133 lbs. – Nick Simmons, if he wrestles at 133, will be the favorite, and following him the field is wide open. Iowa's eighth-ranked Mario Galanakis and Central Michigan alum Jason Borrelli, who finished third last year, will be the top contenders. Indiana's Andrae Hernandez, Cameron Doggett of Purdue and Robbie Preston of Harvard are ranked grapplers in the hunt. Rider's Zack Cunliffe, Eastern Michigan's Sean Clair, Iowa State's Nick Gallick, and David Armstrong from Cleveland State will also look to contend for this year's title.
141 lbs. -- This will be a highly competitive weight class including many nationally-ranked wrestlers. Northwestern's Ryan Lang is the favorite, who is ranked No.1 in the country. However, he will have plenty of competition in No. 2 Brandon Rader of West Virginia, fifth-ranked Andy Simmons from Michigan State, ninth-ranked Max Meltzer of Harvard, No. 11 C.J. Ettelson of Northern Iowa, No. 12 Alex Tsirtsis of Iowa, No. 17 Mitch Mueller of Iowa State, No. 18 Don Fisch of Rider and Cassio Pero of Illinois at No. 19. Brandon Carter of Central Michigan will also be in the hunt.
149 lbs. – With a group of highly talented wrestlers, this weight class will provide much excitement. Leading the pack is sixth-ranked Josh Churella representing the University of Michigan. He is closely followed by eighth-ranked David Jauregui of West Virginia, Illinois' 11th-ranked Troy Tirapelle, Matt Coughlin of Indiana at No. 12, 14th-ranked Ryan Hurley of Cleveland State and Cyler Sanderson of Iowa State at No. 15. Damion Swietlik of American, Central Michigan's Andy Keller and Mike Grimes of Northern Illinois will also contend.
157 lbs. -- Top-ranked Trent Paulson of Iowa State is the favorite coming in at 157 lbs. and will be challenged by many highly-ranked opponents. Fifth-ranked Mike Poeta of Illinois finished second at 165 lbs. in the 2005 Midlands and seventh-ranked Brandon Becker from Indiana finished fourth last year. Fourth-ranked Andrew Flanagan of Harvard, Iowa's Ryan Morningstar, Central Michigan's Eric Neil, West Virginia's Zac Fyling and Dave Miller from Rider will look to make their respective marks on the tournament as well.
165 lbs. -- Like the 157-pound class, this division has a deep level of nationally-ranked competitors. No. 2 Mark Perry of Iowa who finished first in 2004 and second in 2005 at 174 lbs. will head the field. Defending champion Nick Balma of Northern Iowa, fourth-ranked Travis Paulson from Iowa State and No. 5 Eric Tannebaum from Michigan will follow closely. Additional contenders include: Northern Illinois' Johnny Galloway, Larry Hall from West Virginia, Max Dean of Indiana, Roger Smith-Bergsrud of Illinois and Dan Bedoy representing Purdue.
174 lbs. -- Second-ranked James Yonushonis of Penn State headlines this talented group. Matt Palmer, No. 4 from Columbia, will follow him along with seventh-ranked Ken Robertson of Eastern Illinois, Michigan's eighth-ranked Steve Luke, Iowa's ninth-ranked Eric Luedke, No. 10 Brandon Sinnott of Central Michigan, No. 12 Doug Umbehauer from Rider, No. 14 Donny Reynolds of Illinois and 16th-ranked Kurt Brenner of West Virginia. Others looking to claim awards include Josh Chelf of Wisconsin-LaCrosse and David Bertolino from Iowa State.
184 lbs. – This year Northwestern's Jake Herbert is going for his third straight Midlands title. He captured first place in 2004 and 2005 at 174 lbs. The top-challenger could be Ben Wissel, a Purdue graduate who recently finished second in a Real Pro Wrestling event and was a 2005 Midlands runner-up. The challengers are many and those ranked within the nation's top 20 include: Tyrel Todd from Michigan, Iowa State's Jake Varner, Christian Sinnott of Central Michigan, Marc Bennett of Indiana, Louis Caputo from Harvard, Columbia's Justin Barent, Duke Burk from Northern Illinois, Phil Keddy from Iowa and Michigan State's Joe Williams. Contenders Mike Corcetti of Pitt-Johnstown and Gerald Harris, who lost to Wissel in the Real Pro event, could also be factors in the final standings.
197 lbs. -- Defending champion Wynn Michalak of Central Michigan returns to try to win two-straight championships. Currently he is ranked No. 8. Top challengers include: American's Josh Glenn who finished third at 184 lbs. in 2005, Kurt Backes of Iowa State, Purdue's Nathan Moore, Northwestern's Mike Tamillow, Casey White of Michigan, Jared Villers of West Virginia, Rider's ranked T.J. Morrison, Northern Iowa's Andy Anderson and Patrick Bond wrestling for Illinois.
285 lbs. -- This appears to be another weight class where many wrestlers have a chance at winning a title. Veteran Brian Keck, a four-time place winner, returns to battle for his first championship title. Harvard's Bode Ogunwole, ranked No. 2, and third-ranked Dustin Fox of Northwestern are both in this year's field. Others looking to take home the trophy include: Iowa's Matt Fields, Central Michigan's Bubba Gritter, Payam Zarrinpour of Sacred Heart, Adam LoPiccolo from American, Indiana's Dave Herman and Nebraska-Kearney's Tervel Diagnev.
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