In a perfect world for the Hawkeye coach, his toughest decisions already have been made. Ideally, the lineup Iowa opens its dual season with tonight -- or a slightly modified version of it -- makes Zalesky's lineup choices easy.

"We've got some decisions to make with what we want to do with some guys," Zalesky said Tuesday. "Obviously, we're looking to this year, but you also have to have an eye out for the future and what you want to do there, too. But we're looking more toward this year."

Iowa moved closer to cementing its lineup this week. Junior Luke Magnani and freshman Daniel Dennis won wrestle-offs to claim starting positions at 125 and 133 pounds, respectively. The Hawkeyes entered the season with six wrestlers penciled in at starting positions, and senior Cole Pape will get the first shot at the 165-pound job.

Iowa may withhold Mark Perry Jr. from tonight's dual. A sprained knee has nagged the star sophomore 174-pounder during the preseason, but Perry occupies one of nine weights the Hawkeyes seemingly have settled to this point.

That leaves Zalesky with one major decision: Matt Fields or Ryan Fuller at heavyweight. Here's where the present versus the future decision comes into play.

Fields spent his summer recovering from hip surgery. Fuller spent his summer wrestling, highlighted by his fourth-place finish at the freestyle World Team Trials.

Fields won an overtime decision against Fuller in the finals of the Spartan Classic earlier this month. Fields reached the championship match of the Kaufman-Brand Open last weekend, while Fuller went 2-2 and did not place.

Fields, though, said he doesn't want to sit out this season. Zalesky said Fields reiterated this week that he wants to be in Iowa's lineup this season.

"I believe right now, after last year and spending this summer thinking about the season and how it went and what I need to do to win a national championship, I think I'm pretty much ready to go out there and win one right now," Fields said in late October. "I've been working hard, and I don't see any reason to wait a year to win it when I can win it this year."

Zalesky said both heavyweights would make the trip to Arizona State, where All-American Cain Velasquez awaits whichever wrestler the Hawkeyes use. Zalesky said Wednesday that a decision on the heavyweight starter had not yet been made.

Zalesky could have been faced with a similar choice at 165. Pape would like to make sure his coach doesn't have to make another choice at that weight.

Pape was Iowa's starter at 165 in 2004 and won two matches at the NCAA tournament. He was the odd man out last year, pushed out of the lineup by Perry and unable to beat out 157-pounder Joe Johnston.

Perry moved up to 174 this season, but Iowa signed Eric Luedke, a 165-pound junior college national champion, an addition that created more competition for Pape.

"I really didn't care," Pape said. "For one, it makes me better if there's somebody else there. Two, if he wrestled this year, then he would've beaten me out and I'd have to live with that.

"But also, looking at the next couple years, they needed someone there anyway. And anytime they bring somebody in that's best for the team, you have to be happy. It's not all about you, and you have to look at it like a challenge."

Pape won the Spartan Classic, while Luedke placed third. They wrestled last weekend in Omaha for third place and Luedke won a 5-4 decision. But this didn't create a lineup dilemma or even a wrestle-off.

"Luedke's not sure if he wants to wrestle this year," Zalesky said. "I think it's a situation where we'll see what Pape does and see what happens at the UNI Open (next weekend), and make a decision based on the early part of the year."

Zalesky traditionally has used wrestle-offs only as a last resort in determining starting positions, opting instead to apply competitive results in the decision-making process.

The Hawkeyes, though, determined a pair of spots this week with wrestle-offs. Magnani beat senior Trent Goodale to earn the first shot at the spot occupied last year by true freshman Charlie Falck, who suffered a broken foot last month.

Dennis handled senior Gabe Ruhkala to receive a chance at filling the 133-pound starting position that became vacant when NCAA qualifier Mario Galanakis did not re-enroll in classes this fall.

Falck is hopeful he can start practicing again next month. Pulling the redshirt off Dennis could be a strong indication the Hawkeyes have given up hope of Galanakis returning to the program.

"The sooner you can concentrate on 10 guys," Zalesky said, "even though you've got to have the other guys building for the future, the sooner it is, the better off you're going to be."

This is cache, read story here