“I’m very excited about the schedule and I’m very excited about everything that’s going on with our program right now,” UW head coach Barry Davis said. “Most of the teams we’re competing against were in the top 25 of the country or better last year so that’s a plus for is. It’s also good to have six home dual meets in Madison. I think we have a pretty well-rounded schedule which will really prepare our guys for the national championships in March, which is the most important thing.”
Wisconsin’s non-conference season is tough once again, but 2009-10 brings some new challengers. The season begins Friday, Nov. 13 at 7 p.m. in Madison against Old Dominion, who is out of the Colonial Athletic Association. This is just the second time in school history the Badgers and Monarchs are meeting, with Wisconsin winning 33-7 during the 1992-93 season. Old Dominion returns five NCAA qualifiers off last year’s squad that finished second at the CAA Tournament.
Two days later, the Badgers travel to Big 12 country to take on Nebraska at 1 p.m. in Lincoln. The Huskers are the defending Big 12 champions and finished fourth at the 2009 NCAA Championships. The team returns a strong squad that includes 2009 NCAA Champion at 157 lbs., Jordan Burroughs, runner-up at 197 lbs. Craig Brester and 2008 All-American at 165 lbs., Stephen Dwyer. Wisconsin leads the all-time series against Nebraska, 7-3-2. The last time these two teams met, the match resulted in a 19-19 tie during the 2004-05 season.
The Badgers then wrestle two Pac-10 opponents on Sunday, Nov. 22 in Corvallis, Oregon. Wisconsin will meet Oregon State and Boise State beginning at noon. Oregon State, who is coached by Davis’s former college roommate, Jim Zalesky, traveled to Madison last year when the Badgers tallied a 24-13 win. Wisconsin holds the 5-2 advantage all-time against Oregon State.
Boise State placed 12th at the 2009 NCAA Championships and this will be the second meeting between the Badgers and Broncos in as many years. Wisconsin matched up against Boise State in the first round of last year’s NWCA National Duals and fell 24-12. The all-time series between these two teams is tied at 2-2.
“I think it’s always nice to have a change in your schedule and go to places you’ve never been before or wrestle teams you’ve never been against,” Davis said regarding the different non-conference opponents on next season’s schedule. “We usually get the best teams anyways with our Big Ten schedule, but it’s nice to have some diversity in the non-conference schedule. It gives you a chance to promote your program other places besides the places you always go to like Nebraska, or the west coast with Oregon State and Boise State.”
December continues with Wisconsin returning to the Cliff Keen Invite for the fifth-consecutive year, but this year’s tournament will be held in Primm, Nev., from Dec. 4-5. A week later, Wisconsin meets Northern Iowa in Cedar Falls, Iowa, for its annual meeting which is scheduled for 7 p.m. on Dec. 11.
The Badgers head back to the Midlands Championships, which take place Dec. 29-30 in Evanston, Ill. Wisconsin had three wrestlers make it to the finals at last year’s Midlands and placed fourth as a team with 98.5 points.
The year 2010 begins with a return trip to Cedar Falls for the NWCA National Duals from Jan 9-10. Pairings for that tournament will be announced at a later date.
January also brings the start of Big Ten Conference action and the final non-conference dual of the season. Indiana travels to Madison Friday, Jan. 22 for a 7 p.m. match to begin the always tough conference season. The following night, Wisconsin hosts Northern Colorado for a 7 p.m. dual inside the UW Field House. This will be the third meeting between Northern Colorado and Wisconsin with the Badgers holding the 2-0 advantage.
This year’s Border Battle heads back to Minneapolis when Wisconsin takes on the Gophers Friday, Jan. 29 at 7 p.m. The Badgers’ stay on the road is short as they return Sunday, Jan. 31 to host Penn State at 1 p.m.
February begins with three conference duals on the road. Wisconsin visits Purdue on Friday, Feb. 5 at 7 p.m. in West Lafayette, Ind., and then travels to Champaign, Ill., for a 1 p.m. dual on Sunday, Feb. 7 against Illinois. The Illini finished just two points ahead of Wisconsin for eighth place at last year’s NCAA meet.
Wisconsin then makes the first of two trips to Ann Arbor, Mich., when it meets the Wolverines on Valentine’s Day at 1 p.m. to close out the Big Ten road dual schedule.
The UW Field House plays host to the final two duals of the season when Northwestern and Iowa come to town. The Wildcats visit Madison Friday, Feb. 19 at 7 p.m. and the dual season comes to a close Sunday, Feb. 21 when defending Big Ten and NCAA champions Iowa visit Madison. Wisconsin will not face Ohio State or Michigan State during next year’s Big Ten dual schedule.
The post-season begins in Ann Arbor as the host of the 2010 Big Ten Championships, which take place March 6-7. Omaha, Neb., plays host to the 2010 NCAA Championships from March 18-20.
The UW wrestling team has a lot of talent returning to the 2009-10 squad including All-Americans Andrew Howe and Kyle Ruschell. Seven starters return off last year’s team that finished fourth at Big Ten’s and ninth at NCAA’s and some new faces will work to fill in for the three departing All-Americans.
Be sure to stay tuned to UWBadgers.com throughout the summer for updates on the squad as they work towards the 2009-10 season.
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