The Dan Hodge Trophy is awarded each year to the United States of America’s best college wrestler. The trophy is presented at the end of the season by '' WIN'' magazine and Culture House. It is the

collegiate wrestling Collegiate wrestling, commonly referred to as folkstyle wrestling, is the form of wrestling practiced at the post-secondary level in the United States. This style of wrestling is also practiced at the high school, middle school, and elementary ...

equivalent to the

Heisman Trophy The Heisman Memorial Trophy ( ; also known simply as the Heisman) is awarded annually since 1935 to the top player in college football. It is considered the most prestigious award in the sport and is presented by the Heisman Trophy Trust followin ...

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

. Its high school wrestling equivalent is the Junior Hodge Trophy, which has been awarded annually since 1998. The Hodge Trophy is named after

Danny Hodge Dan Allen Hodge (May 13, 1932 – December 24, 2020) was an American amateur and professional wrestler, who also had a brief professional boxing career. He is in both the U.S. amateur wrestling Hall of Fame, for his three NCAA titles and Ol ...

, a three–time NCAA champion for the

University of Oklahoma The University of Oklahoma (OU) is a Public university, public research university in Norman, Oklahoma, United States. Founded in 1890, it had existed in Oklahoma Territory near Indian Territory for 17 years before the two territories became the ...

from 1955 to 1957. The Hodge Trophy was created by Mike Chapman, founder of WIN magazine and Culture House, a company that produces books and posters. The first winner was T.J. Jaworsky, a three–time NCAA Division I National champion from the

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC, UNC–Chapel Hill, or simply Carolina) is a public university, public research university in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States. Chartered in 1789, the university first began enrolli ...

in 1995. There have been six multiple winners of the Hodge Trophy. The first was Iowa State's legend Cael Sanderson, who won the award three times in his run as the first undefeated four–time NCAA champion, the second was

Ben Askren Benjamin Michael Askren (born July 18, 1984) is an American former professional mixed martial artist, professional boxer and Olympic wrestler. He was the former Bellator and ONE Welterweight Champion, remaining undefeated for over a decade ...

from

Missouri Missouri (''see #Etymology and pronunciation, pronunciation'') is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it border ...

, who won the award two times, the third and fourth were David Taylor and Zain Retherford respectively, both from

Penn State #Redirect Pennsylvania State University The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a Public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related Land-grant university, land-grant research university with ca ...

, who won the award two times, the fifth is Spencer Lee from

Iowa Iowa ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the upper Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west; Wisconsin to the northeast, Ill ...

, and the sixth (and most recent) is Gable Steveson, who won the award two times, becoming the only heavyweight to do so.

Award criteria

Since 2022, the Hodge Trophy Voting Criteria has been based on four criteria: # Record # Dominance/Bonus-Point Percentage # Quality of Competition # Sportsmanship Formerly, the trophy was awarded based on seven criteria: # Record # Number of pins # Dominance # Past credentials # Quality of competition # Sportsmanship/Citizenship # Heart

Hodge Trophy Winners

* Number of first place ballot votes from the Hodge Committee is indicated in parentheses ** In 2001 and 2021, the Dan Hodge Trophy was shared by two co-winners

Junior Hodge Trophy Winners

References

{{reflist

External links

"Dan Hodge Trophy: History, winners and how it works"
at

NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships The NCAA Division I Men's Wrestling Championships have been held since 1928. In addition to determining the national champion in each weight class, the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships also determines All-American wrestlers for each weight ...

Awards established in 1995 College sports trophies and awards in the United States College wrestling in the United States Most valuable player awards

Award criteria

Hodge Trophy Winners

Junior Hodge Trophy Winners

See also

References

External links