Ryan Holmes

The season has come to an end but things are heating up. The crew discuss the NCAA tournament, the steroid rumors and conversations surrounding Meyer Shapiro's post-match interview and all the craziness happening with the transfer portal. Timestamps: 0:00:00 - Intro 0:00:30 - Steroid rumors 0:21:15 - Transfer Portal 0:40:50 - NCAA Recap 1:53:39 - Team Race + PSU breaks points record again 2:06:02 - Intermat Wrestling Podcast crew on the move?

This week the crew talks about some of the things they have heard pertaining to the Tyler Brennan situation and they go weight-by-weight and make their picks for the 2025 NCAA Wrestling Championships.

We are one week away from the biggest tournament of the year, but there's still some things to get to. The crew dives into the Tyler Brennan eligibility situation, takes a look at the biggest stories from the conference tournaments and what they like and don't like about the NCAA Championship seeds and brackets. Timestamps: 0:00:00 - Intro 0:00:45 - Tyler Brennan eligibility situation 0:20:20 - Pac 12 recap 0:29:42 - Big 12 recap 0:40:10 - ACC recap 0:47:16 - EIWA/Ivy recap 0:55:55 - Big Ten recap 1:13:01 - NCAA Bracket reaction

The NCAA wrestling championship brackets have been released. Check out the matchups and seeds for this year's tournament.

