Michigan
Virginia Military Institute
10/28/2026 12:50:00 PM | Wrestling
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The No. 14-ranked University of Michigan wrestling team (0-0) will kick off the 2026-27 season -- its 105th year of intercollegiate competition -- on the road this Sunday (Nov. 1) when the Wolverines travel to Lexington, Va., to face VMI at 2 p.m. at the Keydets' Cormack Hall.
Notes
• Michigan returns three All-Americans in Cameron Catrabone, Beau Mantanona and Brock Mantanona. All three placed at NCAAs for the first time last year -- Catrabone and Brock Mantanona in their first NCAA appearance at 157 and 184 pounds, respectively, and Beau Mantanona in his second at 174 pounds. It is the most returning Michigan All-Americans since the 2021-22 season. When adding All-America transfers into the program, U-M had three returning All-Americans last season and seven in 2023-24.
• The Wolverines return three additional starters, including two NCAA qualifiers, in 2026-27. Sergio Lemley is a two-time NCAA qualifier at 141 pounds but redshirted last season and went 22-1 at 149 pounds. Dylan Gilcher also qualified two seasons ago at 149 pounds before missing most last year after suffering a season-ending injury at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational in December.
• Michigan welcomes a talented 10-man freshman class to Ann Arbor this fall. The class, ranked No. 4 nationally for the Class of 2026, combined for 26 state titles over their high school careers and features seven wrestlers ranked among the top recruits by at least one wrestling outlet, most notably No. 11 Moses Mendoza, No. 13 Kellen Wolbert, No. 15 Haakon Peterson and No. 23 Henry Aslikyan. With the NCAA's new five-in-five rule and the elimination of redshirts, U-M could potentially have several freshmen in its lineup this season.
• The Wolverines also added Daniel Zepeda from the transfer portal with four years of eligibility remaining. Zepeda, the older brother of Moses Mendoza, posted a 9-1 record for N.C. State last season, taking first place at the Reno Tournament of Champions and second at the Southern Scuffle before injury prematurely ended his season. A three-time California state champion for Gilroy High School, Zepeda was the No. 8 overall prospect in FloWrestling's Class of 2025.
• Zepeda and Gilcher will not be immediately available as both continue to return from season-ending knee surgeries in January. Both will likely be cleared for competition before the end of the first semester.
• The Wolverines will begin the 2026-27 season with five wrestlers ranked top 10 at their respective weight classes, including three ranked in the top five, according to FloWresting: No. 5 Catrabone (165), No. 4 Beau Mantanona (174) and No. 5 Brock Mantanona (184). Lemley also ranks No. 12 by FloWrestling -- and No. 10 by InterMat -- at 149 pounds, while Zepeda lists No. 9 at 157 pounds.
• Sean Bormet, the Ron Weiser Head Wrestling Coach, enters his ninth season at the helm of the Wolverine program. Named the 2022 Big Ten and NWCA Coach of the Year, Bormet has guided the Wolverines to a 72-28 dual-meet record, including a 42-22 mark in Big Ten duals, a Big Ten title (2022) and four top-five NCAA finishes, including trophy finishes in 2022 and 2024. Bormet's leadership has produced two NCAA champions (Nick Suriano, Mason Parris) and 27 NCAA All-Americans, along with four NWCA All-Americans during the COVID-19-canceled 2019-20 season.
• The Wolverine coaching staff welcomed a familiar face with the return of Kellen Russell as an assistant coach. Russell, a two-time NCAA champion and twice Michigan's Male Athlete of the Year, previously served as a U-M assistant coach for seven seasons (2015-21) before spending the last five seasons (2022-26) on the coaching staff at Cornell. As a Michigan student-athlete, Russell captured back-to-back NCAA titles at 141 pounds (2011, '12) and was a four-time Big Ten champion. He posted a 134-12 career record; his win percentage of .918 ranks second in program history.
• Russell and former wrestler and head coach Joe McFarland were inducted into the Michigan Athletics Hall of Honor earlier this fall on Sept. 11. McFarland was a four-time All-American, including a two-time NCAA finalist, and posted a 166-24-4 record during his Michigan career. He led Michigan for 19 seasons as head coach, compiled a 214-105-6 dual record and guided the Wolverines to 11 top-10 NCAA finishes and three Big Ten dual titles.
• VMI will also open its dual season on Sunday. The Keydets posted a 6-9 dual record in 2025-26 and claimed seventh place at the Southern Conference Championships, earning their first SoCon champion since 2020 in Ryan Vigil -- who has since graduated -- at 165 pounds. The Wolverines earned a decisive 45-0 victory with eight bonus wins in the first-ever meeting between the programs last season in Ann Arbor.
