Stephen Buchanan has been at Iowa for only one season, but there is sadness, he said, heading into his final match at Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

Buchanan takes an 18-0 record into Sunday’s dual against #2 Oklahoma State, but it’s what the 197-pounder has learned this season that makes him feel all of the emotions that comes into his final home match.

“I think wrestling is just a hard sport, and it takes a lot physically, mentally, emotionally,” Buchanan said Tuesday. “Coming here, I didn't know how much I was going to like it, but I’ve enjoyed it so much that this year has been the fastest year for me.”

Buchanan, who transferred from Oklahoma in the offseason, admitted he wasn’t sure what it would be like coming to wrestle for the Hawkeyes, who are ranked third heading into the dual.

Asked how much his wrestling has changed since coming to Iowa, Buchanan said, “I would say quite a bit, not in a wrestling style, but just like a mindset of doing every little thing right. Sleep matters, nutrition matters, how you're coming in with your mindset, how you're warming up. I mean, down to the smallest building block, and I think that's shown in my competition. And I hope that I can continue building every single day.

“I think I just had to take some time to trust and know that these guys know exactly what they're talking about. And when you do it, you see the benefits and the steps that help you build and then you can just take off with it.”

Buchanan, the top-ranked wrestler nationally at 197, has been dominant this season. He has seven technical falls and four pins among his wins. He won all eight of his Big Ten matches, becoming the 24th wrestler under coach Tom Brands to have a perfect conference regular season.

Buchanan knows Oklahoma State well, having wrestled against the Cowboys throughout his career at Wyoming and Oklahoma.

“When I was at Wyoming, I thought that it was a rivalry,” said Buchanan, who is 7-2 in his career against Oklahoma State. “And then I got to OU and I was like, ‘Oh, this is a rivalry.’ But then Iowa has a rivalry with them that's pretty high, too. So, yeah, I’m looking forward to it. Glad it's in Carver. And, yeah, it'll be an exciting atmosphere. And I'm looking forward to it.”

Whatever reservations Buchanan had coming to Iowa are long gone.

“I think the perspective about Iowa is a lot different from when you're in here,” Buchanan said. “I think Iowa gets a bad rap. And I was kind of coming in with that mindset, and I was just like, I don't really know how it's gonna be. But when I got here, it was amazing. And they treat you like family, and they want the best for you, on the mat, off the mat, in every aspect of your life. So there's no place I'd rather be.”

A New Face

Oklahoma State has a new coach this season in David Taylor, but Brands thinks the dynamic of the rivalry isn’t going to change.

“I think John Smith packed a pretty good punch,” Brands said. “And then you look at Joe Seay and (Dan) Gable, and you look at Myron Roderick and Gable, and all of that history. It’s definitely a place where wrestling is relevant.”

The Cowboys are 13-0 heading into Sunday’s dual.

“I think they're 13-0, or whatever. And I think people take notice,” Brands said. “So he's trying to continue a good thing and build on it, put his own little twist on it. I’ve got a lot of problems here, so I'm not going to think too much on his program.”

Still Pondering

If Brands has an idea of what his postseason lineup is going to look like, he wasn’t about to let that out.

There is only one weight class with multiple options on this week’s probable lineup — Patrick Kennedy and Nelson Brands are listed as possibles at 174.

“We're just not going to talk about that stuff. It's going to always be vague,” Brands said. “And I know we got a lot of good guys. The problem is, there's 10 weight classes, and we’ve got maybe more than 10 guys that can do very well that we believe in.”