Penn State 149 lber Beau Bartlett (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com)Win and you're in! Lose and pray for an at-large selection.
In a separate piece, we'll outline all the former All Americans and top-ranked guys that are at the mercy of the selection committee (141 is particularly a mess). But here we're going to focus on what's on tap for Sunday morning.
After Day I of wrestling at Big Ten's and Big 12's, there are tons of pivotal match ups and NCAA berths on the line, many of which are important for the country's top teams.
Below are our favorite 'go-to' bouts in Lincoln and Tulsa, followed by a complete list.
Big 12 141 - 7th Place
Carter Young, Oklahoma State vs. Ty Smith, Utah Valley
OK State has been devastated with injuries. They lost reigning NCAA Champ AJ Ferrari after a car accident and returning AA's Wyatt Sheets and Travis Wittlake failed to qualify on Saturday. They need Young, a true freshman, to keep another potential point earner in the lineup for Detroit. Oh yeah….the two met in the opening round and Smith won, 6-2.
Big 12 149 - Consi Semi
Jarrett Degen, Iowa State vs. Josh Edmond, Missouri
Two traditional powers look to add a qualifier for Nationals. They are ranked #21 and #22 respectively, and Degen won the matchup 9-7 a month ago.
Big 12 184 - Consi Semi
Dakota Geer, Oklahoma St. vs. Keegan Moore, Oklahoma
Whoa, Nellie! What a situation. Two guys, in their last go-round, from the Bedlam series, who used to be teammates. Moore utterly stunned Geer two weeks ago in the dual when he won handily, but Geer has been more productive (if inconsistent) over the course of their careers.
Big Ten 149 - 7th Place
Beau Bartlett, Penn State vs. Kanen Storr, Michigan
Bartlett didn't qualify for NCAA's last year and is on the cusp again. He beat Michael Blockhus (who is in) but then lost to Austin Gomez and Mike Van Brill.
Dealing with an injury almost all season, Storr was pinned by Van Brill in his opening round bout before beating Yahya Thomas. He then lost to Blockhus. It's an enormous match between the two teams currently leading the B1G team race.
The Complete List of All Other "Win and You're In" Matches
Big Ten 125: Drew Hildebrandt, PSU vs. Jacob Moran, Indiana
Big Ten 125: Tristan Lujan, Michigan State vs. Justin Cardani, Illinois
Big Ten 133: Brock Hudkins, Indiana vs. Kyle Burwick, Wisconsin
Big Ten 133: Dom Serrano, Nebraska vs. Joey Olivieri, Rutgers
Big Ten 141: Frankie Tal-Shahar, Northwestern vs. Parker Filius, Purdue
Big Ten 149: Colin Realbuto, Northern Iowa vs. Dylan Martinez, Air Force
Big Ten 157: Chase Saldate, Michigan State. vs. Garrett Model, Wisconsin
Big Ten 165: Cael Carlson, Minnesota vs. Caleb Fish, Michigan State
Big 12 165: Isaac Judge, Iowa State vs. Luke Weber, North Dakota State
Big 12 165: Austin Yant, Northern Iowa vs. Joe Grello, Oklahoma
Big 12 184: DJ Parker, North Dakota State vs. Marcus Coleman, Iowa State
Big Ten 197: Braxton Amos, Wisconsin vs. Michial Foy, Minnesota
Big Ten 197: Jaron Smith, Maryland vs. Andrew Davison, Northwestern
Big 12 197: Evan Bockman, Utah Valley vs. Alan Clothier, Northern Colorado
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