Most wrestling fans believed the matchup between Iowa and Nebraska, the second- and third-ranked NCAA wrestling teams in the country, would be extremely competitive. This might even have been Nebraska's chance to get its first win over the Hawkeyes since 2006. In the end, Iowa won 7 of 10 games and earned a 22-10 dual meet victory over the Huskers.
For a full recap of the clash, check out Andrew Spey's in-depth live blog of all ten games!
Perhaps the biggest performance for the Hawkeyes came from #25 Zach Glazier. The 197-pounder took the mat as an underdog against 2023 Big Ten champion Silas Allred. A Glazier loss would have created a must-win situation for the Hawkeyes at heavyweight. Glazier not only won, he also earned the Hawks their only bonus point of the night. His third-period takedown of Allred was his third takedown of the match and earned him an 11-2 decision.
Following Glazier's one-two, Iowa heavyweight Bradley Hill scored a late win over Nebraska's “Polar Bear” Nash Hutmacher, a Husker football player who was hitting the mat for the first time since 2020, when he graduated from South's Chamberlain High School returns Dakota. Iowa could have used two-sport freshman Ben Kueter in this bout, but chose Hill, who posted a 4-1 win over Hutmacher.
Another key performance for Iowa came at 157 pounds when No. 2 Jared Franek faced No. 3 Peyton Robb. Franek and Robb separated their matches a year ago. In the third period, Franek was down 4-2, but secured a takedown with 40 seconds left to give Robb the win.
COUPLING@jared_franek X #Hawkeyes pic.twitter.com/7M1HY0AzAl
— Iowa Hawkeye Wrestling (@Hawks_Wrestling) January 13, 2024
Nebraska was fiercely competitive throughout the dual. At 133 pounds, #32 Jake Van Dee avenged an earlier loss to #9 Brody Teske. The Erie Cathedral Prep, Pa., product controlled his fight with a 10-4 decision over Iowa's four-time state champion.
The Huskers have their first surprise win of the evening ahead of them @jakevandee. 🤯 pic.twitter.com/lntH8mfOgs
— Big Ten Wrestling (@B1GWrestling) January 13, 2024
The Iowa-Nebraska matchup was full of ups and downs, but ultimately the Hawkeyes doubled the Huskers' points in a matchup that felt much more competitive than the team standings would suggest
Boxing score between Iowa and Nebraksa
125 – #9 Drake Ayala, Iowa, defeated #5 Caleb Smith, Nebraska 7-3
133 – #32 Jake Van Dee, Nebraska, Dec. #9 Brody Teske, Iowa 10-4
141 – #1 Real Woods, Iowa Dec. #8 Brock Hardy, Nebraska 8-2
149 – #1 Ridge Lovett, Nebraska dec #14 Caleb Rathjen, Iowa 6-0
157 – #2 Jared Franek, Iowa, Dec. #3 Peyton Robb, Nebraska 5-4
165 – #7 Michael Caliendo, Iowa, Dec. #16 Antrell Taylor, Nebraska 8-3
174 – Patrick Kennedy, Iowa, Dec. #19 Bubba Wilson, Nebraska 9-5
184 – #3 Lenny Pinto, Nebraska Major Dec Aiden Riggins, Iowa 16-5
197 – #25 Zach Glazier, Iowa Major Dec. #13 Silas Allred, Nebraska 11-2
285 – Bradley Hill, Iowa defeated Nash Hutmacher, Nebraska 4-1