Iowa well-stocked for run at 3rd straight title at NCAA wrestling championships

Iowa loaded for run at another NCAA mat title

OMAHA, Neb. — Iowa’s strength is in its numbers as it enters the NCAA wrestling championships.

The two-time defending champion Hawkeyes don’t have a No. 1 seed at any weight entering the three-day tournament that starts Thursday at the Qwest Center in Omaha. But they are represented in all 10 weight classes, and they’re favored to win the program’s 23rd title.

“It’s the time of year where you want to be at your best,” coach Tom Brands said Wednesday. “We’ve done what we set out to do from the beginning of the year, and we have to continue to do that. It’s zero hour. It’s time to go.”

The Hawkeyes didn’t require any individual titles last year to win the team race by 4.5 points over Ohio State, which has been runner-up two straight years.

“It’s been a long 363 days since last year’s event,” Buckeyes coach Tom Ryan said. “We’re here to win a championship. We’re here to see young men fulfill lifetime goals.”

Iowa State, Central Michigan and Oklahoma join Iowa as teams with full lineups here.

Oklahoma State and Minnesota each have nine qualifiers and Boise State, Cornell, Ohio State and Virginia have eight apiece.

Ten wrestlers bring in perfect records, including eight who have won 25 matches or more.

The Hawkeyes have returning All-Americans in Daniel Dennis at 133 pounds, Brent Metcalf at 149, Ryan Morningstar at 165, Jay Borschel at 174, Phil Keddy at 184 and Dan Erekson at heavyweight.

Morningstar injured a knee in the Big Ten tournament, but Brands indicated that the senior would wrestle.

“In my mind it’s a silly question,” Brands said. “These guys demand a lot of themselves. The most important place is his head. That’s where we feel good about him.”

Nine of Iowa’s 10 wrestlers are seeded. Three are No. 2 seeds — Dennis (133), Metcalf (149) and Borschel (174). Matt McDonough is No. 3 at 125.

Metcalf is plenty motivated for his third appearance at nationals. He was the Hawks’ only finalist a year ago and had his 69-match winning streak ended by North Carolina State’s Darrion Caldwell.

Metcalf won 31 straight matches this season before losing a stunning 9-3 decision to Ohio State’s Lance Palmer in the Big Ten tournament March 7.

“There is an urgency there,” Brands said. “The apple cart was upset. He’s overcome a loss in big wrestling matches before. He’s fine.”

Palmer, who had lost four previous meetings with Metcalf, earned the No. 1 NCAA seed because of the victory. He brushed off the notion that Metcalf would be favored in a rematch.

“Every other tournament I’ve been in with Metcalf, he’s predicted to win it,” Palmer said.

Iowa State has 10 wrestlers in nationals for the fourth straight year. The Cyclones finished third a year ago and have placed in the top five three straight times.

The Cyclones are coming off a disappointing second-place finish to Oklahoma State in the Big 12 tournament, an event that coach Kenny Jackson said he didn’t emphasize enough.

“You base your year on what happens at this tournament,” he said, “and that’s the bottom line.”

The 125-pound class shapes up as one of the most intriguing. Indiana’s Angel Escobedo (33-0) won the 2008 title and is the top seed ahead of Cornell’s Nickerson (13-1), who has had a nagging left-shoulder injury.

Six All-Americans return at 133, including defending champion Franklin Gomez of Michigan State.

Cornell freshman Kyle Dake (29-2) heads what figures to be a wide-open race at 141.

J.P. O’Connor (30-0) of Harvard has been the nation’s dominant 157-pounder, but the rest of the class is up for grabs. Minnesota’s Dustin Schlatter (14-2), who won the 2006 title at 149, is seeded No. 6 after winning 14 of 16 matches this season. He was rated as high as No. 2 before losing by injury default in the Big 10 tournament two weeks ago and got into nationals as a wild card.

At 165, defending champion Jarrod King (34-1) of Edinboro is seeded No. 2 to unbeaten Andrew Howe (32-0) of Wisconsin. Two unbeatens, Cornell’s Mack Lewnes (36-0) and Iowa’s Jay Borschel (32-0), are the top seeds at 174.

Boise State’s Kirk Smith puts his 25-0 record on the line at 184, and Iowa State’s Jake Varner (26-0) and Nebraska’s Craig Brester (26-2) are on track for another showdown in the 197 finals.

Bester’s only losses this season were to Varner. Varner wasn’t looking ahead to a rematch.

“If you worry about who you’re wrestling in the finals, you probably aren’t going to make the finals,” Varner said.

Iowa State’s David Zabriskie (21-2) and Oklahoma State’s Jared Rosholt (30-2) head the heavyweight division. Mark Ellis (18-10) of Missouri is the defending heavyweight champion, but he’s the No. 9 seed.