big 10 vs. big 12 challenge

[D-train]

what is this exactly and who is going to wrestle in it?

 

i noticed that it is on friday.  does this mean that it will be guys that are no longer in contention?

[RegionTruth]

The rosters and lineups for the Big Ten vs. Big 12 Challenge, an exhibition men�s freestyle wrestling dual meet, have been finalized. The Challenge will be part of the NCAA Fan Festival, taking place at the 2010 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships in Omaha, Neb.

 

USA Wrestling and the NCAA are teaming up to present the event, being held at the NCAA Fan Festival in Exhibit Hall C of the Qwest Center Omaha on Friday, March 19 from 1:45 p.m. - 2:30 p.m. Central time. The NCAA Fan Festival is a short indoor walk north from the Qwest Center Omaha, site of the 2010 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships.

 

The Big Ten team will be coached by Mark Johnson, who coached at the University of Illinois. The Big 12 team will be coached by Bobby Douglas, who coached at Iowa State University. Prior to their retirement, both coaches had outstanding careers during their tenure as collegiate wrestling head coaches. Both were also members of the U.S. Olympic Team as athletes.

 

The Big Ten vs. Big 12 Challenge will feature matches in seven international wrestling weight classes. The competitors are former student-athlete wrestlers who competed for the universities in these prestigious conferences as undergraduates, and are now pursuing their Olympic dreams in men�s freestyle wrestling.

 

The Big Ten team will be represented by former student-athletes who competed for Michigan State University, University of Illinois, University of Michigan, Penn State University and Northwestern University. The Big 12 team will be represented by former atudent-athletes from Oklahoma State University, University of Oklahoma and Iowa State University.

 

A marquis matchup will happen at the 84 kg/185 lbs. weight class, when Jake Herbert, a two-time NCAA champion for Northwestern, will battle Chris Pendleton, a two-time NCAA champion for Oklahoma State. Herbert won a silver medal at the 2009 World Wrestling Championships.

 

Another two-time NCAA champion will be Steve Mocco, competing for the Big 12 team, who won national titles for both Oklahoma State and Iowa. Other past NCAA champions Coleman Scott of Oklahoma State and Trent Paulson of Iowa State will be representing the Big 12 team.

 

Two members of the 2008 U.S. Olympic Team, Mocco and former Michigan wrestler Andy Hrovat, will be showcased at the event.

 

There will also be two additional exhibition matches held, featuring top freestyle wrestlers who were also All-Americans in college. In an exhibition at 120 kg/264.5 lbs., Tervel Dlagnev, a two-time Division II national champion for University of Nebraska-Kearney, will battle Blake Gillis, a Division III national champion for Wartburg College.

 

The dual meet will be held on the mats where USA Wrestling�s Team USA will hold their popular public workouts between sessions of the 2010 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships each day.

 

Admission to the Fan Festival is free, so there will be no charge to watch the men�s freestyle action. For the Big Ten vs. Big 12 Challenge, there will be close to 1,000 seats and many more standing room only viewing opportunities provided mat side on a first-come, first-serve basis. In addition, as many as 1,000 fans will be able to watch the dual meet on two large projection screens flanking the main stage within the NCAA Fan Festival.

 

For those who cannot attend the 2010 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships in person, the Big Ten vs. Big 12 Challenge will be Web cast live on NCAA.com/wrestling and available through TheMat.com, with USA Wrestling's Jason Bryant and Kendall Cross calling the action.

 

The rules for the Big Ten vs. Big 12 Challenge have been modified. Instead of having individual match winners, there will be a cumulative point total for each conference. Team scores will be based upon adding up the technical points scored in each match by the athletes. At the end of the dual meet, the points will be tallied up, and the winning conference team will be announced.

 

Another rule modification is that each match will consist of two, two-minute periods. There will not be any third periods contested, which is possible in an international freestyle match.

 

This year�s NCAA Fan Festival will feature wrestling exhibit booths, displays, memorabilia, interactive games, souvenirs, food and beverage sales, and a number of other featured events. In addition to the Big Ten vs. Big 12 Challenge, the lineup Friday includes a USA Wrestling autograph session at 3:15 p.m. and the annual Semifinals Preview Show featuring Nate Carr, Scott Casber and Wade Schalles at 4 p.m. Central.

