National Wrestling Coaches Association Multi-Divisional Duals welcomes back NCAA Division I teams

CEDAR FALLS – National Wrestling Coaches Association Executive Director Mike Moyer said he felt something was missing.

An absent piece that left a noticeable space in college wrestling’s picture puzzle for fans to enjoy.

"I just I always felt since the (NCAA) Division I component was disconnected the event has been missing something," Moyer said. "The event's done a lot of wonderful things. And, really what it is for me personally, is it's a celebration of the extraordinary renaissance of the sport of wrestling."

For the first time since 2011, NWCA Multi-Divisional National Duals tournament will include an NCAA Division I bracket to the annual event that includes men’s and women’s programs from D-II, D-III and NAIA. The two-day competition begins Friday at 10 a.m. at the UNI-Dome.

University of Northern Iowa is one of 14 programs and the No. 1 seed in the D-I bracket. The Panthers open against Sacred Heart.

“I think it’s pretty cool when you have every class,” UNI Coach Doug Schwab said during his weekly news conference Monday. “Wrestling is wrestling. I think you realize at any level it’s a special sport.

“Now, you have girls involved. It’s a showcase of our sport.”

D-I participation has changed over the years. After the 2011 tournament, also in Cedar Falls, D-I teams separated from the other divisions. Those programs competed in different variations of a National Duals Championship with the NWCA.

In 2016 and 2017, the format switched to highlighted duals toward the end of the season that were supposed to be similar to college football’s bowl games.

“I remember when you’d get most teams to come to it, most Division I teams,” Schwab said. “I always thought it was a great event.”

South Dakota State, Arkansas-Little Rock, Northern Colorado, Wyoming, Geroge Mason, Ohio University, University of Pennsylvania, Cal State-Bakersfield, Drexel, Cal Poly, Central Michigan and SIU-Edwardsville agreed to compete.

Moyer praised the leadership at mid-major programs and said it wasn’t hard to get teams to commit.

"From my experience, and I've been doing this 24 years, the last thing you ever want is for an administration to believe they can no longer provide a competitive experience because of the disparity of funding," Moyer said. "It's really important that all of our coaches make sure they develop a schedule that demonstrates that they can be competitive when grouped with peer institutions.

"This is one opportunity to do that."

Interesting storylines remain, even though it doesn’t contain the country’s heavy hitters like Penn State, University of Iowa, Oklahoma State or Nebraska, which UNI just handled, 24-9, Sunday at the McLeod Center.

UNI and second-seeded SDSU opened the season in the UNI-Dome with the Panthers winning on criteria. UNI’s Parker Keckeisen and Northern Colorado’s Andrew Alirez are NCAA titlists in the field. Arkansas-Little Rock is one of the programs added to D-I and had its first two All-Americans last season.

"What I really love about dual meets is the outcomes are much less predictable," Moyer said. "You look at every mainstream spectator sport in America the one thing they all have in common is there is parity and unpredictable outcomes. That's what the fan and the media want. One upset in a dual meet can change a lot."

The college wrestling landscape is drastically different now. Moyer noted that 550 college wrestling programs were cut from 1972 through 1999. Since 2000, 405 programs have been reinstated or established, including 184 women’s programs. There are 80 D-I programs remaining.

"There's never been a more important time to keep Division I alongside all the other divisions,” Moyer said, “and make sure it stays in front of all the people at that matter."

Schwab recalled the event as a Hawkeye wrestler and coach. He wasn’t certain it would return to its past format unless it was part of an NCAA dual title that was separate from the traditional tournament, which Schwab called the sport’s “crown jewel” that caps the season.

“It’s got to be a (NCAA) national championship,” said Schwab, who served on a rules committee that considered two championship events. “That’s the only way to get everyone involved.”

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