IU vs Purdue

This dual is normally a pretty big deal in Indiana, but it should be even bigger this year for a couple of reasons. The first reason being that IU has taken a big step up this year under first year head coach Angel Escobedo. For the past few years Purdue has been head and shoulders above them but that might not be the case this year. They have a couple big dual victories, including one against top 20 North Carolina and a 36-3 victory over Maryland. Coach Escobedo has also had a strong year of recruiting, achieving his goal of getting an unprecedented amount of the states top seniors to commit to IU. Another reason I think this dual will be bigger is because Purdue has also improved a lot as well. They are the 17th ranked dual team in the country, and have a lineup with many potential all-americans. They had a great showing at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas invitational, leaving with 4 placers, and are coming off of a dominant 28-10 victory over Maryland in their home opener. Overall, regardless of who wins, I think this will be a great event for the state of Indiana and hopefully mark the beginning of a new and improved rivalry between both of our Indiana teams.

 

125

#18 Devin Shroder (Purdue) vs. Elijah Oliver (IU)

 

Breakdown:

This will be a great match to start off the dual meet. Devin Shroder has had a great season so far, including placing at the Las Vegas invite and a big win over returning national qualifier Gabe Townsell of Stanford. Even though this is his first year in the lineup, he has proven already that he is capable of beating some of the best guys in the country. Elijah Oliver is a returning national qualifier and got 8th at big tens last year. He hasn’t had the start to his season that Shroder but I still expect this to be a solid match.

 

Prediction: Shroder over Oliver by decision, 3-0 Purdue

 

133

Ben Thornton (Purdue) vs. Paul Konrath (IU)

 

Breakdown:

This is another solid match-up to start off the dual meet. Ben Thornton has had a solid season so far, having spent some time in the rankings. All of his losses so far have been to really quality guys and he looks poised to have a big senior season. Standing across from him will most likely be freshman Paul Konrath. Konrath has had a decent amount of losses this season, but he also has a huge win over returning all-american, and 6th ranked, Tariq Wilson at the South Beach duals. I think Thornton is the more consistent wrestler here, and expect him to win a controlled decision.

 

Prediction: Thornton over Konrath by decision, 6-0 Purdue

 

141

Nate Limmex (Purdue) vs. Kyle Luigs (IU)

 

Breakdown:

In a dual filled with a ton of closely contested matchups that could go either way, I feel like this is one that could be a little bit of a mismatch. Kyle Luigs had an excellent high school career, as he was a three time state placer for Evansville Mater Dei, and has had some solid college success so far. However, I think that Nate Limmex has a distinct advantage here due to how much high level college experience he has, including two wins over Indiana wrestling legend Chad Red. I think bonus points are in play here for Limmex, and if he gets them that could be huge for the outcome of the dual meet.

 

Prediction: Limmex over Luigs by major decision, 10-0 Purdue

 

149

Parker Filius (Purdue) vs. Fernie Silva (IU)

 

Breakdown:

This is where I think IU gets on the board first in the dual meet. Fernie Silva is coming off of a big win over Alfred Banister on Sunday, and seems to have a lot of momentum going into this dual meet. He was in division 2 last year, and is making his presence felt in the big ten this year. Filius is having a solid season himself, and had an extremely decorated high school career, winning four state titles. However, I am siding with Silva on this one due to the fact that he beat Bannister two days after Bannister beat Filius, but this match will definitely be a battle.

 

Prediction: Silva over Filius by decision, 10-3 Purdue

 

157

#6 Griffin Parriott (Purdue) vs. Jake Danishek (IU)

 

Breakdown:

Griffin Parriott is having a great season so far. He’s had a couple of losses, but he has made up for that with some absolutely incredible results including an overtime victory over #2 Tyler Berger on his way to getting second at the Cliff Keen Invitational. Danishek is having a solid season as well. Last weekend he lost by one point to 8th ranked Keshawn Hayes and won by fall against Maryland. I expect this match to be closer than the rankings would indicate, but I still expect Parriott to win a controlled decision. 

