Madison, Wis. - Once again the team race that the 2003 Big Tens will be a tight one. Although top-ranked Iowa has beaten No. 2 Minnesota three times in dual competition this season, the Gophers will be ready with a lineup fit for tournament competition.    On top heading into the conference meet this weekend in Madison, Wis. is Iowa with a 17-3 season and 7-1 conference record. The Hawkeyes are looking to capture their 31st Big Ten Title. But the team title is not assured as second-ranked rival Minnesota, also with a 7-1 conference record (17-5 overall), will also be in the hunt for the team race.    The Big Ten conference puts forth a tough class of competition, with several Big Ten athletes ranked among the top in the nation.     125  The 125-pound weight class is loaded with ranked opponents. Chris Fleeger of Purdue, currently ranked No. 1 in TheMat.com's Division I Coaches poll, will receive the top seed this weekend followed by Michigan's A.J Grant, ranked No. 4. Other ranked opponent filling out the brackets are Nick Simmons (Michigan State) ranked No. 7, 2002 NCAA runner-up Luke Eustice (Iowa), ranked No.8, and Tony Black (Wisconsin) ranked No.10. Fleeger is undefeated this year and is a favorite to win the national title, but experience runs deep at this weight. Grant is a former All-American and Eustice was an NCAA runner-up last year. Simmons is a pinning machine, which makes him extremely dangerous.    133  Returning NCAA finalist Ryan Lewis of Minnesota, top-ranked at 133 pounds, is set to take the top seed at the Big Tens. Lewis will battle with All-American Cliff Moore of Iowa, ranked No. 3. The two have met three times this season, with Lewis coming out on top two of the three times. Penn State's Josh Moore, ranked No. 10, could also contend for the title. Injuries have torn this weight class up recently, with Wisconsin's Kevin Black and Michigan's Foley Dowd both missing the postseason due to injuries.    141  The 141-pound weight class is wide open, with the top seed taken by either Coyte Cooper of Indiana or unranked Scott Moore of Penn State, followed by No. 13 ranked Derek Phillips of Minnesota and No. 15 ranked Jeff Ratliff of Ohio State. Returning champion Luke Moffitt of Iowa is a wrestler that could come out on top again with the right tournament. Cooper and Moore have both defeated Phillips this year and Moore came out on top of Cooper as well during an earlier dual meet.    149  NCAA champion Jared Lawrence of Minnesota, ranked No. 2 in the nation, is the top seed at 149 pounds. On the flip side of the bracket will be redshirt freshman Ty Eustice of Iowa. Eustice is ranked No. 13 and has a 24-6 season record. Karl Nadolsky of Michigan State, ranked No. 14, will take the third seed.  Lawrence is clearly the favorite to win this weight class, but with a strong push from the senior Nadolsky or freshmen Ryan Churella of Michigan and Nathan Galloway of Penn State, there could be some exciting matches throughout this bracket.    157  One of the toughest weights at this weekend's tournament is sure to be at 157 pounds, with the top five seeds all ranked among the best in the nation. Topping the bracket will be Ohio State's Keaton Anderson, currently ranked No. 1 with a 32-1 season record. In the mix for the championship will be defending NCAA champion Luke Becker of Minnesota, ranked No. 4 and freshman Joe Johnston of Iowa, ranked No. 7. Johnston pinned Becker in the latest Border Brawl. All-American and fifth-ranked Gray Maynard of Michigan Sate and No. 8 ranked Alex Tirapelle of Illinois should also contend for the title. Anderson has been on a hot streak all season in taking over the top spot in the rankings. Maynard has held a third-period lead over Anderson twice this year before getting turned in the last minute both times. Freshmen Johnston and Tirapelle have proven that experience is no factor at this weight class. Both have put their names among the top in the nation with big wins all season long.    165  Equally tough will be the 165-pound weight class, fielding five ranked wrestlers. Top-ranked Matt Lackey of Illinois, an NCAA runner-up last year, will top the bracket. He will contend with No. 4 ranked John Clark of Ohio State, No. 5 ranked Jacob Volkmann of Minnesota, No. 7 ranked Oscar Santiago of Purdue and No. 14 ranked Doc Vecchio of Penn State. Lackey has been dominant this season, while Volkmann and Clark have split their head-to-head matchups this season. Vecchio has struggled all year, but he was an All-American last season, which makes him a threat in any tournament.    174  Iowa's Tyler Nixt, ranked No. 4 will head the 1-pound bracket, while No. 5 ranked Ryan Lange of Purdue is set for the second seed position. Nixt and Lang met head to head once during the season with Nixt winning a 2-1 tie-breaker decision. Also in the mix will be No. 7 ranked Blake Kaplan of Ohio State and No. 8 ranked Brian Glynn of Illinois, as well as Michigan State's Rashad Evans.    184  The Hawkeyes will also field a top seed at 184 in All-American Jessman Smith. Smith is ranked No. 2 in the country and holds a 29-1 season record. No. 4 ranked Mark Becks of Penn State will take the second seeded position in the bracket, followed by Ty Matthews of Indiana and No. 9 ranked Ralph DeNisco of Wisconsin. Smith is the definite favorite at this weight class. His relentless attack and great stamina should be enough to push him to at least the finals of this tournament.    197   After taking last year off to redshirt, Michigan State's All-American Nik Fekete, ranked No. 6 in the nation, will earn the top seed at 197. He will contend with No. 9 ranked Damion Hahn of Minnesota, No. 11 ranked Ryan Fulsaas of Iowa, and No. 12 ranked Pat DeGain of Indiana. Fekete has nearly dominated all competition this year in the Big Ten, except for Anton Talamantes of Ohio State, who owns two wins against the Spartan. Fulsaas has come on as of late, posting a win over two-time All-American Hahn and another over DeGain.    285  The heavyweight class may see a rematch of last year's NCAA finals between top-ranked Steve Mocco of Iowa and fourth-ranked Tommy Rowlands of Ohio State. Rowlands, who earned last year's NCAA crown, has lost twice this season to Mocco, who stands undefeated at 28-0 on the season. Also in the mix is Olympic bronze medallist and No. 8 ranked Garrett Lowney of Minnesota, No. 6 ranked Pat Cummins of Penn State, and No. 12 ranked Greg Wagner of Michigan. Cummins posted a win over Rowlands earlier this year, while both Lowney and Wagner are still recovering from injuries and are not at 100 percent.