The Iowa State wrestling program is in a drought against its in-state rival.

And it’s been a long one.

Iowa State hasn’t beaten Iowa in wrestling since 2004. But the Cyclones have a chance to end the streak, beginning at 6 p.m. Sunday in Hilton Coliseum.

But it won’t come easy, as the Iowa Hawkeyes come to Hilton as the defending national champions and the top-ranked program in the nation.

“I think that’s the excitement for us right now is, it’s nice to have always to get a chance to feel the number one ranked team in the nation, and we just happen to be down the road a couple hours, so I know my guys are excited,” Iowa State Head Coach Kevin Dresser said. “They’re expecting a brawl, and it’s going to be a fight. And we know what we’re facing.”

The biggest question for No. 1 Iowa is how many of its biggest names are able to be in the lineup on Sunday.

Spencer Lee, a three-time NCAA Champion and 2021 Hodge Trophy winner, has “zero ACLs,” head coach Tom Brands told reporters on Nov. 23. So this has led to redshirt freshman Jesse Ybarra (5-0) getting the starting nod. 

In the upper-weight classes, Iowa has multiple wrestlers listed as probable starters, which are listed alongside probable Iowa State starters.

The son of head coach Tom Brands, Nelson Brands, has been the starter at 174 in Iowa’s two duals, but No. 2 (Intermat) Michael Kemerer, who has yet to make his season debut, is listed along side Brands as the probable starter at 174.

At 184, Myles Wilson is 2-0 in Iowa’s two duals, but No. 17 Abe Assad has wrestled this season in the Luther Open on Nov. 13, but didn’t appear in either Princeton or Army dual.

Lastly, Zach Glazier has started at 197 in the two duals and has 3-2 record, but No. 3 Jacob Warner is 3-0, but hasn’t wrestled since getting injured in the finals of the Luther Open.

“Here’s where we’re at, fans want to know who’s going, fans want to know right now what our lineup is gonna look like. And I’m telling you right now, our lineup looks like it looks,” Brands told reporters Tuesday. “And Sunday, when we put whoever’s out there on the mat in Ames, that’s what our lineup’s gonna be and that’s our best lineup at that time.”

As for the Cyclones, they also have some weight classes with some options at 141, 149 and 165.

Dresser said Tuesday that 149 and 165 are the weight classes that are the most up in the air for the team.

“We have to figure out what’s going on at 149, we got to figure out what’s going on at 165, especially right now, those are probably the two weights that are probably up right now up for grabs,” Dresser said.

No. 19 Zach Redding has been the starter at 141, while No. 22 Jarrett Degen has been the starter at 149. The starter at 165 has been different in the Cyclones’ duals this year.

But at 141 and 149, redshirt senior Ian Parker has is now listed as a probable starter for both weight classes.

Parker is a three-time NCAA tournament qualifier and a Big 12 champion at 141. He hasn’t wrestled this season, but said at media day that he was moving up to 149.

Three Cyclones are listed as a probable starter at 165:

Austin Kraisser, who is 8-2 and is coming off of a 2-0 win against Cal Baptist’s Josh Grant and a third place finish at the Harold Nichols Open.

Isaac Judge, who is 8-5 and is coming off of a 11-6 loss to Army’s Dalton Haskins and a fifth place finish at the Harold Nichols Open.

Grant Stotts, who is 8-2 and has a win over Kraisser, but hasn’t wrestled since the Daktronics Open on Nov. 21. 

Heading into Sunday’s dual, the most anticipated match is at 157, with Iowa State’s David Carr, the top-ranked wrestler at 157 and the defending national champion, faces off against No. 6 Kaleb Young.

The two met in 2019, with Carr winning by a 6-1 decision. 

And heading Sunday’s dual, Carr is just one of a few Cyclones who has started in an Iowa Corn Cy-Hawk Series dual. 

“I mean, our coaches, my teammates, everyone’s excited. This type of matchup is huge. And, you know, it’s something that I’ve watched for a long time, and, you know, be able to wrestle at it a few years ago, I mean, that was like, probably one of my favorite matches,” Carr said.

As for how the younger Cyclones could avoid feeling jitters in front of a home crowd that hasn’t been packed to the level it probably will be at since 2019?

Carr said it’s about having gratitude and wrestling free.

“Just focus on gratitude, appreciating the opportunity to wrestle a really good team, appreciate the opportunity to go out there,” Carr said. “So I mean, I’m always excited when I get a good opponent.

One of those Cyclones who has yet wrestle a dual against the Hawkeyes is sophomore Kysen Terukina.

Terukina is 9-0 this season and is ranked No. 21 at 125.

“The way I like to do it is I like to be calm before I wrestle. So it’s definitely going to be a challenge to stay calm, but I’m confident,” Terukina said. “So that really helps the confidence in myself. The confidence in our preparation really helps us stay calm, and just be professional.”

In the Iowa Corn Cy-Hawk Series dual, not only are bragging rights at stake, but so is the Dan Gable Traveling Trophy.

Since the trophy’s inception in 2010, it has been in the hands of the Hawkeyes.

And while it’s still early in the season, the stakes for this dual are high, especially for Iowa State.