Every wrestling tournament there ever was or ever will be has had anticipated matchups. Some more than others, some higher stakes than others.

For this year's Midlands, the list could be as small as one, or as big as 30 or 40. But we think these seven all bear import to the event, to their teams, and to the fans. Lucky for you, you'll be able to watch every match from the 55th annual Ken Kraft Midlands Championships LIVE on Flo, starting at 9:30am central time on December 29th.

On to the matches you absolutely cannot miss next Friday and Saturday.

7) 197: Jacob Warner, Iowa vs #8 Cash Wilcke, Iowa

No video exists of their wrestle-off, but there were people in the room for it. Here’s what we know: Warner scored a takedown off a re-attack in the first period and led 2-0, then got out in the second. Wilcke escaped in the third, then scored off a duck, but gave up the escape to wind up losing 4-3. Warner recently said in an interview:

The Midlands is like my big tournament of the year since I’m redshirting.

There are plenty of reasons not to pull Warner’s shirt, but if he goes 2-0 against Wilcke along with a win over Willie Miklus, and Pat Downey can make 184, and Spencer Lee wins at 125, it’ll be awfully hard not to. Additionally, Wilcke was round of 12 last year and currently ranked 8th, so it’s not as though they won’t get good production and team points.

6) 285: #4 Tanner Hall, Arizona State vs #8 Sam Stoll, Iowa

Hall was thisclose to getting the winning takedown against Adam Coon in the CKLV finals, and some pictures even show the call may have been missed. It’s enough to make people think he could find his way in the NCAA finals if he was on the opposite side of Kyle Snyder. Meanwhile, Stoll has five pins on the year and appears to be rehabbed just fine.

This one would be a rematch of last year’s semis, won by Hall 2-1. The ASU senior got a reversal in the third period, and nearly got riding time as well. Beyond that, the potential final would also have massive team race implications. 

Preliminary Midlands Entry List

5) 149: #14 Josh Maruca, Arizona State vs Jason Tsirtsis, Arizona State

When Jason Tsirtsis lost to Christian Pagdilao at the Michigan State Open, it looked like he would end his career as the third string 157 at Arizona State. There were indications he couldn’t or wouldn’t go 149, which of course wound up being false. The former NCAA champ won the RTOC at that weight, including wins over Boo Lewallen and Beau Donahue.

Outside the Trey Grine loss, Maruca has been solid this year with losses to guys ranked above him. The NCAA qualifier could now be in a dogfight for his job that may play out before our eyes. Also of note, Tsirtsis could place at Midlands for a sixth time.

4) 165: #12 Alex Marinelli, Iowa vs #13 Richie Lewis, Rutgers

A match like this could do the following: determine if Lewis stays up at 165 permanently, where he stands in the pecking order if he does, and give Rutgers a huge bump in this Midlands team race.

The first time they wrestled, Marinelli finished the match with a takedown in overtime, after giving up a takedown to start the match. The second period was controversial, with two separate video reviews. But what stood out was Marinelli's ability to withstand Lewis' leg attacks, despite the bulky leg brace. Something tells me the rematch will flow rather differently this time around.

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3) 184: Pat Downey, Iowa vs Anyone

The last time Pat Downey wrestled a folkstyle match was January 20th, when he beat eventual All American Drew Foster. We saw him wrestle a good bit of freestyle over the summer, but he's now entering the final semester of his college career. If he can successfully enroll at Iowa, it drastically alters our perception of this Iowa team, as well as increases the likelihood of Jacob Warner and Spencer Lee wrestling. There are few wrestlers who have turned themselves into appointment viewing like Downey has.

7 Best Matches From The Midlands Archives

2) #2 157: Michael Kemerer, Iowa vs #7 Josh Shields, Arizona State

This got slightly less interesting when Shields lost to Mickey Jordan at CKLV and ended his unbeaten run, but it's still a matchup of Top-10 guys, who were high school teammates and are extremely familiar with one another. Additionally, it could be a crucial four team points on the line in the finals.

Kemerer is one of the best in the country at finishing his leg attacks, and as we saw in his Midlands final last year against Tyler Berger, is very comfortable in scrambles. Rankings, results and gas tank all seem to favor Kemerer, but the familiarity factor is always a fun wrinkle, as well as the clearly obvious jump that Shields has made this year.

1) 125: #2 Nick Suriano, Rutgers vs Spencer Lee, Iowa

This one might be the most anticipated match of the year, let alone just Midlands. In my lightweight preview, I embedded the last time time those two wrestled. This time around, I wanted to throw in the first time they wrestled.

Our own Mike Mal has done a great job breaking down the keys to victory for Suriano and the keys to victory for Lee, both of which I recommend you read. It's not necessarily groundbreaking stuff that we don't already know, but that's what happens when you have a matchup like this. One guy will win because his strengths are just a little better, what makes them great shines through a bit more than what makes the other guy great. 

The problem with wrestling sometimes is that rivalries die before they even begin. Guys go up in weight, or are too old, or are in different conferences, or don't do freestyle. But these guys are in the same conference, at the same weight, and have plenty of eligibility left. Hopefully we'll be blessed with this one at least six or more times, and that they only get better. Can't wait for Saturday night.

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