NCAA Wrestling Championships 2025: Schedule, order of events, where to watch and more

The 2025 NCAA Wrestling Championships are just around the corner. The event is scheduled to take place in Philadelphia between Thursday, March 20 and Saturday, March 22, treating fans to three delightful days of wrestling action.

The 2025 NCAA Championships will feature a total of 330 wrestlers from across the nation competing across 10 categories. Each category will have 33 wrestlers, and the tournament will begin with the two lowest ranked seeds of a respective category battling in order to make it to the round of 32.

As we gear up for the competition, here is everything you need to know about the 2025 NCAA Wrestling Championships.

NCAA Wrestling Championships 2025: Where to watch

The 2025 NCAA Championships promise some exciting performances as the nation's best athletes take on each other in a bid for glory. Fans eager to catch the action can tune in to ESPN/ESPN+ for a live broadcast of the event.

NCAA Wrestling Championships 2025: Full schedule and order of events

Here is the full schedule for the 2025 National Wrestling Championships:

All times noted are ET.

Thursday, March 20

12:00 PM - Session 1: Pigtails and First-Round Competition

7:00 PM - Session 2: Wrestle-Back Prelims (pigtail matches) as needed. Wrestle-Back First Round, Second Championship Round and Consolation Round.

Friday, March 21

12:00 PM - Session 3: Quarterfinals, Wrestle-Backs for Second and Third Rounds

8:00 PM - Session 4: Semifinals, Blood Round, and Fifth Round Wrestle-Backs

Saturday, March 22

11:00 AM - Session 5: Wrestle-Back Semifinals, Third, Fifth and Seventh-Place Matches

7:00 PM - Session 6: Championship Finals

NCAA Wrestling Championships 2025: Full list of top seeds

Here is the list of the No.1 seeds for the 10 categories at the NCAA Championships:

125 pounds: Luke Lilledahl, Penn State University

133 pounds: Lucas Byrd, University of Illinois

141 pounds: Brock Hardy, University of Nebraska

149 pounds: Caleb Henson, Virginia Tech

157 pounds: Tyler Kasak, Penn State University

165 pounds: Mitchell Mesenbrink, Penn State University

174 pounds: Keegan O'Toole, University of Missouri

184 pounds: Carter Starocci, Penn State University

197 pounds: Jacob Cardenas, University of Michigan

285 pounds: Gable Steveson, University of Minnesota

Of the ten top seeds who will compete in Philadelphia, Caleb Henson enters the tournament as the defending champion in the 149-pound category, while Keegan O’Toole and Gable Stevenson are in the hunt for their third titles. Meanwhile, Carter Starocci will be looking to make history this weekend and become the first NCAA wrestler to win five national championships.

NCAA Wrestling Championships 2025: A look back at the past 10 team champions

As we head into the Wells Fargo Centre for the 2025 NCAA Championships, Penn State University will be the one to beat.

Over the course of the past decade, there have been nine championships, with the 2020 edition cancelled due to the Covid 19 pandemic. Of these nine championships, Ohio State was the titleist in 2015, before The Nittany Lions went on to claim four consecutive wins. Post this, Iowa lifted the trophy in 2021, only for Penn State to get back to their winning ways in 2022, 2023, and 2024.

Overall, the Lions have won 11 of the last 13 NCAA championships under the guidance of Cael Sanderson. With the likes of Carter Starocci, Mitchell Messenbrink, and Tyler Kasak competing for the team this year around, PSU look like a favorite to make it to the top of the podium this season as well.