Penn State has fallen to No. 2 in the Intermat Tournament Rankings following now No.1 Ohio State's demolition of the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational in early December. The Buckeyes came away with three individual champions against a talented field, a 3rd place and 4th place finish, and that was without Nathan Tomasello, Joey McKenna and Kyle Snyder. This was enough to leap over the Lions, but this article isn't about the Buckeyes, so let's go to the good guys.

The Nittany Lions (4-0, 0-0 B1G) enter this dual as heavy favorites to rack up another big win. The dual will begin at 2:00 pm EST and will be telecast live on the Big Ten Network. Indiana (6-2, 0-1 B1G) is in a rebuilding stage and has no seniors in their starting lineup. The Hoosiers' last dual was against Ohio State, where they lost 29-6. They'll probably be more excited for the trip out of State College and a much more manageable spring semester schedule. Penn State enters this dual with a few questions regarding Nick Lee and some injury concerns.

Lineup changes

Against Lehigh, Cael Sanderson unexpectedly weighed in Nick Lee for 149 pounds. This was likely due to Vincenzo Joseph's ongoing health concerns, with the idea of wrestling Lee at 149, Zain Retherford at 157 and Jason Nolf at 165. Whether Sanderson was simply posturing by weighing in Lee is something that Cael and his staff could only know. However, the prospect of weighing in Lee, even for a weight class he's not expected to compete in this season, brought some excitement and tension to the PPL Center crowd. Sanderson ended up putting in 149-pounder Bo Pipher at 165 pounds, and Penn State ended up winning the dual anyway.

Yet the question is still out there, especially after Jered Cortez's first loss of the season to now No. 15 Luke Karam. Does this mean that Sanderson is going to pull Lee's redshirt to start him over Jered Cortez on Sunday? It is not expected that he will, but it should hardly be a surprise. If he is already considering pulling Lee's shirt for 149 pounds, a class Lee was not anticipated to wrestle in this year, then it stands to reason that he is already considering it for Cortez's spot. Indiana has one ranked wrestler in their entire lineup, No. 12 Cole Weaver (14-3), and he competes at 141 pounds. This dual could give Cortez a massive opportunity to show why he should be the starter moving forward for this season. However, with Lee continuing to perform so well in tournaments so far this year, will Cortez even get that opportunity? It makes sense to hold off the decision on pulling Lee's redshirt until after the Southern Scuffle, but Sanderson may just do what he thinks is the right opportunity to give Lee a major chance to make a statement at 141. Time will tell.

Cael clarifies

Sanderson was asked during media day this week whether No. 18 Corey Keener or No. 1 Vincenzo Joseph could be expected to wrestle against Indiana. Cael said the following,

“I wouldn’t say you pick and choose based on your opponent,” he said. “You’ll wrestle your guys when they’re ready to go. So if they’re ready to go, they’re going to wrestle on Sunday.”

So Keener and Joseph will wrestle, if they're ready to go, and ready to go specifically on Sunday. That does not exactly clarify the situation but Cael Sanderson does not owe anyone this kind of information. While it can be frustrating for fans to not understand what is going on with Keener or Joseph, it's understandable and justifiable for Sanderson to not place extraneous pressure on his guys to be ready anymore than they already feel or provide information to opponents. The message is clear: if they wrestle, then they are fine to wrestle. It does Penn State no good to risk a national championship in December if Joseph or Keener are not physically ready for competition. The team will have a few weeks off before their next competition when they go to the Southern Scuffle anyway. A team title cannot be won in December, but it can certainly be lost, especially if guys are rushed into the lineup before they are ready. If both Keener and Joseph compete, Penn State could expect to win as many as nine matches in this dual.

The dual apart from whether Keener, Joseph or Lee wrestle is expected to be rather straightforward for the Nittany Lions. Devin Schnupp will get the start at 125 and take on Elijah Oliver (13-6). Oliver is a 2-time NCAA Qualifier, so things will not be easy for Schnupp as he looks to rebound from a first period fall against No. 5 Darian Cruz. Oliver is a talented wrestler and Schnupp will have his hands full in his first Big Ten match.

Zain Retherford, Jason Nolf, Mark Hall and Bo Nickal are huge favorites to not only win, but do so by bonus. Zain will take on Davey Tunon (9-8), Nolf will take on Jake Danishek (6-1), and Bo will take on Norman Conley (10-2). The biggest threat that Indiana possesses at these weights is their 174-pounder Devin Skatzka (12-2). Skatzka is an NCAA qualifier from last season, and has never faced Hall.

Anthony Cassar or Matt McCutcheon will take on either Jake Hinz (7-8) or Spencer Irick (2-5). If the coaches cannot decide on who should compete, maybe a tag team match should be in order. Expect Cassar to get the start, as he has all season. Nick Nevills will take on Fletcher Miller (9-3).

projected matches*

125 pounds - Devin Schnupp (1-6) vs. Elijah Oliver (13-6)

vs. Elijah Oliver (13-6) 133 pounds - No. 18 Corey Keener (5-0) vs. Garrett Pepple (9-8)

vs. Garrett Pepple (9-8) 141 pounds - Jered Cortez (7-1) vs. No. 12 Cole Weaver (14-3)

vs. No. 12 Cole Weaver (14-3) 149 pounds - No. 1 Zain Retherford (9-0) vs. Davey Tunon (9-8)

vs. Davey Tunon (9-8) 157 pounds - No. 1 Jason Nolf (9-0) vs. Jake Danishek (6-1)

vs. Jake Danishek (6-1) 165 pounds - No. 1 Vincenzo Joseph (3-0) vs. Bryce Martin (12-5)

vs. Bryce Martin (12-5) 174 pounds - No. 2 Mark Hall (9-0) vs. Devin Skatzka (12-2)

vs. Devin Skatzka (12-2) 184 pounds - No. 1 Bo Nickal (8-0) vs. Norman Conley (10-2)

vs. Norman Conley (10-2) 197 pounds - No. 9 Anthony Cassar (7-1) or Matt McCutcheon (4-2) vs. Jake Hinz (7-8) or Spencer Irick (2-5)

vs. Jake Hinz (7-8) or Spencer Irick (2-5) 285 pounds - No. 3 Nick Nevills (9-0) vs. Fletcher Miller (9-3)

* - Individual Rankings are from Intermat