Iowa owns advantage in series with Iowa State

IOWA CITY — Iowa Coach Tom Brands recalled childhood memories of watching the Iowa and Iowa State wrestling rivalry.

He sat in his basement with anticipation as Iowa Public Television broadcast the marquee matchups of the two highly-ranked teams. Like many eyes across the state, his eyes were fixed on his first exposure to big-time wrestling.

Those duals between the in-state foes are more a thing of the past in what has become a one-sided affair. Third-ranked Iowa will look for its 13th straight victory in the series, hosting the Cyclones Saturday at Carver-Hawkeye Arena, beginning at 7 p.m.

'Anytime you have a hotly contested dual where the rankings are high and both teams are ranked high and fighting for the same thing, which both teams are fighting for the same thing, that is probably where you would start,' Brands said. 'I would also say that because they are after the same thing we are we have to be ready. There are going to be 10 matches that are contested in this dual meet and we have to be ready for every one of them at the highest level.'

The Hawkeyes are 4-0, while the Cyclones enter at 1-3. Some of the luster has worn off and this is a rare occasion when one of the two is unranked. They have a common opponent in South Dakota State, which lost to Iowa and beat an Iowa State lineup without a few starters.

'The first half of the season hasn't been as fun as I'd like it to be,' Iowa State Coach Kevin Jackson said. 'I'm confident as we start getting everyone back, we'll start rolling here in midseason. When we get to championship season, we're real excited for the possibilities.'

Dan Gable took over the Iowa program in the 1976-77 season and began the dominance in this series. The numbers are astounding in favor of the Hawkeyes the last 40 years, including Brands' 11-0 mark since his first season as head coach in 2006-07.

Iowa is 57-7-1 against Iowa State under Gable, Jim Zalesky and Brands. Gable didn't beat his alma mater until their fourth meeting, going 0-2-1 in the first three. Then he won 35 times before Zalesky went 11-2.

The wins aren't the only telling factor. The Hawkeyes won in convincing fashion as well. In those 57 wins, Iowa has won by a total of 805 points for an average margin of victory of 14.12. Iowa State, on the other hand, has beaten Iowa by a total of 40 points in the same time span, which is 5.71 points per victory. For perspective, Iowa has had just 10 wins decided by five points or less.

Iowa NCAA runner-up Brandon Sorensen watched a few of those meets as well. He wants to see the trend continue.

'Let's keep it that way,' Sorensen said. 'Let's give them no hope and let's keep the score wide (and) lopsided to one side.'

In 2013, Iowa defeated Iowa State, 23-9, at Hilton Coliseum in Ames. In a post-meet news conference, Jackson said Iowa State was 'going to beat the Hawks' and 'it's coming.'

Instead, Iowa has won by 20 and 27 points the last two years. Brands may have reminded the Hawkeyes of those words.

'He's a competitive guy,' Brands said of Jackson. 'He's competed at a high level his whole life.

'He's clear on what he wants to accomplish. Whether he's close to that or not, that's not for me to say. It's for him to say and evaluate. Our job is to make sure our guys are ready to go.'

Iowa 184-pounder Sammy Brooks was a freshman, who bumped up to 197 and lost in that dual. He has heard the same rhetoric and the outcome has remained the same.

'They say that every year, I think,' Brooks said. 'They beat their chest and they get ready for this dual and then you just go look at the results.'

The dual is also missing a few key cogs for both teams. Iowa will be without three-time All-American and two-time NCAA finalist Cory Clark (133) and national qualifier Sam Stoll at heavyweight.

'I think we have a great chance to perform at several weight classes,' Jackson said in a weekly news conference Tuesday, noting that he wasn't sure who would wrestle. 'I can't be concerned with who they're going to throw out there. I know that there are several guys that they (the Hawkeyes) have in their lineup that are capable.'

The veteran wrestlers don't feel added pressure to make up for missing two highly-ranked individuals and the chance of having four freshmen in the lineup.

'We like the guys we've got at those weights,' Brooks said. 'Holloway could throw me through the ceiling, if he wanted to, so we're not worried about that.'

Iowa State may not have All-American Pat Downey, who is ranked ninth at 184 by trackwrestling.com. The Cyclones have multiple wrestlers listed at seven of 10 weights. Brands anticipates one of their toughest lineups of the young season.

'They like their young guys,' Brands said of ISU. 'They've been a little bit like us where they've been missing some guys at some weights. I think they are putting together their best team or their best solid lineup for this weekend. They'll do what they do best and that's get their team ready to go.'

Former Iowa City West two-time state champion Phil Laux will get his second straight start at 133, replacing Clark. Laux lost to SDSU's fifth-ranked Seth Gross and things will be even tougher with Iowa State's two-time All-American Earl Hall.

Laux will make his first appearance in the Cy-Hawk series. Old classmates at Iowa State rib him about other sports.

'It's exciting,' Laux said. 'We're a Hawkeye state. I have a lot of friends that go to Iowa State. This is a big dual. It's going to be fun to be a part of.

'They like to give me a hard time about Iowa State and growing up in an agricultural community a lot of them go there so I'm the outlier and I'm all right with that.'

Topher Carton (141), Michael Kemerer (157), Joey Gunther at 165, Cash Wilcke (197) and heavyweight Steven Holloway are making their debuts in the classic contest. They have a chance to put their stamp on it.

'I got to see the meet last year and I've seen the football and basketball rivalries,' said Kemerer, admitting he didn't know much about the series as a Pennsylvania prep. 'I know it's a pretty big deal. It's exciting to be a part of it.'

INSIDE THE SERIES

Overall series: Iowa leads 62-16-2.

First meeting: 1916; Iowa won, 17-8, in Iowa City.

Last meeting: 2015; Iowa won, 33-6, at Hilton Coliseum in Ames.

Current win streak: 12 (Iowa)

Iowa State's last win in series: 19-16 on Dec. 5, 2004, at Carver-Hawkeye Arena

Iowa's longest win streak in series: 30 (Feb. 21, 1987, to Dec. 7, 2003)

Iowa State's longest win streak in series: 6 (1917 to 1936)

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