Five Reasons to Watch as Oklahoma State Wrestles Michigan in the Bout at the Ballpark

On Friday night in Arlington, the Oklahoma State Cowboys and the Michigan Wolverines will wrestle for the first time since the 1990s in the highly anticipated second edition of the “Bout at the Ballpark” at Globe Life Field.

Here are five reasons fans should watch on Friday

1. Reece Witcraft back at 125

It’s been an interesting few weeks for the Cowboys at 125. Trevor Mastrogiovanni had been the starter for some time then suddenly was gone and replaced by true freshman Zach Blankenship for four duals. Now Reece Witcraft will return to the lineup in a tough test for his first time down to the weight. But this is a match that is winnable for him and could make a huge impact on the end result of the dual.

2. My premium content for OWrestle.com

Shameless plug here. This event will be streamed on Rokfin. I continue to keep most of my Oklahoma State stuff with Pistols Firing, but about two years ago I started covering high school wrestling for OWrestle.com. They have a partnership with Rokfin where all of the “premium” content we produce is. You can access all of it with the same subscription you will need to watch this dual. It’s more tailored to the avid high school wrestling fan, but from an Oklahoma State standpoint, there are a lot of video interviews with Oklahoma State commits/recruits, former wrestlers that are now coaches, and other things of that nature that you may enjoy. I know some are a little concerned with getting a subscription for this one-time event, but I hope you may enjoy some of this other content that’s not as directly focused on Oklahoma State but does have some ties.

3. Travis Wittlake’s return to the lineup

Travis Wittlake was a bit banged up last week for the Iowa road trip and did not wrestle. Similar to Witcraft, he has a tough test in Matt Finesilver, but also a winnable one. Arguably one that the Cowboys will “have” to win in order to win the dual and one that could have significant NCAA Tournament seeding implications in a few months.

4. Can Carter Young keep up the momentum?

Carter Young had a great couple of matches in Iowa last weekend. He had two ranked wins and was named Big 12 Wrestler of the Week for his performance. For Oklahoma State fans, most are wondering if this was a bit of a coming-out party and if he can continue that same momentum moving forward. He’s got a solid test here with Cole Mattin, but he is probably favored on paper here. A win could solidify a bit of that momentum he gained this past weekend.

5. Kaden Gfeller vs. Will Lewan

I don’t know what it is but something just tells me this could be a really fun matchup. Lewan was an All-American last year, and Gfeller has been exciting at his new weight class. Circle this one as a matchup that could be a good one.

The dual takes place at 7 p.m. Friday at Globe Life Field in Arlington. As mentioned above, it will be streamed on Rokfin.com with former Cowboy All-American Hardell Moore on the call for the dual.