AJ Ferrari will not return to Nebraska after one season
AJ Ferrari will not return to Nebraska after one season, HuskerOnline has confirmed with a program spokesperson.
In his lone season in the heavyweight division, he earned All-American honors with a sixth-place finish at the 2026 NCAA Championships. He also finished runner-up at this year’s Big Ten Championships.
At the NCAA tournament, Ferrari medically forfeited following his semifinal loss to Yonger Bastida due to a knee injury suffered earlier in the event. He posted an 18-6 (13-2 dual) record with nine bonus-point victories during his 2025-26 campaign.
Ferrari’s time in Lincoln also included off-the-mat controversy, including a January arrest in Nebraska related to an outstanding warrant in Collin County, Texas, dating back to 2025.
He also drew attention for a post-match celebration directed toward the crowd at Penn State in January, as well as comments following the NCAA Championships in which he suggested Bastida used a performance-enhancing substance.
Ferrari joined the Huskers in June 2025 as a transfer from Cal State Bakersfield. Before all that, he won the 197-pound title as a freshman at Oklahoma State in 2021.
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The three-time All-American is now expected to enter the transfer portal, which runs through the end of April. However, the NCAA must grant Ferrari a waiver for another year of eligibility.
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A look at Nebraska’s upper weights going forward
The emergence of Cade Ziola at heavyweight fueled speculation that if Ferrari remained with the program, he might drop back down to his initial wrestling weight at 197 pounds.
However, current 197-pounder Camden McDanel took fifth place at this year’s NCAAs and is a two-time All-American in his two years at Nebraska.
Ziola went 16-3 (2-1 dual) during his redshirt season. Of the Omaha native’s 16 wins this past season, 11 came with bonus-point victories. He was also a three-time high school state champion at Omaha Skutt.
