What to Watch: Week eight of the college wrestling season

There are over 50 DI NCAA duals in week eight of the college wrestling season. The year is winding down, but for many, the season is starting to pick up. The Journeyman Collegiate Duals will be held in Nashville, top-ranked teams face off, and the action continues just before the holidays. Check out a few events you won’t want to miss this weekend.

Seventh-ranked Virginia Tech travels to Stillwater, Oklahoma, tonight to battle the third-ranked Oklahoma State Cowboys. This is only the second-ever matchup between the Cowboys and the Hokies. The first was in January of 2011 at the NWCA/Cliff Keen National Duals, where the Hokies defeated the Cowboys, 18-16. Oklahoma State holds an overall record of 5-0, and is coming off of its 20th-straight Bedlam victory last Friday night in Norman, Oklahoma. Virginia Tech is 3-0 this season with ranked wins over No. 8 Missouri and No. 17 Rutgers. There is a potential for four rematches as these groups are fairly familiar with each other, despite this being the first time meeting since 2011. Action begins at 7 p.m. CT inside Gallagher-Iba Arena. Can’t make it? Catch the dual on ESPN+.

Eight teams head to Nashville, Tennessee, this weekend for the Journeyman Collegiate Duals, an event with a flurry of potential ranked matchups. The first day will see No. 5 Ohio State, No. 13 Iowa State, No. 25 North Carolina and Lock Haven on the mats, with action beginning at 2 p.m. CT. On Sunday, it’s No. 1 Penn State, No. 16 Missouri, No. 19 Little Rock and Binghamton slated for a 2 p.m. start.

Rider plays host to Pitt, South Dakota State and Maryland on Friday. Three of the four teams are ranked in the top 25, with Pitt at No. 18, Maryland at No. 24 and South Dakota State at No. 14. Catch all of the action from the six duals through BroncVision, Rider’s official streaming site.

Full Schedule

10 a.m. – South Dakota State vs. Rider, Pitt vs. Maryland

Noon – South Dakota State vs. Pitt, Rider vs. Maryland

2 p.m. – South Dakota State vs. Maryland, Pitt vs. Rider

No. 4 Nebraska hosts a triangular with two top Division II teams: No. 8 Augustana and No. 5 Nebraska-Kearney. The Huskers are 3-0 this season with victories over Utah Valley, Campbell and North Carolina. The event is just the second at the Devaney Center this season for Nebraska, who is coming off of the Navy Classic and a second-place finish at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational. Augustana holds a 1-1 record with a win over ranked foe UW-Parkside and an early season loss to No. 14 South Dakota State. Nebraska-Kearney are 3-2, with losses to No. 19 Little Rock and No. 10 Northern Iowa.

The neutral dual between Augustana and Nebraska-Kearney will begin at 2:30 p.m. (CT), before the Huskers take on the Vikings at 4 p.m. Following the conclusion of the second dual, Nebraska matches up against Nebraska-Kearney.

Nebraska’s Projected Lineup

125 - Alan Koehler or Kael Lauridsen

133 - Omar Ayoub or #20 Jacob Van Dee

141 - Blake Cushing

149 - Scott Robertson or #5 Ridge Lovett

157 - Dez Gartrell or #3 Antrell Taylor

165 - Jagger Condomitti or #7 Bubba Wilson

174 - LJ Araujo

184 - Adam Thebeau or Ethan DeLeon

197 - Dominic Thebeau

HWT - #24 Harley Andrews

Augustana’s Projected Lineup

125 - Jaxson Rohman or Christian Olsen

133 - Owen Hansen or Braiden Kort

141 - Connor Whiteley or Alex Mentzer

149 - Cael Larson or Davin Rose

157 - Connor Simmonds or Kyle Boeke

165 - Payton Handevidt or Payton Anderson

174 - Coy Gunderson or Josh Wagener

184 - Cade Mueller

197 - Max Ramberg or Sam McEnelly

HWT - Max Balow

UN-Kearney’s Projected Lineup

125 - Zach Ourada

133 - Hector Serratos

141 - Joseph Airola

149 - Beau Hostler

157 - Cael Robb

165 - Trenton Munoz

174 - Dylan Vodicka

184 - Jacobi Deal

197 - Jackson Kinsella

HWT - Crew Howard

The Gator Boots Duals return to Nashville, Tennessee, this weekend. Luthor will host the event for the second consecutive year at Hendersonville High School on Friday and Saturday. This will be the first time that the Gator Boots Duals will include a women’s division featuring the following teams: Baldwin Wallace, Cornell College, Delaware Valley, Emmanuel, Huntingdon College, Simpson College, and Ursinus College.

Men’s teams participating include Averett University, Cornell College, Delaware Valley, Huntingdon, Loras, Luther,  Millikin, Muskingum, Roanoke, Dubuque, Mount Union, University of the Ozarks, and Ursinus College.

Women’s Schedule

3:00 p.m. – Baldwin Wallace vs. Huntingdon (Mat 1), Emmanuel vs. Simpson (Mat 2), Cornell vs. Delaware Valley (Mat 3), Ursinus vs. Simpson 2 (Mat 4)

4:00 p.m. – Simpson vs. Baldwin Wallace (Mat 1), Cornell vs. Huntingdon (Mat 2), Emmanuel vs. Ursinus (Mat 3), Delaware Valley vs. Simpson 2 (Mat 4)

5:00 p.m. – Simpson vs Huntingdon (Mat 1), Cornell vs Emmanuel (Mat 2), Baldwin Wallace vs Ursinus (Mat 3)

6:00 p.m. – Huntingdon vs Delaware Valley (Mat 1), Ursinus vs Simpson (Mat 2), Baldwin Wallace vs Cornell (Mat 3), Emmanuel vs Simpson 2 (Mat 4)

Men’s Schedule

8:00 a.m. – Ozarks vs. Ursinus (Mat 1), Mount Union vs. Roanoke (Mat 2), Dubuque vs. Huntingdon (Mat 3), Delaware Valley vs. Loras (Mat 4), Muskingum vs. Averett (Mat 5), Luther 2 vs. Ursinus 2 (Mat 6)

9:45 a.m. – Luther vs. Muskingum (Mat 1), Loras vs. Averett (Mat 2), Millikin vs. Delaware Valley (Mat 3), Dubuque vs. Ozarks (Mat 4), Mount Union vs. Cornell (Mat 5), Mount Union 2 vs. Luther 2 (Mat 6)

11:30 a.m. – Luther vs. Ursinus (Mat 1), Roanoke vs. Loras (Mat 2), Ozarks vs. Millikin (Mat 3), Huntingdon vs. Cornell (Mat 4), Cornell 2 vs. Averett 2 (Mat 6)

1:15 p.m. – Luther vs. Mount Union (Mat 1), Cornell vs. Ozarks (Mat 2), Dubuque vs. Muskingum (Mat 3), Delaware Valley vs. Averett (Mat 4), Cornell 2 vs. Mount Union 2 (Mat 6)

3:00 p.m. – Luther vs. Delaware Valley (Mat 1), Millikin vs. Huntingdon (Mat 2), Roanoke vs. Muskingum (Mat 3), Ursinus vs. Averett (Mat 4), Loras 2 vs. Ursinus 2 (Mat 6)

4:45 p.m. – Loras 2 vs. Averett 2 (Mat 6)