Well, Gopher Wrestling fans, are you ready for some great D1 College Wrestling!!!
Wrestling practice started on Oct. 10th and our 2017-18 season starts two weeks from today on November 5th as we travel (once again) to Brookings, SD for the Daktronics Open (on FloWrestling.com). In some years, when our line-up wasn't completely clear, we have used the Daktronics Open as a way to determine our initial line-up...as we send almost our entire roster to this event. This year, the lineup is pretty well set, but this tournament is still a great way to start the new season!!
This is how our line-up looks so far:
- 125 #4 RS Jr. Ethan Lizak. Will AA, could end up higher than #4 (#3 unless huge improvement).
- 133 #6 Soph. Mitch McKee. Will AA, could end up higher than #6 (#3-#5).
- 141 #6 RS Jr. Tommy Thorn. Will AA, maybe much higher (#1-#5).
- 149 #7 RS Jr. Steve Bleise. Will AA, could go a little higher if he really wants it (#5-#6).
- 157 #10 RS Sr. Jake Short. Last chance to AA, I think he does it! (#7-#8).
- 165 #11 RS Sr. Nick Wanzek. Last chance to AA, like Short I think he does it! (#7-#8).
- 174 #20 RS Sr. Chris Pfarr. Last chance to AA, CP has really improved. (maybe #10-#15).
- 184 Soph. Owen Webster. Not ranked yet, took 3rd in D3 last year. Could AA, but hard to say!
- 197 RS Soph. Bobby Steveson. Not ranked, but might have a breakout year.
- 285 RS Soph. Rylee Streifel. Not ranked, he will be competitive, but not clear yet how good.
MN is ranked #6 in Intermat's Dual Meet rankings and #7 in Tournament rankings, and I think we are at least as good as this. However, if several of our ranked wrestlers perform better than expected (quite possible!), if Short and Wanzek can AA (possible!), and if Webster, Steveson or Streifel is better than expected (quite possible!), we could improve our team rankings!
I included articles below on rankings and on our schedule, including my predictions on dual meet wins/losses (from an earlier thread: https://minnesota.forums.rivals.com/threads/gopher-wrestling-announces-its-2017-18-schedule.30731/). In that thread, I had us going 9-5, including a road loss to IA. Now, when I look at it again, it's quite possible than we could win that one!! Wouldn't it be nice to go into Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City and finally beat up on the Hawks again!! It's quite possible that this may happen!
I think we have a very solid line-up that's only going to get better in the near future...as this is a team on the rise!! One thing I've heard lately is that Tommy Thorn has really ramped up his game and his expectations for the future! Coach Eggum said in an interview recently that Thorn is showing some BIG IMPROVEMENT, and Dylan Ness also said that he's wrestled with Thorn...and he's really improved. This could be big for us as Tommy has always been good. But, if he decides that he wants to be a Natty Champ, and really commits to it, he DEFINITELY COULD DO IT!!
I'm excited about this team and about our prospects in this new season!!
Go Gopher Wrestling!!
#GopherTough
Here are the articles I referenced earlier:
Seven Gophers Will Enter Season Ranked
Seven Gophers will begin the 2017-18 season as top-20 wrestlers, with the team coming in at No. 6 in the dual meet rankings and No. 7 in the tournament rankings.
Gophersports.com
Oct. 18, 2017
2017-18 Single Match Tickets // 2017-18 Wrestling Schedule
InterMat announced today their preseason NCAA Division I wrestling rankings for the 2017-18 season. Seven Gophers will begin the 2017-18 season as top-20 wrestlers, with the team coming in at No. 6 in the dual meet rankings and No. 7 in the tournament rankings.
InterMat's rankings are routinely used on broadcasts of Gopher wrestling events, and will be used throughout the season to identify where Gophers are ranked at that current time, with rankings coming out weekly.
2017 NCAA finalist Ethan Lizak is the top ranked Gopher of all the individual rankings. He ranks No. 4 in the 125-pound division. Last season, Lizak finished with a 30-7 overall record, and aims to head to the NCAA Championships for the third time in his career this season. Lizak is also ranked at No. 4 by FloWrestling.
2017 All-American Tommy Thorn enters the 2017-18 season as No. 6 in 141-pounds. As a sophomore last season Thorn finished with a 20-10 record, and defeated three top-10 opponents last season, including two at the NCAA Championships.
