August 17, 2026
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College Wrestling
Full team schedules for the 2026-27 college wrestling season are still coming together, but the marquee events on the calendar are already locked in. The sport doesn't wait until March to start separating contenders from pretenders — over five weeks in November and December, four events will give the clearest early read yet on who's positioned to make noise once the postseason arrives.
Here's a look at the four first-semester events worth circling on the calendar.
The Missouri Valley Open is the largest women's collegiate wrestling tournament in the country, drawing more than 50 teams and 700 wrestlers to the Burns Athletic Complex in Marshall, Missouri. The event traces back more than 15 years to the early days of Missouri Valley's women's wrestling program, which launched in 1999, and has grown into one of the sport's premier early-season proving grounds.
The field regularly includes Olympians, senior and age-group world team members, national champions, and All-Americans from NCAA, NAIA, and NJCAA programs, plus wrestlers from multiple countries and some of the top high school-age talent in the sport.
This will be the second Missouri Valley Open since women's wrestling became an official NCAA championship sport, and it remains one of the earliest indicators of who will contend for national titles and All-America honors come March. Competition opens Friday morning, Nov. 13, with finals and medal rounds expected Saturday afternoon.
Often called a "mini-NCAAs" because of the strength of its field, the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational is one of the premier in-season tournaments for NCAA Division I wrestling. Michigan wrestling great Mark Churella Sr. established the event during his time as UNLV's head coach, debuting it in 1982 as the Western Open at Caesars Palace Sports Pavilion. It was renamed in 1993 to honor legendary Michigan coach Cliff Keen.
Churella — a three-time NCAA champion and four-time All-American at Michigan from 1976-79, and a 1999 National Wrestling Hall of Fame inductee — still runs the event today alongside his sons and fellow Michigan alumni, Mark Jr. and Ryan.
The 2025 edition drew 32 teams, including eight ranked in the NWCA poll and headlined by Iowa State, Virginia Tech, and South Dakota State. A high percentage of wrestlers who place at CKLV go on to contend for All-America honors and national titles, which is exactly why it's treated as a true measuring stick this early in the year. The 44th Annual CKLV runs Dec. 4-5 at the Westgate Hotel Paradise Event Center in Las Vegas.
The Paycom-sponsored National Duals Invitational returns for its second year with a 16-team field and a prize purse that has grown past $1,230,000. The 2026 edition takes place Dec. 12-13 at the BOK Center in Tulsa, and the field includes defending champion Ohio State, Arizona State, Arkansas-Little Rock, Iowa State, Minnesota, Missouri, NC State, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Maryland, Pittsburgh, Rutgers, Stanford, Virginia Tech, and Wyoming.
Ohio State won the inaugural 2025 event, taking home the $200,000 grand prize with a 27-12 win over Iowa in the finals. The champion's payout climbs to $250,000 in 2026, with $175,000 for the runner-up and third-place team, $100,000 apiece for fourth and fifth, $20,000 to every participating team, and a $50,000 team takedown bonus pool on top of that.
Penn State, Iowa, and Nebraska are again sitting this one out. Penn State earned an automatic qualifying invite based on last year's top-10 NCAA Championships finish but has now declined for the second straight year — a notable absence for an event built around showcasing the sport's top teams.
The Midwest Classic is NCAA Division II wrestling's marquee midseason individual tournament, hosted annually by the University of Indianapolis inside Nicoson Hall and the Ruth Lilly Fitness Center. The 2025 field drew 47 teams from 23 states, including 19 of the nation's top 25 programs — making it the largest team tournament in Division II wrestling.
Coaches treat it as close to a Division II NCAA Championships dry run, and strong performances there have historically been a reliable predictor of All-American status once the actual national tournament rolls around. UW-Parkside won last season's team title with 150 points, edging runner-up Pitt-Johnstown by 18.
The 47th Annual Midwest Classic runs Dec. 19-20 at Nicoson Hall on the University of Indianapolis campus.
