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3 Takes: Nebraska wrestling crushes Army in home opener

by: Bobby Schneider11/08/25bschneider33

No. 2-ranked Nebraska wrestling crushed No. 23 Army, rolling to a 33-3 victory in front of an electric crowd at the Bob Devaney Sports Center.

The Huskers (1–0) took nine of ten bouts, showcasing depth and dominance with numerous alums, and even boxing champ Bud Crawford cheering them on. Nebraska made a statement in its home-opening dual.

Here are three takeaways from NU’s home opener:

Ferrari makes Husker debut

Devaney’s loudest roar of the dual came when AJ Ferrari took the mat for the heavyweight finale. The highly anticipated debut pitted him against Army’s No. 13-ranked 285-pounder, Brady Colbert. The two traded control early before Ferrari grabbed a 1-0 lead in the second period.

The No. 2-ranked pound-for-pound wrestler then sealed the match with a takedown in the final 46 seconds, earning a 4-0 victory. Head coach Mark Manning said Ferrari set the tone in his first outing in a red singlet.

“I think he did really well and was the aggressor the whole time,” head coach Mark Manning said after the dual. “It was only 1-0 going into the third period. I thought he just stayed – he’s a tough-minded guy, AJ Ferrari. He is a good addition to our team, and he’s going to learn.”

Arajuo upsets No. 16

No. 22 LJ Araujo’s matchup against Army’s No. 16-ranked Gunner Filipowicz in the 165-pound division was the bout of the night. Filipowicz scored an early takedown in the first period, but Araujo battled back with four points of his own to turn it into a dogfight.

Neither wrestler managed to score in the second period, and in the third, Araujo escaped Filipowicz’s hold to secure a 5-3 upset victory. Manning credited the redshirt freshman’s performance to the strides he made during the offseason.

“You make a big jump in the summer, and that’s what LJ did,” Manning said. “And 165 is a really good weight for him. He feels really strong there. He’s gotten better on his feet, and he’s got better on top and bottom. And that makes him a complete wrestler.”

Veterans sweep

Nebraska’s veteran leaders cruised to victories in each of their duals against Army. It took a minute for senior Brock Hardy to get going in his 141-pound bout against Braden Basile. However, the three-time All-American landed a takedown with six seconds left in period one to set the tone.

In fact, Hardy escaped early in period two before landing two more takedowns. With a 10-1 lead entering the final period, he kept rolling, scoring a near fall, another takedown and was awarded another point for riding time to secure an 18-2 technical fall.

“I had a frustrating week last week at Navy,” Hardy said. “I was expecting to go out and chop someone down with one swing – had accepted the fact that this kid’s really good – this kid’s ranked. He’s tough, and it was going to take a lot of sharpening of the axe.”

Meanwhile, in the 184-pound dual, senior Silas Allred obliterated Black Knight Dave Barrett 10-1. Allred scored two takedowns and a four-point near fall before pinning his opponent with 11 seconds left in period one.

Finally, Army’s Joe Antonio gave junior Antrell Taylor everything he had. However, Taylor’s first-period takedown was enough to secure a 5-1 win and avoid an upset. Manning said that close matches, even for a defending national champion, are inevitable.

“That’s a typical guy from Army,” Manning said. “He’s going to try to slow you down, shorten the match – make it a one-takedown match. And he did a really good job. Sometimes you’re not going to be lighting people up all the time. You’d like to, but it’s not realistic.”

Other Results

***Redshirt freshman Kael Lauridsen fell in his 125-pound bout, 4-1 in overtime, after Charlie Farmer scored a takedown.

***Junior Jacob Van Dee dominated his 133-pound bout against Ethan Berginc 8-1, scoring a takedown early in period No. 2 to set the tone.

***True freshman Nikade Zinkin won an overtime thriller 4-1 over Ryan Franco. Zinkin nailed down Franco with a takedown to secure the sudden victory.  

***Junior Christopher Minto crushed Andrew Christie by a major decision 16-4 in the 165-pound bout.

***Sophomore Camden McDanel defeated Wolfgang Frable by a 6-1 decision in the 197-pound bout.

Nebraska returns to action on Nov. 15 at 11 a.m. CT in Tulsa, Oklahoma, for the National Duals Tournament.

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