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No. 2 Iowa has maintained their spot in the dual rankings so far this year with victories over Cal Baptist, No. 16 Oregon State, No. 5 Iowa State, No. 20 Penn, and Columbia. This Friday, they will take on their toughest test of the season to date in their Big Ten opener against Nebraska. The Cornhuskers are also undefeated in duals after sneaking out an 18-17 victory over Northern Iowa last weekend. The match between the Hawkeyes and the Cornhuskers could feature as many as 16 ranked wrestlers. The following is a match-by-match preview of the event. 125: No. 7 Caleb Smith (Nebraska) vs. No. 5 Drake Ayala (Iowa) If the dual starts at 125 pounds, it could begin with one of the key swing matches. Smith and Ayala wrestled previously at the 2022 Southern Scuffle. In that bout, Ayala scored the only two takedowns of the contest and walked away with a 5-2 score. So far this season, Smith has gone 14-2 with both of his losses coming against No. 6 Jore Volk (Wyoming). However, he has secured himself a spot in the top 10 of the wild 125-pound rankings due to a victory over No. 2 Matt Ramos (Purdue). Ayala has gone 13-1 so far this season with his only defeat coming against No. 15 Brandon Kaylor (Oregon State). At the recent Soldier Salute tournament, the Iowa wrestler won first place and picked up victories over Volk and his rival No. 18 Patrick McKee (Minnesota). Ayala and McKee have already wrestled five times in college. While the final score of their match from the 2022 Scuffle was somewhat close, the match was mostly one-sided. Smith was able to get his escapes, but he never really came close to finishing a takedown. Ayala should still have the advantage on the feet, and the three-point takedown will just make the job that much more difficult for Smith. Prediction: Ayala major decision over Smith (4-0 Iowa) 133: No. 30 Jacob Van Dee (Nebraska) vs. No. 7 Brody Teske (Iowa) The 133-pound match is also expected to be a rematch. Van Dee and Teske wrestled in the finals of the recent Soldier Salute. Van Dee started the scoring with a takedown less than 40 seconds into the bout. After fighting through multiple scrambles, Teske scored his own takedown to finish the first period up 4-3. Neither wrestler was able to ride or get to their offense in the final two periods, and Teske took the 5-4 victory. Outside of that loss to Teske, Van Dee is actually 3-0 against Iowa wrestlers as he bested Jace Rhodes, Jesse Ybarra, and Cullan Scheiver to make the finals of the Soldier Salute. Overall on the season, he holds an 11-5 record. Van Dee enters this dual after dropping a decision last weekend against No. 22 Julian Farber (Northern Iowa) last weekend. Last year, Teske moved up to 133 pounds and qualified for his third NCAA tournament. He has gone 8-1 to start this season with his only loss coming against No. 6 Evan Frost (Iowa State). After giving up the early takedown, he appeared to be in the driver’s seat against Van Dee. Teske struggled to finish clean, but he was able to finish with persistence. This might be a close match, but the Iowa wrestler should be able to pull it out once again. Prediction: Teske decision over Van Dee (7-0 Iowa) 141: No. 7 Brock Hardy (Nebraska) vs. No. 1 Real Woods (Iowa) Despite never meeting prior to last season, Hardy and Woods have developed quite the history. They met three times during the 2022-2023 season, and Woods won all three contests. However, that does not tell the entire story. Their first meeting came in a dual meet match in late January. Woods won the tight contest by a 6-4 score. The two rematched in the finals of the Big Ten tournament. Once again, Woods was able to hold on for a 2-1 victory. He needed every ounce of his outstanding defense as Hardy nearly finished a scramble in the final seconds