Jason Nolf

Jason Michael Nolf (born January 10, 1996) is an American freestyle wrestler and a former folkstyle wrestler who competes at 74 kilograms. In freestyle, he is a two-time U.S. national champion and a multiple-time medalist in international tournaments.

In folkstyle, Nolf was a three-time NCAA Division I national champion (finalist in 2016) and a two-time Big Ten Conference champion out of Pennsylvania State University.

Career

High school Nolf attended Kittanning High School, where he became a three-time PIAA Class AA state champion with a 176–1 record. He also competed in cross country and track and field, and graduated with a 4.5 GPA. In 2022, he was inducted into the WPIAL Hall of Fame.

College A three-time state champion, Nolf committed to wrestle at Pennsylvania State University in 2013.

2014–2015 During his redshirt campaign, Nolf claimed titles at the East Stroudsburg and Nittany Lion Open tournaments and made a finals run at the Southern Scuffle, ending the season with a 15–1 record at 157 pounds.

2015–2016 As a redshirt freshman, Nolf claimed the Southern Scuffle and Nittany Lion Open titles and went undefeated in duals, before placing second to Isaiah Martinez from Illinois at the Big Ten Championship. At the NCAA national tournament, Nolf reached the finals, where he suffered a close loss to Martinez and finished second. He was named Freshman of the Year by Intermat and compiled a 33–2 record.

After his runner-up finish at the NCAA championships, Nolf placed second at the US U20 World Team Trials in freestyle.

2016–2017 As a sophomore, Nolf claimed the Keystone Classic title and was undefeated in dual action during regular season. After becoming the Big Ten champion, Nolf claimed his first NCAA title with bonus-points in every match at the national tournament, helping the Nittany Lions reach their second straight title. He finished second as the NCAA Outstanding Wrestler behind teammate Zain Retherford, and posted an undefeated record of 27–0.

Fresh as an NCAA champion, Nolf switched to freestyle, placing fourth at the US Open and third at the US World Team Trials.

2017–2018 As a junior, Nolf claimed the Southern Scuffle and Keystone Classic titles, pinning his way through both tournaments, and the only loss he suffered during regular season was an injury default. After reaching the quarterfinals of the Big Ten Championships, he was forced to medical forfeit out in the semis. Nolf then claimed another NCAA title to become a two-time National champion and help Penn State with their third straight title. He closed out the season with a 26–2 record.

2018–2019 As a senior, he repeated as a Southern Scuffle and Keystone Classic champion, and once again was unbeaten during regular season. After becoming a two-time Big Ten Conference champion, Nolf scored bonus-points in every match en route to dominantly claiming his third straight NCAA title, as well as helping Penn State win its fourth championship in a row. He finished the season with a perfect 31–0 record.

Nolf graduated as a three-time NCAA Division I National champion and two-time Big Ten Conference champion with a record of 133–4. In June 2019, Nolf was awarded the prestigious Big Ten Medal of Honor along with Ally McHugh.

Fresh off his accomplished college career, Nolf joined the Nittany Lion Wrestling Club and switched his focus to freestyle full-time. Between April and May, Nolf placed third at the US Open at 70 kilograms and at the US World Team Trials up at 74 kilograms. To close off the year, he earned a silver medal from the Bill Farrell Memorial.

2020 To start off the year, Nolf earned a gold medal from the Pan American Championships up at 79 kilograms, qualifying for the US Olympic Team Trials. He was scheduled to compete at the event in April, however, the event was postponed for 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Nolf then competed in three matches in different events, earning wins over US National champion Jordan Oliver, three-time All-American David McFadden, and 2007 U20 World champion turned MMA fighter Bubba Jenkins.

2021 To prepare for the trials, Nolf competed at the NLWC V in February, earning a win over Jevon Balfour before falling to reigning and two-time World Champion Kyle Dake.

In April, down at 74 kilograms for the US Olympic Team Trials, Nolf earned a win over U20 World champion David Carr before losing again to Kyle Dake. In the third-place match, he defeated two-time All-American Evan Wick.

In September, up at 79 kilograms, Nolf placed fourth at the US World Team Trials, notably having a close match with seven-time Olympic and World champion Jordan Burroughs. To close off the year, he defeated World champion Khetag Tsabolov at an event in Kaspiysk on December.

2022 In January, Nolf claimed a silver medal at the Golden Grand Prix Ivan Yarygin, notably pinning returning World medalist Timur Bizhoev before falling to returning U23 World champion Chermen Valiev. After dismantling returning European medalist Mitch Finesilver in February, Nolf claimed the US Open National championship in April.

After dominating the US World Team Trials Challenge tournament field in May, earning another win over NCAA champion David Carr on his way, Nolf was defeated twice by returning Olympic medalist Kyle Dake in the Final X Neward series in June, finishing as a runner-up at the US World Trials.

At the end of the year, Nolf went 1–1 at the World Cup, helping Team USA reach the gold medal.

2023 To start off the year, Nolf grabbed a Zagreb Open Grand Prix title in February, earning notable victories over returning World medalist Younes Emami and returning U20 World champion Dzhabrail Gadzhiev.

