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

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 Graff, Wisconsin - 5, 5, 3, 2

Graff was a consistent performer for the Badgers since arriving in Madison in 2010. The Loveland, Colorado, native burst on to the scene with a fifth-place finish as the No. 8 seed during his true freshman season. Graff repeated that placement the following year before taking a redshirt season and then returned to the lineup better than ever, placing third at the 2013 NCAAs. Something was going to have to give in 2014, however, as he and Iowa's Tony Ramos met in the NCAA finals in Oklahoma City, where both wrestlers were looking for their first national championship. Ramos prevailed, and Graff had to settle for the cold comfort of being the best 133-pounder in the last 10 years to have never won a title.

2) AJ Schopp, Edinboro - R12, 4, 4, 3

Nearly as consistent as Graff, AJ Schopp was part of a stellar group of classmates for an imposing Fighting Scots squad all four years of his varsity career. Falling just shy of the podium as a freshman, Schopp climbed the All-American steps the next three years, never stopping anywhere lower the fourth place. In 2015, Schopp finished a career-best third at the NCAAs. That summer, he graduated from Edinboro and took a job on South Dakota State Jackrabbits head coach Chris Bono's staff, where Schopp's been ever since.

3) Chris Dardanes, Minnesota - 4, 6, R12, 4

Chris Dardanes -- and his twin brother, Nick -- were likewise steadfast anchors for their alma mater, the University of Minnesota. Always one weight class lower than his brother, Chris finished on the podium three times, compared to just once for Nick. The one time Chris missed All-American status was when he and the rest of the lower half of the Gophers lineup all bumped up one weight class in 2014.

4) Jimmy Kennedy, Illinois - R12, 4, 5, 5

Kennedy, a native of Ingleside, Illinois, stayed local and matriculated at the University of Illinois. He rewarded his home state and the Illini faithful with three All-American seasons. Kennedy's one miss was a bloodround finish as a true freshman in 2007, keeping him in a group with Schopp and Dardanes as three-time All-Americans and one-time round of 12ers. Since graduating, Kennedy has competed at the highest level internationally, making the USA freestyle world team in 2014.

5) Reece Humphrey, Ohio State - R32, R12, 2, 3

After a slow start, Indiana native Reece Humphrey had his best year as a true junior, making the finals of the 2009 NCAA tournament before being stopped by Michigan State's Franklin Gomez. Like Kennedy (and Gomez, for that matter), Humphrey parlayed his collegiate experience into a successful international career, making three USA freestyle world teams, in 2011, 2013, and 2015, because odd numbered years are kinda Humphrey's thing.

Honorable Mention

Mike Grey, Cornell
Scott Sentes, Central Michigan
Eric Montoya, Nebraska
Mason Beckman, Lehigh

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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