Three years ago, heavyweight was a slow, boring weight class that emphasized stalling and lack of aggression. Then, more athletic wrestlers started getting involved again. 2002 champion Tommy Rowlands led the charge, but he has since been followed by last year's champion Steve Mocco, who is seeking an Olympic redshirt year, Kevin Hoy, Kellan Fluckiger, Pat Cummins and Matt Feast.    This year, more young guns are involved, making this an exciting weight class again.    The title at 285 pounds is up for grabs. The favorite is Rowlands, who is seeking to join the list of four-time All-Americans. But he will receive stiff competition from the rest of this field.    Top Contenders  Tommy Rowlands, Sr. (Ohio State) - One of the quickest, most athletic, and most aggressive heavyweights in recent history, Rowlands has defied the odds. Mainly because he is a heavyweight who has led his team in takedowns four times. He set the school record for career takedowns this year. These are unheard of, and unrealistic, statistics for a heavyweight. Then again, Rowlands isn't your average heavyweight. He only weighs around 225 right now, as he prepares for an international career at 211. That means his opponents outweigh him by an average of 40 pounds per matches. Sometimes less, most of the time more. Rowlands never got another shot at Steve Mocco after breaking a bone in his ankle during the semifinals of last year's NCAA Tournament. This year, he is hungry to win his second national title. What Rowlands has learned best is how to finish his opponents. In his first couple of years, against bigger and stronger opponents, he would shoot too low at points, or stop moving at others. This year, he has been a man possessed at finishing takedowns and finishing matches. His only loss is to Pat Cummins. Since then, he has come back to defeat Cummins twice.    Pat Cummins, Sr. (Penn State) - Cummins tends not to force the action in his matches. He is content with low-scoring affairs, but the best is brought out in him when he gets behind early. It happened in the Big Ten finals against Rowlands, when Cummins scored a takedown to tie the match, and then dominated the final 60 seconds before a 5-4 loss. In the National Duals, Cummins fell behind early before fighting back for a 6-5 win against Matt Feast. Cummins' losses this year are to Rowlands twice, Feast at the end of the year, Greg Wagner and Cole Konrad. He is a mobile heavyweight, but as was stated earlier, only when he needs to be. This is a big tournament for Penn State. Don't think for one minute that the coaching staff hasn't pounded that into Cummins' head. The Nittany Lions need him, and they need him to be aggressive. Expect him to be. He likes to reach for a single-leg, but he gets good position before he does it, so it is tough to make him pay for reaching. However, a matchup between Cummins and Feast looms in the semifinals.    Matt Feast, Jr. (Pennsylvania) - Feast has taken the country by storm. It's not that he didn't have high expectations, but has truly established himself as a title contender this year. Feast is also a smaller, more athletic heavyweight. Like Rowlands, he has adjusted his style of wrestling to fit the bigger wrestler, and it has worked to his advantage - for the most part. He has lost three times this year to Cummins, while beating him at the end of the year. He also has a 5-3 loss to Rowlands in the Midlands on his record. Feast can score points, which is why he is a fun wrestler to watch in this tournament. In fact, it was his continued aggression that ultimately, and unintentionally, put Rowlands out of the NCAA's last year. With Rowlands holding a big lead in their quarterfinal match, Rowlands relaxed some and Feast pressured hard, shooting in on Rowlands, and at the same time injuring his ankle. Even though he has lost three times to Cummins, Feast has given him an incredible battle all three times. He may have turned the corner with that win near the end of the regular season.    Leonce Crump, Sr. (Oklahoma) - Crump has been through it all. As a freshman, he placed fourth at the NCAA Tournament in 2001. As a sophomore, he became, and remains, the only wrestler to defeat both Rowlands and Steve Mocco. He ended that year with a torn ACL in the NCAA Tournament. After a year off last year due to academic issues, Crump is leaner and meaner. He has once again put himself in the title hunt, losing only to Cummins in overtime and Rowlands, 3-2. Crump has had some classic battles with Rowlands, dating back to the National Duals match two years ago, when Rowlands' pin in overtime won the dual for Ohio State. This year, Crump has struggled with his conditioning. On the bright side, he has greatly improved his technique in the last year. Crump never seems to wrestle his own pace of match. He lets his opponents set the pace too often, and against a big, athletic heavyweight, most opponents want to keep that pace slow. This is Crump's last chance, and for some reason, Oklahoma kids do things right in their last NCAA Tournament appearance. Can Crump join that list?    The Others  Cole Konrad, Fr. (Minnesota) - A hefty freshman with lofty goals. Konrad is just another in what is becoming a long line of very good Gopher heavyweights. A lot was expected of Konrad at the start of the year. For the most part, he did not disappoint, though he had some questionable losses. But since the start of February, he has only lost two matches. One of his wins was a 9-2 thrashing of Greg Wagner in the Big Ten Tournament. This may be the most dangerous wrestler in this tournament. If he gets hot, he may not be stopped.    Greg Wagner, So. (Michigan) - Wagner seemed to hit a brick wall on day two of the Big Ten Tournament. He was completely dominated against Konrad. He needs to refocus and get his mind back on wrestling, from wherever it was during that match, if he wants to get back into the title hunt this year. Though it is tough to do for a heavyweight, Wagner can at times be a pin or be pinned type of heavyweight. He needs improvement from the bottom position. He sometimes gets himself into scary positions if you are a Wolverine fan. Expect a more enthused performance out of this sophomore.    High-Impact Freshmen  Cole Konrad (Minnesota), Payam Zarrinpour (Sacred Heart)    
NCAA Finals: Tommy Rowlands (Ohio State) vs. Pat Cummins (Penn State)  
TheMat.com's Pick: Pat Cummins (Penn State)  
All-American Dark Horse: Bill Stouffer (Central Michigan)    
Projected Top 4 Seeds  1. Tommy Rowlands (Ohio State)  2. Pat Cummins (Penn State)  3. Matt Feast (Pennsylvania)  4. Leonce Crump (Oklahoma)    2004 Qualifiers (30)  1st ACC - Ryan Adams (North Carolina)  1st Big Ten - Tommy Rowlands (Ohio State)  2nd Big Ten - Pat Cummins (Penn State)  3rd Big Ten - Cole Konrad (Minnesota)  4th Big Ten - Greg Wagner (Michigan)  5th Big Ten - Israel Blevins (Purdue)  6th Big Ten - Jareck Horton (Wisconsin)  7th Big Ten - Ryan Fuller (Iowa)  1st Big XII - Leonce Crump (Oklahoma)  2nd Big XII - Will Gruenwald (Oklahoma State)  3rd Big XII - Scott Coleman (Iowa State)  1st CAA - Payam Zarrinpour (Sacred Heart)  2nd CAA - Derrel Lorthridge (Old Dominion)  3rd CAA - Carmelo Marrero (Rider)  1st East Region - Marc Allemang (Duquesne)  1st EIWA - Matt Feast (Pennsylvania)  2nd EIWA - Tanner Garrett (Navy)  3rd EIWA - Bode Ogunwole (Harvard)  4th EIWA - Ramel Meekins (Rutgers)  1st EWL - Russ Davie (Cleveland State)  2nd EWL - Joe Hennis (Edinboro)  3rd EWL - Matt Wilcox (Clarion)  1st MAC - Jeremiah Beltran (Ohio