On April 17, 2009, Penn State named national wrestling legend Cael Sanderson as its 12th head wrestling coach and immediately the nation looked East. Since that time, the wrestling landscape across the country has changed as Penn State has claimed nine NCAA championships and numerous Big Ten regular season and tournament titles, all while crowning numerous individual champions and maintaining the highest of academic standards.
A career begun in the Midwest…
At just 29 years old, Sanderson came to Penn State after three very productive years as the head coach at his alma mater, Iowa State. Sanderson’s teams did not finish any lower than fifth at the NCAA Championships and he never had a wrestler not qualify for nationals, getting 30-of-30 grapplers through to the championship tournament.
After graduating from ISU in 2002, Sanderson spent 2003 and 2004 as a special assistant in the athletic department at Iowa State before joining the ISU coaching staff as an assistant coach in 2004-05. He was promoted to the assistant head coach position the next year and then became the Cyclones’ head coach for the 2006-07 season.
In 2007, during Sanderson’s rookie campaign, he led ISU to a 13-3 dual meet record and the first of three-straight Big 12 Championships. An outstanding NCAA runner-up finish in Detroit capped off a wildly successful year as the Cyclones crowned one National Champion and Sanderson was honored as Big 12 Coach of the Year, National Rookie Coach of the Year and National Coach of the Year. The next year, Sanderson led ISU to a 16-4 dual meet mark, another Big 12 title and a fifth place finish at nationals. Iowa State’s seven All-Americans in 2008 were the most at the school since 1993.
In 2009, Sanderson’s team went 15-3 in duals, won its third-straight Big 12 title and took third place at the NCAA Championships in St. Louis (just 12 points out of first place). The Cyclones also crowned another National Champion. In three years at Iowa State, Sanderson’s teams went 44-10, won three conference crowns, qualified all 30 wrestlers for nationals, earned 15 All-American awards and two individual national titles.
A move East and a rapid ascent…
Cael’s first season at Penn State was solid. Sanderson led Penn State to a 13-6-1 dual meet record, much improved over the prior year’s 8-12-2 mark. After a year outside the top 10, Sanderson led the Lions back to their place among the nation’s elite with a ninth-place finish at the NCAA?Championships and a No. 10 final dual meet ranking from the NWCA Coaches. Sanderson picked up three more All-Americans (including a national finalist) and a Big Ten Champion in younger brother, Cyler Sanderson.
In 2010-11, Sanderson reached the pinnacle of the collegiate coaching mountain by guiding Penn State through a stunning season filled with records, championships and memories that thrilled the Penn State faithful. Sanderson led the Nittany Lions to their first-ever Southern Scuffle Co-Championship and first Virginia Duals Championship since 1991. While guiding Penn State to a 6-1-1 conference mark, Sanderson equaled the highest Big Ten dual meet wins in Penn State history (1998). He led Penn State to the school’s first ever Big Ten Championship and was named 2011 Big Ten Coach of the Year. He became the first coach in NCAA history to be named both the Big Ten and Big 12 Coach of the Year. Saving the best for last, he led the Nittany Lions to the 2011 NCAA?National Championship in Philadelphia, Penn State’s first since 1953 and Sanderson’s first as a collegiate head coach.
During the 2011-12 season, the nation watched as Sanderson led Penn State to a 13-1 dual mark, including a school record 7-1 Big Ten dual record to earn a share of the 2012 Big Ten dual meet championship. Sanderson then made it two in a row by leading Penn State to the 2012 Big Ten Championship at Purdue. He was named 2012 Big Ten Coach of the Year, earning the honor for the second-straight season. Two weeks later, Sanderson led Penn State to a second-straight NCAA crown, helping Penn State to become the fifth team in NCAA history to win back-to-back titles. He was named NWCA National Coach of the Year for the second time in his career at the conclusion of the championships in Des Moines.
