A Winner is You! (If You're a Wrestling Fan, At Least)

by RossWB on Oct 27, 2009 9:00 AM CDT in News Comment 31 comments

Television coverage of a winter sport we're good at? The Big Ten Network finally announced its coverage plans for wrestling in the 2009-2010 season and things are looking up if you're fan of men in singlets:

The Big Ten Network will double its coverage of wrestling this season, with television coverage of the Big Ten Championships, the Midlands Classic and nine duals. In addition, the network will stream 15 more duals on www.BigTenNetwork.com.

The Iowa-specific coverage is as follows:

Northern Iowa @ Iowa; Thursday, Dec. 10; 7pm EST (live); BTN.com*
Midlands Classic (multi-team tournament in which Iowa always competes); Sunday, Jan. 3; 7pm EST (same day delay); BTN
Oklahoma State @ Iowa; Sunday, Jan. 17; 7pm EST (same day delay); BTN
Penn State @ Iowa; Friday, Jan. 29; TBD; BTN.com*
Michigan State @ Iowa; Sunday, Jan. 31; TBD; BTN.com*
Northwestern @ Iowa; Friday, Feb. 12; TBD; BTN.com*
Iowa @ Minnesota; Sunday, Feb. 14; 7pm EST; BTN
Ohio State @ Iowa; Friday, Feb. 19; 10:30pm EST (same day delay); BTN
Iowa @ Wisconsin; Sunday, Feb. 21; 1pm EST; BTN.com*

* - BTN is apparently totally overhauling their video streaming operation. The good news is that the quality should be much improved; the bad news is that they're going to be charging for the experience at $2.99 a pop.

If caring about the life choices of sweaty 18-year old boys is creepy, then, um... Meanwhile, recruiting continues to go well for Tom Brands & Co. Anthony Baldosaro, a two-time New Jersey state champion and the #9 recruit in the nation according to InterMat, verbally committed to Iowa recently. He projects at 149 lbs, a weight class Iowa will have a definite need in after Brent Metcalf finishes his collegiate career this season, and seems pretty stoked about the whole Iowa wrestling experience:

"Iowa had more fans in their practice room than most schools have in their arena for matches," he said. "It's amazing how big wrestling is at that school. There's die-hard wrestling fans, we've been with the sport forever and we love it, but you don't find many places like Iowa where wrestling is a real big thing throughout the community. That was a really big part in my decision -- the atmosphere. If you're a wrestler, it's great out there."

A day later, Baldosaro was joined by Josh Dziewa, a Junior National Champion at 135 lbs. from Pennsylvania and the #33 recruit in the nation per InterMat; while he won his title at 135 lbs., he projects at 141 lbs. in college. What impressed him most about Iowa? The crazy intensity of course:

"I walked in Friday night and the whole team was sitting there on a Friday night watching 'SportsCenter' and everyone was dripping sweat," Dziewa said. "They had just got done doing best-out-of-five clinches on a Friday night, just wrestling in the living room. That's what I'm talking about. That was the most amazing thing. I was like, 'Hell yeah, that's what I'm talking about.'"

Rank and file. InterMat has also released their preseason rankings for each individual weight class, as well as team rankings. Not surprisingly, Iowa is featured quite prominently. WOO GO HAWKS IOWA RULES YOU DROOL. Ahem.

125: n/a
133: #4, Daniel Dennis
141: #11, Dan LeClere
149: #1, Brent Metcalf
157: n/a
165: #4, Ryan Morningstar
174: #4, Jay Borschel
184: #3, Phil Keddy
197: #12, Chad Beatty
Hwt: #4, Dan Erekson
Team: #1, Iowa

And, finally, a programming note. While we remain fully in the throes of football mania, wrestling coverage will also be ramping up around here. BHGP's weight-by-weight breakdown of the '09-'10 Iowa wrestling team, also entitled A Winner is You!, will begin next week to help count down until the beginning of wrestling season (11/20, the Iowa Duals). AWIY! will use a format similar to the Assume the Position series utilized for football: a detailed look at the main contenders at each weight class, counting down from the weight class we're most sure about to the weight class we know the least about. You can probably guess the first weight class in the series.

