Weekly Release #3

Upcoming Schedule
Fri-Sat., Dec. 1-2 -- at Cliff Keen Invitational (Primm, Nev.)
Friday, Dec. 8 -- vs. Central Michigan (Cliff Keen Arena), 7 p.m.
Fri.-Sat., Dec. 29-30 -- at Midlands (Evanston, Ill.)

This Week: Wolverines Head West to "Pin City"
The No. 8-ranked University of Michigan wrestling team will take its annual trip to Las Vegas, Nev., to compete in the 25th annual Cliff Keen Invitational on Friday and Saturday (Dec. 1-2) at the Star of the Desert Arena, located adjacent to Buffalo Bill's Hotel.

The tournament is slated to begin at 9 a.m. PST on Friday (Dec. 1) with the pigtail round, immediately followed by the first and second rounds, and the consolation pigtails, at 10 a.m. Wrestling will resume Friday evening at 7 p.m., with the quarterfinals and first and second consolation rounds. On Saturday, the consolation third round is slated for 9 a.m., and will be immediately followed by the semifinal and consolation fourth round, as well as the consolation semifinals and finals, which will determine the fifth-, sixth-, seventh- and eighth-place winners for each weight class, and are expected to begin at 12:30 p.m. Saturday evening will feature the championship and consolation finals, determining the top four place-winners for each weight, scheduled to begin at 5 p.m.

This year's field at the Cliff Keen Invitational will feature 49 of the top collegiate wrestling programs in the nation, including 10 teams ranked in the most recent NWCA poll. Headlining the participating teams are No. 2 Missouri, No. 5 Hofstra, No. 12 Cornell, No. 13 Ohio State and No. 15 Penn.

Radio, Radio
Takedown Radio will be on location at the Cliff Keen Invitational, and is slated to broadcast live -- via internet stream -- complete tournament coverage on Friday and Saturday, Dec. 1-2. Pre-match coverage will begin at 10 a.m. PST on Friday, and 7 a.m. on Saturday. For more information, visit Takedown Radio's site.

History Lesson: Cliff Keen Invitational
Michigan has competed in the annual tournament 23 times dating back to 1983, missing only the first year of the tournament in 1982. Formerly known as the Las Vegas Hall of Fame, the tournament was renamed the Cliff Keen Invitational in 1993 to honor former Michigan wrestling coach and collegiate wrestling icon Cliff Keen. The tournament is run by a pair of former Michigan wrestlers -- three-time NCAA champion Mark Churella Sr. (1976-79) and Mark Churella Jr. (2001), who serve as executive director and tournament director, respectively. For more information about the Cliff Keen Invitational, visit www.cklvwrestle.com.

Michigan has placed fifth or better in 10 of the last 12 seasons at the annual tournament, including first-place showings in 2001, 2005 and 2006. U-M has never finished lower than 10th place in its 23 appearances. The Michigan starting lineup will feature six grapplers with experience in the tournament, including previous champions fifth-year senior Mark Moos (Lorain, Ohio/St. Edward HS), senior/junior Josh Churella (Northville, Mich./Novi HS) and junior/sophomore Steve Luke (Massillon, Ohio/Perry HS), and four newcomers to the invitational.

Wolverines at the Cliff Keen Invitational

Season	Place	Points	Champions
2005-06	First	145	Josh Churella (141), Steve Luke (157) Ryan Churella (165), Greg Wagner (Hwt)
2004-05	First	148	Mark Moos (125), Ryan Bertin (157), Ryan Churella (165), Greg Wagner (Hwt)
2003-04	Second	134.5	None
2002-03	Seventh	87	None
2001-02	First	163	Otto Olson (174), Andy Hrovat (184)
2000-01	10th	54	None
1999-2000	Fifth	96	Joe Warren (133), Otto Olson (174)
1998-99	Fourth	90.5	None
1997-98	Fourth	101	Jeff Catrabone (167), Airron Richardson (Hwt)
1996-97	Fourth	102	Jeff Catrabone (167)
1995-96	Fourth	89.5	None
1994-95	Fifth	N/A	N/A
1993-94	Fourth	81	Sean Bormet (158), Steve King (Hwt)
1992-93	Eighth	50	None
1991-92	Fifth	75.75	None
1990-91	Fifth	N/A	None
1989-90	Sixth	67.75	None
1988-89	Fourth	79.5	John Fisher (134), Joe Pantaleo (158)
1987-88	Fourth	92.5	None
1986-87	Fifth	75.5	Doug Wyland (118)
1985-86	Eighth	60	None
1984-85	Fifth	103	Joe McFarland (126)
1983-84	Seventh	53	None

Last Year at the Cliff Keen Invitational: U-M Hits Jackpot, Wins Team Trophy
The Wolverines successfully defended their Cliff Keen Invitational team title last year, in similar fashion to the previous season, as U-M accumulated 145 points behind the performances of four individual champions and five total placewinners. Captains Ryan Churella and Greg Wagner repeated as the 165-pound and heavyweight champions, while Josh Churella and Steve Luke claimed trophies at 141 and 157 pounds, respectively, in their first appearance at the prestigious tournament. Luke earned conference and national wrestler of the week honors, and was recognized in Sports Illustrated's Faces in the Crowd after defeating Cornell's fourth-ranked Dustin Mannotti and Illinois' top-ranked Alex Tirapelle en route to the title.

