After a runner-up finish at the 33rd Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational, the No. 7 Buckeyes welcome the No. 5 Missouri Tigers for a huge non-conference dual meet. Each team boasts a defending national champion, and the match looks incredibly even on paper.
Let's take a quick look at Missouri.
Head Coach: Brian Smith
Smith is in his 16th season at the helm of the Tigers and has won the past three Coach of the Year awards in Missouri’s respective conference (the Mid-American Conference the last two seasons and the Big 12 in 2012) and was the 2007 Dan Gable Coach of the Year. As a competitor himself, Smith wrestled for Michigan State, where he was a four-time letter winner. Smith has coached five Tigers to individual NCAA titles and is quite likely to add to that number with J’Den Cox having three years of eligibility remaining.
Notable Wrestlers
J’Den Cox (197/HVY): Cox won his first NCAA championship last season at 197 pounds, as he was able to hold off a last-second takedown by Buckeye Nick Heflin in the finals to earn a 2-1 decision (were the match two seconds longer, Cox would have been an NCAA runner-up). Cox has only lost a pair of matches to this point in his NCAA career and is poised to be one of the most successful big men in NCAA history.
Alan Waters (125): Waters is a three-time conference champion and was twice an NCAA All-American, placing fifth and sixth in three trips to the NCAA tournament. He has amassed over 100 career victories and is capable of scoring bonus points each time he steps on the mat.
Drake Houdashelt (149): Like Waters, Houdashelt has won three conference titles and has twice earned All-American status with fifth and sixth place finishes at the NCAA tournament. He has won over 100 matches in his collegiate career and is undefeated to this point in the 2014 campaign.
Ohioans on the Roster
None.
Projected Lineups
125: #7 Nathan Tomasello (OSU) vs #3 Alan Waters (MIZZ)
133: #9 Johnni DiJulius (OSU) vs #16 Matt Manley (MIZZ)
141: #1 Logan Stieber (OSU) vs #8 Lavion Mayes (MIZZ)
149: Randy Languis (OSU) vs #5 Drake Houdashelt (MIZZ)
157: #6 Josh Demas (OSU) vs #12 Joey Lavallee (MIZZ)
165: Justin Kresevic (OSU) vs Cody Johnson (MIZZ)
174: #12 Mark Martin (OSU) vs Mikey England (MIZZ)
184: #12 Kenny Courts (OSU) vs #9 Willie Miklus or Johnny Eblen (MIZZ)
197: #7 Kyle Snyder (OSU) vs #3 J’Den Cox or Willie Miklus (MIZZ)
HVY: #10 Nick Tavanello (OSU) vs J’Den Cox or N/A (MIZZ)
Matches to Watch
All of them. In a match between the two programs ranked in the top seven, every match is going to be crucial and bonus points should be hard to come by. But more specifically...
125: Tomasello gets another tough test in Waters after dropping matches to Dance of Virginia Tech and Dylan Peters of Northern Iowa. Tomasello was beating Peters at the time he was reversed and pinned, and was able to get in on leg attacks against Dance, so he should keep this one competitive. Waters is a tough veteran, so a win for Tomasello would be a nice feather in his cap.
133: The Buckeyes are going to need a win from JDJ here against a tough opponent in Manley. DiJulius faltered last weekend in the quarterfinals but bounced back nicely to take third place at the CKLV Invitational.
141: Stieber is going to likely score bonus points, which the Buckeyes will sorely need as the Tigers strength lies at the end of their lineup.
157: Demas sat out last weekend following the death of teammate and friend Kosta Karageorge. This bout will be the first home match for Demas since Kosta’s passing and the Buckeyes are taking measures to remember the big man, including his initials on their singlets, a video montage, and an empty seat on the bench. Demas could be incredibly focused or incredibly distracted and Lavallee only has one loss on the season, so he is not one to be overlooked.
165: With neither wrestler currently ranked or having a marked advantage on paper, this could be one of the critical swing matches to determine the overall match.
184, 197, HVY: The Tigers could use the final three weight classes to play musical chairs. The Buckeyes have established starters at each weight, but Missouri could utilize a variety of combinations to try and swing the team score in their favor. At a glance, the Tigers would most likely benefit if they bump Miklus up to 197 and have Cox wrestle heavyweight so that they don’t give the Buckeyes six team points as a result of a forfeit at that class. Ideally, I’d like to see a rematch from a few years ago between Cox and Snyder at 197 (Cox won by decision), but that likely will depend upon how the previous matches shake out.
The match is set to start at 2 p.m. at St. John Arena and will be streamed live on Buckeye Vision ($).
