It’s a rivalry among historic programs that has a postseason feel to it.

When #5 Iowa (12-5) wrestles at #3 Oklahoma State (14-1) on Sunday, it will be the 60th matchup between two programs that have combined for 58 NCAA championships.

“These are the ones when you’re growing up, you look at them and you’re like, ‘I want to do that someday,’” Iowa 149-pounder Ryder Block said on Tuesday. “You get to go to Gallagher-Iba Arena — a big arena, a lot of fans who are going to boo you when you come out. It’s fun and it’s cool to be a part of. It’s business as usual, but you kind of have a little extra for it.”

It’s also the last dual of the season for the Hawkeyes before the March 7-8 Big Ten Championships, so it’s the last chance for Iowa coach Tom Brands to see his team against another opponent before deciding on the postseason lineup.

“Rivalries are historic, and they're for the present, and they're also setting you up for the future,” Brands said. “This isn't something that you downplay because college athletics may be changing. This isn't something that you downplay because they're in a different conference or whatever. It's about two storied programs. It doesn't matter what conference they’re in and it doesn't matter what conference we're in. What matters is that we're after the same turf, and we want to represent at the highest level. And it's a good test. And there are certain events where you want a little bit different level of competition on your schedule. And this is one of those events where you want to ratchet it up a little bit on that schedule.”

The two teams have already met this season, with the Hawkeyes handing the Cowboys their lone defeat of the year, 18-16 on Nov. 16 at the National Duals Invitational in Tulsa.

“We get another feel for them,” said 125-pounder Dean Peterson. “Obviously, we already wrestled them once and we get to wrestle them again. And you know, once you start to wrestle people, you get a little bit more of a feel for them. You know what they're doing. So if we see some of these guys in the postseason, I know that we'll be ready.”

“You can kind of get caught up with that,” Block said. “But it's more that you take what you saw and you kind of take it with a grain of salt. You remember it, but you can't hang on (to the fact) that we beat them last time. But it doesn't mean it's going to be easy this time. So you just keep building, do the same thing you did last time, hopefully come away with a win again.”

Iowa has seven nationally-ranked wrestlers in its probable lineup, while Oklahoma State has eight.

The Hawkeyes have won 10 of the last 12 meetings, but Oklahoma State has a 29-28-2 edge in the series.

“You just put your best guys on the mat and at each weight, and away you go,” Brands said. “And they're doing the same.”

Familiar Foe 

Peterson, ranked sixth at 125, will face seventh-ranked Troy Spratley for the second time this season. He defeated Spratley 5-4 in the National Duals matchup.

“He does a good job of keeping good position,” Peterson said of Spratley. “He's also good in all three positions as well. He's good on bottom, he's good on top, he’s very good on his feet. Keeps good position. Hard to get to his legs, and even if you do get to his legs, he can scramble. So I've got a lot of respect for him. He's a very good opponent. But, you know, if I get to my offense, the match should go the same way that the first one went.”

Peterson, 10-3 this season, is coming off a 9-2 win over Ashton Jackson of Purdue on Sunday. Peterson has won his last three matches.

“I've had some bumps and bruises that have kept me out of the lineup for a couple weeks at a time here and there, but I'm 100 percent healthy now, said Peterson, a senior who transferred from Rutgers after last season. “I'm ready to go and ready to make the most out of this last run.”

Peterson has qualified for the NCAA Championships the last three seasons.

“I've been telling everybody I really knock on wood,” Peterson said. “The last couple years I've had some stuff with my knees going on, but this is probably the healthiest that I've been in my college career. 

“When you're not 100 percent, it can lead to other injuries, and you don't feel like you have as much confidence in your attacks and your offense and all your other stuff, so you start to doubt yourself,” Peterson said. “When you're healthy and you're really not worrying about those other things, you can just focus on wrestling.”

Iowa’s Lineup

Iowa’s probable lineup doesn’t have 141-pounder Nasir Bailey and 184-pounder Angelo Ferrari in it.

Bailey, ranked 12th nationally, hasn’t competed since the Jan. 30 dual against Minnesota. Ferrari, ranked second, hasn’t competed since the Jan. 16 dual against Penn State.

Gabe Arnold, 14-4 this season, is expected to be at 184 again on Sunday.

Kale Petersen is 18-3 this season at 141 and 3-2 since taking Bailey’s spot in the dual lineup.

“We need him to step up a little more with his belief in himself, letting it fly in his attacks,” Brands said. “A little more assertive would be a good word. Confidence in yourself could be another way to say it. But it's about that belief in yourself and asserting your wrestling on your opponent, and not waiting so much for it to maybe come to you.”

Asked if he was close to getting his postseason lineup together, Brands said: “We're working on it every day, and we're getting closer. And there are some things at work that will materialize as we go into the Big Tens. But nothing certain."