Jan. 24, 2008

MICHIGAN STATE vs. #4 MINNESOTA
Date: Friday, Jan. 25, 2008
Time: 7 p.m.
Location: East Lansing, Mich.
Arena: Jenison Field House
Video: www.msuwrestling.com

MICHIGAN STATE vs. PURDUE
Date: Sunday, Jan. 27, 2008
Time: 1 p.m.
Location: East Lansing, Mich.
Arena: Jenison Field House
Video: www.msuwrestling.com

PDF of Complete Notes and Stats: Click here.

NEXT FOR THE SPARTANS
The Spartans return home to open Big Ten wrestling action in Jenison Field House this weekend. MSU kicks off action Friday, Jan. 25, hosting defending national champion Minnesota at 7 p.m., and continue on Sunday, Jan. 27, with Purdue for at 1 p.m.

LAST TIME OUT
Despite a pair of major decision victories from 133-pound starter No. 5 Franklin Gomez, Michigan State suffered two losses on Jan. 12, falling to No. 20 Pittsburgh and No. 18 Oklahoma in Howard McCasland Field House on the Sooners' campus. Pittsburgh escaped MSU's late come-back attempt and held off the Spartans 21-14, while Oklahoma defeated Michigan State 29-7. Gomez extended his record to 16-1 and remains perfect in dual action, 8-0.

SCOUTING THE SPARTANS
Michigan State is led by a trio of ranked wrestlers, veterans No. 5 Franklin Gomez and No. 15 Joe Williams - who have been ranked all season by InterMat - and now No. 19 John Murphy joins the clan, appearing in the W.I.N. rankings.

Boasting an MSU tournament title, Gomez leads the Spartans with a strong 16-1 overall record and perfect 8-0 dual mark so far this fall as the 133-pound starter. His impressive season includes two technical falls, six major decisions and five wins over ranked opponents. Senior starter Joe Williams ranks as high as 15th in the 197-pound class. Williams has earned an 19-8 overall record this year, including three wins over ranked opponents as well as seven pins and five major decisions. Additionally, all but one of Williams' losses have come against ranked opponents.

Adding to the Spartan depth, 174-pound starter John Murphy appears in the W.I.N. rankings this week, sitting at No. 19. The junior extended his record to 19-10 with his most recent victory over OU's Jeff James.

SCOUTING THE GOLDEN GOPHERS
The defending national champion and third-ranked Minnesota Golden Gopher wrestling team will make its Big Ten debut at MSU this hosting, as both schools kick off league action.

In their most recent dual, the Gophers made quick work of the South Dakota State Jackrabbits last weekend, winning 34-9. The Minnesota lineup featured just four regulars and won seven of 10 matches, including the 24th consecutive victory of the season for top-ranked sophomore Jayson Ness (125 pounds). Along with Ness, Minnesota has seven ranked wrestlers.

SCOUTING THE BOILERMAKERS
With an 8-2 mark entering Big Ten action, Purdue will open conference play at Michigan Friday, Jan. 25, before continuing on to East Lansing for Sunday's dual.

The Boilermakers topped the host Ashland, 34-4, Northern Illinois University, 24-16, and Liberty University, 24-19 at last weekend's Wendy's Duals.

Purdue freshman A.J. Kissel led the Boilermaker wrestling squad with pins over all three of his opponents, tying the Purdue single-season fall record with his 15th of the season. The Boilermakers have one ranked wrestler, No. 15 Jake Patacsil (149 pounds).

QUITE FRANKLIN
Sophomore standout Franklin Gomez has jumped out to an incredible start to the season, going undefeated until dropping his first match in the 133 bracket at the Midlands Championships. The starter ranks fifth nationally in his weight class by InterMat, a standing propped up by his MSU Open title, Big Ten Wrestler of the Week accolades, five wins over ranked opponents, his 16-1 overall record and perfect 8-0 dual mark.

Gomez remains undefeated in dual action after taking down Oklahoma's No. 18 Brian Shelton in his third-straight dual win, a 15-6 major decision. Gomez has also defeated his last three opponents with major decision victories; he leads the team with six this season.

Previously in dual action, Gomez defeated Pittburgh's Jimmy Conroy, Ohio's Seth Morton, Central Michigan's No. 14 Conor Beebe, N.C. State's Ryan Tice, Virginia's No. 9 Eric Albright, North Carolina's Danny Lopes and Old Dominion's Kyle Hutter.

Topping off his outstanding performance at the Spartans' home tournament in November, Gomez defeated Indiana's then-ranked No. 3 Andrae Hernandez 5-2 to claim the 133-pound title in the MSU Open.

At Nov. 17's ACC-Big Ten Clash, Gomez defeated his second ranked opponent of the season, taking down Virginia's No. 9 Eric Albright in a 7-1 decision. Additionaly, Gomez picked up the Spartans only win in the Central Michigan dual, besting No. 14 Conor Beebe, 10-3.

