No. 16 Huskers Open Season at Buckeye Duals

No. 16 Nebraska (0-0) vs. No. 20 Pittsburgh (0-2)
St. John Arena (13,276) • Columbus, Ohio • Sunday, Nov. 21, 2010 • 9 a.m.
Series History: NU leads, 2-0
Last Meeting: NU won, 25-13, on Dec. 4, 1996, in Lincoln, Neb.
Live Stats: http://www.nwcaonline.com

No. 16 Nebraska (0-0) vs. No. 11 Ohio State (0-0)
St. John Arena (13,276) • Columbus, Ohio • Sunday, Nov. 21, 2010 • 12:30 p.m.
Series History: NU leads, 5-1
Last Meeting: NU won, 20-19, on Dec. 9, 2000, in Lincoln, Neb.
Live Stats: http://www.nwcaonline.com
Video (subscription required): http://www.ohiostatebuckeyes.com

   The 16th-ranked Nebraska Wrestling team is set kick off the 2010-11 dual season this Sunday against a pair of nationally ranked opponents when they travel to Columbus, Ohio, to compete in the Buckeye Duals hosted by Ohio State University. The Huskers will open the season with a dual against the No. 20 Pittsburgh Panthers from the Eastern Wrestling League at 9 a.m. on Sunday, Nov. 21, before battling Big Ten Foe No. 11 Ohio State later in the day at 12:30 p.m. Live stats will be available to follow the action for both matches at www.nwcaonline.com. Nebraska's match against Ohio State will also be streamed live on-line at www.ohiostatebuckeyes.com. A subscription is required.

   The Huskers are coming off a 9-11 season a year ago and a 12th-place finish at the NCAA Championships in Omaha. Nebraska welcomes back four NCAA qualifiers from last  year's squad, led by fifth-year senior Jordan Burroughs. Burroughs, who is the team's only All-American, returns to the Huskers after missing the majority of last season with a knee injury suffered early in the season. The Sicklerville, N.J., native is the school's only undefeated national champion after going 35-0 in 2008-09 en route to the 157-pound title. Ranked at No. 2 in the 165-pound weight class behind defending national champion Andrew Howe of Wisconsin, Burroughs will try to become the Nebraska's first-ever two-time individual national champion in 2010-11.

   Nebraska also returns NCAA qualifiers Tucker Lane, Mike Koehnlein and Josh Ihnen. Lane will make a run at All-American status after qualifying for the NCAA Tournament in his first two seasons as a Husker. Last season, Lane went 23-12 overall while winning one match at the NCAA Championships. Both Koehnlein and Ihnen had immediate impacts in their first years in the program, each having advanced to the NCAA Championships. Koehnlein, a junior college transfer from West Minster, Calif., will look to build off his 18 victories last season, while Ihnen is returning after coming one match short of reaching All-American status last year. The 184-pound sophomore won three matches as last year's NCAA Tournament and 19 matches overall. Ihnen will enter the season ranked at No. 10 in his weight class, while Lane checks in a No. 7 in the heavyweight division. 

Scouting the Pittsburgh Panthers
   The No. 20 Pittsburgh Panthers have stumbled a bit out of the gate this season, dropping two tough matches to nationally ranked opponents. The Panthers dropped their first match of the season to No. 14 Lehigh, 29-7, before falling to No. 18 Michigan, 17-15. The defending Eastern Wreslting League conference champions, Pitt returns six NCAA qualifiers from a team that went 17-1-1 a year ago. The Panthers are well represented in the rankings with five wrestlers ranked in the top 20 of their respective weight classes. Leading the pack is sophomore Tyler Nauman, who is ranked as the No. 3 wrestler in the 141 pound division. The All-American finished last season with a 37-5 record and a fifth-place finish at the NCAA Tournament. Pittsburgh is coached by Rande Stottlemyer.

Husker History vs. Pittsburgh
   Sunday will be Nebraska's first dual against Pitt since the 1996-97 season, when the Huskers defeated the Panthers, 25-13, in Lincoln, Neb. The Huskers lead the all-time series, 2-0-1.

Scouting the Ohio State Buckeyes
   The Ohio State Buckeyes enter the season after an impressive 2009-10 campaign that saw them go 18-2 and 7-1 in the Big Ten Conference. The Buckeyes lost four-time All-American Lance Palmer from last year's squad, but return four NCAA qualifiers and one All-American for this season. The Buckeyes have four wrestlers ranked inside the top 15 of their respective weight divisions, including No. 4 Colt Sponseller (157), No. 5 Logan Stieber (125), No. 14 Ian Paddock (133) and No. 14 Cody Magrum (197). The Buckeyes are coached by Tom Ryan.

Husker History vs. Ohio State
   Sunday will be Nebraska's first dual against Ohio State since the 2000-01 season, when the Huskers defeated the Buckeyes, 20-19, in Lincoln, Neb. The Huskers lead the all-time series, 5-0-1

Last Time Out: Huskers Garner Four Titles Over Weekend
   The Nebraska wrestling team won three individual titles at two separate tournaments on Saturday, Nov. 13, which also included senior 165-pounder Jordan Burroughs. The Huskers sent wrestlers to both the Cowboy Open in Laramie, Wyo., and the Harold Nichols Classic in Ames, Iowa. Burroughs, Tucker Lane, Ridge Kiley, and James Nakashima all captured first-place finishes, while seven other Huskers finished in the top six of their brackets.

