Tonight at 8 at Carver Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City, Iowa, the Penn State wrestling team will line up across the mat from the vaunted Iowa Hawkeyes for the 12th time since the arena opened in January 1983.

The wrestlers will be introduced at each weight class, exchange handshakes, and then the wrestling begins, just like the last 11 trips. But once the action starts, the entire weight of the past will go out the window.

Carver Hawkeye Arena has always had the power to overwhelm its guests, seemingly giving the Hawkeyes a head start even before the competition begins.

Even the teams that have fared relatively well, Penn State for example, have little to brag about. The Lions are 2-9 in the building, supplying Iowa with 20 percent of their 10 ever losses there.

But this year, that's worthless. The Hawkeyes are human, and teams swagger into Carver Hawkeye smelling blood.

"Iowa is human now," Penn State heavyweight Pat Cummins said. "Their kids are all beatable, the air of invincibility is gone."

No. 10 Iowa (7-3, 2-1 Big Ten) has already lost at home this year, a humbling 30-10 demolition at the hands of Oklahoma State, and No. 6 Penn State (8-3, 1-1) is primed to continue hammering the Iowa mystique.

"I feel we can beat any team any time we wrestle," Penn State wrestling coach Troy Sunderland said. "But there's always a mystique surrounding Iowa. Their kids always show up and wrestle hard. To beat them is a big accomplishment."

Iowa lays down for no one and there is still plenty of talent wearing the black and gold.

Two weights especially could be big trouble for Penn State. At 125 and 174, Iowa has Luke Eustice and Tyler Nixt, both ranked second in the country according to Intermat. Eustice will most likely face No. 8 Adam Smith who is coming off a back injury and Nixt will likely face freshman walk-on Rich Brooks.

But the Lions can also point to some matches where they can pick up some big points. At 133 All-American Josh Moore will face off against Trent Goodale who is 6-9 on the year and at heavyweight No. 1 Pat Cummins, the Big Ten Wrestler of the Week, meets 12-12 freshman Ryan Fuller.

That said, victory will probably go to the team that can win the toss up matches at 149, 157, 184 and 197. None of these should be more exciting than 157 where the Lions' James Woodall faces Iowa's Joe Johnston.

"That's a match I'm really looking forward to," Sunderland said. "Both wrestlers really go after it."

From Iowa, the Lions will travel on Super Bowl Sunday to No. 13 Wisconsin (14-2, 1-1) for a 2 p.m. meet.

The Badgers have one of their strongest lineups in recent memory and could prove to be a tougher matchup for Penn State than the Hawkeyes.

In the eyes of Wisconsin wrestling coach Barry Davis, the meet is a toss up.

"The way I look at it, its five matches for Penn State, five for us. It should come down to bonus points."