Missouri Wrestling
3 min read
COLUMBIA, Mo. – Following a near 10-month layoff, Mizzou Wrestling is set for another competitive campaign with 16 duals tentatively scheduled for 2020-21. After the COVID-19 pandemic pushed back their typical season start date, the Tigers are slated to square off in seven consecutive weeks from Jan. 3 – Feb. 14.
Prior to the 2020-21 regular season opener, Mizzou will host its annual Black & Gold exhibition on Dec. 22 inside the Hearnes Center. Action is slated for a 5 p.m. CT start. The exhibition will be closed to the public, but Tigers fans will be able to tune-in live via Rokfin.
Victors of nine-straight conference championships (eight consecutive Mid-American Conference titles), Mizzou Wrestling head coach Brian Smith and the Tigers will trek north to Fargo, North Dakota, for the North Dakota State Quadrangular (Jan. 3). Mizzou will be joined by South Dakota State, North Dakota State and Oregon State inside the Scheels Center.
The following week (Jan. 8), black and gold fans will have their first chance to watch the Tigers, as Central Michigan and Wyoming visit Mid-Missouri. Mizzou and the Chippewas’ dual will be the first of six scheduled MAC contests this season.
Nine days later (Jan. 17), the Tigers will travel north to Ames, Iowa, for arguably their toughest test all season with a quadrangular dual at Iowa State. Mizzou, Northern Iowa, Arizona State and the host Cyclones all finished last year in the NWCA Top-25 Coaches Poll.
The action continues the following week (Jan. 23) with a tri-dual inside the Hearnes Center. Mizzou will host Northern Illinois and Ohio for a pair of MAC matchups. Conference action continues eight days later (Jan. 31) in Kent, Ohio, with the Tigers meeting Kent State and Rider.
Mizzou will then host SIUE (Feb. 7) for its final home dual of the season. The Tigers’ third quadrangular dual of the 2020-21 campaign caps their regular season a week later (Feb. 14) with contests against Central Oklahoma, West Virginia and Oklahoma State in Stillwater, Oklahoma. The Cowboys are Mizzou’s fourth scheduled opponent in 2020-21 who finished top-25 nationally a season ago.
The month concludes with the MAC Championships (Feb. 27-28) in Lawrenceville, New Jersey, on the campus of Rider University. Postseason action will conclude in St. Louis, Missouri, with the NCAA Championships (March 18-20). Mizzou will serve as the host institution once again with collegiate wrestling fans flocking across the country to the Enterprise Center.