In 2012-13, Penn State posted an identical 13-1 mark, 7-1 Big Ten dual record and won its third-straight Big Ten Championship in Illinois in March. Sanderson earned his third-straight Big Ten Coach of the Year honor (co) in the process. Two weeks after that, Sanderson guided Penn State to a thrilling third-straight NCAA crown, helping Penn State to become just the third team in NCAA history to win three-straight team titles. At the tournament’s end, he was named NWCA National Coach of the Year.
In 2013-14, Penn State went 15-1 overall and won a share of the Big Ten dual meet title with a 7-1 record. The Nittany Lions won their fourth-straight Big Ten Championship in Madison, Wisconsin, helping Sanderson win his fourth-straight Big Ten Coach of the Year honor. Two weekends later, the Nittany Lions won their fourth-straight NCAA title, becoming the third team in NCAA history to win four-straight NCAA titles.
In 2014-15, Sanderson led Penn State to an 11-4 dual meet record, a fifth-straight Southern Scuffle title, garnering five All-Americans and another individual National Champion at the NCAA Championships.
In 2015-16, he added a sixth-straight Southern Scuffle championships, a third Big Ten dual meet title (co-) and the 2016 NWCA National Dual Series championship. He led Penn State to its fifth Big Ten Championship in six years in Iowa City and followed that up with his fifth NCAA National Championship in six years in New York City’s Madison Square Garden.
In 2016-17, Sanderson led Penn State to its second-straight NCAA title and sixth in seven years. Penn State posted a perfect 14-0 dual meet record, won the 2017 Big Ten regular season (dual meet) title and the NWCA Dual Championship Series crown for the second-straight season. Sanderson’s team posted a gaudy 35-6 record at NCAAs and won five-straight individual championships to close out the national finals.
In 2017-18, Sanderson led Penn State to its seventh NCAA title in eight years and third- straight. Penn State posted a perfect 14-0 dual meet record and won the Big Ten regular season (dual meet) title yet again. Sanderson’s team posted a superb 39-9 record at NCAAs. Penn State ended the season riding a 45-dual win streak and set an NCAA record for attendance at an indoor dual meet with 15,998 in the BJC for a win over Iowa.
In 2018-19, Sanderson closed out a decade as Penn State’s mentor by leading Penn State to its eighth NCAA title in nine years and fourth-straight for the second time in his first ten years as head coach. Penn State posted a perfect 14-0 dual meet record for the fourth-straight year, won the Big Ten regular season (dual meet) and Big Ten tournament championship. Sanderson’s team posted a 35-11 record at NCAAs and had the team title clinched before the finals began Saturday night. Penn State ended the season riding a 59-dual win streak. Sanderson was named Big Ten Coach of the Year and InterMat National Coach of the Year.
In 2019-20, the Lion mentor led the team to a 12-2 overall record and a near-perfect 8-1 Big Ten dual meet mark. Penn State crowned two more Big Ten Champions in true freshman Aaron Brooks and senior Mark Hall. Brooks was named Big Ten Freshman of the Year. The Nittany Lions advanced seven wrestlers to the 2020 NCAA Championships before the NCAA canceled the event in reaction to a virus. The NWCA named the top eight seeds at each weight First Team All-Americans after the tournament was canceled, giving Sanderson five more All-Americans.
In 2020-21, Sanderson guided Penn State through a season that was shortened and altered by the NCAA due to Covid-19. The Nittany Lions went a perfect 6-0 in dual meets (all in the Big Ten) and earned a share of their seventh Big Ten dual meet title. Roman Bravo-Young and Aaron Brooks won Big Ten titles in the BJC and Carter Starocci was named Big Ten Freshman of the Year. Penn State took nine wrestlers to nationals and the Nittany Lions went a perfect 4-0 in the NCAA finalist in St. Louis, with Bravo-Young, Nick Lee, Starocci and Brooks all claiming their first individual titles. Freshmen Michael Beard and Greg Kerkvliet each placed seventh to give Sanderson six All-Americans for the year.
