COLUMBIA, Mo. – Mizzou Wrestling senior 197-pounder J'den Cox (Columbia, Mo.) was named to the Dan Hodge Trophy Preseason Candidate List, announced by WIN Magazine on Friday. Cox was one of eight wrestlers named to the list for the Hodge, which is equivalent to the Heisman Trophy in college football, and is the most prestigious award in college wrestling.
One Tiger wrestler, Ben Askren, has previously won the award, bringing home the trophy in 2006 and 2007 following back-to-back perfect seasons and NCAA National Championships.
The 2017 WIN Magazine/Culture House Dan Hodge Trophy winner will be named following the 2017 NCAA Wrestling Championships, which will be held March 16-18 in St. Louis, Mo., at the Scottrade Center. The trophy recipient will be based on a criteria of wrestler's record, number of pins, dominance, past credentials, quality of competition, sportsmanship/citizenship and heart. A committee of past Hodge Trophy winners, national media members and a retired college coach from each region will help select this year's winner. A fan vote will also be counted as two ballots towards the overall end vote.
After winning his second NCAA title at 197 pounds last season, Cox went on to win a bronze medal in the 86 kg men's freestyle weight class at the 2016 Rio Summer Olympics this past summer. Cox has opened the 2016-17 collegiate season with a 7-0 record, including a 4-0 mark in dual competitions. In three of his dual wins, Cox has beaten top-10 opponents, knocking off No. 9 Kevin Beazley (Old Dominion) on Nov. 13, No. 3 Jared Haught (Virginia Tech) on Nov. 20 and No. 6 Kollin Moore (Ohio State) on Dec. 8.
The Tiger senior captured the UNI Open championship at 197 pounds on Dec. 3, scoring three falls in three matches en route to the title. In his most recent bout, Cox defeated Devin King (Ohio) by way of a 20-4 technical fall, the 15th technical fall of his career, tying him with Askren for the third-most technical falls in program history.
Cox also ranks 11th in program history in career wins with 114, first in winning percentage among wrestlers with over 100 wins at .958 (114-5) and seventh in career major decisions with 24. Cox is one of two Tiger wrestlers (Askren) to win two NCAA Titles and one of four (Ben Askren, Max Askren, Drake Houdashelt) to earn All-America honors three times.
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Preseason Hodge Trophy Candidates
| NAME | SCHOOL | Weight | YEAR | NCAA Title(s) |
| J'den Cox | Mizzou | 197 lbs. | Sr. | 197 - 2014, 2016 |
| Gabe Dean | Cornell | 184 lbs. | Sr. | 184 - 2015, 2016 |
| Dean Heil | Oklahoma State | 141 lbs. | Jr. | 141 - 2016 |
| Myles Martin | Ohio State | 184 lbs. | So. | 174 - 2016 |
| Isaiah Martinez | Illinois | 165 lbs. | Jr. | 157 - 2015, 2016 |
| Zain Retherford | Penn State | 149 lbs. | Jr. | 149 - 2016 |
| Kyle Snyder | Ohio State | HWT | Jr. | HWT - 2016 |
| Nathan Tomasello | Ohio State | 133 lbs. | Jr. | 125 - 2016 |
The Hunt For The Dan Hodge Trophy pic.twitter.com/5sfQBHxfui
— WIN Magazine (@WINWrestlingMag) December 10, 2016