No. 4 NU Visits No. 6 MU to Begin Big 12

Dual 13: No. 4 Nebraska vs. No. 6 Missouri
Date: Saturday, Jan. 31
Time: 7:30 p.m.
Location: Hearnes Center, Columbia, Mo.
Live Stats: Huskers.com
Live Video: Mutigers.com

Lincoln - Once again wrestling in one of the most competitive conferences in the nation, the Huskers’ Big 12 schedule begins with a tough road dual, as No. 4 Nebraska visits sixth-ranked Missouri Saturday for a 7:30 p.m. dual in the Hearnes Center.

NU is coming off another successful weekend during which the Huskers topped Penn, 23-14, in Lincoln last Friday, before handing Virginia Tech its first loss of the season, 26-11, and ending No. 6 Central Michigan’s 11-dual winning streak with a 17-17 tie in Mount Pleasant, Mich., last Sunday. Senior Brandon Browne and junior Stephen Dwyer posted back-to-back major decisions in the final two matches Friday to propel Nebraska past the defensive-minded Quakers. The Huskers won seven bouts against the Hokies, including bonus-point victories in four of the final six matches, to capture NU’s 22nd straight win against an Atlantic Coast Conference team. Juniors Jordan Burroughs and Craig Brester posted Nebraska’s two bonus-point victories against the Chippewas, as NU and CMU each won five matches.

The Huskers begin their conference schedule on Saturday against a familiar foe in the Tigers. Nebraska and Missouri have met 56 times, with NU holding a 37-16-3 advantage, the most wins for the Huskers against any one program. NU downed Missouri last year in Lincoln and holds a 7-2 winning edge in Columbia since 1990, but this years matchup may be a little tougher for the Huskers. The two programs enter the weekend just two spots apart in the rankings with very similar lineups. Both squads are strong above 157 pounds. MU has six wrestlers ranked in the top 11, including five about 157, while NU has six ranked wrestlers with four above 157. Saturday’s dual will feature five bouts between two ranked opponents, including four bouts between two wrestlers ranked in the top ten.

No. 2 Craig Brester and No. 4 Max Askren have had some epic battles in the past at 197 pounds, while No. 2 Brandon Browne and No. 5 Raymond Jordan meet for the first time as Jordan drops down from 184 last season to 174 this season. Fourth-ranked Stephen Dwyer faces former No. 1 and current No. 7 Nick Marable, as No. 3 Jordan Burroughs squares off against ninth-ranked Michael Chandler. A No. 1 wrestler could also be in action with top-ranked heavyweight Mark Ellis possibly facing No. 16 Tucker Lane.

Saturday’s contest will feature live stats on Huskers.com, with subscription video is available through Mutigers.com.

Last Time Out: Huskers Top Hokies, Tie Chippewas
The fourth-ranked Nebraska wrestling team handed Virginia Tech its first dual loss of the season, 26-11, and broke No. 6 Central Michigan’s 11-dual winning streak with a 17-17 tie in front of more than 2,600 fans at the Rose Arena in Mount Pleasant, Mich., on Sunday. NU improved to 12-2-1 on the season, while VT fell to 14-1 and CMU to 12-1-1. The tie is NU’s first since knotting Penn at 17 in the final dual of the 2006-07 season.

In a matchup of two of the top teams in the nation, the Huskers and Chippewas both won five bouts with each team winning two major decisions. Juniors Jordan Burroughs and Craig Brester claimed the Huskers’ bonus-point victories at 157 and 197, respectively. Burroughs battled Tyler Grayson through a scoreless first period, but notched three takedowns in each of the final two periods to take the 13-5 win and put NU on the board for the first time. Burroughs is 22-0 on the season, including 13-0 in duals.

Brester also stepped on the mat with the Huskers down, this time facing a 17-10 deficit with two matches left. Brester posted seven takedowns against Eric Simaz, but was unable to score backpoints, and settled for a 16-6 major decision to pull NU within three. Brester has nine major decisions this year and a 23-1 record.

Brester’s victory at 197 forced the result of the dual down to the heavyweight matchup, with redshirt freshman Tucker Lane earning another critical victory for the Huskers. Lane posted a takedown in the first period and held a slim 3-2 advantage late in the third period against Jarod Trice. With under a minute left, Trice attempted to throw Lane near the edge of the mat, but the Husker held his ground and landed on top of Trice for a takedown to seal the match at 5-4.