0 recs | Comment 31 comments | Share

Story-email Email Printer Print

Comments

Thanks Ross. How’s a certain ISU legend doing over there in State College?

by txhawkeye on Oct 27, 2009 9:25 AM CDT reply actions 0 recs

He's doing well, I guess.

Picking up some big-time recruits and bringing over a few good guys from ISU (his brother, for one). It would surprising if they were a major power this year, but it’s a pretty good bet he’ll have them in the mix in a year or two.

by RossWB on Oct 27, 2009 9:51 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

not that i bothered looking

But do the nittany lions face the cyclones in any duels this year?

looking forward to utter DOMINACE yet again. I’m looking for a big year out of Morningstar & Borschel, not just wrestleback points either.

Thoughts?

this place smells like feet. i’ll bring a can of lysol next week.

by pfac51 on Oct 27, 2009 11:59 AM CDT via mobile up reply actions 0 recs

But do the nittany lions face the cyclones in any duels this year?

Nope. Unless they meet in an early season tournament, but I don’t believe that they do.

I’m looking for a big year out of Morningstar & Borschel, not just wrestleback points either.

If Borschel can regain his 07-08 form, he could definitely make a strong run. Morningstar is a great (albeit frustrating) wrestler, but I think his biggest problem will be the rest of the talent at 165; there are some big-time guys moving in to that weight class (including Schlatter from Minnesota) that will make it very, very difficult in there.

It will be interesting because six months ago I would have thought that 165 and Hwt were two weights where we could get a lot of points when nationals roll around. But now, between the influx of talent at 165 and Erekson’s injury at Hwt, that seems like less of a sure thing. We really need Erekson to get healed up and get back to the form he had at nationals last year.

by RossWB on Oct 27, 2009 1:50 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Championship points

so you think that Borschel & Morningstar can get some very tough championship points? i do not think that a 3rd place or 4th for either is out of the question, we’ll have to see how the brackets pan out in the spring.

i’m looking forward to seeing a tougher team this year.

this place smells like feet. i’ll bring a can of lysol next week.

by pfac51 on Oct 28, 2009 6:32 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

We'll see.

Borschel’s regression last year was an unwelcome surprise and I don’t know if it was purely injury-based or if it was a mental thing, too. He needs to regain his 07-08 form to have any hope of getting 3rd/4th points, though.

Re: Morningstar… like I said, I would have been fairly confident of him getting those pts for us about six weeks ago, but once I found out about the guys moving into 165 (or rumored to move into 165), I became less confident.

Then again, who really knows. There are still many months to go before nationals, so anything could happen.

by RossWB on Oct 28, 2009 8:11 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Nice article

Thanks for posting.

by Leftcoast Hawk on Oct 27, 2009 11:21 AM CDT reply actions 0 recs

I am happy .....

about the extended coverage and looking forward to a third title in a row. But, I am not happy about $2.99 per event pay-per-view for streaming content. It better be good, is all I can say.

by Bluzmn on Oct 27, 2009 11:22 AM CDT reply actions 0 recs

pay per view

It would be nice if the video was at least 480p so we can hook the laptop up to the LCD for better viewing.

I’ve not checked payment options, hoping for PayPal for AMEX airline miles!

Any of you guys coming to KC in November to the CBE Classic?

this place smells like feet. i’ll bring a can of lysol next week.

by pfac51 on Oct 27, 2009 12:03 PM CDT via mobile up reply actions 0 recs

Hmm

Any of you guys coming to KC in November to the CBE Classic?

Is that for that funky new “BAS-KET-BALL” sport I heard that we’re going to be trying this year? Good luck to those brave souls.

by RossWB on Oct 27, 2009 3:56 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

I ain't payin $2.99 for no pop

In all seriousness I am pumped for this season and the coverage on BHGP for wrestling. This should be title year #23, and I think some of the young guys will step up to replace Falck at 125. Being from Illinois I’m pretty excited to see if ISU transfer Tyler Clark, who is actually from Illinois too even though he wrestled at Bettendorf his senior year of high school, will be challenged by another Illinois kid in Tony Ramos for that varsity spot. Should be a good season.

