Breakdown By the Numbers
5A, with only 8 qualifiers per weight has the least amount of returning State Qualifiers from last year at 77. It also means we have the least amount of graduates with 35. With only 31% graduating, not only is the number smaller, but the percentage is by far the smallest as well, making this the most difficult group to earn a new spot at State.
Of those 77 returning State Qualifiers, over 10% of them are Champions, at 8. In addition, there are 10 returning State Runner-ups, 7 Third place finishers and 10 Fourth. There are no Fifth and Sixth place finishers in the 5A group. Overall, there are 35 of a possible 56 State placers returning in 5A this year. That gives us 63% of placers returning, making this the most difficult group so far to crack the podium for the first time, and the second hardest to get to the top of the podium without knocking off a returning champ, after 6A.
The expected trend continues with lower weights accounting for 51 percent of State qualifiers and placers returning, with 31 of 77 Qualifiers coming from the 106-132 weights, similar number of middleweights at 28 from 138-175 and really low on big boys, with only 16 from 175-285.
Similar to 7A, 106 returns all 8 qualifiers this year. 113 is not far behind returning 7, but loses its Champion. 120 only returns half of the group, losing its Champion and Third place finisher. 126 jumps back up to 7 returners losing the Fourth place finisher. 132 returns 6 total qualifiers, only losing its Second place finisher from the podium.
144 returns 6, including all placers. 150 also returns 6, but loses the Third and Fourth placers. 157 is down to 5, but like 144 and 106, retained all podium finishers.
165 is back to 6, but graduates the Third place finisher. 175 returns 5, losing the First and Second Runner-ups. 190 returns 4, but only Second place from the podium. 215 returns 5, but no Champion or Runner-up. 285 has the smallest group of returners, at only 2, and like 7A, all place winners from last year have graduated.
Our final numbers breakdown will be by class. Same general trend continues in 5A, with age being a great indicator of performance, but we do have one anomaly with Sophomores outpacing Juniors for total returners. 6A continues to be our only group without a returning 8th grader, as 5A also has 3, Elliott Harris, Jaxon Lewis and Rocky Rogers, all Qualifiers in the 106 lb weight class. Four returners are entering their 9th grade year in 5A, matching 7A and one more than 6A. Notable from that group is 113 pounder Gage Staton who finished Second.
The Sophomore class has 18 returners, with 6 of them placing, but no Champions or Runner-ups. The highest finishers from the class were Casey Crumpton (106), Ethan Estrada (113) and Carter Everett (144) who all finished Third. A big number of returners percentage wise, but a lower number of overall impact wrestlers than we have seen with other divisions.
The Junior class has only 16 qualifiers coming back this year, which is a low total percentage relative to the other groups we have analyzed so far, 22% vs 36% for 6A and 33% for 7A. Small, but mighty, would be a good word for this class though, with 9 placers, including 3 Champions, Hudson Best (138), Tyler Payton (157) and Drew Adams (165), and 3 Runner-ups Brice Patrick (120), Karson Poe (126) and Brody Patrick (165).
The Senior class accounts for 36 of our 77 returners, similar to our other groups at 47%. The bigger number is that 50% of them placed, 18 of 36. We also have our largest group of returning Senior Champions amongst all divisions, with 5, Parker Van noy (106), Stone Staton (126), John Stewart (138), Reese Thorn (145) and Troy Thomas (152). The strength of this class doesn’t stop there, with 5 Runner-ups as well, Elliott Harris (106), Maddox Mcclendon (120), Bryce Wanagat (132), Jacob Smith (160) and Jaxon Smith (285). With so many Champions and Runner-ups returning in this Senior class, and 6 open spots at the top of the podium in 5A, this group looks like it is poised to dominate the top spot this year.
Top Returning Stars
This group is headlined by a pair of Scottsboro wrestlers, John Stewart and Stone Staton.
John Stewart has won three consecutive state wrestling titles, and was named the Class 5A Most Outstanding Wrestler in 2025. He is a four-time NHSCA All-American, with his most recent achievement being a third-place finish at the 2025 NHSCA High School Wrestling Nationals. His championships include the 126-pound state title in 2023, the 138-pound state title in 2024, and the 144-pound title in 2025. He won his three state-tournament matches last year by pin in a combined total of 1:39. He is committed to wrestle collegiately at the University of Tennessee-Chattanooga (UTC).
We don’t have as much detail on Stone Staton of Scottsboro, but he shouldn’t be discounted by any means. Stone took Third in 8th grade and followed that up with Back to Back to Back Championships. The last two of his Championships have come at 126. This year he will look to close out an amazing career with his fourth.
