Here is a look at the 10 finals matchups ...
125: No. 2 Jesse Delgado (Illinois) vs. No. 4 Nico Megaludis (Penn State)
The first Big Ten rematch of the night, which pits familiar rivals with a series split of 1-1. Delgado was beating Megaludis during their dual meet match before being pinned from a scramble late in the third period. Delgado won the rematch 6-3 in the Big Ten semifinals.
Their history makes the match difficult to predict, but look for Delgado to attack the same right side high crotch to double finish that's led him to key victories over Matt McDonough of Iowa and Nahshon Garrett of Cornell. If Delgado wants to win it will be important to stay away from Megaludis' scrambling, and that means not allowing Nico to push him underneath and between his legs. Staying on his game means staying fast and not getting tangled up. Megaludis' game plan will be to stay low, find attacks and make sure he clears danger positions before re-engaging. Delgado lives off the reshot and Megaludis will need to protect the angle if he has any chance to fend off the Illini's attacks.
133: No. 1 Logan Stieber (Ohio State) vs. No. 2 Tony Ramos (Iowa)
Though the epic battle makes its second go-round in 2013, it will be Stieber who will wrestle as the heavy favorite after back-to-back technical falls in the quarterfinals and semifinals. Ramos is coming off a hard-fought overtime win against Wisconsin's Tyler Graff who managed to take down the Hawkeye twice. Stieber is much better than Graff on his feet and on the mat. If the Buckeye opens up against Ramos in the finals it could be a four-takedown performance. More importantly, he'll have a huge advantage on the mat and could earn some back points. Ramos will need to slow down the action and make the match a single takedown affair. That, or push Stieber past his breaking point.
141: No. 2 Kendric Maple (Oklahoma) vs. No. 4 Mitchell Port (Edinboro)
Expect scoring -- lots and lots and lots of scoring. Port and Maple tangled at Midlands this season and put up an impressive 25 points with Maple winning the match 14-11. Maple is quick on his feet and Port can defend well, but when they met it was more about big moves (which favors Maple) and top work (which favors Port). The match will come down to who can control the action and ensure that their points aren't just openings for their opponents. This has Match of the Night potential!
149: No. 1 Jordan Oliver (Okie State) vs. No. 2 Jason Chamberlain (Boise State)
Oliver looked dinged at the end of his match against Steve Santos, leaving some on media row making faces to each other. If there is anyone in the building who can beat Oliver in 2013 it's Chamberlain who beat Oliver at the 2010 FILA Junior World Team Trials. That win was in freestyle, but it is their only interaction.
Psychology aside, it will come down to Oliver's chances of turning Chamberlain from top. Given the Boise State wrestler's stingy policy on giving up points, this will be where any non-overtime match is contested. If Chamberlain gets out he's got a forty percent chance of pulling off the upset. If not, it will be a standard multiple-point win for Oliver.
157: No. 1 Jason Welch (Northwestern) vs. No. 2 Derek St. John (Iowa)
Welch and St. John have met five times in their career, and all five times DSJ has come out victorious. Sometimes streaks are meant to be broken, and other times they're meant to endure.
Welch was winning with five remaining in the 2012 Big Ten finals when DSJ pulled off an improbable takedown. That was a mental meltdown by Welch, but what should concern him is how he will score his points. DSJ is remarkable at staying calm in new and funky situations, finding ways to score points of his own instead of just earning stalemates. For Welch to reverse course he will have to do something that is out of character -- he'll have to shut it down and be content with control positions after scoring opportunities. He might also want to try some solid defense to further frustrate DSJ and open up new scoring options on his reshots. DSJ will want to make sure that he pushes Welch and continues to roll with him in funky situations.
165: No. 1 Kyle Dake (Cornell) vs. No. 2 David Taylor (Penn State)
It's just one man's opinion, but Kyle Dake has not been himself this weekend. The athleticism has been dulled by something that feels like stress and was exemplified in his 2-0 win over Tyler Caldwell of Oklahoma State. Other than some sluggishness and the real possibility that this is all getting to him, it will be the Dake you've seen wrestle a dozen times.
Taylor on the other hand has pinned his way through the tournament. Peter Yates of Virginia Tech gave him some trouble in the semifinals when he locked in a cross-chest hold in the hopes of slowing the inevitable. Taylor did take a short injury time to recover after he fell hard and lost his breath.
Watch for Taylor to come out attacking. He wants the takedown and early riding time to make sure that he's leaving an impression. Dake would prefer something slower, and though he can out-scramble Taylor, he will need to be on his very best scramble. After the initial action it will come down to riding, which has been Taylor's advantage up until the moment it wasn't -- like when Dake hit the edge-of-the-mat reversal.
174: No. 1 Chris Perry (Oklahoma State) vs. No. 2 Matt Brown (Penn State)
Matt Brown proved his detractors wrong and his fans right in a well-wrestled 3-2 win over Logan Storley of Minnesota in the semifinals. To keep the wins rolling in he will need to get Perry tired in transition. Brown opens his chest on his left side high crotch, which means that it's both faster than a normal straight-on, post high rotch, but it can also give his opponents profitable angles to launch reshots. Perry will need to sniff out Brown's attacks and look for ankles. Perry will also need to find and secure the angle on his finishes and prevent brown from using his trick knee as a line of defense. Both wrestlers are adept, but not wonderful from top.
184: No. 1 Ed Ruth (Penn State) vs. No. 3 Robert Hamlin (Lehigh)
Before his semifinal win over defending NCAA champion Steve Bosak, Ed Ruth's closest match of the season came in the first week of the season against Robert Hamlin, who kept it within two in a back-and-forth match. It's tough to know how Hamlin can stop the Truth, but you have to imagine it starts by not getting taken down early, something that Ruth is increasingly looking to do in tough matches. If Hamlin avoids the early takedown and fends off the rest of the first he will put himself in position to keep it a one-point match for the distance. However, Ruth doesn't like leaving question marks about his dominance, and will likely use his position as the night's second match to put on a show. If he comes out with blast doubles and solid top control it will be a long night for Hamlin.
197: No. 1 Dustin Kilgore (Kent State) vs. No. 2 Quentin Wright (Penn State)
The other top match of the night pits NCAA champions Quentin Wright and Dustin Kilgore in a match that could be decided on the mat. Kilgore looked mortal against Taylor Meeks of Oregon State, giving up a takedown and a reversal. If Kilgore continues his late-match defensive struggles against Wright, there could be big-point consequences. Similarly if Wright gets too chipper on top, or tries to force a throw, he will be quickly brought back to the mat by Kilgore. Both are pinners, but look for a points battle, not a fall.
285: No. 2 Tony Nelson (Minnesota) vs. No. 5 Mike McMullan (Northwestern)
These big men know each other pretty well, and unfortunately for McMullan (Nickname: Muscles and Glasses) the record favors Nelson. In addition to beating McMullans 4-1 in the 2013 Big Ten finals, Nelson pinned him at the 2012 NCAAs and beat him 4-3 at Big Tens in 2012. That's three losses and all in the postseason.
McMullan will need to maintain the attacks that helped him beat Dom Bradley in the semifinals, but also avoid being caught beneath the Minnesota giant. Should he get an angle and earn a quick two he will also need to be ready for Nelson's immediate re-attack. Nelson would prefer to play defense and look for late opportunities to push McMullan into making mistakes. Should the Northwestern wrestler choose bottom, the match will be decided in his ability to get off bottom in under one minute.
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