Nov. 9, 2009
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -
The 2009-10 Fighting Illini team will feature some unfamiliar faces in spots, but first-year head coach Jim Heffernan and his staff have the same expectations as always: a top-10 team finish at the NCAA Championships in March.
Illinois' three All-Americans in 2009 were its most since 2005, but Mike Poeta (157) and John Wise (HWT) graduated, and 133-pounder Jimmy Kennedy likely will redshirt in 2010. That leaves seniors and three-time NCAA qualifiers John Dergo (184) and Patrick Bond (197) to lead a squad of young but talented Illini wrestlers.
Junior Ryan Prater (141) and sophomores B.J. Futrell (125) and Jordan Blanton (174) also return after reaching the NCAA Championships in 2009, and Blanton and Dergo have swapped weight classes to provide a more potent lineup.
These six NCAA qualifiers will provide a solid foundation for the Illini as they head into a 2009-10 season in which they will face an improved schedule featuring duals against Iowa State and Missouri, as well as a trip east to the Journeymen/Brute Sprawl & Brawl duals. These are in addition to the usual slate of tournaments including Midlands and the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational, as well as the always-brutal Big Ten dual season.
125
NCAA qualifier B.J. Futrell returns at 125 with his eyes set on a spot on the NCAA podium in 2010. Futrell started his true-freshman season with a bang, opening the 2009 season with a 19-5 mark heading into the Big Ten dual season. But the rigorous 125-pound class in the Big Ten plus a brutal draw in the NCAA Championships resulted in a 25-14 mark. Junior John Deneen will back up Futrell.
133
With two-time All-American Jimmy Kennedy redshirting in 2009-10, 133 pounds will likely be a three-man battle among redshirt-freshman Daryl Thomas, sophomore Zeke Rowan and redshirt-freshman Tyler LePretre. Thomas went 5-1 in open tournaments during his redshirt season last year, while Rowan had a tough 2008-09 campaign, going 1-5 after earning a 7-4 record during his redshirt season. LePretre went 2-4 a year ago during his redshirt campaign.
141
NCAA qualifier Ryan Prater will battle for position in the Big Ten and on the national scene after a roller-coaster 2008-09 season that included an upset pin of No. Kellen Russell (Michigan) at the NCAA Championships, after various battles with injuries and frustrating finishes to bouts. In fact, following his upset of Russell, Prater was inches from his first All-America laurel before dropping a two-point bout and a one-point match to end his NCAA tournament run. Sophomore Vince Vercelli will back up Prater, while Kennedy likely will wrestle at 141 in open tournaments.
149
A year after valiantly jumping into a starting role following a string of injuries, sophomore
Eric Terrazas will man 149 pounds for the Fighting Illini. Terrazas kept working hard throughout a tough season and finished his true-freshman campaign with a pair of big wins against Michigan and Michigan State in the final weekend of the regular season. He took eighth place at the Big Ten Championships and will look to improve on that finish in 2009-10. Terrazas will be backed up by junior
Matthew Lee.
157
For three years, Mike Poeta has held down the 157-pound slot in the Fighting Illini lineup. Three All-America honors later, the Orange and Blue will have to look in another direction for a starter in the weight class. It likely will be a five-man race among senior Clint Arlis, junior Ben Friedl, and redshirt-freshmen Kyle Dooley, Brian Reynolds and Dan Stelter. Arlis holds a 23-19 career record, most notably going 14-8 in 2006-07, but his last two seasons have been spent as a back-up at both 157 and 165. Friedl is ready to compete at 157 after wrestling at both 174 and 184 the last two years. He did well at 174 in both seasons, going 7-4 in 2007-08 and 5-3 in 2008-09. Reynolds battled injuries through his redshirt campaign, going 2-4, while Stelter went 10-7 with a third-place finish at the Dan Gable Open and a fourth-place finish at the Duhawk Open. Dooley also competed in open tournaments a year ago during his redshirt campaign.
165
Another weight class where the Fighting Illini lost a three-time NCAA qualifier is 165, where Roger Smith-Bergsrud graduated and left a void. But redshirt-freshman Conrad Polz will look to jump into that spot in the lineup following his fourth-place finish at the Junior World Team Trials in May. He battled injuries throughout his redshirt season a year ago but is fully healthy for 2009-10. Junior Joe Barczak will back up Polz at 165.
174
NCAA qualifier Jordan Blanton returns for his sophomore campaign after a breakout true-freshman season at 184 in 2008-09. The weight class switch comes as an effort to get Blanton competing closer to his natural weight. He opened his rookie campaign 10-2, finishing second at the Missouri Open and fifth at Midlands. Blanton went 6-2 in Big Ten dual action and placed fourth in an extremely top-heavy 184-pound class in the Big Ten. Junior Clinton Polz will back up Blanton.
184
Three-time NCAA qualifier John Dergo returns for his final season in the Orange and Blue and shifts weight classes for the second time in his career. Dergo returns to 184, the class he wrestled as a true-freshman, as he looks for his first All-American honor. After battling an early season injury last year, Dergo burst out of the gates 5-1 at 174, then finished fourth at the Big Ten Championships and reached the round of 12 before falling just short of All-America status. Redshirt-freshman Matt McCarter and true-freshman Tony Dallago will back up Dergo.
197
Three-time national qualifier Patrick Bond looks to rebound from a rocky 2008-09 that saw him finish third at the Missouri Open but struggle to get over the .500 mark throughout the season. But he went 3-3 in the Big Ten before going 3-1 to place third at the Big Ten Championships and automatically qualify for the NCAA Championships. Bond will be backed up by senior Jake Norman, sophomore Martin Smith and true-freshman Mario Gonzalez.
Heavyweight
2009 All-American John Wise graduated, turning over the heavyweight class to redshirt-freshman Pat Walker, whom he drilled with and mentored throughout the 2008-09 campaign. Walker went 11-6 in his redshirt campaign, placing second at the Dan Gable Open, third at the Duhawk Open and fourth at the Missouri Open. Sophomore Harold White will back up Walker at heavyweight.
