While others are eating Thanksgiving dinner and putting on a few pounds, the Oregon wrestling team will be carefully watching its weight while it prepares for its upcoming dual match against Stanford.
“Our guys are used to the holidays being around wrestling season,” head coach Chuck Kearney said. “But they’ll have some turkey.”
The Ducks make their 2000-01 home debut Sunday at MacArthur Court, hoping to make turkeys out of the visiting Stanford Cardinal. Action begins at 2 p.m. and admission is free.
“There’s no place like home,” Kearney said. “Mac court is a great wrestling venue. It gives people of Eugene a chance to come out and support us.”
Oregon brings in a 1-0 Pacific-10 Conference record against rival Stanford. The Cardinal sport a 1-0 non-conference record.
Stanford “is a solid team with no weak areas,” Kearney said. “They’re a team in the top half of the Pac-10.”
The match could be the season opener for Oregon star Doug Lee. The senior All-American had to sit out the Ducks’ first two competitions with an ankle sprain. Although Lee is working out with the team, he is listed as probable for Sunday’s match.
There will still be plenty of excitement in other weight classes, as the rest of the Ducks hope to carry their momentum from the last two competitions into the match. Oregon had a good showing at Saturday’s Southern Oregon Open and dominated a dual match against UC-Davis.
Senior Chael Sonnen, the second-highest ranked Duck, is ranked fifth nationally at the 197-pound class and will take on Stanford’s Fred Luminoso.
Elsewhere, three other Ducks bring perfect records into the match. Junior Shaun Williams and sophomores Tony Overstake and Brian Watson all won their weight classes at Southern Oregon after dual match victories against UC-Davis.
Sophomore Casey Hunt is 5-1 on the season with the lone loss coming from Boise State’s Gabe Vigil.
“When you have guys that are 5-0, 6-0, it’s a statement of where we are at as a team,” Kearney said. “It’s just an indicator of what we’re capable of.”
Stanford attended last week’s Southern Oregon Open, but only four Ducks and Cardinal tangled. Overstake, freshman Bransen Phillips, sophomore Jason Harless and Watson all decisioned their opponents in the first three rounds of the tournament.
Stanford is led by Brad Metzler at 133 pounds. The sophomore was the Cardinal’s only placer at Southern Oregon.
“We’re pleased with how they’ve progressed,” Kearney said. “You’re always looking for areas to improve in.”