John Smith coaching at the NCAAs in St. Louis (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com)STILLWATER -- Oklahoma State wrestling head coach John Smith achieved a first in his storied career earlier this month as the OSU Division of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources (DASNR) released a new wheat variety in his name called Smith's Gold. Smith's Gold is one of two hard red winter wheat varieties released by OSU in May, with the university also unleashing a variety called Spirit Rider.
"It's a great honor to be honored by the Oklahoma Agriculture Experiment Station, which is such a great part of Oklahoma State has done some amazing things over the years," Smith said. "To be associated with (Coach Edward C. Gallagher) by having a variety of wheat named after me is an honor. I hope that Smith's Gold is very successful."
During Smith's wrestling career, the Cowboy legend was no stranger to the color gold, as he racked up six consecutive world championships, including gold medals at the 1988 Olympic Games in Seoul and at the 1992 Olympic Games in Barcelona. His success has carried over into his coaching career, having lead the Cowboys to five national championships during his tenure.
According to the OSU DASNR website, Smith's Gold features excellent yield potential with strong greenbug and Hessian fly resistance as well as protection against stripe rust earlier in the spring and after flowering in the adult-plant stages. Its parentage includes Gallagher, a popular variety also developed by OSU.
"The name Smith's Gold was chosen to remind wheat producers this new variety carries forward the strong tradition of Gallagher, just as our current wrestling program has carried forward the strong tradition established by Coach Edward C. Gallagher," said Brett Carver, lead researcher for the OSU Wheat Improvement Team.
More than 10,000 bushels of foundation seed for Smith's Gold are expected to be available to current members of Oklahoma Genetics, Inc., a nonprofit that distributes pedigreed seed to producers in Oklahoma and surrounding states.
Wheat is Oklahoma's largest cash crop, with more than 5 million acres of winter wheat sown annually. Additionally, depending on market conditions, 30 to 50 percent of the state's wheat acres will be grazed by stocker cattle over the winter months.
For more information about Spirit Rider, Smith's Gold and other wheat varieties developed by OSU, visit wheat.okstate.edu or contact Oklahoma Foundation Seed Stocks or OGI.
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