InterMat Staff

Manheim, Pa. -- With the surging importance of the NCAA's Academic Progress Rate (APR) and its use as a measuring stick to gauge academic success and graduation rates, the National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA) is continuing its proactive role in educating member coaches on the APR. The National Association of Athletic Academic Advisors (N4A) is a non-profit organization receiving funding from the NCAA to provide consulting services to intercollegiate athletic departments as it specifically relates to the APR. The NWCA will bring in the N4A at its annual convention next week in Las Vegas. Among the services the NWCA and N4A will be bringing to the table are: • Assist coaches in all collegiate divisions (even though APR only applies to D-I) to implement "best practices" for maintaining a high standard of academic integrity within their intercollegiate wrestling programs. • Assist D-I coaches with specific strategies on how to improve their APR score. • Assist coaches with the development of "APR Adjustment and Waiver" requests submitted to the NCAA. • Be available to consult with all D-I wrestling coaches on an ongoing basis. • Monitor the APR scores of D-I wrestling programs. "We feel putting groups like the N4A right in front of our member coaches will have nothing but benefits for the APR numbers of our wrestling programs nationwide," said NWCA Executive Director Mike Moyer. "We are particularly fortunate that one of the N4A's expert presenters at our Convention, Mark Gumble, was a very successful head wrestling coach at Binghamton University prior to becoming the Director of Athletic Academic Advising & Student Services at Central Florida University. His understanding of the wrestling culture makes him a valuable resource in our efforts to improve wrestling's APR." "At the Division I and III levels, the NCAA requires a member institution to only sponsor six men's sports (on most campuses, football and basketball will be two of them). At the Division II level, it's just five men's sports. Our member coaches need to make sure their teams rank among the top 5 or 6 men's sports on their respective campuses if we are to ensure the future of our sport," said Moyer. "A big way to do this is not be a liability and make your wrestling program a beacon of academic success." A prolonged APR ranking below the NCAA minimum standard of 925 can eventually lead to sanctions levied against the entire athletic department (of that particular wrestling program). "Consequently, we can't take anything for granted. It has to be our goal to elevate every intercollegiate wrestling program above the 925 NCAA minimum APR standard," said Moyer. While the APR is only a Division I issue at the moment, coaches from other divisions are encouraged to attend, since there is constant movement across divisions. "It's important for a coach from a non Division I wrestling coach to understand the nuances of the APR. First, it is a prerequisite to moving up to a Division I job," said NWCA President Ron Mirikitani. "Secondly, adhering to the guiding principles of the APR will ensure a wrestling program at any level maintains a high retention and graduation rate." The NWCA also hopes the expanded educational resources offered by the N4A will help alleviate misconceptions and misunderstandings about the APR. "It's a very misunderstood piece of legislation," explained Moyer. "It has its critics, but it's here and we have to work within the regulations of it, every sport does, so we want to make sure our wrestling coaches are on the cutting edge of that informational curve." "Could schools have applied for waivers and avoided sanctions? Are there things brought up in the APR that weren't caught on a school's compliance end? These are things we all should know before any APR number comes out, so we can not only protect our programs, but entrench them as well." The National Wrestling Coaches Association, established in 1928, is a professional organization dedicated to serve and provide leadership for the advancement of all levels of the sport of wrestling with primary emphasis on scholastic and collegiate programs. The membership embraces all people interested in amateur wrestling. The NWCA, through its organizational structure, promotes communication, recognizes achievement, recommends rules and regulations, sponsors events, and serves as an educational and informational source. Additionally, the NWCA strives to foster the sportsmanship and integrity that are the cornerstones of athletic competition.