 

Prediction: Parriott over Danishek by decision, 13-3 Purdue

 

165

Cole Wysocki (Purdue) vs. Bryce Martin (IU)

 

Breakdown:

I think that this will be another closely contested match. Martin is one of the seniors for the Hoosiers, and he has had a great season so far including a 3-0 victory over Ohio State’s Kaleb Romero last week. He was a national qualifier last year, and has definitely taken it up another notch this season. Wysocki has had a good season for the Boilermakers as well, finishing 3rd at the very tough Princeton open and has some good dual meet wins. I expect this to be a very closely contested match, with Martin winning in the end.

 

Prediction: Martin over Wysocki by decision, 13-6 Purdue

 

174

#15 Dylan Lydy (Purdue) vs. Jacob Covaciu (IU)
 

Breakdown:

For Indiana wrestling fans, this might be the most interesting match of the night, as both of these guys had great high school careers. Lydy won a state championship in 2015 while attending Ben Davis and Covaciu was a two time state champion in 2015 and 2016 while attending Merrillville. Both of them were fargo all americans and are two of the best wrestlers we have had in the past few years. Both of them have had good college success since then as well. Lydy had a breakout season last year, falling just one win short of becoming an all american. He had numerous high profile win, including a win over 3rd placer Myles Amine of Michigan. He hasn’t had quite the start he was looking for but at Friday’s dual he looked like he is right back on track and poised to make a run for the podium in March. On the other hand this is Covaciu’s first year in the lineup, as he is a recent transfer from Wisconsin. Despite it being his first year in the lineup, he has a lot of solid college victories and achievements, including winning the 2017 junior US open. Look for this to be a really physical match between two explosive guys with great underhooks.

 

Prediction: Lydy over Covaciu by decision, 16-6 Purdue

 

184

 

Max Lyon (Purdue) vs. Norman Conley (IU)

 

Breakdown:

This will be a huge match in the dual between two pretty evenly matched guy. Conley has had a lot of good wins this season, including a victory over returning all-american Chip Ness. He is one of the many guys on this IU team who have improved a lot during Coach Escobedo’s first year as head coach. Lyon has had a solid season for the Boilermakers as well, opening up the Big Ten dual season with a nice win on Friday. He doesn’t have the big win that Conley has, but he doesn’t have any bad losses. At the dual meet last year this was a 5-4 win for Conley and I expect the match to be pretty similar this year with Conley winning a low scoring decision. 

 

Prediction: Conley over Lyon by decision, 16-9 Purdue

 

197

#10 Christian Brunner (Purdue) vs Jake Kleimola

 

Breakdown:

Like 141, I feel like this is one of the only matches that could result in bonus points. Christian Brunner has had a great year so far, starting in November when he wrestled in the U23 world championships, going 1-1. He also placed at the very tough Cliff Keen Las Vegas invitational and had two ranked wins at the South Beach duals. Kleimola has a solid record so far this season, but he doesn’t have the big wins and credentials that Brunner does. I think that this match will be close at the beginning and then Brunner will break it open with his top work.

 

Prediction: Brunner over Kleimola by major decision, 20-9 Purdue

 

285

Jacob Aven (Purdue) vs Fletcher Miller (IU)

 

Breakdown:

This will be another great matchup between two guys who went to high school in Indiana. Aven has had a really good season for Purdue. Although his record is about 50%, the majority of his losses are against ranked opponents and he has some big victories, including one over junior world silver medalist Zach Elam. He has a lot of momentum right now, and I think we will see him ride that momentum here. We haven’t seen much of Fletcher Miller this season, but we know that he is extremely solid. Both of these guys lost by decision to Hemida last weekend, although Aven’s was a little closer. I expect this to be a tight match between two guys who are very familiar with each other.

 

Prediction: Aven over Miller by decision, 23-9 Purdue