Tiger Wrestling Gets Set For 1999-2000 Season
10/14/1999 12:00:00 AM | Wrestling
Oct. 14, 1999
Columbia, Mo. - The 1999-2000 Missouri wrestling season represents an influx of new talent and new attitude. Brian Smith?s second Tiger squad will be packed with first and second-year wrestlers, eager for a shot to prove themselves in the Big 12 Conference. Of Missouri?s 28 roster spots, 25 will be occupied by freshmen and sophomores.
Another difference from the ?98 campaign is reflected in the number of wrestlers on the MU roster. Entering the 1999 Big 12 Conference Tournament, MU listed only twelve men on their roster for ten starting spots. The 1999-2000 season begins with 30 wrestlers vying for mat time.
?This year is about teaching a winning attitude,? Smith said. ?There is an excitement with our wrestlers that they want to be a part of a winning program.?
A winning record is the primary goal of this team, a challenging goal for a team wrestling one of the nation?s toughest schedules.
Senior Jeff Urban (149 lbs.), a 1999 NCAA Tournament qualifier, and sophomore John Kopnisky (174 lbs.) will be the team?s captains and will be expected to set a championship example for their less-experienced teammates. Urban won twenty matches as a junior and pinned five of his opponents, both team highs. Kopnisky enters his third season as a Tiger, with a freshman and redshirt freshman season behind him. Last season, John finished 18-12 overall and tied Urban for the team lead in dual wins with nine. The Tiger staff is hopeful of an all-American award for Jeff Urban at 149 lbs. and they believe Kopnisky can challenge for all-American status as well at the 2000 NCAA Championships in St. Louis.
?We expect Jeff to be an all-American this year,? Smith said. ?He is the only senior on this team and he will have to lead by example for the young guys so that they know what it takes.?
Heading the list of newcomers is Jeremy Spates, a 141 lb. freshman with tremendous experience and dynamic skill on the mat. Lightweight Tanner Harris (125 lbs.) is another of Missouri?s top recruits as is freshman Steve Sakis, the 1999 Prep National Champion at 165 lbs. This year?s Tiger newcomers represent ten states and nine of the new Tigers were state champions during their high school careers.
The season begins with a border war versus Illinois held at Hazelwood Central High School in suburban St. Louis. The Fighting Illini may be one of the nation?s best teams, and will be a strong test for MU.
Next up are home matches with Oklahoma State, always a contender for the national title, Purdue of the Big 10 Conference and Show-Me-State rival, Lindenwood. Missouri then heads to Nebraska, followed by dual matches with Indiana and Wyoming at Oak Grove High School in suburban Kansas City.
The second semester begins with trips to the Central Michigan and Brown University Duals followed by matches with Missouri Valley and Southern Illinois-Edwardsville. Then it?s on to Evanston, Ill., for duals with Northwestern and Marquette, before the Tigers return home for four of their final six duals. Central Missouri, Eastern Illinois, Oklahoma and Northern Illinois will visit the Hearnes Center in the season?s final month, with trips to Iowa State and Northern Iowa sandwiched in between.
?Our first semester schedule is probably the toughest in the nation,? said Smith. ?But the second semester will give us some momentum heading into the post-season tournaments. In wrestling it is not how you start the season, it is how you finish.?
The 2000 Big 12 Tournament will be held at the Devaney Center on the University of Nebraska campus the first weekend of March. Then it?s on to the NCAA Championships, co-hosted by the University of Missouri at the Kiel Center in St. Louis, Mo.
With the talent level and the expectations at a tremendous high and with the NCAA Championships in its own backyard, this season?s Missouri Tiger wrestling team is poised for a breakthrough year. Just another reason that ?It?s A Great Time To Be A Tiger!?
