Upcoming Event: Wrestling at Bison Open on November 9, 2025
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South Dakota State University Athletics
2023-24 Wrestling Roster
Clay Carlson
- Height:
- 5-7
- Weight:
- 141
- Position:
- 141 Weight Class
- Class:
- Senior
- Hometown:
- Willmar, Minn.
- High School:
- Willmar H.S.
- Major:
- Animal Science/Pre-Veterinary Medicine
HONORS AND AWARDS
2022-23: Earned All-America honors for the second time in his career, placing fifth at 141 pounds at the 2023 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships ... shared team lead with 27 victories ... opened season with runner-up finish at Daktronics Open (11/20) ... placed sixth at Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational, withdrawing from tournament after compiling a 3-1 record as part of a strong team showing (12/2-3) ... went 4-0 in competition at the Virginia Duals (1/13-14) ... notched a third-place finish at the Big 12 Championship with a 4-1 record over the two-day tournament (3/4-5) ... posted a 6-2 record at the NCAA Championships, with both of his losses coming to Beau Bartlett of Penn State ... secured All-America honors by defeating Missouri's Allan Hart with a 7-6 comeback victory that also was his 100th career victory (3/17) ... became the 15th wrestler in program history to reach the 100-win mark
2021-22: Turned in another strong season by returning to the NCAA Championships ... led team in both overall victories (33) and dual wins (15) ... won his first 16 matches of the season, claiming 141-pound titles at the Bison Open (11/13) and Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational (12/3-4) ... became the first Jackrabbit wrestler to win an individual title at the Las Vegas event, defeating Northern Colorado's Andrew Alirez by fall late in the championship bout ... was later honored as Big 12 Conference Wrestler of the Week ... won all three matches by fall in dual quadrangular hosted by Northern Illinois (12/18) ... suffered first loss of the season in semifinals of Southern Scuffle en route to fourth-place finish (1/1-2) ... came back to defeat Alirez for a second time in dual competition (2/11), but came up short in their third meeting of the season at the Big 12 Wrestling Championship ... recovered to place third at 141 pounds at the Big 12 meet to secure his second consecutive NCAA berth ... went 3-2 at NCAA Championships, including avenging a pair of losses earlier in the season to Missouri's Allan Hart (3/17-18)
2020-21: Took the next step by leading the team with 20 victories and earning All-America honors with an eighth-place finish at the 2021 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships ... after opening the season with dual losses against Missouri and Oregon State, won his next five matches, including three in a row by major decision at Air Force Multi (1/17) ... put together a seven-match winning streak, highlighted by pair of falls at Last Chance Challenge (2/20), that included first two rounds of the Big 12 Championship ... earned berth to nationals with a fourth-place finish at Big 12 Championship, ending the two-day meet with a 3-2 record (3/6-7) ... scored a 7-6 decision over Parker Filius of Purdue in opening round of NCAA Championships (3/18) ... secured All-America honors with an 11-4 decision over Stanford's Real Woods (3/19) ... honored for work in the classroom by becoming the first Jackrabbit to be named Big 12 Conference Wrestling Scholar-Athlete of the Year ... also named a Scholar All-American by the National Wrestling Coaches Association
2019-20: Held the starting spot at 141 pounds throughout the season ... tied for third among starters with 21 victories on the season, including a 10-8 mark in duals ... opened the season with a 4-1 record and third-place finish at the Bison Open (11/9) ... downed Binghamton's Anthony Sparacio, 7-5 in overtime, in first collegiate dual match ... reached the championship match of the Warren Williamson/Daktronics Open (11/17) ... posted a 3-1 record at the South Beach Duals (12/29-30) ... won final three dual matches to secure winning record ... placed sixth with a 2-3 mark at the Big 12 Wrestling Championship
2018-19: Redshirted, but enjoyed a solid first season as a Jackrabbit … compiled a 29-5 record in open tournaments … opened collegiate career with a fourth-place finish at the Warren Williamson/ Daktronics Open, posting a 4-2 record with two wins by fall … won back-to-back 141-pound titles at the Bison Open and Finn Grinaker Open … shared title at Buena Vista, Cusatis and Ridgewater opens ... wrapped up competition by winning at Sioux City Edmonds Open … finished season with eight pins
BEFORE SDSU: Was a two-time state finalist during a standout career at Willmar High School ... capped a perfect 48-0 season as a senior by winning the 132-pound title at the Minnesota Class AAA state championships in 2018 ... finished as state runner-up as a junior with a 42-4 record ... recorded a sixth-place finish in the 113-pound weight class as a freshman ... during the club season, Carlson claimed the 132-pound title at the 2017 Rumble on the Red tournament ... joined his older brother, Colten, on the Jackrabbit roster
CAREER STATISTICS
- NCAA All-American (2020-21, 2022-23)
- NCAA Qualifier (2020-21, 2021-22, 2022-23, 2023-24)
- Big 12 Conference Wrestler of the Week (Dec. 7, 2021)
- College Sports Communications Academic All-America At-Large Second Team (2022-23)
