There will be more in North Carolina than just basketball this weekend.

Wrestling's 'March Madness' gets underway in one of basketball's holy shrines, the Dean E. Smith Center -- better known as the Dean Dome. But fans in the Dean Dome won't be thinking hoops and hardwood --except maybe the Tar Heel fans; instead, they'll be thinking takedowns and pins, when the NCAA Championships begin at 10 a.m. today in Chapel Hill.

Five teams will enter the championships with hopes of coming away with a title. Oklahoma State and Iowa are the favorites, with Penn State and Minnesota not far behind. The tournament's darkhorse could be host North Carolina, the only school that qualified all 10 wrestlers.

Penn State's hopes rest on its six wrestlers who qualified. Three of those wrestlers, 126-pounder Sanshiro Abe, 134-pounder Cary Kolat and heavyweight Kerry McCoy, are a good bet to be in Saturday evening's finals. Along with John Hughes (142), Russ Hughes (150) and Brian Matusic (167) the Lions have a slim chance of winning the title.

"It's a longshot," Coach John Fritz said. "But you never know. I think Iowa won it once with five guys."

Fritz has an idea of what needs to happen for the Lions to come home with the championship.

"Well," Fritz started, moving his hands a few inches apart, "if Iowa's team is sitting over here and Oklahoma State's team is over here and somehow some lights fall, and well . . ."

For the Lions to win the title, Fritz conceded that they are going to need some help. Oklahoma State and Iowa are going to have to avoid having one or more of their potential placewinners beaten in a early round. Both teams have freshmen in key spots and it is possible.

"I think Oklahoma State and Iowa are going to have to have some early upsets," Fritz said. "Either the 118 pounder (Iowa's Mike) Mena or Oklahoma State's has a problem with the (Jacob) Newby the freshman at 150, who could be in finals or have a bad match and not place."

The Lions could also get a boost from the fact that this could be one of the lowest scoring meets in recent years. In past years, Penn State has had as many as eight All-Americans and not been able to win a championship.

"I don't think this is a year when teams can expect to have seven or eight All-Americans," Illinois Coach Mark Johnson said. "The top teams will probably have four or five guys."

Another plus for the Lions is that the tournament is not in Iowa or Oklahoma, one of its usual sights. Three times in the last five years the meet has been in Iowa.

"It's going to be a great national tournament," Fritz said. "We're glad to get in an area where its kind of neutral."