April 17 isn’t just another day—it’s a landmark in Penn State wrestling history.
Back on April 4, 2009, after 11 seasons at the helm, Troy Sunderland stepped down as head coach. Though he had a respectable record of 115-90-2, his final season saw the Nittany Lions struggle to an 8-12-2 finish.
Just under two weeks later, on April 17, 2009, Penn State made a decision that would reshape its wrestling program forever: they hired Cael Sanderson.
At just 29, Sanderson came in with unmatched credentials—a perfect 159-0 collegiate record and a 2004 Olympic gold medal. In his first year, Penn State went 13-6-1. By his second season, the Lions had already claimed a national title.
That victory kicked off a dynasty.
Now in his 16th year, Sanderson’s most recent team capped an undefeated regular season (15-0) with a fourth straight NCAA team championship—and their 12th in the past 14 seasons. The team also made history by scoring a record-breaking 177 points, 60 ahead of second-place Nebraska.
Individually, Carter Starocci (184) and Mitchell Mesenbrink (165) won national titles, with Starocci becoming the first five-time NCAA champion in the sport’s history.
Even more impressively, all 10 of Penn State’s wrestlers earned All-American honors—making them only the second team ever, after 2001 Minnesota, to achieve that.
