Iowa Head Coach Jim Zalesky

"It's kind of different this year, with Minnesota being the favorite, but we are excited to be here."

On what it means to come in on a 25-year title streak ...
"I try to defer the whole thought process. I don't try to think about it. I think of this as a tournament that we have to come in here and win. What happens is going to happen. It's not like there are 25 teams here. This is a completely different team, this is just part of the whole thing."

On the team's attitude towards keeping the streak going ... "You talk about it because it is history. History either keeps on going or history is broken. We have the opportunity to keep it going and you want to keep it going as long as you can. If it stops, it stops, but we want to keep it going."

Minnesota Head Coach J Robinson

"We've had some great wrestling the past three weeks. Our guys have a lot of enthusiasm. I think they are excited to wrestle and I think it will end up being a great tournament."

On the focus of the Minnesota team ...
"This is a tournament that you have to be ready to wrestle in because if you are not, you will be sitting home. The most important tournament is two weeks down the road. If we would win it (the Big Ten), it would be a stepping stone towards the NCAA tournament. Everything we've done this season so far doesn't mean anything. We want to move forward."

Michigan Head Coach Dale Bahr

"It's a pleasure to host the tournament. In this day and age you only get it (to host the Big Ten Championship) about once every decade, and it's kind of difficult to think that you are only going to get it that often. This is the premier wrestling conference in the country. I look at Minnesota as being the favorite in the tournament, but Iowa is still the champ. Until the champ is dead, you can never count them out. I think Iowa is going to wrestle with a great amount of enthusiasm because they have a great tradition to uphold.

"If you would have asked me at the beginning of the year if I thought we'd be in the hunt for the Big Ten championship, I'd have said 'No, we lost four All-Americans, we only have two kids who even qualified for the NCAA Championships but our kids have wrestled tough all year. We have five or six kids who are seeded in the top three or four in the conference and we have some individuals that would just love to go out and win individual Big Ten titles. I think because it is here, I tell people if the stars line up right, we could be in the hunt for the title. We aren't the favorite, but I think our kids have been healthy, so I think there is going to be a lot of great competition. I think it will depend on who gets on a roll, and it's going to be a great tournament, but I think unless Minnesota stubs it's toe somewhere, we may all be chasing the Gophers."

On the Michigan team's position ...
"I like our position. We are wrestling six freshmen and sophomores and we are definitely the underdog, so that gives you some relaxing space. And then to have the tournament at home, it may be a little outside factor that might be in our favor."

On having the tournament at home in his final year as coach ...
"I really like it because it's here. I like to finish in front of the home crowd. This has been a real fun year and we want to continue, but it's going to be a special weekend for us especially if we wrestle well as I expect us to."

On the highlights of his career ...
"It's been fun to be a part of such a great conference like the Big Ten. I'm proud of the Big Ten and I'm proud of the programs and the coaches in the Big Ten. If you are going to compete, you want to compete at the highest level and it has been fun."