There are few things that put life in perspective as much as leaving something that, even if you come back, will never look the same.

But that is exactly what will happen to the seniors from the No. 12 Penn State wrestling team as they compete in their final dual meets at Rec Hall this weekend.

The Nittany Lions (10-5, 1-3 Big Ten) will serve as host to No. 10 Northwestern (10-5, 1-2) at 7 tonight in Rec Hall and No. 6 Iowa at noon on Sunday.

"They are a very, very tough team," Penn State head coach Troy Sunderland said of the Wildcats. "They have a very strong dual meet team, and they have a good balance of guys."

Northwestern has five nationally ranked wrestlers. Two of those wrestlers, junior Ryan Long, 141 pounds, and junior Jake Herbert, 184 pounds, are the top-ranked wrestlers in their respective weight classes.

To compound that, Iowa brings another seven nationally ranked wrestlers on Sunday.

While no wrestler will have it easy this weekend, there are several weight classes for Penn State that will face two ranked opponents.

At 141-pounds, Northwestern's No. 1 Long and Iowa's Alex Tsirtsis, ranked No. 6, provide a significant challenge. And in the heavyweight class, all three wrestlers scheduled to compete will be carrying a national ranking. Penn State's Aaron Anspach enters tonight's match ranked No. 13 while his opponent will be No. 4 Dustin Fox. And on Sunday, Anspach will face Iowa's No. 6 Matt Fields.

The Lions will once again look to the support of the home crowd to gain an edge in these Big Ten matchups.

According to Sunderland, the Hawkeyes always bring a good crowd when they come to Happy Valley.

"It should be a good draw again," he said. "I think we'll have a good crowd with it being Super Bowl Sunday, and because it's being televised. It's also senior day, which brings in a good crowd."

But if the Lions want to leave their seniors with a fond home finale, it will take a complete team performance from top to bottom.

"It's really important to send them out with a good match," sophomore Jake Strayer said. "All the time and effort they put in over the last four or five years, it's important for them to look back and remember."

The complete performance from top to bottom, however, is something that Penn State has failed to put together in the last few duals. And it's something that Sunderland would like to see his team accomplish before heading into the Big Ten Championships in March.

"Winning the dual meet is important, but regardless, if [the team] is performing and wrestling well then we're happy," Sunderland said. "I hate losing; it's not the end all be all, but we want to see our guys improving each week."