Sophomore Mitch McKee will look to build on his tremendous offseason with his No. 6 ranking at 133-pounds. As a freshman last season, McKee had an overall record of 22-19 and faced 15 All-Americans as a freshman. McKee this offseason captured a silver medal at the Junior World Championships in Finland and then followed that up by locking a spot on the U23 Team USA team in Rochester just a few weeks ago. FloWrestling also ranks McKee at No. 6 in their preseason rankings.
Transfer Steve Bleise will enter his first season with the Gophers as the No. 7 ranked wrestler at 149-pounds. The junior comes to Minnesota from Northern Illinois, and finished with a 29-10 record last season, along with finishing in the round of 12 at the 2017 NCAA Championships. FloWrestling also placed Bleise at No. 7.
Rounding out the Gophers in the top-10 is senior Jake Short. The two-time NCAA qualifier enters his final season as No. 10 at 157-pounds. He finished with a record of 26-14 last season, and was just one match shy of an All-American finish at the 2017 NCAA Championships.
Fellow senior Nick Wanzek joins Short in the top-20 InterMat rankings. Wanzek sits at No. 11 in the preseason, and aims to make his third consecutive NCAA appearance in 2018. Last season, Wanzek finished with a 29-14 record, and was just one match shy of an All-American honor at the NCAA Championships. FloWrestling had Wanzek as a top-10 wrestler in their preseason rankings.
At 174, senior Chris Pfarr enters the 2017-18 season as the No. 20 ranked wrestler. Pfarr was an NCAA qualifier last season, and finished with a record of 18-15, which included two top-20 victories.
Whether you are looking for where the Gophers are ranked, or the latest results for the Gophers this season, Gophersports.com is the place to find information. Be sure to follow the Gophers on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for all the latest content on the Gopher wrestling team.
Gopher Wrestling Announces 2017-18 Schedule
The University of Minnesota wrestling program announced its 2017-18 schedule today, a schedule that will feature one of the toughest road schedules in the entire country.
Gophersports.com
Aug. 17, 2017
2017-2018 Schedule
The University of Minnesota wrestling program announced its 2017-18 schedule today, a schedule that will feature one of the toughest road schedules in the entire country with trips to four of the top five finishers from the 2017 NCAA Championships.
The Gophers will host six home dual meets this year with Michigan highlighting the schedule at the newly named Maturi Pavilion.
"We have a solid road schedule this year, our Big Ten schedule is the toughest in the country. Plus you add a team like Oklahoma State on the road, it adds another great test," said Coach Brandon Eggum.
"We head to Florida this year hoping to get some experience against different schools from different conferences. It's exciting to head down to Florida not only for us, but for our fans as well. It will be nice to be able to enjoy the warm weather down in Fort Lauderdale," added Eggum.
Minnesota will once again open the season with a trip to the Daktronics Open on Nov. 5, then the Maroon and Gold will return home to start the dual season when the Air Force Academy visits the Sports Pavilion before heading back out on the road.
The annual matchup with South Dakota State will come on Nov. 17 in Brookings. The Gophers won the matchup last season with a thrilling 18-17 victory, moving their overall record to 22-5 against the Jackrabbits.
The biggest test of the early season will come when Minnesota visits the 2017 third place finisher Oklahoma State Cowboys in Stillwater, Okla. on Nov. 19. The Gophers will look to avenge their 2016 loss to the Cowboys. The meeting this season will be the 30th time the two historic programs have met.
Minnesota will take a week off before heading to Las Vegas, Nev. for the Cliff Keen Invitational to begin the month of December. The 2017 trip will mark the Gophers fourth straight year at the Cliff Keen Invitational. The teams at the event are yet to be determined. Last season the Gophers finished fourth in the desert, with senior Jake Short set to defend his 157-pound title.
Minnesota will return home on Dec. 12 to host Fresno State. The dual with the Bulldogs will be first meeting between the two programs. Minnesota will then take a break for finals and the holidays before getting back to action on Dec. 29 when they travel to warm Ft. Lauderdale, Flor. for the South Beach Duals. The inaugural event will be host to nine other teams as of now including Missouri, Michigan State, North Carolina and Cornell.
After the holidays, the Gophers will return home for a match against the Michigan State Spartans to get the Big Ten season underway. Last season, the Gophers defeated the Spartans 20-17, and have now won the last nine meetings with Michigan State.
Minnesota will start its treacherous Big Ten road schedule with a dual against Ohio State on Jan. 12. The 2017 NCAA runner-up narrowly defeated the Gophers last season at home.
