Indiana University Athletics
IU Looking To “Go Get” An Opening Big Ten Win
12/10/2015 1:52:00 PM | Wrestling
By: Sam Beishuizen | Twitter
IUHoosiers.com
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - Indiana wrestling coach Duane Goldman began practice Wednesday afternoon with some advice as IU prepared for its first Big Ten duel against No. 17 Minnesota on Friday.
"We can't just go out there with the attitude of "Go for it,'" he told his wrestlers. "We need to go get it."
The difference, Goldman said, is "going for it" implies there's luck involved with beating a Minnesota team that features seven ranked wrestlers. By contrast, "Go get it" means attacking the match with confidence.
Indiana is looking to establish a certain swagger early on as Big Ten competition begins. Seven of the conference's teams began the week ranked, meaning there won't be many easy weekends ahead of the Hoosiers the rest of the way.
"You've got to go at every match. You've got to go with it with all you have," redshirt sophomore Luke Blanton said. "But it's even more with the Big Ten matches. Everybody in the Big Ten, no matter wat the school, they're all the top of the line. This is about as good as it gets besides the Olympics and the World's."
So lies the challenge of being in the Big Ten.
The conference's strength leaves little room for error, but it's the level of competition that attracted most of the Hoosiers to Bloomington to begin with.
"We kind of look at it a little differently just because of the Big Ten seeds," Blanton said. "All the Big Ten matches are pretty big for getting seeds to be in a better position to go to nationals, but for me personally, I just take it as a regular match. I don't care who I'm wrestling. I've just got to wrestle my best. Don't wrestle at their level, just wrestle the best I can do."
A level head is especially important with the younger wrestlers Indiana will rely on throughout the season, Goldman said.
The Hoosiers' youth could one day end up being a major strength for the program when they've matured, but there will still be growing pains for the time being as they learn what it takes to wrestle in the Big Ten.
Though athletes compete for their schools, wrestling remains an individual sport. Goldman said it's on the individuals themselves to maintain composure and get off to a strong start in Big Ten competition where every match will likely have a long-term impact on IU's RPI and individual seeds come tournament season.
"They're going to get a good taste of Big Ten wrestling, but we're also a part of it," Goldman said. "We expect to go out there and battle in the same traditions and conference demands. Hopefully, we'll get guys out there representing themselves well and make some interesting matches out of it."
The Big Ten-opener is only the beginning of a busy weekend for Indiana. The Hoosiers will return to Bloomington for a quick turnaround for a pair of matches on Sunday against Eastern Michigan and Manchester.
The Hoosiers then return to a few weeks of tournament play before the true grind of the Big Ten duel season sets in in January. With that in mind, Goldman said his wrestlers can't afford to get too caught up in the hype of their first Big Ten match because of all the matches down the road.
The only thing Indiana can claim Friday is a win against Minnesota.
And he expects his guys to go get it.
"This is one match," Goldman said. We're going to see these guys again whether it be in the Big Ten Tournament or the NCAA's or wherever it be down the line. They need to approach it with the idea of going and getting it. They need to step on the mat and take the win, not just hope."
IUHoosiers.com
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - Indiana wrestling coach Duane Goldman began practice Wednesday afternoon with some advice as IU prepared for its first Big Ten duel against No. 17 Minnesota on Friday.
"We can't just go out there with the attitude of "Go for it,'" he told his wrestlers. "We need to go get it."
The difference, Goldman said, is "going for it" implies there's luck involved with beating a Minnesota team that features seven ranked wrestlers. By contrast, "Go get it" means attacking the match with confidence.
Indiana is looking to establish a certain swagger early on as Big Ten competition begins. Seven of the conference's teams began the week ranked, meaning there won't be many easy weekends ahead of the Hoosiers the rest of the way.
"You've got to go at every match. You've got to go with it with all you have," redshirt sophomore Luke Blanton said. "But it's even more with the Big Ten matches. Everybody in the Big Ten, no matter wat the school, they're all the top of the line. This is about as good as it gets besides the Olympics and the World's."
So lies the challenge of being in the Big Ten.
The conference's strength leaves little room for error, but it's the level of competition that attracted most of the Hoosiers to Bloomington to begin with.
"We kind of look at it a little differently just because of the Big Ten seeds," Blanton said. "All the Big Ten matches are pretty big for getting seeds to be in a better position to go to nationals, but for me personally, I just take it as a regular match. I don't care who I'm wrestling. I've just got to wrestle my best. Don't wrestle at their level, just wrestle the best I can do."
A level head is especially important with the younger wrestlers Indiana will rely on throughout the season, Goldman said.
The Hoosiers' youth could one day end up being a major strength for the program when they've matured, but there will still be growing pains for the time being as they learn what it takes to wrestle in the Big Ten.
Though athletes compete for their schools, wrestling remains an individual sport. Goldman said it's on the individuals themselves to maintain composure and get off to a strong start in Big Ten competition where every match will likely have a long-term impact on IU's RPI and individual seeds come tournament season.
"They're going to get a good taste of Big Ten wrestling, but we're also a part of it," Goldman said. "We expect to go out there and battle in the same traditions and conference demands. Hopefully, we'll get guys out there representing themselves well and make some interesting matches out of it."
The Big Ten-opener is only the beginning of a busy weekend for Indiana. The Hoosiers will return to Bloomington for a quick turnaround for a pair of matches on Sunday against Eastern Michigan and Manchester.
The Hoosiers then return to a few weeks of tournament play before the true grind of the Big Ten duel season sets in in January. With that in mind, Goldman said his wrestlers can't afford to get too caught up in the hype of their first Big Ten match because of all the matches down the road.
The only thing Indiana can claim Friday is a win against Minnesota.
And he expects his guys to go get it.
"This is one match," Goldman said. We're going to see these guys again whether it be in the Big Ten Tournament or the NCAA's or wherever it be down the line. They need to approach it with the idea of going and getting it. They need to step on the mat and take the win, not just hope."
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