#3 Iowa to host #2 Oklahoma State in riveting regular season finale
It’s not like the Iowa/Oklahoma State men’s wrestling rivalry was lacking for anticipation prior to the 2024-25 season.
But wherever the level was at this time a year ago, things have certainly cranked up a few notches as the #3 Hawkeyes (13-1, 7-1 B1G) ready to welcome the #2 Cowboys (13-0, 9-0 Big 12) in its latest edition.
At Iowa, the 24-time national team champions look relatively familiar with program legends Tom/Terry Brands still leading the way.
But for Oklahoma State, things couldn’t be more different for the 34-time NCAA champs.
Gone is John Smith, the 33-year head coach of the Cowboys and an American wrestling icon even before that.
His retirement left the following void(s) on the OSU bench:
As coach
- Five NCAA team titles (1994, 2003-06)
- 33 individual NCAA champs
- 153 NCAA All-American honors
As competitor
- Two NCAA individual titles (1987-88)
- Four World Championship gold medals (1987, 1989, 1990, 1991)
- Two Olympic gold medals (1988, 1992)
In Smith’s stead, OSU elected to go with another USA wrestling legend to lead its program into the future.
Insert David Taylor – a two-time NCAA champ (four-time finalist), two-time Hodge Trophy winner, three-time World champion and 2021 Olympic gold medalist.
In his first-ever season as a Division I head coach, Taylor is off to a great start.
Thanks to a solid foundation already in place, plus a quartet of high-powered transfer portal additions, the Penn State alum has infused OSU with a new sense of energy and excitement – to go along with a thus far undefeated dual record.
On Sunday night, Iowa will look to put an end to the latter before a raucous Carver-Hawkeye Arena crowd – and in so doing narrow the all-time series record to 29-27-2 for the Cowboys.
How they (might) line up
Based on the probable lineups released earlier this week, as many as 19 ranked wrestlers could compete in this dual.
Of them, 15 are currently ranked 11th or higher by Intermat – including 10 within the top five of their respective weight classes.
Having said that, it wouldn’t shock me to see an ‘unranked’ athlete or two inserted into the lineup for either team. And if you can believe it, that’d arguably add even more intrigue to a dual already brimming over with it.
(But we’ll get to those possibilities a bit later.)
On paper – the place everyone knows this sport truly plays out – Sunday’s contest looks like an even split, five bouts apiece.
Thankfully, we don’t do ties in wrestling (anymore), so said outcome would bring bonus points into play. And as I eyeball this dual, that feels like a slightly disadvantageous position for Iowa to be in.
So, let’s break it down – starting with the five favored matchups for the Hawkeyes.
133 pounds – #2 Drake Ayala (14-1) vs #21 Reece Witcraft (10-4)
Reece Witcraft has wrestled two previous matches inside the confines of Carver-Hawkeye Arena. On both occasions, his ‘visit’ was cut short – concluding with him staring up at the ceiling lights.
In 2020, a first-period pin by Austin DeSanto did the trick. And in 2023, Spencer Lee wrapped up his undefeated career home record with a fall of his own:
While neither result is necessarily predictive of Ayala’s chances in this dual, he can also fall back on some of his own history with the Cowboy senior.
In January of 2022, Ayala – then a true freshman still in redshirt – ran away with a 17-6 major decision when the two met at the Southern Scuffle.
Witcraft’s lone takedown came on a third-period inside trip as he looked for a big move to get back in the match. Meanwhile, Ayala racked up five takedowns and multiple sets of near fall points to comfortably prevail.
That was three years ago, and some things may’ve changed for both wrestlers since. But even so, you’d have to strongly favor Ayala again this time around – with bonus points potentially in play.
149 pounds – #3 Kyle Parco (17-1) vs #18 Carter Young (10-9)
There’s no prior history when it comes to the competitors at 149 pounds. There is, however, a distinct difference in their respective rankings/seasons entering Sunday night.
