MANHEIM, Pa.- The Jim Koch Division II Men's Wrestling Hall of Fame will induct a class of seven outstanding wrestlers as part of its class of 2026, announced by the Division II Coaches Association Wednesday.

Franz Affentranger, Eric Bates, Ziad Haddad, Terry Hall, Kris Nelson, Brandon Newill, and Florencio Rocha will all become the newest members of the Hall of Fame August 1, 2026, as a part of the 2026 National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA) Convention at the Renaissance Baltimore Harborplace Hotel in  Baltimore, Maryland.

Franz Affentranger made the most of his two years with the Cal State Bakersfield wrestling program. Following two seasons at Bakersfield College, Affentrager became a Roadrunner and graduated as an NCAA Champion and a four-time All-American honoree. Affentranger won the NCAA Division II title in 1977 at 134 pounds, also earning honors as Most Outstanding Wrestler, before placing third at the Division I Championships. He finished runner-up at the 1978 DII Championships and rounded out his career with another third-place finish at the DI Championships that same year. Affentranger, a local from Shafter, Calif., still ranks in CSUB's Top 25 with 89 career wins and he is No. 8 in program history with a career win percentage of 91.8%. He was inducted into the California Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2024.

Eric Bates was a four-year letterwinner for Illinois State University in wrestling. He was one of the most successful wrestlers in Illinois State history with a 94-14 record, including posting a 29-0 record as a sophomore en route to winning the NCAA College Division 167-pound National Championship in 1970. He was a four-time All-American, finishing sixth at 160 in 1969 at the College Division championships, in addition to finishing 5th at 167 pounds at the NCAA Division I Championships in 1971 and 6th at 177 at the DI Championships in 1972. Bates also won conference titles in his junior, sophomore, and freshman seasons and was voted ISU's team captain and MVP in 1970, 1971 and 1972. He was inducted into Illinois State Athletics Percy Family Hall of Fame in 1977.

Ziad Haddad put together back-to-back heavyweight national championships and undefeated seasons in 2013-14 and 2014-15 for Kutztown University. After two years at Division I North Carolina, Haddad transferred to the Golden Bears and finished fourth at the NCAA DII Championships in 2013. He followed it up with a 25-0 season in 2014, culminating with his first NCAA DII title at 285. He was also named DII Wrestler of the Year in 2014. He went on to a 30-0 season in 2015, and again took the heavyweight title at the NCAA DII Championships. Haddad concluded his Golden Bear career with an 82-5 record (40-1 in duals) with 50 of those wins coming with bonus points.Haddad is tied for fifth in career pins and ranks sixth in career wins at Kutztown. He was inducted into the Kutztown Athletics Hall of Fame in 2021.

Terry Hall wrestled at Cal Poly from 1968-70 and was a part of three NCAA Division II National Championship teams for the Roadrunners. He is a two-time NCAA Division II national champion, capturing the first title at 115 pounds in 1969 and his second title at 118 pounds in 1970. The two-time NCAA Division II All-American placed third at 115 pounds at the 1969 NCAA Division I National Championships to earn Division I All-American honors as well. He also qualified for the NCAA Division I National Championships in 1970 at 118 pounds, and was named the DII Championships' Most Outstanding Wrestler as well. Hall is the school record holder in career winning percentage, winning 93.9% of his matches at Cal Poly. 

Kris Nelson was a three-time NCAA Division II All-American for then-DII North Dakota State University. Nelson won an individual national championship at 133 pounds in 2000 and was named Most Outstanding Wrestler, and was also a member of 1998 and 2000 NCAA Division II national championship teams. In addition to his national title, Nelson also placed fourth at 126 in 1998 and was seventh at 133 in 1999. He was a two time North Central Conference champion, and won 83 career matches at NDSU. Following his time on the mat, Nelson spent nine years on the Bison wrestling staff. He then was named the head coach at Minnesota-Moorhead in 2009, where he has been ever since. Nelson has coached one NCAA finalist, six All-Americans, 20 NCAA qualifiers and numerous NSIC and NWCA All-Academic selections at MSUM. He was inducted into North Dakota High School Wrestling Hall of Fame and the NDSU Athletic Hall of Fame in 2018.  

Brandon Newill made his mark on the Pitt-Johnstown wrestling program by winning a pair of NCAA East Region Tournament titles and earning three All-America honors, including winning the 2002 NCAA Division II National Championship at 125 lbs. In 1999, Newill was third at the NCAA DII Championships after a 29-6 season. He followed with a 35-5 season in 2001, taking fourth at the NCAA DII Championships. He won his NCAA DII championship in 2002, closing out a 39-6 season with a climb to the top of the podium. Newill finished his career ranked fourth of the Pitt-Johnstown All-Time Wins List with 130 victories, and currently stands in fifth-place. He was inducted into the Pitt-Johnstown Hall of Fame in 2022.

Florencio Rocha wrestled two years at Cal State Bakersfield, earning two NCAA DII All-American honors and one NCAA DI All-American honors as a Roadrunner. In 1976, Rocha was named CSUB's Most Improved Wrestler as he wrapped up the year as a NCAA Division II All-American with a third place finish at 167 pounds. He then went on to win the DII National title at 167 pounds in 1977, adding a fourth-place finish at the NCAA Division I Championships as well that year. Rocha amassed 78 career wins in just two seasons and a .876 winning percentage as a Roadrunner. Prior to his time at CSUB, he wrestled for Bakersfield College, in the California Community College Athletic Association, where he was a two-time finalist and champion and Most Outstanding Wrestler in 1974. He was inducted into the California Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2024.