Breaking up the rough road schedule, Minnesota will return home for duals between Illinois and Michigan. Last season, the Wolverines finished 10th at the NCAA Championships, the sixth Big Ten team in the top ten.
Minnesota will look to repeat the results of the last meeting in State College when the Gophers defeated Penn State 17-16. Minnesota has won 13 of the past 14 meetings with the defending National Champions.
After a quick return home against Northwestern, the Gophers will finish the regular season with four straight road matches. Highlighted by the Hawkeyes on February 2, the Gophers will also take on Rutgers, Maryland and Rider before the Big Ten Championships in East Lansing.
GopherSports.com will have you covered for Gopher Wrestling news this season, from the opening match of the Daktronics Open through the final seconds of the NCAA Championships. As Minnesota prepares for the upcoming year, stayed tuned right here for news and, for the latest updates, follow Gopher Wrestling on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for the latest updates.
Schedule:
Date Opponent Location
Nov. 5 Daktronics Open Brookings, SD
Nov. 12 Air Force Minneapolis, MN (1-0)
Nov. 17 South Dakota State Brookings, SD (2-0)
Nov. 19 Oklahoma State Stillwater, OK (2-1)
Dec. 1-2 Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invite Las Vegas, NV
Dec. 10 Fresno State Minneapolis, MN (3-1)
Dec. 29-30 South Beach Duals Fort Lauderdale, FL
Jan. 7 Michigan State Minneapolis, MN (4-1)
Jan. 12 Ohio State Columbus, Ohio (4-2)
Jan. 14 Illinois Minneapolis, MN (5-2)
Jan. 21 Michigan Minneapolis, MN (5-3)
Jan. 26 Penn State State College, PA (5-4)
Jan. 28 Northwestern Minneapolis, MN (6-4)
Feb. 2 Iowa Iowa City, Iowa (6-5)
Feb. 9 Rutgers Piscataway, NJ (7-5)
Feb.11 Maryland College Park, MD (8-5)
Feb. 16 Rider Lawrenceville, NJ (9-5)
March 3-4 Big Ten Championships East Lansing, MI
March 15-17 NCAA Tournament Cleveland, Ohio
(Home matches in bold)
Wrestling practice started on Oct. 10th and our 2017-18 season starts two weeks from today on November 5th as we travel (once again) to Brookings, SD for the Daktronics Open (on FloWrestling.com). In some years, when our line-up wasn't completely clear, we have used the Daktronics Open as a way to determine our initial line-up...as we send almost our entire roster to this event. This year, the lineup is pretty well set, but this tournament is still a great way to start the new season!!
This is how our line-up looks so far:
- 125 #4 RS Jr. Ethan Lizak. Will AA, could end up higher than #4 (#3 unless huge improvement).
- 133 #6 Soph. Mitch McKee. Will AA, could end up higher than #6 (#3-#5).
- 141 #6 RS Jr. Tommy Thorn. Will AA, maybe much higher (#1-#5).
- 149 #7 RS Jr. Steve Bleise. Will AA, could go a little higher if he really wants it (#5-#6).
- 157 #10 RS Sr. Jake Short. Last chance to AA, I think he does it! (#7-#8).
- 165 #11 RS Sr. Nick Wanzek. Last chance to AA, like Short I think he does it! (#7-#8).
- 174 #20 RS Sr. Chris Pfarr. Last chance to AA, CP has really improved. (maybe #10-#15).
- 184 Soph. Owen Webster. Not ranked yet, took 3rd in D3 last year. Could AA, but hard to say!
- 197 RS Soph. Bobby Steveson. Not ranked, but might have a breakout year.
- 285 RS Soph. Rylee Streifel. Not ranked, he will be competitive, but not clear yet how good.
MN is ranked #6 in Intermat's Dual Meet rankings and #7 in Tournament rankings, and I think we are at least as good as this. However, if several of our ranked wrestlers perform better than expected (quite possible!), if Short and Wanzek can AA (possible!), and if Webster, Steveson or Streifel is better than expected (quite possible!), we could improve our team rankings!
I included articles below on rankings and on our schedule, including my predictions on dual meet wins/losses (from an earlier thread: https://minnesota.forums.rivals.com/threads/gopher-wrestling-announces-its-2017-18-schedule.30731/). In that thread, I had us going 9-5, including a road loss to IA. Now, when I look at it again, it's quite possible than we could win that one!! Wouldn't it be nice to go into Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City and finally beat up on the Hawks again!! It's quite possible that this may happen!