Probable Michigan Starting Lineup

Wgt.	Wrestler	Yr./Elig.
125	Mark Moos	5th/Sr.
133	Chris Diehl	Fr./Fr.
141	Brad Cusumano	Sr./Jr.
149	Josh Churella	Sr./Jr.
157	Jeff Marsh	Sr./Jr.
165	Eric Tannenbaum	Sr./Jr.
174	Steve Luke	Jr./So.
184	Tyrel Todd	Jr./So.
197	Casey White	Jr./So.
Hwt	Omar Maktabi	Sr./Jr.

Last Time Out: Wolverines Roll Past Lehigh, Place Second at Body Bar
Michigan rallied from an early 10-point deficit, winning six of the last seven matches, to claim a 18-14 win over Lehigh in its season opener on Nov. 14. Senior/junior Josh Churella initiated the comeback with a dominant, 7-0 shutout against the Mountain Hawks' ninth-ranked Trevor Chinn at 149 pounds. Junior/sophomores Steve Luke and Tyrel Todd (Bozeman, Mont./Bozeman HS) picked up back-to-back 3-1 overtime victories over touted opponents at 174 and 184 pounds, respectively, to put U-M ahead for good.

Two days later, Luke, Todd and senior/junior captain Eric Tannenbaum (Naperville, Ill./North HS) captured individual crowns at the Body Bar Invitational, and paced the Wolverines to a runner-up performance (114 points), just one tally shy of host Cornell. Michigan boasted nine total placewinners at the event.

Starting Things with a Bang
With its 18-14 victory over Lehigh on Nov. 14, Michigan improved its all-time mark in season openers to 55-26-2, and has won 10 of the last 11 opening meets. When U-M opens the season on the road, it has a 26-20 mark. The only loss in recent years came in the Wolverines' last road dual against Lehigh -- two seasons ago -- when the Mountain Hawks handed Michigan a 22-15 loss in Bethlehem, Pa.

Strength of Schedule
Michigan faces a tough field of competitors again this season, with 10 of the Wolverines' 11 dual meet opponents ranked among the top 25 teams in the National Wrestling Coaches Association's preseason poll, including four of the top-10 ranked teams. No. 1 Minnesota leads the pack of ranked opponents, which also includes No. 5 Iowa, No. 8 Penn State, No. 10 Northwestern, No. 11 Hofstra, No. 12 Central Michigan, No. 15 Ohio State, No. 17 Michigan State, No. 19 Indiana and No. 21 Lehigh.

Recapping the Open Tournaments
Wrestling Bear Open: The Wolverines sent a seven-man contigent to the Wrestling Bear Open, hosted by Mott Community College on Nov. 18, and came away with a pair of individual trophies and five total placewinners. Competing unattached, sophomore Michael Watts (Riverton, Utah/Riverton HS) and freshman Aaron Hynes (Mt. Morris, Mich./Flint Kearsley HS) captured the first tournament title of their collegiate careers at 125 and 157 pounds, respectively, and were joined in the championship round by freshman Eddie Phillips (Woodland, Mich./Lakewood HS), who claimed runner-up honors at 197 pounds. Also placing for U-M were sophomore/freshman Jordan Sherrod (Portage, Mich./Portage Central HS), taking third at 174 pounds, and junior/sophomore Joshua Hartman (Sandwich, Ill./Sandwich Community HS), who claimed fourth at 197.

A Look at the Polls
As a result of several shakeups among the national-ranked top 10, the Wolverines fell one spot -- to the No. 8 listing -- in the most recent National Wrestling Coaches Association's poll, released Nov. 28. Michigan also boasts five individuals ranked among the top 20 wrestlers in their respective weight classes in the three major wrestling polls -- InterMat, Amateur Wrestling News and W.I.N. Magazine. Headlining the ranked Wolverines is junior/sophomore Tyrel Todd, whose 4-0 performance in over season-opening weekend propelled him to the No. 3 spot at 184 pounds.

NWCA/InterMat Division I Preseason Team Rankings (11/28/06)

RANK, TEAM POINTS PREV 1. Oklahoma State (8) 473 2 2. Missouri (2) 462 3 3. Minnesota 446 1 4. Iowa State (1) 443 6 5. Hofstra (1) 418 11 6. Iowa 411 5 7. Penn State 396 8 8. MICHIGAN 395 7 9. Oklahoma 393 4 10. Northwestern 373 10 11. Central Michigan 347 12 12. Cornell 347 9 13. Ohio State 391 5 14. Edinboro 329 13 15. Penn 291 14 16. Illinois 284 16 17. Indiana 282 19 18. Nebraska 280 18 19. Michigan State 273 17 20. Cal Poly 233 20 21. Pittsburgh 221 25 22. West Virginia 182 24 23. Harvard 181 22 24. Lehigh 147 21 24. Northern Iowa 147 NR

Michigan Individual Rankings

Wgt.	Wrestler	InterMat	AWN	W.I.N.
149	Josh Churella	6th	4th	6th
165	Eric Tannenbaum	5th	6th	7th
174	Steve Luke	8th	5th	5th
184	Tyrel Todd	3rd	3rd	4th
197	Casey White	14th	16th	17th

On the Horizon
The Wolverines kick off the home portion of their 2006-07 slate next weekend, hosting intrastate rival Central Michigan on Friday, Dec. 8, for a 7 p.m. non-conference dual at Cliff Keen Arena.

Contact: Leah Howard (734) 763-4423