The 2024 NCAA Tournament is set to go down March 21-23 in Kansas City, Missouri, and will feature the best college wrestlers in the country. The 157-pound weight class is arguably the deepest of any weight with 10 All-Americans in the bracket and several new contenders vying for the title. Check out the below article to see the full 157-pound bracket and a complete preview with predictions for this incredible weight at the NCAA Tournament. 

Complete FloWrestling 157-pound rankings

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157 Pound 2024 NCAA Bracket

2023 157 Pound All-Americans

1. Austin O’Connor, North Carolina
2. Levi Haines, Penn State
3. Josh Humphreys, Lehigh
4. Jared Franek, ND State
5. Ed Scott, NC State
6. Peyton Robb, Nebraska
7. Bryce Andonian, Virginia Tech
8. Will Lewan, Michigan

2024 157 Pound Top 8 Seeds

1. Levi Haines, Penn State
2. Jacori Teemer, Arizona State
3. Meyer Shapiro, Cornell
4. Ed Scott, NC State
5. Ryder Downey, Northern Iowa
6. Daniel Cardenas, Stanford
7. Peyten Kellar, Ohio
8. Peyton Robb, Nebraska

Past All-Americans in the 157-Pound Bracket

• #1 Levi Haines, Penn State
• #2 Jacori Teemer, Arizona State
• #4 Ed Scott, NC State
• #8 Peyton Robb, Nebraska
• #9 Will Lewan, Michigan
• #10 Jared Franek, Iowa
• #11 Brayton Lee, Indiana
• #12 Bryce Andonian, Virginia Tech
• #13 Michael Blockhus, Minnesota
• #16 Brock Mauller, Missouri

* Numbers listed are seeds at the NCAA Tournament

The Favorite

• #1 Levi Haines, Penn State

Other weight classes at the NCAA Tournament have 2 or more front-runners contending for the title. However, at 157, Levi Haines is the clear favorite entering the tournament with an 18-0 record and wins over many of the challengers in the field. On top of being the returning NCAA runner-up, this season Haines has defeated Will Lewan (twice), Jared Franek, Peyton Robb, Chase Saldate, Trevor Chumbley Isaac Wilcox, and Michael North. He’s done this all while accumulating a 61% bonus rate with 11 of his 18 wins coming by either fall, tech, or major - 4 pins, 3 techs, and 4 majors.

Despite taking an undefeated record into the tournament, and his relative dominance, it hasn’t been easy for Haines. He had overtime wins against both Chase Saldate and Will Lewan this year and needed to mount a substantial comeback against Isaiah Crosby to win 10-8 (Crosby notably did not qualify for the tournament). To make the finals, Haines will have to wrestle one of Lewan, Saldate, or Peyton Robb in the quarters. Then in the semis Haines’ likely opponents are either Ed Scott, Ryder Downey, or Bryce Andonian. While he might not be fully healthy, Andonian notably almost pinned Levi Haines in the quarterfinals before Haines got the third-period fall over Andonian. It won’t be easy for Haines to reach the finals, but he’s a proven winner and should be considered the favorite over this deep field. 

Watch Levi Haines win over Peyton Robb from the semis of the 2023 NCAA Tournament:

The Contenders

Tier 1

• #2 Jacori Teemer, Arizona State
• #3 Meyer Shapiro, Cornell
• #4 Ed Scott, NC State
• #5 Ryder Downey, Northern Iowa
• #6 Daniel Cardenas, Stanford
• #8 Will Lewan, Michigan
• #9 Peyton Robb, Nebraska

Tier 2

• #7 Peyten Kellar, Ohio
• #10 Jared Franek, Iowa
• #11 Brayton Lee, Indiana
• #12 Bryce Andonian, Virginia Tech
• #13 Michael Blockhus, Minnesota
• #14 Cody Chittum, Iowa State
• #18 Vinny Zerban, Northern Colorado

157 might have the most legitimate contenders of any weight class in the country. The above group of 13 wrestlers have all either earned All-American honors in the past or have victories over All-Americans this year. The depth that exists at the weight class can not be overstated. Because of this depth, I chose to do something slightly different and divide the group of contenders into two separate tiers. The wrestlers in tier 1 are those I believe have the best chance of making a run to the finals or upsetting Levi Haines. The wrestlers in tier 2 are those I believe can earn All-American honors but are unlikely to make the finals.

Of the tier 1 wrestlers, Jacori Teemer, Meyer Shapiro, and Daniel Cardenas all sit on the bottom half of the bracket - opposite top-seeded Levi Haines. These three wrestlers were also all at the CKLV in December where Jacori Teemer reached the finals by defeating Daniel Cardenas by major decision 14-6. Since then, Cardenas and Teemer have wrestled two more matches, both won by Teemer but the margin of victory has narrowed each time. Teemer won 7-5 in the dual and 5-4 most recently in the PAC-12 finals. Things are trending in the right direction for Cardenas so if they meet again, it will be interesting to see if Teemer can take out Cardenas for the fourth time this season. Regardless, Teemer is already a two-time All-American and possesses a high-powered offense capable of defeating anyone in the country at 157 pounds. 

Jacori Teemer's win over Daniel Cardenas at the 2023 CKLV:

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One wrestler stands in the way of that fourth meeting between Cardenas and Teemer - the #3 seed Meyer Shapiro. The Cornell freshman entered the season with incredible hype coming off a U20 world title over the summer. Then Shapiro looked unstoppable when he dominated Bryce Andonian at the CKLV with a 16-4 major decision. However, Shapiro came back to earth when he lost to Daniel Cardenas (8-5) in the quarter finals at the CKLV before dropping a surprising match to Trevor Chumbley (2-1). Was the hype too much? I don't think so considering Shapiro has rattled of 17 straight wins since the CKLV including victories over All-Americans Ed Scott (7-2) and Brock Mauller (14-4). The hype is back for Shapiro and he looks like a title contender again entering the NCAA Tournament. 

