Olympic gold medal, stint with the WWE and the NFL, 2 NCAA titles, and 4 Big 10 Championships. Sounds amazing, right? Well, Gable Steveson has all of it. Unfortunately, despite all of his hard work, recognition seems to be eluding him at this time. Firstly, he has been called out by the fans for being too dominant. Steveson has been criticized as being a bully for coming back to collegiate wrestling after turning pro.
And if this was not enough, then Steveson has recently been snubbed for his fellow NCAA mate. And all of this happened after the wrestler orchestrated an impressive win. Gable Steveson remained at the top of the heavyweight rankings at the end of the regular season. Coming into the Big 10 Championships, Steveson continued his good work. Facing off against Greg Kerkvliet, the Olympian had a tough task on his hands.
Kerkvliet was touted as the Kryptonite to Steveson’s Superman. However, in the end, the hype fizzled out quite rapidly. Showing exceptional dominance, Steveson absolutely manhandled Kerkvliet to extend his winning streak to a stunning 66 games! Sadly for Steveson, all of this was not enough to get the acknowledgement from popular NCAA commentator, Shane Sparks.
As Penn State picked up yet another Big 10 Championship victory, Sparks looked quite excited. Sitting down to analyze the play, Sparks went on to choose the top 3 according to his point of view. While most expected that Gable Steveson would surely make his way to Sparks’s top 3, the reality was quite different. Sparks instead chose Jacob Cardenas as his silver medalist in the 197-pound category.
A lot of #B1GWrestling stars took the podium this past weekend, but only 3⃣ make @ShaneSparksBTN‘s MEDAL STAND. pic.twitter.com/e3SFAUT9SD
— Big Ten Wrestling (@B1GWrestling) March 11, 2025
Sparks stated that Cardenas beat Josh Barr in the semifinals to avenge his only loss. Other than that, he has been flawless. “Then in the final, Cardenas knocked off number one ranked and undefeated Stephen Buchanan of lowa, 4-2. Cardenas takes a 20-1 record to the national tournament. The Wolverine’s Big Ten champion, Jacob Cardenas. You are my silver medalist,” said Sparks. Well, that’s not all. In all of the categories, Sparks neglected Gable Steveson despite his daunting records. And this was not new. Sparks’s bias with Penn State is so deep that he even termed Carter Starocci as a better wrestler than Gable Steveson. As expected, the commentator received significant backlash for the same.
Big Ten Commentator under fire for alleged bias toward Penn State’s star wrestler
Shane Sparks’ latest comments about Penn State’s Carter Starocci have ignited backlash from wrestling fans, who accuse the Big Ten Network commentator of blatant favoritism. Sparks’ praise for Starocci after his Big Ten title win on March 9 has struck a nerve, with many claiming his analysis crosses the line into outright Penn State propaganda.
Sparks didn’t hold back in his admiration, calling Starocci “the toughest guy I’ve ever seen in college wrestling” during a Big Ten Wrestling segment. This bold statement, especially considering Olympic gold medalist Gable Steveson competes at the same level, left fans questioning Sparks’ objectivity. Sparks further added, “He’s got a five-gallon bucket of grit, and that’s what separates him, is his mind.” He doubled down on his stance, saying, “Carter Starocci is a savage, Dave. And watching his body language, he just never doubts himself.”
The reaction from the wrestling community has been swift and intense. Fans have pointed out that Sparks’ praise seems overly generous, particularly since he had previously omitted Starocci from his list of most anticipated matchups earlier this year. Sparks’ deep admiration for Starocci’s mental toughness and composure has led many to accuse him of allowing his personal preferences to cloud his professional analysis.
Accusations of bias toward Penn State are nothing new for Sparks, but this latest round of praise for Starocci has fueled the perception that he’s more of a Penn State fan than an impartial analyst. For a commentator tasked with delivering objective insights, the criticism raises serious questions about his credibility on the mat
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