Two All-Americans and five NCAA qualifiers return for No. 14 Indiana

The Indiana wrestling program is nothing less than a cannon reloaded and ready to fire into the new season. With a national champion, two All-Americans, five NCAA qualifiers and five grapplers finishing in the top six at the Big Ten Championships headlining the roster, the Hoosiers are set to contend for another top-five and top-10 finish at the Big Ten and NCAA Championships, respectively. Head coach Duane Goldman is also coming off one of his best seasons in his 14- year tenure, finishing in the top-10 at the NCAA Championships (ninth) and tied for fifth at the Big Ten Championships. "We had a very talented team last year," Goldman said, "but there is no reason that we cannot be better and stronger than we were a season ago." The Hoosiers enter the season with a top-10 recruiting class and are highlighted by 125-pound Joe Dubuque (24-3), who is back to defend his national championship from a year ago. The Bloomfield, N.J., native will look to be the fourth Hoosier to garner three All-American nods in his career and the first since Roger Chandler (1995-97). "Joe has goals of repeating his national championship and competing for a Big Ten championship," Goldman said. "It is a difficult weight to come back at, but Joe is a hard worker. He has high goals for not only himself, but also the team as a whole. He is one of the premier student-athletes I have ever had the opportunity to work with." All-American Brandon Becker (27-11) collected a pair of fifth-place outings at NCAAs and Big Tens in 2005 and will fill the 157-pound position again for IU this season. Both appearances in the year-end finals were a debut for last year's redshirt freshman. The Michleton, N.J., product again looks to make an appearance on the national stage, while also making a run at a conference championship. "Brandon returns after garnering All-American status and looks to improve on that in 2006," Goldman said. "He has a great attitude and is really talented at a lot of positions. He is just an exciting wrestler for the fans to watch." Two-time NCAA qualifier Brady Richardson (23-6) also returns to the IU roster with one goal in mind-- making the NCAA tournament and garnering All-American status. "Richardson is making a move up, and he feels more comfortable at the new weight," Goldman said. "He is stronger this year and is ready to start the season. We, as a coaching staff, feel it is a great opportunity for him to finish as an All-American, which is his goal. He has made the tournament a couple of times and it is just his time." In 2005, Richardson made his second straight appearance in the national tournament and went 1-2 in the 174-pound division. Richardson also looks to improve on his third-place finish at the Big Ten championships from a year ago. In 2006, Richardson will move to the 197-pound division to take the vacancy left by junior Josh Buuck, who is dropping to the 184-pound weight class. Junior Isaac Knable (149) is also coming off a solid 2005 campaign where he finished sixth at the Big Ten Championships and qualified for his first NCAA appearance. Knable went 9-16 last year and looks to again make his name shine on the national stage. Also returning at 149 is senior Matt Cooper, who has never started for the Hoosiers, but has accumulated a 28-39 career record in his three campaigns as a Hoosier. "Isaac was a national qualifier last year while senior Matt Cooper had a good season last year before suffering some injuries," Goldman said. "Both of these guys are definitely capable of achieving All-American status this year for us at 149. It will be a real battle for the spot." Rounding out the NCAA qualifiers from a year ago is sophomore Max Dean. A native of West Chester, Ohio, Dean claimed fifth at the Big Ten tournament and posted a 1-2 mark at the NCAA competition. Dean's leadership role will be looked for as a second-year starter at 165 pounds. "Max will continue to get better as the season progresses," Goldman. "Last year, he competed for the 157-pound position for most of the year, but this year comes in as a bona fide 165 competitor. Dean has become solid in his weight in the off season and is looking to have a great year." The rest of the Hoosier roster features two or three grapplers vying for the starting position. At 133, sophomore Andrae Hernandez is the forerunner for the starting position for the Hoosiers. Hernandez posted a 6-3 record last year, while tallying two pins in the process. Joining Hernandez at 133-pounds, are freshmen Angel Escobedo and Scott Kelley who join Indiana after having stellar high school careers. "Andrae looks to be the front runner after having a stellar year as a freshman and a strong high school career," Goldman said. "We are hoping for very good things out of him as the season progresses. Joining him are Angel Escobedo, who was one of the top Indiana high school wrestlers, and Scott Kelley, who also had a solid high school campaign at Carmel." Competing for a starting position at 141 are senior Nick Spatola, junior Ian Campbell and sophomore Joel Jeffries. "Any of these guys are capable of taking the spot," Goldman said. "They are all very close in the workout and training room right now. Nick Spatola is the only guy in the group with some varsity experience, but each of these guys are challenging for the spot." At 174, sophomore Marc Bennett looks to fill the Hoosiers' starting grappler spot, while freshman Trevor Perry comes to the weight class after leading his high school team to four State championships and claiming the individual state title in 2005. "Marc might be a first-time starter for us this year," Goldman said. "He had some success last season with Brady Richardson moving up a couple of weight classes and looks to take charge this year. Marc is very able to compete at 174." Rounding out the Hoosier starting contingent are Buuck and senior Dave Herman in the 184-pound and HWT division, respectively. Buuck, a starter for IU at 197 a year ago, looks to fill the mat left vacant by Andy Rios. The Ft. Wayne, Ind., native will have competition from sophomore Justin Curran and redshirt freshman Heath Vandeventer at 184. "Buuck has the most varsity experience of each of the guys in 197," Goldman said. "Justin had some solid competition in 2005, while Heath is coming off a redshirt year. Between all of them, this will be a strong weight class for us." Herman will challenge the wrestling arena at the HWT position highlighted last year by All-American Pat DeGain. "Dave Herman will be our starter there," Goldman said. "Last season, he competed behind All-American Pat DeGain who took third at nationals, but had a solid season in the class. He has quite a bit of experience with a couple of seasons with 30-plus matches under his belt and looks to step into the spot and make some noise." The Hoosiers' 2005-06 schedule is filled with national and conference powers, an agenda that looks to challenge IU's seasoned and young roster. "We are a young team at a lot of weight classes," Goldman said. "I look for the young guys to improve as the season matures, while the returners will be looked at again to challenge for titles." Indiana begins the season at the Missouri Open (11/20), followed by trips to the Mat Town Invitational (11/26) and UNI Open (12/3) before hosting the Hoosier Duals (12/10). The tournament part of the Hoosiers' schedule ends with matches at the FITE Duals (12/17), Midlands (12/29-30) and Virginia Duals (1/14). Big Ten action gets underway with home contests against Ohio State (1/20), Illinois (1/27), Iowa (1/29) and Penn State (2/10). IU will also face Big Ten rivals Purdue (1/22), Minnesota (2/5), Northwestern (2/17) and Michigan (2/19) on the road. Indiana again hosts the Big Ten Championships (3/4-5) at Assembly Hall before traveling to the NCAA Championships (3/16-18) in Oklahoma City, Okla.

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Two All-Americans and five NCAA qualifiers return for No. 14 Indiana

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