Live This Week: Feb. 16 - Northern Colorado at Air Force | Feb. 17 - Purdue at SDSU | Feb. 17/18 - New England Prep Championships | Feb. 18 - Iowa at Edinboro | North Dakota St at South Dakota St | Feb. 19 - #2 Penn State at #1 Oklahoma State (Exclusive Live Broadcast)



A very strong Iowa team will take its squad into McComb Fieldhouse for a dual Saturday against the Edinboro Fighting Scots (Watch Live Only On Flo!).  Though on paper there's not many apparent opportunities for Edinboro to win matches, the rabidity of the crowd, the steady improvement of the Fighting Scots, and a potential letdown match from No. 4 Iowa could give this dual some very dramatic moments.

A few weeks ago I alluded to the power of the Edinboro crowd. Though the Fighting Scots were massive underdogs against then-No. 1 Oklahoma State at home on Feb. 3, they bloodied up the Cowboys in more than a few bouts. Edinboro 125-pounder Sean Russell downed OSU's Nick Piccininni, and EU's Austin Matthews pulled the upset over No. 7 Chandler Rogers at 165. Fighting Scots 184-pound true freshman Dakota Geer nearly pulled off the upset against No. 4 Nolan Boyd. Even Okahoma State's Kyle Crutchmer, currently ranked seventh at 174, struggled against Ty Schoffstall, needing overtime to put the Edinboro redshirt junior away.  

Check the box score from that dual:
Oklahoma State 24, Edinboro 12
125 -- No. 9 Sean Russell (EU) dec. No. 12 Nick Piccininni (OSU), 3-2                                    
133 -- No. 3 Kaid Brock (OSU) maj. dec. No. 19 Korbin Myers (EU), 16-4                                             
141 -- No. 1 Dean Heil (OSU) tech. fall over Ozzy Lugo (EU), 17-2 (5:43)                         
149 -- No. 3 Anthony Collica (OSU) dec. No. 11 Patricio Lugo (EU), 4-1                                 
157 -- Davey Dolan (OSU) dec. Chase Delande (EU), 6-5                                                  
165 --No. 17 Austin Matthews (EU) fall over No. 7 Chandler Rogers (OSU), 3:47                       
174 -- No. 9 Kyle Crutchmer (OSU) dec. Ty Schoffstall (EU), 6-4 sv                                  
184 -- No. 6 Nolan Boyd (OSU) dec. No. 18 Dakota Geer (EU), 10-8                                     
197 -- Derek White (OSU) dec. Dylan Reynolds (EU), 1-0                                          
Hwt. -- No. 12 Billy Miller (EU) dec. Tanner Allen (OSU), 6-2     

Recall this time last year, Iowa came out very flat against North Carolina State and lost 21-17. So it's possible that this time of the year for the Hawkeyes, leading into Big Tens, is one when they're not clicking on all cylinders as they look to peak two weeks from now at the conference tournament.

I don't think there's a chance for an upset by Edinboro in the team sense, but the Fighting Scots could find their way to three or four wins potentially.

Here are my favorite bouts of what will be an outstanding dual:

149: No. 3 Brandon Sorensen, Iowa vs. No. 8 Pat Lugo, Edinboro -- Sorensen has been pushed on the road before. We saw him struggle with David Kocer of South Dakota State earlier in the year. Lugo is stingy, so the match will inherently be close. There have been some occasions where Sorensen has played with fire against lesser opponents. He hasn't been burned yet, but Lugo's attacks and defense will have him in this one.

184: No. 4 Sammy Brooks, Iowa vs. No. 16 Dakota Geer, Edinboro -- I promise you this one will be a blast and probably the most entertaining bout. Brooks is basically a must watch every time out. When you consider that Geer is a dangerous scrambler with real athleticism and upside, you have a recipe for a fun bout at minimum.

125: No. 1 Thomas Gilman vs. No. 9 Sean Russell, Edinboro -- It's hard to see a scenario where Russell wins the match, but he is very stingy. In regulation losses, his opponents average fewer than four points, so he is rarely blown out (and hasn't been once this year). Gilman has offense and an incredibly effective single leg and motor. Russell can't threaten Gilman from the top position in my opinion, but a tight match shouldn't surprise you (or worry Hawkeyes fans).  Russell is that sound defensively.

165: No. 16 Joey Gunther, Iowa vs. No. 9 Austin Matthews, Edinboro -- Here's an opportunity for Iowa to notch an upset. Gunther has been the definition of solid all season long. The question is currently "How high can Gunther climb?" Austin Matthews has proven he can beat good guys (See win over Chandler Rogers), but the question is consistency. He lost to both Seldon Wright and Branson Ashworth this year. Gunther is certainly in that range. Gunther may struggle underneath Matthews, who is elite from the top position.

174: No. 8 Alex Meyer, Iowa vs. Ty Schoffstall, Edinboro -- Schoffstall is quietly turning in a very solid year. He's beaten Dylan Wisman on the year and has been in a lot of matches with elite guys. He lost close to Crutchmer, Myles Amine, Jadaen Bernstein already this year. Alex Meyer has been more/less consistent this year, but you never know when he'll turn in a wonky performance.

Don't miss a second of the action. Iowa at Edinboro will go down Saturday, February 18, at 7 PM Eastern! (WATCH HERE)

Projected Lineups:
125: No. 1 Thomas Gilman (Iowa) vs. No. 9 Sean Russell (Edinboro)
133: No. 3 Cory Clark (Iowa) vs. No. 18 Korbin Myers (Edinboro)
141: No. 20 Topher Carton (Iowa) vs. Nate Hagan (Edinboro)
149: No. 3 Brandon Sorensen (Iowa) vs. No. 8 Pat Lugo (Edinboro)
157: No. 2 Michael Kemerer (Iowa) vs. Chase Delande (Edinboro)
165: No. 16 Joey Gunther (Iowa) vs. No. 9 Austin Matthews (Edinboro
174: No. 8 Alex Meyer (Iowa) vs Ty Schoffstall (Edinboro
184: No. 4 Sammy Brooks (Iowa) vs. No. 16 Dakota Geer (Edinboro)
197: Cash Wilcke (Iowa) vs. Dylan Reynolds (Edinboro)
285: Steven Holloway (Iowa) vs. No. 14 Billy Miller (Edinboro)

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