In 2021-22, the Nittany Lions roared into Detroit and claimed their ninth NCAA team title since Sanderson’s arrival. Penn State, winning the 9th NCAA crown in the last 11 tournaments, brought home six All-Americans (a tournament high) and went a Penn State Perfect 5-0 in the NCAA finals (following up 2021’s 4-0 run). Roman Bravo-Young, Nick Lee, Carter Starocci, Aaron Brooks and Max Dean all won individual titles while Greg Kerkvliet placed fourth. Sanderson was named 2022 NCAA Coach of the Championship by the NWCA at the conclusion of the event. The 36.5-point margin of victory over the second place team was the largest since the Lions outdistanced the field by 40 points in 2019.
In 13 years as Penn State’s coach, Sanderson led the Nittany Lions to eight Southern Scuffle titles, eight B1G dual meet titles, six Big Ten Championships, nine NCAA Championships, collected 75 All-Americans, 32 National Champions, including an NCAA record-tying five in both 2017 and 2022, four Gorriaran winners, five NCAA Tournament Outstanding Wrestlers, one CoSIDA Academic All-American of the Year, one NCAA Elite 89 winner, one NCAA Top 10 Award winner and five Hodge Trophy winners. Sanderson, who has coached 90 total All-Americans and 34 total National Champions (including his three years at Iowa State), grabbed his 100th win as Penn State’s head coach in its 36-6 victory over Stanford in Rec Hall on 11/13/16.
A coaching career after the most storied collegiate wrestling career ever…
To this day, Sanderson is considered the most dominant collegiate competitor in NCAA history. In four years, Sanderson never lost. From 1999-2002, Sanderson posted a 159-0 career record (going 39-0, 40-0, 40-0 and 40-0); won four individual National Championships; won four Most Outstanding Wrestler awards at the NCAA Championships (the only wrestler in NCAA history to do so); became the first freshman in NCAA history to win the Outstanding Wrestler honor and won three Dan Hodge Trophies as the nation’s best collegiate wrestler (also a collegiate first). He wrestled his first three years at 184 and then moved to 197 as a senior.
The four-time All-American’s four-year streak of perfection was called the No. 2 most outstanding achievement in collegiate sports history by Sports Illustrated. The NCAA called his final win (in the 2002 NCAA 197-pound championship) one of the NCAA’s “25 Defining Moments” for its Centennial celebration. His wrestling career culminated in 2004 when the Heber City, Utah, native won the 84 kg Olympic Gold Medal in Athens, Greece.
Cody Sanderson is heading into his 14th season as the associate head coach of the Penn State wrestling program. Sanderson, who played a major role in the Iowa State wrestling program’s rapid ascent as Big 12 powerhouse and NCAA?team title contender, is the oldest brother of Penn State head coach Cael Sanderson and a former head coach himself. Sanderson is in his 21st year as a collegiate coach.
During Sanderson’s years at Penn State, the Nittany Lions have won nine NCAA titles, six Big Ten titles, eight Big Ten regular-season crowns, eight Southern Scuffle titles and produced 75 All-Americans and 32 NCAA Champions.
Sanderson served as associate head coach at Iowa State during brother Cael’s three-year run as a mentor of the Cyclones. Prior to joining Cael in Ames, Iowa, Cody was the head coach at Utah Valley State (now Utah Valley University), where he started the school’s wrestling program from scratch in 2003. Sanderson’s efforts helped create the nation’s first Division I wrestling program started from the ground up in 30 years. Prior to beginning the program at UVU, Cody served as administrative assistant at Iowa State from 2001-03.
As a student-athlete, Sanderson was a two-time national finalist at 133 pounds, advancing to the NCAA title bout in 1999 in the Bryce Jordan Center and in 2000 in St. Louis. He ended his stellar Cyclone career with 116 wins. He also claimed the Big 12 title as a senior and helped spur ISU to a national runner-up finish at the NCAA Championships in 2000.
Sanderson graduated from Iowa State in 2000 with a bachelor’s degree in psychology with a pre-medicine curriculum. He received a Master of Education graduate degree from Penn State in 2022. His wife, Sarah, was a standout gymnast at Iowa State. The couple has two sons, Kade and Mason; and a daughter, Tylar Ann.
