BROOKINGS, S.D. -- A dual match with the defending national champion
Minnesota Golden Gophers and six home duals, along with the Warren
Williamson/Daktronics Open, highlight the 2007-08 South Dakota State wrestling schedule.
“We still need to add a couple of dates, but I like the way the
schedule is coming together,” said SDSU head coach Jason Liles. “We
have some great competition coming into Frost Arena, which is good for
our program and for our fans.”
The six home duals include four with non-conference opponents,
including Nebraska on Dec. 7, Northern State on Jan. 18, Dakota
Wesleyan on Feb. 2, and Portland State on Feb. 16.
The two other home duals pit the Jackrabbits against Western Wrestling
Conference opponents and give them a chance to avenge losses from last
season. Wyoming, who topped the Jacks 31-12 last season, comes to Frost
Arena on Feb., 2 and the Air Force Academy, who beat SDSU 25-21 comes
to town on Feb. 16.
“I intentionally scheduled two duals on February 2,” said Liles. “We’ve
done it in the past and we usually wrestle better in the second match
of the day, which could give us an edge against Wyoming.”
The Jackrabbits open the season on Oct. 27, with a coach’s clinic at 9 a.m., followed by wrestle-offs at 1:30 p.m.
The first competition of the season comes a week later on Nov. 3, when
the SDSU hosts the Warren Williamson/Daktronics open in Frost Arena.
The Jacks head to Omaha on Nov. 17, where Division II powerhouse Nebraska-Omaha hosts the UNO open.
Following an open week, SDSU heads to Las Vegas, Nev., on Nov. 30-Dec. 1, to compete in the Cliff Keen Invitational.
The conference season starts on Jan. 3, in Orem, Utah, when the Jacks
battle Utah Valley State (34-6 win), and then continues two days later
in Greeley, Colo., against Northern Colorado. (23-15 loss)
After hosting Northern State and traveling to Minnesota, conference
action picks up again on Jan. 23, in Fargo N.D., against the Bison, who
the Jacks tied with last season.
The final road dual of the season comes on Feb. 10, when the Jacks
travel to Cedar Falls, Iowa, to take on Northern Iowa. The Panthers,
who sent six wrestlers to the NCAA National Championships in 2007, beat
the Jacks 41-6 last season.
Fargo hosts the NCAA Division I Western Regional on March 8, and St.
Louis, Mo., hosts the NCAA Division I National Championships from March
20-22.
2007-08 Schedule