 

For more information on the NCAA Fan Festival at the 2010 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships in Omaha, Neb., visit NCAA.com/wrestling.

 

Any journalist wishing to cover this event should immediately contact Gary Abbott of USA Wrestling at gabbott@usawrestling.org or on his cell phone at 719/659-9637.

 

TENTATIVE BIG TEN VS. BIG 12 CHALLENGE LINEUPS

(Big Ten athlete/school vs. Big 12 athlete/school)

 

55 kg/121 lbs. - Nick Simmons (Michigan State) vs. Obe Blanc (Oklahoma State)

60 kg/132 lbs. - Jimmy Kennedy (Illinois) vs. Coleman Scott (Oklahoma State)

66 kg/145.5 lbs. - Andy Simmons (Michigan State) vs. Jared Frayer (Oklahoma)

74 kg/163 lbs. - Mike Poeta (Illinois) vs. Trent Paulson (Iowa State)

84 kg/185 lbs. - Jake Herbert (Northwestern) vs. Chris Pendleton (Oklahoma State)

96 kg/211.5 lbs. - Andy Hrovat (Michigan) vs. David Bertolino (Iowa State)

120 kg/264.5 lbs. - Aaron Anspach (Penn State) vs. Steve Mocco (Oklahoma State)

 

Exhibition bouts

96 kg/211.5 lbs. - J.D. Bergman (Ohio State) vs. Kyle Cerminara (Buffalo)

120 kg/264.5 lbs. - Tervel Dlagnev (UN-Kearney) vs. Blake Gillis (Wartburg)

 

Big 10 Coach: Mark Johnson (Illinois)

Big 12 Coach: Bobby Douglas (Iowa State)

 

[D-train]

ok, that is pretty cool.  thanks.

 

[MattM]

Mocco moving over to Big 12 for this one though he spent most of his time in Big 10

[D-train]

finalists, Big 10-9

                  Big 12-6

 

out of 20 finalists, 3/4 are from these two conferences.

[Drooke]

OMAHA, Neb. - The Big Ten took a huge early lead in the team scoring, and held off a challenge by the Big 12 in the middle weights to earn a 57-37 victory in the first Big Ten vs. Big 12 Challenge on Friday.

 

This exhibition men?s freestyle wrestling dual meet, presented by the NCAA and USA Wrestling, was part of the NCAA Fan Festival at the 2010 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships in Omaha, Neb. A standing-room only crowd of over 3,000 fans were in attendance, enjoying some outstanding freestyle action.

 

The rules for the Big Ten vs. Big 12 Challenge were modified. Instead of having individual match winners, there was a cumulative point total for each conference. Team scores were based upon adding up the technical points scored in each match by the athletes. At the end of the dual meet, the points were tallied up, with the Big Ten winning by 20 points.

 

In the first match of the day, the Big Ten took the lead and never looked back. At 55 kg/121 lbs., Nick Simmons, who was a star for Michigan State, reeled off an amazing 29 points in his match against Obe Blanc, who competed for Oklahoma State. He executed numerous front headlock turns, as well as exposures from the mat, for a dominant advantage. It was a rematch of the 2009 U.S. Freestyle Nationals finals, also won by Simmons.

 

"It was for fun. This is for the fans," said Simmons. "As soon as I heard there were no tech falls, I knew if I got on top, I could put up a lot of points real quick."

 

The next match was a push, as Jimmy Kennedy, who is taking a redshirt year for Illinois, scored one point, and Coleman Scott, a past NCAA champion for Oklahoma State, also scored one point.

 

The Big 12 wrestlers outscored their Big Ten opponents in the next three weight classes, closing the gap.

 

At 66 kg/145.5 lbs., Jared Frayer, who was a NCAA runner-up at Oklahoma tallied seven points against Joe Johnston, past NCAA runner-up from Iowa, who scored one point.

 

"It is a great concept, something we should do for the fans. It was an exciting event and great for the sport," said Frayer. "You have to win your match and worry about that. I've wrestled Joe quite a bit, and he knows a lot of my tricks. It was a great match and was fun."

