The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga announced the field for the 2017 Southern Scuffle today. The Mocs welcome another star-studded group of NCAA Division I collegiate wrestling teams to McKenzie Arena for the Jan. 1-2 event.
There are nine squads listed in the Intermat Tournament Preseason Top 25 who are coming to the Scenic City, highlighted by No. 1 Oklahoma State. The Cowboys are fresh off a runner-up finish at last year's NCAA Tournament.
Individually, there are 76 wrestlers with a preseason ranking set to compete.
This includes three NCAA Champions and 25 All-Americans.
Missouri, Cornell and Minnesota are other top-10 teams in the field. The Tigers are fifth in the preseason following a sixth place finish at the NCAA's. Cornell placed seventh at the NCAAs and is in that same spot in the Intermat poll. The Gophers check in at No. 10, following a 17th-place showing at the NCAA Tournament.
Other teams ranked in the top 25 include No. 12 Stanford, No. 18 Northern Iowa, No. 19 North Carolina, No. 20 Lehigh and No. 23 Penn. Navy placed 22nd at the NCAAs in March and is also in the Scuffle field.
"I am really very proud of what the Southern Scuffle has become during its short time in Chattanooga," stated head coach Heath Eslinger. "We have put a lot of work into it, and our administration and local wrestling community are committed to making this a premier event each year.
"However, it is the commitment from these top teams from around the country to keep coming back that makes it such a great tournament. The competition is second only to the NCAA Championships and you are going to continue to see a lot of high-quality wrestling."
Tickets for the 2017 Southern Scuffle are on sale now. Daily admission is $30 for reserved seats, $20 for general admission and $10 for youth general admission. All-session passes are $55 for reserved, $35 for general admission and $15 for youth. Tickets can be purchased online on GoMocs.com or by calling the UTC Ticket Office at (423) 266-MOCS (6627).