Both of these exceptional wrestlers are likely to join a storied list of 4 time Champions from Scottsboro.
Conclusion
This group has the fewest number of graduates, which means it should be the most competitive overall returning division. It is highlighted by a high performing group of Seniors, that should dominate the podium. Expect the majority of your Champions to come from that class, with a few underclassmen sprinkled in. It will be more difficult to breakthrough for the young guys this year, but will open up significantly in 2027. Underclassmen will be looking to gain valuable experience this year, and should get a lot of tough matches to get them ready for a wide open division next year.
Message and tell us what we got wrong please so we can update as needed. Be on the lookout for our follow up posts on the remaining divisions and we will take a deeper team by team look by the numbers as well!
FULL LIST BELOW
106
| Count | Wrestler Name | School | 24-25 Record | 25-26 Grade | 24-25 Placement |
| 1 | Parker Van noy | Beauregard HS | 54-4 | 12 | Champion |
| 2 | Elliott Harris | Leeds | 40-4 | 8 | Second |
| 3 | Casey Crumpton | Elmore County School | 41-14 | 10 | Third |
| 4 | Eli Mcalpine | Hayden | 37-17 | 10 | Fourth |
| 5 | Jaxon Lewis | Montevallo | 20-12 | 8 | Qualifier |
| 6 | Fisher Lundberg | Springville | 31-10 | 10 | Qualifier |
| 7 | Rocky Rogers | Holtville | 39-20 | 8 | Qualifier |
| 8 | Blayne Hale | Corner | 29-17 | 10 | Qualifier |
113
| Count | Wrestler Name | School | 24-25 Record | 25-26 Grade | 24-25 Placement |
| 1 | Gage Staton | Scottsboro | 25-3 | 9 | Second |
| 2 | Ethan Estrada | Corner | 54-12 | 10 | Third |
| 3 | Stran Webb | Elmore County School | 27-8 | 11 | Fourth |
| 4 | Jace Gulledge | Shelby County | 14-24 | 10 | Qualifier |
| 5 | Hudson Mann | Holtville | 31-24 | 10 | Qualifier |
| 6 | Aiden Turley | Beauregard HS | 30-20 | 10 | Qualifier |
| 7 | Skylar Owens | Hayden | 16-7 | 9 | Qualifier |
120
| Count | Wrestler Name | School | 24-25 Record | 25-26 Grade | 24-25 Placement |
| 1 | Brice Patrick | Arab | 28-5 | 11 | Second |
| 2 | Roman Coker | Corner | 31-16 | 12 | Fourth |
| 3 | Brandon Harman | Beauregard HS | 46-19 | 12 | Qualifier |
| 4 | Aiden Ballance | Saint Clair County | 24-18 | 10 | Qualifier |
126
| Count | Wrestler Name | School | 24-25 Record | 25-26 Grade | 24-25 Placement |
| 1 | Stone Staton | Scottsboro | 25-1 | 12 | Champion |
| 2 | Karson Poe | Moody Hs | 28-7 | 11 | Second |
| 3 | Harley Briscoe | Hayden | 40-5 | 11 | Third |
| 4 | Duran Clark | East Limestone | 39-19 | 10 | Qualifier |
| 5 | Dylan Andres | Elmore County School | 30-24 | 11 | Qualifier |
| 6 | Austin Cummings | Montevallo | 18-13 | 12 | Qualifier |
| 7 | Indigo Daniels | Brewbaker Tech | 18-16 | 10 | Qualifier |
132
| Count | Wrestler Name | School | 24-25 Record | 25-26 Grade | 24-25 Placement |
| 1 | Colby Silva | Arab | 32-3 | 12 | Second |
| 2 | Daniel Weber | Corner | 19-18 | 12 | Fourth |
| 3 | Kaden Bell | Beauregard HS | 23-17 | 9 | Qualifier |
| 4 | Jackson Dupree | Scottsboro | 18-6 | 9 | Qualifier |
| 5 | Will Russell | Brewbaker Tech | 18-10 | 11 | Qualifier |
| 6 | Hudson Fulmer | Elmore County School | 14-13 | 12 | Qualifier |
138
| Count | Wrestler Name | School | 24-25 Record | 25-26 Grade | 24-25 Placement |