Penn State Hosts, Wins 1953 NCAAs At the 2008 NCAAs in St. Louis, Penn State University made headlines by having two of its wrestlers in the finals -- Bubba Jenkins and Phil Davis -- with Davis winning the 197-pound title, and the Nittany Lions claiming third-place honors in the team standings behind Iowa and Ohio State. The 1953 Penn State was the last eastern college to win the NCAAs. That team was honored in a special ceremony at the National Wrestling Hall of Fame in Stillwater, Oklahoma on May 30, 2008 … becoming only the second time an entire team has been so acknowledged Fifty-five years earlier, what was then called Pennsylvania State College made even bigger headlines. Not just for hosting the 1953 NCAAs, but also for winning the team title … the last Eastern college to do so. That 1953 Nittany Lions team was honored in a special ceremony at the National Wrestling Hall of Fame in Stillwater, Oklahoma on May 30, 2008 … becoming only the second time an entire team has been so acknowledged. (In 2007, the 1947 Cornell College of Iowa team was singled out for being the smallest school ever to win a national collegiate wrestling team title. To read about that Cornell team, click HERE.) At the ceremony, four members of the 1953 Penn State team were in attendance: wrestlers Bill Cramp, Gerry Maurey and George Dvorozniak, and team manager Bill Winterburn. Jamie Moffatt, one of the authors of the book A Turning Point about the 1953 NCAAs and the team that won the title, made a PowerPoint presentation. Penn State wrestling before 1953 The wrestling program at Penn State is one of the most enduring of all in the collegiate mat world. The Nittany Lions first took to the mat in 1909, wrestling just one dual meet … losing to Cornell University. (It was one of only eleven losing seasons in a century of Penn State wrestling.) Among the highlights of the first couple decades: In 1921, Penn State was declared the National Dual Team champion after defeating Indiana University and Iowa State … and, in 1927, Charlie "Doc" Speidel became head coach. (More about him later.) In the 1930s, Penn State battled with Lehigh for supremacy in the EIWA; during that decade, one or the other won or tied for the conference crown. In 1936, the wrestlers from State College broke Lehigh's five-year conference team title streak. The following year, Penn State set an EIWA team scoring record, with five individual champs. It was at this time that Penn State began to bring national attention to itself. In 1935, the Nittany Lions had their first NCAA champ, Howard Johnston, who won the 165-pound title. At the 1942 NCAAs -- the last national championships before a three-year hiatus during World War II -- Penn State placed third. After World War II, college wrestling in the U.S. was growing by leaps and bounds … and Penn State was a prime example. In the early 1950s, students were lining up to watch their Nittany Lions wrestle at Recreation Hall; according to an article about the 1953 NCAAs in a December 1989 issue of Town & Gown magazine, at times two thousand fans were turned away! And they saw great wrestling. In the three years from 1950 through 1953, the Nittany Lions won every dual meet … and won the Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Championships (EIWA) each of those years, too. At the 1951 NCAAs held at Lehigh University in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, Penn State had three finalists – Don Frey, Mike Rubino, and Homer Barr. While none of them won an individual title, the Nittany Lions' overall performance put them in third place in the team standings behind perennial powerhouses of the time, Oklahoma and Oklahoma State. Travel restrictions sidetrack Penn State success Given Penn State's success at the 1951 NCAAs -- and its ongoing dual-meet winning streak -- great things were expected of the Nittany Lions mat squad at the next national championships, held at Colorado State University in Fort Collins. This site -- at the time, the most western location ever to host the national wrestling championships -- posed a travel challenge for eastern wrestling programs such as Penn State. (This was before commercial jet travel; back then, teams would have traveled cross-country by train, bus or car.) In 1952, the administration at Penn State determined that it would be too costly to send the entire wrestling team to Colorado for the NCAAs; only wrestlers, boxers and gymnasts who had won Eastern titles would be able to make a trip to a national tournament. "One of the merits to be weighed in determining future policy on this question," said Franklin Lee Bentley, chairman of the Senate Committee on Athletics at Penn State, "was the location of a tournament." The decision by the Penn State administration meant that only three Nittany Lions -- Joe and Dick Lemyre, and Bobbie Homan -- qualified under the new rule to travel to the 1952 nationals at Colorado State. What may have made matters worse for the Penn State program: This ruling effectively tied the hands of the wrestling head coach, Charlie Speidel. He could no longer pick who he considered to be the strongest contender; if that were the case, he might have selected Penn State's proven mat veterans Don Frey or Gerry Maurey instead of Bobbie Homan, who, despite being an EIWA champ, may not have been as prepared to tangle with the nation's top wrestlers. This was borne out at the 1952 NCAAs. Bobbie Homan lost in a preliminary round, and did not place in the 115-pound weight class. However, on a brighter note, Dick Lemyre placed third at 130 pounds, earning All-American honors … while his brother Joe won the 167-pound NCAA title. Despite having only a three-man team, Penn State had two All-Americans, and claimed fifth place in the team standings. "The mountain comes to Mohammed" The travel restrictions tied to the 1952 NCAAs had frustrated head coach Charlie Speidel, who lobbied hard to have the NCAAs come to Penn State in 1953. As he told the decision-makers at a 1952 meeting to determine the host for the nationals the following year, "If Mohammed won't come to the mountain, we'll bring the mountain to Mohammed." The mountain came to Mohammed … or, perhaps more appropriately, the mountain came to Happy Valley. Penn State would host the 1953 NCAAs. It was the school's third time to welcome the NCAAs, having hosted the event in 1930 and 1938. (More recently, the school also served as the site for the NCAAs in 1999.) The man who brought the '53 NCAAs to Penn State Charlie "Doc" Speidel not only brought the 1953 NCAAs to Penn State; it can be argued that he laid the foundation that has made the Nittany Lions one of the top college wrestling programs in the nation even today. First, some perspective. In the first two decades of its existence, the Penn State wrestling program had a quick succession of five head coaches, some lasting only one or two seasons. The sixth, Speidel, put a stop to the revolving door. Charlie SpeidelHired in 1927, Charlie Speidel served as head coach of the Nittany Lions' matmen for a total of 34 years, from the late 1920s up through 1942 … then serving in the Navy during World War II … then returning to coach at Penn State from 1947 through 1964. During that time, Speidel compiled a 191-56-13 overall record, for a winning percentage of .773. With Speidel at the helm, Penn State had six individual NCAA champs, 15 national finalists, and 41 All-Americans … as well as eight EIWA team titles. (This was before Penn State joined the Big Ten conference.) Charlie Speidel grew up in Elizabeth, New Jersey, where he was a Golden Gloves boxer. He was hired by Penn State to be the school's boxing and wrestling coach. Interestingly, he had never wrestled competitively! This was not that unusual among top high school and college wrestling coaches of the era; for example, legendary Oklahoma State head coach Ed Gallagher hadn't wrestled before becoming the Cowboys coach in 1917. According to Town & Gown magazine, when Speidel took over at Penn State in the late 1920s, there were only twenty high schools in Pennsylvania that offered wrestling. The 2003 book about the 1953 NCAAs, A Turning Point (written by Jamie Moffatt and Roger Olesen), reports that large numbers of prep wrestling programs in the Keystone State and the rest of the east were launched in the late 1930s, with the sport coming into its own in the 1940s … a bit later than in other states also perceived as wrestling hotbeds, Oklahoma and Iowa. As Penn State wrestling coach, Speidel had some challenges in building his program. For starters, immediately after World War II, he received limited support from the school's athletic department. According to A Turning Point, in 1949, Penn State had only one wrestling scholarship. (Like many other schools in the country at the time, Penn State was putting its financial resources into its emerging football program.) What's more, unlike college coaches in Oklahoma and Iowa who had limited competition for local high school stars, Speidel was vying for the top prep wrestlers against other college programs located in east, including Lehigh, University of Pittsburgh, and Syracuse, as well as the military academies at West Point and Annapolis. Innovation to make the most of the situation Although faced with some challenges, Charlie Speidel used his creativity to help make his Nittany Lions competitive, not just with the programs in his region, but also against the national mat powers of the era: Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, and Iowa State Teachers College (now the University of Northern Iowa). One way to ensure a steady stream of top recruits was to develop relationships with some of the top high school wrestling coaches in the area. In addition to focusing on the prep programs at Penn State's hometown of State College and nearby Bellefonte, Speidel cultivated friendships with three other top coaches in the east: • Art Weiss, head coach at Clearfield High School in north-central Pennsylvania, which still holds the record for producing the most state champs in the Keystone State, having just crowned its fortieth in 2008. • Henry Borsch, a teammate of Speidel's at Elizabeth High, then at the helm at Newton High School, New Jersey's dominant program at the time. • Frank "Sprig" Gardner, coach at Mepham High School, cradle of New York state champs in the fast-growing suburbs of Long Island. What's more, for Charlie Speidel, recruiting became a family affair. As A Turning Point describes it, "looking for depth and balance and teamwork, (Speidel) also pursued the novel idea of recruiting brothers who wrestled. That way he could get two young men, sometimes three, instead of one. It was a strategy which worked and paid handsome dividends in the 1950s, a strategy which also worked for Dan Gable in the 1980s and 1990s." Speidel's Penn State teams of the early 1950s featured three sets of brothers: The Maureys of Clearfield (Jim, Don, and Jerry) … the Freys of Newton (Don and Doug)… and Joe and Dick Lemyre from Mepham. The 1953 Penn State season The 1953 Nittany Lions continued their incredible winning streak that began back in 1950. During the 1952-53 season, Penn State won all nine dual meets, usually by comfortable margins (including two blowout shutouts, beating University of Virginia 30-0, and the University of Pennsylvania 38-0). According to the write-up about the team in the 1953 Penn State yearbook, the closest duals were against Maryland, and the University of Pittsburgh. In both, the score was tight through most of the evening … until Nittany Lions heavyweight Hud Samson came through with victories to seal the win for his team. (Back then, matches were wrestled in order by weight, concluding with heavyweight.) With the 23-3 win over Army on March 7, Penn State concluded the 1953 dual meet season with 29 straight wins… amassing four times as many points as all their competitors combined! At the 1953 EIWA championships -- held March 13-14 at Princeton University in New Jersey -- Penn State notched yet another conference team title. Two Nittany Lions brought home individual EIWA titles: Dick Lemyre at 130 pounds, and Gerry Maurey at 137. Life in 1953: The big picture At this point, it might make sense to provide a big-picture perspective on life as it was in 1953, the year Penn State, the dominant wrestling program in the East, hosted the NCAAs. The U.S. had come through the Great Depression of the 1930s, followed by further hardships caused by World War II. The Korean War had yet to be resolved, and the Cold War and Communism were becoming major concerns for more and more Americans. In the years immediately after World War II, college enrollments were exploding, thanks in large part to the G.I. Bill, which made it easier for military veterans who had served their country to get a post-secondary education. Many colleges were expanding at an incredible rate, building new housing to accommodate the influx of incoming students, and adding new academic programs, especially those geared to the fields of business, science and mathematics. Yet, despite all this, today's typical track of "graduate from high school, go immediately into college for four years non-stop" wasn't always typical for many male college students. Large numbers of college men found themselves taking time away from their educational careers to serve in the military. In some cases, patriotism drove this decision … or the realization that they weren't quite mature enough for the academic rigors of college. However, oftentimes, the main reason was financial -- there simply wasn't enough money to go to college at the time. Military service factored into the college careers of a number of top wrestlers of the early 1950s. Bill Weick, the 157-pound champ at the 1952 NCAAs from Iowa State Teachers College (ISTC), had to leave school months after winning the title because of financial reasons, and entered the Army. (He came back to ISTC and won his second title in 1955.) After graduating from Perry (Oklahoma) High School in 1951, Dan Hodge served in the Navy, then enrolled at the University of Oklahoma in 1953, where he became a three-time NCAA champ at 177 pounds (1955-57). Getting to the 1953 NCAAs State College -- home to Penn State -- sits in splendid semi-isolation in the lush, hilly terrain of the north-central portion of the Keystone State, hours from the urban hustle and bustle of Pittsburgh and Philadelphia. Sure, the school and its hometown are located a few miles south of I-80, a major east-west artery that links New York City to San Francisco, traveling through major wrestling hotbeds such as Pennsylvania, Ohio and Iowa. However, back in 1953, there was no I-80; the Interstate highway system was still very much a dream. Air travel was a big deal back then; passenger jet service was introduced later in the decade. A Turning Point described how some wrestlers made their way to State College for the 1953 NCAAs: For a farm boy from Iowa or Oklahoma, Penn State was a long trip by train or car… In 1953, Dick Mueller drove with his coach and teammates from Minnesota. It took three days in a snowstorm. Bill Koll took his Iowa State Teachers College team from Iowa via Chicago – two-and-a-half days. Jim Harmon, champion at 157 pounds for Iowa State Teachers, had never been east before. Gus Gatto, his teammate, had never been out of Iowa-Illinois. The 1953 NCAAs at Penn State 1953 National Championships 101 The 1953 NCAAs were held March 27-28 at Recreation Hall, better known by its shortened nickname Rec Hall. The fieldhouse, located in the heart of the campus, was built in the late 1920s, and had a seating capacity of about 6,000. (With substantial upgrades over the years, it is still the home of the Penn State wrestling program. The 1999 NCAAs were held at the newer, much-larger Bryce Jordan Center.) The 1953 NCAAs were held at Rec HallAccording to Jay Hammond's The History of Collegiate Wrestling, 166 wrestlers from 53 schools came to the event, "shattering the records set in 1951." (By comparison, recent-era NCAAs usually have approximately 330 wrestlers.) The University of Oklahoma was the defending team champion, but, as Hammond's book says, "There was no clear tournament favorite, and no school had more than four men seeded." Only three individual champs from the 1952 NCAAs came to Penn State to defend their titles: Hugh Perry, the 115-pound champ from the University of Pittsburgh, whose father Rex was his coach… Joe Lemyre, 167-pound titlist from Penn State, the Nittany Lions' first since Howard Johnston in 1935 … and heavyweight champ Gene Nicks from Oklahoma State. These '52 titlewinners were given a prominent place in the 1953 NCAA program – on page 3, with their three large head-and-shoulders portraits together taking up a third of the page. Two 1952 champs who were eligible to compete at Penn State were unable to defend their titles. Tommy Evans, the University of Oklahoma's champ at 147, suffered a severe knee injury during the season, and was knocked out of contention … and, as mentioned earlier, 157-pound champ Bill Weick had left ISTC for the Army. Taking to the mats for Penn State … Host team Penn State was very well represented at the 1953 NCAAs, with a man in each weight class except heavyweight. (The usual big man for the Nittany Lions, Hud Samson, moved down to 191, one of two weights that Penn State didn't compete in during the regular season) Here's a brief biographical sketch on each of the Nittany Lions who competed at the national championships in their home gym: • 115: William Crump, had not competed during the regular season. (This weight class, along with 191, was added specifically for the NCAAs… one that Penn State and most colleges normally didn't wrestle during the year.) • 123: Bobby Homan, brought a 7-1 record to the 1953 NCAAs – his only loss was to Pitt's defending champ Hugh Peery. Homan, the 1952 EIWA champ, was a 19-year-old sophomore from Wantagh, New York. • 130: Dick Lemyre, had a blemish-free 6-0 record, including two pins… though, during the season, had a spell of failing to make weight. Teammate Larry Fornicola stepped forward to win three straight bouts. The 20-year-old Lemyre, a junior from Merrick, New York and the fabled Mepham wrestling program, was a two-time EIWA champ (1952 and 1953). • 137: Gerry Maurey had built a near-perfect 7-1 record to the NCAAs (including 4 falls), with his only loss being to Maryland's Rod Norris. He capped off the season with an EIWA title. The 20-year-old junior from Clearfield, Pennsylvania was the Keystone State's first four-time state champ. • 147: Don Frey, a co-captain of the team, had a 5-1-2 record, with three pins. (His only loss was to Cornell University's Frank Bettucci.) The 5'10", 21-year-old junior originally hailed from Newton, New Jersey. • 157: Doug Frey, twin brother of Don, brought a 4-1-3 season to the '53 NCAAs… with his only loss being to Ed Rooney of Syracuse. • 167: Joe Lemyre -- brother of Dick -- had a very impressive wrestling resume as 1952 EIWA and NCAA champ. The 22-year-old senior -- and team co-captain -- from Merrick, New York had a 7-2 season; those two losses were to Army's Al Paulekas, and Maryland's Ernie Fischer. • 177: George Dvoroznick usually wrestled at 167. (Joe Lemyre would usually start the season at 177, then move down to 167.) The native of Plymouth, Pennsylvania had a 3-3-1 record during the 1953 season. • 191: Hudson "Hud" Samson, the strapping (6'3") senior from Pittsburgh, usually wrestled heavyweight but gave up considerable poundage to other big men of the EIWA. However, that didn't stop Samson from amassing an 8-1 record in 1953. His only defeat was at the hands of Lehigh's Werner Seel, 3-0. In addition to being the Nittany Lions' big man of the mat, Samson was also on the varsity golf team! What was expected from the hosts of the 1953 NCAAs? Pittsburgh Press sports editor Chester Smith was incredibly optimistic in his article for the event program: "(Coach Charlie) Speidel's current team is so well-rounded and has been so impressive in dual meets, at State they're entertaining a generous hunch that the national title won't leave town when the NCAA is held at State College." Match fundamentals of the era There are significant differences in how college wrestling matches were run fifty-five years ago. For starters, freshmen were not eligible to compete at the 1953 NCAAs. A regulation match lasted nine minutes, with three, three-minute periods. If a match ended in regulation with a tie score, there was no overtime period; the referee determined the winner. In 1953, to score a pin, a wrestler had to hold his opponent's shoulders to the mat for a full two seconds, not one second as today. The brackets for each weight were designed for sixteen wrestlers -- half of today's brackets -- though some weight classes had up to 24, while some had less than half that number. To win a national title, most wrestlers had to wrestle four matches. Unlike today, conference championships such as the Big Tens or EIWAs were not determinants as to who qualified for the NCAAs; basically, it was up to an individual program and coach as to who wrestled at the national championships. Let's go to the action … According to The History of Collegiate Wrestling, there were few surprises on Friday, the first day of action at the 1953 NCAAs. Three schools -- Oklahoma, Iowa State Teachers, and Penn State -- each advanced four men into the semifinals. To fully understand how close the race was for the team title at the 1953 NCAAs, the rules governing the point-total calculations were much different back then, compared to today. In 1953, a team earned six points for an individual title, four points for runner-up, two points for third place, and one point for fourth. (Note that only the first four places were determined in each weight class; these placers earned All-American honors.) Wrestlers earned one point for their team by scoring a pin, or winning by default. In addition, if a wrestler lost in his bracket, he could only advance into the consolation bracket if he lost to a finalist. However, it wasn't a strictly by-the-numbers event. In A Turning Point, Cornell University's co-captain Don Dickason described the atmosphere inside Rec Hall for the 1953 NCAAs: It became evident early on that Penn State had a good chance of gaining the championship. Each individual match was lustily cheered, for or against. If it was a Penn Stater, the cheering was for him. If not a Penn Stater, then the cheering of the home crowd depended on the opponent, someone threatening Penn State's lead, or vice-versa. Cornell was not about to win the tournament, everyone assumed, so our guys were cheered and supported, except when we wrestled Penn Staters." Now, let's see how each of those Penn Staters did on their home mats in front of their hometown crowd: 115 pounds Penn State's Bill Cramp shut out Arkansas State's Jackson, 3-0, in the opening round … but was pinned by Bob Christensen of Northwestern in the quarterfinals. Christensen had won his first match 6-2 over Gary McCain of Oregon State, and got a 4-2 win over Southern Illinois University-Carbondale's Robert Whelan to make it to the title round. The other finalist, University of Pittsburgh's Hugh Peery, defending champ at 115, pretty much breezed his way through his side of the bracket, getting victories by the scores of 9-4, 6-2 and 11-1. Hugh PeeryThe finals: Hugh Peery, coached by his father Rex, a three-time NCAA champ at Oklahoma State for Ed Gallagher in the 1930s, held his opponent Bob Christensen to a single point. Final score: 5-1 Peery. In 1954, Peery won his third NCAA title; his younger brother Ed also won three NCAA titles for Pitt (1955-1957), making the Peerys the only father-son-son combination to win a total of nine individual championships in nine tries. Hugh Peery is the only champ from the 1953 NCAAs to be inducted into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame. He went on to become a dentist. The first four placers in each weight class earned All-American honors. At 115, the All-Americans were Hugh Peery (first place), Bob Christensen (second), Richard Marks of Illinois (third), and Art Heft of Franklin & Marshall (fourth). 123 pounds Bobby Homan of Penn State lost his opening-round match to Al Crancer of Arkansas State, 10-2, and did not go into the consolation bracket. The two favorites in the weight class were Don Reece of Oklahoma, and Minnesota's Dick Mueller. The Sooner won his first two matches by fall, and got a 3-0 shutout victory over Pat McCarron of Iowa State Teachers in the semifinals. Mueller held Joe Lobaugh of Oklahoma State scoreless, 3-0, then beat Crancer 5-2 in the quarterfinals. In the semifinals, the Golden Gopher got a 7-1 win over Harvard's John Lee to advance to the finals. The finals: This match was critical to Oklahoma's team standings; if Don Reece won, at bare minimum the Sooners would tie for the team title, and perhaps win it outright. For that reason, the Penn State fans at Rec Hall were solidly behind Minnesota's Mueller. The Golden Gopher had been called earlier in the match for an illegal slam, and was behind Reece by two points. With 90 seconds left, Reece executed a tight sit-out… but Mueller pancaked him to his back, getting the fall at 4:45 in the second period. Mueller later became a two-time Big Ten champ, but did not win another NCAA title. He was a high school wrestling coach in the 1960s, and, according to A Turning Point, runs an Internet commerce company in Minneapolis. In addition to Dick Mueller and Don Reece, the other 123-pound All-Americans were ISTC's Pat McCarron (third place), and Harvard's John Lee (fourth). 130 pounds Penn State's Dick Lemyre pinned his first opponent, Michigan State's Ed Casallichio, in 49 seconds… then edged Jim Howard of Ithaca, 6-5, in the quarterfinals … then advanced to the finals on a referee decision over Oklahoma's Harold Reece (Don's brother). The other finalist was Norvand "Snip" Nalan, two-time Big Ten champ from the University of Michigan. He pinned South Dakota State's Williams at 7:11 in the opening round, got a 7-2 victory over Toledo's Richard Lefter in the quarterfinals, and a 7-4 win over Colorado State's Bob Datteri in the semis. Norvand NalanThe finals: Both Lemyre and Nalan were undefeated. If Lemyre won, Penn State would clinch the title. According to A Turning Point, Lemyre felt his match with Reese was the best of his career … but it took a lot out of him. Nalan, a two-time Iowa high school state finalist from Mason City, was described as being "just a little snip" -- a guy who "couldn't do more than 3 pull-ups," according to Michigan teammate Andy Kaul. However, the Wolverine started the match with four unanswered points in the first two periods. There was a flurry of scoring from both men later in the bout, but Nalan came out on top, 7-5. The Penn State fans would have to wait for their team title. Nalan went on to win a second NCAA title in 1954, then had a long high school coaching career in Iowa and Minnesota. Earning All-American honors at 130: Norvand "Snip" Nalan (first place), Dick Lemyre (second), Ithaca's Jim Howard (third), and Ed Casalicchio of Michigan State (fourth). 137 pounds Gerry Maurey of Penn State drew a bye in the first round, then defeated Sam Ruzic of Iowa State, 3-1. Maurey then lost to Len "Gus" DeAugustino of Lock Haven -- also a product of Pennsylvania -- in the quarterfinals, 4-2. In the consolation bracket, Maurey beat Delance Duncan of Washington State, 4-1, then topped Oklahoma State's Donald Thompson, 6-3, and, finally, defeated Oklahoma's Ron Scott 10-2 to place third. After defeating Maurey, DeAugustino dispatched Ron Scott in the semifinals, 9-6… putting him into the finals, where he went up against Norton "Pete" Compton, Big Ten champ from the University of Illinois, who seemed to breeze through his side of the bracket with scores of 9-3, 7-0, and 5-0. The finals: Gus DeAugustino was able to score a key takedown in the first period, then ride his Illini rival Compton the rest of the period to hold the score at 2-0. The only other scoring the entire match: each wrestler got a one-point escape. Final score: 3-1 for DeAugustino. The champ from Lock Haven went on to a long coaching career at North Allegheny High School outside Pittsburgh (one of his most famous wrestlers: University of Iowa All-American Ray Brinzer), and at Duquesne University. The All-Americans at 137, in order of placewinning: Len "Gus" DeAugustino, Norton Compton, Penn State's Gerry Maurey, and Oklahoma's Ron Scott. 147 pounds Penn State's Don Frey got a bye in the first round, then got a 6-1 victory over Auburn's Bains. In the quarterfinals, Frey shut out Ian MacEwan of Kent State, 6-0 … but, in the semifinals, had his title dream derailed by Cornell University's Frank Bettucci, 7-3. In the consolation bracket, Don Frey pinned Leo Ballinger of Wyoming at 5:40, then got a referee's decision over Charles Uram of Pittsburgh to place third. Before beating Don Frey in the semis, Frank Bettucci got a decisive 8-2 win over Warren DePrenger of Cornell College of Iowa… then got the fall over Wyoming's Ballinger at 5:14 … and, in the quarterfinals, topped Pitt's Uram, 7-3. Meanwhile, on the other side of the bracket, Bob Hoke of Michigan State got a 10-3 win over Clayton Carothers of Lincoln… a referee's decision over 1952 finalist Tom Titsworth of Oklahoma in the quarterfinals … and, in the semifinals, shut out Bob Norris of Iowa State Teachers College, 3-0, to advance to the finals. The finals: According to A Turning Point, Bob Hoke -- recently crowned Big Ten champ -- was a good eight inches taller than Frank Bettucci. After a scoreless first period, the Spartan got a reversal, followed by an escape by the Cornell wrestler to knot the score 2-2 at the end of the second. Bettucci scored another escape at the start of the third, then got a takedown to go ahead 4-2. Towards the end, Hoke got an escape to come within one point … but then Bettucci got a takedown at the buzzer to win 6-3. In addition to winning the title, Frank Bettucci won the event's Outstanding Wrestler award. Bettucci made the 1956 U.S. Olympic Team but injured his knee just before the event and was unable to compete. 147-pound All-Americans (in order of placement): Frank Bettucci … Bob Hoke … Penn State's Don Frey… and Charles Uram of Pittsburgh. 157 pounds Doug Frey of the Nittany Lions held Springfield's Bill Bock scoreless, 8-0 … but then lost his next match, 4-3, to Ed Rooney of Syracuse, and did not make it into the consolation bracket. This weight class featured arguably the most famous wrestler at the 1953 NCAAs, even though he lost his opening-round match, and never won an NCAA title. However, even folks who don't know a takedown from a touchdown know Donald Rumsfeld, who wrestled for Princeton University at 157. At the 1953 NCAAs, Rumsfeld lost his first bout to Jim Ellis of Indiana University. The two men who worked their way through the 24-man bracket -- the largest at the tournament -- to the title bout were Dan Sniff of Colorado State, and Jim Harmon of Iowa State Teachers College. Sniff drew a bye in the first round, then pinned Virginia Military Institute's Berry at 4:05. In the quarterfinals, Sniff got a referee's decision over Oklahoma's John Eagleton, then, in the semis, defeated Pittsburgh's Joe Solomon, 6-1. Harmon shut out Hofstra's Turley in the opening round, 4-0, then got an 8-6 win over Vito Perrone of Michigan State. In the quarterfinals, Harmon beat Maryland's Bob Fischer, 7-5… then, in the semis, beat the man who beat Rumsfeld, edging out Indiana's Ellis, 3-2. The finals: Although only a sophomore, Jim Harmon had been to the NCAA finals before, having lost to Oklahoma's Tommy Evans in 1952. In the first period, Dan Sniff scored a takedown, followed by an escape by Harmon to make the score 2-1. At the end of two periods, the score was tied at 4-4. In the third, Harmon rode his opponent the entire period, scoring two points riding time. The final score: 6-4 for ISTC's Jim Harmon. After the NCAAs, Harmon ran out of money for college, so he joined the Navy. He came back to Iowa State Teachers College in 1958 and graduated the following year, then returned to the Navy before going into ranching, then retirement. All-Americans at 157: Jim Harmon … Dan Sniff … John Eagleton of Oklahoma … and Michigan State's Vito Perrone. 167 pounds Penn State's Joe Lemyre was the second of three 1952 NCAA champs able to defend their titles at Rec Hall. In the first round, the Nittany Lion drew a bye … then pinned Nowitzky of Virginia Military Institute at 4:09 … then, in the quarterfinals, got a decisive 9-2 win over Oklahoma State's Carl Wood. However, Joe Lemyre's hopes of a title repeat were dashed in the semifinals on a referee's decision in favor of Don Dickason of Cornell University. In the consolation round, Lemyre bounced back, getting a win over Cornell of Iowa's Warren Sonnenman, then a 6-2 victory over Brown's Dana Eastham to claim third-place honors. Don DickasonDon Dickason had three of his matches end by referee's decision. The Big Red wrestler won his first match over Nordquist of Illinois, 3-0 … then got the ref to declare him the winner over Eastham of Brown in the second. In the quarterfinals, he got a 7-5 win over Dale Ward of Army. Dickason's second ref's decision was his win over Joe Lemyre, which propelled him into the finals … Also in the finals: Frank Marks of the University of Oklahoma. The Sooner racked up a 6-3 win over Indiana's Pankow … then a 6-2 victory over Lock Haven's Lentvorsky … then, in the quarterfinals, Marks beat Cornell of Iowa's Sonnenman, 3-1. In the semifinals, Frank Marks got a referee's decision of his own, over Ernie Fischer of Maryland, to advance to the finals. The finals: How appropriate that the two wrestlers who made it into the finals thanks to referee decisions in the semifinals would have their title bout outcome determined by … you guessed it, the official. If Marks had pinned Dickason, Oklahoma would have a chance to catch up with Penn State in the team standings. But there was no fall; at the end of regulation, score tied at 1-1, Dickason was declared the winner by referee's decision -- his third of the tournament! After winning the title, Dickason served in the Navy, was a wrestling referee, then worked 33 years in admissions at his alma mater Cornell and at Penn State. The 167-pound All-Americans: Don Dickason … Frank Marks … Penn State's Joe Lemyre … and Dana Eastham of Brown University. 177 pounds George Dvoroziak of Penn State lost his opening-round match to Michigan's Dick O'Shaughnessy, a two-time Big Ten champ, 8-1, and did not go into the consolation rounds. The 177-pound bracket was one of the lightest, with only twelve wrestlers. The two who made it to the finals: Ned Blass of Oklahoma State… and Al Paulekas of Army. Blass had drawn a bye in the first round, then got a 5-3 decision over Bob McCullough of Wyoming in the quarterfinals. In the semis, the Sooner trounced Bob Wirds of Iowa State, 16-8, in what A Turning Point described as "a takedown clinic." On the other side of the bracket, Paulekas dominated the competition, scoring a huge 13-4 win over Toledo's Ed Lanzi … pinning Don Lindell of Cornell of Iowa at 8:32 in the quarterfinals … and shutting out O'Shaughnessy 4-0 in the semifinals. The finals: Ned Blass was a prime example of the Oklahoma State wrestling style in the 1950s and early 60s -- "take 'em down, let 'em up," seemingly scoring takedowns at will. A Turning Point described his title match: "Pualekas -- a short, stocky, straight-ahead wrestler – was no match for Blass' takedown artistry. Blass held back and wrestled a conservative match, maneuvering Paulekas at will, keeping him off-balance and on the defensive… Result: Blass 8, Paulekas 4. The Army cadet never really had a grip on Blass the entire match." The following season, Ned Blass won his second title at 177, then served in the Navy, then was a teacher and wrestling coach in San Diego. (Interestingly, Blass and Gene Nicks were not only teammates at Oklahoma State, but also at Ponca City (Oklahoma) High.) The four All-Americans at 177: Ned Blass… Al Paulekas… Iowa State's Bob Wirds… and Ed Lanzi of the University of Toledo. 191 pounds Penn State's Hudson "Hud" Samson usually wrestled heavyweight for the Nittany Lions; however, because he typically weighed in at only 205 during the regular season, he was able to easily drop down to the 191-pound class that was unique to the NCAAs. On his home turf at Rec Hall, Samson made short work of his rivals on his side of the 15-man bracket, pinning Lou Williams of Oregon State at 3:40 of the opening round … getting a 6-1 win over Iowa State's Mel Walden in the quarterfinals … and holding Dick Torio of Toledo scoreless in the semis, 2-0, to make it to the title bout. Samson's opponent in the finals was Charles Weber of West Chester State Teachers College. He had defeated Minnesota's Pete Veldman, 6-1 … gotten a fall over Oklahoma's Doc Hearon (a Golden Gloves boxer as well as a wrestler) at 8:08 in the quarterfinals … and, in the semifinals, earned a 5-2 victory over Gus Gatto of Iowa State Teachers College. The finals: Early in the first period, the Nittany Lions' varsity golfer/wrestler took Charles Weber to the mat, then rode his rival the rest of the period. In the second, Samson started in the top position, then as A Turning Point describes it, "gradually worked Weber to his back. At 4:15 of the match, Samson got the fall with a tight body press. The partisan fans rocked Recreation Hall with exuberant stomping and joyful exaltation. With two pins en route to the title, he scored a remarkable eight of PSU's 21 total team points." Hud Samson"Samson made Penn State's national championship possible, and -- in addition -- it was probable that it would not have happened if Samson had not wrestled." After the 1953 NCAAs, Hud Samson received the William N. Neidig Award for "the senior who contributes the most to the success of Penn State wrestling." 191-pound All-Americans: Hud Samson … Charles Weber … Dick Torio of Toledo… and Gus Gatto of Iowa State Teachers. Heavyweight Penn State did not have an entrant in the unlimited weight class. (Up until the 1980s, there was no top limit on this weight class.) Ironically, the heavyweight class was the lightest in terms of number of wrestlers, with just eleven big men vying for the title. Gene Nicks of Oklahoma State was the defending champ. Nicknamed "Ninety-Second Nicks" for his propensity to pin foes fast, the beefy-but-boyish-faced, 238-pound Cowboy had drawn a bye in the first round … got a 6-1 win over Pittsburgh's Eldred Kraemer in the quarterfinals … then pinned UCLA's football/mat star Jack Ellena at 4:59 of the semifinals to find himself in the finals for the second straight year. Going up against the champ was long and lanky Dan McNair of Auburn University, who was 6'2" and usually weighed in at 210… almost twenty pounds lighter than Nicks. Like his Cowboy rival, McNair had earned a bye in round one … then, in the quarterfinals, held Tom Megele of Hofstra scoreless, 5-0. In the semifinals, the New Orleans native got a referee's decision over Ed Husmann of Nebraska to make it into the finals. The finals: There was no scoring in the first period. In the second, Nicks took top; A Turning Point described the Cowboy as "having a reputation as a brutal rider." However, he didn't turn the Auburn senior, so the score was still tied at zero. Here's how McNair described the final period in a 2003 interview for the book: "I rode him hard to start when he went to get up, I slipped in the cross-body ride. All the energy started flowing out of Nicks as I broke him down. I was able to get in a half-Nelson and started cranking him a few times … I got some back exposures on him." The match ended scoreless … but the referee raised Dan McNair's hand as the new heavyweight champ -- the first NCAA titlist from the deep South. After graduating from Auburn, McNair became a professor. Nicks went on to win his second heavyweight title at the 1954 NCAAs. Heavyweights earning All-American honors: Don McNair … Gene Nicks … Pittsburgh's Eldred Kraemer … and Jack Ellena of UCLA. It's a wrap! In terms of team standings, Penn State earned 21 points … putting it in first place, knocking out 1952 team titlewinners, the Oklahoma Sooners, who placed second with 15 points. Cornell University was two points behind, placing third. Tying for fourth place -- two points behind the Big Red -- was Oklahoma State, and Iowa State Teachers College, each with 11 points. Penn State won the team title with 21 points and had five All-Americans and one championIn terms of individual champs from the top five teams, Penn State had one (Hud Samson) … Oklahoma had none … Cornell had two (Frank Bettucci and Don Dickason) … Oklahoma State had one (Ned Blass) … and ISTC had one (Jim Harmon). In terms of All-Americans from the top five teams, Penn State had five … Oklahoma had four … Cornell had two (their two NCAA champs) … Oklahoma State had two … and ISTC had three. With Gene Nicks and Joe Lemyre each losing in their finals matches, only one of the three defending champs -- Hugh Peery of Pittsburgh -- was able to reclaim his title. The Nittany Lions after 1953 In the December 1989 article in Town & Gown magazine, Penn State coach Charlie Speidel recalled, "Our team of 1953 had the team title all sewed up following the consolation round when Don Frey, Gerry Maurey, and Joe Lemyre each contributed third-place points. It mattered not whether Dick Lemyre or Hud Samson won titles. Their second-place scores would have been enough. But it was nice to have Samson come through." "There's no question but that special credit for a good season should go to the unsung heroes -- the second-string men who stay in harness and battle in spite of almost knowing that they will never surpass the top wrestlers on their team." "Coaching is not just teaching maneuvers and skills. A feature responsibility is to develop a happy family relationship and ‘clannishness' among the men. Everybody must be kept interested and on the same plane as the so-called prima donna. They all want to belong." What happened to Penn State after winning the 1953 NCAA team title on its home turf? In 1954, the Nittany Lions had a 6-2 dual meet record. They placed second at the EIWA championships, and came in third in the team standings at the national championships held at the University of Oklahoma in Norman. At the 1954 NCAAs, Penn State had no individual champions, but two All-Americans -- Joe Krufka at 177, and Bill Oberly at 191. Both men placed third in their respective weight classes. The following season, Penn State built a 5-2 record during the regular season, and were second in the EIWA conference team title race. The 1955 NCAAs, held at Cornell University, had three Penn State wrestlers in the finals, with Larry Fornicola and Bill Oberly winning individual titles (137 and heavyweight, respectively), while Joe Krufka lost to Oklahoma's Dan Hodge in the 177-pound title bout. All three earned All-American honors. In 1956, Penn State compiled a 7-1 regular-season record, placed second at the EIWAs, and fifth at the NCAAs hosted by Oklahoma State. That year, the Nittany Lions had no individual champs, and two All-Americans: David Adams at 147, and Bill Oberly at heavyweight. 1957 was the end of a great run for the Nittany Lions. That season, Penn State's dual-meet record was 6-2-1; the team won the EIWA conference title at Rec Hall. A couple weeks later, Speidel's matmen headed southwest to the University of Pittsburgh, where John Johnston won the 130-pound NCAA title, and John Pepe placed second at 137, both earning All-American status. The following year, Penn State had a dual-meet record of 2-4-2, placed fourth at the EIWAs, and tied for fourteenth in the team standings at the 1958 NCAAs. At the end of the 1964 season, Charlie Speidel retired from the Penn State program. Taking the helm of the Nittany Lions was another wrestling/coaching legend, Bill Koll, who had been a three-time NCAA champ at Iowa State Teachers College in the late 1940s, then became their head coach. (To read more about Bill and his son Rob Koll, head coach at Cornell University, click HERE.) In the years since Charlie Speidel left State College, Penn State has had twelve individuals win NCAA championships, including three two-time titlewinners: Andy Matter, 1971-72 … Jeff Prescott, 1991-92 … and Kerry McCoy, 1994 and 1997. Most recently, at the 2008 NCAAs, Penn State added yet another individual champ to its record books -- Phil Davis at 197 pounds -- and placed third in the team standings. Based on current in-house talent and recent recruiting, the Penn State program is expected to contend for individual and team titles for some time to come … all built on the foundation laid by Charlie Speidel and his Nittany Lions of more than a half-century ago. Two books were instrumental in the writing of this story: Jay Hammond's The History of Collegiate Wrestling (available for purchase at www.wrestlingstats.com), and the 2003 book specifically about the 1953 NCAAs, A Turning Point by Jamie Moffatt and Roger Olesen, which is available by contacting emoffatt@aol.com. Special thanks to Paul Karwacki , assistant sports archivist in Special Collections at Penn State University Library for providing a wealth of original source materials. DVD copies of the original black-and-white, silent films of the 1953 NCAA finals are available for purchase direct from the host school. For contact information for the Penn State University archives, email mark@RevWrestling.com To see more images from the 1953 NCAAs, including photos of all the finalists, visit the Yahoo group Vintage Amateur Wrestling Photo Annex 3 by clicking HERE.