"If Ron Zook were an ice cream flavor, it would be praline and retard"
-Garth Algar

by Tree Meister on Oct 27, 2009 11:59 AM CDT reply actions 0 recs

Tyler Clark has to sit out a year

ISU wouldn’t give him a release to wrestle at Iowa, so he’ll be burning his redshirt this year and no doubt making huge gains in his skills and strength by being in the room. Next year should be interesting at 125, for sure.

by rosalita on Oct 27, 2009 3:04 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

That's a bummer

How many years of eligibility will he have then after his redshirt? 2?

"If Ron Zook were an ice cream flavor, it would be praline and retard"
-Garth Algar

by Tree Meister on Oct 27, 2009 5:44 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Yeah, he'll have two seasons left

It was fortunate that he hadn’t used his redshirt season his freshman year at ISU. It’s a better situation than the Va. Tech transfers, who had already redshirted and so lost a year of eligibility when VT refused to release them.

by rosalita on Oct 27, 2009 6:02 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Absolutely

The kid is a monster, and whoever is at 125 this year better be a senior because that’s T. Clark’s spot next season.

"If Ron Zook were an ice cream flavor, it would be praline and retard"
-Garth Algar

by Tree Meister on Oct 27, 2009 6:10 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Whats the deal BHGP?

You won’t be cutting back on the b-ball coverage this winter…will you?

I kid, I kid just thinking about the b-ball program makes me want to slit my wrists……the less coverage the better.

by J.R. Angle has a posse on Oct 27, 2009 1:18 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

The Liveblogs have some true comedy potential, though.

by YouCanPutYourEddsInIt on Oct 27, 2009 1:57 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Wait, what?

There’s football, then wrestling…then spring game. I don’t know what this other sport is that you’re talking about

It never gets to be easy

by chitownhawkeye on Oct 27, 2009 5:54 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

So how many years

until we start owning you on a regular basis?

BSD

by Kevin HD on Oct 27, 2009 1:41 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

Well, it's PSU, sooo....

/O'keefe'd

by Smokin Herb Grigbsy on Oct 27, 2009 2:04 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

I was gonna say.....

never?

"You don't become a Hawkeye fan, You're born with Black and Gold in your veins." - Me

by BStylin Hawkye on Oct 27, 2009 2:09 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

How close is PSU to being able to clone 10 Cael Sandersons?

by RossWB on Oct 27, 2009 3:53 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

How many years until...

you beat us twice in a row in football.

Might never happen.

I've sentenced boys younger than you to the gas chamber. Didn't want to do it. I felt I owed it to them.

-- Judge Smails

by WaterlooChazz on Oct 27, 2009 10:11 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Valentines Day is for Lovers

Wrestling match against you people at night at the barn, NHL game in the afternoon at the X. I’m guessing the Receiveress is going to be swooning after all that. Maybe we’ll stop at Taco Bell for dinner.

Everyone fails. The successful learn from their failures. I just wish we'd quit giving ourselves so many learning opportunities.

by WhiteSpeedReceiver on Oct 27, 2009 2:08 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

Sounds like my senior prom

Dinner plans that is. I’m not enough of a hopeless romantic to pull off the other aspects of your V-day

I ate the blue ones ... they taste like burning.

by HoyaGoon on Oct 27, 2009 2:14 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

We're fucked...

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=4599160

At least we get more of Super Wigger on goal line.

In other news, is anyone else watching CFB Live right now??? They just showed footage of Paul Rhoads going all “That’s my quarterback” on the ’Clones team in the locker room.

/O'keefe'd

by Smokin Herb Grigbsy on Oct 27, 2009 3:00 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

Big 10 looks like it's gonna be pretty darn good

For obvious reasons I’m gonna try to follow wrestling more this year. Should be interesting. I expect Iowa to rip PSU’s hearts out on multiple occaisions out of principle.

"I'm colonel cool! And I'm the captain on this rocket to the stars!"

by psuphiman80 on Oct 27, 2009 3:45 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs