STORY LINES:
• With final exams complete, the Big Red wrestling team will test itself on the mat when it heads to the Sooner State for a pair of dual meets against national powers.
• Cornell returns from break against top-ranked Oklahoma State on Friday, Dec. 16 at 7 p.m. ET before squaring off with No. 17 Oklahoma on Sunday, Dec. 18 at 2 p.m. ET.
• Both matches will be broadcast live on Fox Sports Oklahoma, while Will LeBlond will be on the call locally on 1160 ESPN Ithaca.
• A number of Big Red wrestlers will be tested with matches against a pair of opponents ranked in the top 20 — Joey Galasso at 149, Taylor Simaz at 157, No. 20 Brandon Womack at 165, Ben Honis at 197 and Jeramy Sweany or Craig Scott at 285.
• Two-time NCAA champ Gabe Dean (184 pounds) will face yet another early season test when he meets the only wrestler that handed him a loss last season — No. 6 Nolan Boyd of Oklahoma State.
• Dean avenged his 14-9 dual meet loss with a dominant 10-4 decision in the NCAA quarterfinals.
• The senior, a leading candidate for the Hodge Trophy, has dominated all season long and has won 10 of his 13 matches this season by fall with four victories over wrestlers ranked in the top 13 — all bonus point wins.
• Dean became the sixth wrestler in meet history to win three Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational titles after earning a first period fall over 11th-ranked Jordan Ellingwood of Central Michigan in the semifinals and and a tech fall triumph over No. 8 Zack Zavatsky of Virginia Tech in the finals.
• 2015 NCAA finalist and two-time All-American Brian Realbuto continues to round into form and enters the weekend needing one win to become the 25th wrestler in Cornell history to reach 100 career victories.
• He'll get a chance to move up the polls when he squares off with Oklahoma State's Kyle Crutchmer (No. 4), who won a 4-3 decision over the Big Red senior last season at the Southern Scuffle.
• The Big Red has big goals — Cornell is eyeing yet another top five team effort and has a number of wrestlers with national championship and All-America aspirations.
• Dean and Realbuto headline an experienced and talented lineup that also includes 2016 All-American Dylan Palacio (157).
• NCAA qualifiers Dalton Macri (125), Palacio (157) and Owen Scott (197) have combined to wrestle just one total match so far this season, but all three are expected to be in the lineup this spring.
• In addition, two-time NCAA qualifier Mark Grey (133), 2016 NCAA qualifiers Joey Galasso (149) and Jeramy Sweany (285) join first-year starters Will Koll (141) and Brandon Womack (165) to punctuate the lineup.
• Noah Baughman (125), Taylor Simaz (157) and Ben Honis (197) have had great success early and will compete for the starting spot into championship season.

THE STREAKS:
• The Big Red has crowned at least one champion at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational for eight straight seasons.
• Cornell has won 10 consecutive EIWA team titles, the longest streak in conference history.
• Head coach Rob Koll's teams have racked up 14 Ivy League titles in a row, the longest title streak in any sport in conference history.
• Cornell has won 73 consecutive Ivy League dual meets dating back to the 2001-02 campaign.
• The Big Red has crowned at least one EIWA champion in each of the last 15 seasons and in 25 of the last 26 years.
• The Big Red is 51-1 (.981) in its last 52 duals against current EIWA competitors dating back to 2010-11.
• Cornell is 90-4-1 (.953) in dual meet action against current EIWA teams dating back to 2004-05, including 82-0 against teams other than Lehigh.
• Cornell has placed in the top five at the NCAA championships in six of the last eight seasons and in the top 10 in 12 of the last 14 years (nine straight).
• Cornell is 97-20-1 (.826) in dual meet competition in the last seven seasons.
• The Big Red is 38-5 (.884) in its last 43 home duals dating back to the 2009-10 season.
• Big Red wrestling has won 70 consecutive dual meets against unranked teams dating back to the beginning of the 2007-08 season.
• Cornell has won 32 straight meets against New York state opponents.
• The Big Red has claimed a record five consecutive New York State team titles.

 ABOUT OKLAHOMA STATE: :
• Oklahoma State is off to a 4-0 (1-0 Big 12) start and is ranked as the No. 1 team in the land.
• The Cowboys feature nationally ranked wrestlers at nine weights, including five slotted in the top five of their weight classes.
• Leading the way are national title contenders Anthony Collica (149) and Joe Smith (157), both ranked No. 3 at their weights.
• Kyle Crutchmer sits at No. 4 at 174, while Kaid Brock (133) and Preston Weigel (197) are ranked No. 5.
• Nolan Boyd (No. 6 at 184), Chandler Rogers (No. 8 at 165), Nick Piccininni (No. 9 at 125) and Austin Schafer (No. 11 at 285) are also ranked nationally.
• Head coach John Smith, in his 26th season directing the Oklahoma State program, having guided the Cowboys to five NCAA team titles, 18 conference crowns and 117 All-America honors.

