We Americans cherish our right to vote.<\/p>\n
When asked, we will jump at the chance to cast our ballot, whether
\nit’s for President of the United States, or our favorite on American
\nIdol. We’ll endure long lines at the polling station or put up with
\nrepeated busy signals on the phone just to be sure we can make a
\nchoice “\u00a6 and make our voices heard.<\/p>\n
More and more organizations are realizing the power of participatory
\ndemocracy, including the NCAA. To commemorate the 75th anniversary of
\ntheir first collegiate wrestling championship, the NCAA and the
\nNational Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA) decided to name a team
\nof all-time college wrestling greats.<\/p>\n
Power to the People<\/p>\n
Once upon a time, the members of the NCAA 75th Anniversary Team would
\nhave been determined by an elite group of experts — wrestling
\njournalists, historians and coaches — then the wrestling community
\nwould have commented on their choices after the fact. However, in the
\ninterests of giving the wrestling community an actual voice in the
\nmatter, the NCAA opened up the voting to anyone who had online access.<\/p>\n
To make things easier for voters — and not leave the experts out of
\nthe equation — a panel of wrestling historians started with the
\nthousands of wrestlers who have competed at the college level since
\n1928 (the first year of the NCAA championships). The experts came up
\nwith a list of 45 wrestlers, fifteen in each of three weight-based
\ncategories — lightweight (115-141 pounds) “\u00a6 middleweight (142-172
\npounds) “\u00a6 and heavyweight (177 pounds and up). (See sidebar for
\ncomplete list of nominees.) Then they posted this ballot of potential
\nNCAA 75th Anniversary Team honorees online, and invited the wrestling
\ncommunity to choose five names from each weight category. Once the
\nonline polls closed, the votes would be counted, and the five top
\nvote-getters in each weight category would be honored at a special
\nceremony at the 2005 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships in St. Louis.<\/p>\n
And The Winners Are”\u00a6<\/p>\n
Dan Hodge, who won three NCAA titles for Oklahoma, is the only amateur
\nwrestler ever to appear on the cover of Sports Illustrated.
\nAt an afternoon ceremony held outdoors on a blustery day under the
\nvast former train sheds at the historic Union Station in downtown St.
\nLouis, the NCAA 75th Anniversary Team members were introduced
\none-at-a-time to the assembled crowd in the three weight-based
\ncategories. <\/p>\n
The honorees in the lightweight class (listed here in alphabetical
\norder) include Stephen Abas, Tom Brands, Dan Gable, John Smith and
\nYojiro Uetake. Among the middleweight members of the NCAA 75th
\nAnniversary Team: Lee Kemp, Lincoln McIlravy, Wade Schalles, Pat Smith
\nand Joe Williams. The heavyweight (upper-weight) honorees include Kurt
\nAngle, Ed Banach, Carlton Haselrig, Dan Hodge and Cael Sanderson. <\/p>\n
A Difference of Opinion<\/p>\n
Once the nominees were introduced, I had two questions:<\/p>\n
1. Were they selected strictly on the basis of their college careers?
\n2. Why is the list so light on “old-time “wrestlers?<\/p>\n
Let’s take a look at each question.<\/p>\n
1. College accomplishments “\u00a6 or lifetime achievement? <\/p>\n
In an online article introducing the 45 nominees (see sidebar for
\ncomplete list) posted in January, the opening text said, “Please know
\nthat nominations are selected on NCAA performance only.”
\nAs a life-long wrestling fan and long-time professional writer\/editor,
\nI read that sentence to say, “We wrestling historians only looked at
\ntheir college records. We ignored their post-college accomplishments
\nwhatever they may be. As a voter, you wrestling fans should NOT
\nconsider a candidate’s freestyle or Greco-Roman achievements, Olympic
\nmedals, coaching records, stardom from professional sports or sports
\nentertainment, service to the sport of wrestling, or any other stuff
\nafter college.”<\/p>\n
It’s possible that other wrestling fans read that sentence to say,
\n“The experts may have selected the 45 nominees based on college
\nperformance “\u00a6 but that doesn’t mean I have to restrict myself to that
\nsame criteria. “In other words, the voters may have made the NCAA 75th
\nAnniversary Team honors more of a “lifetime achievement “award than an
\naward to honor excellence on the college mats.<\/p>\n
2. Why a lack of “old-time “wrestlers? <\/p>\n
Look at the NCAA 75th Anniversary Team, and you’ll notice something
\nmissing: No nominees who wrestled before the mid 1950s. In fact, there
\nare only three wrestlers — Hodge, Uetake and Gable — whose college
\ncareers predate 1970.
\nYojiro Uetake won three NCAA titles (1964-1966) and compiled a 57-0
\nrecord while at Oklahoma State.