- NWCA Scholar All-American (2020-21, 2021-22, 2022-23, 2023-24)
- CoSIDA/CSC Academic All-District At-Large Team (2021-22, 2022-23)
- Big 12 Conference Wrestling Scholar-Athlete of the Year (2020-21, 2021-22)
- Academic All-Big 12 Wrestling First Team (2019-20, 2020-21, 2021-22, 2022-23, 2023-24)
2022-23: Earned All-America honors for the second time in his career, placing fifth at 141 pounds at the 2023 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships ... shared team lead with 27 victories ... opened season with runner-up finish at Daktronics Open (11/20) ... placed sixth at Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational, withdrawing from tournament after compiling a 3-1 record as part of a strong team showing (12/2-3) ... went 4-0 in competition at the Virginia Duals (1/13-14) ... notched a third-place finish at the Big 12 Championship with a 4-1 record over the two-day tournament (3/4-5) ... posted a 6-2 record at the NCAA Championships, with both of his losses coming to Beau Bartlett of Penn State ... secured All-America honors by defeating Missouri's Allan Hart with a 7-6 comeback victory that also was his 100th career victory (3/17) ... became the 15th wrestler in program history to reach the 100-win mark
2021-22: Turned in another strong season by returning to the NCAA Championships ... led team in both overall victories (33) and dual wins (15) ... won his first 16 matches of the season, claiming 141-pound titles at the Bison Open (11/13) and Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational (12/3-4) ... became the first Jackrabbit wrestler to win an individual title at the Las Vegas event, defeating Northern Colorado's Andrew Alirez by fall late in the championship bout ... was later honored as Big 12 Conference Wrestler of the Week ... won all three matches by fall in dual quadrangular hosted by Northern Illinois (12/18) ... suffered first loss of the season in semifinals of Southern Scuffle en route to fourth-place finish (1/1-2) ... came back to defeat Alirez for a second time in dual competition (2/11), but came up short in their third meeting of the season at the Big 12 Wrestling Championship ... recovered to place third at 141 pounds at the Big 12 meet to secure his second consecutive NCAA berth ... went 3-2 at NCAA Championships, including avenging a pair of losses earlier in the season to Missouri's Allan Hart (3/17-18)
2020-21: Took the next step by leading the team with 20 victories and earning All-America honors with an eighth-place finish at the 2021 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships ... after opening the season with dual losses against Missouri and Oregon State, won his next five matches, including three in a row by major decision at Air Force Multi (1/17) ... put together a seven-match winning streak, highlighted by pair of falls at Last Chance Challenge (2/20), that included first two rounds of the Big 12 Championship ... earned berth to nationals with a fourth-place finish at Big 12 Championship, ending the two-day meet with a 3-2 record (3/6-7) ... scored a 7-6 decision over Parker Filius of Purdue in opening round of NCAA Championships (3/18) ... secured All-America honors with an 11-4 decision over Stanford's Real Woods (3/19) ... honored for work in the classroom by becoming the first Jackrabbit to be named Big 12 Conference Wrestling Scholar-Athlete of the Year ... also named a Scholar All-American by the National Wrestling Coaches Association
2019-20: Held the starting spot at 141 pounds throughout the season ... tied for third among starters with 21 victories on the season, including a 10-8 mark in duals ... opened the season with a 4-1 record and third-place finish at the Bison Open (11/9) ... downed Binghamton's Anthony Sparacio, 7-5 in overtime, in first collegiate dual match ... reached the championship match of the Warren Williamson/Daktronics Open (11/17) ... posted a 3-1 record at the South Beach Duals (12/29-30) ... won final three dual matches to secure winning record ... placed sixth with a 2-3 mark at the Big 12 Wrestling Championship
2018-19: Redshirted, but enjoyed a solid first season as a Jackrabbit … compiled a 29-5 record in open tournaments … opened collegiate career with a fourth-place finish at the Warren Williamson/ Daktronics Open, posting a 4-2 record with two wins by fall … won back-to-back 141-pound titles at the Bison Open and Finn Grinaker Open … shared title at Buena Vista, Cusatis and Ridgewater opens ... wrapped up competition by winning at Sioux City Edmonds Open … finished season with eight pins
BEFORE SDSU: Was a two-time state finalist during a standout career at Willmar High School ... capped a perfect 48-0 season as a senior by winning the 132-pound title at the Minnesota Class AAA state championships in 2018 ... finished as state runner-up as a junior with a 42-4 record ... recorded a sixth-place finish in the 113-pound weight class as a freshman ... during the club season, Carlson claimed the 132-pound title at the 2017 Rumble on the Red tournament ... joined his older brother, Colten, on the Jackrabbit roster
CAREER STATISTICS
| Season | Overall Record | Dual Record |
| 2019-20 | 21-16 | 10-8 |
| 2020-21 | 20-9 | 7-4 |
| 2021-22 | 33-6 | 15-2 |
| 2022-23 | 27-10 | 11-5 |
| 2023-24 | 15-9 | 6-3 |
| Totals | 116-50 | 49-22 |
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