Casey Cunningham is in his 14th year on the Penn State Nittany Lion wrestling staff. Named head assistant coach by Cael Sanderson in April 2009, Cunningham is in his 23rd year as a collegiate coach.
During Cunningham’s years at Penn State, the Nittany Lions have nine NCAA titles, six Big Ten titles, eight Big Ten regular-season crowns, eight Southern Scuffle titles and produced 75 All-Americans and 32 NCAA Champions. He was the USA Wrestling National Freestyle Coach of the Year in 2018.
Cunningham served as Cael Sanderson’s head assistant coach at Iowa State as well. Prior to his one-year stint in Ames, he was head assistant coach at Central Michigan for seven years (2001-08). He began his coaching career in 1999 as a graduate assistant at CMU and then spent a year at the Olympic Training Center. During his tenure at CMU, he helped lead 18 Chippewas to All-American honors and 35 Mid-American titles. During Cunningham’s last season as an assistant, Central Michigan finished seventh at the 2008 NCAA Championships.
As a wrestler, Cunningham is among Central Michigan’s all-time greats. He capped off his collegiate career in 1999 by winning the 157-pound title in the Bryce Jordan Center, earning the school’s first Division I national title and only the second individual title in the school’s history in any sport. The two-time All-American (national runner-up in 1998) won three MAC championships (1996, 1997, 1999) and was twice named MAC Wrestler of the Year (1998, 1999). Cunningham finished his Chippewa career with a 134-19 record. An accomplished international competitor, Cunningham won the 2008 Pan American Games silver medal and was two time U.S. Nationals and World Team Trials runner-up. An outstanding student, Cunningham was a four-time NWCA Academic All-American.
Cunningham earned his bachelor’s degree in sociology with an emphasis in criminal justice from CMU in 1999. His wife, Tara (Nott), is an Olympic champion, having won the gold medal in weight lifting at the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games. The couple has three sons, Hayden, Asher and Ryder and two daughters, Saige and Sterling.
Jimmy Kennedy is in his second season with the Penn State Nittany Lion wrestling team. Kennedy joined the staff prior to the start of the 2021-22 season as Jake Varner moved to head up the efforts of the Penn State Olympic RTC/Nittany Lion Wrestling Club. Kennedy is now beginning his second season on the Penn State staff.
Kennedy comes to Penn State after serving as an assistant coach for the Northwestern Wildcats, which was preceded by an All-American career as a wrestler for the University of Illinois. Kennedy served as an assistant coach at Northwestern from 2018 through 2021.
He was a three-time All-American for the Illini, hitting the podium in 2008, 2009 and 2011. Kennedy ended his collegiate career with a 119-24 record. A native of Ingleside, Ill., and a graduate of Grant Community High School in Fox Lake, Ill., Kennedy also has a lengthy list of freestyle accolades. He was a member of the U.S. World Team in 2014 and finished second in the U.S. World Team Trials in 2013 and 2017.
Kennedy was the U.S. Open Champion in 2016, won the Paris International in 2017 and the Yasar Dogu in 2014. Kennedy won the Intercontinental Cup in 2013, the Guelph Open in 2012 and 2013 and the New York Athletic Club International in 2012.
Former Nittany Lion wrestler Adam Lynch is heading into his 10th season as director of operations for Penn State wrestling. Lynch was a member of Penn State’s 2011 Big Ten and NCAA Championship team.
Lynch ended his Penn State career as one of the team’s leaders, coming back for a fifth year to continue the work of building a championship dynasty. As a junior in Sanderson’s first season (2009-10), Lynch went 13-13 overall but posted a superb 6-2 record in Big Ten duals. He debuted in the national rankings at 141 in February of that year. During his final season in 2010-11, Lynch went 7-3 with three pins.
Lynch received his bachelor’s degree of science in kinesiology in the movement science option in December 2010 and wrapped up his graduate degree in sports management and sports administration in December 2013. He is a native of Mifflinburg, Pennsylvania.
Lynch and wife, Taylor, were married in June 2016. They have a son, Hank.
