Fan voting has begun in the 2026 ASICS Race for the Dan Hodge Trophy. When the dust settled on the 2026 NCAA DI Wrestling Championships March 21 in Cleveland, seven of the 10 NCAA champions finished the season undefeated and are the finalists for the 2026 WIN Magazine/Culture House Dan Hodge Trophy.
Penn State and Oklahoma State each have multiple finalists. Nittany Lions Luke Lilledahl (25-0 at 125), Mitchell Mesenbrink (27-0 at 165), Levi Haines (26-0 at 174) and Josh Barr (24-0 at 197) each won their respective weights. Mesenbrink and Haines are now two-time champs.
The Cowboys have two Hodge finalists. Freshmen Jax Forrest (18-0 at 133) and Sergio Vega (24-0 at 141) were undefeated and won at consecutive weights in the lineup. However, the two Cowboys bookended the NCAA finals after the decision was made to start the finals at 141 so the much-anticipated battle of freshmen at 133 between Forrest and Ohio State’s talented Ben Davino would be the last bout of the night. Vega won his title over two-time NCAA champ Jesse Mendez of Ohio State, considered by many to be one of the front-runners all season for this year’s Hodge.
The seventh and final Hodge finalist is 285-pound champion Issac Trumble of North Carolina State. Trumble finished the season 21-0 and blanked top-seeded Yonger Bastida of Iowa State 5-0 in the finals.
The statistics of each Hodge finalist is included in the story’s main graphic.
The four criteria for the Hodge are record, dominance/bonus-point percentage, quality of competition, and sportsmanship. Similar to the Heisman Trophy in football, the Hodge Trophy Voting Committee is made up of each past Hodge winner, a group of retired college coaches from different parts of the country, national media members, and a representative of each national wrestling organization. In addition to their votes, the winner of the Hodge Fan Vote, which ends on Friday, March 27, gets five additional first-place votes.
Statistical look at notable 2026 Hodge Trophy candidates
The following list shows the seven wrestlers who completed undefeated seasons while climbing to the pinnacle of collegiate wrestling after winning NCAA titles in Cleveland. The list also includes how many pins (P), tech falls (TF), major decisions (MD) and forfeits/defaults (F/Def) each wrestler had through the 2025–26 season. The final column shows the % of matches in which they’ve scored bonus points.
| Name | School | Year | W-L | P | TF | MD | F/Def | Bonus % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 125 pounds | ||||||||
|
Luke Lilledahl |
Penn State | So. | 25-0 | 1 | 8 | 4 | 1 | 58.3% |
| 133 pounds | ||||||||
|
Jax Forrest |
OK State | Fr. | 18-0 | 3 | 11 | 2 | 0 | 88.9% |
| 141 pounds | ||||||||
|
Sergio Vega |
OK State | Fr. | 24-0 | 4 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 45.8% |
| 165 pounds | ||||||||
|
Mitchell Mesenbrink |
Penn State | Jr. | 27-0 | 8 | 11 | 6 | 1 | 96.3% |
| 174 pounds | ||||||||
|
Levi Haines |
Penn State | Sr. | 26-0 | 6 | 13 | 2 | 0 | 80.8% |
| 197 pounds | ||||||||
|
Josh Barr |
Penn State | So. | 24-0 | 5 | 12 | 6 | 0 | 95.8% |
| 285 pounds | ||||||||
|
Isaac Trumble |
NC State | Sr. | 21-0 | 5 | 3 | 6 | 1 | 71.4% |
Source: wrestlestat.com
All-Time Dan Hodge Trophy Winners
| Year | Name | School |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Wyatt Hendrickson | Oklahoma State |
| 2024 | Aaron Brooks | Penn State |
| 2023 | Mason Parris | Michigan |
| 2022 | Gable Steveson | Minnesota |
| 2021 | Spencer Lee | Iowa |
| 2021 | 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 U. |
| 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 | Mont. State-Northern |
| 2003 | Eric Larkin | Arizona State |
| 2002 | Cael Sanderson | Iowa State |
| 2001 | Cael Sanderson | Iowa State |
| 2001 | 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 |
The Hodge winner will be announced on Tuesday, March 31, at 12 pm CST.