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FIGHTING ILLINI WRESTLING

Illini To Appear in Three Duals on Big Ten Network
Illinois’ Conference Duals against Iowa, Northwestern and Purdue to be Broadcast

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - Illinois will have three consecutive conference dual meets televised by the Big Ten Network in 2008-09, according to the network’s wrestling schedule. The Fighting Illini’s duals at Iowa and at Purdue on Jan. 25 and 30, respectively, as well as the home dual against Northwestern on Feb. 6 will be shown on the second-year network. This is an increase in exposure for Illinois, which had two televised duals in 2006-07.

Illinois’ dual at Iowa on Jan. 25 has been changed to a 5 p.m. start to accommodate the network’s live broadcast, and the Fighting Illini’s dual at Purdue on Jan. 30 will be broadcast live at 6 p.m. (CT) start. The Northwestern dual will be a 7 p.m. start as scheduled, but will be broadcast on a same-day delay at 9:30 p.m. (CT).

In addition to the dual-meet exposure, Illinois wrestlers will have televised matches on the BTN if they reach the semifinals and finals of the Midlands Classic on Dec. 30. And, like last season, the network will televise the Big Ten Championships from University Park, Pa., on March 8.

Illinois’ three dual-meet appearances tie Iowa for the most by a team on the network this season. The Hawkeyes open BTN’s wrestling coverage against Iowa State on Dec. 6, host the Illini on Jan. 25 and host Minnesota on Feb. 15. Ohio State and Michigan each have two dual-meet appearances on the network in the upcoming campaign.

The Orange and Blue open the 2008-09 season on Nov. 8 with intrasquad wrestle-offs at Huff Hall at 11:30 a.m.

Date                  Event                  Air Time (ET)
12/6                    Iowa State at Iowa                  10:30 p.m. SDD*
12/30                  Midlands Classic: Semifinals/Finals                  7:00 p.m.
1/23                  Penn State at Indiana                  7:00 p.m.
1/25                  Illinois at Iowa                  6:00 p.m.
1/30                  Illinois at Purdue                  7:00 p.m.
2/6                  Northwestern at Illinois                  10:30 p.m. SDD*
2/8                  Michigan at Michigan State                  8:00 p.m. SDD*
2/13                  Ohio State at Michigan                  10:30 p.m. SDD*
2/15                  Minnesota at Iowa                  8:00 p.m. SDD*
2/22                  Ohio State at Wisconsin                  1:00 p.m.
3/8                  Big Ten Championships                  TBD

* indicates same-day delay broadcast

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Sept. 17, 2008
For More Information, Contact: Ben Taylor, 217.244.5045

FIGHTING ILLINI WRESTLING

Fighting Illini Announce 2008-09 Schedule
Johnson’s Seventh-Ranked Squad to Face Tough Slate

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - The University of Illinois, which was ranked No. 7 in W.I.N. Magazine’s preseason rankings, announced its 2008-09 wrestling schedule Wednesday. The slate includes the ACC/Big Ten Clash in November, the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational and the Midlands Invitational in December, a January road trip to West Virginia and Pittsburgh, and a pair of home duals to wrap up the regular season on Feb. 20 and 22.

“The Las Vegas and Midlands tournaments are both very strong and the ACC/Big Ten Clash will give us a chance to compete in some competitive duals early in the season,” Illinois head coach Mark Johnson said. “All of those events, plus the trip to West Virginia and Pittsburgh, will prepare us well for the Big Ten season and the tournaments at the end of the year.”

The Fighting Illini open their season with the intrasquad wrestle-offs on Nov. 8 at Huff Hall. The next weekend, Illinois travels to Chapel Hill, N.C., where it will face North Carolina State, Virginia and the host Tar Heels in three duals as a part of the ACC/Big Ten Clash. A week later, the Illini will travel to Columbia, Mo., for the Missouri Open.

To open the month of December, Illinois returns to the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational, an event where preseason No. 2 Mike Poeta won the title and was named Outstanding Wrestler in 2007. The Illini will then return home the following weekend to host Findlay and McKendree at Huff Hall on Dec. 13 at 1 p.m. Illinois wraps up the 2008 calendar year with its annual trip to Midlands, another tournament Poeta won last season.

The Fighting Illini open the new year with an east coast road trip that comprises a dual at No. 19 West Virginia on Jan. 9 and a stop at Pittsburgh, which placed 16th at the 2008 NCAA Championships, the next night. After nearly two weeks off to prepare for the conference season, Illinois opens Big Ten dual action at No. 1 Iowa on Jan. 25 and travels to Purdue on Jan. 30.

The Orange and Blue face a challenging three weeks to end the Big Ten season with duals against No. 12 Northwestern at Huff Hall on Feb. 6 and at No. 15 Wisconsin on Feb. 8. Illinois hosts No. 16 Indiana on Feb. 13 and travels to No. 2 Ohio State on Feb. 15, before finishing with a pair of home duals against No. 10 Michigan (Feb. 20) and Michigan State (Feb. 22).

The 2009 Big Ten Championships are slated for March 7-8 in University Park, Pa., and the Scottrade Center in St. Louis will once again host the NCAA Championships, which will run March 19-21.

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