Gophers Host Nebraska, head to Northern

Time For Two
Golden Gopher Wrestling has a pair of duals on the schedule for the first time this season. Another big challenge steps up first with No. 12 Nebraska on Dec. 10. The Gophers and Huskers square off in Williams Arena at 7:00 p.m. Then, Minnesota gets back on the road, traveling to Northern Colorado for a Dec. 13 meet at 3:00 p.m.

The Records
The Gophers enter the week with a 1-1 record after their first two duals, while Nebraska has five duals on the record, with a 4-1 mark on the season. Northern Colorado, meanwhile, enters the weekend with a 0-4 record, and will wrestle Ohio on Dec. 9 before meeting Minnesota.

The Series
Minnesota and Nebraska first met in 1922 and since have faced each other 65 times, with Minnesota holding a 46-19 advantage in the all-time series. Northern Colorado first matched up with Minnesota in 1977, and the two teams have met six times, with the Gophers winning each match-up.

Last Match-Up
The Gophers met both the Huskers and Bears last season. Minnesota met Northern Colorado first, at the Lone Star Duals on Nov. 29, 2008, with the Gophers earning a convincing 42-4 victory. When Minnesota and Nebraska met on Dec. 21, 2008, it was the Huskers coming away with the 21-18 triumph.

Follow Along
The Gophers and Huskers can be viewed live from Williams Arena on Thursday Night, with live video streaming through the Gold Zone. Also be sure to log on to the Live Match blog. Both can be accessed through www.GopherSports.com. Northern Colorado will also be streaming the match live on Sunday, and it can be accessed at www.UNCBears.com.

Last Time Out
Last week the Gophers met up with Oklahoma State in a battle of highly ranked teams. The Gophers won the first two matches and three of the first four. But the No. 3 Cowboys won the last six on their way to a 21-8 win over the No. 5 Gophers.

Next Up
The Gophers will get a well deserved break for the Holidays after the meet with Northern Colorado. Minnesota will not return to action until the end of December when they travel to Greensboro, N.C. for the Southern Scuffle on Dec. 29 and 30. Their next dual is not until after the New Year, when they host Iowa State on the Sports Pavilion on Jan. 3 at 2:00 p.m.

Scouting Nebraska
- 4-1-0 on the season with only loss to #12 Lehigh
- Opened season with win over No. 11 Wisconsin
- Coached by Mark Manning who entered his 10th season with a 126-45-3 record at Nebraska
- Big 12 Champion in 2009, and placed 4th at the NCAA Championships
- Returned four NCAA Qualifiers and two All-Americans
- Boast four ranked wrestlers including No. 1 Jordan Burroghs at 157, No. 2 Craig Brester at 197, No. 3 Stephen Dwyer at 174 and No. 7 Tucker Lane at Heavyweight
- Burroghs is returning NCAA Champion
- Opened season ranked No. 7 in the country

Scouting Northern Colorado
- 0-4 on the season
- Coached by interim head coach Ben Cherrington
- Went 5-11-1 in 2008-09 with a 3-3 mark to finish fourth in the Western Wrestling Conference
- Return eight starters from last season
- Opened dual season at the Northeast Collegiate Duals in Troy, N.Y., falling to Maryland, American, Hofstra and Bingamton
- No. 17 Kenny Hashimoto is the Bears lone ranked wrestler
- Tony Mustari, Kenny Hashimoto, and Justin Gaethje were all NCAA Qualifiers in 2009
- Gaethje and Hashimoto placed fourth and eighth respectively at the Cliff Keen Invite

Get Score Updates on Your Phone
Fans can get scoring updates from all of Golden Gopher athletics through the Twitter page @GopherScores. Just find and follow @GopherScores, then set up your phone or mobile device to receive the text updates. If you are not already on Twitter, you will need to create an account.

Twitter
Follow the Golden Gophers on Twitter. Just search @GopherWrestling on Twitter to follow all the news updates.

Courtesy of Minnesota Sports Information.

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