Taylor, Minto finish runner-up as Nebraska wrestling takes third at NCAA Championships with seven All-Americans
Nebraska wrestling took third place at the 2026 NCAA Championships in Cleveland, Ohio.
Behind the two runner-up finishes and seven total All-Americans, head coach Mark Manning’s squad sits behind champion Penn State and runner-up Oklahoma State. The 100.5 NU points helped mark another top-3 finish for the Huskers for their second consecutive year — the first time in program history.
Here is what we learned from the NCAA Championships…
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Defending national champion falls short
Antrell Taylor fell just short of becoming a back-to-back national champion. The Nebraska 157-pounder lost a heartbreaking 4-2 decision to No. 5 Landon Robideau of Oklahoma State.
In the first period, Taylor spent nearly the first two minutes on one leg, deflecting Robideau’s attack to avoid surrendering a takedown. But in the second, Taylor ran into trouble after allowing a 2-point near fall, which became the difference.
The Millard, Nebraska, native nearly gained offensive momentum to force a stall on Robideau in the final minute. However, the powerful Oklahoma State freshman’s defense was too much to overcome in his upset loss.
Taylor wraps up his runner-up junior season with a 25-4 record to become a three-time All-American. A revenge tour will be the talk around the country for his upcoming senior season.
Minto falls to PSU senior in title bout
Moments after Taylor’s loss, Christopher Minto fell in the 174-pound championship to No. 1 Levi Haines of Penn State. In their third meeting of the season, it was another tight, gritty battle. However, Haines’ veteran presence outweighed the No. 3 seed in the 2-1 decision.
After a scoreless first period that featured elite defense by the Nebraska sophomore, a stall call and escape had him trailing 2-0 entering the third period. Similar to Taylor, Minto forced a stall penalty on Haines in the final minute. And while he was the aggressor in the final 30 seconds, Haines’ defense shut down any potential upset.
Minto finishes his sophomore season at 23-6 to become a two-time All-American. He was also the Big Ten runner-up, once again falling in a 2-1 decision to Haines.
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Medal match results
Brock Hardy’s iconic Husker career officially concluded after he took fourth place at 141 pounds. The sixth-year senior failed to deflect No. 5 Luke Stanich’s of Lehigh second-period takedowns in his 6-2 decision for third place. Hardy received a standing ovation as he walked off a college mat for the final time.
Moments later, Chance Lamer also took fourth place to cap off his outstanding tournament at 149 pounds. The No. 20 seed once again defeated No. 4 Collin Gaj of Virginia Tech for the second time at the NCAAs in the consolation semifinals. However, Lamer fell apart in the third period of his third-place bout to drop a 10-5 decision against No. 11 Lachlan McNeil of Michigan. Still, the Nebraska senior posted one of the better runs for the entire tournament.
At 197, Camden McDanel finished in fifth place. The No. 11 seed dropped the consolation semifinal by a 6-3 decision against No. 5 Joey Novak of Wyoming. However, the sophomore capped off his back-to-back All-American season with a 13-6 win over No. 9 Angelo Posada of Stanford.
Jacob Van Dee fought hard to take seventh place at 133 and repeat as an All-American. After dropping his opening-round match, Van Dee climbed through the wrestlebacks. The No. 13-seeded junior defeated 2025 national champion Lucas Byrd of Illinois in a thrilling 6-4 tiebreaker to go out on top. Byrd held a 5-4 lead entering the second tiebreaker, but Van Dee reversed him in the final 15 seconds.
Heavyweight AJ Ferrari medically forfeited to finish sixth place after dropping his semifinal bout 15-7 to No. 1 Yonger Bastida of Iowa State on Friday. Ferrari’s future at Nebraska is undetermined. NU must apply for a waiver to get another year of eligibility.
Final team standings
Full individual results
| 125 | Kael Lauridsen | DNP |
| 133 | Jacob Van Dee | 7th |
| 141 | Brock Hardy | 4th |
| 149 | Chance Lamer | 4th |
| 157 | Antrell Taylor | 2nd |
| 165 | LJ Araujo | DNP |
| 174 | Christopher Minto | 2nd |
| 184 | Silas Allred | DNP |
| 197 | Camden McDanel | 5th |
| HWT | AJ Ferrari | 6th |
That does it for Nebraska wrestling’s 2025-26 season as it brings a third-place trophy home to Lincoln.