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. -- Konrad Dudziak continued his quest to make the U.S. Olympic team this past weekend when he won the championship in freestyle at 211.5 pounds at the University World Team Trials. Dudziak is currently wrestling with the New York Athletic Club while taking a redshirt year from Duke to compete for an Olympic spot. Dudziak swept Brent Jones of Cavalier Wrestling Club in the finals, 4-4 and 3-0, and then 3-0 and 3-0, to take the title. Jones is the University National Champion and one of the top contenders for the Olympic spot at 211.5 pounds. Dudziak, a native of Bayonne, N.J., is now considered a favorite for the Olympic spot at 211.5 pounds, which is an incredibly strong weight class in the U.S. In 2006 at Duke, Dudziak placed third in the ACC Tournament as a sophomore. He went 9-0 in tournaments with three falls in 2006-07 before making the decision to take a year off to compete at the Olympic level. Dudziak will return to Duke this fall as a redshirt junior and as a top contender for winning NCAA's at heavyweight. Dudziak will next compete in the U.S. Olympic Team Trials from June 13-15 in Las Vegas, Nev. He is scheduled to wrestle Jones again in the first round and if victorious would most likely face Willie Parks, who he also just defeated at the University World Team Trials. If successful again against that pair Dudziak will be in the finals of the Olympic Trials mini-tournament. The winner of that tournament faces the No. 1 ranked American wrestler in a best-of-three series to represent the U.S. in the Olympics. "Konrad, very realistically, can win the mini-tournament and challenge to represent the U.S. in Beijing at the 2008 Summer Olympics," said Duke coach Clar Anderson. "He has come so far so fast that winning the right to represent the U.S. in the Olympics is no longer a boyhood dream, but now an expectation."