of the bout. Their third bout came in the semifinals of the NCAA tournament. This time Woods was shot out of a cannon. He got to his offense in all positions and finished with an 11-1 major decision. Hardy appeared to suffer a rib injury during the contest and eventually forfeited the fifth-place match. After finishing sixth at the last NCAA tournament, many expected Hardy to take another step and contend for the 141-pound title this season. The path has been somewhat rocky so far this year. Hardy holds a 10-4 record with most of the blemishes coming from an extremely tough run at the Cliff Keen Invitational. At the event, he dropped matches to No. 8 Tagen Jamison (Oklahoma State), No. 6 Cael Happel (Northern Iowa), and No. 3 Jesse Mendez (Ohio State). This past weekend he got a chance to reverse the result against Happel, but he once again dropped a decision, this time in sudden victory. Woods has one last chance to make it to the top of the podium after finishing just short last season. He has started his final campaign with a 9-0 record that includes signature victories over No. 10 Anthony Echemendia (Iowa State) and No. 5 Lachlan McNeil (North Carolina). Prediction: Woods decision over Hardy (10-0 Iowa) 149: No. 1 Ridge Lovett (Nebraska) vs. No. 12 Caleb Rathjen (Iowa) Lovett has not lost a college wrestling match since falling against Yianni Diakomihalis in the finals of the 2022 NCAA finals. After redshirting last year and competing in only one open tournament, he has won all 14 of his matches to start this season. Along the way, he has scored wins over the likes of No. 5 Dylan D’Emilio (Ohio State) and No. 2 Caleb Henson (Virginia Tech). Iowa started the season with Oklahoma State transfer Victor Voinovich at 149 pounds. However, the Hawkeyes sent out Rathjen against Columbia, and he scored a decision victory over Richard Fedalen. He followed up that starting performance with a tournament title at the Soldier Salute that saw him defeat Voinovich and possible future teammate Anthony Ferrari. Regardless of who Iowa sends out to face Lovett, the mission will likely be to avoid giving up bonus points. That should be a tough task. Lovett has a strong bonus rate so far this season (64%), and he has scored bonus points against some of his toughest opposition to date. Prediction: Lovett major decision over Rathjen (10-4 Iowa) 157: No. 3 Peyton Robb (Nebraska) vs. No. 2 Jared Franek (Iowa) Some coaches like to start their wrestlers off with a light touch early in the season, but this was certainly not the case for these two competitors last year. In the first match of the 2022-2023 season for both wrestlers, Robb and Franek faced off. As one would expect, it was a close contest that Robb ultimately won via a 7-4 score. The two rematched in the consolation semifinals of the NCAA tournament, and this time Franek won a 3-1 decision in sudden victory. Robb started this season on quite a run. He won his first 14 matches and picked up key victories over No. 5 Jacori Teemer (Arizona State) and No. 9 Will Lewan (Michigan). However, last weekend he dropped his first bout of the season as he was upset by No. 12 Ryder Downey (Northern Iowa) in a 6-5 match. In the offseason, Franek relocated to Iowa City, but he is still likely to find himself in another match against Robb. He has gone 14-0 for the Hawkeyes with his biggest win coming over No. 15 Cody Chittum (Iowa State) in a match that was about as close as it gets. Franek held on to the lead as Chittum nearly scored in the very last second of the contest. Franek showed at the NCAA tournament that he can slow this match down and win a close one. If Robb is able to get to his offense and turn this into a higher-scoring contest, it will favor him. However, that will likely be easier said than done. Prediction: Franek decision over Robb (13-4 Iowa) 165: No. 19 Antrell Taylor (Nebraska) vs. No. 7 Michael Caliendo (Iowa) Taylor went only 4-5 last season as a redshirt, but he has had a solid first year in the lineup for the Cornhuskers. His season record currently stands at 11-2, and he has worked his way into the rankings thanks to victories over No. 12 Garrett Thompson (Ohio), No. 18 Giano Petrucelli (Air Force) and Tanner Cook (South Dakota State). Caliendo was a somewhat surprising All-American for North Dakota State last season and then transferred to Iowa. So far this season, he has gone 13-1 with his only defeat coming against No. 4 David Carr (Iowa State). In his last action, he won the Soldier Salute tournament and scored a win over No. 30 Blaine Brenner (Minnesota). Taylor has been a good story for Nebraska so far this season, but he will be in a tough spot here against Caliendo. The Iowa wrestler seems to still be unheralded, and he has a chance to earn some respect in the upcoming Big Ten conference schedule. Prediction: Caliendo decision over Taylor (16-4 Iowa) 174: No. 30 Bubba Wilson (Nebraska) vs. Patrick Kennedy (Iowa) These two faced off when Nebraska and Iowa met in a dual last January. The bout took place down at 165 pounds, and it was not much of a contest. Kennedy was in control throughout the bout and won a 12-4 major decision. Wilson moved up to 174 pounds for this season and has 10-4 to start the season. The two-time NCAA qualifier suffered a loss against Tyler Eischens (North Carolina) at the Soldier Salute, but bounced back with back-to-back wins over Kevin Anderson (Wyoming) and No. 31 Jared Simma (Northern Iowa) last weekend. Despite starting Iowa’s last three duals at 174 pounds, Kennedy surprisingly entered the Soldier Salute at 165 pounds. He won three matches in the event but suffered his second loss of the season against teammate Caliendo. Kennedy made his season debut against Iowa State and picked up a key win over the Cyclones’ No. 22 MJ Gaitan. The weight situation for Kennedy is a bit confusing, and his gas tank has been an issue at times this season. However, considering their match last season, Wilson would appear to need to make huge strides to win the rematch. While he has looked improved at times this year, the gap might still be too wide. Prediction: Kennedy decision over Wilson (19-4 Iowa) 184: No. 4 Lenny Pinto (Nebraska) vs. Aiden Riggins (Iowa) Pinto was an NCAA qualifier as a freshman last year, and he has returned to the starting spot at 184 pounds for his second campaign. His season has started with an 11-2 run that includes a first-place finish at the Navy Classic. Pinto’s only two losses on the year came against No. 2 Dustin Plott (Oklahoma State) and No. 1 Parker Keckeisen (Northern Iowa) at the Cliff Keen Invitational. Last weekend, the Nebraska wrestler picked up an impressive 8-2 victory over No. 14 Bennett Berge (South Dakota State). Riggins has gotten the nod in three of Iowa’s five duals to start this season. Against Oregon State, the Hawkeyes went with Brennan Swafford, and currently redshirting freshman Gabe Arnold won a key match in the dual against rival Iowa State. However, Riggins returned to the spot for matches against Penn and Columbia. On the season, Riggins has gone 8-6 with three of his wins coming against non-Division I opposition. Prediction: Pinto major decision over Riggins (19-8 Iowa) 197: No. 11 Silas Allred (Nebraska) vs. No. 16 Zach Glazier (Iowa) Allred appeared to be peaking at the right time last season. He won the Big Ten tournament and defeated returning champion Max Dean. However, he surprisingly went 2-2 at the NCAA tournament and failed to reach All-American status. He has returned this season and so far gone 13-3. Last weekend, Allred picked up a pair of falls over No. 21 Joey Novak (Wyoming) and No. 19 Wyatt Voelker (Northern Iowa). Iowa fans might not have expected much from Glazier at the start of this season, but he has been a bright spot at 197 pounds. He maintained his undefeated record at the Soldier Salute after seemingly losing in sudden victory against former champion AJ Ferrari. He has also picked up victories over No. 24 Garrett Joles (Minnesota), No. 27 Julien Broderson (Iowa State), No. 28 Jack Wehmeyer (Columbia) and No. 30 Justin Rademacher (Oregon State). This should be an opportunity for Nebraska to pick up bonus points. Allred is dangerous in a scramble and can often find himself with an opponent on their back. Glazier has been a revelation for the Hawkeyes so far this year, so he will likely be able to keep it close. However, Allred might just have too much offense. Prediction: Allred major decision over Glazier (19-12 Iowa) 285: Nash Hutmacher (Nebraska) vs. Bradley Hill (Iowa) Hutmacher just finished his junior season of football for the Cornhuskers. He started 12 games on the defensive line and was named honorable mention All-Big Ten. Hutmacher made his collegiate wrestling debut last weekend and scored a first-period fall over Mason Ding (Wyoming). On the high school level, Hutmacher was a four-time South Dakota state champion and was a Fargo champion. Hill’s season got off to a bit of a rough start as he lost a match against Division III All-American Tyler Kim (Augsburg) at the Luther College Open. However, in the end, that match might say more about Kim than anything. For the year, Hill has gone 8-3 and won three of his five dual meet matches. If Hutmacher focused exclusively on wrestling since leaving high school, the odds would certainly be on him winning this match by fall. However, football has been his main focus for the past several years. With that being said, he looked about as dominant as possible last weekend. During his collegiate career, Hill has only been pinned once, and the fall was accomplished by teammate Gage Marty in an open tournament. Nebraska really would like to score bonus points in this match, and in the end, Hutmacher’s physical gifts might just be enough to get it done. Prediction: Hutmacher fall over Hill Dual Prediction: Iowa 19, Nebraska 18

Men's Freestyle 79 kg Gold Medal Match: Mohammad Nokhodilarimi (Iran) over Avtandil Kentchadze (Georgia) 6-0 Bronze Medal Match: Evan Wick (USA) over Abdollah Sheikhazami (Iran) Fall United States Results Round Robin #1: Evan Wick (USA) over Denys Pavlov (Ukraine) 10-0 Round Robin #2: Avtandil Kentchadze (Georgia) over Evan Wick (USA) 11-0 Semifinals: Mohammad Nokhodilarimi (Iran) over Evan Wick (USA) 6-6 Round Robin #1: Mohammad Nokhodilarimi (Iran) over Joey Lavallee (USA) 7-3 Round Robin #3: Abdollah Sheikhazami (Iran) over Joey Lavallee (USA) 9-6 92 kg Gold Medal Match: Nate Jackson (USA) over Andro Margishvili (Georgia) Fall Bronze Medal Match: Miriani Maisuradze (Georgia) over Eric Schultz (USA) 8-7 United States Results Round Robin #2: Nate Jackson (USA) over Balasz Juhasz (Hungary) 11-1 Round Robin #3: Nate Jackson (USA) over Andro Margishvili (Georgia) Fall Semifinals: Nate Jackson (USA) over Miriani Maisuradze (Georgia) 10-0 Gold Medal Match: Nate Jackson (USA) over Andro Margishvili (Georgia) Fall Round Robin #1: Eric Schultz (USA) over Denys Sahaliuk (Ukraine) 12-2 Round Robin #2: Eric Schultz (USA) over Miriani Maisuradze (Georgia) 7-1 Round Robin #3: Eric Schultz (USA) over Taylor Lujan (USA) 12-4 Semifinals: Andro Margishvili (Georgia) over Eric Schultz (USA) 2-2 Round Robin #1: Miriani Maisuradze (Georgia) over Taylor Lujan (USA) 10-0 Round Robin #2: Taylor Lujan (USA) over Denys Sahaliuk (Ukraine) FFT Round Robin #3: Eric Schultz (USA) over Taylor Lujan (USA) 12-4 97 kg Gold Medal Match: Amirali Azarpira (Iran) over Kyle Snyder (USA) 6-3 Bronze Medal Match: Isaac Trumble (USA) over