AMES – Iowa State head wrestling coach Kevin Dresser announced the 2023-24 schedule Thursday, which includes home duals against Iowa, Pittsburgh, Northern Iowa and Missouri.
“I know my team and my staff are really excited about this schedule,” Dresser said. “Our home schedule is particularly exciting and demanding this year. I really wanted to put something together that would excite our fans and motivate them to get to Hilton a lot this year. I think it will be a fun season to watch.”
The Cyclones’ dual slate will include matchups against four of the top seven, and three of the top five, teams at last season’s NCAA Championships. In total, there are eight top-25 teams on ISU’s 2023-24 schedule.
Iowa State will open its season Nov. 5 against Cleveland State inside David Carr’s high school gym at Perry High School in Massillon, Ohio, a nod to Carr as he begins his final season as a Cyclone.
The Cyclones will host the Iowa Corn Cy-Hawk dual against the Hawkeyes Nov. 26 inside Hilton Coliseum. Seven other home dates dot the schedule as ISU also welcomes Davidson (Nov. 12), Utah Valley (Jan. 12), Pittsburgh (Jan. 14), West Virginia (Feb. 2), Northern Iowa (Feb. 11) and Missouri (Feb. 25) in dual action.
Carr’s final match inside Hilton Coliseum could be Part IV of college wrestling’s best rivalry, and a rematch of last season’s 165-pound Big 12 and NCAA title matches, against Mizzou’s Keegan O’Toole.
Iowa State will also host the Last Chance Open (Feb. 18) inside the Lied Recreation Center.
The Cyclones will return to Humboldt, Iowa – the hometown of Dresser – for the third season in a row for a neutral site dual against Wisconsin (Nov. 19).
In December, Iowa State will wrestle at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational (Dec. 1-2) for the first time since the 2019-20 season. The Cyclones will also make their second consecutive appearance at the Collegiate Duals (Dec. 18). Iowa State will see Little Rock, Pittsburgh and Cornell at the event, which will be held in Nashville, Tenn. this season.
ISU will have only three true road duals this season, all in January. The Cyclones open the new year with a western road trip to Arizona State (Jan. 5) before a neutral site contest against California Baptist (Jan. 7) in Walnut, Calif. Iowa State will close the month with duals against Oklahoma (Jan. 26) and Oklahoma State (Jan. 28).
The 2024 Big 12 Championship (March 9-10) will be held at the BOK Center in Tulsa, Okla., while the NCAA Championships (March 21-23) will take place inside the T-Mobile Center in Kansas City, Mo.