The 9th Annual Celebrity Golf Tournament will be played Friday, June 27 at Irv Warren Memorial Golf Course in Waterloo, IA. The tournament is a five person best shot and is the biggest fundraising event for the museum each year. Celebrities committed to play include Olympians Randy Lewis, Dan Hodge, Barry Davis, Tom Peckham and Chuck Yagla, former NFL stars Marv Cook and Matt Blair along with Nikita Koloff, former Major League Baseball umpire Don Denkinger and many others. This is a good opportunity to meet some of the greatest stars of the wrestling world and successful athletes from other sports as well. Outing Flyer Call Kent Sesker at 319-233-0745 to reserve your spot.

Minnesota Golden Gopher wrestlers Zach Sanders, Jake Deitchler, Ben Berhow and Brent Eidenschink will help represent the United States at the 2008 Junior National Championships in Istanbul, Turkey July 29-August 3. Sanders (Wabasha, Minn.) qualified by winning the 55 kg./121 lbs. freestyle division at last weekend's FILA Junior World Team Trials in Colorado Springs, Col., and incoming Gopher recruit Deitchler (Ramsey, Minn.) did the same in the 66 kg./145 lbs. Greco-Roman division. Rising sophomore Berhow finished second at the Trials in the 120 kg/264.5 lbs. freestyle division and will serve as an alternate on the team, while rising junior Eidenschink was the runner up at 96 kg/211.5 lbs. in Greco-Roman and will also serve as an alternate. Both wrestlers will represent their country June 20-22 at the Junior Pan American Championships in Cuenca, Ecuador. Sanders defeated David Taylor in two of three championship round matches to qualify for his first-ever U.S. Junior World Team, while Deitchler (who will also compete for a spot on the U.S. Olympic Team in mid-June) defeated Esai Dominguez in the final two matches of their best-of-three battle. The 2008 U.S. Olympic Team Trials will take place June 13-15 in Las Vegas, Nev., and Deitchler will be competing for a spot on the Greco-Roman team at 66 kg/145.5 lbs. Sanders, who was redshirted last season, finished second at FILA Junior Nationals last month.

AMES, Iowa -- Casey Cunningham, who as assistant head wrestling coach the past seven years at Central Michigan guided 18 Chippewa All-Americans and 35 Mid-American Conference champions, has been named as an assistant coach on the Iowa State wrestling coaching staff head coach Cael Sanderson announced Wednesday. At CMU, Cunningham was a part of a program in which he was the 1999 NCAA 157-pound champion. Cunningham, the 2008 Pan American Games wrestling silver medalist who is retiring from international competition at the end of this season, replaces former ISU assistant coach Tim Hartung. Hartung resigned to accept a job in private business. Cunningham will assume coaching duties Aug. 1. "I've been around Casey as a competitor and he has a tremendous work ethic and understanding of the sport," Sanderson said. "He's coming from a program at Central Michigan that experienced great success. He spent seven years as an assistant coach under (Central Michigan head coach) Tom Borelli. Casey is a great coach and folkstyle wrestler. He trains at a weight class that is an ideal fit for our coaching staff." The Chippewas finished tied for seventh in the team standings of the 2008 NCAA Championship with 69 points. The point total is the most CMU has ever scored at the national tournament. Cunningham worked mainly with the 165-pounders up to the heavyweight wrestlers at CMU, including 2008 NCAA 197-pound runner-up Wynn Michalak. Central Michigan has totally dominated the Mid-American Conference, winning the last 10 regular season championships and the last seven tournament championships. "Iowa State is a team that contends for a national title year in and year out and with the team they have coming back next year, the national championship is the goal," Cunningham said. "There are other good teams coming back, but I believe Iowa State can win the NCAA Championship and that excites me. I am excited to get in the room and work hands on with the guys. With six All-Americans coming back, I want to help the Cyclones in their goal of winning NCAA individual and team titles." Cunningham is anxious to get started. "I'm excited to work alongside Cael and (ISU associate head coach) Cody [Sanderson] and it will be great to get a new perspective, another take and another view [on wrestling]," Cunningham said. "I was at Central Michigan for 13 years as a competitor and coach and am very thankful for that opportunity. Working under Coach Borrelli was a great experience and I think that it will help to bring another approach to the ISU wrestling room as well. I'm looking forward to the new challenge." Cunningham capped off his collegiate career in 1999 by winning the NCAA 157-pound title. He was CMU wrestling's first Division I national champion and only the second individual national champion in any sport in school history. He was named the Chippewas' Most Valuable Wrestler all four years of his career. The 32-year-old Middleton, Mich., native was an All-American as a junior and senior, finishing as the national runner-up in 1998 before winning the NCAA title the next season. He won three MAC championships (1996, 1997, 1999) and was twice named MAC Wrestler of the Year (1998, 1999). Cunningham qualified for four NCAA Championships and twice participated in the National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA) All-Star Dual. His championship resume also includes two Midlands championships, where he was named Champion of Champions during his senior year. Cunningham also shined in the classroom, where he was CMU wrestling's first three-time Academic All-MAC selection. He earned first-team NWCA Academic All-America honors twice and was an honorable mention pick twice. Cunningham finished his college career with a 134-19 four-year record. He holds several CMU records including career wins (134), career winning percentage (.876) and single-season winning percentage (.971 in 1998-99). He ranks sixth on the career pins list with 31. He received his bachelor's degree in sociology with an emphasis in criminal justice from CMU in 1999. At Fulton (Middleton, Mich.) High School, Cunningham was an All-American who captured two state championships. He earned all-state honors three times and had a career record of 176-15. In 2002, he took second at both the U.S. Freestyle Nationals and World Team Trials wrestling at 163 pounds. He won the Dave Schultz International Open in 2003 along with taking third at the U.S. Freestyle Nationals and the World Team Trials. He finished third at the U.S. Nationals in 2004. Cunningham resumed his international career in 2007, finishing second at 163 pounds at both the U.S. Senior Nationals and World Team Trials. Cunningham married the former Tara Nott in July of 2003. Tara won a gold medal in weightlifting at the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games. The couple has two sons, Hayden William (3) and Asher Michael (2) and a third son due in July. In his free time, Casey enjoys spending time with his family, hunting and playing cards. His younger brother, Ryan, was a three-time All-American for CMU.

