The Missouri wrestling team is the only one in the country that will send all 10 of its wrestlers to the 2012 NCAA Wrestling Championships this weekend in St. Louis, marking the first time the wrestling program has ever accomplished the feat.

The Tigers have their work cut out for them, though, as three Missouri wrestlers will be facing off against the top-seeded wrestlers in their respective weight classes.

Junior Nicholas Hucke (141 pounds) will face Michigan’s Kellen Russell, junior Mike Larson (185) will take on Wyoming’s Joe LeBlanc and redshirt freshman Devin Mellon (285) is pitted against American University’s Ryan Flores.

Meanwhile, if senior Dorian Henderson prevails in his opening-round matchup, Penn State’s David Taylor, the No. 1 seed at 174 pounds, will be his opponent.

Coach Brian Smith refuses to call the matchups a tough draw, though.

“I say the tough draw is Missouri right now, with the confidence level that we’re at,” Smith said. “We’ve had a tough schedule all year, so our guys are prepared for everything. Our kids have beaten ranked kids all year. “

That confidence is evident in Larson, who is coming off a Big 12 Championship and hasn’t lost since a Feb. 4 dual meet against Oklahoma State. Larson, who said the loss woke him up, has four consecutive victories since then.

“Nobody wants to wrestle Missouri right now,” Larson said.

Even first-time qualifier Mellon, who is recovering from an injured hamstring suffered in the Big 12 Championships, can sense a difference in his team over the past few weeks, referring to the team’s performance in inter-squad matches over the weekend.

“You can just tell the confidence is there,” Mellon said. “It’s scary how good they are. We want to show up and prove people wrong.”

The highest ranked Missouri wrestler entering the weekend is sophomore Alan Waters, who earned the No. 3 seed at 125 pounds after wrestling to his first Big 12 championship. Waters will get a shot at his season-long goal of winning a national title this weekend.

“I just have to stay focused,” Waters said. “I’m not going to make the same mistakes I did last year.”

In addition to the confidence gained from the first Big 12 championship in program history, the Tigers will have the benefit of wrestling in their home state. The tournament will be held at the Scottrade Center in St. Louis, which makes travel easy for Missouri.

“We practice at home, pack our van and we’re there in two hours with hotel rooms waiting,” Smith said. “Everything’s comfortable to them, and that’s an important thing.”

The event is sold out with more than 110,000 fans expected to attend over the span of three days, which is an all-time record. Smith couldn’t help but crack a smile when discussing the potential advantage of having the support of the home crowd.

“The whole state is excited about it being here in the home state,” Smith said. “It’s a great venue. Everybody’s going to be here. This is the Mecca of wrestling.”