Ohio State’s Kollin Moore Named A Hodge Trophy Finalist For Wrestler Of The Year

Despite not being able to go for the national championship, Ohio State fifth-year senior wrestler Kollin Moore has received major attention for his final season with the Buckeyes, becoming a finalist for the Dan Hodge Trophy, which is awarded to the nation’s best wrestler.

The other seven nominees are West Virginia’s Noah Adams, Northwestern’s Ryan Deakin, Princeton’s Pat Glory, Stanford’s Shane Griffith, Iowa’s Spencer Lee, Minnesota’s Gable Steveson and Cornell’s Chas Tucker.

All eight finalists are undefeated on the season, with Moore going 27-0 at 195 pounds, 10 of which came by major decisions, six by technical falls and four via pin. Thirteen of his wins came against ranked opponents.

Adams is the only other wrestler nominated from 197 pounds. He went 32-0 for the Mountaineers this season, and ranks No. 2 in the weight class, only behind Moore.

Moore would be the second winner in the history of the program, with Logan Steiber being Ohio State’s lone winner in 2015. The previous three winners have all been out of Penn State (Zain Retherford 2017, 2018 and Bo Nickal in 2019).

According to Ohio State’s release, “The Hodge Trophy is voted on by a committee consisting of former Hodge recipients, national media, retired college coaches from each region, a representative of each national wrestling organization and a fan vote hosted by WIN Magazine. Fan voting begins on Monday (March 23) at noon.”

Photo Credit: Courtesy of Ohio State Athletics

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