NIU wrestling will gauge its talent and depth this weekend at the Michigan State Open.

The Huskies (1-1) will send out as many grapplers as they can in order to help determine the squad’s starting lineup while facing some of the top programs in the country, including Central Michigan, Columbia and Northwestern.

“We’re going to bring everybody that’s ready to compete this weekend,” said NIU head coach Ryan Ludwig. “From freshmen through seniors, everybody gets to compete, so we’re excited for this group this weekend and being able to support each other.”

When the Huskies participated in the event last season, Brad Dieckhaus led the way with a second place finish at 184. Dieckhaus will not be ready to hit the mats this weekend as he is still recovering from offseason knee surgery.

Mike Lukowski, who wrestles at 197 for the Huskies, is also recovering from a knee injury. Lukowski hyperextended his knee Wednesday and will not suit up for the open.

Since the event is open to all wrestlers, Ludwig is confident NIU will make up for its losses after last weekend’s matchups against North Central and Stanford.

“We’ve got two matches under our belt where some teams will be coming in for their first competition,” Ludwig said. “Any time you can go through the ropes as far as the weigh-ins, the warm-up procedure, and get a few live matches in, I think it’s an advantage.”

Two Huskies will enter the open unbeaten so far this season.

At 125, Nick Smith is coming off of two dominating performances in which he put up double-digit point totals to win by major decisions last weekend. At 141, Kevin Fanta is ready to continue his early success as he took down last season’s lone 40-match winner for North Central, Andrew Zobac, before pummeling Stanford’s Alex Manly.

Freshman Tyler Loethen lost by pinfall against North Central, but bounced back to defeat Stanford’s Michael Kent 9-4, showing promise for the true freshman. The 157 position is not his for the taking, though, as Ludwig still wants to see more from Loethen and teammate Sam Bennett.

“As a true freshman, he a lot of things to work on,” Ludwig said. “But we really like his competitive fire. I also expect to see how Sam Bennett competes this weekend; he’s a redshirt freshman. Any time you can place at a tournament like this with as tough of competition as there is, I think that says a lot about a guy.”

Rob Jillard made his NIU debut at 133 last weekend after transferring from Liberty. Last season’s NCAA qualifier could not record his first victory as a Huskie, but he had to go up against a couple of the top wrestlers in the country at his weight class in North Central’s Nathan Fitzenreider and Stanford’s Ryan Mango. Both Fitzenredier and Mango were All-Americans last season.

“I don’t feel [my first weekend] was the best with those two losses,” Jillard said. “But I’m going to have to see tough competition like this throughout the year. That conference is not like this one, so it got me ready for what to expect.”