March 19, 2014
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ON THE MAT
The University of Iowa wrestling team travels to Oklahoma City to compete at the 2014 NCAA Championships on March 20-22 at Chesapeake Energy Arena. The three-day tournament begins Thursday with Session I starting at 11 a.m. and Session II at 6 p.m. Session III and IV begin Friday at 10 a.m. and 7 p.m. The medal round starts Saturday at 10 a.m., and the championship finals begin Saturday at 7 p.m. All times are central.
ESPN COVERAGE OF THE NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS
With all six sessions televised and every match carried on ESPN3 for the first time, ESPN will provide unprecedented coverage of the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships from Chesapeake Energy Arena in Oklahoma City, Okla., on March 20-22. ESPN will televise the semifinals and finals, while ESPNU televises the first and second sessions, the quarterfinals and medal round. Digitally, ESPN3 will carry individual mat feeds throughout the entire tournament and debut a special — Inside the Mat — during the finals. All six sessions are available on WatchESPN.
DIGITAL COVERAGE ON ESPN3
ESPN3 has expanded its individual mat feed which allows fans to watch every match throughout the tournament, including the wrestleback bracket, accompanied by live commentary. Additionally, for computer users, ESPN3 will once again offer multi-mat simultaneous viewing which allows fans to watch up to four different mats at one time.
LIVE RESULTS
Live results will be available on the wrestling schedule page at trackwrestling.com.
VIDEO EXCLUSIVE
hawkeyesports.com, the official website of the Iowa Hawkeyes, will have exclusive video highlights for all sessions of the NCAA Wrestling Championships.
NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS OUTSTANDING WRESTLERS
Ten different Hawkeyes have been named the NCAA Championships Outstanding Wrestler. They include Chuck Yagla (1976), Bruce Kinseth (1979), Jim Zalesky (1984), Barry Davis (1985), Mary Kistler (1986), Tom Brands (1992), Terry Steiner (1993), Lincoln McIlravy (1997), Joe Williams (1998) and Brent Metcalf (2008).
ALL-AMERICAN STREAK
The Hawkeyes have crowned at least one All-American every year since 1972, a span of 42 seasons. Iowa has totaled 255 All-America honors during that stretch. The Hawkeyes have five All-Americans on this year’s squad. Derek St. John is a three-time All-American and 2013 NCAA Champion. Tony Ramos placed third in 2012 and runner-up in 2013. Ethen Lofthouse placed seventh in 2012, and fifth in 2013. Mike Evans earned his first All-America honor with a sixth-place finish in 2013, and Bobby Telford placed fifth in 2012.
40 YEARS OF DOMINANCE
Since 1974, only seven schools have captured the NCAA Championship. During that 40-year span, the Hawkeyes have won 23 team titles, including nine straight from 1978-86. The other schools include Oklahoma State (7), Minnesota (3), Penn State (3), Iowa State (2), Arizona State (1) and Oklahoma (1).
10 QUALIFIERS
Iowa has sent at least eight athletes to the NCAA Championships in each of head coach Tom Brands’ eight seasons. This year marks the 18th time since 1968, and first time since 2010, that Iowa has sent its entire 10-man lineup to the national tournament. Iowa has won the NCAA team crown 14 times when sending its entire 10-man lineup.
DEFENDING CHAMPION Derek St. John
Derek St. John, the No. 2 seed in 2013, became the 52nd national champion in program history when he defeated Northwestern’s Jason Welch, 3-2, in the 157-pound NCAA finals last season.
St. John enters 2014 as the No. 2 seed. He is attempting to become the 23rd wrestler in program history to win multiple NCAA championships. In the history of Iowa wrestling, 16 wrestlers have won two national crowns, while six wrestlers have won three. A Hawkeye has won back-to-back titles 15 times, most recently in 2007-08 (Mark Perry). Iowa head coach Tom Brands won three consecutive titles from 1990-92.
BIG TEN CHAMPION Tony Ramos
Senior Tony Ramos won the 133-pound Big Ten title March 9 at the Kohl Center in Madison, Wis. Ramos used an escape and 1:37 of riding time to defeat Wisconsin’s Tyler Graff, 2-1. It was the first conference title for Ramos. He became the 110th Big Ten champion in school history, and the 11th Big Ten champion under head coach Tom Brands.