Senior Brandon Browne and junior Stephen Dwyer picked up decisions in bouts that pitted two top-10 ranked foes. Browne posted a 6-4 victory over No. 7 Mike Miller at 174 after going down early, while Dwyer used two takedowns and a reversal for a 7-2 win over No. 10 Trevor Stewart at 165.

CMU claimed a 14-point lead to start the dual with victories in the first four weights, including major decisions at 141 and 149, and notched their fifth victory with an upset of No. 10 Vince Jones at 184.

In their first contest of the day, the Huskers captured their 22nd straight win against a team from the Atlantic Coast Conference by winning seven bouts against the Hokies, including bonus-point victories in four of the final six matches.

Brester posted the most impressive victory, using four two-point nearfalls in a 17-2 technical fall of D.J. Bruce., tying him for the team lead with three technical falls on the year. Burroughs and Dwyer notched back-to-back major decisions at 157 and 165. Burroughs added another six takedowns to his pursuit of the single-season dual takedown mark for a 16-6 win over Jesse Dong, while Dwyer used an early nearfall to take a 12-1 victory against Matt Epperly. Jones continued the NU momentum with a 10-2 major decision over Tommy Spellman.

Browne claimed a decision at 174 and Matt Vacanti got NU its first points with a decision at 133. Lane battled David Marone to the first tiebreaker before earning a 2-1 victory to round out NU’s wins.

Scouting Missouri (15-2)
Head Coach Brian Smith and the Tigers were busy during the fall semester, posting an 11-0 dual record while traveling to several dual tournaments in New York and California. Missouri’s record is impressive, but the Tigers faced just two ranked foes during their run. MU collected dual wins over Lock Haven and Bucknell before defeating No. 16 Hofstra, 22-12, in the Tiger’s home opener on Nov. 22. Missouri then went 4-0 at the Northeast Duals on Nov. 29, earning a 29-9 victory over No. 20 Old Dominion in the opening round. The Tigers also traveled to the Central Coast Duals where they collected three more dual victories over California schools. Missouri ended the fall semester by placing third at Midlands, behind eight placewinners.

The new year provided a higher level of opponents and mixed results for Missouri. The Tigers enter National Duals ranked fifth in the nation, a spot they had held in every NWCA poll previously, but suffered a 20-19 loss to No. 14 Penn State in the opening round. MU bounced back to top No. 20 Northwestern, 25-12, but was eliminated by No. 6 Ohio State, 23-19. The Tigers dropped to 12th in the rankings, before picking up easy dual wins over Missouri Valley College and Chattanooga on Jan. 18. MU knocked off No. 2 Cornell, 18-14, last Sunday in their latest action to climb to No. 6 in the Jan. 27 NWCA poll.

All six of Missouri’s ranked wrestlers have earned spots in the top 11 in the nation, including top-ranked Mark Ellis at heavyweight. Ellis, a junior from Peculiar, Mo., has a 22-1 record this season after going 5-0 at Midlands to finish first. The two-time NCAA qualifier defeated two ranked foes to earn Big 12 Wrestler-of-the-Week Honors on Jan. 5, and currently has an 18-match winning streak. Fellow junior Max Askren is ranked fourth in the nation at 197 after winning the Big 12 last season and finishing seventh at the NCAA Championships. Askren has a 20-2 mark this year.

The Tigers also return All-Americans Nick Marable and Raymond Jordan this season. Marable claimed a Big 12 title last season before earning third at the national tournament at 165 pounds. The junior started the season ranked No. 1, but an early-season loss and three straight losses at Midlands have dropped him to seventh with a 17-5 record. Jordan claimed third at 184 pounds at the 2008 NCAA Championships with a 26-6 record. The senior dropped to 174 pounds this season and is fifth after opening the season with 18 straight wins. He is currently 24-2.

Senior Michael Chandler has racked up a 22-4 record to earn the No. 9 ranking at 157 pounds,while fellow senior Marcus Hoehn is No. 11 at 141 with a 23-7 mark.

Husker History Versus Missouri
Nebraska is 37-16-3 all-time against Missouri, the most wins the Huskers have against any one school. The two programs first met in the 1925-26 season as NU blanked the Tigers 29-0 in Lincoln, and it has been Nebraska ever since. The last seven meetings between Nebraska and Missouri have seen both teams ranked in the top 20 in the nation, including a matchup of No. 3 and 4. The fourth-ranked Huskers defeated the third-ranked Tigers 23-13 on Jan. 24, 2004, in Lincoln. NU is 16-3 against MU since 1990, including a 7-2 record in Columbia.

