Oklahoma State's Jax Forrest Wins NCAA Wrestling Title as Freshman

Head coach David Taylor says Forrest still has 'a lot of areas to improve'

Mar. 22, 2026 at 2:35pm

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Jax Forrest, a true freshman at Oklahoma State University, won the NCAA Wrestling Championship in his first year of college competition. Forrest's head coach, David Taylor, praised the young wrestler's growth and maturity, but noted that he still has room for improvement despite his unprecedented success.

Why it matters

Forrest's national title as a true freshman is an impressive accomplishment, as it is rare for a first-year college wrestler to achieve such a high level of success. His early enrollment and rapid rise to the top of the sport has generated excitement and high expectations for his future at Oklahoma State.

The details

Forrest decided to skip the latter half of his senior year of high school and enroll early at Oklahoma State in January. Despite the unusual path, he was able to quickly adjust to the high level of competition and win the national title, defeating opponent Ben Davino in the finals. Coach David Taylor praised Forrest's growth in being able to control matches and score points, but believes he still has areas to improve as he sets his sights on winning multiple national titles.

  • Forrest enrolled at Oklahoma State in January 2026, skipping the latter half of his senior year of high school.
  • Forrest won the 2026 NCAA Wrestling Championship in March 2026 as a true freshman.

The players

Jax Forrest

A true freshman wrestler at Oklahoma State University who won the 2026 NCAA Wrestling Championship in his first year of college competition.

David Taylor

The head wrestling coach at Oklahoma State University, who has helped guide Forrest to his national title victory.

Bo Bassett

Forrest's former high school teammate, who is a future wrestler at Virginia Tech.

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What they’re saying

“I just think that's where he's probably matured the most, you know. I just think that's probably, you know, in the past, it's like, hey, it goes slow. He was just creating stuff to create something. And that's probably been some of what you've seen the whole tournament. You saw him score a lot of points. You saw a much more controlled version, you know?”

— David Taylor, Head Coach, Oklahoma State University

“Yeah, it was definitely weird leaving earlier than what I thought I was going to be. But I had it planned out for a while that I was going to be going down there. Then it was just figuring out, am I wrestling? Am I redshirting, grayshirting, all the details there? But once I got on campus, I was already with my boys that I was already friends with. And then it was right into, I got there and next week we wrestled OU. Didn't have time to process it. Kind of went straight head on. And that's what I like. I like going right into the problem and finding a way to get on top.”

— Jax Forrest

What’s next

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The takeaway

Jax Forrest's national title as a true freshman at Oklahoma State is an impressive accomplishment, but his coach David Taylor believes he still has room for improvement as he sets his sights on winning multiple championships. Forrest's early enrollment and rapid rise to the top of the sport has generated excitement and high expectations for his future.