Season Preview: 2017-18 Michigan Wrestling

» The 2017-18 wrestling campaign marks the program's 95th of intercollegiate competition and the 19th under head coach Joe McFarland.
» Michigan's 2017-18 roster includes six NCAA All-Americans and a Big Ten champion; eight Wolverines start the season ranked at their respective weight classes, most notably No. 2 Stevan Micic (133 pounds) and No. 2 Adam Coon (Hwt).
» The Wolverines' dual-meet schedule features nine teams ranked in the NWCA preseason poll, including five top-10 teams: No. 1 Penn State, No. 2 Ohio State, No. 6 Minnesota, No. 7 Iowa and No. 10 Lehigh.

With a good balance of experienced veterans and a big group of talented newcomers, expectations are high for the University of Michigan wrestling team in 2017-18. After earning a top-10 NCAA finish from its incredibly young squad last season, Michigan returns several big names off redshirt to form a deep roster and a lineup that is solid from top to bottom. Head coach Joe McFarland, now in his 19th year at the helm of the Wolverine program, has a squad equipped to make a run at a team trophy at the NCAA Championships next March.

Wolverine Bites

• The 2017-18 campaign marks the program's 95th season of intercollegiate competition and the 19th under head coach Joe McFarland. Under his guidance, the Wolverines have recorded 10 top-10 NCAA finishes and claimed three Big Ten dual-meet titles. McFarland has led 31 student-athletes to five NCAA individual titles, 55 All-America citations and 17 Big Ten individual crowns.

Junior/sophomore Logan Massa (165 lb. weight class) is one of eight returning wrestlers from last season's squad.

• Michigan returns eight starters from its young squad a season ago and, with the addition of its four wrestlers coming off redshirt and an offseason transfer, U-M's 2017-18 roster includes six All-Americans in junior/sophomore Stevan Micic (133 pounds), senior/junior Alec Pantaleo (157), junior/sophomore Logan Massa (165), junior/sophomore Myles Amine (174), graduate student Kevin Beazley (197) and graduate student Adam Coon (Hwt), as well as a Big Ten champion in fifth-year senior Domenic Abounader (184).

• After injuries wreaked havoc on the Michigan roster last season, U-M's starting lineup featured nine first-year starters and seven freshmen for much of the year. The Wolverines posted their second straight top-10 NCAA finish to end the year, however, using a strong medal-round performance on Saturday morning to surge three spots into 10th place (47.5 points) in the final team standings. Three freshmen -- Micic, Massa and Amine -- scored every point for the Wolverines en route to All-America finishes.

Breaking Down the Roster

• Michigan ranks fourth nationally in the number of returning NCAA points from a season ago with 47.5 from last year's freshman trio and another 9.5 points with the transfer of 2017 All-American Beazley. That figure does not include the return of Pantaleo, Abounader and Coon from redshirt.

• The Wolverines will start the 2017-18 season with seven wrestlers ranked among the nation's top 10 at their respective weight classes, including consecutive weights from 157 pounds to heavyweight. Michigan's highest-rated wrestlers are No. 2 Micic (133 pounds) and No. 2 Coon (Hwt).

• Among the Wolverines' returners, Coon owns the best career record with an 87-13 mark over his three season in the starting lineup. Coon needs 13 more wins to become the 36th Wolverine wrestler to reach 100 in his career. Abounader is the next closest to the milestone with a career mark of 69-23.

• Michigan welcomed a big 12-man freshman class to Ann Arbor this fall. The class, which ranked as high as No. 3 in the national recruiting rankings, combined for 17 state titles over their high school careers and includes four wrestlers who listed among the top 60 national recruits by InterMat and FloWrestling, while five were ranked among the top 20 at their respective weight classes.

2017-18 Schedule

• Michigan will face nine teams ranked in the NWCA preseason poll, most notably five top-10 teams in No. 1 Penn State, No. 2 Ohio State, No. 6 Minnesota, No. 7 Iowa and No. 10 Lehigh. FloWrestling identified the Wolverines' 2017-18 dual-meet schedule as the second toughest in the nation.

• Michigan will host three duals away from Cliff Keen Arena, opening the season against Arizona State on Nov. 10 at Detroit Catholic Central High School -- the alma mater of Wolverines Malik and Myles Amine and Kevin Beazley -- in Novi, Michigan, before its blockbuster duals against Penn State (Jan. 12) and Ohio State (Feb. 11) at Crisler Center.

• The Wolverines will participate in the annual Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational (Dec. 1-2) for the 35th straight year. Heralded as one of the nation's top regular-season tournaments, the CKLV was created in 1982 by former Michigan three-time NCAA champion Mark Churella Sr. (1976-79) and is still run by Churella and his son, Mark Jr. (2001), who serve as executive director and tournament director, respectively.