Daniel Cardenas' win over Meyer Shapiro at the 2023 CKLV:

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Meyer Shapiro's win over Bryce Andonian at the 2023 CKLV:

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Ed Scott, Ryder Downey, Will Lewan, and Peyton Robb are all tier 1 contenders in my opinion. I believe they all have a similar chance at making the finals from the top side of the bracket and taking out Levi Haines. As mentioned above, Lewan has wrestled Haines tough with an overtime loss in the Big 10 finals. On top of the overtime loss, he also lost 2-1 to Haines in their dual meeting with a late stall call against Lewan the difference for Haines. Lewan’s defense obviously makes him a tough match for Haines but he’ll have to get by Saldate and Robb to get another shot at taking out the favorite.

Robb is notably 2-0 against Lewan this year, and while beating a guy like Lewan 3 times in one year is a challenge, Robb should be considered the favorite to meet Haines in the quarters. While Robb is a favorite to make the quarters, he's a considerable underdog against Haines considering the Nittany Lion holds a career record of 3-0 over Robb. Haines dominated Robb in a 10-3 match this year in their dual meeting in February but the two had much closer decisions last season. 

It's also worth mentioning Robb's up-and-down year. He looked like a title contender in the first half of the season when he won a deep field at the CKLV by defeating Jacori Teemer in the finals. However, Robb has struggled in the second half of the year with an 8-6 record while suffering a four-match losing streak in January. Will we see Robb back to his November-December form or will Robb struggle against some of the better guys in this weight? We’ll find out the answer to that question soon but I expect Robb to wrestle his best in his last NCAA Tournament. 

Peyton Robb's win over Jacori Teemer in the 2023 CKLV Finals:

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Ryder Downey and Ed Scott are the last two wrestlers in tier 1 and the most likely wrestlers to meet Levi Haines in the semi-finals. Scott is a returning All-American but has had a roller-coaster year recording wins over Ryder Downey (twice), Bryce Andonian (twice), Will Lewan, and several other ranked wrestler. However, Scott has also suffered losses to Sonny Santiago, Joey Blaze, Teague Travis, Peyten Kellar, and Meyer Shapiro. Because of that inconsistency, it’s highly unlikely we see Scott make a run to the finals but I expect Scott to reach the podium again this year.

Hear from Ed Scott after his recent ACC title:

Downey has been one of the biggest surprises this season with a 21-4 record and is currently riding a 14-match winning streak. Downey has wrestled a tough schedule with ranked wins over Peyton Robb, Cody Chittum (two), Cael Swensen, Teague Travis, Trevor Chumbley, and Jared Hill. Downey will be challenged early with a potential second-round match against the always dangerous Bryce Andonian, but if Downey gets by that test, he’ll be fascinating to watch against the best guys in this bracket. 

Hear from Ryder Downey after his recent Big 12 title:

To save time, we won’t go deep into the guys I have listed as tier two contenders but as I mentioned, I think the wrestlers in this tier are All-American contenders but unlikely to make the finals for one reason or another. Andonian and Blockhus have questions surrounding their health. Kellar, Franek, Lee, Chittum, and Zerban all have brutal paths to the finals. These guys can all pull off an upset but I’d be surprised to see them in the finals.

Sleepers & Landmines

• DJ McGee, George Mason
• Joey Blaze, Purdue
• Chase Saldate, Michigan State
• Sonny Santiago, North Carolina

The above four wrestlers are all seeded outside the top 20 but are dangerous competitors to anyone in the field at 157 pounds. Chase Saldate has Will Lewan in the first round and notably defeated Lewan from last season. On top of that, Saldate lost to Levi Haines in overtime this year but was milliseconds (literally) away from defeating Haines. Joey Blaze has wins over All-Americans Peyton Robb and Ed Scott this year. Sonny Santiago also defeated Ed Scott this season. DJ McGee lost in overtime to Jacori Teemer and defeated Michael Blockhus this year, 4-2. In any other weight, every one of these wrestlers would be a top 10-16 seed but at 157, these competitors are dangerous landmines to top 10-seeded wrestlers in the first round!

Joey Blaze's win over Ed Scott from Journeymen's Wranglemania this past November:

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157 Pound Predictions

Levi Haines has been the best guy in this weight class from the beginning of the year and he’s my pick to leave Kansas City with the title. Haines will be tested by this deep field and I expect him to wrestle close matches from the second round to the finals. I have Haines taking out Shapiro in the finals in what is the match I most want to see in this bracket. Shapiro might have the best pure technique of anyone at 157, but in the end, I think Haines is a more complete wrestler and will use his mat wrestling and conditioning to come out on top Saturday night. 

Full All-American predictions with round of 12 and round of 16 finishers:

1. Levi Haines, Penn State
2. Meyer Shapiro, Cornell
3. Jacori Teemer, Arizona State
4. Ed Scott, NC State
5. Peyton Robb, Nebraska
6. Ryder Downey, Northern Iowa
7. Will Lewan, Michigan
8. Bryce Andonian, Virginia Tech

Round of 12 Finishers - Vinny Zerban (Northern Colorado), Cody Chittum (Iowa State), Jared Franek (Iowa), Daniel Cardenas (Stanford)

Round of 16 Finishers - Chase Saldate (Michigan State), Brayton Lee (Indiana), Michael Blockhus (Minnesota), Brock Mauller (Missouri)