Michigan State Wrestling Announces 2008-09 Schedule
9/19/2008 12:00:00 AM | Wrestling
Sept. 19, 2008
EAST LANSING, Mich. - The Michigan State wrestling team announced its schedule for the 2008-09 season this week, and it certainly isn't lacking challenging match-ups. Of the Spartans' 12 dual matches, nine of them are against teams that finished the season ranked in the USA Today/NWCA/InterMat top 25.
The Spartans' schedule features match-ups against defending national champion Iowa, as well as five other teams that finished the season ranked in the top 10. MSU will also host six dual meets this season, all against ranked teams.
"We have a heck of a home schedule," said MSU head coach Tom Minkel. "It's probably as tough as it's ever been. I don't ever remember having a home schedule any tougher than that."
MSU will begin the season at the Eastern Michigan Open on Nov. 1, returning home a week later to host the Michigan State Open on Nov. 9. The team will then head to the ACC-Big Ten Clash in Raleigh, N.C., on Nov. 15, and the Penn State Open on Nov. 30, before kicking off its dual schedule Dec. 5 at Eastern Michigan. The Midlands Championships in Evanston, Ill., caps off the tournament schedule for the Spartans on Dec. 29-30.
Central Michigan comes to East Lansing on Jan. 3, marking the first home dual for the Spartans and one of two home duals in the month of January. MSU will then hit the road, visiting West Virginia (Jan. 17) and Ohio (Jan. 18). The Big Ten season opens for the Spartans at Northwestern (Jan. 23) and Minnesota (Jan. 25) before returning home to host Wisconsin on Jan. 30.
"The Big Ten portion of our schedule is what it always is," said Minkel. "It's enormously difficult, because the Big Ten is like no other conference and like no other sport. It's a whole different deal when your whole conference finishes in the top 25."
The Spartans will spend the majority of February on their home mat, hosting four of their six duals and finishing off the rest of the Big Ten schedule. MSU faces off against Iowa on Feb. 6 at Jenison Field House, with Michigan coming to town on Feb. 8. The team will host Penn State on Feb. 13, and will cap off the home season against Oklahoma on Feb. 15. Visits to Purdue (Feb. 19) and Illinois (Feb. 22) will conclude the regular season.
The Big Ten Championships will take place on March 7-8 at Penn State, with the NCAA Championships following on March 19-21 in St. Louis.