The Boilermakers (9-5, 2-4 B1G) will wrestle the Hawkeyes (10-5, 3-3 B1G) for the 55th time in dual action. Purdue is seeking its first win over Iowa since Feb. 25, 1961, which is by far the program’s longest drought against any Big Ten foe.
The matchup carries special sentiment for Coach Ersland, who will be coaching against his alma mater. Ersland was a Hawkeye wrestler under legendary coach Dan Gable from 1994-97, helping the squad to three NCAA team championships and four Big Ten titles.
KEY MATCHES TO WATCH
133: BOARMAN VS. #8 AYALA
Despite losing his last two, Boarman was a very tough out for No. 11 Zan Fugitt and No. 1 Lucas Byrd the past couple weeks. Boarman did not surrender a takedown to either wrestler, and he brought Byrd, the undefeated defending national champion, to the brink of his first loss. Boarman scored the first takedown allowed by Byrd through the entire Big Ten dual slate at the end of their match but came up one point short due to penalty points (5-4 decision). Another big chance for a breakthrough comes in the form of Drake Ayala, the 133 national runner-up from last season.
141: #33 CLARK VS. PETERSEN
Greyson Clark, the two-time NCAA qualifier has looked the best he’s ever looked in his past three matches since returning from a three-week injury. Clark is 3-0 with a total score of 40-6 in Big Ten duals. Kale Petersen leads Iowa in total wins with a 17-2 record, mostly from tournaments. He took first at the Luther Open and Jim Koch Wisconsin Open, and placed third at Soldier Salute.
149: #31 BROWN VS. #19 BLOCK
Gavin Brown is tied for Purdue’s season lead with 16 wins. He’s lost his last two, both to ranked foes, but looked strong in his narrow 10-8 loss to #15 Joe Zargo of Wisconsin. Ryder Block is 8-5 this season after impressing early in the year with wins over then-No. 6 Josh Edmond (Missouri) and No. 3 Casey Swiderski (Oklahoma State) in the National Duals. Block recently tech-falled Michigan State’s Clayton Jones and pinned Nebraska’s No. 14 Chance Lamer.
157: #28 BUELL VS. #14 WILLIAMS
Both ranked stars are listed as variables for Sunday’s match, and neither appeared in their teams’ most recent duals. Ruble started for Purdue in last week’s loss to Illinois, and Williams has not wrestled since Jan. 30 when he lost a 13-3 major to Minnesota’s then-No. 21 Charlie Millard. Both Buell and Williams hope to return this week and bolster their resumes with the Big Ten Championships looming.
165: #4 BLAZE VS. #3 CALIENDO
Undoubtedly the premier match of the dual, the top-four showdown will be Joey Blaze’s first match as an underdog all season. Blaze is 16-0 with a 51-0 takedown margin and 28-0 back point margin.
The 2025 national runner-up at 157 has not been defeated — or even taken down — since bumping up to 165 in the offseason. He faces his stiffest test yet in Michael Caliendo, last year’s runner-up and three-time All-American at 165.
The two stars have never wrestled each other, and the match will have implications for seeding purposes in the Big Ten Championships; the winner will be firmly in the driver’s seat to earn the No. 2 seed in the conference tournament.
WrestleStat’s match prediction tool has Caliendo edging out Blaze in a 7-6 decision. But to bet against Blaze as an underdog has proven foolish to this point in his career. He shocked the wrestling world in the national tournament last year and beat No. 1 Tyler Kasak against all odds.
At the very least, this will be a low-stakes preview of a potential late-round Big Ten and NCAA tournament match in March.
174: #16 BAUMANN VS. #3 KENNEDY
Brody Baumann hasn’t wrestled in the past two duals, and we haven’t seen him since he toughed out an apparent injury in his win vs. Michigan State. His status remains in question this week; if Baumann doesn’t go, freshman Aidan Costello will face the 2025 All-American Patrick Kennedy, who’s 13-1 this season.
UP NEXT
The Boilers will travel south next Friday, Feb. 20, for the regular season finale at rival Indiana. Purdue will look to get back to its winning ways over the most common foe in program history. The Boilers have won 12 of the past 15 but are currently on a three-dual losing streak to the Hoosiers.
First match inside Bloomington’s Wilkinson Hall is set for 7 p.m. ET with the broadcast on B1G+.
