"Don’t speak about my pockets" - Carter Starocci reacts to news of him getting paid $1.3 million to compete for Penn State for the fifth year

Carter Starocci recently reacted to news about his salary for representing Pennsylvania State University, widely known as Penn State, in his fifth season. Starocci debuted for Penn State during the 2021-22 season as a freshman. Since being a Penn State wrestler, he has racked up four individual NCAA Division I Championships titles in 2021, 2022, 2023, and 2024 in the 174lb weight category.

On May 2, 2024, Starocci announced via an Instagram post that he would return to Penn State for his fifth (2024-2025) season, delighting his fans and followers.

Starocci even stated that despite his accomplishments, including four national individual titles and three team championships during the four seasons, the year 2024 didn't meet his expectations which left him unsatisfied. As a result, he chose to return to Penn State by using his remaining year of eligibility to compete for a fifth and final time. If the 2022 U23 World Championships bronze medalist wins the NCAA title during his fifth season, he will become the first-ever wrestler in history to achieve the feat.

Recently, Pursuit Wrestling, based in Ohio, shared a TikTok video based on the amount Starocci will earn for wrestling during his fifth season. They claimed it to be $1.3 million, which was later uploaded on X (formerly Twitter).

“CARTER STAROCCI GETTING PAID $1.3 MILLION TO WRESTLE HIS 5TH-YEAR AT PENN STATE IN 2024-2025 😳”

Starocci responded to this video by resharing it on his X account and said:

“Don’t speak about my pockets. Yall don’t know the half of it ;) 💰”

Earlier in May 2024, Starocci had reacted to a post on WrestlersGrind's Instagram handle, which asked the fans and followers to answer “Who is the highest-paid college wrestler”. The 23-year-old responded to this and said:

“ME BY A LOT”

A two-time champion and one-time runner-up at the Big Ten Championships, Starocci had to skip the 2024 edition owing to a knee injury sustained during the end of his final dual meet.

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A look at Carter Starocci’s 2024 season

Carter Starocci (blue) against Chris Foca (red) during the Division I Mens Wrestling Championship in 2023. (Photo by Shane Bevel/NCAA Photos via Getty Images)

Around two weeks after his Big Ten Championships miss this year, Carter Starocci returned to win his fourth NCAA title in March by clinching four consecutive victories, including those against former NCAA champions Mekhi Lewis, Shane Griffith, and Rocco Welsh in the finals.

Starocci went on to feature at the U.S. Olympic Wrestling Trials where he vied to secure his place in the USA team in the men’s freestyle 86kg for the Paris Olympics. After a win against Pat Downey, he eventually lost against Trent Hidlay by a score of 4-6, thus failing to qualify.