Iowa

[No One Cares]

Flo article previewing the dual:

It's Senior Day in Iowa City as the Hawkeyes host the Wisconsin Badgers in their last home dual of the season in Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

Wisconsin is currently #15 in the nation according to Flo's team tournament rankings, while the Hawkeyes sit at #3. The teams have thirteen wrestlers in the individual rankings combined. This contest could feature ranked matchups at 125, 149, 165 and 174.

Previously
Iowa is coming off back-to-back losses for the first time since 2018, having dropped meets to Michigan and Penn State over the last two weekends. The Hawkeyes stand at 5-2 in the Big Ten Conference and 10-2 overall. They were also team champs at the Soldier Salute held over the holidays.

The Badgers are 3-3 in conference duals and 9-4 overall. They are on a hot steak, though, having won their last three duals, all against Big Ten foes. Wisconsin also placed second at the Midlands Championships, held concurrently to the Soldier Salute.

Wisconsin has a dual against #16 Minnesota on Friday, while Iowa's schedule is free this weekend, save for this Sunday afternoon dual.

The all-time series is skewed heavily toward the Hawkeyes, who have won the last 11 contests versus the Badgers. The series, which started in 1923, stands at 81-8-3 in favor of Iowa. Wisconsin's last victory came back in the 2006-07 season.

How To Watch
The dual will be broadcast on the BTN cable channel at 2:00 PM ET. Check your local listings for the channel numbers. You can also watch on the Fox Sports App if you have a cable subscription (specifically one that carries BTN).

If you don't have cable, you can purchase one month of YouTubeTV (or a similar service) and stream BTN on your connected device. That month will also get you the Big Ten Championships, though you will need to purchase another month to cover the NCAA Championships as well.

Projected Lineups
This list of probables comes from Wisconsin's and Iowa's preview but they are naturally subject to change.

125: #4 SO Drake Ayala, Iowa vs #3 SR Eric Barnett, Wisconsin

133: #23 JR Cullan Schriever or SR Brody Teske, Iowa vs FR Nicolar Rivera, Wisconsin

141: #2 SR Real Woods, Iowa vs Felix Lettini or FR Zan Fugitt, Wisconsin

149: #11 SO Caleb Rathjen, Iowa vs #15 JR Joseph Zargo or FR Julian George, Wisconsin

157: #5 SR Jared Franek, Iowa vs SO Luke Melcher or FR Cody Goebel, Wisconsin

165: #7 SO Michael Caliendo, Iowa vs #5 JR Dean Hamiti, Wisconsin

174: #5 JR Patrick Kennedy, Iowa vs #14 SR Max Maylor, Wisconsin

184: FR Aiden Riggins, Iowa vs #18 SR Shane Liegel or FR Luke Condon, Wisconsin

197: #12 SR Zach Glazier, Iowa vs SR Josh Otto, Wisconsin

285: FR Bradley Hill or FR Ben Kueter, Iowa vs FR Gannon Rosenfeld, Wisconsin

Matchups To Watch
A top five matchup to kick off the dual
You're gonna want to make sure you start watching this dual on time -- assuming it starts at 125 -- as that will be the highest ranked matchup of the dual.

125-pounds has been a swirling cauldron of chaos all season long, but things are starting to coalesce as we get close to tournament time.

Redshirt sophomore Draka Ayala has taken over the reins of Iowa's leadoff spot from Spencer Lee and performed admirably in his steed. Ayala has just three losses on the season by a total of five points.

Ayala will have to be at the top of his game to defeat two-time All-American Eric Barnett. The fifth-year senior from Greenville, Wisconsin placed seventh and eighth at the 2022 and 2021 NCAA Tournaments, respectively, and fell just one match shy of the podium last year. Barnett also has a win over Ayala, though it was two seasons ago at Big Tens.

The matchup will take on extra importance as Big Ten and NCAA seeds are on the line.

Two AA contenders at 149
Wisconsin junior Joey Zargo has qualified for the last two NCAAs and is well on his way to another in his third varsity season. The Badger by way of New Jersey has a 15-4 record and has placed at both the Michigan State Open and Midlands.

Caleb Rathjen, a local Iowan, has solidified his spot in the Hawkeye lineup, no small accomplishment when you have the likes of Victor Voinovich and other challengers in the same room. With a 10-3 record, he's in good shape to qualify for his first NCAA tournament in his third season in Iowa City.

Though Rathjen is a slight favorite on paper, Zargo has a good opportunity to silence the Carver-Hawkeye crowd with a win.

The Main Event
Though 125 will have two higher ranked wrestler, 165 is the marquee matchup of this dual, at least in my humble estimation.

Michael Caliendo, who comes to the Hawkeyes by way of the transfer portal, having placed seventh last season for the North Dakota State, is 15-2 on the season. His only losses this season are to #2 David Carr and #6 Mitchell Mesenbrink.

