WRESTLING PREVIEW: No. 14 Iowa State gets first full weekend at home

No. 14 Iowa State will host both South Dakota State and Utah Valley at home this weekend after spending majority of the season on the road.

What advantage will this bring the team?

“I think our team is fun to watch right now,” head coach Kevin Dresser said. “I remind these guys all the time that they’re entertainers and we have a product.”

The Cyclones held record attendance when hosting Oklahoma at home last Friday. They had 3,939 fans in the stands, which was the largest crowd for a non-Iowa dual at Hilton Coliseum since Cael Sanderson’s senior day in 2002.

“People don’t mind spending their hard earned money for a good show and it’s their job to put on a good show,” Dresser said. “We get two chances this weekend. That’s exciting. It’s the first time all year and it’s the only time all year we’re home twice in one weekend. It’s the biggest weekend of the year.”

The competition 

The Jackrabbits have a two-dual win streak against the Cyclones. Iowa State, however, holds lead in the all-time series 9-2. Against the Wolverines of Utah Valley, the Cyclones lead the all-time series 4-0. The programs began wrestling each other for the first time in 2015.

The Cyclones currently rank third in the Big 12 standings so stamping two wins against Big 12 opponents would only add more fuel to the fire as March is right around the corner.

South Dakota State improved to 2-6 last weekend after defeating Utah Valley 26-16. The Wolverines currently have a 9-9 overall record.

The excitement to come for Ian Parker

The Big 12’s Wrestler of the Week, Ian Parker, has been on a roll. After defeating Oklahoma and Oklahoma State’s ranked wrestlers, the redshirt sophomore’s tough competition is just heating up.

For the 141-pounder, this is exciting.

Dresser recently referred to Parker as a “dragon slayer” after his heated match against Dom Demas (OU) that ended in a sudden victory.

Parker, however, feels the title isn’t appropriate yet.

“You can call me a drag slayer but the dragons are yet to come still,” Parker said. “I still have my best competition to come in dual meets and obviously in the post season. We’ll see. I wouldn’t call me that until after the fact.”

Parker currently has a perfect 8-0 record in dual matches.

Will that still be the case after wrestling another pair of tough, ranked opponents?

South Dakota State brings Aric Williams who is coming off a major win over Utah Valley’s Dylan Gregerson in a 14-5 major decision. Utah Valley will most likely bring their top guy, No. 9 Matt Findlay.

“He’s excited right now. He’s always pretty excited about wrestling,” said Dresser. “I think he’s one of those guys who did have a stretch of not so tough guys and I think he’s really ready for this. He’s got some dragons to slay.”