Patrick Kennedy has big shoes to fill this season. The sophomore 165-pounder will replace four-time Big Ten Champion Alex Marinelli in the Iowa men’s wrestling team’s starting lineup.

The Minnesotan is currently ranked 15th in the nation at 165 pounds by InterMat Wrestling.

Kennedy’s collegiate record is unofficially 19-3.

“He adds to our lineup very well,” Iowa head coach Tom Brands said of Kennedy on Oct. 27. “You saw all of our All-Americans. Many, many of them, graduated. [Kennedy] gets his turn now. That’s the awesome thing about college athletics. It’s quick. You get five years to wrestle four, and then it’s the next group in. That’s why it’s so refreshingly fun and why the fans are so engaged.”

Kennedy redshirted in 2021-22, competing unattached from the Hawkeyes. Not counting the 17-2 record he posted last season, Kennedy is 2-1 as a Hawkeye.

His lone dual meet appearance came on Jan. 15, 2021. In Iowa’s 31-6 win over then-No. 6 Nebraska, Kennedy made his collegiate debut against the nation’s fourth-best 174-pounder — Mikey Labriola. Kennedy ultimately lost the match, 7-4.

Kennedy had another noteworthy close call against a top-10 opponent on Nov. 13, 2021. In the Luther Open’s championship match, Kennedy lost to Marinelli, 3-2.

Marinelli was a staple in Iowa’s lineup at 165 pounds for five years. During that stretch, he went 99-13 and earned All-America honors four times.

While Kennedy doesn’t have as many accolades to his name as Marinelli, Brands said Kennedy’s style of wrestling can make him a fan favorite like “The Bull” was before him.

“He is a fan favorite now,” Brands said. “But to make bold predictions, which I’m not in the habit of doing, I think that the fans will gravitate toward him and his style. He’s well-spoken. He’s direct. But he’s also a hard, hard worker, very physical wrestler, and he lives the right lifestyle. Total package.”

Kennedy’s high school resume, however, rivals Marinelli’s. Kennedy won 108 consecutive matches in High School in Kasson, Minnesota. He also beat 73 straight opponents without surrendering a point.

Kennedy won four state titles with the Komets. Kasson-Mantorville also won two team titles during Kennedy’s tenure there.

Outside of organized team action, Kennedy won the 2019 U.S. Marine Corps Nationals at 170 pounds inside the Fargodome in Fargo, North Dakota. At the same weight, Kennedy won the Super 32 Challenge — an annual high school invitational held in North Carolina that features 32 wrestlers in each weight class — in 2018.

“I just want to go out there and impose my will and try to score as many points as I can and get my hand raised,” Kennedy said of his wrestling style.

Kennedy is one of nine wrestlers in Iowa’s starting lineup that rank inside the top 20 in their respective weight classes.

Counting Kennedy, Iowa will have five new faces in its starting lineup in 2022-23. The Hawkeyes lost Marinelli, 133-pound Austin DeSanto, 144-pound Jaydin Eierman, 157-pound Kaleb Young, and 174-pound Michael Kemerer after the 2021-22 season.

Combined, the five departing starters wrestled at Iowa for 24 years, amassing 20 All-America honors. Kennedy, 133-pound sophomore Cullan Schriever, 141-pound senior and Stanford transfer Real Woods, 157-pound sophomore Bretli Reyna, and 174-pound senior Nelson Brands will be tasked with filling the holes in the Hawkeyes’ lineup this season.

133-pound junior and UNI transfer Brody Teske could also work his way into Iowa’s lineup this season.

No. 2 Iowa will open its season against unranked Cal Baptist at 1 p.m. on Nov. 13 at Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

Patrick Kennedy has big shoes to fill this season. The sophomore 165-pounder will replace four-time Big Ten Champion Alex Marinelli in the Iowa men’s wrestling team’s starting lineup.

The Minnesotan is currently ranked 15th in the nation at 165 pounds by InterMat Wrestling.

Kennedy’s collegiate record is unofficially 19-3.

“He adds to our lineup very well,” Iowa head coach Tom Brands said of Kennedy on Oct. 27. “You saw all of our All-Americans. Many, many of them, graduated. [Kennedy] gets his turn now. That’s the awesome thing about college athletics. It’s quick. You get five years to wrestle four, and then it’s the next group in. That’s why it’s so refreshingly fun and why the fans are so engaged.”

Kennedy redshirted in 2021-22, competing unattached from the Hawkeyes. Not counting the 17-2 record he posted last season, Kennedy is 2-1 as a Hawkeye.

His lone dual meet appearance came on Jan. 15, 2021. In Iowa’s 31-6 win over then-No. 6 Nebraska, Kennedy made his collegiate debut against the nation’s fourth-best 174-pounder — Mikey Labriola. Kennedy ultimately lost the match, 7-4.

Kennedy had another noteworthy close call against a top-10 opponent on Nov. 13, 2021. In the Luther Open’s championship match, Kennedy lost to Marinelli, 3-2.

Marinelli was a staple in Iowa’s lineup at 165 pounds for five years. During that stretch, he went 99-13 and earned All-America honors four times.

While Kennedy doesn’t have as many accolades to his name as Marinelli, Brands said Kennedy’s style of wrestling can make him a fan favorite like “The Bull” was before him.

“He is a fan favorite now,” Brands said. “But to make bold predictions, which I’m not in the habit of doing, I think that the fans will gravitate toward him and his style. He’s well-spoken. He’s direct. But he’s also a hard, hard worker, very physical wrestler, and he lives the right lifestyle. Total package.”

Kennedy’s high school resume, however, rivals Marinelli’s. Kennedy won 108 consecutive matches in High School in Kasson, Minnesota. He also beat 73 straight opponents without surrendering a point.

Kennedy won four state titles with the Komets. Kasson-Mantorville also won two team titles during Kennedy’s tenure there.

Outside of organized team action, Kennedy won the 2019 U.S. Marine Corps Nationals at 170 pounds inside the Fargodome in Fargo, North Dakota. At the same weight, Kennedy won the Super 32 Challenge — an annual high school invitational held in North Carolina that features 32 wrestlers in each weight class — in 2018.

“I just want to go out there and impose my will and try to score as many points as I can and get my hand raised,” Kennedy said of his wrestling style.

Kennedy is one of nine wrestlers in Iowa’s starting lineup that rank inside the top 20 in their respective weight classes.

Counting Kennedy, Iowa will have five new faces in its starting lineup in 2022-23. The Hawkeyes lost Marinelli, 133-pound Austin DeSanto, 144-pound Jaydin Eierman, 157-pound Kaleb Young, and 174-pound Michael Kemerer after the 2021-22 season.

Combined, the five departing starters wrestled at Iowa for 24 years, amassing 20 All-America honors. Kennedy, 133-pound sophomore Cullan Schriever, 141-pound senior and Stanford transfer Real Woods, 157-pound sophomore Bretli Reyna, and 174-pound senior Nelson Brands will be tasked with filling the holes in the Hawkeyes’ lineup this season.

133-pound junior and UNI transfer Brody Teske could also work his way into Iowa’s lineup this season.

No. 2 Iowa will open its season against unranked Cal Baptist at 1 p.m. on Nov. 13 at Carver-Hawkeye Arena.