Burroughs Wins Second National Title, Makes Husker History

Philadelphia, Pa.- In Nebraska wrestling's 100th anniversary season, senior Jordan Burroughs capped off his iconic career by becoming the school's first-ever two-time national champion with his major decision victory over Tyler Caldwell (Oklahoma) in the finals of the 2011 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships on Saturday night in Philadelphia. Burroughs finished the season with a perfect 36-0 record, the second undefeated season of his career after he captured the 2009 national title at 157 pounds.

"It's amazing," Burroughs said in his post-match press conference. "Being close to home, a lot of friends and family are here. Anywhere it was, I was going to wrestle my best tournament and try to put together a lot of bonus‑point victories.  Coach Manning always stresses domination every match.  I'm not satisfied winning by one or two points, so go out and wrestle my hardest match every time and hopefully get the major."

No. 1 Burroughs defeated No. 3 Caldwell by major decision, 11-3, for his fifth bonus-point victory at the NCAA Championships. With the victory, Burroughs finished his career at Nebraska with a record of 128-20-0, which places him fourth on the school's all-time wins chart.

Burroughs, who defeated Caldwell in the Big 12 Championships by one point, recorded a takedown just 31 seconds into the match to go up 2-0 and finished the first period with another takedown to take a 4-2 lead. After another takedown in the second period, Burroughs was dominant in third period, recording two more takedowns, while amassing over three minutes of riding time in route to the victory.

Burroughs was untouchable in his five matches at the NCAA championships, outscoring his opponents 71-24 with two technical falls, two major decisions and a default victory. With his performance at the national championships, Burroughs will be in strong contention for The Hodge Trophy, which is presented annually to the nation's most outstanding wrestler.

The Sicklerville, N.J., native gained a fifth year of eligibility after his 2009-10 season ended on Dec. 19, 2009 with a torn PCL/LCL during a first period match against No. 13 Steve Brown of Central Michigan. Burroughs went on to finish the match and dropped an overtime decision to Brown, which marked his only loss in his last 79 matches of collegiate wrestling.

This year's NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships set a new attendance record on Saturday night at the Wells Fargo Center totaling 104,260 fans for the six-session event. Saturday night's attendance set a finals session record with 17,687 total fans. The previous record was 17,780 in Auburn Hills, Mich.

As a team, the Huskers finished in 12th place for the second consecutive season with 43.5 points. NU has recorded a top 15 finish at the NCAA Championships 13 out of the last 16 seasons.

Burroughs Run to the Title
First Round
No. 1 Jordan Burroughs (NU) wins by technical fall over Ethan Headlee (Pitt.), 23-7 (5:16)
Second Round
No. 1 Jordan Burroughs (NU) wins by injury def.over Justin Lister (Binghamton)
Quarterfinals
165- No. 1 Jordan Burroughs (NU) win by tech. fall over No. 8 Scott Winston (Rutgers), 23-8
Semifinals
No. 1 Jordan Burroughs (NU) wins by major decision over No. 5 Colt Sponseller (Ohio St.), 14-6
Finals
No. 1 Jordan Burroughs (NU) wins by major decision over No. 3 Tyler Caldwell (OU), 11-3

Play-by-Play
First period...2:30, Burroughs takedown, 2-0...1:29, Caldwell escape, 2-1...1:02, Burroughs takedown...4-1...Second period...Caldwell chooses down...1:59, Caldwell espcape, 4-2...1:06, Burroughs takedown, 6-2...Third period...Burroughs choose neutral...1:44, Burroughs takedown, 8-2...1:00, Caldwell escape, 8-4...:38, Burroughs takedown, 10-3...Burroughs riding time, 3:30, 11-3