ACC action gets underway this weekend as the NC State Wolfpack will host Virginia in Friday night action.

After competing in many different events the first semester — tournaments, multiple duals in a day — the NC State schedule will now focus on the routine of taking the mat each Friday night against a conference foe for the next six weeks.

“What we learned from last year is we just want to keep improving every week,” NC State coach Pat Popolizio said. “If we can do that as individuals, obviously it’s going to help our team. We want to keep building to when we go to the national tournament, because I really do believe we have multiple guys that can compete to win a national title.”

Recently, the Pack has received both good news and bad news about a couple of spots in the lineup.

Brophy Makes Wolfpack Debut

First the good news: NC State recently added an NCAA qualifier at the upperweights.

After having to finish up academic responsibilities at The Citadel during the first semester, Patrick Brophy has now joined the Pack and has been inserted into the lineup at 197 pounds for the rest of this year. The week that he was cleared by the NC State compliance office, Brophy hit the mat for three dual wins the weekend before Christmas.

With a mid-summer coaching change at The Citadel, the transfer window reopened and Brophy placed his name in it. What led him to come to Raleigh and join the Wolfpack?

“Just the opportunity to train with the highest caliber of people,” Brophy said. “Here it was too good to pass up. I have not only some of the best people in the nation, but literally the best guy at my weight class in the world (Trent Hidlay), the current World champ.

“I asked myself how much can I learn? How far can I go with it when you're around that caliber of training partners and great coaches that NC State has to offer? Just in my short time around this team, I've been learning a ton from the coaches and from my training partners.”

Brophy only got serious about wrestling in high school. Before that he was focused on a myriad of other sports, mainly baseball. 

“I tried (wrestling) when I was really young, because my dad was a wrestler (a two-time All-American at Loras College), so I think he always wanted me to wrestle,” Brophy said. “I don’t think I really liked it when I was younger, but for whatever reason, I just ended up loving it when I was in high school.”

Brophy reconnected with wrestling once again as a sophomore and he saw the potential to compete into college and started his journey at The Citadel.

He was a starter each of his two seasons there, and earned an NCAA bid in 2025, winning a match. The jump he has taken since his first days in a college practice room has been very noticeable.

“I think it's been night and day,” Brophy said. “I'm sure most people would say this, but I would destroy my freshman self. Coming out of high school, I wasn’t very technical. I’m still working out all the techniques everyday in practice, but I feel I’m way more advanced that I used to be.”

This past summer, Brophy was introduced to the Pack mentality before he even considered transferring. He spent time in Colorado at the Olympic Training Center and not only met Hidlay but competed against him as Hidlay was preparing for the World Championships.

“As soon as I got there, I rolled with him the very first practice,” Brophy said. “He was helping me with different things. That training with Trent, I was learning so much just from getting exposed to different things that I hadn't really been getting exposed to in my room.

“It kind of clicked with me during that time. I knew I had to get out and wrestle all these different people more often. So, whenever the portal did open, it made that a little bit easier that I got to get to know him.”

Brophy had an eventful first semester. He was taking classes at The Citadel, as he worked with his professors to have his academics on mostly just Mondays and Wednesdays. Then he was able to train from Thursday to Sunday and also travel solo to compete at some open tournaments during the first two months of the season.

“It was a little weird,” Brophy said. “Going to tournaments alone is a little different. I'm not used to that.”

Brophy is now a member of the Pack and ranked #25 this week as ACC action opens up.

“He’s a sponge right now and anyone that starts later in the game, they’re really motivated to learn,” Popolizio said. “I’ve seen that in him; he fits right in. He is there after practice every day working on things.

“He has a lot of room to improve, which is good because he’s got a really good feel for the sport and he is a competitor. He has some good wins under his belt, and he is going to face some really good competition from our schedule. He is only to going to get better.”

Arrington Out For The Year

While the Pack recently welcomed a new starter, they also lost a starter for the remainder of the season.

Jackson Arrington has been shut down for the year after undergoing surgery to repair a torn labrum. He is ranked 11th this week at 157 pounds.

“He had surgery last week, and we elected to take a medical this year,” Popolizio said. “It’s very unfortunate as he gave it a try, but this will buy Jackson time to get healthy and have him around for another two years.”

Arrington started his Pack career with back-to-back appearances in the blood round at the NCAA Championships at 149 pounds. He was also the ACC champion in 2024, and redshirted last season while making the move up to 157 pounds.

Over the summer at the U.S. Open, Arrington hurt the shoulder and started the NCAA season with a brace on it. 

Where does the Pack do at 157 pounds now?

“We’re going to need someone young, new and exciting to step up and wrestle in that spot,” Popolizio said. “It gives someone a new opportunity to make a name for themselves here and go out and compete.

“We are going to have to figure out who that guy will be.”

It appears the Pack has a few options, though all three have minimal collegiate experience. 

Redshirt freshman Latrell Schafer spent some time at both 157 and 165 pounds last year while in redshirt. He was a top-100 recruit out of Georgia and is 6-5 this year. 

True freshmen Brogan Tucker and Daniel Zepeda were both in action at the weight at the Southern Scuffle, with Zepeda finishing second in the bracket. Zepeda was the #8 overall recruit in the Class of 2025 while Tucker was #26. Both could still redshirt as well.