Mat Madness is coming soon.

END OF AN ERA?

The NCAA Tournament will be held at the University of Iowa on March 15-17. If this is the last hurrah for the Hawkeyes, it is a fitting spot for it, but it definitely shows that the road to the national championships runs through Iowa City. Parity has begun to clog up the college scene in the past three to four years. Michigan proved itself as one of the top, young programs in the country with its fifth-place performance at the National Duals. Oklahoma is another title contender, but trying to match the accomplishments of the Sooners' national championship football team will be tough as OU has been hit by the injury bug lately. This should be one of the more interesting NCAA Tournaments in recent memory, and for those fans who love evolution, this might be the end of one dynasty and the beginning of another. -- InterMat's John Fuller

Without an NCAA-sponsored championship for dual teams, it is sometimes tough for fans, and even the media, to know where each team stands in a national setting. Usually the National Duals is the best measuring stick for any question that would pertain to this notion.

But the National Duals does not usually have a field as powerful as this -- seven of the top 10 teams in the nation and 12 of the top 20, including defending NCAA champion Iowa.

It does not take as much to be a good tournament team as it does to be a good dual team. At the NCAA Championships, the team champion is decided by how well a team's individuals do. Last year, Iowa had one national champion and two NCAA finalists, while Iowa State had four finalists. Still, the Hawkeyes came away with the title based on others' performances.

This season, Iowa proved that though it's not the best dual team in the land, the Hawkeyes are still going to be tough to beat in a tournament setting. The National Duals proved this.

So who is the best team in the country, at least in a tournament?

Here's InterMat's take on the top five teams in the nation, along with the chances each team has at winning the tournament title in March, which is set to take place in Iowa City, the backyard of the Hawkeyes.

1. Minnesota
The Gophers showed their true colors when they finally got heavyweight Garrett Lowney into the lineup. Lowney, who was a Greco-Roman Olympic bronze medalist at 97 kg this past summer, was ineligible to compete until the second semester had started.

But with him in the lineup, Minnesota is looking to finally knock Iowa off the pedestal. This is the most complete and consistent lineup in the land, though Oklahoma State might have an argument for those titles.

The Gophers won the National Duals last weekend by getting revenge on an Oklahoma State team that destroyed Minnesota at home just two weeks before -- as Minnesota wrestled without Lowney and 197-pounder Owen Elzen in the lineup.

Damion Hahn, 184 pounds, is still young and learning, but the Gophers will need more consistent performances from 125-pound Leroy Vega and Chad Erickson, 141. Brad Pike, who is a title contender at 165 pounds, is one of the most underrated competitors in the country.

If Minnesota can get All-American status out of either Matt Kraft at 174 or Elzen, this may be the team to beat at the NCAA Tournament, but nobody should go through them in a dual. If Minnesota does not win the team title this year, then next season should be it, because they will only lose Pike from the starting lineup, and have assembled one of the top recruiting classes in the country -- again.

2. Oklahoma State
The Cowboys have made a habit over the past few years of peaking too early, and by the time the NCAA Tournament comes around, they are not as sharp. Though this lineup is as good as any in the country from top to bottom, it hasn't wrestled as well as it's capable of.

Disregard the Cowboys' wins over Iowa and Minnesota earlier this season. Minnesota beat them when it counted, and that will leave a bad taste in the mouth of not only head coach John Smith, but of many of the individual wrestlers as well.

This team still has question marks, especially at 141 pounds, where either converted 133-pounder Charles Walker or regular starter Jerrod Sanders will assume the starting role for the rest of the season. At heavyweight, James Huml is solid and will win some duals, but this team does not plan to look toward him for major team points at the NCAAs.

If this team wants to win the tournament title, 184-pound Daniel Cormier and 197-pound Mark Munoz need to be the leaders. Cormier has wrestled as well as anyone can at his weight, while 2000 All-American Munoz has struggled up to this point. Matt Brown, 125 pounds, has wrestled better than at any other point in his career, and if he can score major team points, the Cowboys will have a chance to come away with the team title. If Johnny Thompson, 133 pounds, continues to improve (he is currently ranked No. 2 as a redshirt freshman), then this might be the team to beat, not just for this year, but for seasons to come.

