Who: #8 Iowa State vs. Oklahoma
Date: Saturday January 31st, 2015
Time: 2:00 PM – Central
Location: Norman, Oklahoma
#8 Iowa State Cyclones 6-2 (0-1)
125- Kyle Larson
133- #6 Earl Hall
141- Dante Rodriguez or John Meeks
149- #14 Gabe Moreno
157- Luke Goettl
165- #4 Mike Moreno
174- #11 Tanner Weatherman
184- #15 Lelund Weatherspoon
197- #2 Kyven Gadson
285- Quean Smith
Oklahoma Sooners 6-5 (1-0)
125- Ryan Millhof
133- #2 Cody Brewer
141- Trae Blackwell
149- Shayne Tucker
157- #11 Justin DeAngelis
165- Clark Glass
174- #20 Matt Reed
184- Brooks Climmons
197- Andrew Dixon
285- #12 Ross Larson
The Iowa State Cyclones will be back on the mat against another Oklahoma team when they head to Norman, Oklahoma to face the Sooners this Saturday. The Cyclones are searching for their first Big 12 conference win, and this weekend they should be the heavy favorites.
Perhaps the biggest match of the dual will be at 133 where two All-Americans will square off. Earl Hall was the 8th place finisher at 125 last season, and Cody Brewer was the 8th place finisher at 133 a year ago. Brewer has missed a decent chunk of the season to this point, but in his two matches against conference opponents he has picked up a 22-7 technical fall and 17-5 major decision. Hall is riding a eight match winning streak coming into this weekend, and he has shown the ability to beat wrestlers ranked near the top (Gulibon and Bruno). This match could be a big boost for Hall’s March resume.
Tanner Weatherman and Matt Reed will provide the only other top 20 matchup in this dual at 174. After a big upset over Virginia Tech’s Zach Epperly two weeks ago, Weatherman lost an upset of his own to Kyle Crutchmer of Oklahoma State. Taking a look at common opponents, Weatherman has posted a 4-0 record, where as Reed has posted a 2-2 (I discounted the Storely meeting). Weatherman should still be considered the heavy favorite in this match.
Iowa State should hold the edge with #14 Gabe Moreno at 149, #4 Mike Moreno at 165, and #15 Lelund Weatherspoon at 184. Weatherspoon has posted back-to-back victories since his return to the mat. His win over Gabel was key in the upset over Virginia Tech, and his win over Boyd was an upset victory against Oklahoma State. The final match favored by Iowa State will be senior #2 ranked Kyven Gadson.
Oklahoma will then hold the edge at 157 with #11 ranked Justin DeAngelis will take on senior Luke Goettl. Sooner heavyweight Ross Larson (who happens to be an Iowa native) will also hold the rankings edge over Quean Smith.
That leaves 125 where Kyle Larson, and 141 and Dante Rodriguez/John Meeks will take on Ryan Millhof and Trae Blackwell respectively. Larson really appears to be turning a corner after keeping things close with All-American Joey Dance, last weekend he had a 6-1 lead on Eddie Klimara before falling to a late comeback. If Larson can put together three strong periods he has a chance to be the top wrestler in the conference. It’s unclear how head coach Kevin Jackson is going to handle the 141 situation, but as of right now, Rodriguez and Meeks have alternated starts since the start of the 2015 dual season.