PISCATAWAY, N.J. – No. 14 Rutgers wrestling (10-3, 2-1) hosts back-to-back top 10 opponents this weekend at Jersey Mike's Arena. The Scarlet Knights face No. 1 Penn State (8-0, 2-0) on Friday for an 8 p.m. matchup on
Big Ten Network, with Zach Mackey (play-by-play) and Tim Johnson (analyst) on the call. RU wrestles No. 10 Illinois (7-2, 2-2) on Sunday for a 1 p.m. dual on
Big Ten Plus, with Nick Kosko and Matt Howe handling broadcast duties.
Friday's giveaways include complimentary 'BOOM!' t-shirts, while supplies last. Fans in attendance for Sunday's match will receive a Rutgers wrestling camo hat, also while supplies last.
This weekend's matchups continue a stretch of five ranked opponents in six duals. Rutgers has faced No. 24 Indiana (W, 28-6) and No. 4 Ohio State (L, 17-15) and will also travel to No. 8 Minnesota (Sunday, Feb. 2) during the grueling Big Ten slate.
Harer Embraces Challenges of Rookie Season
By Bradly Derechailo
It is never easy for a true freshman to make an impact at the highest level of collegiate wrestling.
Conner Harer has never backed down from a challenge.
The rookie has settled nicely into a starting role at 157 pounds for No. 14 Rutgers wrestling, entering this weekend with a 12-5 record and 2-1 mark in Big Ten Conference dual action. In Sunday's 31-7 dual win over Wisconsin, Harer took veteran Luke Mechler to overtime, finishing a scramble with 1:15 left in sudden victory for a 4-1 win.
The thrilling result sent the crowd at Jersey Mike's Arena into a frenzy and was one of the highlights for the Scarlet Knights during their 10th dual victory of the 2024-25 campaign.
The energy generated from the RU faithful is part of the reason Harer signed up to wrestle 'On the Banks'.
"It's always cool wrestling in front of our home crowd," Harer said. "I remember being in the stands a few years ago on my official visit and just telling myself that I'm going to be here one day. The experience of wrestling in Jersey Mike's Arena is everything I thought it would be. Every time you go out there, you just have to take a second to take it all in because not a lot of people get an opportunity to wrestle in front of a fan base like the one we have here at Rutgers."
Harer continues to live up to the hype he built as a blue-chip signee. One of the nation's top middleweight wrestlers in last year's recruiting cycle out of Montgomery High School, Harer finished his scholastic career as a three-time PIAA Class AA state champion. Harer registered an impressive 188-5 record, with four of those losses coming as a freshman. As a senior last winter, Harer sprinted to a 55-0 record for the Red Raiders, claiming his third state crown at 160 pounds.
Rated the No. 24 overall recruit in the country and No. 8 in his weight class by
FloWrestling, Harer had his host of suitors. Head coach
Scott Goodale is glad Harer made the decision to come to Piscataway.
"Conner has really settled in here over the past month and is getting more and more confident each day," Goodale said. "You can see he's really starting to get more comfortable at the weight and continues to improve with each match. He's delivered in some big spots for us already this season."
Harer has muscled a 9-3 record in dual action during his first collegiate season, starting in every dual match thus far and accumulating 34 team points along the way. Ranked No. 31 in the country by
Intermat, he owns five wins in his last seven outings dating back to the Midlands Championships, which include conference dual victories against Indiana and Wisconsin.
But it is a loss that may have showcased just how much Harer belongs.
In RU's match at No. 4 Ohio State last weekend, Harer faced four-time All-American and two-time Big Ten champion Sammy Sasso. Despite the hostile environment of the Covelli Center, Harer went blow for blow with Sasso in a tough 3-2 defeat.
"He's really talented, so it just showed that if I truly believe in myself, I can wrestle with the best," Harer said. "It gave me the confidence to just go out there and let it fly. Putting winning or losing aside, it's about scoring points and letting the rest take care of itself."
Harer has plenty of opportunities left to prove himself against the nation's best, beginning this weekend at Jersey Mike's Arena. The rookie is projected to face No. 3 Tyler Kasak (Penn State) and No. 22 Jason Kraisser (Illinois) in Rutgers' next two home duals, according to
Intermat, and also has projected matchups with No. 6 Ethan Miller (Maryland), No. 8 Tommy Askey (Minnesota), and No. 24 Jude Swisher (Penn) before the regular season concludes.
For now, Harer is focused on the here and now. It is an approach that has allowed him to excel during his first collegiate season.
"I'm just taking it day by day and believing in my training," Harer said. "Coming on as a true freshman was a hard adjustment just with the talent alone, so I'm just believing in the process. You're going to take some bumps and at the end of the day, everyone that goes out there is good. So, it's just taking advantage of each day ahead of you."