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. -– The 1953 Penn State wrestling team that won the NCAA National Championship will be honored this weekend by the National Wrestling Hall of Fame. Penn State's 100 year centennial in the sport will be recognized as well. The Hall of Fame's annual weekend of activities will feature a reception on Friday evening in Stillwater, Okla., where the 1953 Penn State Nittany Lion wrestling team will be honored for its national championship run in 1953. Penn State had one national champion and five total All-Americans that year in winning the team title. Head coach Charlie Speidel's squad was led during the entire season by captain's Donald Frey and Joe Lemyre. Hud Samson won the individual national title at 191 while Dick Lemyre was second at 130. Jerry Maurey was third at 137, Frey was third at 147 and Joe Lemyre was third at 167. The 1953 season was one of historical success for Penn State. The Nittany Lions went 9-0 in dual meets by a combined score of 206-52. Penn State won the EIWA title at Princeton and then hosted the NCAA Championships in Rec Hall and blazed its way to the team crown. Penn State's performance at nationals that year was amazing. The Nittany Lions, beyond the five All-Americans and one national champ, posted a 21-9 combined record and had five pins. The Nittany Lions also recently celebrated 100 years of wrestling, with head coach Troy Sunderland's team capping a century of success with a third place finish at the 2008 NCAA Championships, claiming four All-Americans and crowning yet another national champion. The annual weekend of activities in Stillwater at the National Wrestling Hall of Fame will take place on Friday and Saturday and features a full slate of activities and events.

Six members of the Augsburg College wrestling team are traveling to central Asia for a 15-day training, mission and service trip. Four Auggie wrestlers, two coaches and four other wrestlers will be in central Asia from May 25 to June 8, training in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, and Dushnabe, Tajikistan. In addition to training and competing, the wrestlers will do mission and service work, along with visiting historical and cultural sites in the two countries. Two-time All-American and 2008 NCAA Division III 125-pound national champion Seth Flodeen (JR, Cannon Falls, Minn.), 141-pound national runner-up Jason Adams (SO, Coon Rapids, Minn.), 141-pounder Lucas Murray (FY, Anoka, Minn.) and 141-pounder Jake Saatzer (FY, Mound, Minn./Mound-Westonka HS) will join Augsburg head coach Sam Barber and assistant coach John Peterson (a 1976 Olympic wrestling champion) in Uzbekistan and Tajikistan. Also on the trip will be Steve Barrett, a three-time All-American wrestler at Oklahoma State (1975-77) who currently works as a representative for Athletes in Action in Russia; Olivet College (Mich.) NCAA Division III All-American wrestlers Jason Brew (second at 157) and Kyle Vanderhyde (fourth at 174); NCAA Division III 165-pound national runner-up Ben Hoover from Maranatha Baptist Bible College (Wis.); and Ravshan Uraimov, a three-time national boxing champion from Kyrgyzstan. This is the third time that Barber has led a wrestling contingent overseas. In 2006, Barber served as head coach of the National Wrestling Coaches Association's Division III Cultural Exchange trip to Ukraine. In 1997, he served as an assistant coach on the NWCA Cultural Exchange trip to England. Barber completed his first season as Augsburg's head coach in the 2007-08 school year, his seventh year as a member of Augsburg's coaching staff. In 2008, Augsburg finished third at the NCAA Division III national championships, marking the 20th straight year that Augsburg has placed the top four in the team standings -- a record currently unmatched by any other NCAA wrestling program in any division. Augsburg claimed five All-Americans, marking the 20th straight season that Augsburg has had five or more All-Americans and 22nd time it has accomplished the feat in its 26 seasons of NCAA Division III competition.

University of Northern Iowa head wrestling coach Brad Penrith today announced his 2008 recruiting class with the addition of 12 wrestlers to the Panther roster for next season. Blayne Beale (Davenport, Iowa/Davenport West HS) secured 66 wins over the past two seasons, which included a pair of top-eight finishes at the state tournament. Beale placed 7th in 2007 and then bettered that with a 4th-place finish in 2008 in the 285-pound weight class. David Bonin (Broussard, La./Comeaux HS) was a three-time state champion in Louisiana in the 160-pound weight class. Bonin was a perfect 59-0 as a senior. He tallied a 56-1 record as a junior and was 57-3 as a sophomore. His four-year prep record was 216-10. Bonin was a four-time state placer after earning third in the state as a freshman. Bonin is ranked No. 27 in the nation at 160 pounds by Wrestling USA. He is also ranked No. 20 in the nation among seniors at 160 pounds by Wrestling USA. Tannor Burke (Cresco, Iowa/Cresco-Crestwood HS) was a state runner-up as a junior in 2007 at 119 pounds. He was a state qualifier as a senior at 130 pounds. Burke posted a record of 69-10 over the past two seasons as a prep wrestler. Cody Delagardelle (Jesup, Iowa/Gilbertville-Don Bosco HS) placed third in the state as junior at 125 pounds, and followed that up with a fourth-place finish as a senior at 130 pounds. Delagardelle tallied a mark of 77-18 over the past two seasons. Steven Fitzgerald (Fresno, Calif./Clovis East HS) was a three-time state qualifier in California. He reached the state tournament as a 103-pounder in 2006, as a 112-pounder in 2007 and as a 125-pounder as a senior in 2008. He placed third at the California Interscholastic Federation tournament as a senior, while compiling a record of 56-4. Fitzgerald is ranked No. 30 in the nation at 125 pounds by Wrestling USA. He is also ranked No. 20 in the nation among seniors at 125 pounds by Wrestling USA. Alec Hoffman (Davenport, Iowa/Davenport North HS) is a four-time state qualifier and a three-time state placer. He was a runner-up in both 2007 (135 lbs.) and 2008 (140 lbs.) and placed fourth in 2006 (130 lbs.). Hoffman has posted a record of 125-11 over the past three seasons, including a 44-1 mark as a junior. Hoffman's brother, Eric, was a wrestler at North Dakota State from 2006-2008. Hoffman is ranked No. 18 in the nation among seniors at 140 pounds by Wrestling USA. Ryan Jauch (Crystal Lake, Ill./Crystal Lake Central HS) qualified for the Illinois state tournament on four occasions. He placed fourth in the state as a senior after posting a season mark of 40-3. He had a four-year combined prep record of 145-22. As a freshman, he was a freestyle state champion and runner-up in Greco-Roman. Then as a sophomore, Jauch was a freestyle and Greco state champion. As a junior, he placed fifth in the nation in Fargo, N.D., in the Grego competition. He tallied a fourth-place finish at the Senior Nationals in 2008. Jauch is ranked No. 20 in the nation at 119 pounds by Wrestling USA. He is also ranked No. 9 in the nation among seniors at 119 pounds by Wrestling USA. Mitch Johnson (Truro, Iowa/I-35 HS) became his high school's first four-time state placer after compiling a career mark of 139-23 as a Roadrunner. Johnson placed eighth as a freshman (119 lbs.), fourth as a sophomore (125 lbs.), second as a junior (130 lbs.) and third as a senior (135 lbs.) in the state tournament. He went 39-3 as a senior while serving as team co-captain and was voted Mr. Wrestler & Leader by his prep team. He also was on the honor roll for all four years of high school. Anthony Meza (Vista, Calif./Vista HS) is a three-time state placer and two-time state champion from California. He posted a 47-1 record as a senior. He also placed sixth at the 2006 state tournament. Meza is ranked No. 11 in the nation at 152 pounds by Wrestling USA. Meza will also play baseball for the Panthers. John Simon (Parkersburg, Iowa/Aplington-Parkersburg HS) is a three-time state placer and a four-year starter. He placed sixth as a sophomore at 152 pounds, sixth as a junior at 160 pounds and seventh as a senior at 160 pounds. Simon tallied a career mark of 122-42 and was a two-time all-conference pick. Simon placed fifth as a junior at the Folkstyle Nationals in the UNI-Dome. Grant Sutter (Barneveld, Wis./Dodgeville HS) is a three-time state placer and two-time state champion in Wisconsin. He placed fourth at 103 pounds in 2006 and then won the state title at 103 pounds in 2007 and 112 pounds in 2008. Sutter tallied a 167-20 career prep record, while earning all-conference honors all four seasons. He earned four top-eight finishes in Fargo including a fourth-place finish in Greco and fifth-place finish in freestyle in 2004. He placed sixth in 2005 and seventh in 2007 in the Greco competition. Sutter placed sixth at 112 pounds at the 2008 Senior Nationals. Sutter is ranked No. 7 in the nation among seniors at 112 pounds by Wrestling USA. Terrance Young (Minneapolis, Minn./Roosevelt HS/Iowa Central CC) was a two-time Minnesota state champion and followed that up with a junior college national championship in 2008. He also placed third at the nation at the JC nationals in 2007. 2008 UNI Wrestling Recruits Blayne Beale, 285 lbs. (Davenport, Iowa/Davenport West HS) David Bonin, 165 lbs. (Broussard, La./Comeaux HS) Tannor Burke, 133/141 lbs. (Cresco, Iowa/Cresco-Crestwood HS) Cody Delagardelle, 133/141 lbs. (Jesup, Iowa/Gilbertville-Don Bosco HS) Steven Fitzgerald, 125 lbs. (Fresno, Calif./Clovis East HS) Alec Hoffman, 141/149 lbs. (Davenport, Iowa/Davenport North HS) Ryan Jauch, 133 lbs. (Crystal Lake, Ill./Crystal Lake Central HS) Mitch Johnson, 141 lbs. (Truro, Iowa/I-35 HS) Anthony Meza, 157 lbs. (Vista, Calif./Vista HS) John Simon, 165 lbs. (Parkersburg, Iowa/Aplington-Parkersburg HS) Grant Sutter, 125 lbs. (Barneveld, Wis./Dodgeville HS) Terrance Young, 125/133 lbs. (Minneapolis, Minn./Roosevelt HS/Iowa Central CC)

