This morning at 11 AM ET, the NCAA Championship quarterfinals will go down at the Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland. It is one of the most important and upset-filled rounds because winning means guaranteeing yourself a spot on the podium.

Whether it is a rematch, a clash of styles we've never seen, or simply just important to the team race, below are some of our favorite quarterfinal matches today.

125: Darian Cruz, Lehigh vs. Ronnie Bresser, Oregon State

I’m beginning to wonder if anyone can take down Ronnie Bresser. Now obviously he has been taken down, but it's only happened four times this year. Cruz is of course favored here, but he didn’t wrestle like a national champ on Thursday. He beat a couple true freshmen by scores of 7-4 and 1-0.

125: Spencer Lee, Iowa vs. Nick Piccininni, Oklahoma State

Like he always does, Spencer Lee came out like a ball of fire when these two wrestled in the dual, going up 8-1 with less than a minute remaining in the second period. But then Picc came storming back and made it a 10-5 match and was pushing for scores late.

133: Austin DeSanto, Drexel vs. Stevan Micic, Michigan

It was months ago and may have been a fluke, but DeSanto destroyed Micic 22-10 on the backside at CKLV, nearly teching him in the first period.

Unlock this video, live events, and more with a subscription!

Sign Up

Already a subscriber? Log In

141: Yianni Diakomihalis, Cornell vs. Dean Heil, Oklahoma State

It’s pretty jarring to think that a true freshman in Diakomihalis is the favorite over a two-time defending champ wrestling in his hometown. But that’s college wrestling in 2018, and these are two of the best guys in the country regardless of weight. Who can outscramble whom this morning?

149: Grant Leeth, Missouri vs. Matt Kolodzik, Princeton

An excellent style matchup and one that we haven’t seen this year. Kolodzik is rock solid on top and likes to get guys off the ground on his double. Leeth is a very effective scrambler and stingy from neutral.

149: Ke-Shawn Hayes, Ohio State vs. Troy Heilmann, UNC

Ohio State had an excellent day one, going 19-1 and putting nine in the quarters. But the Buckeyes have several key matchups, including this one. Hayes was up 6-0 at CKLV before Heilmann came storming back. Guaranteeing an All-American finish would help maintain OSU's lead over Penn State.

157: Hayden Hidlay, NC State vs. Tyler Berger, Nebraska

This is a rematch of Hidlay’s first signature win of his season. His 6-3 win in their dual was followed up immediately by Hidlay winning Reno and pushing himself into the top five, where he would remain all season.

157: Jason Nolf, Penn State vs. Michael Kemerer, Iowa

This is most interesting and fascinating quarterfinal this year between both wrestlers' health, the team race implications, and the fact they're former Young Guns teammates. Nolf won twice against Kemerer last year by scores of 9-4 and 8-2.

165: Isaiah Martinez, Illinois vs. Chance Marsteller, Lock Haven

A rematch from last year’s world team trials, as well as the University finals from a couple years ago.

165: Evan Wick, Wisconsin vs. David McFadden, Virginia Tech

McFadden remains undefeated on the year, and one of his biggest wins of the season came against Wick in the CKLV finals. McFadden won by pin there off a crazy scramble which you can watch below, but they also met in freestyle over the summer. Wick won 10-4 in the third-place match of Junior Trials.

Unlock this video, live events, and more with a subscription!

Sign Up

Already a subscriber? Log In

174: Myles Amine, Michigan vs. Jordan Kutler, Lehigh

Kutler won in the dual on what amounted to a horsepower double. In a sea full of coin-toss matchups today, this represents one with the potential to be remembered for a long time.  

174: Bo Jordan, Ohio State vs. Daniel Lewis, Missouri

Rekindling their couple of matches from 2016, both of which were Jordan wins, it seems like a great litmus test for the winner's battle later tonight with Mark Hall.

184: Pete Renda, NC State vs. Dom Abounader, Michigan

Abounader will have revenge on his mind from the 2016 NCAA tournament when a 13 seed Renda beat a four seed Abounader in overtime.

197: Wille Miklus, Missouri vs. Jared Haught, Virginia Tech

In a classic example of a match in which the losing wrestler "got caught," Haught was winning big and pushing for a major when he got high-flyered and pinned by Miklus in the dual.

197: Shakur Rasheed, Penn State vs. Michael Macchiavello, NC State

Can Rasheed break the positioning of Macchiavello enough to put up the points necessary to win? This could very well be the Nittany Lions' only quarterfinal loss today.