I think we have a very solid line-up that's only going to get better in the near future...as this is a team on the rise!! One thing I've heard lately is that Tommy Thorn has really ramped up his game and his expectations for the future! Coach Eggum said in an interview recently that Thorn is showing some BIG IMPROVEMENT, and Dylan Ness also said that he's wrestled with Thorn...and he's really improved. This could be big for us as Tommy has always been good. But, if he decides that he wants to be a Natty Champ, and really commits to it, he DEFINITELY COULD DO IT!!
I'm excited about this team and about our prospects in this new season!!
Go Gopher Wrestling!!
#GopherTough
Here are the articles I referenced earlier:
Seven Gophers Will Enter Season Ranked
Seven Gophers will begin the 2017-18 season as top-20 wrestlers, with the team coming in at No. 6 in the dual meet rankings and No. 7 in the tournament rankings.
Gophersports.com
Oct. 18, 2017
2017-18 Single Match Tickets // 2017-18 Wrestling Schedule
InterMat announced today their preseason NCAA Division I wrestling rankings for the 2017-18 season. Seven Gophers will begin the 2017-18 season as top-20 wrestlers, with the team coming in at No. 6 in the dual meet rankings and No. 7 in the tournament rankings.
InterMat's rankings are routinely used on broadcasts of Gopher wrestling events, and will be used throughout the season to identify where Gophers are ranked at that current time, with rankings coming out weekly.
2017 NCAA finalist Ethan Lizak is the top ranked Gopher of all the individual rankings. He ranks No. 4 in the 125-pound division. Last season, Lizak finished with a 30-7 overall record, and aims to head to the NCAA Championships for the third time in his career this season. Lizak is also ranked at No. 4 by FloWrestling.
2017 All-American Tommy Thorn enters the 2017-18 season as No. 6 in 141-pounds. As a sophomore last season Thorn finished with a 20-10 record, and defeated three top-10 opponents last season, including two at the NCAA Championships.
Sophomore Mitch McKee will look to build on his tremendous offseason with his No. 6 ranking at 133-pounds. As a freshman last season, McKee had an overall record of 22-19 and faced 15 All-Americans as a freshman. McKee this offseason captured a silver medal at the Junior World Championships in Finland and then followed that up by locking a spot on the U23 Team USA team in Rochester just a few weeks ago. FloWrestling also ranks McKee at No. 6 in their preseason rankings.
Transfer Steve Bleise will enter his first season with the Gophers as the No. 7 ranked wrestler at 149-pounds. The junior comes to Minnesota from Northern Illinois, and finished with a 29-10 record last season, along with finishing in the round of 12 at the 2017 NCAA Championships. FloWrestling also placed Bleise at No. 7.
Rounding out the Gophers in the top-10 is senior Jake Short. The two-time NCAA qualifier enters his final season as No. 10 at 157-pounds. He finished with a record of 26-14 last season, and was just one match shy of an All-American finish at the 2017 NCAA Championships.
Fellow senior Nick Wanzek joins Short in the top-20 InterMat rankings. Wanzek sits at No. 11 in the preseason, and aims to make his third consecutive NCAA appearance in 2018. Last season, Wanzek finished with a 29-14 record, and was just one match shy of an All-American honor at the NCAA Championships. FloWrestling had Wanzek as a top-10 wrestler in their preseason rankings.
At 174, senior Chris Pfarr enters the 2017-18 season as the No. 20 ranked wrestler. Pfarr was an NCAA qualifier last season, and finished with a record of 18-15, which included two top-20 victories.
Whether you are looking for where the Gophers are ranked, or the latest results for the Gophers this season, Gophersports.com is the place to find information. Be sure to follow the Gophers on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for all the latest content on the Gopher wrestling team.
Gopher Wrestling Announces 2017-18 Schedule
The University of Minnesota wrestling program announced its 2017-18 schedule today, a schedule that will feature one of the toughest road schedules in the entire country.
Gophersports.com
Aug. 17, 2017
2017-2018 Schedule
The University of Minnesota wrestling program announced its 2017-18 schedule today, a schedule that will feature one of the toughest road schedules in the entire country with trips to four of the top five finishers from the 2017 NCAA Championships.
The Gophers will host six home dual meets this year with Michigan highlighting the schedule at the newly named Maturi Pavilion.
