Carter Starocci makes his stance clear on future plans after creating history at NCAA Championships

Carter Starocci expressed his thoughts on his future plans after scripting history at the 2025 NCAA Championships. He etched his name in American collegiate wrestling history by becoming a five-time NCAA champion with his title win in the 184 lbs category.

Having won titles in 2021, 2022, 2023, and 2024 for Penn State, Starocci used his extra year of eligibility, granted due to NCAA rule modifications for student-athletes affected by COVID-19. With this, the 24-year-old announced his return to collegiate wrestling for the same college in May 2024.

Despite moving up a weight class from 174 lbs to 184 lbs, nothing could stop Carter Starocci from accomplishing his fifth title as he defeated Parker Keckeisen with a 4-3 victory on Saturday. After ending his collegiate career on a remarkable note, Starocci was questioned about competing in freestyle wrestling and whether he had decided on a weight class in an interview. He said via FloWrestling (10:38 onwards),

“Yeah, 100% freestyle. 86 kilograms. Okay yeah, definitely. Um, not going back down at 79. I don't know how much bigger I got, but I felt I got bigger. So I remember when I wrestled Parker [Keckeisen] at the Flo event. I'm like, damn, like, this kid's big."

Starocci added:

"And so out there today, I felt I was bigger than him. So I've definitely grown a lot. Definitely cutting weight's not in the picture anymore."

He further reflected on his desire to wrestle immediately but shared that he would be discussing with Penn State head coach Cael Sanderson and assistant coach Casey Cunningham to set a definite plan for his future.

Carter Starocci pens inspirational note to self before 2025 NCAA Wrestling Championships finals

Carter Starocci against Dustin Plott at Division I Men's Wrestling Championship (Photo by Isaac Wasserman/NCAA Photos via Getty Images)

Carter Starocci wrote a motivational note to himself before competing in the finals of the 2025 NCAA Wrestling Championships. He gave himself a pep talk about how this was the moment he had always wanted and worked hard for as he assured himself that he was going to achieve it all. He shared this in his Instagram post on Saturday, stating:

“You’d be so proud of where you are. You’ve always wanted to be an athlete on the biggest of stages and playing in the biggest moments. You always worked hard, you always believed…You win these matches before they start. It’s all in the eyes. They never lie. I AM willing to go through it all to get what I want. I’ve been here before and I’m going to do it again.”

Gable Steveson, Jason Nolf, and Micah Parsons were among the big names who rooted for Starocci, sharing their comments to his Instagram post.

Besides Starocci, Steveson also competed in the 2025 NCAA Championships finals. However, the former Olympic gold medalist was stunned by Oklahoma State’s Wyatt Hendrickson, who defeated him 5-4 in the final.