In their last meeting, second-ranked Nebraska racked up three bonus-point wins and two sudden victories to propel the Huskers past No. 11 Missouri, 22-13, in front of 3,252 fans at the NU Coliseum on Feb. 2, 2008. Nebraska improved to 11-2 on the year and 2-0 in the Big 12, while the Tigers dropped to 7-3-1 and 0-1-1 in the conference.

Paul Donahoe once again led the way for NU as he broke a 7-7 tie with his 19-3 technical-fall victory at 125 pounds over Missouri’s John Olanowski. Donahoe scored a three-point nearfall halfway into the first period as he went on to accumulate three nearfalls and five takedowns in the match. Clinching the match for the Huskers was Jordan Burroughs at 149 pounds. Burroughs’ 15-7 major decision put Nebraska up 22-7 with two matches left. Burroughs defeated No. 16 Josh Wagner with six takedowns. Rounding out the bonus-point wins for NU was Brandon Browne, who earned a 14-5 major decision over Brock Wittmeyer at 174 pounds. Browne earned three takedowns in the second period to cruise to the win.

The Huskers picked up two tight wins as both Kenny Jordan (133) and Mike Rowe (141) collected sudden victories. Jordan took a 1-1 tie into the extra period against Tyler McCormick before his takedown with 50 seconds left won the match 3-1. Rowe entered the extra stanza tied at two, but took just 17 second to beat Marcus Hoehn. Jon May scored one of the biggest upsets of the evening as he defeated No. 11 Mark Ellis, 3-2. May entered the third period up 1-0, but a quick escape by Ellis tied the match. May battled back with a takedown with 35 seconds left to earn the win.

Measuring the Majors
Jordan Burroughs added to his long list of accolades last weekend, as he notched his 10th major decision of the season and became the first known NU wrestler to post back-to-back seasons with at least 10 major decisions. Statistics are incomplete prior to the 1982 season. Burroughs notched 12 last season at 149 pounds and has earned 10 through 22 matches this year at 157.

Pinning Down Vince
Vince Jones collected his 10th pin of the season on Jan. 18 en route to helping the Huskers earn a 43-3 dual win over South Dakota State. The fall was also a bit of history, as Jones became the first Nebraska wrestler since Tolly Thompson to record at least 10 pins in each season he competed in. Jones posted 14 pins in 2005-06 as a true freshman, sat out his sophomore year and notched 10 last season. Thompson accomplished the same feat at heavyweight from 1993-97, racking up 53 total pins.

Fit to be Tied
Last Sunday’s 17-17 contest at Central Michigan was just the third tie in Head Coach Mark Manning’s 168 duals at Nebraska. Nebraska also knotted Penn at 17 on Feb. 17, 2007, in the final dual of the 2006-07 season and dualed Wisconsin to a 19-19 tie on Jan. 8, 2005, at the Lone Star Duals. All three of NU’s ties under Manning have come on the road.

Totaling 20
Seven Nebraska wrestlers have moved above the 20-win mark this season, including Vince Jones (184) and Craig Brester (197) who lead the team with 23 victories each. Jordan Burroughs (157), Brandon Browne (174) and Tucker Lane (Hwt) have earned 22 wins, while Stephen Dwyer (165) and Robert Sanders (149) have 21.

Last season, eight Huskers eclipsed the 20-win mark, including three (Burroughs, Dwyer and Browne) that topped 30 wins on the season.

Lane Garners Big 12 Honor
Nebraska heavyweight Tucker Lane was selected as the Big 12 Wrestler of the Week, the conference announced on Jan. 13. Lane, a redshirt freshman from Redvale, Colo., shared the weekly honor with Iowa State’s Jake Varner.

Lane was a key component in the Huskers fourth-place finish at the NWCA National Duals, finishing with a 3-1 record at the tournament. He posted an 8-5 decision over Ben Kuhar to give the Huskers a 19-18 victory over No. 20 Northwestern in the opening round, and followed with a 4-2 decision over Cameron Wade to solidify a come-from-behind 20-16 win versus No. 14 Penn State. Against No. 2 Iowa State, Lane scored an early takedown over No. 3 Dave Zabriskie and added a three-point nearfall in the second period to take a 7-6 victory and nearly lead the Huskers to an upset of the Cyclones.

At the time, Lane was 19-5 on the season, including 8-2 in duals, with three pins. It was his first career honor, and he was the second Husker to earn recognition from the Big 12 this season.