Kyle Parco has proven to be extremely reliable in his brief time as a Hawkeye. Carter Young has already tasted defeat nine times so far this season.
The Cowboy is also 0-2 in his career against Iowa, losing 6-1 in 2022 to Jaydin Eierman and 11-0 to Real Woods in 2023.
Once again, bonus points could be in play – if Parco steps on the gas as opposed to wrestling the more controlled/conservative approach that we’ve seen for much of the Big Ten dual schedule.
157 pounds – #3 Jacori Teemer (4-2) vs #14 Caleb Fish (16-6)
A matchup of first-year transfers awaits at 157 pounds between Teemer (Arizona State) and Fish (Michigan State).
Even as we continue to wonder about the exact shape/sharpness of Teemer in the aftermath of his nine-week injury absence, he did just defeat eighth-ranked Tommy Askey (Minnesota), 4-1 last weekend.
I also feel like Hawkeye fans have a somewhat difficult time discerning what type of form their starting 157-pounder is in due to his decidedly ‘un-Iowa-like style’ on the mat.
Rather than push the pace from whistle-to-whistle Teemer seems content to bob and weave – oftentimes ceding ground to his opponent – until exploding for points when the opportunity final presents itself.
Perhaps those opportunities will be more prevalent against Fish, who is unafraid to put himself at risk in various positions.
Yet again, I wouldn’t be stunned if this match were to approach bonus-point territory on Sunday. Teemer’s primary objective (and propensity) is to just get the win, of course. But if this dual does split five/five as on paper, Iowa could very well use every single bonus point it can possibly muster.
157 pounds isn’t a totally unrealistic place for it to come from, either.
165 pounds – #2 Michael Caliendo (17-1) vs #6 Cameron Amine (13-4)
Amine, a three-time All-American at Michigan, has met his Iowa counterpart twice before.
On both occasions (each won by Caliendo at last year’s Big Ten Championships) the matches were decided in sudden victory.
Having said that, the gap between the two wrestlers may be wider than the scoreboard suggests. Amine’s only offensive points during 14-plus combined minutes of wrestling came when Caliendo got a little sloppy trying to finish a single leg on the edge.
Beyond that, Caliendo was/is the far more offensive wrestler. I think that’ll continue to play in his favor entering their latest matchup.
Including those previous results, Amine is 3-5 in his career against Iowa – also going 2-2 vs. Alex Marinelli (one win via medical forfeit) and 1-1 vs. Patrick Kennedy.
197 pounds – #1 Stephen Buchanan (18-0) vs #6 Luke Surber (19-1)
What more can you say about Steven Buchanan at this point?
He’s been nails from the get-go since donning the Black & Gold singlet.
As the #1 wrestler at 197 pounds – and with the hit list/point-scoring prowess to back it up – Buchanan is a clear favorite even against a highly ranked foe like #6 Luke Surber.
These two have met twice previously, each bout won by the now-Hawkeye. In 2021 (then wrestling for Wyoming) Buchanan earned a win via injury default. And less than a year ago (then wrestling for Oklahoma) he prevailed again, 6-2 at the Big 12 Championships.
Surber is a wrestler who’s heavily reliant upon scrambles and rarely initiates his own offense against top opponents. If Buchanan can stay clean/crisp with his own attacks, you’d have to love his chances – possibly for bonus points.
Not only would a win push his career record against Surber to 3-0, but it’d also keep the Cowboy winless against Iowa.
In three-straight years three different Hawkeyes – Tony Cassioppi, Jacob Warner and Zach Glazier – have all bested Surber during this rivalry dual.
125 pounds – #16 Joey Cruz (14-8) vs #4 Troy Spratley (16-3)
Shifting toward the matches with a projected edge in favor of Oklahoma State we begin at 125.
There, fourth-ranked Troy Spratley owns a 19-2 win over Iowa’s Joey Cruz from the 2023 Lindenwood Open.
