Penn State Wrestling coach Cael Sanderson discussed Rocco Welsh’s dramatic comeback victory in the recent matchup against his former Ohio State team. The No. 1 in the 184-pound category fell behind in the first period and early in the second period but bounced back to take the win, helping the Lions extend the win streak to 85.
Welsh has been enjoying an undefeated season since transferring from Ohio State in 2025. He moved up to 184 pounds in his redshirt season in 2024-25 and went 15-0 in open tournaments.
Penn State Wrestling’s Cael Sanderson Gets Real About Rocco Welsh’s Dominant Win in Recent Game
Sanderson, the only wrestler in NCAA history to go undefeated in official matches, joined the Nittany Lions before the end of the 2009 season. He has guided several wrestlers to individual titles and set an NCAA record at the 2024 Championships, then shattered it again in the 2025 edition.
Continuing that momentum in the ongoing season, the 46-year-old led his team to another regular-season Big Ten title in 2026, as the Lions finished with an undefeated conference dual record.
The 14–0 Lions secured a 36–5 victory over the No. 2 team, which was missing its first three Top 10 starters. After the successful campaign, Sanderson sat down at a press conference to reflect on the performance of the No. 1 nationally ranked Welsh, who struggled to generate offense until the very end but scored two takedowns to claim a dramatic win.
Sanderson said that Welsh elevated his game, stayed with his opponent technically, and, with a few small adjustments, got the job done. He also noted the key takeaway, saying:
“He just stepped it up a notch. I think just kind of really started pressing a little bit more, which he’s capable of doing a great opponent that’s really good. Kept tagging him with that that lowlevel shot where we were kind of walking into it coming out of our stance. So, little adjustments will be good, but yeah, it’s just the heart and just the determination and seeing that it’s okay if you fall behind, you can still come back and win those matches.”
Welsh won against his former teammate Dylan Fishback 7-6 and gave his team a massive edge.
Before the Feb. 13 match, Sanderson expressed that it was especially exciting to be up against a team that’s a title contender. He commended the work of Buckeyes’ head coach Tom Ryan and how he led the team to record an ‘awesome’ program. After the Lions’ win over Nebraska on Jan. 30, the four-time NCAA and Big Ten champion highlighted the importance of discipline and focus for the path to success.
The Lions will next face Princeton on Feb. 20 and compete at the Big Ten Championships on March 7-8, 2026.