No. 14 Rutgers (10-3, 2-1)
125: 19/15
Dean Peterson (14-3) -OR-
Ayden Smith (4-4)
133: 9/9
Dylan Shawver (14-3)
141: 14/13
Joseph Olivieri (12-3) -OR-
Joe Fongaro (4-4)
149: 20/24
Andrew Clark (17-7)
157: 31/NR
Conner Harer (12-5)
165: 26/26
Anthony White (12-5) -OR-
Andrew Barbosa (5-3)
174: 22/23
Jackson Turley (12-5)
184: 18/19
Shane Cartagena-Walsh (17-5)
197: 16/17
John Poznanski (11-4) -OR-
PJ Casale (7-8)
HWT: 7/8
Yaraslau Slavikouski (12-3) -OR-
John O'Donnell (7-3)
Rankings Intermat/Flo
No. 1 Penn State (8-0, 2-0)
125: 6/6 Luke Lilledahl (10-0)
133: 7/7 Braeden Davis (6-2)
141: 3/3 Beau Bartlett (11-0)
149: 4/3Shayne Van Ness (10-1)
157: 3/3 Tyler Kasak (10-0) -OR- Alex Facundo (5-0)
165: 1/1 Mitchell Mesenbrink (12-0)
174: 2/2 Levi Haines (10-1)
184: 1/1 Carter Starocci (11-0)
197: 4/4 Josh Barr (9-0) -OR- Lucas Cochran (4-0)
HWT: 2/2 Greg Kerkvliet (11-0)
Rankings Intermat/Flo
No. 10 Illinois (7-2, 2-2)*
125: Caelan Riley (2-10)
133: 2/3 Lucas Byrd (11-1)
141: 12/17 Danny Pucino (10-2)
149: 12/15 Kannon Webster (8-4)
157: 22/22 Jason Kraisser (7-4)
165: 13/16 Braeden Scoles (10-2)
174: 21/20 Danny Braunagel (6-6)
184: 10/12 Edmond Ruth (8-4)
197: 18/13 Zac Braunagel (8-4)
HWT: 10/9 Luke Luffman (10-2)
Rankings Intermat/Flo
*wrestles Friday at Maryland
- Rutgers delivered a 31-7 win over Wisconsin on Sunday in front of 3,668 fans at Jersey Mike's Arena. The Scarlet Knights won eight out of 10 bouts against the Badgers, including bonus-point victories from No. 8 Yaraslau Slavikouski (HWT), No. 15 Joseph Olivieri (141), No. 16 John Poznanski (197), No. 18 Shane Cartagena-Walsh (184), and No. 21 Andrew Clark (149).
- The win over Wisconsin secured 10 or more dual victories for the 16th time 18 seasons under Goodale and marked the third win over the Badgers in the past four meetings.
- No. 9 Dylan Shawver (133), No. 25 Anthony White (165) and No. 32 Conner Harer (157) also added wins during the dual, with Shawver collecting his third ranked victory of the season after a 7-5 decision over No. 24 Zan Fugitt.
"Having a home environment like the one we have here at Rutgers is amazing. The fact wrestling is truly loved here and our fan base shows so much support and will do anything for you is definitely a huge reason why I'm here." – 157-pounder
Conner Harer on why he committed to Rutgers
- Rutgers remained No. 14 in this week's NWCA Coaches poll – matching its highest ranking in the poll this season. The Scarlet Knights are one of nine Big Ten programs ranked by the coaches this week, joining No. 1 Penn State, No. 2 Iowa, No. 4 Ohio State, No. 7 Nebraska, No. 8 Minnesota, No. 10 Illinois, No. 18 Michigan and No. 24 Indiana.
- Eleven individuals appear in at least one poll this week. No. 7 Slavikouski and No. 9 Shawver are both ranked within the top 10 of their respective weights by Intermat. Seven Scarlet Knights appear in Intermat's top 20, including Clark at No. 20.
- Penn State leads the all-time series with Rutgers, 25-0.
- The Scarlet Knights lost 35-3 at No. 1 Penn State on Feb. 12, 2024 at the Bryce Jordan Center in their last meeting. Shawver delivered a 9-6 win in SV1 over No. 6 Aaron Nagao in the dual.
- Illinois leads the all-time series with Rutgers, 3-2.
- RU defeated the Fighting Illini, 21-13, on Jan. 14, 2022 in Piscataway in their last meeting. Current Scarlet Knights Shawver and Poznanski collected wins in the dual victory.
- Rutgers travels to face No. 8 Minnesota on Sunday, Feb. 2 in Minneapolis. The dual is set for a 1 p.m. national broadcast on Big Ten Network.
