West Virginia University’s wrestling team is set to begin its 2025-26 season at the Southeast Open, which will take place at the Cregger Center in Salem, Virginia, on Sunday, November 2.
The Mountaineers are coming off a strong 2024-25 season. The team finished sixth at the Big 12 Wrestling Championships and tied for 18th at the NCAA Championships.
Head coach Tim Flynn will lead a roster that includes returning Big 12 champions Jett Strickenberger, a graduate student, and Ty Watters, a redshirt sophomore. Watters returns after an injury limited him to just six matches last season.
Strickenberger had a successful previous year with 19 wins and a Big 12 title at 125 pounds. He qualified for the NCAA Championships after winning five straight matches against ranked opponents.
Graduate student Willie McDougald joins West Virginia from Oklahoma as an offseason addition. McDougald is a three-time NCAA qualifier who finished fifth at last year’s Big 12 Championships.
The team also brings back redshirt senior Jordan Titus—a three-time NCAA qualifier—and redshirt junior Ian Bush, who moves to compete at 184 pounds after wrestling at 197 pounds last season.
West Virginia has been ranked No. 20 in the National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA) preseason coaches poll. Seven wrestlers appear in FloWrestling’s rankings: Strickenberger (No. 6 at 125), McDougald (No. 13 at 149), Titus (No. 28 at 141), Brody Conley (No. 25 at 174), Bush (No. 14 at 184), Watters (No. 5 at 157), and Rune Lawrence (No. 33 at 197).
The attached roster lists both attached and unattached wrestlers who will compete in various weight classes during the event.
Coach Tim Flynn stated that more information can be found by visiting WVUsports.com or following WVUWrestling on X, Instagram, and Facebook.