 

In a competitive battle at 74 kg/163 lbs., past NCAA champion Trent Paulson of Iowa State scored 10 total points against Mike Poeta, an NCAA runner-up for Illinois, who scored eight points. Paulson was a member of the 2009 U.S. Freestyle World Team.

 

The 84 kg/185 lbs. match featured a pair of two-time NCAA champion. Chris Pendleton of Oklahoma State scored an impressive 17 points against Jake Herbert of Northwestern, who scored six points. Herbert was a 2009 World silver medalist in freestyle.

 

The Big Ten closed out the meet with two strong performances. At 96 kg/211.5 lbs., 2008 U.S. Olympian Andy Hrovat, who was a star for Michigan, put up nine points, while David Bertolino from Iowa State tallied one point.

 

Closing out the match at 120 kg/264.5 lbs. was past NCAA runner-up Aaron Anspach of Penn State who scored three points, while Missouri?s Dominique Bradley did not score. Bradley was a 2009 Junior World freestyle champion.

 

In a exhibition bout at 120 kg/264.5 lbs., two-time Div. II national champion Tervel Dlagnev of UN-Kearney earned seven points, while past Div. III national champion Blake Gillis of Wartburg did not score. Dlagnev was a 2009 World silver medalist in freestyle wrestling.

 

The teams were coached by a pair of retired coaches from each conference, both who were also past U.S. Olympic Team members: Mark Johnson of Illinois for the Big Ten and Bobby Douglas of Iowa State for the Big 12.

 

The event was filled with many prominent wrestling celebrities.

 

Serving as honorary captains were award-winning actor Billy Baldwin and three-time Super Bowl champion football star Stephen Neal of the New England Patriots.

 

Neal, who was a 1999 World Champion in freestyle wrestling, received his special leather jacket from USA Wrestling as a past U.S. World Team member. Neal was a two-time NCAA champion at Cal-State Bakersfield. Baldwin, a wrestler for Binghamton University, received a Team USA warmup for his support of the event.

 

The crowd included numerous international wrestling stars who came out as fans, including Olympic and World champion Kenny Monday, three-time World champion Lee Kemp, Olympic champion John Peterson, World champion Clarissa Chun and many others. Olympic champion Kendall Cross was one of the public address announcers.

 

The event was webcast live on NCAA.org.

 

The dual meet was held on the mats where USA Wrestling?s Team USA hosts their popular public workouts between sessions of the 2010 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships each day. Admission to the Fan Festival is free.

 

BIG TEN 57 pts., BIG 12 37 pts.

at Omaha, Neb., March 19

55 kg/121 lbs. - Nick Simmons (Big 10/Michigan State), 29 pts., Obe Blanc (Big 12/Oklahoma State), 1 pt.

60 kg/132 lbs. - Jimmy Kennedy (Big 10/Illinois), 1 pt., Coleman Scott (Big 12/Oklahoma State), 1 pt.

66 kg/145.5 lbs. ? Jared Frayer (Big 12/Oklahoma), 7 pts., Joe Johnston (Big 10/Iowa), 1 pt.

74 kg/163 lbs. - Trent Paulson (Big 12/Iowa State), 10 pts., Mike Poeta (Big 10/Illinois), 8 pts.

84 kg/185 lbs. - Chris Pendleton (Big 12/Oklahoma State), 17 pts., Jake Herbert (Northwestern), 6 pts.

96 kg/211.5 lbs. - Andy Hrovat (Big Ten/Michigan), 9 pts., David Bertolino (Big 12/Iowa State), 1 pt.

120 kg/264.5 lbs. - Aaron Anspach (Big Ten/Penn State), 3 pts., Dominique Bradley (Big 12/Missouri) 0 pts.

 

Exhibition bout

120 kg/264.5 lbs. - Tervel Dlagnev (UN-Kearney), 7 pts., Blake Gillis (Wartburg), 0 pts.

 

Big 10 Coach: Mark Johnson (Illinois)

Big 12 Coach: Bobby Douglas (Iowa State)

Honorary Captains: Stephen Neal, Billy Baldwin