By: Brook Weber
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – Purdue Wrestling will resume Big Ten Conference action with a short road trip to compete at No. 13 Illinois on Saturday afternoon.
The dual in Champaign, Illinois, is set for 3 p.m. ET inside Huff Hall. A live broadcast will be available on B1G+ with live stats on TrackWrestling.com
The Boilermakers (8-3, 1-2 B1G) are facing their border rivals for the 95th time in program history. The Fighting Illini (8-3, 3-3 B1G) will be tied with Northwestern as the second-most common opponent in Purdue history, trailing only Indiana (111 meetings).
Illinois holds a 61-31-2 advantage in the all-time series. The Boilers' most recent win in Champaign was an 18-14 decision on Feb. 16, 2020. PURDUE POINTS
5 – Blaze's No. 5 spot in the initial coaches' rankings marked the first time he's cracked the top five by any publication in his young career. The sophomore is 13-3 with a challenging stretch coming up against some of the nation's top 157-pounders.
4 – As many as four ranked matchups (via InterMat) could headline the Purdue-Illinois dual, including No. 28 Clark vs. No. 15 Danny Pucino, No. 7 Blaze vs. No. 31 Jason Kraisser, No. 26 Baumann vs. No. 23 Danny Braunagel, and No. 27 Vanadia vs. No. 16 Zac Braunagel. LAST TIME OUT The Boilers are coming off a rare bye week in the middle of Big Ten season. Purdue most recently fell in a 34-10 decision at No. 4 Ohio State in Columbus on Sunday, Jan. 19.
Vanadia notched a 17-5 major decision over Gavin Bell for the Boilermakers' lone bonus points.
Also notably, Blaze and Ramos picked up ranked victories to continue their hot streaks. Ramos handled No. 11 Brendan McCrone in a 3-1 decision before Blaze beat No. 17 Sammy Sasso, a four-time All-American, 5-1. PROJECTED LINEUPS Purdue
125 | #1 Matt Ramos / Ashton Jackson
133 | Dustin Norris / Jacob Macatangay
141 | #28 Greyson Clark / Cole Solomey
149 | Isaac Ruble / Wyatt Krejsa
157 | #7 Joey Blaze / Kade Law
165 | Stoney Buell / Delaney Ruhlman
174 | #26 Brody Baumann
184 | Orlando Cruz
197 | #27 Ben Vanadia / Quinn Herbert
285 | Hayden Filipovich / Dominic Burgett
#13 Illinois
125 | Caelan Riley
133 | #4 Lucas Byrd
141 | #15 Danny Pucino
149 | #13 Kannon Webster
157 | #31 Jason Kraisser
165 | #13 Braeden Scoles
174 | #23 Danny Braunagel
184 | #12 Edmond Ruth
197 | #16 Zac Braunagel
285 | #10 Luke Luffman
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – Purdue Wrestling will resume Big Ten Conference action with a short road trip to compete at No. 13 Illinois on Saturday afternoon.
The dual in Champaign, Illinois, is set for 3 p.m. ET inside Huff Hall. A live broadcast will be available on B1G+ with live stats on TrackWrestling.com
The Boilermakers (8-3, 1-2 B1G) are facing their border rivals for the 95th time in program history. The Fighting Illini (8-3, 3-3 B1G) will be tied with Northwestern as the second-most common opponent in Purdue history, trailing only Indiana (111 meetings).
Illinois holds a 61-31-2 advantage in the all-time series. The Boilers' most recent win in Champaign was an 18-14 decision on Feb. 16, 2020. PURDUE POINTS
- The first national coaches' rankings of the season were released last week with five Boilermakers listed: No. 1 Matt Ramos (125 lbs.), No. 5 Joey Blaze (157 lbs.), No. 23 Brody Baumann (174 lbs.), No. 27 Greyson Clark (141 lbs.) and No. 29 Ben Vanadia (197 lbs.)
- Purdue's "Fab Five" hold a combined record of 69-23 and have outscored their opponents 964-415 this season.
- Undefeated at 20-0, Ramos maintained his unanimous spot atop the 125-pound division for an eighth consecutive week. With 59 takedowns and 80 back points, he has yet to surrender a single takedown or back point all season.
- Ramos and Blaze ride into Champaign as the hottest wrestlers on the team, having won each of their first three Big Ten matches.
- Blaze and Vanadia have been Purdue's biggest performers in the clutch so far this season. They are tied for the team lead with 59 third period points.
- Baumann leads all starters with three pins this season. He also set the mark for the highest point total with a 21-5 technical fall at Kent State on Jan. 3.
- Orlando Cruz later matched Baumann's tally in a 21-5 tech fall at Northern Illinois on Jan. 12.
5 – Blaze's No. 5 spot in the initial coaches' rankings marked the first time he's cracked the top five by any publication in his young career. The sophomore is 13-3 with a challenging stretch coming up against some of the nation's top 157-pounders.
4 – As many as four ranked matchups (via InterMat) could headline the Purdue-Illinois dual, including No. 28 Clark vs. No. 15 Danny Pucino, No. 7 Blaze vs. No. 31 Jason Kraisser, No. 26 Baumann vs. No. 23 Danny Braunagel, and No. 27 Vanadia vs. No. 16 Zac Braunagel. LAST TIME OUT The Boilers are coming off a rare bye week in the middle of Big Ten season. Purdue most recently fell in a 34-10 decision at No. 4 Ohio State in Columbus on Sunday, Jan. 19.
Vanadia notched a 17-5 major decision over Gavin Bell for the Boilermakers' lone bonus points.
Also notably, Blaze and Ramos picked up ranked victories to continue their hot streaks. Ramos handled No. 11 Brendan McCrone in a 3-1 decision before Blaze beat No. 17 Sammy Sasso, a four-time All-American, 5-1. PROJECTED LINEUPS Purdue
125 | #1 Matt Ramos / Ashton Jackson
133 | Dustin Norris / Jacob Macatangay
141 | #28 Greyson Clark / Cole Solomey
149 | Isaac Ruble / Wyatt Krejsa
157 | #7 Joey Blaze / Kade Law
165 | Stoney Buell / Delaney Ruhlman
174 | #26 Brody Baumann
184 | Orlando Cruz
197 | #27 Ben Vanadia / Quinn Herbert
285 | Hayden Filipovich / Dominic Burgett
#13 Illinois
125 | Caelan Riley
133 | #4 Lucas Byrd
141 | #15 Danny Pucino
149 | #13 Kannon Webster
157 | #31 Jason Kraisser
165 | #13 Braeden Scoles
174 | #23 Danny Braunagel
184 | #12 Edmond Ruth
197 | #16 Zac Braunagel
285 | #10 Luke Luffman