Here are 10 things to watch ...
The possible return of Sonny Yohn: All-American Sonny Yohn is expected to be back in the Gopher lineup today against Penn State. Yohn, who is ranked fourth at 197 pounds, has not competed since injury defaulting out of the Southern Scuffle. His return comes at an opportune time for the Gophers because it gives them a likely victory at 197 pounds with a very realistic possibility of bonus points. Penn State has not picked up a win at this weight class in a Big Ten dual meet this season and has given up bonus points in all but one of the dual meets.
The possible return of Brad Pataky: Pataky, a two-time NCAA qualifier for the Nittany Lions at 125 pounds, has been out since the Virginia Duals last month with a left knee injury. Penn State weighed in Pataky on Friday night against Illinois, but did not wrestle him. The coaching staff has been silent on when Pataky will return, but indications are it could be today. Pataky and Minnesota 125-pounder Zach Sanders have a bit of a rivalry. Pataky won two of three matches against Sanders two seasons ago. Last season, Sanders edged Pataky, 13-11, in sudden victory at the Big Ten Championships.
David Taylor's dominance: The Penn State freshman Taylor has been putting up mind-blowing numbers this season at 157 pounds. He is 29-0 with bonus points in 28 of those victories. Taylor has been crushing his competition all season. His closest match this season was a 9-3 victory over fifth-ranked Jesse Dong of Virginia Tech. On Friday night, Taylor had an "off" match, getting taken down three times against freshman Jackson Morse of Illinois, but still wound up winning by technical fall, 26-10. Who has an "off" match and still gets a technical fall? David Taylor ... and maybe his coach when he was in college. Taylor has a chance to be a great one, so watch and enjoy.
Andrew Alton vs. Mike Thorn: If you're going to get snacks during this dual meet, I would strongly advise you not to do it during this match at 141 pounds. Alton, a true freshman, is a big-move wrestler and a pinner. His 16 pins leads the team. When he tangles with second-ranked Thorn, there could be some fireworks because neither wrestler is afraid to mix it up. Both are coming off losses. Alton suffered a 5-3 loss to fourth-ranked Jimmy Kennedy of Illinois on Friday night. Thorn dropped a match on Friday night to top-ranked Kellen Russell of Michigan, 3-1, in sudden victory.
David Thorn's emergence: The freshman 133-pounder for Minnesota was hampered in the early part of the season with an injury, but has really been progressing well since stepping in the lineup. The only wrestlers to defeat him in the calendar year are No. 2 Andrew Hochstrasser of Boise State, No. 3 Tyler Graff of Wisconsin, and No. 7 B.J. Futrell of Illinois. Thorn is coming off a win over his first ranked opponent, 20th-ranked Zac Stevens of Michigan. Thorn showed a lot of skills on his feet in that match. He will face 2010 NCAA runner-up Andrew Long today.
Cameron Wade vs. Tony Nelson: The sixth-ranked Wade and eighth-ranked Nelson are both performing at a high level and should be in the mix for All-American honors in Philadelphia. This is virtually a tossup match on paper. If the dual meet starts at 125 pounds, there is a very real chance the dual meet winner could be decided by which heavyweight comes out on top.
Which Quentin Wright will show up? Wright, Penn State's 184-pounder, is one of the nation's most skilled upperweights. He was an All-American two seasons ago as a true freshman, redshirted last season, and placed at the U.S. Open in freestyle last spring. But his skills don't always come out when he wrestles. He has not been performing to his ability of late and comes in ranked 13th. He missed over a month this season because of a shoulder injury, so that could be a contributing factor. He will be in for a battle against Minnesota freshman Kevin Steinhaus, who is 26-8 and ranked eighth.
Super freshman Ed Ruth: It wouldn't be fair to mention Penn State's freshmen Alton and Taylor without mentioning Ruth, who is the highest ranked of the three. Ruth is 27-1 and ranked No. 2 at 174 pounds. At the Southern Scuffle in late December, Ruth knocked off the nation's top two wrestlers at the time, Mack Lewnes of Cornell and Chris Henrich of Virginia. Ruth has freakish abilities. You better get used to hearing his name.
Upsets: There always seems to be upsets in big duals. What will the upsets be, if any, in this dual?
Head coaches: Both head coaches, J Robinson (Minnesota) and Cael Sanderson (Penn State), are giants in the sport. Robinson, who has guided the Gophers to three NCAA team titles and 17 top-10 finishes, is an innovator and one of the sport's greatest marketers. He coached his 500th dual meet against Michigan. Sanderson is the only Division I wrestler ever to go undefeated and win four NCAA titles. He won an Olympic gold medal in 2004. He is only in his fifth season as a head coach, second at Penn State.
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