MANHEIM, Pa. — South Dakota State begins the 2023-24 season with its highest preseason ranking ever in the NWCA Division I Wrestling Coaches Poll, checking in at No. 12 in the survey, which was announced Tuesday.
The Jackrabbits, who compiled a 12-4 dual record last season and return six individual national qualifiers, also tied their highest-ever ranking in the national poll. SDSU was previously ranked 12th for five weeks during the 2017-18 season.
SDSU, coached by Damion Hahn, was one of six Big 12 Conference teams to be ranked in the top 25. Missouri was ranked fourth, followed by Iowa State in 10th and Oklahoma State at No. 11. Also ranked were Northern Iowa at No. 17 and Oklahoma, which is tied for 20th. Defending national champion Penn State was a unanimous pick for the top spot in the poll.
Beside Missouri (Feb. 18), Oklahoma State (Feb. 10) and Oklahoma (Feb. 9), the Jackrabbits are scheduled to face at least three other teams in the preseason poll — all from the Big Ten Conference — in dual action this season. SDSU is slated to travel to 14th-ranked Minnesota on Nov. 26, followed by a Dec. 16 trip to ninth-ranked Nebraska. A Jan. 4 date against Michigan at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls further highlights the schedule.
The Jackrabbits are scheduled to open the season Nov. 11 at the Bison Open in Fargo, North Dakota. Dual action begins Nov. 17, when SDSU hosts the four-team Dakota Showcase at Frost Arena.
NWCA Division I Wrestling Coaches Poll
1. Penn State
2. Iowa
3. North Carolina State
4. Missouri
5. Virginia Tech
6. Michigan
7. Cornell
8. Ohio State
9. Nebraska
10. Iowa State
11. Oklahoma State
12. South Dakota State
13. Arizona State
14. Minnesota
15. Rutgers
16. Pittsburgh
17. Northern Iowa
18. Wisconsin
19. Lehigh
T20. Oklahoma
T20. Oregon State
22. Penn
23. Illinois
24. Northwestern
25. North Carolina