At Midlands, top-seeded Gomez suffered his first defeat of the season in the 133-pound title match, after picking up two wins for an overall 13-1 season mark. In the quarterfinals, Gomez defeated Wyoming's Corey VomBaur in a 16-1 technical fall, and went on to best Iowa State's No. 4 Nick Fanthorpe, a 3-1 decision, to advance to the finals. In the title match, Gomez took on Iowa's No. 2 Joe Slaton, but fell in a tough 6-2 loss, surrendering the bracket title and his first loss of the season.

NOT YOUR AVERAGE JOE
Senior captain Joe Williams continues to be a driving force for the Spartans, as the fifth-year 197-pounder leads by example for the MSU wrestlers.

Ranked 15th in the nation by InterMat, Willams paces the Spartans with a team-high 19 wins, seven pins, five major decisions and three shutouts.

Williams' began his season putting up impressive numbers in the fall's four tournaments (14-6) and has continued to succeed in dual action (5-2). Williams is the only Spartan that placed in each of this year's tournaments, earning second at the Eastern Michigan Open, the MSU Open and the Nittany Lion Open, and eighth at the Midlands Championships.

Most recently in dual action, Williams defeated Pittsburgh's David Crowell with an 11-2 major decision, but couldn't close out the weekend with a sweep, falling to Oklahoma's No. 5 Joel Flaggert in a tight 3-2 match.

MURPHY'S MARK
Junior John Murphy (19-10) wrestled his way into the rankings this week, appearing at No. 19 in the W.I.N. poll for the 174-pound weight class. Murphy, along with Williams, leads the team with 19 wins, two of which were over ranked opponents, N.C. State's No. 14 Ryan Goodman and Northern Iowa's No. 17 Alex Dolly.

Murphy has wrestled seven of the Spartans' eight duals this season, tallying a 4-3 dual mark. Highlighting his dual action.

In tournament action, Murphy went 15-7 en route to picking up a fifth-place finish at the MSU Open and a sixth-place finish at the EMU Open.

WELCOME BACK
Alan O'Donnell returned to the MSU starting lineup at 285 pounds for the Ohio dual after missing six weeks with a knee injury. O'Donnell wrestled the last bout of the evening, and his decision came down to the final moments, when he took down Jason Marshall with four second left to claim the 9-8 victory.

DUALING PERFECTION
Franklin Gomez and Anthony Jones Jr. remain undefeated in dual action this season. Gomez has chalked up eight dual wins, while Carter Jones Jr. made his first career start and earned his only dual win against Ohio.

MINKEL MEMORIALIZED
Head coach Tom Minkel, along with former Chippewa wrestler John Matthews, was honored on Jan. 20 with the retirement of their singlets at Central Michigan University in Mount Pleasant, Mich.

The pair became the first wrestlers in CMU history to have their singlets ceremoniously raised to the rafters of Rose Arena.

Minkel was a three-time All-American, earning both Division I and Division II honors in 1970 and Division II honors in 1971 (Division II athletes were eligible to wrestle in the Division I tournament at the time). Minkel was also a two-time team MVP, earning the honor in 1970 and `71. Additionally, he won a pair of Interstate Intercollegiate Athletic Conference titles in 1969 and `70.

Both wrestlers then went on to earn sports on the USA Greco Roman Olympic team. Matthews represent the USA in 1976 and 1980, and Minkel wrestled for the Red, White and Blue in 1980.

Additionally, both wrestlers were inducted into the Central Michigan University Athletic Hall of Fame, with Matthews going in with the inaugural class of 1984, and Minkel the following year in 1985.

FIRST TIME SINCE
The Spartans swept the University of Ohio, 39-0, on Jan. 4, 2008 with wins at all 10 weight classes. The last time MSU shutout an opponent was in 1998, when the Spartans defeated Eastern Michigan, 39-0, on Feb. 1.

UP NEXT
The Spartans continue Big Ten action on the road for the first weekend in February. MSU takes on Wisconsin in Madison, Wis., on Friday, Feb. 1 at 8 p.m., then travel to Indiana to face the Hoosiers at 1 p.m. on Sunday, Feb. 3.

SIGNING CLASS
MSU signed two nationally ranked recruits, adding Steve Andrus of Manhattan, Kan., and Kirk Tank of Curtice, Ohio, to fill out its fall recruiting class.

"Kirk and Steve are two outstanding young men who I am certain will make a real impact here during their careers as Michigan State Spartans," said head coach Tom Minkel.

Andrus, who ranks seventh nationally by Amateur Wrestling News, won the heavyweight Kansas High School State Championship in 2007, after placing third as a sophomore in 2006. He also excels in Greco-Roman and Freestyle wrestling, earning multiple All-American honors in Fargo, N.D. Additionally, Andrus won the 2006 Cadet Freestyle National Championships. Andrus will continue to wrestle at 285 pounds when he joins Michigan State next fall.

Tank, who is ranked 15th by W.I.N. Magazine, is a two-time all-state wrestler from Oak Harbor High School in Ohio. He placed fourth at the Ohio State High School Championships as a sophomore and second as a junior, both at 145 pounds. Tank is expected to wrestle at 157 or 165 pounds as a freshman for the Spartans.