\nSome fans might argue, “I voted only for guys I’ve seen in action.”
\nStill others might make a case that, thanks to better training and
\nnutrition — or in terms of number of matches wrestled in a college
\ncareer — today’s wrestlers are superior. However, if you were putting
\ntogether a list of “most significant automobiles of all time “would
\nyou leave off the Model T, the Volkswagen Beetle and the original Ford
\nMustang simply because they’re not as sophisticated as today’s models?<\/p>\n
A Second Look at the Overlooked<\/p>\n
When I cast my votes for the NCAA 75th Anniversary Team in early 2005,
\nI had a list of “must-includes “– guys who were so dominant in
\ncollege and\/or whose accomplishments were so historically significant,
\nthey could not be ignored, including (but not limited to) Dan Gable,
\nCarlton Haselrig, Dan Hodge, Cael Sanderson, John Smith, Pat Smith and
\nYojiro Uetake. <\/p>\n
This is NOT to say that the others who made the team are not worthy;
\nfar from it. However, I would ask that you take a look at some other
\nall-time greats who for some reason did not earn NCAA 75th Anniversary
\nTeam honors:<\/p>\n
“\u00a2 Earl McCready: Historically significant as the very first three-time
\nNCAA champ in any weight class (1928-30), Oklahoma State heavyweight
\nMcCready had a perfect career in Stillwater, winning all but three of
\nhis matches by pin — still the highest percentage of wins by pin of
\nany heavyweight. In the 1928 finals, the big Cowboy pinned his
\nopponent in 19 seconds — still an NCAA record as fastest pin in a
\nchampionship bout.<\/p>\n
“\u00a2 The Peerys: It may be bending the rules to list a family of
\nwrestlers, but, this father-son-son combination is worthy of
\nconsideration for their nine total college titles — a record
\nunmatched by any other family. Father Rex Peery won three NCAA titles
\nat 115 pounds at Oklahoma State 1933-35. Elder son Hugh Peery (who was
\nnot on the 75th Anniversary ballot) earned his three championships at
\n115 pounds while wrestling for his dad at Pittsburgh 1952-1954,
\ncompiling a 57-1 record (including a 48-match winning streak); second
\nson Ed (born while Rex was about to win his third title) also won
\nthree NCAA titles for Pitt in the 123-pound class 1955-1957, losing
\njust one of 52 college bouts.<\/p>\n
“\u00a2 Stan Henson: The National Wrestling Hall of Fame Web site says of
\nthis Distinguished Member, “In the never-ending debate over who has
\nbeen America’s greatest wrestler, the name Stanley Henson always
\nreceives plenty of support. “This three-time NCAA champ for Oklahoma
\nState (145 pounds in 1937 and ’38, 155 pounds in 1939) had only one
\nloss his entire college career, and was the first sophomore to earn
\nNCAA Outstanding Wrestler honors (1937). Named Amateur Wrestling News
\nWrestler of the Decade for the 1930s.<\/p>\n
“\u00a2 Bill Koll: Some present-day fans may be familiar with Koll’s rough,
\ntough image; reportedly the “slam “rule was instituted because of him.
\nWhile wrestling at what is now Northern Iowa, Koll earned three
\ncollege titles (1946-47 at 145 lbs; 1948 at 147.5 lbs) and Outstanding
\nWrestler honors two years in a row (the first to do so). Even more
\nimpressive than Koll’s perfect 72-0 record: in his entire college
\ncareer, he was taken down only once, reversed just twice “\u00a6 and pinned
\nall five opponents at the 1948 NCAAs. <\/p>\n
“\u00a2 Dick Hutton: Long before Pat Smith and Cael Sanderson were even
\nborn, this barrel-chested heavyweight for Oklahoma State came
\nincredibly close to becoming the first four-time NCAA champion. After
\nwinning two straight college titles in 1947 and 1948, Hutton lost on a
\nreferee’s decision to Minnesota’s Verne Gagne in the 1949 NCAA finals
\n— his only loss in his college career. He came back to win his third
\ntitle in 1950, concluding with a 42-1-1 record with 15 pins. <\/p>\n
“\u00a2 Chris Taylor: Some fans may only know Chris Taylor for his size.
\nAlthough he only wrestled two years at Iowa State, the surprisingly
\nagile 415-pound Cyclone dominated the heavyweight ranks in his day “\u00a6
\nwinning the title in 1972 and 1973 without surrendering a point in
\neither finals match. While at Ames, Taylor had a perfect 87-0 record,
\npinning 42 of 48 opponents his senior year. <\/p>\n
Perhaps we’ll give these “overlooked “wrestlers a second look when we
\ncast our votes for the NCAA 100th Anniversary Team in 2027!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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