We now have the pre-seeds for this weekend’s 2025 Big Ten Wrestling Championships. And as we all dig into them and pick them apart, we also want to look at some of the top matches that didn’t happen during the regular season. For the most part, I looked at who our top-seeded guys didn’t face (for whatever reason) along with some of the other top five seeds that didn’t hit as well. Let’s go weight-by-weight and look at some of the matches we didn’t see during the regular season. Check out the full B1G pre-seeds here! 125: #1 Matt Ramos, Purdue Missed Matches #2 Caleb Smith, Nebraska #3 Dean Peterson, Rutgers #4 Luke Lilledahl, PSU #5 Joey Cruz, Iowa Summary: No one will dispute that Matt Ramos is the rightful No. 1 seed in the Big Ten. But he didn’t face any of the other top five seeded guys in the weight class. That’s not to say that he hasn’t earned that spot through defeating several of the other guys across the NCAA, it’s just going to be interesting to see how things shake out. With that being said, he did face Peterson as well as Smith last season. He and Peterson split bouts with the Scarlet Knight taking their final meeting at Big Ten’s last year, 7-1. Ramos also lost to Smith 8-4 at CKLV last year as well. Needless to say, these are probably two rematches that the top seed has his eyes on. 133: #1 Drake Ayala, Iowa Missed Matches #3 Braxton Brown, MD #4 Braeden Davis, PSU #5 Dylan Shawver, Rutgers #8 Angelo Rini, IN #9 Nic Bouzakis, Ohio State Summary: Like Ramos at 125, Ayala’s run to the top seed here at 133 came with just one win over a guy seeded in the top five in the conference and that was No. 2 seed Lucas Byrd. Outside of his late takedown win over Byrd, Ayala could possibly to getting his first meetings with a few guys. Although Ayala and Davis met in last year’s dual meet which was a 4-2 win for Ayala, they haven’t met since moving up to 133 this season. Besides that looming potential rematch that we could see in the semifinals, the others would be the first time for them to hit. 141: #1 Beau Bartlett, PSU Missed Matches #4 Vance Vombaur, Minn #8 Henry Porter, IN #9 Greyson Clark, Purdue Summary: Bartlett comes in with an undefeated 18-0 record and wins over just about every top guy in the conference this season. The lone top five guy that Bartlett hasn’t faced this season is Vance Vombaur, who got the No. 4 seed. However, he and Vombaur have some history that the Gopher would probably like to correct and that’s a loss by fall at last year’s NCAAs. Another guy in the top 10 he hasn’t face is Indiana’s Henry Porter who he could see in his first match should he get by Purdue’s Greyson Clark, who Bartlett is yet to see as well. The biggest match here that we didn’t see this season is the No. 2 vs No. 3 matchup between returning NCAA champ Jesse Mendez and All-American Brock Hardy. Mendez does already lead this series 2-0 with the last win coming at last year NCAAs, but the two have yet to face off this season and are on a collision course to do so in the semis. 149: Shayne Van Ness, PSU Missed Matches #7 Sam Cartella, NU #10 Drew Roberts, Minn Summary: Yes, there are two guys listed that Shayne Van Ness hasn’t wrestled this season, however, they will both be on the bottom side of the bracket so one of them will have to win in the first round to get a shot at the top-seed in the finals. So, let’s focus on matches we haven’t seen this year that would be good if they happened and the first on the list is #3 Ridge Lovett (Neb) vs #4 Dylan D’Emilio (OSU). The two hit last year at CKLV where Lovett pitched a 11-0 shutout, but this season they never crossed paths and with them being seeded where they are, it’s possible they would only meet on the backside of the tournament or in the finals. 