Entering the Big Ten Championships this weekend with a lineup that could include six freshmen, some questions surrounding how the youngsters will perform on the big stage would be natural.

Allow three-time All-American Nick Lee to clear that up.

"I know that there may be some uncertainty about how they may compete, but I know how they're going to compete," Lee said. "They're going to be relaxed. They're going to have fun. They're going to kick some butt. I'm really excited for those guys."

Meeting with the media ahead of the Big Ten Championships, which begin this Saturday and will take place on Penn State's home turf inside the Bryce Jordan Center, head coach Cael Sanderson also expressed confidence in his young guns.

"They have experiences with high level competitive competition, whether it's state tournaments or national tournaments," Sanderson said. "They've been on the squad now for almost a year so it's just ready or not, here we go. It's time to go compete in the Big Ten tournament, and I think everyone's spirits are good."

Sanderson confirmed that he expects to use true freshman Beau Bartlett at 149 pounds this weekend, along with redshirt freshman Greg Kerkvliet at heavyweight.

Kerkvliet came into the Penn State lineup last Monday against Maryland after being cleared to compete that very same day, scoring a victory by fall against the Terrapins' Garret Kappes. He earned another victory by fall on the same day against Maryland's Connor Bowes in an extra bout — with those two victories comprising all of his action for the season.

"I think he brings a lot of energy to the team, he loves to compete," Sanderson said. "He’s smiling and laughing before practice. I think that alone is very powerful...I think he wants to be a national champion and we believe he’s right there right now."

Big Ten Tournament success has proven somewhat difficult to achieve for the Nittany Lions as of late, when you compare it to their staggering success on the national stage.

Considering they've won four consecutive national championships, some may consider it somewhat confounding that Penn State has earned only two Big Ten titles in that span.

Most outsiders would consider Iowa the favorite this year after winning the Big Ten crown last season, and Sanderson said that assessment is fair.

"I don't think that's a secret in any way," Sanderson said. "We believe in our team and our individuals, but Iowa's earned that and they've had an excellent year. Last year, crushed the Big Ten Tournament and then doing the same thing this year, and they have the same squad back, maybe even better than they were this year.

"There's a handful of really good teams that have a lot of potential and a lot of opportunity, so we've just got to focus on us being the best that we can be and scoring as many points as we can score and letting everything else take care of itself."

For his part, Lee said he'd prefer to come into the meet as the favorite, but being an underdog won't impact his team's mindset.

"We like to be the top dogs," Lee said. "It's kind of weird going in honestly, not being at the top, but it doesn't make a difference. We're going to go in, we're going to compete with enthusiasm, we're going to have fun. It would be that way whether we were ranked at the top or ranked at the bottom."

In an ordinary season, hosting the Big Ten Championships at the Bryce Jordan Center might be a massive advantage for the Nittany Lions.

With no fans in attendance this year, though, it's not clear whether the familiar confines with give Penn State a leg up.

"I think wherever you're competing, you've just got to make it your own," Sanderson said. "I think you could find positives or negatives regardless of whether you're on the road or at home. It's our job to just be a little better, a little stronger, a little more focused, a little more motivated maybe because we're at home."

Roman Bravo-Young seems to be taking Sanderson's final point in stride, saying it'll be like protecting home turf this weekend.

Bravo-Young offered a unique opinion when it comes to fans in the stands, though, saying he prefers the peace provided by empty arenas.

"Everyone keeps talking about fans, fans, I like the no fans," Bravo-Young said. "It's all hectic. I'm just a chill guy, I'm just laid back, chill, just do my thing and get off and it's quiet, and that's what I like."

Below is the seeding for each weight class in this year's Big Ten wrestling tournament.

