What the Reser’s Tournament of Champions lacks in sheer size of participants – the major draw of the Oregon Wrestling Classic – it more than makes up for with the quality of those wrestlers.

When the Hermiston Bulldogs travel to Hillsboro this weekend, they will square off against the best the state of Oregon has to offer.

The Bulldogs finished second in a field of 23 last season, scoring 142.5 to champion Newberg’s 193.

“Roseburg ended up as the state champion (in 6A) and was probably the best team last year but didn’t have the weekend they wanted to,” said Hermiston wrestling coach Curt Berger, looking back at last year. “And then Newberg got away from us a little bit. But the thing is it’s so much different than dual matches and that is really where we’ve done well.”

Rather than using the team dual format, the RTOC follows the bracket format class by class. That same format is employed at the state tournament, which is one reason there are often comparisons drawn to both. The other is the unbeatable quality found in the RTOC.

“It’s a big tournament,” Berger said. “A lot of guys would say this is the real state championship … It’s a great tournament for competition and the neat thing about this tournament is it doesn’t take class into consideration so it’s the best kids from all over the state.”

With so many quality wrestlers stalking the mats, it would take only five, six or seven placers to win the RTOC title, according to Berger.

A year ago, the Bulldogs finished second with five wrestlers placing. Ben Jorgensen won at 103 pounds – the only Hermiston wrestler to take a RTOC title – and as a senior should enter the 119-pound class as a heavy favorite to repeat.

Current Boise State wrestler Randy Larson finished second at 160 pounds, taking a rare loss and an even rarer pinfall.

The three other placers, Bryce McMahon (sixth), Curtis Berger (third) and Brandon Adolf (fourth) all return and are seeking to improve on their 2008 finishes.

“This is a tough enough tournament where some of our toughest kids might not even place,” Berger said. “It depends a lot on matchups and how tough the field is and things like that.”

Adolf and Jorgensen come in as the most visible favorites for Hermiston, but Berger is also confident about the chances of freshmen Joey Delgado (currently ranked No. 1 at 103 pounds) and C.J. Dirksen.

By also getting the opportunity to bring along the junior varsity for a separate tournament, the Bulldogs are hoping to soon gauge what the future holds at the district ant state tournaments.

“We have yet to prove how tough we are and this tournament will help see where we are at as a team,” Berger said. “We’re still going to have to wrestle and get after it. We have to show how tough we are and this tournament will go a long way towards showing that, as will the district tournament and the state tournament down the line.”

While most of the state’s best will be in Hillsboro, it is not the only place to catch state-worthy competition.

The Pendleton Bucks will travel to Albany for the South Albany Tournament. Like Reser’s, the South Albany Tournament ditches the dual-style format for one more akin to the district and state tournaments. For each weight class, the wrestlers will start in 16-person brackets.

Pendleton coach Fred Phillips is not expecting to see the cream of the crop with the RTOC hoarding the top teams, but with the likes of Tillamook, Gresham and West Albany, there will be ample chances to see where the Bucks stack up.

Tillamook finished last season at the top of the 4A class, while West Albany will be sending its full roster – including several ranked wrestlers who missed the Freeberry Classic.

“We’re looking to get better,” said Phillips of the most important aspect of this weekend. “We want to get more matches under our belt. It’s not like we’re going to the Reser’s tournament, the district tournament or the state tournament. We just need more mat time right now.”

With nearly a month separating Pendleton from the district tournament, there are still little things Phillips said his wrestlers – specifically the younger group – need to learn. That can only happen with more matches.

Like the RTOC, the South Albany Tournament will have a separate tournament for the JV wrestlers of each program, something Phillips will take advantage of.

“We’ll take every kid in the program and get them some matches,” he said. “We’re hoping to see things from our younger guys. But right now we’re not expecting to see anything really except to get our kids more mat time.”