Vicky Chahar (India) 8-5 Bronze Medal Match: Kamran Ghasempour (Iran) over Erhan Yaylaci (Turkey) 3-1 United States Results Round of 32: Kyle Snyder (USA) over Tuerxunbieke Muheite (China) 11-1 Round of 16: Kyle Snyder (USA) over Erhan Yaylaci (Turkey) 10-0 Quarterfinals: Kyle Snyder (USA) over Cristian Sarco (Venezuela) 10-0 Semifinals: Kyle Snyder (USA) over Kamran Ghasempour (Iran) 4-0 Gold Medal Match: Amirali Azarpira (Iran) over Kyle Snyder (USA) 6-3 Round of 16: Isaac Trumble (USA) over Erik Thiele (Germany) 8-4 Quarterfinals: Amirali Azarpira (Iran) over Isaac Trumble (USA) 8-7 Repechage #2: Isaac Trumble (USA) over Radoslaw Baran (Poland) 14-10 Bronze Medal Match: Isaac Trumble (USA) over Vicky Chahar (India) 8-5 Round of 16: Amirali Azarpira (Iran) over Michael Macchiavello (USA) 10-0 Repechage #1: Radoslaw Baran (Poland) over Michael Macchiavello (USA) 5-0 125 kg Gold Medal Match: Amir Zare (Iran) over Amirreza Masoumi Valadi (Iran) 5-0 Bronze Medal Match: Mason Parris (USA) over Giorgi Meshvildishvili (Azerbaijan) 5-2 Bronze Medal Match: Zhiwei Deng (China) over Geno Petriashvili (Georgia) FFT United States Results Round of 16: Mason Parris (USA) over Vakhit Galayev (Azerbaijan) 15-4 Quarterfinals: Mason Parris (USA) over Amarveer Dhesi (Canada) 11-0 Semifinals: Amirreza Masoumi Valadi (Iran) over Mason Parris (USA) 11-6 Bronze Medal Match: Mason Parris (USA) over Giorgi Meshvildishvili (Azerbaijan) 5-2 Round of 32: Nick Gwiazdowski (USA) over Gennadij Cudinovic (Germany) 10-0 Round of 16: Nick Gwiazdowski (USA) over Christian Lance (USA) 4-2 Quarterfinals: Amir Zare (Iran) over Nick Gwiazdowski (USA) 11-0 Round of 16: Nick Gwiazdowski (USA) over Christian Lance (USA) 4-2 Women’s Freestyle 50 kg Gold Medal Match: Yui Susaki (Japan) over Ziqi Feng (China) 10-0 Bronze Medal Match: Nadezhda Sokolova (Russia) over Kseniya Stankevich (Belarus) Fall Bronze Medal Match: Otgonjargal Dolgorjav (Mongolia) over Evin Demirhan (Turkey) 7-6 55 kg Gold Medal Match: Samantha Stewart (Canada) over Roksana Zasina (Poland) 3-1 Bronze Medal Match: Mariana Dragutan (Moldova) over Albina Rilla (Ukraine) Fall Bronze Medal Match: Mariia Vynnyk (Ukraine) over Roza Szenttamasi (Hungary) FFT

This evening, the University of Minnesota released a video with head coach Brandon Eggum on social media. The video included recaps of recent events, a preview of their upcoming slate, and provided an update on two-time Hodge Trophy winner and Olympic Gold Medalist, Gable Steveson. Eggum stated that “the WWE preferred that he solely focused on his professional wrestling career at this time.” With that in mind, Steveson “unfortunately will not be able to compete for us this season.” There was plenty of speculation that Steveson would return for Minnesota or perhaps another team in the preseason. Eggum spoke with our Big Ten correspondent, Ryan Holmes, at that time and was very open about the fact that he thought Steveson would wrestle for the Gophers in 2023-24. Shortly after winning his second national title in 2022, Steveson embarked on a career in the squared circle with the WWE. Last spring, Steveson returned to his roots and dominated the field at the US Open, securing a place in Final X. After defeating Mason Parris at Final X, Steveson was set to compete at the Senior World Championships for the first time. In the weeks leading up to the World Championships, Steveson announced that he would not compete, presumably because of complications related to the WWE. Steveson has qualified for the Olympic Trials so he could compete in those (in late April), should it be approved by the WWE. Nothing said by Eggum was in reference to the Trials or the Olympics; however, it’s probably not a great sign for those looking for him to try and replicate his gold medal-winning performance from the 2020(1) Olympics.