157: #1 Ethen Miller, Maryland Missed Matches #3 Antrell Taylor, Neb #4 Jacori Teemer, Iowa #5 Tommy Askey, MN #6 Joey Blaze, Purdue #7 Trevor Chumbley, NW #9 Brandon Cannon, OSU Summary: Miller comes in with an undefeated 20-0 record, however, he didn’t wrestle a good portion of the top guys at the weight within the Big Ten. Notably, he sat out of the match against Purdue and didn’t face Joey Blaze and he owns a win over top-ranked, second seed Tyler Kasak by injury default which surely gave him the bump to the 1-seed. On the topside of the bracket the only guy Cannon does have a win over is Chase Saldate, who might earn himself a rematch with Miller if he gets by No. 9 seed Cannon. Secondarily, hopefully we see a healthier version of Jacori Teemer. We surely can’t expect him to be 100% with everything he’s dealing with, but a match between Teemer and Taylor, who have never wrestled before, would be fun to watch, even though it will be a tough road (tougher for Taylor with Kasak in his path) to get to each other on the front side of the bracket. 165: #1 Mitchell Mesenbrink Missed Matches #3 Christopher Minto, Neb #5 Andrew Sparks, Minn Summary: With the way that Mesenbrink has been ‘mesen’ (see what I did there) people up this year, this is kind of a formality. But for the sake of the article, we have not seen the returning NCAA runner-up wrestle against Minto. During the dual meet, Bubba Wilson took the mat again Mesenbrink which is why this hasn't happened yet, and PSU and Minnesota didn’t wrestle at all this year so that explains the other missing match against Sparks. A few other matches between guys in the top five that we didn’t see this year include: #2 Michael Caliendo (Iowa) vs #4 Beau Mantanona (Michigan) and Caliendo against Indiana’s Tyler Lillard or Rutgers’ Anthony White. Lillard and White, the No. 7 and No. 10 seeds, respectively, will face off in the first round and the winner will get their first shot at Caliendo. 174: #1 Levi Haines, PSU Missed Matches #5 Clayton Whiting, Minn #8 Brody Baumann, Purdue #9 Lucas Condon, WI Summary: The most notable miss here is Haines match against Whiting who he could see in the semifinals, if Whiting gets revenge on Patrick Kennedy, should they meet there. Kennedy defeated Whiting in the final week of dual meet competition, 8-4, but if results are reversed this time around the Haines/Whiting match could happen. Other than that, the 8 vs 9 match winner between Baumann and Condon in the first round will get Haines which will also be the first meeting for them as well. 184: #1 Carter Starocci, PSU Missed Matches #2 Max McEnelly, Minn #4 Gabe Arnold, Iowa #9 DJ Washington, IN Summary: This is the most interesting, missed matchup and the three potential guys across from Starocci could all be in his path. First up is Washington, who is the last active guy in the NCAA that owns a "legit" win over Starocci, which came in his first official match as a starter. Since then, Starocci won their last 2 matches. But they did not hit this year and could meet up in the second round if Washington defeats 8-seed Ryder Rogotzke. Next up would be Gable Arnold (if seeds hold). And I don’t think there’s much to be said here. It’s the match we’ve wanted so long and have missed out on. Lastly is another young buck who has had a great year sitting at 18-0 and that’s the second seeded McEnelly. He been great all year and this would be a must watch match between two potentially undefeated guys. 197: #1 Stephen Buchanan, Iowa Missed Matches #3 Jacob Cardenas, Michigan #8 Gabe Sollars, IN Summary: Buchanan has had one of the most dominant seasons next to Mesenbrink with how many highly seeded guys in the conference he has defeated this year. The biggest match yet to happen this season in the B1G is between Buchanan and Cardenas. The path for Cardenas to get to Buchanan will involve turning the result against Josh Barr around in the semis to make the finals if everything goes according to seed. 285: #1 Gable Steveson, Minn Missed Matches #2 Greg Kerkvliet, PSU #8 Jacob Bullock, IN #9 Seth Nevills, MD Summary: Let’s cut right to it. The match we want to see is between Gable and Kerkvliet, a rematch from the 2022 NCAA Championship semis. However, that was the last time we saw the two match up since PSU and Minnesota did not wrestle in a dual meet this season. Other than this rematch that goes back to their Minnesota high school days, the other two that haven’t faced Steveson this season are Bullock and Nevills. The winner of this first round match will face Gable in the quarterfinals.