One thing we do know – Cruz has improved by leaps and bounds since that meeting some 15-plus months ago.
That’s especially been proven during the Big Ten schedule as the sophomore defeated a trio of wrestlers ranked between 13-18th nationally while also dropping a 2-1 decision to returning All-American Caleb Smith (Nebraska).
What we don’t know is if Spratley just presents a difficult stylistic matchup, regardless of the Hawkeye’s overall improvement.
Perhaps Cruz is at a point where he can pull the upset – completely flipping their prior result on its head. But as of now I’m not sure how someone could bank on that – especially given Spratley’s own considerable talent.
Last season, the Cowboy 125-pounder lost a pair of matches against eventual NCAA runner up Drake Ayala – both in sudden victory.
It could be a pseudo ‘victory’ for Iowa on Sunday if Cruz merely holds Spratley to a regular decision.
141 pounds – Cullan Schriever (5-8) vs #5 Tagen Jamison (16-3)
As has been the case all season long, 141 is tricky spot for Iowa once again in a big dual.
It seems more and more like Cullan Schriever will be the postseason option for the Hawkeyes. And while the senior fights for every inch available, he’d seem unlikely to seriously threaten most highly ranked opponents.
That’ll be his challenge this weekend, as #5 Tagen Jamison comes to Iowa City.
Once again, the far-from-glamorous ‘Objective 1A’ (at least in the eyes of this observer) is probably bonus-point mitigation.
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Iowa can lose at 141 and still win this dual, but the difficulty increases if Oklahoma State were to pick up bonus points as well.
Fortunately, Shriever has performed admirably in multiple matches against highly-ranked foes this season – including a 7-3 defeat at Penn State to the newly-minted #1 wrestler in the country, Beau Bartlett.
As for Jamison – who lost 4-1 to Real Woods at last year’s Iowa/OSU dual – he’s coming off a dual where he won by ‘only’ an 8-2 margin versus an unranked Arkansas Little Rock opponent.
174 pounds – #11 Patrick Kennedy (10-3) OR Nelson Brands (4-1) vs #3 Dean Hamiti (18-0)
What does Iowa do at 174?
That was the question even before this season began and it’s the question once again now that Nelson Brands has returned from a 2.5-month absence (“popped LCL”).
#11 Patrick Kennedy has been quite good at the weight but has lost each of his three highest profile matches thus far – of which another is on tap.
There are those who believe Dean Hamiti could contend for an NCAA title this year alongside a pair of multi-time champs/finalists in Keegan O’Toole (Missouri) and Levi Haines (Penn State). As such, he’ll enter Sunday’s matchup as a significant favorite against either Hawkeye.
How much does Iowa play the specific matchup here in hopes of pulling the upset? Kennedy has wrestled Hamiti (a former Wisconsin Badger) twice before – both at 165 pounds.
Hamiti won 4-3 when the two met in a dual back in 2023, then again a month-and-a-half later in the Big Ten final (9-6).
I don’t personally love the stylistic matchup for PK given Hamiti’s incredible length. And if the Iowa staff feels the same perhaps we’ll see Brands – the 2023 All-American – instead.
Of note, while at Wisconsin Hamiti wrestled three other times against Hawkeyes – including a 1-1 record at Carver-Hawkeye Arena.
He lost twice to Alex Marinelli in 2022, then defeated Michael Caliendo a year ago in a wild 14-11 match.
285 – #11 Ben Kueter (13-4) vs #3 Wyatt Hendrickson (17-0)
There’s simply no letup for Iowa freshman heavyweight Ben Kueter.
Since mid-January, he’s wrestled opponents ranked 11th/6th/2nd/12th/21st/1st – including a returning All-American, the returning NCAA champ and a 2021 Olympic gold medalist.
Now, he’ll face the most dominant wrestler in all of Division I this season, third-ranked Wyatt Hendrickson.
The Air Force transfer averages a cool 5.24 team points/match – somewhere between a tech. fall and a pin each time he takes the mat.