MAKE IT A DOUBLE
Tony Ramos is going for the single-season championship sweep in Oklahoma City. Since 1928, when Leslie Beers won the Big Ten and NCAA title, a Hawkeye has pulled off the single-season championship sweep 60 times, most recently in 2012, when Matt McDonough won both the 125-pound conference and national championship. Iowa head coach Tom Brands won both titles in 1991 and 1992. Iowa associate head coach Terry Brands won both titles in 1990 and 1992.
4X ALL-AMERICAN
Senior Derek St. John enters the 2014 NCAA Championship with a chance to become the 18th Hawkeye wrestler to earn four All-America honors. He is currently of 32 three-time All-Americans. St. John placed fourth in 2011, second in 2012, and first in 2013. Mark Perry was the last Hawkeye to enter the four-time All-American club (2005-08). Head coach Tom Brands is one of 17 current members (1989-92).
NO. 24 WOULD BE NO. 2
The Hawkeyes have won 23 NCAA team titles, but among those championships seasons, only the 1999 Hawkeyes can say they won the team title without also capturing the Big Ten tournament championship in the same season. The 1999 team lost to Minnesota (139-121) at the conference tournament, but flipped the score and won the NCAA title by two points over the second-place Gophers two weeks later (100.5-98.5). Sophomores Doug Schwab and T.J. Williams each won their first national titles that season, while sophomore Eric Juergens, and seniors Lee Fullhart and Jamie Heidt earned All-America honors.
NCAA EXPERIENCE
The Hawkeyes have seven wrestlers with previous NCAA experience, and three wrestlers making their national tournament debut. The 2014 Iowa lineup has a combined one NCAA title and nine All-America honors.
? FIRST TIMERS: Cory Clark (Fr., 125), Josh Dziewa (Jr., 141), Brody Grothus (So., 149).
? BACK FOR SECONDS: Nick Moore (Jr., 165), Nathan Burak (So., 197).
? THIRD TIME AROUND: Mike Evans (Jr., 174), Bobby Telford (Jr., 285).
? FOURTH AND FINAL: Tony Ramos (Sr., 133), Derek St. John (Sr. 157), Ethen Lofthouse (Sr. 184).
IOWA VS. RANKED OPPONENTS
Individually, Iowa’s lineup is 56-41 against ranked opponents. Bobby Telford leads all Hawkeyes with nine wins over top 20 opponents.
Iowa lineup vs. ranked opponents
125 — Cory Clark (4-2)
133 — Tony Ramos (8-2)
141 — Josh Dziewa (3-7)
149 — Brody Grothus (4-6)
157 — Derek St. John (7-4)
165 — Nick Moore (6-3)
174 — Mike Evans (6-4)
184 — Ethen Lofthouse (4-3)
197 — Nathan Burak (5-5)
285 — Bobby Telford (9-5)
100-WIN CLUB
Senior Derek St. John’s opening round 5-4 win over Dylan Alton at the 2014 Big Ten tournament was the 100th win of his career. He enters the national tournament with a 101-15 career record. His 101 wins rank 38th in program history. Senior Tony Ramos also collected win No. 100 this season. Ramos has a career record of 115-14. His 115 wins rank No. 23 in school history. St. John and Ramos are among 40 Hawkeyes in program history to amass 100 or more career wins.
HAWKEYES WIN BIG TEN DUAL TITLE
Iowa won a share of the Big Ten regular season dual title when it defeated Wisconsin, 28-10, on Feb. 23. The Hawkeyes finished the dual season with a 7-1 conference record, sharing the regular season title with Minnesota (7-1) and Penn State (7-1). Iowa has won or shared six of the last seven Big Ten regular season titles.
HAWKEYE WRESTLING HISTORY
Iowa’s overall dual meet record is 941-224-31 (.799) in 104 seasons. The Hawkeyes have won 23 national titles and 34 Big Ten titles. Iowa’s 52 NCAA Champions have won a total of 80 NCAA individual titles, crowning six three-time and 16 two-time champions. The Hawkeyes’ 110 Big Ten champions have combined for 191 conference titles. There have been seven four-time, 18 three-time, and 29 two-time Iowa winners. Iowa’s 148 All-Americans have earned All-America status 301 times, including 17 four-time, 32 three-time and 38 two-time honorees.