N EEBRASKABRASKA W RRESTLINGESTLING Weekly Notes Tuesday, Feb. 3, 2009 Week 11 - Oklahoma State 2008-09 Schedule Date Opponent Time/Result Nebraska Battles Oklahoma State in Devaney Nov. 20 Chattanooga W, 29-15 Nov. 22 at Kaufman-Brand Open @ 8 Titles Dual 14: Nov. 28 Augustana (S.D.) W, 50-0 No. 4 Nebraska Cornhuskers (13-2-1, 1-0 Big 12) vs. No. 15 Oklahoma State (12-5, 0-2 Big 12) Nov. 28 Oregon State W, 34-8 Bob Devaney Sports Center • Lincoln, Neb. • Thursday, Feb. 5 • 7 p.m. Dec. 5-6 at Las Vegas Invitational # 1st - 124.5 pts Series History: Nebraska trails, 3-48-1 Dec. 20 Kent State Postponed Last Meeting: Nebraska won, 22-13, on Jan. 20, 2008, in Oklahoma City, Okla. Dec. 21 Minnesota W, 21-18 Live Stats: Huskers.com Jan. 4 Michigan W, 22-13 Live Video: Huskers.com Jan. 4 Northern Colorado W, 39-3 Live Audio: Okstate.com Jan. 10-11 National Duals $ The Husker wrestling team faces its third straight ranked opponent, when No. 4 Nebraska (13-2-1, 1-0 Big 12) hosts No. 15 Jan. 10 Northwestern W, 19-18 Oklahoma State (12-5, 0-2 Big 12) on Thursday in a midweek Big 12 battle at the Bob Devaney Sports Center. Wrestling is set to Jan. 10 Penn State W, 20-16 begin at 7 p.m. Jan. 11 Iowa L, 22-11 Nebraska opened the conference season with a win for the second straight year, as the Huskers topped No. 6 Missouri, 16-15, Jan. 11 Iowa State L, 20-19 at the Hearnes Center in Columbia, Mo., last Saturday. Junior Craig Brester gave NU the come-from-behind victory with his 6-4 Jan. 18 South Dakota State W, 43-3 decision over Max Askren in the fi nal match of the night. Both teams earned fi ve wins in the dual, with sophomore Matt Vacanti’s Jan. 18 Maryland W, 26-13 major decision at 133 pounds proving to be the difference. Junior Jordan Burroughs (157) improved to 23-0 on the season with Jan. 23 Penn (Parents Night) W, 23-14 a 4-3 decision over ninth-ranked Michael Chandler, Vince Jones (184) shut out out Dorian Henderson for a 4-0 win and Robert Jan. 25 vs Virginia Tech W, 26-11 Sanders (149) came from behind for a 7-4 decision. Jan. 25 at Central Michigan T, 17-17 Thursday’s dual with Oklahoma State will be uncharted territory for the Huskers. Nebraska will be facing an OSU team ranked Jan. 31 at Missouri W, 16-15 outside of the of top fi ve for the fi rst time since the 1992-93 season, and NU will be seeking its fi rst ever back-to-back wins over Feb. 5 Oklahoma State (Alumni Night) 7 p.m. a historically dominant OSU squad. Nebraska’s attendance record may also be broken, as the existing mark was set four seasons Feb. 8 at Oklahoma 2 p.m. ago when the Huskers hosted Oklahoma State on a Thursday night. The Cowboys topped Nebraska, 19-18, that night, but a crowd Feb. 14 at North Carolina 11 a.m. of 3,442 showed up to cheer on the Huskers. Feb. 14 vs UNC Greensboro 1 p.m. Fans can anticipate fi ve run-ins between ranked foes on Thursday, including three matchups of two wrestlers in the top 10. Feb. 22 Iowa State (Senior Day) 2 p.m. Brandon Browne, ranked third in the nation at 174 pounds, will wrestle No. 14 Newly McSpadden. No. 19 Tucker Lane will be March 7 Big 12 Championships % 11 a.m. tested by third-ranked Jared Rosholt. Top-10 matches will be contested between third-ranked Burroughs and No. 10 Neil Erisman March 19-21 NCAA Championships & TBA at 157, No. 6 Stephen Dwyer and No. 10 Brandon Mason at 165, and No. 2 Craig Brester and No. 8 Clayton Foster at 197. Nebraska’s dual with Oklahoma State will also feature several special promotions. Admission and Pepsi products will be $1 as All times listed are Central; All home duals in bold held at the part of Pepsi’s Pack the House, while Plattsmouth native Brandon Browne will be honored for Hometown Husker Day. The Nebraska NU Coliseum, unless otherwise noted; For ticket information wrestling booster club will also host Alumni Night. call (800) 8-BIG-RED. !