Next, he became a two-time US National champion in April with wins over two-time NCAA champions Vincenzo Joseph and Keegan O'Toole, earning a berth for Final X NYC. At the event, Nolf was neutralized twice by now four-time World Champion Kyle Dake, losing the series and placing second at the US World Team Trials.

To finish off the year, Nolf grabbed a Bill Farrell Memorial title in November, dismantling four-time All-American Alex Marinelli after a hard-fought semifinal win over NCAA runner-up Quincy Monday.

2024 In January, Nolf grabbed his second straight title from the Zagreb Open Grand Prix, with dominant wins over returning World medalist Ramazan Ramazanov and European champion Georgios Kougioumtsidis.

In April, Nolf competed at the US Olympic Team Trials, and won the finals of the challenge tournament after wins over Jarrett Jacques and Olympian Gold Medalist, Pan American Champion and 6 Time World Champion Jordan Burroughs. During Saturday's Championship Series, facing Olympian Bronze Medalist and four-time NCAA champion Kyle Dake, Nolf was defeated on points, ending his hopes of a run at the Summer Olympics. Nolf later confirmed that he would retire from the sport of wrestling.

Professional grappling career Nolf has been known to give wrestling seminars to high-level Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu academies, and has even spent some time training in the sport with Bo Nickal.

Nolf competed in his professional grappling debut against Andrew Simmons at the Paradigm Open 3 on June 9, 2024. He won the match by submission.

Nolf competed in the under 80 kg division of the inaugural Craig Jones Invitational on August 16 and 17, 2024. He was submitted by Tye Ruotolo in the opening round.

Nolf competed against Renato Canuto in the co-main event of UFC Fight Pass Invitational 9 on December 5, 2024. He lost the match by decision.

Nolf represented Williams Elite Team at the AIGA Champions League finals 2025, going 1-1 as Williams Elite Team finished in second place.

Personal life On June 30, 2018, Nolf married Penn State women's soccer player Maddie Elliston.

Freestyle record

Res. Record Opponent Score Date Event Location Win 70-20

Arlington, Texas Win 69-20

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Win 68-20

Tampa, Florida Win 67-20

Fishers, Indiana Loss 66–20

Cleveland, Ohio

Loss 66–19

State College, Pennsylvania Loss 66–18

Win 66–17

Win 65–17

Win 64–17

Win 63–17

Zagreb, Croatia Win 62–17

Win 61–17

Win 60–17

Win 59–17

Win 58–17

New York City, New York Win 57–17

Win 56–17

Win 55–17

Loss 54–17

Newark, New Jersey Loss 54–16

Win 54–15

Las Vegas, Nevada Win 53–15

Win 52–15

Win 51–15

Win 50–15

Win 49–15

Zagreb, Croatia Win 48–15

Win 47–15

Win 46–15

Loss 45–15

Coralville, Iowa Win 45–14

Loss 44–14

New York City, New York Loss 44–13

Win 44–12

Coralville, Iowa Win 43–12

Win 42–12

Win 41–12

Las Vegas, Nevada Win 40–12

Win 39–12

Win 38–12

Win 37–12

Win 36–12

Arlington, Texas

Loss 35–12

Krasnoyarsk, Russia Win 35–11

Win 34–11

Win 33–11

Win 32–11

Kaspiysk, Russia

Loss 31–11

Win 31–10

Loss 30–10

Win 30–9

Win 29–9

Win 28–9

Loss 27–9

Win 27–8

Loss 26–8

State College, Pennsylvania Win 26–7

Win 25-7

State College, Pennsylvania Win 24-7

State College, Pennsylvania Win 23-7

Chicago, Illinois

Win 22–7

Ottawa, Canada Win 21–7

Loss 20–7

New York, New York, United States Win 20–6

Win 19–6

Win 18–6

Win 17–6

Loss 16–6

Raleigh, North Carolina, United States Win 16–5

Loss 15–5

Win 15–4

Win 14–4

Win 13–4

Win 12–4

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Win 11–4

Loss 10–4

Win 10–3

Win 9–3

Win 8–3

Win 7–3

Win 6–3

Lincoln, Nebraska, United States Loss 5–3

Win 5–2

Loss 4–2

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Win 4–1

Loss 3–1

Win 3–0

Win 2–0

Win 1–0

NCAA record

Res. Record Opponent Score Date Event

Win 19–1

Win 18–1

Win 17–1

Win 16–1

Win 15–1

Win 14–1

Win 13–1

Win 12–1

Win 11–1

Win 10–1

Win 9–1

Win 8–1

Win 7–1

Win 6–1

Win 5–1

Loss 4–1

Win 4–0

Win 3–0

Win 2–0

Win 1–0

Stats Season Year School Rank Weigh Class Record Win Bonus 2019 Senior

1 (1st)

31–0 100.00% 83.87% 2018 Junior 1 (1st) 25–1 96.15% 77.78% 2017 Sophomore 1 (1st) 27–0 100.00% 92.59% 2016 Freshman 1 (2nd) 34–2 94.44% 88.89% 2015 Redshirt 7 16–1 94.12% 88.89%