| 1 | Hudson Best | Hayden | 40-5 | 11 | Champion |
| 2 | Brody Edwards | Beauregard HS | 48-7 | 12 | Third |
| 3 | Isaac Ferguson | Scottsboro | 19-9 | 10 | Fourth |
| 4 | Jakob Fowler | Montevallo | 15-14 | 12 | Qualifier |
| 5 | Gavin Crumpton | Elberta HS | 20-10 | 11 | Qualifier |
| 6 | Joseph Purser | Corner | 30-11 | 12 | Qualifier |
144
| Count | Wrestler Name | School | 24-25 Record | 25-26 Grade | 24-25 Placement |
| 1 | John Stewart | Scottsboro | 32-0 | 12 | Champion |
| 2 | Dylan Farris | Holtville | 35-20 | 12 | Second |
| 3 | Carter Everett | Moody Hs | 28-11 | 10 | Third |
| 4 | Brycen Robbins | Corner | 36-11 | 12 | Fourth |
| 5 | Aiden Pierce | Shelby County | 20-25 | 10 | Qualifier |
| 6 | Bennett Tyler | Elberta HS | 15-5 | 12 | Qualifier |
150
| Count | Wrestler Name | School | 24-25 Record | 25-26 Grade | 24-25 Placement |
| 1 | Reese Thorn | Beauregard HS | 60-5 | 12 | Champion |
| 2 | John Kelley | Hayden | 27-8 | 12 | Second |
| 3 | Hayden Fochtmann | Elmore County School | 22-17 | 12 | Qualifier |
| 4 | Gavin Gorton | Elberta HS | 21-7 | 12 | Qualifier |
| 5 | Brodie Hale | Corner | 30-17 | 12 | Qualifier |
| 6 | Nolen Dunn | Arab | 32-12 | 10 | Qualifier |
157
| Count | Wrestler Name | School | 24-25 Record | 25-26 Grade | 24-25 Placement |
| 1 | Tyler Payton | Elmore County School | 28-1 | 11 | Champion |
| 2 | Bryson Millwood | Corner | 49-9 | 12 | Second |
| 3 | Kadin Walter | Arab | 29-10 | 12 | Third |
| 4 | Callen Hettich | Springville | 34-12 | 10 | Fourth |
| 5 | Brock Godwin | Holtville | 20-21 | 12 | Qualifier |
165
| Count | Wrestler Name | School | 24-25 Record | 25-26 Grade | 24-25 Placement |
| 1 | Drew Adams | Montevallo | 27-3 | 11 | Champion |
| 2 | Brody Patrick | Arab | 27-2 | 11 | Second |
| 3 | Hunter Smiley | Lincoln | 49-8 | 12 | Fourth |
| 4 | Noah Jackson | Elberta HS | 11-16 | 11 | Qualifier |
| 5 | Gavin Eason | Elmore County School | 25-13 | 11 | Qualifier |
| 6 | Teagan Dunnigan | Holtville | 29-15 | 12 | Qualifier |
175
| Count | Wrestler Name | School | 24-25 Record | 25-26 Grade | 24-25 Placement |
| 1 | Troy Thomas | Corner | 41-8 | 12 | Champion |
| 2 | James Mcdonald | Moody Hs | 21-12 | 12 | Fourth |
| 3 | Connor Pike | Elmore County School | 26-17 | 12 | Qualifier |
| 4 | Joel Gaston | Lincoln | 38-7 | 11 | Qualifier |
| 5 | Colton Norris | Montevallo | 16-8 | 10 | Qualifier |
190
| Count | Wrestler Name | School | 24-25 Record | 25-26 Grade | 24-25 Placement |
| 1 | Alex Plaia | John Carroll Catholic HS | 21-4 | 12 | Second |
| 2 | Santiago Alvarenga | Montevallo | 10-12 | 11 | Qualifier |
| 3 | Owen Ridgeway | Arab | 22-13 | 12 | Qualifier |
| 4 | Keelan Jackson | Moody Hs | 15-9 | 12 | Qualifier |
215
| Count | Wrestler Name | School | 24-25 Record | 25-26 Grade | 24-25 Placement |
| 1 | Kolten Motte | Hayden | 32-11 | 12 | Third |
| 2 | Jakourian Gibson | Leflore Magnet High School | 16-15 | 11 | Fourth |
| 3 | Logan Duke | A P Brewer High School | 33-18 | 12 | Qualifier |
| 4 | Gustavo Garcia | Montevallo | 9-8 | 10 | Qualifier |
| 5 | Charlie Boone | John Carroll Catholic HS | 17-13 | 12 | Qualifier |
285
| Count | Wrestler Name | School | 24-25 Record | 25-26 Grade | 24-25 Placement |
| 1 | Kyler Mitchell | Montevallo | 8-10 | 12 | Qualifier |
| 2 | Michael Gomer | Saint Clair County | 37-12 | 12 | Qualifier |