Hendrickson is an all-gas-no-brakes, big, explosive athlete and a threat to pin from just about any position.
Had he wrestled during a time other than the ridiculously loaded recent era at heavyweight there’s a decent chance he’d have an NCAA title to his name as opposed to ‘merely’ a pair of third-place finishes – one of which was cemented with a pin of Iowa alum Tony Cassioppi.
Kueter needs to be incredibly wary of the positions he pursues and/or engages in against the Cowboy. Not only could one mistake ruin his chances to win the bout, but Iowa’s chances to win the dual if the team score margin winds up being as tight as many expect.
184 pounds – #8 Gabe Arnold (14-2) vs #3 Dustin Plott (15-2)
And finally, we arrive at 184 pounds.
Why shuffle the order to cover this weight last? Well, because it’s my most anticipated match of the dual – and we don’t even know which Hawkeye will contest it.
Per the probable lineup released Tuesday, one might assume Gabe Arnold gets the nod. He certainly wouldn’t look out of place against returning NCAA finalist Dustin Plott – whom he lost to 5-1 at last year’s dual.
Then again, there’s this other fella on the Iowa roster who could conceivably stroll out on the mat Sunday instead. It’s the same fella who wasn’t listed on the probable lineup against Iowa State earlier this season.
And we all remember how that turned out, right?
Look, I’m not reporting that Angelo Ferrari will go for Iowa at 184 on Sunday night. I’m not even officially predicting it.
But it sure as heck wouldn’t surprise me – not after he got the nod in a big spot against the Cyclones, not after he got the nod on the road at Penn State against four-time NCAA champ Carter Starocci and certainly not after what Tom Brands said of their plan for Ferrari following that dual:
“The rule – you get five dates. We’re going to use them for Ferrari. We’re going to use them. And we’re not going to use them against cupcakes,” said Brands.
(Checks notes)
Ferrari has one date left to wrestle this season while preserving his redshirt. Meanwhile, Dustin Plott – a three-time All-American who bonus’d his way to the 2024 NCAA finals – is certainly no ‘cupcake.’
If I can connect the dots, so can you guys – even if it’s far from a guarantee.
Regardless, I’m going to have my popcorn ready when 184 rolls around on Sunday night.
How to watch
Sunday’s primetime showdown will be (I believe) the very last dual of the 2024-25 men’s college wrestling regular season.
And it’s only fitting to combine that spotlight with the unparalleled Carver-Hawkeye Arena stage for this clash of historic powers/rivals.
For those not in attendance, Big Ten Network will be your home for Iowa-Oklahoma State beginning at 7:30 p.m. (CT).
Shane Sparks and Jim Gibbons will have the call for TV. Meanwhile, Steven Grace and Mark Ironside will grace the mic (per usual) for the Hawkeye Radio Network.
You can catch the latter duo on either AM 800 KXIC or via the YouTube link below:
And if for some odd reason neither of those options are your preferred cup of tea, you can always follow me on social media for match-to-match updates throughout what figures to be an absolutely crazy dual in Iowa City.
Short time
Phew.
That’s it, that’s all, that’s everything – I promise.
Believe it or not, this was me restraining myself for this particular preview.
For instance, we didn’t even touch on the fascinating dynamic of former Hawkeye (and first-year OSU assistant coach) Thomas Gilman returning to Iowa City. That alone could’ve taken up another couple hundred words or so.
(Trust me.)
But you guys all have lives to lead, I’m sure. So, in fairness to your time, I’m humbly bringing things to a close here and now.
I cannot wait to get inside Carver-Hawkeye Arena this Sunday.
This dual has every element you could possibly ask for: top-ranked teams, historic rivals, wrestling icons and the potential for moments/surprises that could absolutely blow the roof off the premier venue in the sport.
Here’s hoping you all can join me in some form/fashion as Iowa and Oklahoma State clash once again.
As far as college wrestling goes, this’ll be about as good as it gets.
