Wrestling | November 6

DeKALB, Ill.—The 2025-26 season gets underway for the Northern Illinois University Huskies wrestling program as they are set to compete at the Michigan State Open on November 8. Action is set to begin at 8:30 a.m. CT in the Jenison Field House on the Michigan State campus.
 
There will be 15 wrestling programs, including 13 Division I teams, competing in two divisions, an Open Division and a Freshman/Sophomore Division.
 
Fans attending the open should be aware of Michigan State's clear bag policy, which can be found here.
 
Huskies in the Rankings
 
Three Huskies find themselves in the rankings this week as five outlets released rankings by Tuesday (November 4).
 
Blake West (Shakopee, Minn./Shakopee) lands in five polls, with his highest ranking coming at No. 14 in the Intermat, Open Mat, and WrestleStat polls. West finds himself in the FloWrestling and College Wresting Report polls
 
Markel Baker (Freeport, Ill./Freeport) sees his highest ranking in the WrestleStat poll, where he sits at No. 26. Baker holds the No. 28 spot in the Intermat poll and is ranked No. 30 in the College Wrestling Report and FloWrestling polls.
 
Landen Johnson (Owatonna, Minn./Owatonna) sits in the top-25 of the Intermat, WrestleStat, and College Wrestling Report polls. Johnson lands at No. 27 in the FloWrestling poll for the Huskies.
 
Last Season at the MSU Open
 
Charles Curtis (Canton, Ohio/Perry) and Ian Smith (Lake Nebagamon, Wis./Northwestern) took home first place finishes in the Freshman/Sophomore division. Camren French (Mattoon, Ill./Mariner), Calvin Werden (Willoughby, Ohio/Western Reserve Academy), Damarion Ross (Fort Dodge, Iowa/Fort Dodge), and Lucan O'Brien (Lakewood, Ohio/St. Edwards) all placed fourth or better.
 
In the Open division, West, Lucian Brink (Coshocton, Ohio/Coshocton) and Baker placed in the top-5 with West earning runner-up honors at 125 pounds.
 
The Huskies had six wins over Power Four opponents on the day.
 
Looking Ahead
 
The Huskies spend the first month of the season on the road as they will compete at the Boilermaker Duals (Nov. 15), Bellarmine (Nov. 21) and the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Tournament (Dec. 5-6). The Huskies home opener is set for December 19 against Oregon State.
 
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