The 81-year-old Huff Hall has been more than friendly to Illini wrestlers of late. For the past seven seasons, Illinois has dominated its opponents at Huff Hall, winning 86 percent of the team’s matches there.

Since the start of the 1999-2000 season, the Illini – No. 18 in RevWrestling.com’s preseason rankings – have a home record of 31-4-1, including four perfect seasons at Huff Hall.

One of the contributing factors to the team’s success has been the presence of a recently formed student section.

“Our crowd atmosphere is one of the best,” said head coach Mark Johnson, comparing Huff Hall to venues across the nation.

For the 2004-05 season, Johnson and Illini Pride created the Wrestleheads, a student cheering section for home wrestling meets. The Wrestleheads made their first appearance at the Jan. 28, 2005 match against Iowa, and with the support of the new fan base, the Illini beat the ninth-ranked Hawkeyes 25-7 and set a Huff Hall wrestling attendance record of 3,573.

But Johnson still is not satisfied. He hopes to help recruit new Wrestleheads for the upcoming season, especially former high school wrestlers.

“We want their wrestling interest and wrestling knowledge,” Johnson said.

And with the help of the Wrestleheads’ student chairs, Johnson may get the fans he’s after.

Sophomore Rachel Blonski and senior Jason Ryan are the Illini Pride wrestling chairs working with Johnson to expand the Wrestleheads’ activities and recruitment, while maintaining an intense atmosphere for the upcoming season.

“Our goal is to get people who weren’t wrestlers more informed,” Blonski said.

The chairs are trying to expand the base of the Wrestleheads, hoping to emulate other Illini Pride student cheering sections by planning a trip to an Illini road match.

Ryan said they are exploring some additional activities for Wrestleheads, but he also said it is too early for definitive plans.

The Wrestleheads will get six opportunities to watch the Illini in action starting at 7 p.m. on Nov. 3rd at the Wrestle-Offs.

The Illini will host four Big Ten opponents, all ranked in the top 15 in RevWrestling.com’s preseason poll, including the top ranked Minnesota.

“It’s one of the only sports where you’re actually on the floor,” Ryan said. “We’re able to taunt the other team, it’s like psychological warfare.”