Iowa at Minnesota
  Nov. 15, 2002  Xcel Energy Center  St. Paul, Minn.   
    Marketing guru J Robinson decided last year that he wanted the Minnesota vs. Iowa dual to be more than a rivalry. He wanted it to be an event and a show. He succeeded.    15,646 fans, a record, showed up to the Target Center in Minneapolis, Minn. to watch amateur wrestling history. The dual included music, smoke, pyrotechnics, dancers and video introductions for each match.    This year, the dual was slated to be held in Iowa City, Iowa, but Robinson wanted to make this rivalry a home-and-home dual series each season. This year, the two teams will meet at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minn. in a non-conference dual before locking up in Iowa City Feb. 14.    Expect more of the same from Robinson if you attending this meet, though the result may not be the same.    125 - Luke Eustice (Iowa) vs. Bobby Lowe (Minnesota)  Eustice surprised everyone by making it to the NCAA finals last year. He is one of those wrestlers that learns from his mistakes, but as he proved in the Big Ten Tournament and the NCAA Tournament, he peaks during the postseason, an Iowa ritual. Lowe transferred in from Iowa Central. He has a lot of talent and took last season off to develop more and have more Division I eligibility, but he has not yet proven himself on this level and Eustice has. Eustice has quickness and technically has improved tremendously. He can make mistakes when on the mat and that is where Lowe is going to have to win this match.  TheMat.com Prediction: Eustice    133 - Cliff Moore (Iowa) vs. Ryan Lewis (Minnesota)  This is a big rivalry, but not Lewis' biggest. Moore was not as consistent as he needed to be in this lineup last season. He had chances to win some big matches, including a couple against Lewis, but just couldn't pull them out in the end. He needs to wrestle a full six minutes and maybe more. If not, he is in trouble. Lewis made one major mistake last year, and it cost him an NCAA title. He is bitter and wants to win. He is in as good of shape as anybody at any weight. He is strong and can take down any opponent with his good technical skills. Moore is susceptible to going to his back, which is what Lewis will try to do. Last year, Lewis beat Moore by a 6-0 score. Moore should close the gap this year, but he needs to slow the pace of the match down to win.  TheMat.com Prediction: Lewis    141 - Luke Moffitt (Iowa) vs. Tommy Owen (Minnesota)  Moffitt is a pinner and he will need to look for that in this match. He was a wicked inside trip. It almost seems like he has go-go-gadget legs to get it. The problem is, he is not very sound in other areas of his wrestling. He has improved this off-season, but he still has a ways to go to get to some Hawkeye standards. Owen did not wrestle many matches in his redshirt season last year due to injury. He is young and very inexperienced, but he has great workout partners. He should stay away from advice from Chad Erikson, who was pinned last year by Moffitt twice. Owen will want to avoid tying up with Moffitt and keep distance between the two. Owen is better on his feet and if he can do that, he has a good chance of winning this match.  TheMat.com Prediction: Moffitt    149 - Ty Eustice (Iowa) vs. Jared Lawrence (Minnesota)  Little Eustice (or big, whichever you decide) gained a lot of experience last year, but none against a solid opponent. He runs right into one to start the year. Eustice has good quickness and like his brother, is a hard worker. Speaking of hard workers, Lawrence is probably better. Lawrence has slowed down his offensive attack over the course of the past couple of seasons, but he seems impossible to score a takedown on. Not to mention he has all the confidence in the world after winning an NCAA title. He is stronger than his opponents at this weight class, but this will be a good match for him to get under his belt early. Expect Lawrence to minimize Eustice's opportunities and score a lot off Eustice's shots. This could be a major decision.  TheMat.com Prediction: Lawrence    157 - Matt Anderson (Iowa) vs. Luke Becker (Minnesota)  Hawkeye fans are still waiting for the Matt Anderson they thought would be winning a lot of matches and earning All-American honors to show up. He has fizzled the past two seasons, but last year he was at a lower weight than his sophomore year. With a year at 157, he still does not seem to be any closer to Becker, who is as good as they come. Becker has a great style of wrestling, though like Lawrence, he has slowed down his offense as well. Maybe he is just choosing better shots. Whatever the case, it worked as he won an NCAA title last year. He can outscore and outlast Anderson in almost any match. Becker's team will need some major points from him and he should not disappoint.  TheMat.com Prediction: Becker    165 - Jason D'Agata (Iowa) vs. Nate Baker (Minnesota)  D'Agata gained some solid starting experience last season, but not much. He won the Iowa wrestle-offs a week ago to solidify himself as the starter at this weight. Experience could play a role against him. It is possible that Matt Anderson could move up to this weight and Joe Johnston will step in at 157, but most likely the kids who won the wrestle-offs will start this weekend. Baker was able to win some decent matches last year, but began to fizzle near the end of the season. He was only a freshman and did not know how to handle the pressures of a full season. The positive is that he continuously faced the top wrestlers in the country, either by draw or in duals. This year, he will be a solid All-American candidate. With D'Agata on the other side, this could be some major points for the Gophers, which may be enough to put them over the top in this dual.  TheMat.com Prediction: Baker    174 - Tyler Nixt (Iowa) vs. Jacob Volkmann (Minnesota)  Nixt is one of those funky wrestlers that somehow can twist and turn his knees in Kolat-like fashion. It helps him get out of a lot of jams and because of it, he is able to take more risks during the course of a match. Volkmann was an All-American as a freshman but was 2-2 at the NCAA Tournament last year. It does not mean he is worse, but it means that the competition was tougher last year. Nixt will not be an easier opponent for him this year. These two had a great match last year in the dual meet and this one should be no different. Nixt won that battle but both were continuously attacking. Volkmann needs to make sure and make contact above Nixt's knees on takedown attempts. If he gets below them, Nixt will counter, but if Volkmann keeps a solid shot in the strike zone, then he should win.  TheMat.com Prediction: Nixt    184 - Jessman Smith (Iowa) vs. Josh McLay (Minnesota)  Smith loses his chance at revenge this year. All-American Damion Hahn, who blasted Smith a couple of times last year, is out with a knee injury. This could help Iowa and will help Smith, who improved greatly last season. For 90% of the year, Smith was the best wrestler in the nation at this weight, but the other 10% happened to be the postseason. McLay will move up in Hahn's absence. He is only a sophomore but has a lot of work to do to get to Smith's level right now. When on top, Smith has a tendency to give opponents a lot of space. McLay will need to capitalize on this during this match, as it is probable that Smith will be on top at least once during this match. Otherwise, it could be a long night for McLay.  TheMat.com Prediction: