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    NCAA Division I Championships Preview

    The 2006 Division I Wrestling Championships are set to get underway on Thursday morning at 11 a.m. CST at the Ford Center in Oklahoma City. Below is a preview of all 10 weight classes.

    125 Seeds:

    1 -- Simmons, Nick -- Michigan State Jr (32-0)
    2 -- Hazewinkel, Sam -- Oklahoma Jr (25-1)
    3 -- Dubuque, Joe -- Indiana Sr (23-1)
    4 -- Ott, Kyle -- Illinois Sr (11-4)
    5 -- Nickerson, Troy -- Cornell Fr (32-1)
    6 -- Scott, Coleman -- Oklahoma State So (24-5)
    7-- Mendoza, Jeremy -- Arizona State Sr (32-3)
    8 -- Velez, John -- Northwestern Sr (22-7)

    Sam Hazewinkel and Nick Simmons
    Simmons, who recently won his second straight Big Ten title, is undefeated and wrestling at an extremely high level. He has two shutout victories over Ott (14-0 and 7-0), and defeated Hazewinkel, 4-2, in their only regular season meeting on Feb. 23. However, Hazewinkel defeated Simmons at the All-Star Classic (in November), 6-2, and owns a 4-1 career record against him. Dubuque is the defending NCAA champion, and if everything goes as expected, he will face Hazewinkel in the semifinals, which would be a rematch of last year's semifinals. Dubuque wrestled like a man possessed at last year's NCAAs, and seems to be at his best when the lights come on.

    Although Ott is the No. 4 seed, he has been in the finals twice, so he knows what it takes to get there. He's had multiple knee surgeries throughout his career, so the Illinois coaching staff decided to hold him out until January as a precautionary measure. In addition to his losses to Simmons, he also dropped matches to Dubuque (but came back to defeat him at the Big Tens) and Valez. Nickerson was the most talked about freshman in the country until the National Duals, where he suffered his only loss of the season at the hands of Hazewinkel. In hindsight, that lone blemish on his record might end up being a blessing in disguise because it has allowed Nickerson to wrestle without the pressure of staying undefeated. If everything goes as expected, he will see Ott in a highly-anticipated quarterfinal match.

    Rev Wrestling.com Finals Prediction: No. 2 Hazewinkel dec. No. 1 Simmons

    133 Seeds:

    1 -- Bunch, Shawn -- Edinboro Sr (35-1)
    2 -- Morgan, Nathan -- Oklahoma State So (28-1)
    3 -- Clum, Tom -- Wisconsin Sr (14-2)
    4 -- Reiter, Mack -- Minnesota So (27-4)
    5 -- Fleeger, Chris -- Purdue Sr (10-2)
    6 -- Valenti, Matthew -- Pennsylvania Sr (31-2)
    7 -- Strayer, Jake -- Penn State So (23-4)
    8 -- Keller, Matt -- Tennessee-Chattanooga Jr (30-7)

    Bunch, last year's NCAA runner-up, might be the most athletic wrestler in the country. He is currently riding a 19-match winning streak. He'll be looking to become Edinboro's first NCAA champion since Josh Koscheck won the 174-pound title in 2002. Morgan is an extremely technical wrestler who seems to be the forgotten Cowboy this season. Much of the talk about Oklahoma City this season has centered around their four returning NCAA champions, but Morgan has quietly put together a stellar sophomore campaign. He lost 13-7 to Bunch in last year's semifinals, so he'll be looking to avenge that loss. His only loss this season came at the hands of No. 8 Keller at the Reno Tournament of Champions.

    Chris Fleeger
    Clum, the Big Ten champion, finished third at the NCAAs a year ago. He has beaten Reiter three times over the past two seasons, with his most recent victory coming in the Big Ten finals, where he won 6-4. If Reiter can reach the semifinals, he'll likely get another shot at Bunch, who he has lost to three times over the past two seasons, including in the NCAA semifinals. Unfortunately for Reiter, he might have the toughest quarterfinal match-up of anyone in the country, against Fleeger. Fleeger, a two-time All-American, was academically ineligible for much of the past two seasons. He placed third in 2004 and was an NCAA runner-up in 2004. Prior to the Big Tens, he looked like a sure-fire NCAA finalist. But a disappointing Big Tens, where he injured his toe and lost to Clum, dropped him down to the No. 5 seed. Regardless, we still think he's the best wrestler in the country at 133.

    RevWrestling.com Finals Prediction: No. 5 Fleeger dec. No. 2 Morgan

    141 Seeds:

    1 -- Gallick, Nate -- Iowa State Sr (33-0)
    2 -- Ware, Teyon -- Oklahoma Sr (22-2)
    3 -- Cooperman, Cory -- Lehigh Sr (23-1)
    4 -- Simmons, Andy -- Michigan State Jr (30-5)
    5 -- Churella, Josh -- Michigan So (25-3)
    6 -- Lang, Ryan -- Northwestern Jr (17-5)
    7 -- Tsirtsis, Alex -- Iowa So (23-10)
    8 -- Moore, Derek -- UC Davis Sr (20-3)

    Gallick and Ware have dominated this weight class over the past two seasons. Last March, Ware defeated a then-undefeated Gallick to win his second NCAA title. Much like last season, Gallick enters this event undefeated and as the man to beat. He has defeated Ware three times this season (including the Big 12 finals) -- and owns a 7-1 career mark against his conference nemesis. All three of Ware's losses this season have come against Gallick.

    Cooperman, who finished third at the NCAAs behind Ware and Gallick a year ago, enters the event with a 23-1 record. His only loss this season came against Ware, 13-2, when he was battling sickness. Simmons looked great in wining the Big Tens. His road to the finals, however, will likely have to go through two wrestlers who have defeated him this season -- Churella (quarterfinals) and Gallick (semifinals). Churella's only losses this season have come to Lang (twice) and Cooperman.

    RevWrestling.com Finals Prediction: No. 1 Gallick dec. No. 2 Ware

    149 Seeds:

    1 -- Schlatter, Dustin -- Minnesota Fr (37-1)
    2 -- Eustice, Ty -- Iowa Sr (24-2)
    3 -- Esposito, Zack -- Oklahoma State Sr (22-3)
    4 -- Storniolo, Matt -- Oklahoma Jr (20-4)
    5 -- DiSalvo, Mark -- Central Michigan Sr (23-4)
    6 -- Masa, Jon -- Hofstra Sr (30-8)
    7 -- Gillespie, Gregor -- Edinboro Fr (36-2)
    8 -- Tannenbaum, Eric -- Michigan So (22-8)

    Schlatter appears to be a legend in the making. The precocious Minnesota freshman has compiled an impressive 37-1 record and recently won the Big 10 title in dominating fashion. The most impressive things on his resume, however, are his two victories over Esposito, the defending NCAA champion. Entering the season, Esposito was widely considered to be one of the best pound-for-pound wrestlers in the country. But after his losses this season to Schlatter (most recently 11-2), Eustice, and Tannenbaum, he enters the NCAAs with something to prove.

    Eustice brings an impressive 24-2 record into the NCAAs, with his only losses coming to Schlatter and Tirapelle (at Big Tens). Storniolo has a win over DiSalvo, but has lost three times to Esposito. DiSalvo is the only wrestler this season to defeat Schlatter this season. With the exception of Esposito, Masa, who placed third last year, is the highest returning place-winner. Gillespie is an extremely talented freshman who is a bear on top. His only two losses came at the Southern Scuffle in December.

    RevWrestling.com Finals Prediction: No. 1 Schlatter dec. No. 3 Esposito

    157 Seeds:

    1 -- Paulson, Trent -- Iowa State Jr (23-1)
    2 -- Schlatter, CP -- Minnesota So (34-5)
    3 -- Tirapelle, Alex -- Illinois Sr (27-2)
    4 -- Lebe, Matt -- West Virginia Sr (32-3)
    5 -- Cherrington Ben -- Boise State Sr (15-0)
    6 -- Becker, Brandon -- Indiana So (23-7)
    7 -- Manotti, Dustin -- Cornell Sr (26-4)
    8 -- Henning, Craig -- Wisconsin So (25-7)

    This is arguably the deepest weight class in the country. Paulson, the No. 1 seed, has had a phenomenal junior season. He comes in with a 23-1 record, with his only loss coming to second-seeded Schlatter, which he later avenged. Although Schlatter has five losses this season (more than any of the top-five seeds), he is coming off a very impressive Big Tens, and is wrestling with a lot of confidence. Tirapelle was an NCAA runner-up as a freshman, finished fourth as a sophomore, but failed to place last year. He brings an impressive 27-2 record into the NCAAs, with his only losses coming to Schlatter and Luke.

    Cherrington is undefeated (with a victory over Johnston), but missed nearly half the season. Lebe, who placed seventh at the NCAAs last year, recently won his second consecutive EWL title. Becker and Manotti are both returning All-Americans who will be underdogs (according to their seeds) in the quarterfinals.

    RevWrestling.com Finals Prediction: No. 3 Tirapelle dec. No. 1 Paulson

    165 Seeds:

    1 -- Churella, Ryan -- Michigan Sr (25-0)
    2 -- Hendricks, Johny -- Oklahoma State Jr (24-1)
    3 -- Abdurakhmanov, Muzaffar -- American Sr (21-0)
    4 -- Baima, Nick -- Northern Iowa Jr (31-3)
    5 -- Pell, Matt -- Missouri Jr (29-4)
    6 -- Nagel, Matt -- Minnesota Sr (25-9)
    7 -- Letters, Troy -- Lehigh Sr (17-4) -- Neck
    8 -- Paulson, Travis -- Iowa State Jr (30-5)

    Johny Hendricks (Photo by John Sachs)
    This weight class is loaded. Of the top-eight seeds, two are NCAA champions, six are All-Americans, one is a Midlands champion, and two are undefeated. Churella is a perfect 25-0 this season and 114-17 for his career after winning his third Big Ten title. Hendricks, the defending NCAA champion, has lost just once this season -- to Bracamonte at the Reno Tournament of Champions (twice if you count the All-Star Classic loss to Nagel). Last year, he defeated Churella, 6-2, in the NCAA semifinals. Abdurakhmanov is undefeated this season, but hasn't seed seen any of the top-eight seeds -- with the exception of Nagel, who he defeated 13-3.

    Baima has wins over Pell, Nagel, and Poeta, but has lost twice to Paulson and once to Hendricks. Pell's only losses this season have come against Churella, Hendricks (twice), and Baima. Nagel has had some nice wins this season, but also some bad losses. Poeta has been a very impressive freshman, especially considering the fact that he's naturally a 157-pounder. Letters, who won the NCAA title in 2004, is seeded seventh because of a serious neck injury he suffered. He lost twice at the EIWAs, and appears to be just a shell of what he used to be. Regardless, you can never count out a champion like Letters. If everything goes as expected, he'll face Hendricks in the quarterfinals, who he has beaten multiple times throughout his career.

    RevWrestling.com Finals Prediction: No. 2 Hendricks dec. No. 1 Churella

    174 Seeds:

    1 -- Askren, Ben -- Missouri Jr (40-0)
    2 -- Herbert, Jake -- Northwestern So (32-0)
    3 -- Perry, Mark -- Iowa So (16-3)
    4 -- Klein, Jacob -- Nebraska Jr (20-4)
    5 -- Patrovich, Michael -- Hofstra Sr (31-3)
    6 -- Boudro, R.J. -- Michigan State Sr (28-6)
    7 -- Cook, Ken -- UC Davis Sr (21-4)
    8 -- Frick, Travis -- Lehigh Sr (23-5)

    Askren, who has finished as the NCAA runner-up to Chris Pendleton the past two seasons, has been the most dominant wrestler in the entire NCAA this season. He's currently 40-0 with 25 pins and seven technical falls. Herbert, like Askren, enters the NCAAs with a perfect record at 32-0. He has two pins over Perry, including a pin in the Big Ten finals. Herbert, who has two Midlands titles on his resume, has been overshadowed much of this season by Askren, but is hoping to become Northwestern's first NCAA champion since Jack Griffin won a title in 1990.

    Perry, who was the 165-pound NCAA runner-up last season as a freshman, has had an up and down season. He has battled injuries all season, which has greatly affected his performance. In addition to his losses to Herbert, Perry also dropped a match to Klein at the National Duals. Last season, Perry shocked the wrestling world by beating Letters in the NCAA semifinals, a wrestler many thought was unbeatable.

    RevWrestling.com Finals Prediction: No. 1 Askren dec. No. 3 Perry

    184 Seeds:

    1 -- Glenn, Josh -- American So (31-1)
    2 -- Kish, Roger -- Minnesota So (33-4)
    3 -- Wissel, Ben -- Purdue Sr (34-4)
    4 -- Mazzurco, Joe -- Cornell Sr (21-2)
    5 -- Webster, Shane -- Oregon Sr (32-1)
    6 -- Friedl, Pete -- Illinois Sr (24-4)
    7 -- Backes, Kurt -- Iowa State Jr (24-6)
    8 -- Bradley, Eric -- Penn State Sr (11-3)

    This is, without question, the most wide-open class. Glenn, the No. 1 seed, has put together an outstanding sophomore campaign. He enters the NCAAs with a 31-1 record and 18 pins. He has wins this season over second-seeded Kish (pin) and fourth-seeded Mazzurco (6-0). The only blemish on his record is a 5-4 loss to Wissel. Kish, who just missed becoming an All-American last year as a freshman, catapulted to the No. 2 seed after his impressive run through the Big Tens, where he defeated Wissel and Friedl. In addition to his victory this season over Glenn, Wissel has also defeated Friedl (twice), Bradley, and Mazzurco. However, both Friedl and Bradley have a victory this season over Friedl.

    Webster, who won the Pac-10, has the most impressive record in the weight class (32-1), but has yet to face a top-ten opponent. Backes, who is seeded eighth, was the No. 2 seed last year, but failed to place. He enters the NCAAs with a 24-6 record, which includes wins over Kish and Bradley. Bradley, who is seeded eighth, began the season ranked No. 1, but injured his ankle in a November wrestle-off, and has yet to get back to the level he was at prior to the injury.

    RevWrestling.com Finals Prediction: No. 7 Backes dec. No. 1 Glenn

    197 Seeds:

    1 -- Michalak, Wynn -- Central Michigan So (29-1)
    2 -- Cerminara, Kyle -- Buffalo Sr (37-2)
    3 -- Padden, B.J. -- Nebraska Jr (22-3)
    4 -- Rosholt, Jake -- Oklahoma State Sr (22-4)
    5 -- Flaggert, Joel -- Oklahoma Jr (21-4)
    6 -- Davis, Phil -- Penn State Jr (21-3)
    7 -- Rinaldi, Jerry -- Cornell Jr (29-2)
    8 -- Bader, Ryan -- Arizona State Sr (28-4)

    This is the only weight class that one of the top-two seeds doesn't reside in the Big Ten or Big 12 conferences. The most stunning thing, though, might be the fact that Rosholt, a two-time NCAA champion, is the No. 4 seed. Three of his losses are to No. 3 Padden and the other one is to No. 1 Michalak. Michalak has wins over the each of the top-six seeds, with the exception of Flaggert, who gave him his only loss this season. Cerminara, who became Buffalo's first All-American ever in 2004, is 38-2, with both losses coming to Michalak.

    Although Padden has been impressive against Rosholt, he lost badly this season to Michalek, 15-3, and also lost 6-2 to Flaggert. Davis, who became an All-American as a freshman last year, is coming off a Big Ten title. Bader, who comes in as the No. 8 seed, finished fourth at the NCAAs in 2004, but failed to place a year ago.

    RevWrestling.com Finals Prediction: No. 3 Padden dec. No. 4 Rosholt

    Hwt Seeds:

    1 -- Konrad, Cole -- Minnesota Jr (33-0)
    2 -- Mocco, Steve -- Oklahoma State Sr (23-2)
    3 -- Wagner, Greg -- Michigan Sr (24-2)
    4 -- Velasquez, Cain -- Arizona State Sr (34-5)
    5 -- Ogunwole, Bode -- Harvard Jr (27-5)
    6 -- Garrett, Tanner -- Navy Sr (41-2)
    7 -- Hager, Jake -- Oklahoma Sr (22-5)
    8 -- Faust, Mike -- Virginia Tech Sr (34-6)

    Coming into this season, Mocco, a two-time NCAA champion, reigned superior in this weight class. He hadn't lost a collegiate match since 2002. But in the first match of the season, at the All-Star Classic, Mocco lost to Konrad, 4-1. Then, at the National Duals, Konrad proved it was no fluke by pinning Mocco. And finally, on Feb. 12, Konrad defeated Mocco, 3-1, for the third straight time this season. In addition to his victories over Mocco, Konrad has also defeated No. 3 Wagner (twice) and No. 4 Velasquez. Mocco and Wagner both have two victories over Velasquez this season.

    Ogunwole, who comes in with a 27-5 record, was runner-up at the Midlands. Garrett owns a very impressive 41-2 record, but has not defeated any of the top-eight seeds this season. Hager, the Big 12 runner-up, has lost twice to Mocco this season and once to Velasquez.

    RevWrestling.com Finals Prediction: No. 1 Konrad dec. No. 2 Mocco
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