125 lbs

Spencer Lee, Iowa

2) Liam Cronin, Nebraska

3) Malik Heinselman, Ohio State

4) Patrick McKee, Minnesota

5) Rayvon Foley, Michigan State

6) Eric Barnett, Wisconsin

7) Devin Schroder, Purdue

8) Michael DeAugustino, Northwestern

9) Dylan Ragusin, Michigan

10) Justin Cardani, Illinois

11) Robert Howard, Penn State

12) Jacob Moran, Indiana

13) Dylan Shawver, Rutgers

14) Zach Spence, Maryland

133 lbs

1) Roman Bravo-Young, Penn State

2) Austin DeSanto, Iowa

3) Sammy Alvarez, Rutgers

4) Lucas Byrd, Illinois

5) Chris Cannon, Northwestern

6) Jack Medley, Michigan

7) Boo Dryden, Minnesota

8) Jordan Decatur, Ohio State

9) Jacob Rundell, Purdue

10) Kyle Burwick, Wisconsin

11) Tucker Sjomeling, Nebraska

12) Jordan Hamdan, Michigan State

13) Kyle Luigs, Indiana

14) Jackson Cockrell, Maryland

141 lbs

1) Jaydin Eierman, Iowa

2) Nick Lee, Penn State

3) Sebastian Rivera, Rutgers

4) Chad Red, Nebraska

5) Dylan Duncan, Illinois

6) Marcos Polanco, Minnesota

7) Dylan D’Emilio, Ohio State

8) Drew Mattin, Michigan

9) Parker Filius, Purdue

10) Cayden Rooks, Indiana

11) Danny Bertoni, Maryland

12) Matt Santos, Michigan State

13) Colin Valdiviez, Northwestern

14) Dominic Dentino, Wisconsin

149 lbs

1) Sammy Sasso, Ohio State

2) Max Murin, Iowa

3) Griffin Parriott, Purdue

4) Yahya Thomas, Northwestern

5) Kanen Storr, Michigan

6) Michael Blockhus, Minnesota

7) Ridge Lovett, Nebraska

8) Mike VanBrill, Rutgers

9) Graham Rooks, Indiana

10) Peyton Omania, Michigan State

11) Beau Bartlett, Penn State

12) Drew Scharenbrock, Wisconsin

13) Christian Kanzler, Illinois

14) Michael North, Maryland

157 lbs

1) Ryan Deakin, Northwestern

2) Kaleb Young, Iowa

3) Brayton Lee, Minnesota

4) Kendall Coleman, Purdue

5) Brady Berge, Penn State

6) Will Lewan, Michigan

7) Chase Saldate, Michigan State

8) Garrett Model, Wisconsin

9) Elijah Cleary, Ohio State

10) Caleb Licking, Nebraska

11) Michael Doetsch, Maryland

12) Johnny Mologousis, Illinois

13) Luke Baughman, Indiana

165 lbs

1) Alex Marinelli, Iowa

2) Dan Braunagel, Illinois

3) Ethan Smith, Ohio State

4) Cameron Amine, Michigan

5) Andrew Sparks, Minnesota

6) Joe Lee, Penn State

7) Peyton Robb, Nebraska

8) Jake Tucker, Michigan State

9) Nick South, Indiana

10) Gerrit Nijenhuis, Purdue

11) Jonathan Spadafora, Maryland

12) David Ferrante, Northwestern

13) Brett Donner, Rutgers

14) Josh Otto, Wisconsin

174 lbs

1) Michael Kemerer, Iowa

2) Mikey Labriola, Nebraska

3) Carter Starocci, Penn State

4) Logan Massa, Michigan

5) Donnell Washington, Indiana

6) Kaleb Romero, Ohio State

7) Jackson Turley, Rutgers

8) Jared Krattiger, Wisconsin

9) Jake Allar, Minnesota

10) Drew Hughes, Michigan State

11) DJ Shannon, Illinois

12) Emil Soehnlen, Purdue

13) Troy Fisher, Northwestern

14) Philip Spadafora, Maryland

184 lbs

1) Aaron Brooks, Penn State

2) Christopher Weiler, Wisconsin

3) Layne Malczewski, Michigan State

4) Owen Webster, Minnesota

5) John Poznanski, Rutgers

6) Taylor Venz, Nebraska

7) Max Lyon, Purdue

8) Zach Braunagel, Illinois

9) Nelson Brands, Iowa

10) Rocky Jordan, Ohio State

11) Kyle Cochran, Maryland

12) Jaden Bullock, Michigan

13) Jon Halvorsen, Northwestern

14) Santos Cantu III, Indiana

197 lbs

1) Eric Schultz, Nebraska

2) Myles Amine, Michigan

3) Jacob Warner, Iowa

4) Cam Caffey, Michigan State

5) Lucas Davison, Northwestern

6) Thomas Penola, Purdue

7) Michael Beard, Penn State

8) Matt Wroblewski, Illinois

9) Gavin Hoffman, Ohio State

10) Billy Janzer, Rutgers

11) Garrett Joles, Minnesota

12) Jaron Smith, Maryland

13) Nick Willham, Indiana

14). Andrew Salemme, Wisconsin

285 lbs

1) Gable Steveson, Minnesota

2) Mason Parris, Michigan

3) Tony Cassioppi Iowa

4) Luke Luffman, Illinois

5) Christian Lance, Nebraska

6) Trent Hillger, Wisconsin

7) Greg Kerkvliet, Penn State

8) Tate Orndorff, Ohio State

9) Christian Rebottaro Michigan State

10) Jack Heyob, Northwestern

11) Christian Colucci, Rutgers

12) Dorian Keys, Purdue

13) Rudy Streck, Indiana

14) Garrett Kappes, Maryland

*******

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