-Devaney Center Track; @-Sapp For fans unable to attend, Saturday’s contest will feature live stats and video on Huskers.com, while live audio is available Fieldhouse, Omaha, Neb.; #-Las Vegas, Nev.; $-Cedar Falls, through Okstate.com. Iowa; ^-Lincoln, Neb.; &-St. Louis, Mo. Last Time Out: Brester Bumps Huskers Past Tigers Junior Craig Brester posted a 6-4 decision over Max Askren in the fi nal match of the night to give No. 4 Nebraska a come- from-behind 16-15 victory over No. 6 Missouri at the Hearnes Center in Columbia, Mo., last Saturday. In the Big 12 opener for both schools, NU moved to 13-2-1 on the season, while MU dropped to 15-3. In another classic matchup between the two, Brester, ranked second in the nation at 197 pounds, used a fi rst-period takedown to take an early lead on fourth-ranked Askren, but the Tiger was able to escape just seconds later. Askren chose down in the second and Brester accumulated the riding time advantage before Askren could escape to tie the match at two. Brester Media Information chose down in the third and Askren cut him before earning a takedown with a minute to go and taking a 4-3 lead. The Husker Wrestling Contact: Amil Anderson was able to notch a reversal with 49 seconds left and rode Askren out to take the 6-4 win. He moved to 24-1 on the season, Email: [email protected] including a team-leading 15-1 in duals. Offi ce Phone: (402) 472-7781 Brester’s heroics and the Huskers win were made possible by sophomore Matt Vacanti at 133 pounds. Vacanti collected the Cell Phone: (218) 371-6717 only bonus-point victory of the night with a 20-7 major decision over MU’s Taylor Crain. Vacanti posted nine takedowns to move Fax: (402) 472-2005 his dual record above .500 for the fi rst time this season at 6-5. He is 16-11 overall with three major decisions. Internet: Huskers.com Jordan Burroughs, Vince Jones and Robert Sanders collected decisions for NU, as each team claimed fi ve victories. Third- ranked Burroughs surrendered his fi rst dual takedown of the season to ninth-ranked Michael Chandler late in the third period to tie the bout, but the junior escaped with 10 seconds left to take the 4-3 victory at 157 pounds. Burroughs improved to 23-0 on the season, the best start for a Husker since Travis Pascoe went 23-0 at 184 pounds in 2003-04. Nebraska Cornhuskers Probable Starters Wt. Name Rank W-L Dual Pins TF MD Worth Noting 125 Andy Pokorny, RFr. NR/NR/NR 7-14 3-11 1 2 0 Faced eight ranked opponents in last 12 matches, includuing four in the top eight 133 Matt Vacanti, So. NR/NR/NR 16-11 6-5 3 0 3 His major decision gave Nebraska an extra point to top Missouri last Saturday, 16-15 141 Curtis Salazar, So. NR/NR/NR 11-13 3-9 3 1 1 Faced seven ranked opponents in last 11 matches, including No. 1 and 2 in nation 149 Robert Sanders, Sr. NR/NR/NR 22-12 8-6 6 0 4 Was only wrestler under 149 pounds to win a match at National Duals 157 Jordan Burroughs, Jr. 3/1/3 23-0 14-0 1 2 10 Has best start to season since Travis Pascoe went 23-0 at 184 pounds in 2003-04 165 Stephen Dwyer, Jr. 6/4/4 21-3 12-2 0 3 7 Is 5-1 in last six matches, including two wins over ranked opponents 174 Brandon Browne, Sr. 3/5/3 22-3 14-2 3 0 8 Only losses of season are to opponents ranked in the top fi ve in the nation 184 Vince Jones, Sr. 11/11/14 24-6 10-4 10 0 4 Leads the Huskers with 10 pins, including three to start the year 197 Craig Brester, Jr. 2/2/2 24-1 15-1 7 3 9 Toped No. 4 Max Askren (6-4) to give NU a 16-15 dual win over MU last Saturday Hwt. Tucker Lane, RFr. 19/16/12 22-8 11-5 3 1 1 Knocked off No. 3 Dave Zabriskie of Iowa State (7-6) at National Duals on Jan. 11 Head Coach: Mark Manning, 122-44-3, Ninth season at NU; 146-68-5, 11 seasons Head Assistant Coach: Mike Greenfi eld (seventh season) Assistant Coach: Tony Ersland (third season) Club Coaches: Travis and Trent Paulson (fi rst season) Strength and Conditioning Coach: Jason Mester (fourth season) Rankings: InterMat/WIN Magazine/Amateur Wrestling News; InterMat as of Feb. 3, 2009; WIN Magazine as of Feb. 2, 2009; Amateur Wrestling News as of Feb. 3, 2009. HUSKERS.COM 1 2008-09 NEBRASKA WRESTLING MU’s Dorian Henderson held Jones scoreless in the fi rst period at 184 pounds, but chose down in the second frame. Jones Oklahoma State Cowboys (12-5) rode Henderson out in the second period and collected a quick escape in the fi nal period to earn a 4-0 decision.