Charlie Creighton from Pennsylvania is one of 19 promising recruits and transfers who will make an impact on the men's wrestling team this fall.
Men’s wrestling recruits, transfers will add depth, strength throughout lineup
8/19/2026 10:19:00 AM | Men's Wrestling
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Nearly 20 incoming freshmen and transfers will join a 20-man returning roster to make the Flames contenders for MAC and NCWA titles this season.
A deep and balanced recruiting class including three high school state champions and NCAA Division I and DIII transfers will help solidify the foundation of Liberty University's men's wrestling team for the 2026-27 season and beyond.
The 19 incoming wrestlers that will complement 20 projected returnees cover 10 of the 11 weight classes and represent 10 different states — Virginia, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, South Carolina, New York, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Connecticut, Indiana, and Texas. Second-year Head Coach Chris Williamson plans to add as many as five more to the roster during tryouts on Sept. 8 in the Liberty Club Sports Complex wrestling room.
"We have been redoubling our recruiting efforts, making sure we're really deep at every weight and trying to be as competitive as we can be," Williamson said. "It will be a really solid class, all the way from top to bottom. We will have to wait and see if there are any superstars, (but) as far as the overall talent level, from their work ethic and buy-in, it will be a very good culture for the program — good for competition, morale, and depth, and we are excited about their growth."
This season will be a bit of a youth movement with only a quarter of the roster expected to be upperclassmen.
"Excluding the transfers, who are going to be graduate students, and a handful of the returnees, we're still going to be very young," Williamson said, noting the Flames will feature only six or seven juniors and one or two seniors.
He said the incoming recruits will have their work cut out for them to make names for themselves, while glorifying God in the process.
"I never like to give predictions of how good they are going to be," Williamson said. "On one hand, that can put limits on them, or on the other, it can put too much pressure on them. Their careers are going to be defined by them. I have seen wrestlers come in with hardly any accolades and have tremendous careers."
"Success will be largely in their hands," he added. "Our goal will be to give them the right tools, to make sure we're providing all of the resources and time on the mat, in the practice room, the weight room, and training room, that they need to compete."
The defending state champions are Chase Knuckles, a projected 174-pound contender from New Hampshire and the brother of rising junior Christian Knuckles, and two wrestlers from Virginia — Derek Shultz, a 174-pound 5A champion and former Kellam High School teammate of rising sophomore Brodie Altman and Cannen Harlow, a 197-pounder from Goochland High School who completed his first IRONMAN triathlon over the summer.
Angelo Battista, a 125 recruit from New York
In the lower weight classes, the Flames are bringing in two recruits at every class but 133 pounds, where they have none. At 125, James Dean, an in-state recruit of Assistant Coach Josh McIlhenny, will compete with Angelo Battista from New York for the starting spot.
At 141, Joe Lotruglio, a graduate transfer from NCAA Division III Norwich (Vt.) University (where former Head Coach Jesse Castro previously coached) brings a wealth of experience to the competition with incoming freshman Lucas Raymond (a grandson of Assistant Coach Paul Anthony) from Texas.
Two Virginia state qualifiers — JT Moye, a Group 6A state place-winner, and Troy Babcock — will be in the battle at 149 pounds.
Justin McGarrigle, a middleweight from Pennsylvania, underwent reconstructive knee surgery after qualifying and competing well in his state tournament and may redshirt his freshman season. Incoming freshman Karl Dean (a third-place Virginia Group 4A state place-winner) will challenge for mat time at 157 pounds.
Junior Matox Allen, Liberty's lone NCWA Grand National Champion as a freshman at 157 pounds before bumping up to 165 last season, will be pushed by incoming recruit Nathan Cali from New York.
Freshmen Charlie Creighton from Pennsylvania and Clark Carey, a Liberty Christian Academy graduate who was a state runner-up, will compete with Chase Knuckles and Shultz at 174 pounds.
Colton Jones will compete at 184 pounds.
At 184 pounds, Williamson recruited two Virginia place-winners — Riley Vinyard, a state runner-up from Culpeper County High School, and Colton Jones, who placed third for Grassfield High School last spring under Head Coach Patrick Shuler, the son of former Liberty Head Coach Don Shuler.
"Both have a lot of promise and were really tough at the high school ranks but have not captured their potential," Williamson said. "When they see that level of training and competition in college, they will just skyrocket."
Crew Farrell will battle for mat time at 197 pounds.
Harlow and Crew Farrell, a transfer from Taylor (Ind.) University, where he played football, could challenge sophomore Braden Ewing, who formerly played football and wrestled at Brown (R.I.) University, at 197 pounds.
At 235, Jackson Bowden, a multiple state place-winner from Rhode Island, will fill a void under heavyweight Anthony Brown, an NCAA Division I transfer from Presbyterian University (S.C.), and incoming recruit Brandon Romero, a Group 6A place-winner from Phoebus (Va.) High School.
Williamson said the potential for all the incoming freshmen is limitless.
"We expect a lot out of all of them, and we'll see which ones rise to the occasion," Williamson said. "I'm not concerned about their work ethic. Guys like Colton Jones and Karl Dean, who is a man on a mission, I know they'll do all right. It's just getting them into our system and hopefully elevating their own level of self-expectations. I'm trying to get them to think bigger, like national champions instead of state champions."
He looks to Allen, Altman, Ewing, and other returning wrestlers such as 133-pound seniors Chase Arnestad, who red-shirted last season, and Drake Bowers (at 174 pouds); juniors Wayshaun Hicks (at 133 or 149 pounds), Jahleel Armstrong (at 149 or 157 pounds), Ron Black (at 184), and Paul Moore (at 197) to be among those the incoming class will look up to for leadership.
"I'm really counting on our older guys to lead the charge as far as setting expectations in the room," Williamson said. "We want those guys to challenge each other, and we want the young guys to get on the old guys and start challenging them right away, to try to really start pushing them."
"I have high hopes, but they're hopes right now," he added. "We'll see what happens when the rubber meets the road. It's a long year. I want to make sure that our base is strong so that we can make it through the entire season."
Leading up to hosting the NCWA National Duals on Feb. 12-13, Liberty will face NCAA Division I, II, and III as well as NAIA programs in its dual meet schedule this season. The Flames will compete at Greensboro College (Nov. 11) and UNC-Pembroke (Nov. 20) and host Division I Morgan State (Md.) University (Dec. 6) and Greensboro (N.C.) College (Jan. 20) after traveling to the Jan. 8-9 Virginia Duals at the Hampton Coliseum and Marymount (Va.) University for a dual meet on Jan. 15.
"We're going to have one of the tougher schedules in the (Mid-Atlantic Conference)," Williamson said, noting the Flames will open their season at the Messiah Invitational on Nov. 11 before traveling to the King (Tenn.) Open on Nov. 14 and the Lucha Open hosted by Life (Ga.) University on Nov. 21 and the Cumberland (Tenn.) Open on Jan. 31. "I hope it's not too tough of a schedule, but I think it will be good. (The returning wrestlers) know what we're about, but the recruits will be tested by fire immediately."
After hosting Lincoln (Tenn.) Memorial University in a dual meet on Feb. 20 and seeking to defend its MAC Tournament title on March 6 in the Liberty Indoor Track Complex, qualifying wrestlers will visit Bossier City, La., for the March 18-20 NCWA Grand National Championships with its top competitors going on to compete in the USA Open Championships in Las Vegas in April.
By Ted Allen/Staff Writer Nathan Cali, a freshman recruit from New York (left and right), will give junior Matox Allen a challenge for the starting role at 165 pounds.
