Penn State Wrestling: Carter Starocci Is a 5-Time NCAA Champ Without a Hodge Trophy

In his first season competing at 184 pounds, after winning four NCAA titles at 174, Starocci dominated the weight class. He went 26-0 with 21 bonus-point victories, including three at the NCAA Championships. Starocci defeated Northern Iowa's Parker Keckeisen, the weight class' defending champ, 4-3 in the title bout at Philadelphia's Wells Fargo Center. Starocci was named Outstanding Wrestler of the NCAA Championships.

Starocci finished his career at Penn State with a record of 104-4 and officially had three undefeated seasons. Starocci went 17-2 during the 2023-24 season, though the two losses were by injury default at the Big Ten Championships. He returned to win his fourth NCAA title two weeks later.

On the mat, Starocci did not lose a bout after the 2021 Big Ten final to Michael Kemerer of Iowa. He rebounded from that loss to defeat Kemerer 3-1 in sudden victory for the first of his five NCAA titles. Starocci finished his NCAA Tournament career with a 25-0 record.

"It's kind of what he does," Sanderson said at the NCAA Championships. "He's such a competitor. You think, 'Hey, he's won four, he's going to automatically win five.'

"As soon as they knew there was that COVID year, he probably heard about that every day, where someone is, like, 'You can be the first five-time NCAA champion.' And he's like, 'Let me win my second first and then my third,' or whatever that came along. So that was a heck of a feat. That's really special. It takes a lot of mental toughness and focus. Super happy with him."

After winning his fifth title, Starocci shared the credit with Sanderson, who was a four-time NCAA champion at Iowa State. Asked about his legacy at Penn State, Starocci said this.

"Oviously as a competitor, when you toe the line, I believe I'm the baddest dude out there," he said. "But in real terms, [it's] just coach Cael Sanderson. I think it's one thing to go out there and do it, but I think it takes a whole other level of understanding and knowledge and things like that to get other people to do what you know how to do.

"And he coached four-time men's NCAA champs, an Olympic champ. He's coached everything that he's done. ... That's something that's going to live on forever. Five national titles, I feel something like that, it comes and goes. But [Sanderson] really marked this thing. I think he's the greatest of all time."