The offices for the Gophers wrestling program share a small entryway with the cross country teams in the Bierman Field Athletic Building.
The wrestling team’s basement practice room has exercise equipment and weight sets clogging that entrance. Out on the mats, pillars and jutting corners limit space for workouts in sauna-like heat.
This spartan setup is where the Gophers have been preparing for the start of the Big Ten Conference season against Michigan State at 1 p.m. Sunday at Maturi Pavilion, and it’s where Minnesota molded three NCAA championship teams under former coach J Robinson, in 2001, 2002 and 2007.
Come next fall, the Gophers wrestling program spreads out. The department’s new Athletes Village project boasts off-field amenities for all athletes and gleaming new practice facilities for football and men’s and women’s basketball. That means those three teams also vacate spaces to be filled by other sports. Continue reading at www.twincities.com