Gilman Confirms Return to Nittany Lion Wrestling Club

World champion and Olympic bronze medalist Thomas Gilman is on the move and he’s headed back to State College. On Thursday’s Basch-a-Mania podcast, Gilman confirmed he has left the Oklahoma State staff and will return to Penn State’s Nittany Lion Wrestling Club. 

When David Taylor was announced as Oklahoma State’s head coach last year, Gilman quickly followed for a spot on Taylor’s first staff. 

During his year on staff, Gilman worked closely with 125lber Troy Spratley, who ended up advancing to the NCAA finals as the seventh seed and fell to NC State’s Vince Robinson in tiebreakers. 

With Penn State and the Nittany Lion Wrestling Club, Gilman will get to work with true freshman All-American 125 lber, Luke Lilledahl, All-American 133 lber Braeden Davis and promising incoming freshman Nathan Desmond. 

During the interview with Basch, Gilman would not close the door to a potential return to competition himself. Gilman was unable to secure a second consecutive Olympic Team berth in 2024 - as he was beaten at the Trials by fellow Iowa alum Spencer Lee. Shortly after the Trials, he accepted the spot on Taylor’s staff at Oklahoma State. 

Gilman did square off with Cuban U23 world champion Reineri Andreu Ortega in an exhibition during the Cowboys dual with Iowa State. Although he lost by a point, Gilman thought he did well despite not being in normal competition shape. He has made sure to state in the past that he was not retired. 

We’ll follow this story to see if there is more news about a potential return to the mat for Gilman.