INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. — The NCAA announced the qualifier allocations for the 2017 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships on Feb. 23, along with the updated NCAA Coaches Panel Rankings and Ratings Percentage Index (RPI). The Big 12 Conference has been awarded 39 automatic bids to the NCAA Championships. North Dakota State has five wrestlers currently listed on the NCAA national rankings.
North Dakota State wrestlers making the cut include:
125 Josh Rodriguez, RSr., (21-1, 18-1) — No. 6 Coaches, No. 11 RPI
133 Cam Sykora, RFr., (14-2, 12-0) — No. 25 / No. 17
157 Clay Ream, RJr., (22-3, 17-1) — No. 7 / No. 18
165 Andrew Fogarty, RFr., (21-8, 12-5) — No. 20 / —
285 Ben Tynan, Sr., (16-4, 13-4) — No. 26 / No. 23
The breakdown of the 39 automatic bids per weight class for the Big 12 Championship is as follows: 125 (4), 133 (4), 141 (4), 149 (4), 157 (3), 165 (6), 174 (3), 184 (2), 197 (5), 285 (4).
For each wrestler that reached the threshold in at least two of the three categories, his qualifying tournament was awarded a qualifying spot in that weight class. Each qualifying tournament, with automatic qualifying status, was awarded a minimum of one wrestler per weight class, which will go to the tournament champion, even if they did not have any wrestlers reach at least two of the three thresholds. NCAA tournament spots for each qualifying event will be awarded at the tournament based solely on place-finish.
The Big 12 will determine its auto bids to the 2017 NCAA Championships at next week’s Big 12 Conference Championship that will be held March 4-5 at the BOK Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma. There, 10 wrestlers from North Dakota State along with 10 more apiece from No. 2 Oklahoma State, No. 18 Oklahoma, No. 19 South Dakota State, Air Force, Iowa State, Northern Colorado, Utah Valley, West Virginia and Wyoming will all vie to earn the automatic bids to nationals. For more information on the Big 12 Wrestling Championships, visit Big12sports.com.
After all of the qualifying events have concluded, the NCAA Division I Wrestling Committee will meet in-person to select the remaining 49 at-large qualifiers, which will be announced on March 7. All weight classes will consist of 33 wrestlers. The at-large selections will be made based on the following criteria: head-to-head competition; quality wins; coaches’ ranking; results against common opponents; RPI; qualifying event placement; and winning percentage.
DI qualifier allocations for 2017 championships, coaches’ panel rankings, RPI
The 2017 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships will then be held March 16-18 at the Scottrade Center in St. Louis, Missouri. For more information, visit NCAA.com/wrestling.
Visit The Guillotine College Tournament Time Page for brackets, results, and live video links.