We have reached the post season! During this week's conversation, the crew discusses the different conferences that they cover and give some insight into the allocations, some dark horses, and how the team races could look. They also talk a little bit about the Anthony Knox situation. Timestamps: 0:00:00 - Intro 0:02:00 - Fair or unfair: Anthony Knox situation 0:15:40 - EIWA & Ivy breakdown 0:37:32 - ACC Breakdown 0:56:13 - Big Ten breakdown 1:13:00 - Big 12 & Pac 12 talk 1:34:34 - Wrap up: STOP FALLING FOR FAKE AI ARTICLES!!

Dual meets have come to an end with some fireworks and it's time to prep for the post season. In this week's conversation the guys discuss how the coaches' rankings need to go, the Iowa vs Oklahoma State dual meet and the Spencer Lee vs Masanosuke Ono card. Timestamps: 0:00:00 - Intro 0:01:00 - Coach’s rankings need to go 0:15:02 - Iowa vs Oklahoma State breakdown 0:48:50 - Heavyweight is must watch 0:54:50 - ACC, EIWA, Ivy Recap 1:04:00 - FloWrestling Night In America Card 1:24:02 - $$$ being invested in wrestling 1:32:46 - Wrap-up and shoutouts

The crew discusses AJ Ferrari and Ethen Miller sitting out for big matches and whether or not they were ducking. They also dig into the inconsistency of referees and give a rivalry week preview for Virginia Tech vs NC State and Iowa vs Oklahoma State along with making their picks. Timestamps 0:00:00 - Intro 0:02:23 - Did AJ Ferrari and Ethen Miller duck last week? 0:25:29 - Inconsistent referee calls strike again 0:49:14 - NC State vs Virginia Tech Preview 1:05:06 - Oklahoma State vs Iowa Preview 1:26:39 - Wrap-up and Shoutouts

The final top five domino is off the board as Jax Forrest made his college commitment to Oklahoma State. We also discuss Iowa Coach Terry Brands going into the stands and engaging with fans and lastly, we revisit the NCAA Champion picks that we made before the season and see how much we've changed our minds or solidified our picks. Timestamps: 0:00:00 - Intro 0:00:38 - Terry Brands goes into the stands 0:14:44 - Jax Forrest commits to Oklahoma State 0:25:18 - Stickin' or Kickin': NCAA Picks Edition 1:05:40 - Which teams take 2-4 at NCAAs? 1:15:22 - Wrap up: what's coming up this week?

