Northwestern, Wisconsin, Indiana, Michigan, Iowa, Northern Iowa and Central Michigan. The list of the top seven 25-ranked opponents the NIU wrestling team has faced this season is an impressive one. In fact, it is the most difficult schedule in school history.

And with that kind of schedule it might be easy to look past cellar-dwelling Eastern Michigan. But with the MAC championships only two weeks away, NIU is being careful not to.

The Huskies (7-5-2 overall, 2-1-1 MAC) will wrestle its final MAC match of the season at 7 p.m. tonight at EMU (6-8, 0-4).

After seeing such quality competition in the beginning of the season, NIU is winding down to its easiest part of the schedule. Meanwhile, the Eagles have not had the year they envisioned.

The MAC has been particularly harsh to EMU, as they are 0-4 this year and have been outscored 116-37 in conference matches. Last season, the Huskies dispatched the Eagles 26-11 in DeKalb.

But despite recent history, NIU’s Danny Burk is not taking them for granted.

“Because they are a MAC school, you don’t want to overlook them,” the 174-pound junior said. “But it is hard, because our intensity has been so high because we’ve been wrestling some great teams. If anything, we want to pick our intensity up even more and show our dominance.”

The 125-pound and 149-pound weight classes have been strengths for EMU this season, but they will face two highly-ranked opponents from the Huskies. EMU’s Sean Clair has cracked the top 20, but he will face No. 13-ranked Pat Castillo, who has compiled a 22-7 record. Fellow No. 14-ranked teammate Mike Grimes will face EMU’s Jermain Thompson at 149 pounds in the other marquee match up.

Despite having a deeper starting lineup in talent, NIU Coach Dave Grant refuses to underestimate his foe while also emphasizing that his team is peaking.

“You got to be ready for everyone,” Grant said. “They got some good wrestlers. I think we’re in a great position. We’ve beaten a lot of good teams this year. Our shape is superb. When you have all those things going for you, you have to feel good.”