Little Rock Wrestling Opens 2026 at Southern Scuffle

(All images via lrtrojans.com)

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. — Little Rock Wrestling will ring in the new year this weekend with several Trojans competing at the 2026 Southern Scuffle, hosted by Chattanooga on Jan. 3–4 and streamed on FloWrestling.com.

The No. 15 Trojans will compete in a bracket-style tournament against a highly competitive field that includes eight teams ranked in the FloWrestling Top 25: No. 1 Penn State, No. 5 NC State, No. 6 Oklahoma State, No. 8 Cornell, No. 16 Virginia Tech, No. 19 Penn, No. 25 Maryland, and Little Rock.

Little Rock last competed two weeks ago at the Journeyman Collegiate National Duals, facing Ohio State and Cornell.

“The Scuffle is a great way to start the new year, and we have a lot of guys competing,” head coach Neil Erisman said. “This is a big test, but also a great opportunity to make some jumps. Starting off the hardest month in wrestling with good momentum is what we’re looking for, and I’m excited for the weekend.”

Two of the nation’s top wrestlers at 197 pounds could collide, as No. 3 Stephen Little will compete for Little Rock alongside top-ranked Josh Barr of Penn State. Matty Bianchi, ranked No. 6 at 165 pounds, will compete in a bracket featuring four other ranked wrestlers. Both Little and Bianchi are undefeated this season.

Jaivon Jones, ranked No. 19 at 157 pounds, will wrestle in a bracket that includes five other ranked competitors, while Brock Herman (No. 30 at 149 pounds) will face another challenging field with four ranked opponents.

Day one of the event begins Saturday at 9 a.m., concluding with the quarterfinals at 6 p.m. Sunday’s action starts at 9 a.m. with the semifinal rounds.

2026 Southern Scuffle — Little Rock Participants

125: Tyler Harper, Tyson Roach

133: Dillon Cooper

141: Brennan Van Hoecke

149: No. 30 Brock Herman, Carter McCallister, Kyle Lew

157: No. 19 Jaivon Jones

165: No. 6 Matty Bianchi, Jadyn Johnson

174: Gunner Holland, Bronson Baxter, Taye Wilson

184: Kodiak Cannedy

197: No. 3 Stephen Little, Landon Jobber-Spence

285: Michael Gasper, Kaden Darwin