Gophers wrestlers build early momentum with trip to No. 2 Iowa up next

The Gophers wrestling team entered the 2023-24 season with holes to fill, with five weight classes requiring first-year starters and coach Brandon Eggum knowing his team was brimming with promise but short on experience.

Through two months, the Gophers have met expectations, forging a 5-0 dual-meet record in matches in which they were favored. They finished second two weeks ago in the Soldier Salute tournament in Coralville, Iowa, an event won by national power Iowa.

The preliminaries, though, are over. On Monday, the Gophers begin the second — and much tougher — half of their season with a Big Ten dual meet visit Iowa at Carver-Hawkeye Arena (7 p.m., BTN). Minnesota, ranked 10th in the InterMatWrestle.com dual-meet rankings, will try to end the second-ranked Hawkeyes' nine-match winning streak in the series.

"On paper, it looks tough, but I know my guys are excited to go down there and compete," Eggum said. "They wrestle in the Big Ten because it's the best competition. That's what they signed up for."

There was a chance that two-time NCAA champion and Olympic gold medalist Gable Steveson would return to the Gophers this season to use his final year of eligibility, but Eggum revealed Thursday that Steveson is sticking with his WWE commitment. However, that doesn't mean the Gophers will be without a capable heavyweight.

Redshirt sophomore Bennett Tabor has seized his opportunity, going 14-2 and winning the Soldier Salute title. A two-time high school state champion at Simley, Tabor moved up from 197 pounds over the past two years and is back in action after missing the 2022-23 campaign while recovering from shoulder surgery.

"Bennett Tabor really has shown some good growth this year," Eggum said. "There was the potential for Gable to be coming back, but [Tabor] stayed focused on the things he could control and kept putting in the time and work. That says a lot about him."

The thought of Steveson jumping into the lineup didn't faze Tabor, who carries the same lofty aspirations as the Olympian.

"I was training to be the guy the whole time," he said. "The clarity definitely helps for me to know it's my time to shine in the NCAAs and Big Tens."

Tabor has adjusted to his new weight class, but with it comes work. While teammates are cutting pounds to make weight, Tabor is trying to keep it on.

"I feel comfortable in that heavyweight role, wrestling around with those bigger guys," said Tabor, who weighs roughly 240 pounds in a class that goes up to 275. "The challenge is mostly keeping my weight up. It's a big deal because I have a super-high metabolism. It's important I keep my weight up so I'm not at such a disadvantage."

Iowa's prospective lineup for Monday includes seven wrestlers who are ranked higher than their Gophers counterparts, including five who are among the top seven in their weight classes. One of the three exceptions is Tabor, who's ranked No. 9 and likely will face redshirt freshman Bradley Hill, who's 12-4 and placed third in the Soldier Salute.

"I'm really excited," Tabor said. "I know it's going to be a very hostile environment and everyone's going to be booing. But I want them to be booing. If they're all booing me, I know I'm doing my job."