In this week conversation the team discusses Bo Bassett's commitment to Iowa and reflect on the new school of recruiting along with who is in the lead for the Hodge this year. They also get a little nostalgic as they talk about wrestling shoes. As always they recap what's happening in the different conferences and what they are excited for this weekend. Timestamps 0:00:00 - Intro 0:00:42 - Bo Bassett commits to Iowa 0:22:42 - Iowa’s decision to go with Ferrari over Arnold + PSU vs Iowa breakdown 0:47:42 - Who is in the lead for the Hodge? 1:00:02 - Wrestling shoes: Old school vs new school 1:14:42 - Closing: recap + what’s coming + shoutouts

It's the week of the biggest dual of the year - Penn State vs Iowa. We look into the top matches, where Iowa can win and the trash talking at 184. We also dig into the new rules proposal meeting coming up and the rules we would like to see added along with how injuries have sidelined a number of All-Americans this year. Timestamps: 00:00:00 - Introduction 00:00:30 - Talk on Rules Proposals 00:28:11 - Injuries in Wrestling 00:36:08 – EIWAs, ACC, Big Ten recap 00:51:05 – Starocci vs Arnold trash talk + Iowa-Penn State breakdown 01:10:14 - Closing Thoughts

The full crew is back this week and they dig into Jett Strickenberger's controversial celebration, the return of D1 National Duals, and a review of the Anthony Roble movie Unstoppable. They also discuss the topic of is wrestling tougher now or back in the day that Bo Nickal and Carter Starocci discussed last week. Timestamps: 00:00:00 – Introduction 00:01:15 – Discussion on Women's Wrestling Vote 00:05:45 – Announcement of National Duals Return 00:20:30 – Is Wrestling Tougher Today vs Back in the Day? 00:27:00 – Review of the Unstoppable Movie (Spoiler Alert) 00:35:20 – Jett Strickenberger’s Controversial Celebration 00:44:30 – Recap of Penn State vs. Nebraska Dual 00:55:00 – Upcoming Matches to Watch Summary: 1. Introduction: Welcomes everyone back and outline the topics they will discuss. 2. Discussion on Women's Wrestling Vote: Exploration of the unanimous votes approving women's wrestling at all divisions and the expected growth and implications for the sport. 3. National Duals Return: Informative talk about the revival of National Duals, with insights into its structure and potential impact on college wrestling. 4. Is Wrestling Tougher Today vs Back in the Day?: Reflection on the changes in wrestling competition levels and athletes' approach towards matches in comparison to past eras. 5. Review of the Unstoppable Movie: Recap of the wrestling movie 'Unstoppable', discussing its storyline, characters, and importance within the wrestling community. 6. Jett Strickenberger’s Controversial Celebration: Debate surrounding the appropriateness of an athlete's celebration that simulated a violent act, highlighting differing opinions on sportsmanship. 7. Recap of Penn State vs. Nebraska Dual: Penn State faced Nebraska, discussing key matches and wrestler performances. 8. Upcoming Duals to Watch: Preview of significant upcoming duals scheduled for the coming week, emphasizing potential storylines.

On this week's show Holmes and Robbie pose the question of is this the best Penn State lineup we have ever seen? They also dig into bringing back national duals along with rearranging the season, the latest D1 women's championship news and the possibilities that come with it. In the end they discuss how tough Oklahoma State looks and what's coming up this weekend on the college slate. Timestamps: 00:00:00 - Introduction 00:02:12 - Discussion on Viewer Comments 00:04:43 - Analysis of College Wrestling Tournament Dynamics 00:07:59 - Perspectives on College Sports as Entertainment 00:10:35 - Examination of NCAA Marketing Strategies 00:13:20 - National Duals Format Discussion 00:22:04 - Overview of Upcoming Matches in NCAA Wrestling 00:25:41 - Penn State's Dominance in College Wrestling 00:30:10 - Implications of New NCAA Women's Championship 00:34:50 – This Week’s ACC Matches to Watch 00:47:15 – This Week’s Big Ten Matchups to Watch Summary: 1. Introduction: The podcast welcomes listeners and acknowledges missing hosts due to personal commitments. 2. Discussion on Viewer Comments: Highlights a comment from a viewer regarding the nature of sports competition and entertainment. 3. Analysis of College Wrestling Tournament Dynamics: The hosts reflect on the changes in college wrestling tournaments and participation over the years. 4. Perspectives on College Sports as Entertainment: The importance of entertainment value in wrestling is discussed, emphasizing the need for engaging fan experiences and promoting the sport. 5. Examination of NCAA Marketing Strategies: The presenters evaluate how different colleges market their wrestling programs and the varying levels of success. 6. National Duals Format Discussion: A conversation on the proposal for a National Duals format, weighing the benefits and challenges of reinstating it. 7. Overview of Upcoming Matches in NCAA Wrestling: Key matches and competitions in the NCAA wrestling calendar are previewed, highlighting noteworthy rivalries. 8. Penn State's Dominance in College Wrestling: The hosts analyze Penn State's current team lineup and their potential to break records based on past performances. 9. Implications of New NCAA Women's Championship: The recent approval of a women’s NCAA championship is explored, discussing its impact on women's wrestling. 10. This Week’s ACC Matches: The presenters recap recent ACC wrestling matches, highlighting unexpected outcomes and key match performances. 11. This Week’s Big Ten Matchups to Watch: Discussion of PSU vs Nebraska, Illinois vs Iowa, and Michigan vs Minnesota