"We have a solid road schedule this year, our Big Ten schedule is the toughest in the country. Plus you add a team like Oklahoma State on the road, it adds another great test," said Coach Brandon Eggum.
"We head to Florida this year hoping to get some experience against different schools from different conferences. It's exciting to head down to Florida not only for us, but for our fans as well. It will be nice to be able to enjoy the warm weather down in Fort Lauderdale," added Eggum.
Minnesota will once again open the season with a trip to the Daktronics Open on Nov. 5, then the Maroon and Gold will return home to start the dual season when the Air Force Academy visits the Sports Pavilion before heading back out on the road.
The annual matchup with South Dakota State will come on Nov. 17 in Brookings. The Gophers won the matchup last season with a thrilling 18-17 victory, moving their overall record to 22-5 against the Jackrabbits.
The biggest test of the early season will come when Minnesota visits the 2017 third place finisher Oklahoma State Cowboys in Stillwater, Okla. on Nov. 19. The Gophers will look to avenge their 2016 loss to the Cowboys. The meeting this season will be the 30th time the two historic programs have met.
Minnesota will take a week off before heading to Las Vegas, Nev. for the Cliff Keen Invitational to begin the month of December. The 2017 trip will mark the Gophers fourth straight year at the Cliff Keen Invitational. The teams at the event are yet to be determined. Last season the Gophers finished fourth in the desert, with senior Jake Short set to defend his 157-pound title.
Minnesota will return home on Dec. 12 to host Fresno State. The dual with the Bulldogs will be first meeting between the two programs. Minnesota will then take a break for finals and the holidays before getting back to action on Dec. 29 when they travel to warm Ft. Lauderdale, Flor. for the South Beach Duals. The inaugural event will be host to nine other teams as of now including Missouri, Michigan State, North Carolina and Cornell.
After the holidays, the Gophers will return home for a match against the Michigan State Spartans to get the Big Ten season underway. Last season, the Gophers defeated the Spartans 20-17, and have now won the last nine meetings with Michigan State.
Minnesota will start its treacherous Big Ten road schedule with a dual against Ohio State on Jan. 12. The 2017 NCAA runner-up narrowly defeated the Gophers last season at home.
Breaking up the rough road schedule, Minnesota will return home for duals between Illinois and Michigan. Last season, the Wolverines finished 10th at the NCAA Championships, the sixth Big Ten team in the top ten.
Minnesota will look to repeat the results of the last meeting in State College when the Gophers defeated Penn State 17-16. Minnesota has won 13 of the past 14 meetings with the defending National Champions.
After a quick return home against Northwestern, the Gophers will finish the regular season with four straight road matches. Highlighted by the Hawkeyes on February 2, the Gophers will also take on Rutgers, Maryland and Rider before the Big Ten Championships in East Lansing.
GopherSports.com will have you covered for Gopher Wrestling news this season, from the opening match of the Daktronics Open through the final seconds of the NCAA Championships. As Minnesota prepares for the upcoming year, stayed tuned right here for news and, for the latest updates, follow Gopher Wrestling on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for the latest updates.
Schedule:
Date Opponent Location
Nov. 5 Daktronics Open Brookings, SD
Nov. 12 Air Force Minneapolis, MN (1-0)
Nov. 17 South Dakota State Brookings, SD (2-0)
Nov. 19 Oklahoma State Stillwater, OK (2-1)
Dec. 1-2 Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invite Las Vegas, NV
Dec. 10 Fresno State Minneapolis, MN (3-1)
Dec. 29-30 South Beach Duals Fort Lauderdale, FL
Jan. 7 Michigan State Minneapolis, MN (4-1)
Jan. 12 Ohio State Columbus, Ohio (4-2)
Jan. 14 Illinois Minneapolis, MN (5-2)
Jan. 21 Michigan Minneapolis, MN (5-3)
Jan. 26 Penn State State College, PA (5-4)
Jan. 28 Northwestern Minneapolis, MN (6-4)
Feb. 2 Iowa Iowa City, Iowa (6-5)
Feb. 9 Rutgers Piscataway, NJ (7-5)
Feb.11 Maryland College Park, MD (8-5)
Feb. 16 Rider Lawrenceville, NJ (9-5)
March 3-4 Big Ten Championships East Lansing, MI
March 15-17 NCAA Tournament Cleveland, Ohio
(Home matches in bold)
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