Big Time at the Big Weights
Nebraska has posted an impressive mark so far this season in the upper weights. In 15 duals, Nebraska has a 73-11 record from 157 pounds to heavyweight, including three wrestlers holding at least 13 dual wins in that weight range.

Perfect So Far
One Husker wrestler remains in the ranks of the undefeated. Of NU’s 30 wrestlers that have competed, Jordan Burroughs (157) still has an unblemished record at 22-0. Nebraska has 20 wrestlers with winning records in 2008-09.

Ruling up the Rankings
The Huskers stayed fourth in the latest NWCA dual rankings after dual victories over Penn and Virginia Tech and a tie with No. 6 Central Michigan last weekend. NU moved up to as high as third after winning the Las Vegas Inviational. Nebraska started the season ranked sixth in the nation and has been ranked in the top 25 ever since the NWCA and InterMat polls combined in 2004, including 19 straight polls in the top 10.

Bonus-Point Brester
Craig Brester has been a bonus-point machine for the Huskers this season. A junior from Howells, Neb., Brester has posted an 23-1 record, including 14-1 in duals. Twenty of his 23 wins have come by bonus-points, including seven pins, three technical falls and nine major decisions. Brester notched five pins in his first six matches, and has rolled from there. In early December, he went 5-0 at the Las Vegas Invitational to claim the title at 197 pounds. He started the tournament with a fall, posted his first technicall fall of the season in the second round, and finished with three straight major decisions.

Quickest Pin
The award for quickest pin so far this season goes to freshman Josh Ihnen at 184 pounds. Ihnen notched a 28 second fall of Morningside’s Joe Lockett at the UNK Loper Open on Dec. 13 to earn the honor. Ihnen has four pins on the year, while the Huskers as a whole have notched 79 so far.

Judging Jordan
Jordan Burroughs earned All-America honors with his third-place finish at last year’s NCAA Championships, but his proudest accomplishment may be setting Nebraska’s single-season dual takedown mark with 98 last season.

Judging by his performance in his 13 dual appearances this season, he is well on his way to breaking the record again. He has notched 78 dual takedowns so far, including 18 in two duals on Jan. 4. With six duals left, Burroughs would have to average 3.3 takedowns per match to break the record. He would also have to appear in all of NU’s duals, a feat he accomplish last season when he averaged 5.8 takedowns per dual.

The Pin King
Vince Jones, Nebraska’s resident pin king, is back at it again this season. He led the Huskers in falls with 12 in 2005-06 and accomplished the feat again with 10 in 2007-08. The senior is well on his way again this season with 10 pins in 26 matches, including three straight to start the year.

Jones has some competition this season from junior Craig Brester, the Huskers’ 197-pounder. Brester is 23-1 on the year with seven pins and three technical falls and nine major decisions. All of Brester’s falls have come in the first period, including one against No. 14 Andrew Anderson of Northern Iowa at the Kaufman-Brand Open on Nov. 22.

Best Start Since
The Huskers rushed to an 8-0 start to this season, before falling to No. 1 Iowa at National Duals. The mark is NU’s best start since 2004-05, a season in which Nebraska finished third at the Big 12 Championships and 19th at the NCAA Championships.

The Wrestler Formerly Known as Jordan
Nebraska’s Jordan Burroughs is quickly earning a new nickname - OW. The junior from Winslow Township, N.J. has claimed three Oustanding Wrestler honors at three tournaments. He posted a technical fall and major decision en route to being named the Outstanding Wrestler at last year’s Big 12 Championships, while also earning the title at the Kaufman-Brand Open with a 5-0 record on the day and a defeat of former NCAA champion Dustin Schlatter of Minnesota. Burroughs picked up his third OW honor in early December at the Las Vegas Invitational when he posted another five wins, including two over All-Americans and another against a former NCAA champion in Cornell’s Jorden Leen.

Topping Off National Duals
NU’s fourth-place finish at National Duals this season was the 11th time the Huskers have finished in the top five since the inception of the event in 1989. The Huskers improved their all-time record to 48-29 in the 16 appearances at National Duals.

4-0 for National Duals
Two Huskers posted a perfect 4-0 record at National Duals, leading the Huskers to a fourth-place team finish. Jordan Burroughs was the most impressive, earning victories over three ranked foes and two All-Americans. The junior opened with a decision over No. 17 Jason Welch of Northwestern, before adding another decision against eighth-ranked Dan Vallimont of Penn State, an All-American last season. Burroughs added a 22-7 technical fall over Iowa’s Matt Ballweg and ended with a 12-4 major decision over No. 5 Cyler Sanderson of Iowa State, also an All-American last season.

