Gophers' 100th wrestling season could be a special one

For those shopping for the best bargain in an athletic event this long Thanksgiving weekend, one to definitely consider is the Gophers' first home wrestling meet.

The Gophers, No. 4 and No. 5 in national polls, meet Cal State Bakersfield at 7 p.m. Saturday at Williams Arena.

Admission is $1.

After an unusually low 14th-place finish at the NCAA tournament last season, Gophers coach J Robinson said his team is much stronger.

"This year is the real deal," Robinson said. "We redshirted some of the younger guys last year with the idea we were going to try to make a [title] run again in the next two, three years. ... That's where we feel we are at."

Two big new names, on opposite ends of their college careers, are senior Dustin Schlatter and freshman Jake Deitchler.

Schlatter redshirted last season to recover from injuries. This fall he was a member of the U.S. freestyle team at the World Championships in Denmark. He has a 100-7 record at Minnesota. Schlatter was the NCAA champion at 149 pounds as a freshman and finished third and seventh the next two seasons.

Deitchler, who turns 20 on Tuesday, was on the U.S. Greco-Roman team in the 2008 Olympics and then trained at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado for a year before joining the Gophers. He was a three-time state champion at Anoka High School.

"They bring different things to the team," Robinson said. "Dustin has been to the top of the mountain. He is a national champion, he is a three-time All-American. He brings an excitement to the team that is different than everything else.

"[Jake] brings youth and with youth comes enthusiasm, which is an important thing for us this year. We've got a young team."

With skills.

Robinson said Deitchler, at 165 pounds, is among three starters who haves the potential to reach the finals in the NCAA tournament. The other two are sophomore Zach Sanders at 125 and senior Jayson Ness at 133. Sanders was 39-10 last season and sixth at the NCAA; Ness was third with a 38-8 record and 19 pins.

"One of the things you need to win a national tournament is potential finalists," said Robinson, who has had championship teams in 2001, '02 and '07. Deitchler is in that group, Robinson said, and so is redshirt freshman Mario Mason at 149 pounds.

The Gophers have wrestled in open tournaments the past two weekends in Fargo, N.D., and Omaha. Saturday is the first of seven home dual meets.

The two starting spots still unsettled are at 174 pounds (Scott Glasser has a narrow edge over two or three others) and 197 (two juniors, former heavyweight Joe Nord and Brent Eidenschink, are battling there).

Six Gophers are ranked among the top nine in their weight class by InterMat, including Schlatter (No. 1) and Ness (No. 2).

Bakersfield senior Mitch Monteiro is the No. 4 heavyweight. The Gophers counter with No. 8 Ben Berhow, a junior.

Saturday's match opens the home part of the Gophers' 100th season of wrestling.

"Some think it's the 100th season for me," said Robinson, starting his 24th. "We are going to try to sell that [100 years] theme throughout the year. We think it is a pretty good deal. It is something special."

As Robinson's latest team could be.