North Dakota State Hires 4x All-American Miklus

North Dakota State made a significant addition to its coaching staff today as they announced the hiring of four-time All-American Willie Miklus as an assistant coach. Miklus comes to Fargo after spending the previous five seasons coaching at Michigan State. He got his start coaching as a graduate assistant at Iowa State. 

While at Michigan State, the Spartans sent 25 wrestlers to the NCAA tournament. Of those 25, nine came between the 184-285 lb weight class, which worked closely with Miklus. 

As a competitor, Miklus started his collegiate career at Missouri and earned All-American honors three times for the Tigers. Twice at 184 lbs and once at 197 lbs. As a junior, Miklus won a title at the MAC Championships. 

Miklus transferred to Iowa State to spend his final year of eligibility in his home state. With the Cyclones, Miklus made the Big 12 finals before taking sixth in the nation at 197. 

Miklus will join a North Dakota State program that is headed into its second year under the direction of head coach Obe Blanc. NDSU finished ninth at the Big 12 Championships and sent four wrestlers to the NCAA Championships in Philadelphia. At nationals, two Bison wrestlers advanced to the NCAA Round of 12. 

Gavin Drexler pushed through to earn a spot on the podium and he was eighth in the 149 lb weight class. Freshman Aiden Brenot came up a match shy at 184 lbs. He’ll get a chance to work with Miklus in the 2025-26 season. Both he and Drexler return.