The Cowboys head to the state of Iowa this weekend for two tough Big 12 duals vs the Northern Iowa Panthers and the Iowa State Cyclones. Here are four reasons to watch the UNI dual, and below we break down the crucial matchups in the battle against the Cyclones.

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Oklahoma State is a favorite at 125, 149, 165, and 197. Iowa State has the edge at 141, 157, 174, and 285, and 133-184 are fairly close to toss-ups. So here are the five swing matches that I think could decide the dual. 

1. Boo Lewallen vs Jarrett Degen

This one may not happen, as Jarrett Degen has been out with an injury, and the word is it’s about a 50-50 chance we see him here. The storylines are there for this one if it happens. Degen was an All-American last year and their matchup at the dual in Gallagher-Iba last year resulted in a crushing injury that ended Boo’s season. Boo Lewallen has been on a tear to this point in the campaign and looks like a legitimate threat to win an NCAA title. If it’s not Degen, I expect Boo to roll here and give OSU a big leg up in the dual, but a battle between Degen and Boo could be interesting. 

2. Wyatt Sheets vs David Carr

On paper, David Carr is expected to roll here, and ultimately I do think he’ll take this one, but Wyatt Sheets seems to be coming to form right now. He pulled off upset after upset to finish third at the Southern Scuffle after coming in unseeded and seemed to carry that trajectory over since by winning his last three dual matches vs Northern Colorado, West Virginia, and Pitt. The OSU staff has consistently talked about Wyatt being on the edge of breaking out, and he seems to be doing that. A win here would be a huge leap for Sheets and would absolutely flip this dual on its head and in the direction of the Cowboys. 

Watch sheets take third place at the Southern Scuffle:

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As an added bonus, this is a legacy match: Sheets’ and Carr’s dads combine for five Big Eight and five NCAA titles during their time at ISU and OSU.

3. Dusty Hone vs Ian Parker

Some national wrestling fans who don’t follow OSU closely may expect to see Kaden Gfeller here. That’s just not been the case this season. Dusty Hone has been the guy, and I expect him to continue to be that. I wrote above that this would be an upset for the Cowboys, and on paper it is, but Hone has beaten Kyle Shoop and Tariq Wilson, and just has an older workmanlike maturity about him that gives your gut the feeling that he could pull this off. Similar to Sheets-Carr, if OSU pulls the upset it could completely flip things in the Cowboys favor.

4. Anthony Montalvo vs Marcus Coleman

In a lot of matches in this dual, one team or the other will be fairly heavily favored; this is one of two that are a lot closer on paper. Montalvo is a scrapper, his pace rarely slows down, and at the end when other guys are dragging he’s still usually pushing. In some scenarios that gets him in trouble, as we’ve seen him walk into a few takedowns late, but in a dogfight like this is expected to be, it could be to his advantage. This season most of Coleman’s losses have taken place against really high-level talent, so he could be a little underrated at this point. Ultimately it’s one that could go either way in my opinion and that will have a big impact on the dual. 

Of note is that Montalvo has a lot of momentum coming into the one with wins in his last three matches, including a top-10 upset. Coleman is 1-3 in his last four.

5. Reece Witcraft vs Todd Small

I hate to put the pressure of the dual on the shoulders of a true freshman, but it could certainly be decided by two wrestlers who are both making their first starts in this dual. Small is a JUCO national champ from Iowa Central who has had a strong season to this point, and Witcraft is a highly-touted recruit out of Broken Arrow who has been navigating his way through his first year of college wrestling as a true freshman. Witcraft has been right there in a lot of big matches, but has let a few slip away. This should be a close one and could really be a signature win for either guy, as they are both working on building their resume to get an NCAA tournament bid.

Seth Duckworth is a Stillwater-based writer who covers Oklahoma State University wrestling for Pistols Firing Blog, the best OSU news and community site on the internet. Follow Seth on Twitter.