The Air Force Falcons men’s wrestling team will compete in the Big 12 Wrestling Championship on March 6 and 7 at the BOK Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma. All 14 conference programs are set to participate, with teams vying for titles and berths in the upcoming NCAA Wrestling Championships scheduled to take place at Rocket Arena in Cleveland.
This year’s championship follows a record-setting event last year, where more than 21,000 fans attended over two days. Oklahoma State claimed victory at that tournament by winning the final match of the weekend. The field includes legacy Big 12 members Arizona State, Iowa State, Oklahoma State and West Virginia, along with affiliate programs such as Air Force.
The Falcons’ lineup features ten wrestlers across all weight classes. Senior Tucker Owens (125 pounds) and sophomore Carter Nogle (141 pounds) enter as seeded competitors—Owens is seeded eighth and Nogle seventh. Three Air Force wrestlers hold national rankings according to FloWrestling: Nogle is ranked No. 30 at his weight class; Owens and freshman Karson Tompkins (197 pounds) are both ranked No. 31.
Head coach Sam Barber praised his athletes’ recent performances leading into the postseason. “The bigger the match, the better Nogle wrestles,” Barber said about sophomore Carter Nogle’s readiness for competition after three consecutive wins against strong opponents.
Several Falcon wrestlers bring notable achievements into this tournament: Owens concluded his regular season with five straight victories; Tompkins has posted four wins out of his last five matches including upsets over nationally ranked opponents; freshman Rylan Kuhn (285 pounds) finished dual season on a two-match win streak and won a Roadrunner Open title earlier this year.
Carter Nogle was recently named Big 12 Wrestler of the Week after securing top-20 victories over Utah Valley’s Haiden Drury and Cal Baptist’s Jesse Vasquez. He became only the second Air Force wrestler ever to receive this weekly honor since Sidney Flores did so in 2022.
Wrestlers who qualify from this championship will advance to compete for All-American honors or national titles at Rocket Arena later this month.
