For more information on the Dan Hodge Trophy, visit www.WIN-magazine.com.

The 145th national champion for Oklahoma State and third wrestler to win the Hodge, Hendrickson narrowly won one of the most competitive Hodge votes in history, as the Cowboy acquired 30 out of 59 first-place votes, with Penn State’s Carter Starocci (184) earning 26 and fellow Nittany Lion Mitchell Mesenbrink (165) acquiring three. The Hodge Trophy Voting Committee is comprised of a retired college coach from each region of the country, a representative from each of the national wrestling organizations, select national media members and past Hodge winners.

The heavyweight champion also won the official Hodge Fan Vote, receiving 16,001 votes out of the total 32,961 verified fan votes that were cast online March 25-28. Starocci finished second in the fan vote with 13,108, while Mesenbrink finished third with 3,852.

“There has been a lot of hard work that has been compiled over the last five years,” Hendrickson said. “A lot of people have poured a lot of effort into me. Domination is something I’ve embraced as a wrestler, and that is what this award is all about. It is an absolute blessing.”

“I’m just so proud of Wyatt for everything he’s accomplished this season,” Oklahoma State head coach David Taylor stated. “This is all a testament to his work ethic and the belief he had in himself. His development throughout the year was really special to watch.”

Founded in 1995 by Mike Chapman, the creator of WIN Magazine, and sponsored by ASICS, the Dan Hodge Trophy is awarded to the most dominant wrestler each year by WIN and Chapman’s company Culture House. The late Dan Hodge was an undefeated three-time NCAA champion at 177 pounds for the University of Oklahoma, and the only wrestler to ever appear on the cover of Sports Illustrated (April 1, 1957).

“Of all the 60-plus NCAA tournaments I have been privileged to be around for (including 47 in person), Wyatt’s performance is one of the most dramatic I have ever witnessed,” Chapman said. “It was spellbinding to watch the match unfold in front of a huge crowd which included the president of the United States. It took an incredible effort to defeat an Olympic champion (and two-time Dan Hodge Trophy winner). This tournament will be talked about for decades and be remembered as one of the most meaningful in the sport’s illustrious history, largely due to Wyatt Hendrickson!”

Before detailing how much his experience at Oklahoma State impacted him, Hendrickson backtracked and gave kudos to some of his earlier coaches in the sport for laying the foundation of who he ultimately became on and off the mat.

“The most dominant way you can beat somebody is by pinning them,” Hendrickson stated. “Matt Treaster was my first coach at age five in Newton, Kan., and he taught me the cross-face series.

“I was always a pinner. I always tried to pin everybody and carried that with me. I realized in college that the best way to mentally compete with a guy is by being relentless. They will want to quit and find a way out. Somebody who refuses to give up is hard to beat.”

“I have to give Air Force a lot of credit here, too,” Hendrickson continued. “They built the foundation and helped me out every step of the way.”

Taylor, now officially the only recipient of the Dan Hodge Trophy (a two-timer, claiming the honor in 2012 and 2014) to successfully coach a student-athlete to also receive the award, added, “This season was a great first step in building to where we want to be, and Wyatt played a big role in making that happen. He is an incredible representative of our program, and I’m excited to see the things he continues to do moving forward.”

Hendrickson believes every member of the Cowboys’ staff played an integral role in his development over the course of his 10 months in Stillwater.

“You can either train to beat most of the guys or train to beat the top guys,” Hendrickson said. “To beat those best guys, your technique has to be more precise. It is a game of inches and ounces. The stakes are so high. (Taylor) portrayed that to me as well as all my coaches. Each gave me a unique perspective on a small piece of my technique. They all master different things. They brought attention to my gaps.”

Criteria for the Hodge includes a wrestler’s record, dominance/bonus-point percentage, quality of competition and sportsmanship.

Hendrickson was one of three NCAA champions who finished the season undefeated, as he and Mesenbrink finished with identical records of 27-0 while Starocci went 26-0. Mesenbrink finished with a bonus-point percentage of 88.9, while Starocci’s was 84.6 and Hendrickson’s was 81.5.

The Cowboy earned the most falls with 13, as Starocci accumulated six and Mesenbrink concluded the season without any pins. Mesenbrink led the tech fall category with 18, while Starocci registered 10 and Hendrickson picked up eight.

While Hendrickson was named the NCAA’s Most Dominant Wrestler for the third time in his career at the conclusion of the tournament, he admitted the prestigious Dan Hodge Trophy was not something he had penciled in on his goal sheet.

“I knew I obviously had a great year and I’ve been pretty dominant, but you have to have a sense of humility. You want to be the champ, but you can’t walk around like you already did it. It wasn’t my focus; I was focused on wrestling. It is pretty fitting, though. I had a great year and a dominant year.”

With his sights set on an Olympic gold medal at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, the newest Dan Hodge Trophy recipient and second lieutenant in the United States Air Force currently serving as an acquisitions officer is focused on using his newly found platform to give back to a sport that has given him so much.

“It brought a spotlight to a few different things: God, my country and wrestling … having all of that while in the military and serving a God that is the most powerful thing in the universe. I want to share my faith and my love for this country and inspire the new generation. So many people have poured into me, and I need to pay it forward.

“I can confidently say I achieved my NCAA goals and being up there with the greats … it still hasn’t settled in. I remember wrestling in Tulsa Nationals as a kid, and I kept getting fifth place in that tournament. I would be so disappointed, and my dad would always tell me how blessed I was. Dan Hodge would stand right next to the fifth-place guy and pointed right at me, and my dad never stopped telling me that ‘one day you’ll realize how blessed you are.’” 

Past Winners of the Dan Hodge Trophy

Year Name, School

2023 Mason Parris, Michigan

2022 Gable Steveson, Minnesota

2021 Spencer Lee, Iowa and Gable Steveson, Minnesota

2020 Spencer Lee, Iowa

2019 Bo Nickal, Penn State

2018 Zain Retherford, Penn State

2017 Zain Retherford, Penn State

2016 Alex Dieringer, Oklahoma State

2015 Logan Stieber, Ohio State

2014 David Taylor, Penn State

2013 Kyle Dake, Cornell

2012 David Taylor, Penn State

2011 Jordan Burroughs, Nebraska

2010 Jayson Ness, Minnesota

2009 Jake Herbert, Northwestern

2008 Brent Metcalf, Iowa

2007 Ben Askren, Missouri

2006 Ben Askren, Missouri

2005 Steve Mocco, Oklahoma State

2004 Emmett Willson, Montana State-Northern

2003 Eric Larkin, Arizona State

2002 Cael Sanderson, Iowa State

2001 Cael Sanderson, Iowa State and Nick Ackerman, Simpson College

2000 Cael Sanderson, Iowa State

1999 Stephen Neal, CSU Bakersfield

1998 Mark Ironside, Iowa

1997 Kerry McCoy, Penn State

1996 Les Gutches, Oregon State

1995 T.J. Jaworsky, North Carolina