Wes Hand just completed his second season as an assistant coach under Tom Brands at his alma mater, the University of Iowa. Prior to coming to Iowa, Hand spent four seasons as an assistant coach at Virginia Tech (2002-2006). As a competitor for the Hawkeyes, Hand compiled a 102-32 career record at heavyweight. He was runner-up at the 2000 NCAA Championships and a two-time All-American. Wes HandRevWrestling.com recently caught up with Hand and asked him about this past national championship season, the situation at 133 and 141 heading into next season, his experience at Virginia Tech, the similarities between Dan Gable and Tom Brands, whether he has aspirations of becoming a collegiate head coach, how he expects Brock Lesnar to fare in MMA, and much more. You came into this past season ranked anywhere from third to fifth in the preseason, yet you won the team title by 38.5 points and more than doubled your point-total from 2007. Obviously, the expectations were high coming into this season. But did the team exceed even the coaching staff's expectations? Hand: I don't think so. I think it's a big credit to the kids. The guys just came together. I don't know if they really exceeded our expectations. I think we knew that they were all very capable of doing well. I think it's just a credit to them on how they came together. I think by the end of the year, I don't think there was much doubt on our team as far as whether we were going to win or not. You dropped a dual meet on January 5 at home to Oklahoma State. After that loss, you ran the table the rest of the way, won the Big Tens, and the NCAAs. What impact did that loss have on the team? Hand: I think it was probably a wakeup call for our guys. It was an eye opener. We had a big event coming up the next week, the National Duals, and they responded pretty well. To go into a tournament that we hadn't won in 13 or 14 years and win it, that was big. At the beginning of the season, Dan Gable stepped down from his coaching position at Iowa and returned to his role as special assistant to the athletic director. How much was Gable directly involved with the wrestling program this past season? Hand: He's involved with the sport. He's active and involved with the sport. He and Tom have a close relationship. He's as involved as the rules let him be. He's as involved as he can be to give advice and answer any questions when needed. Was he in the room at times? Hand: He comes in and watches every once in a while. But the rules don't allow a lot. Within the rules, he will be around. Wes HandMatt Fields obviously came to Iowa with extremely high expectations. He might not have lived up to the expectations that he had for himself or that others had for him. But how gratifying was it to see him on the All-American podium in his final season? Hand: It's always nice to have somebody who comes into a program leave with some credentials. This was his last chance to do that. I think probably sitting here today with him thinking about how he did, I think he probably feels a little bit of a sense of accomplishment. At the same time, I think he probably realizes that he was probably as good as the other guys, the guys who were in the finals and the eventual champion. So I think in some ways, there is maybe some relief for him. But at the same time, I think he probably realizes that he is a pretty good wrestler himself. Mark Perry capped off a great collegiate career with his second NCAA title. Does he have plans to continue wrestling and competing internationally in freestyle? Hand: I don't know if he will. I think he should. He's obviously pretty good. I don't know what he will do. He's still recovering from his knee injury. He hasn't trained much this spring, so we'll see. He would do very well if he decided to do that. Wes HandLooking ahead to next season, you have a couple weights, specifically 133 and 141, that will be extremely competitive in your room. Some might say it's potential problem because there will be very good wrestlers left out of the lineup. Conversely, some might say it's a great problem to have because competition in the room makes wrestlers better. How do you view those situations? Hand: I think it's a great problem to have. That has been one of the goals of our program since Coach Brands has taken over … to create depth in the room. It will be up to the individuals to see who comes through at those weights. But it's a great problem and we love to have that kind of problem. Explain the process the coaching staff uses to determine the starting lineup at Iowa. Hand: There is no process used by the coaching staff. They will earn it. It's pretty simple. They will compete. They will show where they are at in competition. And that's how they will earn the spot. You came to Virginia Tech before Tom Brands arrived in Blacksburg. What brought you to Virginia Tech? Hand: That was back in 2002. I had been coaching at Iowa for two years in a lower capacity as a volunteer and strength coach. I was ready to make a move up. The coaching position opened up. We had been out there for camps a couple years before that, so I was familiar with the place. It was just a good opportunity for me. Looking back on it, it was one of the best things I have ever done in my life. Just to pick up and leave. It wasn't about money. It wasn't about anything else except being a coach. It was the best thing I've done so far. While you were an assistant at Virginia Tech, the program had a lot of success. The Hokies won the ACC regular season title, set a school record for dual meet wins (16), and had a school-record five wrestlers qualify for the NCAA Championships. Overall, how would you characterize your experience at Virginia Tech? Hand: A lot of learning. A lot of doing things out of your comfort zone. You come from a program like Iowa and you go out to Virginia Teach … and there are a lot of things that are different. It's an eye opener in a lot of ways as far as finances and fans. To characterize it would be just that it was a learning experience. You realize what else is out there. You go 800 or 900 miles from Iowa City and it's a lot different. Are there still hard feelings about the Virginia Tech transfer situation? Or is that all in the past? Hand: I think it's in the past. I think all parties have moved on. It's over. There is nothing anybody can do about it now. Wes HandYou had an extremely successful career as a wrestler at Iowa. You won over 100 matches and were a two-time All-American, finishing as NCAA runner-up as a senior. You competed in some freestyle events after your collegiate career. What went into your decision to hang up the competitive shoes and move into the coaching arena full time? Hand: I just wanted to coach. My passion is coaching. That's the direction I wanted to take. It's hard to do a couple things well. I wanted to put all my focus into coaching. That was the main thing. My passion wasn't in competing anymore. It was in coaching. As a competitor, you were coached by Dan Gable, who was the head coach, and Tom Brands, who was an assistant. Now, as a coach, you have worked on the same staff as both Brands and Gable. Brands has said that he soaked up and filed away every word Gable said. How much similarity do you see between Gable and Brands as coaches. Hand: I will put it to you like this. Their personalities are different. Their goals are identical. Both of them are very driven. Fanatical. Their approach to the sport is almost identical. They just have two different personalities. Do you personally get more nervous now as a coach or when you were a competitor? Hand: I really don't know. At times, when you're coaching, you just wish you could go out there and do it yourself and wrestle. Other times, you have so much confidence in your athletes, you just kind of sit back and let them do their work. It just kind of depends. It's definitely an interesting feeling when you're sitting in the corner of a big match in wrestling. It's an experience of a lifetime, really. Just to be able to sit there in the national tournament, in a big match, and watch one of your athletes who has trained his butt off to just go out there and win that match, it's a great feeling. You have obviously had a lot of success as an assistant coach. Do you have aspirations of becoming a head coach? And if so, would it have to be at the Division I level? Hand: I think it's just whatever opportunity presents itself to me. Do I have to be a head coach? No. I like my job now. Everything is going well. If an opportunity would present itself to me, I would obviously take a look and see. But I just focus on what I'm dong now and try to do the best job I can. Brock Lesnar (Photo/Sherdog)You faced Brock Lesnar as a collegiate competitor three times. You defeated him once. Lesnar is now fighting in the UFC. As someone who competed against Lesnar, how successful do you think he can be in mixed martial arts (MMA)? Hand: I think he can be real good. I've put my hands on a lot of guys when it comes to wrestling and workouts and he has some things that are going to be real tough for anybody to compete with. I think he probably showed that a little bit in his first UFC fight. It's just that he probably got beat on experience. Once he tightens some of that stuff, I think he's going to be pretty good if that's something he wants to commit to and do well. I would be very surprised if he didn't have a lot of success.

The Stanford wrestling program has announced the ten newcomers who have committed to wrestle for the Cardinal next season. The ten members of the class of 2012 represent six states and come with numerous high school accolades. Hailing from Mountain View High School in Boise, Idaho, 174-pounder Spence Patrick is a two-time Idaho State Champion and three-time state placer. Matt Sencenbaugh, a Washington State Champion and two-time state finalist from Auburn High School in Auburn, Wash., will likely wrestle at 125 pounds for the Cardinal next season. Stanford also brings in a pair of two-time California state placers in Timmy Boone from Poway High School (141 pounds) and Mike Kent from Vacaville High School (149/157 pounds). Additionally 165-pounder Victor Haug (St. Paul School/Concord, NH), 141/149-pounder Juan Jurado (Belmont School/Belmont, NH), 165-pounder Kyler Hasson (Sante Fe Christian High School/San Diego, Calif.), 141-pounder Kevin Bretthauer (Valley Catholic High School/Beaverton, Ore.), 133-pounder Will McLellarn (Tigard High School/Tigard, Ore.) and 174-pounder Alex Profitt (Advanced Technologies Academy/Las Vegas, Nev.) have committed to wrestle for the Cardinal next season.

EVANSTON, Ill. -- Northwestern's Jake Herbert earned a spot on the 2008 U.S. University World Team by winning the 185-pound title at the University World Team Trials held in Colorado Springs last weekend. Herbert will be making his second trip to the World University Championships after capturing bronze in 2006. The World University Championships are set to take place in Thessaloniki, Greece, from July 9-13. Hebert will also compete at the U.S. Olympic Team Trials in Las Vegas from June 13-15. Herbert and other athletes were using this as a tuneup for the Olympic Trials. "I was there (World University Games) in 2006 and got bronze," Herbert said. "I look to go in 2008 and get gold. I have been there once and know what it is about. This is also my early warm up for the Olympic Trials and the Olympic Games. It is progressing great. I am ready to go. Now I need to get mentally ready and get my mind and body feeling good." Herbert captured his title by a two-match victory over Phil Keddy of Iowa. He won the first bout, 5-3, 5-1, and then captured the second match, 2-1, 4-0. Herbert was a 2007 NCAA champion for Northwestern and has taken an Olympic redshirt year this season to pursue a spot on the Olympic team.

This week America's Wrestling Radio Talk show comes to you LIVE from the Brute Adidas Studio in Des Moines with Host's Steve Foster, Chris Arns and Jeff Murphy. I'll be making the return journey from the Induction weekend at the Wrestling Hall of Fame in Stillwater, Oklahoma. This is a stacked show so I invite you to tune in and listen to the boys and their guests from 9:06 AM CST to 11:00 AM CST throughout Iowa on AM 1460 KXNO and Takedownradio.com Scheduled to join TDR this week: 9:05 *Chris Bono- Head Coach of the Mocs at the University of Tennessee Chattanooga. The wrestling program ranked 15th nationally in average attendance this season in a poll of NCAA Division I wrestling teams. The figures were compiled InterMat. The Mocs, who wrestle at Maclellan Gym on the UTC campus, averaged 975 fans for six home dates in 2007-08. Chattanooga drew a season-high 1,600 fans for its Dec. 16 matchup with No. 8-ranked Missouri. Wrestlers Steve Hromada and Javier Maldonado were named to the Division I All-Academic Team for the 2007-08 season, the National Wrestling Coaches Association announced. Hromada and Maldonado, both outgoing seniors for the Mocs, were NCAA Championships Qualifiers in March. 9:20 Mike Natvig- Glen Brand Class of 2008 Inductee, Natvig won two NCAA championships for the West Point team, capturing titles at 147 pounds in both 1962 and ‘63. He graduated with an overall record of 47-7-1 and is considered the most successful wrestler in the history of West Point. Though never a state champion in high school, Natvig was a star at Decorah High School, placing second in the 1958 state meet at 138 pounds. He retired from the Army in 1991 as a lieutenant colonel and today lives in Highlands Ranch, Colorado. 9:35 *Andrew Pariano- Assistant Head Coach of the Wildcats at Northwestern University. NCAA qualifiers Nick Hayes (Council Bluffs, Iowa/Lewis Central), Keith Sulzer (Cleveland, Ohio/St. Edward) and Mike Tamillow (Oak Park, Ill./Fenwick) have earned All-Academic Team honors from the National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA), while NU placed 14th among all schools in cumulative team GPA -- the only program to finish in the top-15 at the 2008 NCAA Championships and in grade point average. For Tamillow, the selection is the second of his career. He is also a three-time Academic All-Big Ten recipient. For Sulzer and Hayes, this marks their first NWCA All-Academic team honor. Hayes is a four-time Academic All-Big Ten honoree and Sulzer earned Academic All-Big Ten honors this season -- his first in the starting lineup. Herbert Wins Freestyle Championship at University World Team Trials Herbert earns spot on 2008 U.S. University World Team 10:05 Tom Borrelli- Head Coach of the Chippewa of Central Michigan. Borrelli has announced the signing of Marcel Dubose (Sterling Heights, Mich./Oak Park HS) to a National Letter of Intent. Dubose becomes the fifth member of CMU's 2008 signing class. He also plans to join the CMU football program as a walk-on. "We're obviously very excited that Marcel chose our school," Borrelli said. "I'm excited about the direction that our wrestling and football programs are headed, and I think the attractiveness of both programs made this feel like the right fit for Marcel." Dubose, who is projected as a 197-pounder in college, was a three-time high school state champion. He won a pair of Division 3 state titles at Highland Park High School before winning a Division 1 championship at Oak Park as a senior. Dubose was 37-0 as a senior and finished runner-up to fellow CMU signee Ben Bennett (Rockford, Mich./Rockford HS) in voting for Michigan's Mr. Wrestling award. He finished his prep career with an overall record of 149-7. Dubose won the 215-pound championship at the National High School Coaches Association Seniors Nationals in March. He was one of three members of CMU's 2008 signing class to win a national championship at the event. Dubose also won a Junior Greco-Roman national championship in 2007. Dubose was named to the michigangrappler.com Dream Team and was ranked as the No. 3 recruit in the state of Michigan by michigangrappler.com. Dubose joins fellow signees Bennett, Scotti Sentes (Fort Myers, Fla./Riverdale HS), Eric Cubberly (Pemberville, Ohio/Eastwood HS) and Ben Sergent (West Milton, Ohio/Troy Christian HS) in the Chippewas' 2008 recruiting class. CMU finished tied for the seventh as a team at the 2008 NCAA Championships with four Chippewas claiming All-America honors. CMU has won 10 consecutive Mid-American Conference titles and seven straight conference tournament championships. 10:20 *Brian Smith- Head Coach of the Tigers of Missouri- Missouri senior Tyler McCormick (Leawood, Kan.) and sophomore Maxwell Askren (Hartland, Wis.) earned National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA) Academic All-America honors as announced May 6. This marks the sixth time in seven years that at least one Tiger grappler has received NWCA recognition for work in the classroom. 10:35 Max Askren- MU Tigers 197 wrestler. Missouri 2007 graduate Ben Askren, the Tigers' first-ever two-time NCAA Champion, claimed top honors at the U.S. Freestyle National Championships in Las Vegas, Nev., after besting Tyrone Lewis, 3-0, 3-2 in the 74 kg (163-pound) championship finals. Askren won four straight matches to take first in the prestigious national event. Wrestling some of the toughest competition in the nation, Askren earned a win over Scott Owen of the New York Athletic Club by way of injury, followed by an 8-4, 6-0 win over Ramico Blackmon (New York Athletic Club) and 4-0, 5-2 win over Ryan Churella (New York Athletic Club). Askren's final win was by a 3-0, 3-2 decision over Lewis.

