The wrestling world has wanted to see this matchup since April: Cael Sanderson’s Cyclones on the mat against Tom Brands’ Hawkeyes.

On Sunday afternoon, the rivalry between Sanderson and Brands will be reignited on the floor of Carver-Hawkeye Arena, where fan bases for both programs will witness a new era of Iowa State-Iowa wrestling.

The dual starts at 4 p.m. in Iowa City, and will be aired live on IPTV.

Sanderson and Brands are coaching their alma maters, where each achieved iconic status during their personal careers. Many believe this is the first meeting of what will be a longtime coaching battle in an already classic rivalry.

“I haven’t really thought much about that other than this is Iowa State-Iowa wrestling,” Sanderson said.

“We don’t need anymore gasoline on the fire, but I’m sure that’s going to only make it bigger.

“We want to wrestle well, we want show the state there isn’t a dominant team in this state anymore, and if there is, it’s in Ames.”

On March 31, longtime ISU coach Bobby Douglas officially retired, and Sanderson was sworn in as his successor.

Days earlier, Jim Zalesky was fired after nine years as Iowa’s coach. On April 5, Brands was announced as his replacement after leaving Virginia Tech.

Sanderson and Brands were both gold medalists. They were also both popular choices to lead their respective programs back to national prominence.

The coaching dual has already put a national spotlight on the rivalry. In a sport starved for media attention, USA Today ran an article about the two coaches on Thursday.

Sanderson said his relationship with Brands is mostly superficial.

“I’ve got a lot of respect for him,” Sanderson said. “He’s a great competitor, he’s a hard worker, he’s very intense. But I don’t know him other than his name, and I spent some time in Athens with him [in the Olympics]. He was a coach there.

“I think he’s a great coach, and they are going to be a very successful program. But it’s my job to make sure they’re not the most successful program.”

Crowds are also expected to significantly exceed the average of approximately 7,000 from recent duals, a testament to the support for both coaches and of the competitiveness of this year’s teams.

Last season, the Hawkeyes came into Ames as favorites and left with a 20-15 win. This year, both teams are relatively unproven but are also expected to be contenders in March.

Iowa State (2-0) is ranked fourth and Iowa (2-0) is ranked sixth.

“Outside of the National Tournament and the Big 12 Championships, this is the biggest match for us because it is bragging rights,” said Sanderson, whose teams were 0 for 4 against the Hawkeyes when he was a competitor.

“This is a big deal for us. We want to get in there, and we want to compete hard, and we want to show them who is the best in the state.”

The Cyclones bring six freshmen into the meet, while the Hawkeyes have four first-year starters. Six out of 10 ISU wrestlers are ranked, compared to eight for the Hawkeyes.

Cyler Sanderson (149), the fourth brother from his family to wrestle for Iowa State, said he has grown to “not like the Hawks that much.”

“We’re going to win,” he said. “We should win every match, hopefully, that’s what we are going for. We are definitely capable of winning every match. We just have to show up and wrestle.”

Senior Travis Paulson (165) – currently ranked fourth – has the biggest matchup of his dual career versus second-ranked Mark Perry, who is 2-0 against the Cyclone.

“He’s a real tough kid to wrestle,” said Paulson, who compared Perry to a rubber band because of his flexibility. “He wrestled different than anybody I’ve ever wrestled. He’s the type of kid you have to wrestle a couple times to figure out his style.”