This year’s version of the national duals features nine of the nation’s Top 10 teams. Only one tournament — the NCAA Championships in March — will feature a better field. Penn State went 2-3 in its last national duals appearance in 2005. The Nittany Lions have not won the event since 1993, the last time they were ranked No. 1. “This is definitely new for us,” Davis said. “We are out to prove that we deserve the respect we have been fighting for. We feel that we should have been ranked No. 1. But getting there wasn’t easy.”
Penn State enters this weekend with a loose grip on the top spot. The Nittany Lions started the season ranked 11th and they are the fourth No. 1 this season. Penn State replaced Iowa which lost to Oklahoma State this past weekend. The Nittany Lions defeated the Cowboys on Dec. 9. “I think we do have a lot to prove,” Penn State coach Troy Sunderland said. “A lot of people speculate and might be thinking that Oklahoma State is the only team in the Top 5 we have faced. Some people might be thinking we are not a unanimous No. 1.” A unanimous No. 1 could emerge by Sunday. But Penn State, like everybody else in the field, must endure some challenges before reaching the finals.
Sunderland said his team has directed its focus toward UT-Chattanooga which defeated Ohio State in November. The Mocs’ lineup features seven ranked wrestlers led by ninth-ranked 125-pounder Javier Maldonado. Penn State started dissecting film on potential opponents last week and their preparations for UT-Chattanooga intensified when seeds were released Tuesday. The schools have never faced each other in a dual meet. “We don’t know a whole lot about them,” Sunderland said. Sunderland’s curiosity should extend beyond the Mocs. For the first time in his 10-year tenure, Sunderland’s team will be a favorite entering a major national event. “I think it does put a target on us,” he said. “It’s something that’s bound to be brought up. It’s a good position to be in.”
Nobody on Sunderland’s roster knows more about the pressure associated with a ranking than Davis. The Nittany Lions’ most experienced wrestler has ascended to No. 1 in his weight class multiple times during the past two years. “I’m not quite sure how it works as a team,” Davis said. “But when you’re No. 1 as an individual it seems like everybody is ready to wrestle you. It will be interesting to see if it works like that as a team.” Davis’ 5-0 performance in the 2005 national duals served as a catalyst to an impressive redshirt freshman season that ended on the NCAA awards podium. Strong weekends could have a similar impact on some current Nittany Lions. Penn State’s starting lineup includes five sophomores trying to make an impact on the national level. “I expect us to wrestle with an attitude,” Davis said. “We have had an attitude all year. I don’t expect anything to change this weekend.”
The winner of Penn State’s opening-round match will wrestle the Nebraska-Northwestern winner at 1 p.m. The top half of the bracket also features defending champion Minnesota (6-1) and undefeated Central Michigan (7-0). Iowa (7-1) and Iowa State (7-1) are the favorites on the other side of the bracket. Third-ranked Oklahoma State is the only Top 10 team not particpating in the tournament. The Cowboys are competing in the Virginia Duals, the event the Nittany Lions dropped from their schedule to re-enter the national duals. “We’re definitely viewing this like a national championship,” Sunderland said. “Whoever wins this can lay claim to being the No. 1 dual meet team in the country. I don’t think Oklahoma State not being there takes too much away from it because of the number of quality teams in the field and the strength of their lineups.”
Thanks to Guy Cipriano and the "Centre Daily Times" (State College, Pa.) for the article