Senior Brandon Browne also contributed four victories to the Huskers’ cause, winning all his matches by decision. He posted a 14-7 decision against Northwestern’s Robert Kellogg and defeated No. 14 Quentin Wright of Penn State, 3-1, on the first day. Browne got a measure of revenge with a 5-4 decison over No. 5 Jay Borschel of Iowa, who defeated him in the consolation finals of last year’s NCAA Championships, and capped the tournament with a 7-4 win over Iowa State’s Andrew Sorenson.

Double Down in Vegas
The second time around was just as nice for the Huskers in Vegas, as Nebraska won the Las Vegas Invitational on Dec. 6 for the second time in NU history.

Nebraska’s other first-place finish came in 2003, when the Huskers piled up 139.5 points en route to the crown. NU claimed three individual titles, while four other Huskers placed in the top eight. Top-ranked Jason Powell of Nebraska knocked off ninth-ranked Mark Moos of Michigan, 4-2, in the finals at 125 pounds, while No. 7 Travis Shufelt pinned Missouri’s Jeremy Spates in the third period at 149 to also finish first. Travis Pascoe rounded out the Huskers’ title winners at 184 pounds.

Tickets on Sale for Big 12 Wrestling Championships
The University of Nebraska has announced that tickets are now on sale for the general public for the 2009 Big 12 Wrestling Championships, which will be held at the NU Coliseum in Lincoln, Neb., on March 7. Fans can purchase tickets by calling the Nebraska Ticket Office at (800) 8-BIGRED or online at Huskers.com.

All-session tickets are $20 for reserved seating (north and south stands) and $15 for general admission (east and west balcony). Individual-session tickets will be available on March 7 for $8 reserved and $7 general admission. The first session begins at 11 a.m., while the second sessions commences at 4 p.m. Finals are contested at 7 p.m.

The Huskers host the conference tournament for the third time since the inception of the Big 12. Nebraska finished fourth when it hosted the event in 2000 at the Bob Devaney Sports Center and third at the Qwest Center in Omaha in 2005. This year’s tournament will be contested at the NU Coliseum, which holds more than 4,030 fans. The Coliseum is located in the heart of NU’s campus next to Memorial Stadium and has provided a thrilling match-day environment for fans, including hosting the National Duals from 1993 to 1997.

Burroughs Earns Second-Straight Big 12 Honor
The Huskers’ Jordan Burroughs was named the Big 12 Wrestler of the Week, the conference announced on Dec. 8. A native of Sicklerville, N.J., he earns the honor after being named the Big 12’s Wrestler of the Month on Dec. 1.

Burroughs won the individual title at 157 pounds to lead No. 6 Nebraska to the team crown at the 2008 Las Vegas Invitational on Dec. 5-6. Burroughs, who was named the tournament’s Outstanding Wrestler, posted a perfect 5-0 record over the weekend to improve his mark to 11-0 on the season.

The junior opened the tournament with two major decisions over Michigan’s Aaron Hynes (16-7) and North Dakota State’s Andrey Patselov (18-5) before wrapping up Friday’s competition with a 5-2 decision over Minnesota’s Tyler Safratowich. Burroughs was just as impressive on Saturday, posting decisions over two All-Americans. He earned a 3-2 victory over No. 5 J.P. O’Conner of Harvard in the semifinals, then moved on to claim a 10-8 win against the defending national champion and sixth-ranked Jordan Leen of Cornell in the finals.

Non-Varsity Notes
After having last weekend off, NU’s non-varsity wrestlers travel to the Grand View Open in Des Moines, Iowa, on Saturday. Hosted by Grand View University, wrestling begins at 9 a.m. in the Sisam Arena.

Next up: Nebraska Renews Rivalry with Oklahoma State
All Big 12 duals are emotional battles, but their is something special about facing Oklahoma State, one of the most successful programs in the nation. The Huskers will renew their rivalry with the Cowboys when NU hosts OSU on Feb. 5 in the Bob Devaney Sports Center at 7 p.m. As part of Pepsi’s Pack the House promotion, admission and Pepsi products will be $1 at the dual. Senior Brandon Browne will also be honored as a Hometown Husker. Doors open at 6 p.m.