Dean Hamiti, a true junior who placed sixth at the last two NCAA Tournaments, is 21-1 on the season, with his only official loss also coming at the hands of David Carr. Additionally, Hamiti lost to #3 Izzak Olejnik at the All-Star Classic, although that match won't count for seeding and NCAA qualification purposes. At least it's not supposed to.

Though these two could see each other again in the Big Ten semifinals, this match will go a long way in helping each wrestler's NCAA seed as well. And in a division with the likes of Keegan O'Toole and David Carr, every little bit helps.

Fun fact: Caliendo (Batavia) and Hamiti (Joliet Catholic) attended high schools about an hour apart in the suburbs of Chicago.





Predictions
125: Barnett, Wisconsin over Ayala, Iowa by decision - Wisconsin 3, Iowa 0

133: Schriever, Iowa over Rivera, Wisconsin by decision - Wisconsin 3, Iowa 3

141: Woods, Iowa over Lettini, Wisconsin by major - Iowa 7, Wisconsin 3

149: Rathjen, Iowa over Zargo, Wisconsin by decision - Iowa 10, Wisconsin 3

157: Franek, Iowa over Melcher, Wisconsin by major - Iowa 14, Wisconsin 3

165: Hamiti, Wisconsin over Caliendo, Iowa by decision - Iowa 14, Wisconsin 6

174: Kennedy Iowa over Maylor, Wisconsin by decision - Iowa 17, Wisconsin 6

184: Liegel, Wisconsin over Riggens, Iowa by decision - Iowa 17, Wisconsin 9

197: Glazier, Iowa over Otto, Wisconsin by decision - Iowa 20, Wisconsin 9

285: Hill, Iowa over Rosenfeld, Wisconsin by decision - Iowa 23, Wisconsin 9

If all the starters go, Iowa is too strong in too many weights for Wisconsin to really have a shot at an upset. Wisconsin will only be heavy favorites in one weight, so they will need more than a couple of breaks to pull off an upset, especially on Senior Day in Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

[No One Cares]

https://www.flowrestling.org/articles/12107193-3-iowa-vs-15-wisconsin-preview-predictions

[leg turk]

Maybe Iowa loses 3 straight duals today?

[stbird]

How did Rathnje not get called for stalling?  Holy cow!!!

[vsmf2010]

Complete BS injury stoppage in Joeys match as he was going in for TD. Horrible call. Have to give the 3 there before the stoppage. The guy was fine after that. Clearly not injured. I sure hope Joey gets another crack at him at the Big Tens! Joey flat out the better wrestler. Everything that could have gone wrong in every exchange did!

[stbird]

I think these officials are on a NIL contract. Holy cow, terrible!!  Bono is going to lose his mind and rightly so!!!

[DocWrestling]

Wrestling needs to be entertaining to gain viewer and wrestlers.  Hamiti is that guy to watch.  So is Barnett.  I remember making my son sit down and watch Andrew Howe because he was a top wrestler.  I think he was the most boring wrestler in history.  My son might still be wrestling if he watch Hamiti and Barnett vs Howe.  No slight to Howe's accomplishments but just pointing out some of these guys are just more fun to watch and help the sport.

Disappointed the Daytona 500 was postponed.  Made it worse when Ayala did not show up.

[BadgerOne]

Zargo lost 8-1, so I don't think the refs affected the outcome.  Wish we saw Ayala and Maylor in this dual as those would have been good matches.

[neutral]

Do these guys work on defending their legs ... at all?

[vsmf2010]

Zargo lost 8-1, so I don't think the refs affected the outcome.  Wish we saw Ayala and Maylor in this dual as those would have been good matches.

Did you watch the match?

[wrestler_73]

Who is coaching the bigger badgers.  Embarrassing

[Wrestling Guru]

In any other sport if we were losing to Iowa and Minnesota by this much, we would be asking a lot more questions about the coaching staff. Why do we not have the same expectations for our wrestling program? I'm disappointed in all the people that jump on naysayers of the current Badger wrestling program. It's okay to ask questions and expect better. If you're satisfied with mediocre then that is where you will sit.

[DocWrestling]

I am unsure on the cause of our middle of the pack teams but not sure the coach is out there that makes a huge difference.  I have said before I would take a flyer on Askren or someone in his camp. 

I do think money and facilites is a bigger holdup than the coach is.

Just like the football team no longer has any chance of a conference or national championship, same for wrestling

[Wrestling Guru]

Our football coach has one year under his belt, if he has the same success as wrestling, after his recruiting classes and coaching he wouldn't make it 6 years.

If facilities and money are an issue what is being done to address it?

Excuses do not help the program grow and get better, they keep us having a couple AAs each year and a lot of holes in the lineup.

[wrestler_73]

I agree Doc.  But the Hwt should not have lost by major decision to a guy that he has beat twice in the past.  That's on the current coaching staff and program.