This week's edition of "On the Mat" will feature Russ Cozart and Harley Race. Cozart has been the head wrestling coach at Brandon High School in Florida for the past 28 seasons, compiling a 384-1 dual meet record. His teams have won 17 Florida State Team Championships and he has coached 65 individual state champions. That one lost was the first for the school in the last 34 years. In that time period Brandon set the longest winning streak in the history of any high school sport of 459 straight wins. This streak was recently documented by ESPN in a two-hour television event entitled "The Streak". Race is a member of the George Tragos/Lou Thesz Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame located in the Dan Gable International Wrestling Institute and Museum. Known as "Handsome Harley Race" for much of his career, the Missouri native was one of the ring's best brawlers, taking on everyone from coast to coast. A true legend in the professional wrestling business, Race was an eight-time NWA World champion. "On the Mat" is a weekly wrestling radio program that airs every Wednesday night. This week's broadcast can be heard live from 6-7 p.m. Central Standard Time. The Dan Gable International Wrestling Institute and Museum in Waterloo, Iowa, hosts the show. "On the Mat" can be heard live on the Internet at www.kcnzam.com or locally in Northeast Iowa on 1650, The Fan. Feel free to e-mail radio@wrestlingmuseum.org with questions or comments about the show.

Lincoln -- Nebraska All-America wrestler Jordan Burroughs translated his success for the Huskers to the international level on Saturday as he won the 66 kilogram (145.5 pound) division of the FILA Junior World Team Trials in Colorado Springs, Colo. Burroughs, wrestling in the freestyle division, defeated Michigan's Kellen Russell in two consecutive sets (5-0, 4-0 in the first and 6-0, 4-0 in the second) to win the best-of-three series and claim a spot on the U.S. world team. "This is a good step towards making the 2012 Olympic team," Head Coach Mark Manning said. "[FILA World Championships] is a good opportunity to wrestler some of the best kids in the world at his age level." Burroughs will now travel with the U.S. delegation to the FILA World Championships in Istanbul, Turkey, from July 29 to Aug. 3. Manning will also travel with him as a coach for the U.S. team. The Sicklerville, N.J. native qualified for the FILA Junior World Team Trials by winning the FILA Junior National Championships in Las Vegas last month. The national championship automatically qualified him for the finals at the world team trials. Burroughs, a sophomore, claimed his first All-America honors in March with a third-place finish at 149 pounds.

Event: UFC 84: Ill Will Date: May 24, 2008 Venue: MGM Grand (Las Vegas, Nevada) This may be one of the most intriguing UFC cards yet, with three featured events, including the lightweight title fight between BJ Penn and Sean Sherk. Once dominant Wanderlei Silva attempts to halt his three fight losing streak against Keith Jardine, who is coming off a shocking win over Chuck "the Iceman" Liddell. And, Tito Ortiz sings his final UFC swan song against the undefeated Lyota Machida. Let's start with the two other main card events: In a bizarre match-up, an unknown Slovakian, Goran RELJIC (7-0) takes on seasoned UFC veteran, Wilson GOUVEIA (10-4), who has won four in a row in the octagon. But, Reljic's record shows victories over only ONE opponent with winning record! And, he has never fought in the US before, let alone in the octagon. What's up with this match-up? GOUVEIA @ -125 takes this to the mat and wins with a second-round submission armbar. Undefeated Thiago SILVA (12-0) should have little trouble disposing of Antonio MENDES, who is on an 11-fight win streak over almost four years. Silva is a beast who recently destroyed Houston Alexander with a first round KO. His impressive resume includes seven straight victories by KO. Let's add Mendes to the list. SILVA @ -650 KO's Mendes in the first round. Many think that Wanderlei SILVA (31-8-1) is washed up. Three straight losses to Mirko Cro-Cop, Dan Henderson, and the Iceman have others wondering. His opponent tonight is the always overachieving Keith "The Dean of Mean" JARDINE (13-3-1). The former bounty hunter has been on a roll that includes beating Forrest Griffen, as well. But, Wanderlei's been in this game since '96 and he has fought them all. I believe that Silva's Muay Thai style is made to order for a much-needed victory over Jardine. Houston Alexander overwhelmed Jardine. Why can't Wanderlei? Jardine will need rto stay away from Silva in the same manner he avoided Chuck and fired away with some victious leg kicks. Wanderlei won't be a standing target like Liddell. He will be a charging bull like Vitor Belfort. Take SILVA @ �170 to get back on track. Tito ORTIZ hates UFC President Dana White. And vice versa despite what corporately correct things Dana might say. This is the legendary Tito's last UFC fight. He's moving on, mostly to acting in the movies. His wife is a porn star and his garage is full of hot cars. But, the once scary ground-and-pounder has lost his fire, I think. And, Lyoto MACHITA certainly has the patience and skills to exploit that. Machida's style is simple: karate. Karate? Man, that's the most one-dimensional technique out there, chopping boards with leg kicks? Come on. Please … yet Machida wins, and wins, and wins … ask Stephan Bonnar, Rich Franklin, BJ Penn, and Rameau Soukoudjou. Machida is a defensive fighter and Tito will come after him. But Machida will make him miss over and over again. This one will go to the judges decision where MACHIDA @ �185 wins convincingly. And, in the lightweight title fight, two rivals who REALLY don't like each other, will get it on as BJ "The Prodigy" Penn (12-4-1) takes on Sean "The Muscle Shark" SHERK (32-2-1), who is coming off a 6-month suspension for "alleged" steroid use, which he denies, of course. Nobody is less popular than Sean Sherk. BJ owns this crowd. They love him, and he is ready to go. BJ is the better technician, but Sherk is a cardio freak who may wear BJ down with his relentless attacks. Both have lost to Matt Hughes and Georges St. Pierre. But, that's about it. I see Sherk getting caught in an overzealous move, with the rubber band man grabbing his extended neck and finding a way to almost dislocate his own knee joints in gaining an impressive third-round triangle choke submission over the Muscle Shark. Take BJ @ -260 to take home his Hawaiian bacon. Okay, now let's try to make some money using our fictitious $1000 bankroll. On the main card: Lay $182 to win $70 on BJ Penn over Sherk. Lay $102 to win $60 on Wanderlei Silva over Jardine. Lay $148 to win $80 on Machida over Ortiz. Lay $130 to win $20 with a bridge jump on Thiago Silva over Mendes. Lay $100 to win $80 on Gouveai over Reljic. And, on the undercard: Lay $51 to win $30 on Salaverry over Palihares (second-round submission). Lay $78 to win $30 on Soukoujou over Nakamura (first-round KO). Lay $63 to win $30 on Clementi over Etim (second-round submission). Lay $51 to win $30 on Yoshida over Koppenhaver (decision). Lay $60 to win $20 on Kim over Tan (second-round KO). Lay $34 to win $20 on Carwin over Wellisch (decision). That's $999 at risk to win $470. Plus, a buck tip for the cocktail waitress! We have all favorites with no upsets. I'll have to see that to believe it … Enjoy the fights. I know I will. More later. The UFC Monster

TEMPE, Ariz. -- Arizona State University Vice President for Athletics Lisa Love announced Friday that the athletic department is fully reinstating the sport of varsity wrestling, effective immediately, due to financial support from local civic leadership. The reinstatement of wrestling gives ASU 21 sports in its varsity athletic program. "It is with great pleasure that I announce the reinstatement of the varsity sport of wrestling at ASU," says Love. "The wrestling community, both locally and nationally, accepted this as a challenge to do something wonderful for the sport. ASU is forever grateful for that passion and unwavering support. Something special is happening on our campus thanks to civic leadership that cares deeply about ASU wrestling." ASU had announced on May 13, 2008 that it was discontinuing the sport of wrestling due to the rising cost of operating a 22-sport varsity program. It was determined at that time that sponsoring a 20-sport program would better fit ASU¹s athletic financial profile. Love indicated at the time that if the wrestling community were able to raise enough financial support the sport could be reinstated. That commitment is there and the sport will continue at Arizona State. Love said that fundraising for the sport of wrestling will be an ongoing process. The objective is not just to sponsor wrestling as a varsity sport, but to position the sport as one of the top programs in the country. The Sun Devil wrestling team is a member of the Pacific-10 Conference. For more information regarding giving to assist the Sun Devil varsity sports programs, visit www.sundevilclub.com.

St. Cloud, Minn. -- The third annual St. Cloud State University Wrestling Best Ball Classic golf outing will be held on Friday, August 22, at Wapicada Golf Club in Sauk Rapids. Registration for the event will begin at Noon, with a shotgun start for the "best ball" scramble tournament at 1 p.m. The cost for the event is $100 per person, which includes green fees, cart, dinner, tournament gift, door prizes and much more. A post-tournament social in the Wapicada clubhouse will begin at 5 p.m., with the dinner and awards ceremony taking place at 6 p.m. The SCSU Wrestling Best Ball Classic will also offer hole sponsorships for interested individuals and corporations for $125 per hole. The proceeds from this event will benefit the St. Cloud State University wrestling program. SCSU will begin its 58th season of intercollegiate wrestling in 2008-09, as Head Coach Steve Costanzo enters his third season with the Huskies. In 2007-08, the Huskies charted an impressive 13-2 record and placed 12th at the NCAA Division II national championships. This marked the Huskies' most wins in a season since they posted a 14-5 record in 1972-73. SCSU wrestlers earning All-America status in 2007-08 were junior Brad Padgett at 184-pounds, senior Nick Wilkes at 197-pounds and freshman John Sundgren at 157-pounds. To download a registration form, please visit this website: http://www.stcloudstate.edu/ athletics/support/documents/ 2008SCSUWrestlingBestBallClassic.pdf To register for the 2008 SCSU Wrestling Best Ball Classic, please call the SCSU Wrestling Office at 320-308-2996 or e-mail Steve Costanzo at sscostanzo@stcloudstate.edu

FARGO, N.D. -- North Dakota State wrestler Jacob Bryce was named to the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District 7 University Division men's at-large team by the College Sports Information Directors of America on Thursday, May 22. Bryce, a 197-pound junior from Glenwood, Minn., has a 3.85 cumulative grade-point average majoring in business administration with minors in agribusiness and ag systems management. He advances to the national ballot for the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America® at-large team to be announced Tuesday, June 10. Bryce is a two-time NCAA Division I national qualifier and two-time All-Western Wrestling Conference performer. He was 15-12 this year and is 51-31 in his career. He has been selected to the National All-Academic Team by the National Wrestling Coaches Association each of the past two seasons. Twelve student-athletes made the Academic All-District 7 at-large team in the University Division. To be eligible, student-athletes must have a 3.20 or better cumulative GPA on a 4-point scale, have sophomore athletic standing, and be a starter or key reserve for their team. North Dakota State was 11-9 overall and 4-2 in the Western Wrestling Conference this year. The Bison placed fifth in the NCAA West Regional and qualified three wrestlers for the NCAA Division I national championships.

