The NCAA tournament is the pinnacle of the collegiate wrestling season, where a grueling season culminates with the crowning of 10 individual champions.

But the flip side to glory is the bitter disappointment of unrealized dreams. All weekend long, the arena tunnels and lockers rooms are strewn with the shattered minds and bodies of defeated wrestlers.

The record books will always be a prominent place for champions, but here we'll carve out a special section for the best who never become champs. This is a place for the greats who never quite made it to the top of the NCAA podium, yet remain some of the most dominant and dynamic competitors of their era.

Previous Entries: 125 Pounds | 133 Pounds | 141 Pounds | 149 Pounds | 157 Pounds

To limit the size of our lists, and to lower the burden of research to a relatively sane amount, we very arbitrarily narrowed our time frame to the last 10 years. Due to creative redshirting, this rule proved difficulty to adhere to, but a general rule of thumb is anyone who used up his eligibility by 2009 was not included. Hence the absence of Mike Poeta, an incredible 157-pound wrestler for Illinois who thrice placed in the top three of NCAA.

It is possible we overlooked someone, however, so please feel free to call out your favorite unmentioned non-champion in the comments.

1) Tyler Caldwell, Oklahoma State - 5, 2, 3, 2

Kansas native Tyler Caldwell split is time at both Oklahoma University and Oklahoma State University, wrestling well enough to make the finals at both schools but unfortunately never winning that championship match. Caldwell also never finished lower than fifth as either a Sooner or Cowboy. As a sophomore, Caldwell lost to a guy you may have heard of called Jordan Burroughs. Caldwell then took a redshirt season and transferred to Stillwater. Two years later, Caldwell was beaten again in the NCAA finals by a guy who was fairly decent by the name of David Taylor. Oh and in Caldwell's junior year, when he took third, Caldwell had David Taylor and this other guy named Kyle Dake in his bracket. And so, only by three of the greatest NCAA wrestlers of all time was Caldwell thrice denied a championship title.

2) Isaac Jordan, Wisconsin - 7, 7, 2, 4

From the famous wrestling Jordans of Ohio, Isaac followed in his father's footsteps and enrolled at the University of Wisconsin in the fall of 2012. He spent his inaugural year on campus redshirting before earning his first All-American honor in 2014 at 157 pounds. Jordan would reach the podium in each of the next years, though never coming closer than during his junior year in 2016 when he was beaten in the finals 6-2 by Oklahoma State's Alex Dieringer. As impressive as Jordan's career was, it still does not challenge Caldwell's for being the best 165-pounder to have never won an NCAA title.

3) Dan Vallimont, Penn State - R12, 3, R12, 2

Originally from New Jersey, Dan Vallimont headed west, but not too far west, to State College, Pennsylvania, to wrestle for the Nittany Lions. Vallimont tried out three different weight classes during his time at Penn State, going from 149 as a freshman to 157 as a sophomore and then to 165 for his final two seasons. The Lake Hopatcong native found his greatest success his senior year at 165 pounds, when he lost to Oklahoma's Andrew Howe in the 2010 NCAA finals.

4) Nick Sulzer, Virginia - R16, 8, 4, 5

In the fall of 2010, Nick Sulzer packed his bags and headed southeast, from Cleveland, Ohio, to Charlottesville, Virginia. After a redshirt season and a round of 16 freshman campaign, Sulzer would make it to the podium three times in a row. Unfortunately for Sulzer, he, not unlike Caldwell, had some rather impressive names to contend with in his brackets, such as Dake, Taylor, Dieringer, and Caldwell himself.

Honorable Mention

Michael Moreno, Iowa State
Josh Asper, Maryland
Nick Marable, Missouri

Like our time frame, our achievement cut-off point for inclusion on our list of best who never won is entirely arbitrary. There will never be an article large enough to mention every deserving All-American who fell short of his ultimate goal. So if you think we overlooked anyone, please don't hesitate to let us know!

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