Carter Starocci Returning: How Decision Bolsters Penn State Wrestling Roster

That weekend, It appeared that with what Carter had accomplished at Penn State the last four years, he would move on to pursue the next chapter of his career. But in the interview, Starocci hinted that there was a “60/40” chance of him coming back to Happy Valley. Well, it’s now official.

Carter Starocci is coming back and he’s going to attempt to do something that no man has ever completed in collegiate wrestling. Five-time NCAA champion. Yeah, it does have a nice ring to it! Returning Starocci figures to make a major impact on the Penn State Wrestling roster and bolster the Nittany Lions‘ continued national championship aspirations.

How does Starocci’s return impact next year’s Nittany Lion lineup?

And this right here is the biggest question following last night’s massive news. Now that it’s confirmed both Beau Bartlett and Starocci are running it back, there could be some interesting changes in next year’s starting lineup. Several weeks ago I took a stab at projecting the 2024-2025 starting lineup, and while I did have Bartlett locked and loaded at 141 pounds, the group at 184 and 197 was still a bit of a mystery. One thing I can say with 100% confidence is that Carter is not going to come back and land his fifth title at 174 pounds. It’s just not happening. In the aforementioned Flo interview, Starocci mentioned he might bump all of the way up to 197 pounds. Granted this came with a bit of a chuckle and smile, but I have confirmed through other sources that this has been discussed. So where there’s smoke there’s generally some fire. If this is truly the case then it actually fits in nicely with next year’s lineup. Josh Barr is the most likely guy to secure the 184 spot and Carter can lock down 197 which gives Lucas Cochran another year in the wrestling room and it gives Connor Mirasola time to adjust to college life.

Carter Starocci Chasing History in Return

Starocci’s return also means that next year’s Nittany Lion team will be absolutely stacked from top to bottom. Not that this should come as any sort of surprise. Typically a team that wins 11 of the past 13 NCAA Championships has a strong, to quite strong, lineup. Next year’s version of Penn State Wrestling has the possibility to be even better than this past year’s squad. And that’s saying something huge considering the NCAA records they set fire to!