Penn State wrestling offseason outlook: What will the Lions do at 149?

Penn State wrestling is amid its summer training regimen. For some Nittany Lions, that means a full focus on next winter’s folkstyle competition at the college level. For others, national and International freestyle events will keep them busy for a few more months. Then, there is a group working their way back to the mat. And, our latest offseason outlook story mixes two of those groups together.

Blue-White Illustrated has already looked ahead to what could happen at 125, 133, and 141 pounds. Today, we turn our attention to the 149-pound weight class.

Reviewing the 2023-2024 season at 149 pounds

At the end of November, Penn State returning All-American Shayne Van Ness sat at the No. 2 spot in FloWrestling’s 149-pound rankings. The sophomore had every intention of building on his first trip to NCAAs a year ago, where he finished third. Days later, those plans came to a screeching halt. On Dec. 5, head coach Cael Sanderson announced that the Somerville, N.J., native would miss the remainder of the season due to an undisclosed injury. After giving one match a piece to freshman Tyler Kasak and redshirt freshman Connor Pierce in December, the Lions started January with Kasak locked into the starting job.

Kasak quickly appeared ready for his newly found and unexpected role that came with a weight bump from 141 to 149 pounds. He won four of his first five dual meet matches and would go on to finish with a 6-2 record in those. Then, in the postseason, he finished third at Big Tens to qualify for nationals. In Kansas City, he refused to let a first round loss to Stanford’s Jaden Abas decide his tournament. Instead, he went on a historic 7-0 run through the consolation bracket to not only become an All-American but also finish third in his first trip to nationals. In the process, he became the ninth wrestler in NCAA history to lose his first bout at NCAAs and then win seven straight to finish third.

What will Penn State do at 149 pounds?

More than anything else, this question centers Van Ness’ recovery timeline. He was seen at some matches last winner with a heavy brace on his left leg. In February, Sanderson offered a positive update on his rehab progress.

“He’s doing really well,” Sanderson said. “He’s ahead of where he probably should be. You hate losing a guy like Shane. Obviously, the energy [he brings], and just you’re seeing where he was trending and how well he was competing. But it’s going to be nice for him to feel good, too. Because, he always kind of had that bum knee that was kind of an issue for him off and on. He’s ahead of schedule, and I’m looking forward to getting him healthy and back in here every day.”

The news could not get much better than that at the time. And yet, there also must be a realization that one positive update does not a full recovery make. Van Ness undoubtedly has more hurdles to clear before being fully able to return to the mat. And, once he does, there will be mental and physical obstacles to overcome before everything is back to the way it was.

With all that said, some kind of rotation, at least early in the year, would make sense to keep Kasak engaged while also not rushing Van Ness back. The spot is his if he can reclaim it. But, unlike 141 and 285 pounds, the outlook will continue to be murky here in terms of a starter until we get closer to the season’s start in October.