By the time we get to the finish line with the Flowrestling All-Quarter Century Team presented by Defense Soap, roughly 60 percent of the finalists will be wrestlers who finished their college wrestling careers after 2013. 

Maybe that’s a product of the American assembly line cranking out top stars at a greater pace since the advent of regional training centers following the 2008 Olympics and the proliferation of clubs across the country. Perhaps recency bias has also factored into the vote. 

Nevertheless, the top performers of the second half of the quarter century have had a decisive advantage over the standouts of yesteryear. 

That’s not the case this week as we reflect on the top 197-pounders of the last 25 years. Three of the four finalists finished competing on the college level by 2010, and the other wrestled his last college match in 2017. 

Before we get to the finalists, though, let’s take a look back at some of the other top performers who reached the NCAA podium four times and and earned consideration here:

Jake Rosholt (Oklahoma State) — A surprising national title run as a freshman 184-pounder launched Rosholt to stardom with the Cowboys. He entered the 2003 NCAA Championships as the #10 seed after dropping a 9-1 major decision against Missouri’s Scott Barker at the Big 12 tournament. Less than two weeks later, Rosholt beat Barker 13-5 in the NCAA finals to complete his stunning title run. He placed third at the NCAA Championships at 184 as a sophomore before moving up to 197, where he went 59-7 during his final two seasons. None of those losses, though, occurred at the NCAA Championships. Rosholt finished his career with a 105-20 record. 

Quentin Wright (Penn State) — One of college wrestling’s top entertainers during his time with the Nittany Lions. Wright had an assortment of attacks to put opponents in danger. He placed sixth at the NCAA Championships as a true freshman at 174 in 2009. After a redshirt season, Wright became the first Penn State national champ under Cael Sanderson in 2011 when he completed an improbable undefeated postseason run that began as the #8 seed at the Big Ten tournament. He was an NCAA runner-up at 184 in 2012 and then moved up to 197 as a senior, when he capped a 32-0 season with an 8-6 win in the NCAA finals against previously unbeaten and 2011 national champ Dustin Kilgore. 

Phil Davis (Penn State) — Davis never placed higher than fourth in high school at the Pennsylvania state tournament, but he became a four-time All-American and two-time NCAA finalist with the Nittany Lions. He compiled a 116-20 career record and won an NCAA title in 2008 when he went 26-1. 

Cam Simaz (Cornell) — Simaz was a multi-sport athlete in high school before turning his full attention to wrestling with the Big Red. At Cornell, he developed into a four-time All-American who placed third or better in each of his final three trips to the NCAA Championships. He punctuated his career with the Big Red by winning a national title in 2012 when he went 31-1.  

Max Dean (Cornell/Penn State) — In four trips to the NCAA Championships — two at Cornell and two more at Penn State — Dean wrestled in the finals twice, won an NCAA title with the Nittany Lions in 2022 and reached the podium four times. He finished his career with a 105-18 record. 

Stephen Buchanan (Wyoming/Oklahoma/Iowa) — The first wrestler in Division I history to earn All-American honors for three different schools. Buchanan was a four-time placewinner at the NCAA Championships and finished third or better three times, highlighted by his 2025 title-winning performance with the Hawkeyes. He compiled a 124-26 career record, including an 84-7 mark across his final three seasons. 

Building The Quarter Century Team

We put together a list with every NCAA champion since 2001 — all 160 of the guys who combined to win the 240 individual national titles during that time frame — and the Flowrestling team pared it down to 40 (the top four at each weight) with a staff vote. Ultimately, we'll cut the list down to 10 with the help of a fan vote on social media. 

Now you can cast a vote for the top 197-pounder from the past quarter century. 

Who was the best 197-pound wrestler of the Quarter-Century?

— FloWrestling (@FloWrestling) July 28, 2025

(Finalists listed in chronological order) 

Cael Sanderson (Iowa State)  

Sanderson stands in a class by himself as the lone undefeated four-time national champion. He garnered All-Quarter Century Team votes at 184, where he won three titles. But he completed his 159-0 career with the Cyclones with a 40-0 senior season at 197. The three-time Hodge Trophy winner scored bonus points in all but two of his matches as a senior — a pair of decisions against Lehigh’s Jon Trenge. Sanderson beat Trenge for the third time in the 2002 NCAA finals, winning a 12-4 major in his final college bout. 

Damion Hahn (Minnesota)  

One of Sanderson’s rare close victories came early in his sophomore season when Hahn, then a redshirt, took him down to the wire at the Kaufman Brand Open in Omaha, where Sanderson prevailed 4-3. Hahn placed fifth at the NCAA Championships at 184 in each of his first two seasons with the Gophers, helping Minnesota win a pair of team national titles. He moved up to 197 as a junior and won his first of two national titles in dramatic fashion with a last-second takedown on a lateral drop against Trenge. He went 33-1 as a senior on his way to the 2004 NCAA title. 

Jake Varner (Iowa State)  

Two wrestlers in Iowa State’s illustrious wrestling history have reached the NCAA finals four times — Sanderson and Varner. The latter reached the national title bout as a sixth-seeded freshman when he went 30-7 at 184 pounds. Varner lost just three more matches in three seasons with the Cyclones and went 62-2 in two years at 197, both of which culminated in NCAA titles. He posted a 31-0 mark with 10 pins as a senior in 2010. 

J’den Cox (Missouri) 

The NCAA Championships have been around for nearly 100 years, and Cox is the only wrestler during that time to win three national titles at the second-heaviest weight class. He’s also the first Mizzou athlete to win three national titles in any sport. He compiled a 136-5 record with the Tigers and finished his freshman, junior and senior seasons by winning NCAA titles. He also placed fifth as a sophomore when he got knocked off in the NCAA semifinals by Kyle Snyder. Five months after winning his second NCAA title, Cox claimed an Olympic bronze medal in 2016. He came back to college wrestling the following season and went 28-0 as a senior.