Augustana College wrestling coach Jason Reitmeier announced that Brian Schultz of Belle Fourche, S.D., and Bryan Otto of Inkom, Idaho, have signed national letters of intent to attend Augustana and wrestle for the Vikings. Schultz was a four-year letterwinner and three-year starter at Belle Fourche High School. A three-time All-Black Hills Conference selection, Schultz was named the Broncs' most valuable wrestler for the final 3 seasons of his career. He posted a 44-3 record as a senior while finishing third at the Class A state tournament. As a junior, he went 41-7 and finished fifth at the state tournament. "Brian will add depth to our upper weights," Reitmeier said. "Brian is a very hard worker and a very determined kid. He has worked over the last couple of years to improve in all areas of wrestling by doing more summer wrestling. Brian will flourish by working with (assistant coach) Tom Meester and our other upper weights." Otto was a four-year starter at Pocatello High School in Pocatello, Idaho. This past season, Otto compiled a 41-4 record that included a district championship and a runner-up finish at the Class 4A state tournament. In addition, he finished sixth at 130 pounds at the 2008 Western Junior Freestyle Regional Championships. As a junior, he registered a 29-12 record and finished fourth at the state tournament. He was fifth at the state meet as a sophomore after putting together a 31-19 overall record. "Bryan will compete for a starting spot at 133 pounds," Reitmeier said. "Bryan is a well-rounded wrestler who competes year round in freestyle and Greco. So Bryan has seen success at the national level. I am very excited to have Bryan coming to Augie and I am looking forward to working with him." Schultz and Otto brings the Vikings 2008 recruiting class to 10 members. They join a class that includes Carl Serck of Hudson, S.D., Luke Heine of Vermillion, S.D., Nate Herda of Rock Rapids, Iowa, Michael Eddington of Hinton, Iowa, Marcus Eddington of Hinton, Iowa, Austin Carmichael of Columbus, Neb., Christopher Meredith of Nebraska City, Neb., and Cody Lensing of Findley, Minn.

FOREST GROVE -- Pacific University Director of Athletics Ken Schumann has announced that Severin Walsh will become the next head coach of the Pacific men's and women's wrestling program. Walsh comes to Pacific after two seasons as the top graduate assistant coach at St. Cloud State University, a NCAA Division II program in St. Cloud, Minn. Walsh replaces Scott Miller, who announced his retirement from coaching in March after six years leading the Boxers. Walsh is the ninth coach in the history of the program. "I am honored that I was chosen to be the next coach," Walsh said. "I would like to thank President (Phil) Creighton and Ken Schumann for hiring me. It means a lot to me that they have the confidence in me to take on the position. Pacific has a storied program and I have known about and the institution for a long time. I have had a lot of respect for the program and I am honored that they have chosen me to carry on that tradition of wrestling at Pacific. I look forward to being a part of the Boxer family." Walsh, a native of Washington state, was selected after a nationwide search that saw finalists chosen from every corner of the United States. "Sev rose to the top as the best fit for our athletic department and our wrestling program," Schumann said. "I am happy to welcome Sev to our team and expect a high level of success over the years to come." Walsh has spent the last two seasons as the top graduate assistant coach at St. Cloud State. During his tenure, Walsh has helped lead eight Huskies' wrestlers to NCAA Division II national tournament berths. During the 2006-07 season, the Huskies finished 12th at the NCAA Division II Championships and set a new school record with 13 dual meet victories. The Huskies also finished 12th at the 2008 championships. As coordinator of St. Cloud State's academic efforts, Walsh saw the Huskies rank as one of the top academic programs at the Division II level. The 2007-08 team finished with a cumulative 3.2 grade point average, eighth best among NCAA Division II wrestling teams, and saw John Sundgren, Westy Hanson and Matt Jackson earn Division II All-Academic honors. Prior to arriving at St. Cloud State, Walsh spent two seasons as an assistant coach at Dana College, a successful NAIA program in Blair, Neb. At Dana, Walsh helped coach the Vikings to a fourth place nationals finish in 2005 and the National Wrestling Coaches Association (NCWA) national dual championship and NAIA national championship in 2006. In addition, Dana's 2006 team boasted the top non-Division I recruiting class in the nation. Walsh began his coaching career at William Penn University in Oskaloosa, Iowa, where he helped lead the Statesmen to a pair of NAIA Central Region championships, an 11th place NAIA National Tournament finish in 2003 and a sixth place finish in 2004. Walsh said he is grateful to those in his past who have helped him in the coaching ranks over the years. "(St. Cloud State Coach Steve) Costanzo and (William Penn Coach Gary) Garvis have been great mentors to me," Walsh said. "I cannot thank them enough for their mentorship over the years and their help in becoming the coach at Pacific." A 1995 Washington high school state champion, Walsh wrestled two seasons for Yakima Valley Community College before transferring to William Penn. He was the 2002 NAIA Central Region champion at 285 pounds and competed in the 2002 NAIA National Championships. A native of Coulee City, Wash., Walsh earned his Bachelor's degree in wellness and recreation from William Penn in 2004 and a teaching certification from Dana in 2006. He is currently completing his Master's degree at St. Cloud State in physical education. Walsh and his wife, Annette, are the proud parents of a newborn son, Ezekiel, who was born in March.

Registration for the 2011 InterMat JJ Classic has opened. Below you will find information about the event. Overview The InterMat JJ Classic is an annual preseason high school wrestling tournament open to wrestlers in grades 7 through 12. This year's event takes place on Saturday, Oct. 22 at the UCR Regional Sports Center in Rochester, Minn. The tournament is sponsored by InterMat and organized by 360 Sports and Events Agency. InterMat is a leading national wrestling website that covers all aspects of amateur wrestling, including high school, college, freestyle and Greco-Roman competition, as well as mixed martial arts. 360 Sports and Event Agency is a sports management company that specializes in organizing, coordinating, and operating national sport-themed events, including the All American Bowl and Nike Coach of the Year Clinic. Cause Justin KukowskiThe InterMat JJ Classic is named in honor of Justin Kukowski, an athlete and avid sports fan who lost his long, hard-fought battle with brain cancer days after his 27th birthday in 2007. Proceeds from the event will go toward the Justin Kukowski Center for Spiritual and Physical Healing, a cancer support center that was opened in his memory two years after his passing, and is located in the Minneapolis suburb of Chaska. Wrestler Registration Wrestlers can register online for the 2011 InterMat JJ Classic at http://www.intermatwrestle.com/jjclassic/register. The registration fee is $40 if registered in October, $45 if registered in September, and $50 if registered in October. The event is a USA Wrestling-sanctioned event, so a wrestler must have a USA Wrestling Card to participate. Not a USA Wrestling member? Purchase a USA Wrestling card now. Format Scholastic style (folkstyle) rules will be used. The matches will be four minutes in length with periods of 2-1-1. Headgear is not required. Weight Classes The new high school weight classes approved by the National Federation of State High School Association's rules committee in 2011 will be used. Those weight classes are 106, 113, 120, 126, 132, 138, 145, 152, 160, 170, 182, 195, 220, and 285. Venue The 2010 InterMat JJ Classic will be held at the UCR Regional Sports Center (Field House) in Rochester, Minn. The UCR Regional Sports Center has hosted many premier wrestling events, including The Clash, Minnesota Christmas Tournament, Northern Quad, Cadet National Duals, and the NJCAA Wrestling Championships. The address for the UCR Regional Sports Center is 851 30th Avenue Southeast, Rochester, MN 55904. Event Hotel The Kahler Grand Hotel is the official event hotel. The address for the Kahler Grand Hotel is 20 SW Second Avenue Rochester, MN 55902. Weigh-Ins Weigh-ins will take place on Friday, Oct. 21, 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. CDT at the Kahler Grand Hotel. There will be no weight allowance. Admission/Coaches Pass Admission will be $10 for adults and $7 for students (18 and under). Admission is free for children under 6. A coaches/floor pass may be purchased at the door for an additional $5. Social There will be a social at the Kahler Grand Hotel on Friday, Oct. 21, 8:30 p.m. to midnight CDT. All coaches, parents, volunteers, referees, and media members are invited. Beer, soda, and snacks will be provided. History The first InterMat JJ Classic took place on Oct. 23, 2011, at the UCR Regional Sports Center in Rochester, Minn. Wrestlers from Minnesota, Iowa, Illinois, Wisconsin, South Dakota, Nebraska, and Texas competed in the inaugural event. Tristan Manderfeld of Foley High School (Minn.) was named Outstanding Wrestler of the 2010 InterMat JJ Classic after defeating multiple age group national champions en route to winning the championship at 103 pounds. Awards The top six placewinners in each of the 14 weight classes will receive medals. In addition, each of the 28 finalists will receive a custom, limited edition 2011 InterMat JJ Classic finalist singlet. Exhibitors & Sponsors If you are interested in being an exhibitor or sponsor, please send an email to Terry Sullivan at info@360sportsevents.com. Volunteers The InterMat JJ Classic is seeking volunteers. If you are interested in volunteering, please send an email to Kathleen Hennessy Rehbein at khenness@co.carver.mn.us. We are looking for volunteers in a variety of areas, including table workers, pairers, hospitality, weigh-ins/registration (Friday), tickets, awards, setup, take down, concessions, merchandise, runners, clock, and tappers. If you have a preference on what position you would like to volunteer for, please specify in the email. Questions/Comments Questions and comments about the event can be directed at InterMat or 360 Sports and Events Agency depending on the nature of the question(s) or comment(s). InterMat General Questions, Rules, Format Email: contact@intermatwrestle.com Phone: 612-460-5824 360 Sports and Events Agency Logistics, Hotel, Facilities, Exhibitors, Sponsors Email: info@360sportsevents.com Phone: 612-356-2880

Columbia, Mo. -- Recent Missouri graduate Tyler McCormick (Leawood, Kan.) was named to the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District Seven Men's At-Large Team as announced today by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA). The accolade is the third straight for the Tiger wrester who carried a 3.95 cumulative grade-point average through his senior year. A two-time All-American, McCormick received a degree in business management and was recently awarded one of 29 NCAA Postgraduate Scholarships. McCormick finished his collegiate wrestling career with a 77-43 record. Wrestling at 133 pounds, McCormick took 2008 Big 12 runner-up honors after knocking off then No. 1 ranked Coleman Scott of Oklahoma State and Oklahoma's Brian Shelton before falling to Iowa State's Nick Fanthorpe in the title match. McCormick is a three-time ESPN The Magazine Academic All-American, three-time National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA) All-American in Academics and four-year Academic All-Big 12 First-Team honoree. This marks the fifth straight year that at least one Missouri wrestler has been named to the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District Seven Men's At-Large team. Kenny Burleson, a letterwinner at 157 pounds from 2001-04, was awarded the honor in 2004, with McCormick recognized each year since.

Noted Wrestling Author and Historian Jay Hammond joins Takedown Radio's Scott Casber for coverage of the 2008 National Wrestling Hall of Fame Inductions. Jay bring's a wealth of knowledge to the broadcast and serves the Hall of Fame as its official historian. Jay's perspective is unique and indepth. This years TDR coverage will include a very casual broadcast of the May 29th Thursday night steak dinner at Freddie Paul's Steak House beginning on Takedownradio.com at approx. 7:30 PM CST. This is a casual 2 hour broadcast giving attendees an opportunity to share some stories and memories. Friday Takedown Radio will record interviews with all inductee's and special guests. These interviews will then be gifted to the Hall of Fame and added to the archives for future enjoyment of wrestling fans worldwide. We're grateful for the opportunity to explore the rich tradition and history of those interviewed and honored and record for their views and memories for posterity.

This week's edition of "On the Mat" will feature Jim Gruenwald and Brad Ahearn. Gruenwald made U.S. Greco-Roman Olympic Teams in 2000 and 2004. Gruenwald retired shortly after the 2004 Olympics, but returned to the mat last fall. He won the 2008 U.S. Open at the 132-pound division but was severely injured in his attempt to qualify his weight class for the Olympics. Gruenwald is currently the assistant Greco-Roman coach at the United States Olympic Education Center located on the campus of Northern Michigan University. In 2003 USA Wrestling named Gruenwald Greco-Roman Wrestler of the Year. A member of the Army's World Class Athlete Program, Ahearn recently won the U.S. Open in the 185-pound Greco-Roman division. Ahearn – a fourth place finisher at the U.S. Open in 2006 and seventh place finisher in 2007 at 211.5 pounds – defeated 2007 world silver medallist Brad Vering in the finals. "On the Mat" is a weekly wrestling radio program that airs every Wednesday night. This week's broadcast can be heard live from 6-7 p.m. Central Standard Time. The Dan Gable International Wrestling Institute and Museum in Waterloo, Iowa, hosts the show. "On the Mat" can be heard live on the Internet at www.kcnzam.com or locally in Northeast Iowa on 1650, The Fan. Feel free to e-mail radio@wrestlingmuseum.org with questions or comments about the show.