EMU Duals Notes

#10 Illinois @ EMU Duals

Saturday, Nov. 8 // Ypsilanti, Mich.

vs. Olivet // 9:30 a.m. CT

vs. Utah Valley // 12:30 p.m. CT

vs. Clarion // 2:00 p.m. CT

Illinois Probable Starters

125   --                 Francis Eedelen, 0-0, Fr.

133   #13            Zane Richards, 0-0, R-Jr.

141   --                 Brock Ervin, 0-0, So.

149   --                 Kyle Langenderfer, 0-0, R-Sr.

157   #1               Isaiah Martinez, 0-0, R-So.

165    #18            Steven Rodrigues, 0-0, Sr.

174   8th              Zac Brunson, 0-0, R-So.

184   19th           Jeff  Koepke, 0-0, R-Sr.

197   --                 Andre Lee, 0-0, So.

HWT 17th           Brooks Black, 0-0, R-So.

*Rankings are listed from Intermat

Illini Return Seven Starters from 2014-15

Illinois is led by defending 157-pound champion, Isaiah Martinez after his undefeated redshirt-freshman season. Joining him are Zane Richards (133), Kyle Langenderfer (149), Steven Rodrigues (165), Zac Brunson (184), Jeff Koepke (184), and Brooks Black (HWT).

WIN Magazine Places Illini 10th to start season

The Fighting Illini will begin the season ranked 10th in the country according to WIN Magazine's rankings. Isaiah Martinez leads the way ranked No.1 in the 157-pound weight class. Five other Illini were among the top-20 in their respective classes: Richards (133), Ervin (149), Brunson (174), Koepke (184), and Black (HWT).

Steven Rodrigues Makes the Switch to 165

After wrestling at 141 pounds for most of his career, Steven Rodrigues will make the jump up to 165 pounds for his senior season. At 141 pounds, Rodrigues qualified for NCAA Championships each of the last two seasons, and finished sixth on the team in points scored last season.

Illinois Quick Hits:

• Isaiah Martinez enters is second full season as a starter at 157 pounds after recording the first undefeated freshman season since Cael Sanderson accomplished the feat in 1999 at Iowa State. Martinez won the 2015 Big Ten Championship as well as recording 24 of his 35 victories by a major decision on his way to defeating Brian Realbuto of Cornell in the NCAA Final. Martinez was honored with Big Ten, InterMat, and Amateur Wrestling News Freshman of the Year, and 2015 Fighting Illini Freshman of the Year.
• Redshirt juniors Zac Brunson (174) and Zane Richards (133) will enter the season ranked No. 6 in their respective weight classes by W.I.N. Magazine. Brunson is coming off a season that saw him place sixth at Big Ten Championships after compiling a 29-10 record qualifying for NCAAs for the second straight season. Richards is also coming off a podium finish last season as he produced a fifth-place finish and a reached as high as No. 2 last season.
• Senior Steven Rodrigues will make the move from 141 pounds up to 165 pounds this season. Rodrigues spent three seasons wrestling at 141 pounds, including last season where he went 17-13 and competed at NCAA Championships for the second consecutive year.
• The Orange and Blue will face off against the best the Big Ten has to offer, with three top-5 preseason ranked teams         coming to Champaign. The Illini will open Big Ten play by hosting No. 2 Ohio State and No. 3 Iowa before traveling to No. 8 Michigan a week later. No. 4 Penn State will travel to Champaign on January 23, a dual that will be broadcast live on BTN.