This evening, Nebraska hosts Minnesota and there are a few things on the line as the two Big Ten powers face off. The first thing that comes to mind when looking at these teams is that each one of the bouts features a ranked wrestler for each team. That in and of itself is a good enough reason to tune in. But it’s not the only one. 1. Nebraska looks to bounce back It hasn’t been a great start to 2025 for the Huskers. They faced off with UNI in the first week of the new year and the Panther train rolled to a 24-9 victory with some of Nebraska’s biggest hammers playing the role of the nail. Now they turn their attention to their Big Ten dual meet schedule, and it will not be the easiest conference kick off as No. 8 Minnesota is coming to town with a high-powered lineup. This top 10 match will be shown on Big Ten Network at 4:30pm ET. 2. Manning on the verge of 300 wins Head Coach Mark Manning has amassed 299 dual meet wins while at the helm for Nebraska and with a win today he will claim number 300. A win over Minnesota would be the Huskers’ third straight dual win over the Big Ten foe dating back to the 2022-23 season when they took the 21-9 win in their home gym. 3. Gable Steveson returns to the lineup Steveson made headlines when he announced he was coming back to wrestling, but since then he’s only been in the lineup three times for the Gophers and has claimed three technical falls in the process. But based on some social media posts it looks like Steveson has made the trip to Nebraska and will be competing today. Across the mat will be #24 Harley Andrews who is coming off a loss to UNI’s Lance Runyon. 4. Four rematches Rematches at 133, 141, 149 and 165 are set to go down. According to Nebraska’s match preview, at 133 Jacob Van Dee is currently winless against Tyler Wells as Wells has handed Van Dee losses last season during the dual meet then again at the NCAA tournament. The results are flipped in the Huskers favor at 141 as Brock Hardy owns a pair of wins over Vance VomBaur. Ridge Lovett will be looking for his second win over Drew Roberts at 149 and Bubba Wilson and Andrew Sparks will look to take the series lead as they’ve split matches so far. 5. Five top 10 matchups As I mentioned in No. 4, there are a few rematches slated to happen, but the matchup at 141 is one of the five bouts where two top 10 guys will meet. Those matches include: 125: #7 Caleb Smith vs #5 Cooper Flynn; 141: 6 Brock Hardy vs #8 Vance VomBaur; 157: #5 Antrell Taylor vs 10 Tommy Askey; 165: #7 Bubba Wilson vs #9 Andrew Sparks; #6 Silas Allred vs #4 Max McEnelly. 6. Minnesota leads all-time series While Nebraska is looking to make it three straight dual meet wins over Minnesota, they are still a long way off from evening the score against the Gophers as they currently lead the all-time series 52-26-0. Nebraska Projected Lineup:
 125: #7 Caleb Smith (11-3, 2-1) or Kael Lauridsen (3-1, 1-0)
 133: #19 Jacob Van Dee (6-5, 3-2)
 141: #6 Brock Hardy (12-2, 3-1) or Blake Cushing (3-2, 2-0)
 149: #5 Ridge Lovett (9-1, 5-0)
 157: #5 Antrell Taylor (13-1, 4-1)
 165: #7 Bubba Wilson (9-4, 2-2) or Christopher Minto (12-1, 0-1)
 174: #16 Lenny Pinto (12-3, 4-0)
 184: #6 Silas Allred (11-1, 3-1) or Ethan DeLeon (10-2, 0-1)
 197: #22 Camden McDanel (12-5, 3-1)
 HWT: #24 Harley Andrews (8-6, 3-2) Minnesota Projected Lineup:
 125: #5 Cooper Flynn (9-1, 4-0) or Brandon Morvari (4-4, 0-0)
 133: #11 Tyler Wells (8-1, 4-0)
 141: #8 Vance VomBaur (14-1, 4-0)
 149: #21 Drew Roberts 8-0, 4-0) or Theo Cha (5-7, 0-0)
 157: #10 Tommy Askey (14-1, 3-0) or Charlie Millard (7-1, 1-0)
 165: #9 Andrew Sparks (14-2, 4-0)
 174: #24 Clayton Whiting (9-5, 2-2) or Ethan Riddle (11-4, 0-0)
 184: #4 Max McEnelly (10-0, 4-0)
 197: #9 Isaiah Salazar (10-2, 4-0)
 HWT: #1 Gable Steveson (3-0, 3-0) or Bennett Tabor (9-4, 1-0)