THE CORNELL-OKLAHOMA STATE SERIES:
• Oklahoma State leads the all-time series 4-0 dating back to the first meeting between the programs in 2003-04.
• The Cowboys won that first dual 22-12 at the 2004 National Duals in Cleveland and then topped the Big Red 23-12 a year later at the same event.
• Oklahoma State took home a 21-16 victory at the first-ever Grapple at the Garden on Dec. 16, 2012 at Madison Square Garden and topped the Big Red 32-12 at Newman Arena on Feb. 7, 2016.

THE LAST TIME VS. OKLAHOMA STATE:
• Junior Dylan Palacio upset the No. 6 ranked wrestler at 157 pounds, but Oklahoma State's strength was apparent in a 32-12 dual meet victory on Feb. 7, 2016 in front of 4,076 fans in Newman Arena.
• Cornell surrendered six points off the bat after forfeiting at 125 and never got out of the hole, though senior Nahshon Garrett, wrestling his final match in front of the home fans, did his best to tie it up.
• The senior took down 18th-ranked Gary Wayne Harding with a 17-1 technical fall.
• The biggest upset of the day came as defending national champion Gabe Dean had his 52-match win streak snapped in a 14-9 loss to No. 16 Nolan Boyd.
 
ABOUT OKLAHOMA:
• The Sooners, ranked No. 17 nationally, features five top 20 wrestlers, including a pair of top eight grapplers in Clark Glass (No. 7 at 165) and DaWaylon Barnes (No. 8 at 157).
• Heavyweight Ross Larson (No. 12), 149-pounder Davion Jeffries (No. 13) and 197-pounder Brad Johnson (No. 19) are also top 10 wrestlers.
• The Sooners are 1-2 on the season under first-year head coach Lou Rosselli.
• Rosselli joined Oklahoma after 10 years as an assistant at Ohio State.

THE CORNELL-OKLAHOMA SERIES:
• Oklahoma leads the all-time series 8-5, though Cornell has won four straight meetings.
• The two teams last faced off in the 2014-15 dual opener, a 21-13 Big Red triumph in Ithaca.
• The Big Red also earned a 23-20 dual win over the Sooners during the 2013-14 at the National Duals, and a 25-13 decision the year before at the Journeymen Northeast Duals.
• Cornell topped the Sooners at the 2006-07 National Duals, a 23-15 win.
• The first dual between the schools came during the 1965-66 season, a 26-5 Oklahoma victory.

LAST TIME VS. OKLAHOMA:
• Despite missing four starters, the Cornell wrestling team was able to win four straight matches in the second half of the dual to knock off No. 21 Oklahoma 21-13 on Nov. 22, 2014 at Newman Arena.
• Cornell picked up big wins after intermission with senior Jesse Shanaman stepping up at 165 pounds with a key 4-1 victory over Clark Glass.
• The Big Red trailed 10-7 heading into the break, and Shanaman's win set the Big Red up for a big finish.
• The dual win was virtually assured with an absolutely dominating win by Gabe Dean at 184 pounds against Greg Wilson, earning a first period tech fall.
 
CORNELL VS. NUMBER ONE:
• Cornell has wrestled the top-ranked dual meet team six times in the last 25 seasons and is looking for its first win (0-6).
• All six of the previous meetings came as part of the NWCA National Duals.
• The Big Red has wrestled a top-ranked Oklahoma State team twice, dropping a 22-12 contest in Jan. 2004 and a 23-12 matchup a year later.
• Cornell has also faced No. 1 Iowa twice (2009 and 2015), as well as Penn State (2008) and Minnesota (2004).
• The Big Red won four individual matches in four of the six duals (including both against Oklahoma State) and three in the other two.
• Cornell wrestled 12 matches as the No. 1 team in the country in 2010-11, going 11-1 (wins over Ohio State, Missouri, Minnesota and Virginia Tech during the run).

THE BIG RED VS. RANKED TEAMS:
• Dating back to the 1989-90 season, Cornell is 81-79-5 against teams that are nationally ranked (.506).
• The Big Red is 15-18 in true road matchups, but will be looking for its first win over a top 10 team.
• Cornell is 17-47-1 against teams ranked in the top 10 and 5-25-0 vs. top five squads.
• When wrestling as a top 10 team, the Big Red is 112-33-1 (.771).

NEXT UP:
• The Big Red will send a team to the Southern Scuffle in Chattanooga, Tenn. beginning on Sunday, Jan. 1.
• Senior Gabe Dean will attempt to become a four-time champion at the event, while Cornell will be in search of its first team title down South since 2011.