   In his return, Burroughs notched two victories by pin, a technical fall, and a major decision en route to the 165-pound title. Also winning his bracket at the Harold Nichols Open was sophomore Ridge Kiley. A 133-pounder, Kiley finished the tournament by defeating his last four opponents by decision, including Big 12-foe Derek Geiges (Oklahoma) in the second round. Kiley took down Ryan Jauch (Northern Iowa), 3-2, in the finals.

   Also placing for the Huskers at the Harold Nichols Open were redshirt freshman Ross Grande (fourth, 149), freshman Dakota Magrew (sixth, 157), freshman Robert Kokesh (second, 165), sophomore Josh Ihnen (third, 184), freshman Spencer Johnson (second, 184), senior Andy Johnson (third, 197) and freshman Matt Dwyer (fourth, 197).

   At the Cowboy open, senior Tucker Lane won his second title of the season by winning all four of his matches by decision. The junior improved his record to 8-0 on the season after capturing the heavyweight title at the Williamson/Daktronics Open last weekend.

   Nakashima was just as dominant as his fellow Husker, winning by technical fall over his first opponent, Justin Grosse (Mesa State College), 19-3, in the first round of the 184-pound bracket. The senior then defeated Eric Brennan (Northern Colorado) and Kazden Ikehara (Air Force) in the next two rounds to set up a match against Adam Carey (CSU-Pueblo) in the finals. Nakashima was able to escape the match with a 6-4 overtime victory to take the title.

Huskers Gear Up for Regular Season with Wrestle-Offs
   The Nebraska wrestling team kicked off the 2010-11 season at the annual Red-White Wrestle-Offs on Friday, Nov. 5, at the Bob Devaney Sports Center. The Huskers welcomed over 200 wrestling coaches from the region, as the Wrestle-Offs were held in conjunction with the 2010 Fall Coaches Clinic.

   The Wrestle-Offs marked the return of senior Jordan Burroughs, who missed the majority of last season with a knee injury. The Sicklerville, N.J. native was dominant in his return going 2-0, while recording a fall (2:56) in his first match against Jerad Gubbels. In his second match, Burroughs defeated freshman Robert Kokesh by a 10-4 decision to finish his night.
   Burroughs, now a 165-pounder, is the school's only undefeated national champion after finishing the 2008-09 season with a 35-0 record.
   Mike Koehnlein, a 141-pound senior, also won both of his matches on the night defeating Blake Meeks, 4-0, after he opened the night with a 11-2 major decision victory over freshman Chad Stroh. Koehnlein is one of the Huskers' four returning national qualifiers after making the NCAA Tournament a season ago.
   True freshman Cody Magrew was impressive in his Nebraska debut, taking down redshirt freshman Mike Klinginsmith twice on the night. In their second match of the night, the 157-pound Magrew was able to escape with a 5-3 overtime win to collect his second win. 

Four-Time All-American Snyder Returns as Assistant Coach
   The Nebraska wrestling team announced this offseason the return and addition of one of the most decorated student-athletes in program history, as Bryan Snyder was named an assistant coach for the Huskers Over the summer,
  
   The only four-time All-American and four-time conference champion in school history, Snyder comes back to the Husker wrestling program in its 100th anniversary season. The Easton, Pa., native spent last year as the head assistant coach at Arizona State and helped guide five Sun Devils to the 2010 NCAA Championships in Omaha. Snyder began his coaching experience as an assistant at Harvard in 2002-03, while returning to the Husker wrestling program as a graduate assistant coach for two seasons (2003-04 and 2004-05), as NU went 38-5-1 in duals and finished fifth at the 2004 NCAA Championships.

   As a wrestler, Snyder ranks No. 1 on Nebraska's all-time winning percentage chart (.925), compiling a 136-11 record from 1999-2002. He claimed All-America accolades and a Big 12 championship all four years, while finishing as the NCAA runner-up at 157 pounds in 2001 and 2002. He amassed over 30 wins per season three times, including his 43-3 record as a sophomore that stands as the second-best single-season mark in school history. A four-time NWCA All-Academic selection, Snyder was named the 2002 Nebraska Male Student-Athlete of the Year and graduated with a double major in Sociology and Communication Studies.

Brester, Brown Joing NU Coaching Staff
   Two recent NU All-Americans will add further experience and knowledge to the Husker wrestling coaching staff as Nebraska announced the additions of volunteer assistant Brandon Browne and administrative assistant Craig Brester. Along with coach Bryan Snyder, the three new hires combined to win 87 percent of their matches and earn eight All-America honors during their Husker careers.

   Browne will be in his second year with the Huskers after serving as the team's club coach last year. A native of Plattsmouth, Neb., Browne won back-to-back Big 12 championships at 174 pounds in 2008 and 2009.

   Brester will be the most recent face on the NU staff and serve the role of administrative assistant. The Howells, Neb., native finished his career this past March with his second-straight NCAA runner-up finish at 197 pounds. Through four years, Brester produced a 109-21 record and ranks with the eight-best winning percentage (.838) in school history.