We’ve the halfway point of the season where we cross into the new year and things get a bit more intense as conference dual meets start. To bring everything full circle, let’s say goodbye 2024 and hello to conference competition in 2025. We take a look at how each team looked in the first half of the year and what their biggest dual meets are in the first month of the new year. Penn State Either they had a pretty easy start to the season, or they are more powerful than ever before – I’m going with latter. They blasted through the 2024 portion of this season with three shutout dual meet wins of the six they collected to go with the three other wins in which they only lost one match in each of them. They have defeated their opponents by a collective score of 268-9 across their six dual meets with only two starters – Braeden Davis and Levi Haines – not being undefeated. They finished the year with a 41-3 win over Missouri. Now, on to 2025 where they have the potential to keep their nearly flawless streak going as they face Michigan State to start their Big Ten dual meet slate this weekend. Biggest upcoming dual for PSU in January: Nebraska (Jan. 17); Iowa (Jan. 31) Nebraska The Huskers had a very good start to the season where they claimed a team title at the Navy Classic and a second-place finish at Cliff Keen Las Vegas to go along with an undefeated dual meet record of 5-0. However, 2025 has so far not been kind to Nebraska or maybe I should say, UNI wasn’t very kind as they served up a 24-9 loss to the now No. 6 ranked dual meet team in the country. The non-conference loss was their first of the season and a big difference from how they started things off in 2024. And things aren’t looking any easier as they kick off their Big Ten dual meet season against a loaded Minnesota lineup this Saturday followed by Penn State the following Friday. Biggest upcoming duals for Nebraska in January: Minnesota (Jan. 11); Penn State (Jan. 17): Michigan (Jan. 24) Iowa The Hawkeyes just continue to do their thing. It’s wild to look back on some of the moves they made over the summer, which caused some guys to transfer to other schools, and for them to still have as much depth as they have. Between 174 and 184 they have four guys who look to be All-American caliber competitors. Their incoming transfers are panning out with Kyle Parco looking excellent at 149 for them, along with a healthy Stephen Buchanan looking great as well. The injury to Jacori Teemer is tough but hoping for a recovery for him to finish out the season as they get into the meat of their B1G schedule. Even at some of their weights where they have some questions, they have no shortage of talent to compete. After they finished up with another first-place finish at the Soldier Salute, they look to keep the momentum going as they start their conference schedule this Sunday at Wisconsin. Biggest upcoming dual for Iowa in January: Illinois (Jan. 17); Ohio State (Jan. 25); Penn State (Jan. 31) Ohio State The Buckeyes have had a lot of lineup adjustments and rotations, but they continue to look great as they enter 2025 undefeated (8-0) and ready to attack the B1G. They had a nice win on the road against Pittsburgh, beat Iowa State in Nashville, and most recently put it on Oregon State at home. Illinois, which remains undefeated as well, is their next dual coming up this Friday in Champaign. This should include some awesome matches at 133 including Lucas Byrd vs Nic Bouzakis and Kannon Webster vs Dylan D’Emilio at 149. 184 will have a dramatic contrast of styles between Edmond Ruth and Ryder Rogotzke, and heavyweight will have Nick Feldman against Luke Luffman. Lots to look forward to in what could end up being a close dual. Biggest upcoming dual for Ohio State in January: Illinois (Jan. 10); Iowa (Jan. 25) Minnesota All the buzz in Minnesota has been about the return of Gable Steveson. And while he is certainly an incredible re-addition to the Gopher lineup, the rest of the squad has been very dominant so far this year as they take an undefeated 4-0 record into the new year. To finish off the year they had eight guys make the podium at the Soldier Salute with Vance VomBaur (141), Andrew Sparks (165) and Bennett Tabor (285) all placing second. Tommy Askey and Blaine Brenner were both third as well. Notably, young standouts Tyler Wells (133) and Max McEnelly (184) did not compete, but both have certainly been shining stars for them so far this year. To get things started in the new year they have a big-time matchup with Nebraska on Saturday where every single weight class features a ranked vs ranked matchup. Biggest upcoming dual for Minnesota in January: Nebraska (Jan. 11); Michigan (Jan. 19) Indiana Indiana started off the year with an unblemished road trip to California where they got things rolling with a pair of dual meet wins over Cal Baptist and Cal Poly. They also crowned a few champs at early season opening tournaments – 1 champ at Michigan State Open and Cleveland State Open, and 2 champs at Navy Classic. The Hoosiers also participated in the only Big Ten dual we’ve seen this season when they took on Illinois at the Big Ten football fan fest. Indiana took the loss that day, 34-3. Before the ball dropped, they crowned one more champ at Midlands. Now they turn their focus to Rutgers to get their conference competition rolling this Friday. Biggest upcoming duals for Indiana in January: Rutgers (Jan. 10); Michigan (Jan. 26) Illinois As mentioned above in the Indiana summary, Illinois is the lone team in the Big Ten that already has a conference win with their 34-3 defeat over the Hoosiers. The Illini also recorded very good wins over UNC, Missouri and ASU to go along with a few titles at the Journeymen Collegiate Classic as well. All-in-all, Illinois has looked very tough this season and will get things going with a tough matchup against 4th-ranked Ohio State on Friday. A top 10 matchup between #2 Lucas Byrd and #9 Nic Bouzakis is set to be a true highlight when the teams meet this week. Additionally, the #11 vs #12 match between Kannon Webster and Dylan D’Emilio is also a very highly anticipated bout at 149. Biggest upcoming dual for Illinois in January: Ohio State (Jan. 10); Iowa (Jan. 17) Rutgers Rutgers is one of the most active teams of the first half of the season as they go into 2025 with an 8-2 dual meet record. However, their biggest competition so far came in losses to ACC powers NC State and Virginia Tech. The Scarlet Knights had a heavy dual meet start but finished off 2024 at Midlands where they placed second as a team and placed four guys in the finals. Just Dean Peterson came away with a title at 125 as Dylan Shawver (133), Joey Olivieri (141) and Shane Cartagena-Walsh (184) all placed 2nd. Mimicking the start of the season, Rutgers will have a busy Big Ten weekend as they face Indiana on Friday and Ohio State on Sunday. Biggest upcoming dual for Rutgers in January: Ohio State (Jan. 12); Penn State (Jan. 24); Illinois (Jan. 26) Northwestern While they do have a 2-1 dual meet record, it hasn’t all been the best outings for Northwestern so far this year. However, a highlight for the Wildcats has been Evan Bates at 197 who placed second at the Michigan State Open. Along with Bates, Maxx Mayfield placed third in the Open Division of the same tournament as well. Bates is currently 12-4 on the year and Mayfield is 13-4 as Bates is holding down the #13 spot in the rankings. Unfortunately, we have only seen Chris Cannon, who returned to Northwestern this year, in two matches before being sidelined at 141. Hopefully we see him return to the lineup as Northwestern is set to face Purdue and Illinois this weekend. Biggest upcoming dual for Northwestern in January: Illinois (Jan. 12); Michigan (Jan. 17); Minnesota (Jan. 26) Wisconsin There have been some growing pains for the new look Badgers this season as they take their 4-4 dual meet record into 2025. After a loss to Ohio to start the season, they’ve gone on to take a few more lumps but also pick up wins over Campbell and NDSU to cap off 2024 at the Knockout Christmas Classic. Despite a tough dual meet season to start the year, they did have some very favorable results at the Michigan State Open as Nicolar Rivera took the title at 125. Zan Fugitt and Luke Condon were also second and third respectively. Now they will have a very busy first month of the year with five dual meets starting with hosting Iowa this weekend. Biggest upcoming dual for Wisconsin in January: Iowa (Jan. 12); Rutgers (Jan. 19); Minnesota (Jan. 24); Nebraska (Jan. 31) Michigan The Wolverines had an interesting 2024. While they remain undefeated in their dual schedule, they have yet to have a full lineup for what they had expected in the preseason. Derek Gilcher was dealing with an injury to begin the year which had them shuffling some other options in at 149, along with the injury to Beau Mantanona which had them making some other adjustments at 165. Additionally, they have Josh Heinselman transferring in to take over at heavyweight, but in the meantime, they had largely gone with Dzhabrail Khurshidov at the top of their lineup. Heinselman looked great taking home the Midlands championship recently and should be positioned to have some success as the B1G season begins. They did have a chance to see some of their young guys with Brock Mantanona getting some opportunities at 165 along with Cam Catrabone having some success at 149. Additionally, transfer Jacob Cardenas has looked great so far this season and has shown to be a true title contender. I expect them to iron out their lineup questions at 149 and 165 in the second half of the season, while 125 seems to continue to be a question mark for them. Additionally, they have some other decisions to make with Dylan Ragusin being out at 133 this season. Up next, they’ll take on Maryland this Friday in Ann Arbor as they begin their B1G schedule. Biggest upcoming dual for Michigan in January: Minnesota (Jan. 19); Nebraska (Jan. 24) Michigan State We expected the Spartans to have a young team this year but now some of their leaders and veterans are settling in, and their young guys are trying to get some success as well. They had two wrestlers place 7th at Midlands in Marty Larkin at 174, and Max Vanadia at heavyweight, but other than that it was a tough showing. Coming off a dual loss to Cal State Bakersfield, their schedule isn’t getting any easier as they begin their B1G schedule this Friday on the road at Penn State. Biggest upcoming dual for Michigan State in January: Penn State (Jan. 10); Indiana (Jan. 24); Nebraska (Jan. 26) Maryland Maryland has gotten after it to begin this season. They currently sit at 5-5, along with some battles against some tough competition. They have some solid wins against Bucknell and Lock Haven paired with some close losses to Rider and Pittsburgh. Last weekend was a rough one for the Terrapins dropping duals to Binghamton and Columbia, but these are the sorts of losses that can help guys to reset their approach as they head into the B1G schedule. Some highlights so far include Ethen Miller and Seth Nevills winning the Tiger Style Invite, along with Braxton Brown recently getting a win over Anthony Noto of Lock Haven. Jaxon Smith has had some mixed results dropping to 184, but he could be a dangerous guy for anyone in the conference. Biggest upcoming dual for Maryland in January: Michigan (Jan. 10); Illinois (Jan. 24) Purdue The Boilermakers have had a great start to their season so far, sitting at 6-1 on the season, with their only loss coming to Army on criteria. Paired with a second-place finish at the Tiger Style Invite, along with some success in Las Vegas as Matt Ramos won the CKLV title, they’re poised with some great energy headed into 2025. In fact, they are already 1-0 in 2025 as they recently beat Kent State on the road last Friday. They’ve had some solid results from Ramos, but Joey Blaze has had a strong season as well along with Brody Baumann who looks to deliver on my prediction of him being their breakout wrestler of the season. Purdue has some injuries to work through, with James Rowley getting banged up at CKLV, but they have a good amount of experience in the lineup to make up for it. Up first this weekend, they host Northwestern before traveling to take on Northern Illinois. Biggest upcoming dual for Purdue in January: Indiana (Jan. 17); Ohio State (Jan. 19)