Forgotten Iowa/OSU "History"

[BAC]

 

I thought it was interesting that Brands, in the pre-OSU/Iowa press conference, made reference to the "bad blood" between the two teams stemming from Olympic Coach Gable's unabashed advocacy in legal proceedings of his Iowa guy, Randy Lewis, to get the 1984 Olympic team spot instead of the guy that won trials, OSU's Lee Roy Smith (John's older brother), ultimately leading to Gable's censure by USA Wrestling. 

But is there really any lingering bad blood?  Even in the wrestling community, far more don't know the story than know it.  And in Flo's article, they talk about Brands' references to "understanding wrestling history" and "bad blood," but completely whiff in understanding what he was talking about:

“(Dan) Gable, Randy Lewis, Lee Roy Smith, 1984,” Brands said on Tuesday, going through some of the names and dates of the series, which Oklahoma State leads 29-25-2. “You can keep going. And those are things that are real, they're real, and enough time has gone by where maybe it’s, ‘Let's let bygones be bygones,’ but I'm not sure it really works that way. I think that those pains run deep. They run deep.”

https://www.flowrestling.org/articles/12160118-iowa-wrestling-heading-to-oklahoma-state-with-plenty-of-lineup-options

C'mon man.  Brands wasn't "going through some of the names and dates of the series."  This is one very specific event in wrestling history that exploded the rift between Iowa and everyone else, and especially with OSU.  Pretty much no one agreed it was the right outcome, except diehard Iowa fans and the arbitrator, swayed by the head Olympic Coach (and Iowa coach) demanding for a re-wrestle of the last 80-some seconds of the match.  

But it also was 40 years ago.  Its a good bet Gable and the Smith family haven't forgotten, and Brands hasn't, but has everyone else? A longtime Iowa sportswriter authored that article and no one at Flo saw what he missed.

If you're interested, run a google search.  You'll find a number a contemporaneous articles from 1984, which are your best source.  Or check out Wrestlers at the Trials, a neat little book by James Moffatt.  Interesting stuff.

[Mr. PeanutButter]

Very interesting. Maybe the Cornell lawyers should have consulted Gable

[alex1fly]

A Brands brother finding something to be mad about? Say it ain't so

For a long time Iowa and Oklahoma State were the top dawgs in college wrestling. No surprise a rivalry started.

[KCMO2]

I'm guessing Brands, Gilman, and Smith have done their fair share to fuel the bad blood.  And the fact that Brands and Smith are 7-7-1 vs each other probably doesn't help.

 

 

[Gibsonian]

Awesome history, thanks

[Scouts Honor]

  On 2/22/2024 at 4:32 PM, BAC said:

 

I thought it was interesting that Brands, in the pre-OSU/Iowa press conference, made reference to the "bad blood" between the two teams stemming from Olympic Coach Gable's unabashed advocacy in legal proceedings of his Iowa guy, Randy Lewis, to get the 1984 Olympic team spot instead of the guy that won trials, OSU's Lee Roy Smith (John's older brother), ultimately leading to Gable's censure by USA Wrestling. 

But is there really any lingering bad blood?  Even in the wrestling community, far more don't know the story than know it.  And in Flo's article, they talk about Brands' references to "understanding wrestling history" and "bad blood," but completely whiff in understanding what he was talking about:

“(Dan) Gable, Randy Lewis, Lee Roy Smith, 1984,” Brands said on Tuesday, going through some of the names and dates of the series, which Oklahoma State leads 29-25-2. “You can keep going. And those are things that are real, they're real, and enough time has gone by where maybe it’s, ‘Let's let bygones be bygones,’ but I'm not sure it really works that way. I think that those pains run deep. They run deep.”

https://www.flowrestling.org/articles/12160118-iowa-wrestling-heading-to-oklahoma-state-with-plenty-of-lineup-options

C'mon man.  Brands wasn't "going through some of the names and dates of the series."  This is one very specific event in wrestling history that exploded the rift between Iowa and everyone else, and especially with OSU.  Pretty much no one agreed it was the right outcome, except diehard Iowa fans and the arbitrator, swayed by the head Olympic Coach (and Iowa coach) demanding for a re-wrestle of the last 80-some seconds of the match.  

But it also was 40 years ago.  Its a good bet Gable and the Smith family haven't forgotten, and Brands hasn't, but has everyone else? A longtime Iowa sportswriter authored that article and no one at Flo saw what he missed.

If you're interested, run a google search.  You'll find a number a contemporaneous articles from 1984, which are your best source.  Or check out Wrestlers at the Trials, a neat little book by James Moffatt.  Interesting stuff.

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i agree with this... but it was hardly uncommon, in my mind.

back then there were myriad political battles fought.

the book 'wrestlers at the trials'? has some interesting insights into how the team was picked over the history of the olympic trials.

https://www.amazon.com/Wrestlers-At-Trials-wrestling-1960-1988/dp/0979905109

[CHROMEBIRD]

  On 2/22/2024 at 6:04 PM, KCMO2 said:

I'm guessing Brands, Gilman, and Smith have done their fair share to fuel the bad blood.  And the fact that Brands and Smith are 7-7-1 vs each other probably doesn't help.

 

 

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After Thomas Gilman tried to fight the entire Okie State team, Chandler Rogers and a couple of the other OSU guys laughed it off at the post-dual presser and said Gilman wasn't a very bright guy