Scouting the Field
The Big 12 is well represented in the national rankings. Every Big 12 weight has at least two wrestlers ranked nationally, and the 165-pound weight class has all five wrestlers ranked in the top 20. The Big 12 has the top two wrestlers at 141, and three wrestlers are ranked No. 1 at their weight class (Nate Gallick, Johny Hendricks and Ben Askren). The Big 12 gets 38 national qualifiers this year, and the conference currently boasts 34 ranked wrestlers. The Cowboys are the favorite having won the last three championships. OSU will have the top seed in four different weight classes. Oklahoma is the only other school to claim a conference championship and will be OSU's toughest challenger. The Sooners will have the top seed at 125 plus Teyon Ware is a defending national champion at 141. Iowa State has three potential No. 1 seeds in the conference tournament, but it will be balanced out as they will also be the fourth or fifth seed in five different weight classes. Nebraska is the highest ranked team among the remaining four being ranked fifth nationally.
Seniors Say Goodbye
Five Oklahoma State seniors wrestled their final match inside Gallagher-Iba Arena. It has been one of the most productive senior classes over the last 50 years combining to win three NCAA team titles, four individual titles, six All-American finishes and five Big 12 championships. The Cowboys have gone 33-1 inside Gallagher-Iba Arena over the last four years and 70-4 overall in duals. The seniors made senior day memorable all recording wins in their final match inside Gallagher-Iba Arena. Steve Mocco recorded a fall and Rusty Blackmon rallied from a 7-0 deficit to win in sudden victory.
Gopher Bitten
Oklahoma State has dominated collegiate wrestling since the NCAA started conducting a championship in 1928. The Cowboys have been even more dominating of late winning the last three NCAA titles and compiling a 108-8 record over the last six seasons. There has been one team that has continually stuck out and that is Minnesota. The Gophers have handed OSU five of those eight losses and have won seven of the last 10 meetings in the series, including twice this year. Oklahoma State still leads the all-time series at 16-9, but Minnesota is closing the gap.
Freshmen Become Sophomores
Head coach John Smith made a decision last winter to pull two freshmen out of redshirt because the Cowboys were struggling at both 125 and 133. Coleman Scott and Nathan Morgan both became Big 12 champions later on that year, while Scott went on to finish eighth at the NCAA Championships at 125. The freshmen have become sophomores and have turned into two of the better wrestlers at their weight class in the country. Scott is 24-3 and is ranked as high as fifth in the country. Morgan has the best record on the team at 26-1 and is ranked second by the NWCA/Intermat Individual Rankings at 133 after defeating fourth-ranked Mack Reiter of Minnesota twice and third-ranked Darrell Vasquez of Cal Poly.
Jake Rosholt Seeks 100th Win
Senior Jake Rosholt has not put up the gaudy numbers that some of his previous Oklahoma State brethren have. He has just simply won when it mattered most. As a redshirt freshman in 2003, Rosholt entered the NCAA Championships as the No. 10 seed with a 17-9 record. He was crowned champion at the end of the tournament. Again injuries kept him out of part of the 2004 season, but he still wrestled at the end and took third-place. Rosholt wrestled the 2005 NCAA Championships on an injured knee that required surgery following the tournament. It did not stop him from winning his second title. The 2005 season, his fist year to bump up to 197, was his best as a Cowboy. He went 32-3 before won the championship. Rosholt is nearing the end of his Cowboy career and with a win in the first round of the Big 12 Championships he will top the 100 win plateau. At the NCAA Championships he will look to become just the 10th four-time All-American and the 15th three-time national champion in school history.
Johny Hendricks Opens Up on Offense
If heavyweight Steve Mocco is nicknamed the bear then Johny Hendricks is the bull. Hendricks has bullied his opponents on the mat and enters postseason competition with a 22-1 record. His bullying style and aggressive mentality has made him one of the most feared and hated wrestlers in the country. Opposing fans have grown to hate Hendricks for his excitement and joy for winning that has caused him to celebrate after victories. Hendricks has opened up his offense this season. He recorded 47 takedowns in his first two years combined compared to 48 takedowns this season. At times he has even dared his opponents to approach him. Hendricks will be looking to defend his Big 12 and NCAA titles come March.
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