Session I (including both the first-round "pigtail" matches and the first round matches) begins at 11am CST. No TV coverage, but there's a live stream at NCAA.com. There's also radio coverage (KXIC if you're in or around Iowa City; Hawkeye All-Access ($) via the intewebs otherwise) or liveblogs/Twitter updates. Liveblogs: Andy Hamilton at Hawk Central; KJ Pilcher at the Gazoo. Twitter: (P-C) Andy_Hamilton, (Gazoo) kjpilcher, (DI) jtbugos and rcyou.
Why is Brent Metcalf the fucking man? Oh yeah. From Andy Hamilton's excellent profile of Metcalf:
He's been the face of the franchise for the college wrestling's most visible team. He's been one of the sport's most polarizing figures. He's a fierce competitor who has been loved by Iowa fans and loathed by the haters of the Hawkeyes.
"Win or lose, he's the talk of wrestling because of the way he competes," said Mark Perry, Metcalf's former teammate at Iowa and current assistant at Cal Poly. "Brent is one of the nicest, most down-to-Earth people I've met ... but he has a bad rep because of the way he competes, and it was the same with the Brands brothers, it was the same with (Royce) Alger, it's the same as anybody who's a good competitor. If you're a good competitor, people want to knock you down. He doesn't deserve it, but that's what comes with being successful."
Metcalf has been one of the most instrumental pieces to Iowa's rise back to the top, a lynchpin to the Hawkeyes' bid for a third consecutive national title. He begins his personal quest for his second NCAA title today at the Qwest Center in Omaha, and if he gets it, Metcalf will finish his college career with the second-best winning percentage in Iowa history.
Make with the clicky and read the rest of the article, too, because (a) Hamilton's good people and he deserves the hits and (b) it's a great article filled with lots of interesting stories about Metcalf, one of the most interesting and dominant Iowa athletes of the past decade. Savor his matches these next few days; they're the last time you'll get to see Metcalf (as well as the other six seniors in the lineup) in action in Iowa singlets.
So how good was this group of seniors? Pretty damn good, as KJ Pilcher explains in the Gazoo:
This group has the chance to go unblemished — winning every dual, the Midlands Championships, NWCA National Duals, the Big Ten Championships and the NCAA Championships — a second straight year. They already hold Iowa records for most consecutive dual wins (61) and road dual victories (41). A third straight NCAA crown, which would be Iowa’s 23rd, can cement this class’ place in Iowa history. The Hawkeyes want to finish strong.
And, amazingly, to this point they've done it all with only one national champion (Metcalf), although the first national champion team (2007-2008) also featured Mark Perry as a national champion. Hopefully they add a few more national champions this weekend to really cement their legacy as one of the finest groups of wrestlers in Iowa history.
FIRST ROUND MATCHES
125 - #3 Matt McDonough TECH FALL (16-0) Jason Lara (Oregon State)
133 - #2 Dan Dennis DEC (6-2) Kevin Smith (Buffalo)
141 - #6 Montell Marion DEC (11-8) Cole Von Ohlen (Air Force)
149 - #2 Brent Metcalf MAJ DEC (15-6) Trenton Washington (UNI)
157 - UN Jake Kerr DEC (8-7) Tejovan Edwards (Arizona State)
165 - #7 Ryan Morningstar DEC (4-2, OT) Donald Jones (West Virginia)
174 - #2 Jay Borschel DEC (7-1) Scott Giffin (Penn)
184 - #9 Phil Keddy MAJ DEC (11-3) Michael Salopek (Virginia)
197 - Alan Gelogaev (Okie State) DEC (4-2, 2OT) #9 Chad Beatty
Hwt - #5 Dan Erekson DEC (11-6) Clayton Jack (Oregon State)
TEAM SCORE AFTER ROUND ONE
1. Iowa 21.5
2. Oklahoma State 16
3. (tie) Central Michigan, Lehigh, Wisconsin 15
6. Cornell 14
7. (tie) Iowa State, Ohio State 13
9. Oregon State 11.5
10. (tie) Minnesota, Missouri, Oklahoma 11
HISTORY AGAINST OPP.
125: McD's never faced either guy before.
133: Dennis has never faced Smith before.
141: Marion has never faced Van Ohlen before.
149: Metcalf has never faced Washington before (Washington was at 141 earlier; Marion pinned him at this year's Iowa-UNI dual.)
157: Kerr has never faced Edwards before.
165: Morningstar DEC Jones, 7-5 (OT) (2009 NCAA Tournament)
174: Borschel has never faced Giffin before.
184: Keddy has never faced Salopek before.
197: Beatty has never faced Gelogaev before; Gelogaev DEC Luke Lofthouse (3-2) at the Iowa-OSU dual this year.
Hwt: Erekson has never faced Jack before.
NCAA TOURNAMENT SCORING
1st: 16pts
2nd: 12pts
3rd: 10pts
4th: 9pts
5th: 7pts
6th: 6pts
7th: 4pts
8th: 3pts
Bonus points:
Fall, Forfeit, DQ, Default: 2pts
Tech Fall (w/ nearfall points): 1.5pts
Tech Fall (w/o nearfall points) and Major Decision: 1pt
Advancement points:
Championship side: 1pt
Bye followed by win on Championship side: 1pt
Consolation side: .5pt
Bye followed by win on Consolation side: .5pt