OK, so Randy “Macho Man” Savage won’t be doing any high-flying elbows off the top turnbuckle. And Hulk Hogan probably won’t show up, rip his T-shirt in half and body slam Andre the Giant.

There won’t be any of that kind of “wrestling” on display this winter at NIU. Instead, fans will be treated to a tenacious young team that makes NIU wrestling the team to watch this winter.

While basketball might get all the hype this time of year, wrestling gets all the results.

Despite losing All-American Ben Heizer to graduation, NIU is the co-favorite with Central Michigan to win the MAC this year. The Huskies garnered a preseason ranking of No. 21 in the country. When was the last time NIU was in the top 25 for preseason in any sport? Exactly.

So why are the Huskies poised for a breakthrough year? What the Huskies lack in superstar personality, they more than make up for with a combination of proven talent and ridiculous depth.

Senior co-captains Sam Hiatt and George Kirgan provide a wealth of experience for a 40-man roster with only seven upperclassmen.

The 133-pound Hiatt is a two-time MAC champion and NCAA qualifier with 29 wins last year, and Kirgan led the team with six pins at 174 pounds. Junior Josh Wooten is also a two-time NCAA qualifier and registered 21 wins last season.

That’s where the Huskies’ young guns step in. NIU coach Dave Grant has 26 true and redshirt freshmen on his roster and a number of them are competing for starting spots.

The deepest weight class by far is 125 pounds. Freshman Nick Smith is a four-time South Dakota State Champion and NHSCA All-American. Credentials like those may appear to give Smith a lock on his starting spot. But sophomore Gralan Early was a preseason favorite to win the spot and will give Smith all he can handle.

To make things even more complicated, redshirt freshman Chad Vandiver took first place at last weekend’s UW-Stevens Point Open, with Early and Smith finishing third and fourth, respectively. When one school takes three of the top four spots in a weight class at an open that features more than 400 wrestlers, that says a lot about the caliber of the school’s talent.

At 149 pounds, Wooten will be in a dogfight with the unheralded Mike Grimes for a starter’s spot. In their intrasquad match at the Nov. 4 Wrestle-off, Grimes won with an escape-takedown in the second overtime. If the trend continues, Grimes could take Wooten’s spot in the lineup.

The one freshman who looks like a lock in the lineup is 197-pound Derik Hunsinger. After a dominating 19-3 victory at the Wrestle-off, Hunsinger came out for an encore at Stevens Point with two pins and a first-place finish.

Castillo, Galloway, Owen … and the list goes on. Coach Grant said he is very impressed and confident in his young team, and he has good reason to be. NIU is probably the deepest team in the MAC in raw talent.

The Huskies will be tested early this season with a Nov. 28 home match against No. 12 Wisconsin. That match could be the measuring stick for how NIU will perform this season.

Watching sweaty dudes in spandex grappling with each other may not be most people’s cup of tea. There might not be chairs broken over heads or steel-cage matches.

But wrestling is not a glamorous sport. It’s about being bigger, faster and stronger than the opponent – and doing whatever is necessary to get them on their back.

Just give this team a chance. Don’t believe the hype. Believe the results that are to come.