Penn State Wrestling Adds All-American Grad Transfer

The reigning NCAA champions took another step towards threepeating in 2024 as Penn State Wrestling added Grad transfer Bernie Truax IV from Cal Poly on Wednesday. The three-time All-American announced his commitment to the Nittany Lions on Twitter.

Truax will join the Penn State Wrestling team with one year of eligibility remaining. Truax is coming off an impressive 18-3 season at Cal Poly where he ultimately finished in 4th place at nationals at 197 lbs.

Consistency seems to be key for Truax, who has finished exactly 4th place three consecutive years now, all at different weight classes. It is still unclear what weight class Truax will enter at Penn State. With the departure of Max Dean, the 197-pound weight class has an opening, but there were rumors earlier of Aaron Brooks potentially moving up from 184.

You have to assume Cael Sanderson discussed the situation with both wrestlers before this move was made. It is interesting to note that WrestleStat lists Truax at 184 for the upcoming year and Aaron Brooks at 197 which may be a hint at how things ultimately play out.

At this point, it would be foolish of anyone to question a Cael Sanderson wrestling decision. Sanderson has led Penn State Wrestling to 10 national championships since his hiring in 2009. I’m confident that both Aaron Brooks and Bernie Truax can perform well in both weight classes.

We will see if being part of the renowned Penn State Wrestling room is enough to push Truax over the 4th place hump and earn himself a national championship. It worked out well for the last 197-pounder who transferred to Penn State. Max Dean went 23-1 and won the national championship in his first season at Penn State after transferring from Cornell.

Assuming Carter Starocci does not take his Olympic redshirt, Penn State Wrestling will have seven All-Americans in the lineup next season.