Missouri wrestling recently finalized its schedule for the 2016-17 season. Within the first month of the season, Mizzou will face two top-five teams and travel for a conference dual and a tournament.
The wrestling team begins the season with the Black and Gold Meet in the Hearnes Center on Nov. 5. In the past, the meet has either served as an alumni versus current wrestlers dual or as a factor in wrestle-offs for spots in the starting lineup.
With a young but talented team this year — WIN Magazine has Missouri ranked No. 5 in their preseason poll — it is safe to say that the coaching staff will likely elect to have wrestle-offs at spots that may still be up for grabs. Spots where the wrestle-offs have the potential to be interesting are 133, 141, 174 and 285 lbs.
At 133 lbs., senior Zach Synon is a returning two-time NCAA qualifier and the 2015 Mid-American Conference champion, but he could lose his starting spot. Talented redshirt freshman Jaydin Eierman beat Synon at an open tournament last year and came out on top in the Black and Gold dual last season.
At 141 lbs., incumbent senior and two-time NCAA qualifier Matt Manley will likely wrestle sophomore Grant Leeth. At 174 lbs., redshirt freshman Dylan Wisman will probably face sophomore Tim Miklus.
The last spot that could be hotly contested is 285 lbs., where transfer redshirt freshman Austin Myers and sophomore James Romero will likely pace the competition.
After the Black and Gold dual, Mizzou will travel to Virginia on Nov. 13 for a MAC road dual at Old Dominion. Missouri should be heavy favorites in the dual, but Old Dominion has three top-20 ranked wrestlers, according to WIN Magazine’s rankings. The ranked competitors are No. 15 Brandon Jeske at 125 lbs., No. 12 Jack Dechow at 184 lbs. and No. 9 Kevin Beazley at 197 lbs. These three wrestlers will all face ranked opponents from Mizzou. The Tigers feature No. 7 Barlow McGhee (125), No. 7 Willie Miklus (184) and No. 1 J’den Cox (197) at these weights. These matches will be important for both conference and national seeding.
On Nov. 20, Missouri will wrestle a dual against a much tougher Virginia school: the No. 2 Virginia Tech Hokies. The meet will be held in Jesse Hall.
This dual will be big from both a team rankings standpoint and for national seeding. Missouri has eight ranked wrestlers, and Virginia Tech features six.
Following this tough early season test, Missouri will compete at the Northern Iowa Open wrestling tournament in Cedar Falls, Iowa. This tournament will likely feature a lot of Division I redshirts and possibly starters from UNI, Iowa State and a couple other Division I teams. The teams and individuals competing have not been announced.
The last big event for Missouri in their tough opening stretch is a trip to No. 4 Ohio State on Dec. 8. The Tigers will face reigning Olympic champion Kyle Snyder, the Buckeye heavyweight. This dual will also hold big implications for national seeding at several weights.
_Edited by Peter Baugh | pbaugh@themaneater.com_