Hawkeyes ‘on a mission’ for Grapple on Gridiron

IOWA CITY - The hype has concluded and the stage set.

The wait is over and the only thing left is for the nation's two most successful college wrestling programs to entertain a record-setting crowd.

Fourth-ranked Iowa and No. 1 Oklahoma State will battle in Grapple on the Gridiron Saturday at Kinnick Stadium. As of Friday afternoon, 36,433 tickets have been sold for the first college wrestling meet to be held in an NCAA Division I football stadium.

'The main thing is it's time to compete, now,” Iowa Coach Tom Brands said at a news conference earlier this week. 'All the fanfare, we're going to let the fans take care of that from this point forward.”

Fans have embraced the unique event, scooping up enough tickets in the first hours they were available to break the attendance record for a college dual. Penn State set the mark with 15,996 at Bryce Jordan Center on Dec. 8, 2013.

Electricity has filled the air, especially around Kinnick Stadium, which will also host the unbeaten Hawkeyes and Minnesota in a Big Ten football game at 7 p.m.

'It's exciting,” Iowa 125-pounder Thomas Gilman said. 'You feel it. The fans are excited. Everyone is wondering how you are doing, how you are feeling.

'Everyone's getting fired up.”

The attendance record was at the heart of the decision for a dual at Kinnick, but the opponent had to be right. Oklahoma State Coach John Smith was immediately open to the plans.

'It was a minute, 30 (second) conversation and I thought it would be longer, like me trying to fluff it up a little bit,” Brands said. 'He didn't even hesitate. He understood what we were asking for and ‘we're in.'”

The Hawkeyes and Cowboys have combined for 57 NCAA team titles, including 23 for Iowa. Seventeen wrestlers listed as probable starters are ranked nationally.

This was the perfect matchup for a historic competition.

'It's the two most winningest programs in wrestling history, so why wouldn't they be,” Iowa 184-pounder Sam Brooks said. 'It is awesome they are ranked one, because then we get to beat them when they're ranked one. I think it's going to play out pretty well.”

According to the hourly forecast at KCRG.com, temperatures are expected to be 50 degrees with sunny skies. Those are favorable conditions for a mid-November Saturday, but the Hawkeyes trained for different elements.

'We've done a couple runs,” Brooks said. 'You feel the cold air in your lungs. You couldn't be more ready. We've done the work and it's time to go out there and get the job done.”

Iowa is led by All-Americans Gilman, Cory Clark (133), Brandon Sorensen at 149 and Nathan Burak at 197. The Hawkeyes have a load of fresh faces, replacing half of their lineup from a year ago. Alex Meyer (174) and heavyweight Sam Stoll will take over starting spots and will look to be big contributors, facing ranked foes.

Iowa has question marks at 141, 157 and 165. Red-shirt freshman Logan Ryan is expected to start at 141. Former Upper Iowa NCAA Division II national finalist Edwin Cooper and Skyler St. John are listed at 157. Red-shirt freshman Burke Paddock and senior Patrick Rhoads could get the call at 165.

'It's a chance for a lot of our guys to solidify themselves nationally,” Brands said. 'There are a lot of national implications and certainly local implications in our wrestling room at three weights, four weights, maybe.”

Oklahoma State has six top-10 ranked wrestlers, including No. 1 Alex Dieringer (165) and 141-pounder Dean Heil. Kyle Crutchmer (174) and heavyweight Austin Marsden are fifth.

The Hawkeyes, who shared the Big Ten tournament title and were NCAA runners-up last year, face a tough task.

'We're on a mission,” Gilman said. 'We're out to prove ourselves.”

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