3. Iowa
At the National Duals, the Hawkeyes showed why they are the best tournament team in the country -- but not the best dual team.

Against Minnesota in the semifinal round, Iowa won five matches, but lost by a team score of 20-17, mainly because it gave up 10 team points in the last two matches. The upper weights are killing this team, and it is placing a lot of pressure on the guys at the lower weights.

Iowa boasts three national champions in its lineup -- 133-pound Eric Juergens and 1999 champions Doug Schwab, 141 pounds, and T.J. Williams, 157 pounds.

Jody Strittmatter, 125 pounds, was a Division II national champion and placed third at last year's NCAA Tournament. Mike Zadick, 149 pounds, and 174-pound Gabe McMahan are the keys to this team winning a title, that is, if the other four place in the top three. The Hawkeyes need at least two NCAA Champions, and maybe more, to come away with the team title this year. No mistakes can be allowed, but that is Iowa's motto, anyway.

The problem, however, is that McMahan, after losing to top-ranked Otto Olson of Michigan and 2000 NCAA runner-up Josh Koschek of Edinboro by a combined two points, injured his ribs. He will be back this season, but an injury like that can hamper a wrestler's movement, and his chances at All-American status as well.

Ben Shirk (165 pounds), who had been wrestling well until the National Duals, needs to step up for this team to win the title. If he and 184-pound Jessman Smith have good NCAA Tournament showings, then there is no stopping Iowa in wrestling's version of March Madness.

4. Iowa State
Iowa State, like Iowa, is weak in a section of weights, but the Cyclones are suspect in the lower weights. Matt Azevedo moved up to 133 this year and has struggled against the top competition in his weight class, while Zach Roberson, 141 pounds, is a natural 133-pounder who is not even cutting weight.

This team is powered by 184-pound Cael Sanderson, who entering his match against Oklahoma State, is 105-0 for his career. In just his third season, he has already set the NCAA record for consecutive wins and it doesn't appear that anyone can stop him. Joe Heskett (165 pounds), who was an NCAA runner-up last season, is as talented as it gets, and the points these two can score alone should put Iowa State in the top 10 at tournament time.

Another NCAA runner-up last season, 197-pound Zach Thompson, seems to have more one-point matches than anyone in the country. This team needs Cole Sanderson, the 157-pound older brother of Cael, and Roberson to step up big in March.

If 149-pound Billy Maldonado does not return from injury, though, this team's national title hopes will take a huge hit. Even with that, this team would still have an outside chance at the NCAA title. It received a boost of confidence at the National Duals, though, when the Cyclones forfeited three weight classes to Iowa and still only lost by five points, 26-21.

If Iowa State can get a healthy lineup, anything can happen at this point. Remember, this team held the lead for the NCAA title last season going into the final day of competition. The veterans know how to win; they just need to teach the newcomers.

5. Illinois
Illinois was the only top five team not to attend the National Duals. As a dual team, the Fighting Illini are a watered-down version of Minnesota -- consistent at every weight but not powerful enough at all of them to be in the national title race.

Adam Tirapelle, who was the 149-pound NCAA runner-up last season, lacks size and talent compared to some of the other top 149-pounders, but his heart and work ethic are unmatched by anyone at this weight. Nate Patrick, 184 pounds, and Pat Quirk, 197 pounds, are both candidates to be in the NCAA finals, but they would have tough roads to get there.

Illinois has the strength to get itself into the top five, but any higher than that will be tough. Ryan Escobar, 125 pounds, has really struggled, and Kelly Madden, 133, is still learning the ropes of college wrestling.

Coming into this season, many thought 174-pound Ben King would be one of the top wrestlers in the country at his weight. He has won on a consistent basis, but has not started his season on a roll as he ended last year. Heavyweight John Lockhart also has been a disappointment so far this season.

Head Coach Mark Johnson is only hoping his team will peak at the end of the season. If that is the case, the Illini need to turn the jets on now with duals coming up against Michigan State and Minnesota in the next week.

For more information, check out InterMat at www.intermatwrestle.com.