Top 2026 Wrestling Recruit Jax Forrest Includes Oklahoma State in Top 10

It’s still really early, but David Taylor is on his way to assembling a monstrous 2026 recruiting class.

Jax Forrest, the top recruit in the 2026 class according to FloWrestling, on Tuesday announced his top 10 schools and included Oklahoma State in the group. The list also featured Iowa, Iowa State, Lehigh, Michigan, Nebraska, North Carolina, NC State, Ohio State and Penn State.

 

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Forrest is at the top of what could be a historically good class in wrestling. Originally from North Carolina, Forrest transferred to powerhouse Bishop McCort High School in Pennsylvania before last season. He immediately won a state title in Pennsylvania at 127 pounds as a sophomore in 2024. He also won a silver medal at the 2022 U17 World Championships before he was even in high school.

Forrest has proven he’s not just dominant against high school opponents. This past summer, he competed at the United State Olympic Team Trials, where he finished fourth at 57 kilograms as a 17-year-old wrestling grown men. His first loss was only a 5-4 deficit in the quarterfinals to second-seeded and future OSU assistant Thomas Gilman, who won a bronze medal at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021. Forrest lost to class of 2025 prospect Marcus Blaze, from Ohio, in the bronze medal match, 8-1.

To even qualify for the Olympic Trials, Forrest went 4-0 and won the title at the 2024 Last Chance Olympic Team Trials Qualifier. He outscored opponents 45-6 with three technical falls in four matches. In the finals, he handled former NCAA champion Nathan Tomasello with a 10-0 technical fall. Forrest’s performance earned him USA Wrestling Athlete of the Week honors.

Taylor and Gilman had a home visit with Forrest in August. Forrest most recently visited Michigan this past weekend alongside high school teammate Bo Bassett.

Bassett is the No. 2 recruit in the same class. He has narrowed his school choices down to 18 so far and included OSU among the group. Bassett met with Taylor and associate head coach Jimmy Kennedy last month while he was in Oklahoma to run a camp. He is expected to visit OSU in mid-November for the Cowboys’ home opener.