Clash of Titans: No. 21 Wrestling Welcomes No. 15 Stanford This Sunday!

COLUMBIA, Mo. – No. 21 University of Missouri wrestling persists with its homestand, welcoming No. 15 Stanford to Columbia on Sunday, Jan. 12. The match is scheduled to commence at 2 p.m. CT inside Hearnes Center and will be available for streaming on ESPN+. 

LAST TIME OUT 

• Mizzou faced No. 12 Cornell for Beauty and the Beast on Jan. 3, ending with a 26-12 defeat at Mizzou Arena. 
• Gage Walker initiated the team’s scoring with his first-ever fall at 6:14 of the 125-pound bout. 
• Zeke Seltzer (149) and Jarrett Stoner (285) contributed decision victories for the Tigers. 
• The attendance for the event was 4,655, representing the fourth highest attendance for Beauty and the Beast in Mizzou history. 

VALUABLE VETERANS 

• Head coach Brian Smith announced that senior Rocky Elam, who has been dealing with various injuries, will not participate this season. 
• Furthermore, classmate Keegan O’Toole has been recovering from an injury sustained earlier in the season and will be sidelined throughout January to maximize his recovery. Smith remains hopeful that O’Toole will be ready by postseason. 
• Elam and O’Toole join senior Noah Surtin, who revealed his medical retirement on Dec. 13, 2024, as missing starters from the 2024-25 roster. 
• With their absence, the lineup lacks seniors who have collectively achieved 234 wins and 133 bonus-point victories. 

RANKINGS REPORT

• The Black and Gold hold the No. 21 position in the National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA) Poll. 
• Mizzou has six of its ten wrestlers recognized by both InterMat and FloWrestling. 
• Keegan O’Toole ranks No. 3 on FloWrestling’s pound-for-pound list and maintains his No. 1 position at 174 pounds. 

WALKER WATCH

• Securing his first career pin, freshman Gage Walker continues to astonish after stepping in at 125 for Noah Surtin. 
• Walker achieved the fall in the third period (6:14) against Marcello Milani from Cornell, putting the Tigers ahead 6-0. 
• Currently positioned at No. 31 by InterMat, the true freshman stands at 8-4 this season, including a ranked victory over No. 33 Carson Wagner from Binghamton and narrow decision losses to Luke Lilledahl (Penn State) and Eddie Ventresca (Virginia Tech). 

LAST TIME VS THE CARDINAL

• The Tigers overwhelmed the Cardinal 39-0 in their most recent encounter on Jan. 10, 2024, in Palo Alto, California. 
• Bonus-point wins from Noah Surtin (125), Kade Moore (133), Keegan O’Toole (165), Peyton Mocco (174), Clayton Whiting (184), and Rocky Elam (197) fueled the team to a 39-point total, matching the second-highest score recorded by the team during the 2023-24 season. 
• In addition, Logan Gioffre achieved an 8-1 upset victory over All-American Jaden Abas at 149 pounds. 

THE SERIES: STANFORD

• The confrontation between No. 21 Missouri and No. 15 Stanford will mark the fifth encounter between these two programs, with Mizzou boasting a 4-0 lead over the Cardinal. 
• All four matches took place during the Brian Smith era, with the first dating back to the 2005-06 season. 

HOMESTAND 

• After competing away for the first half of the season, the Tigers are entering a homestand, facing off five times in Columbia throughout January. 
• Missouri will compete against No. 12 Cornell (Jan. 3), No. 15 Stanford (Jan. 12), Utah Valley (Jan. 17), Arizona State (Jan. 22), and No. 22 West Virginia (Jan. 26), all within the first month of 2025.

MOST WINS (active, 50+) 

ON THE HORIZON 

• The Tigers will remain at home, hosting Utah Valley at Hearnes Center on Friday, Jan. 17. The match is set to begin at 6:30 p.m. and will be streamed on ESPN+.