The No. 4 Iowa men’s wrestling team will face off against No. 8 Iowa State on Sunday at Hilton Coliseum in Ames.

The contest, set for 2 p.m., will make history as the first regular-season wrestling dual meet to be broadcast on ESPN.

Iowa men’s wrestling associate head  coach Terry Brands said the fact the dual will be shown live on ESPN “shows the magnitude of the series, of the rivalry.” Brands said the Hawkeyes are looking forward to the environment of the dual, and they’re ready to go.

Brands said he thinks ESPN’s goal is to put out entertaining content people want to tune in to that will rival the NFL. He thinks those who watch won’t be disappointed with the content they are offered. He also added that it’s up to the wrestlers to make the dual entertaining and wrestle aggressively.

“If both sides do what they’re capable of, then it’s going to be fireworks, and it could be great for the sport of wrestling.” Brands said. “ If both teams come ready to compete, the casual fan, the guy that moves over from the NFL to watch this thing, they’re going to be impressed.”

Probable lineups 

All rankings come from Intermat.

125 pounds: No. 17 Drake Ayala (IA) vs. No. 8 Kysen Terukina (ISU)

Ayala suffered his first defeat during Iowa’s home opener against No. 16 Brandon Kaylor on Nov. 18. Brands was impressed with how Ayala responded to the loss and the questions the 125-pounder asked in preparation for his upcoming match. 

“He came back in and went to work right away,” Brands said about Ayala. “He’s smart, and he’s a competitor, and he is a son of a gun on the wrestling mat when he’s ready to go. We know that, and that’s where we have to dial him in, too.”

133 pounds: No. 8 Brody Teske (IA) vs. No. 19 Evan Frost (ISU) 

Teske earned an 18-8 major decision win against Oregon State’s No. 26 Gabe Whisenhunt. He’ll look to improve on his 4-1 record this year in the Cy-Hawk dual. The NCAA qualifier had a 10-6 record last year with a 6-2 dual record.

141 pounds: No. 1 Real Woods (IA) vs. No. 19 Anthony Echemendia (ISU)

Woods has been dominant so far this season with a 2-0 record, both wins coming via technical fall. Woods is coming off an 18-3 win over No. 21 Cleveland Belton. The Big Ten Champion and NCAA runner-up is coming off a 20-1 season last year. 

149 pounds:  No. 9 Victor Voinovich (IA) vs. No. 14 Casey Swiderski (ISU)

Voinovich got his first win in front of Hawkeye fans with a 6-3 decision victory against Nash Singleton on Nov. 18. The Oklahoma State transfer hopes to improve upon a 6-1 record this year after a 17-3 record last season for the Cowboys. 

157 pounds: No. 2 Jared Franek (IA) vs. No. 18 Cody Chittum (ISU)

Franek earned his first victory in front of Iowa fans during the meet against Oregon State. The North Dakota State transfer earned a 10-3 decision win against Murphy Menke to improve his record to 7-0 this season. Franek also placed first in the Luther Open earlier this year. 

165 pounds: No. 5 Michael Caliendo (IA) vs. No. 2 David Carr (ISU)

Caliendo has had a great start to his Iowa campaign with a 7-0 record and placed first at the Luther Open. He beat Oregon State’s Kekana Fouret, 15-10, in the Hawkeyes’ home opener. The North Dakota State transfer had a 29-5 record last year with a 12-5 career record against ranked opponents.

174 pounds: Gabe Arnold OR Aiden Riggins (IA) vs. No. 21 MJ Gaitan (ISU)

Arnold had an electric 4-2 upset win against No. 11 Travis Wittlake in front of the Hawkeye faithful. He has a 6-0 record to start the year and placed first at the Luther Open.

“He thrives when he gets the call,” Brands said of Arnold. “He wants to be in front of that crowd; he wants to be the guy, he wants to go. He’s made it very, very clear that he thinks he’s the best 174-pounder in the world, and I expect that he’s going to go out and try to prove that every time he competes.”

Riggins has a 6-1 record this year and earned a 15-4 major decision win against Peter Acciardi during Iowa’s first dual of the season versus Cal Baptist. 

184 pounds: No. 30 Brennan Swafford (IA) vs. No. 6 Will Feldkamp (ISU)

Swafford suffered his first defeat of the season against Oregon State’s No. 3 Trey Munoz. He has a 6-1 record this season and a 1-1 record in duals after he beat Nathan Haas, 15-4, in Iowa’s first dual. 

197 pounds: No. 22 Zach Glazier (IA) vs. No. 24 Julien Broderson (ISU)

Glazier is coming off a 14-6 win against Justin Rademacher that improved his record to 6-0. Glazier also placed first at the Luther Open earlier this year and won his first dual matchup against Eli Sheeran, 11-2.

285 pounds: Bradley Hill (IA) vs. No. 7 Yonger Bastida (ISU)

Hill suffered his second defeat of the year against Oregon State’s No. 22 Boone McDermott, 4-1. Hill placed second at the Luther Open this year and has a 1-1 dual record to open the season.