PJ Duke receives funny reality check after earning Senior World Team spot

PJ Duke earned the Senior World Team spot for the United States as a high schooler and the future Penn State wrestler got a reality check Monday. As he returned to school following Saturday’s Final X, it was right back to preparing for graduation.

It’s pretty funny when you think about it, considering Duke could very well be a living legend in the halls of Minisink Valley High School (N.Y.). But he’s just another student when it comes to graduation.

Duke reflected on his final days of high school before moving to Penn State. But the future wrestling star is going to be moving fast by the end of the month.

“Yeah, so today’s my last day, and just finishing up like two more periods,” Duke said on FloWrestling Radio Live. “I’m excited to move on, but I’m also a little upset to leave these people behind, not really behind, but just moving to a bigger part of my life. And I’m really excited about that for sure …

“I move in June 28, it’s pretty crazy, because I don’t know why, but New York graduates so late. I don’t have my official graduation until June 27, so I move out the day after my graduation … I know kids that are graduating, like, a month ago and I’m still sitting in school. It’s terrible.”

Duke was so dominant in high school, as in four New York state titles, that sometimes he actually felt bad for kids. He admitted as much, for some kids, when asked by Flo.

“Yeah, I’m not gonna lie. Sometimes when I’m wrestling kids, I like, I don’t know why, but like, some of them just have that look where I feel bad,” Duke said. “But like others I just don’t really care. I remember one match, the kid didn’t even know referee’s position. I was just like, man, I actually feel really bad for this kid, so I just pinned him right away. 

“But then there’s other kids that, like, try to, like, smack me to be in the match. And I’m just like, yeah, I don’t feel bad for this kid at all … It depends on the kid, for sure.”

Duke will obviously compete for a world title next but there are questions as to where he fits in Penn State’s lineup next year. Two-time All-American Tyler Kasak occupies 157 pounds and 2025 NCAA champion Mitchell Mesenbrink is at 165 pounds. 

Logically speaking, Kasak could redshirt while Duke wrestles as a true freshman and then the latter redshirts in 2026-27 while Mesenbrink finishes his college career, allowing Duke to move up a weight class the year after that.

That’s if Duke is ready to go right away for Penn State. Based on Saturday at Final X, he might very well be.