In Memory of Ken Kraft: JT#1's Top 10 Midlands Moments

 Yesterday we lost one of the most prolific innovators collegiate wrestling has ever known.  Ken Kraft, father of the prestigious Midlands wrestling championships. A tournament that has been known to have been nearly as tough, as tough & even at times tougher than the NCAA championships themselves. 

With 57 championships wrestled since 1963, narrowing it down to a top 25 moments would be difficult let alone narrowing it down to ten.  Keep in mind that these are of my opinion & my opinion only.  There is no consensus here. No vote by committee.  It's simply a wrestling fan, same as you, giving out his personal favorites.  I have no doubt that there are moments that you would include that I haven't included.  I'm 100% positive that on my list, I have moments you never would have thought of. 

Here are my Top 10. 

 

                                    10.  Steve Martin of Iowa wins the 1988 118 lbs Title 

I could have used many examples here, but the point of this one is to illustrate how fixated we as a sport are on the NCAA tournament.  I realize few if any will agree with me, but in so many ways the NCAA's is simply another tournament.  Not every wrestler worth remembering & worth recognizing was a stand out for the last three days of the season. Some had their moments at different parts of a nearly six month grind.  

Both Terry Brands & Zeke Jones are remembered as two collegiate stars.  Brands a three time NCAA finalist & two time NCAA champion (as well as a two time World champion & Olympic bronze medalist). Jones, a three time NCAA All American, with a World Gold & an Olympic Silver.  

Jones defeated Brands 15-8 in the semi-finals, before falling to Martin 6-3 in the finals.  

Later that season Martin would place 7th at the NCAA's & Jones would take 4th.  

The following season Martin failed to place at the NCAA tournament going 0-2 & as a result of that disappointing performance, gets lost in discussion of tough lightweights to wear the black & gold.  Competing for the Hawkeye wrestling club, there was a sense of redemption as Martin would come back a year post graduation to place fourth. 

9.  A Legend Is Born 

Gable was already a hot commodity, but I feel it was winning his first Midlands title as an ineligible freshman in 1966 that began the start of the most well known figure in our sport.  From his controlled 9-5 semi-final win over Don Behm (who would go on to finish as that year's NCAA runner up & win an Olympic Silver in 1968) to his dominating 8-2 win over 1962 NCAA champion Masaaki Hatta (who was an NCAA runner-up in 1960  & 1961) Gable proved he was everything anyone had ever imagined him to be. 

The next season as a sophomore Gable continued to prove himself with a 2-2, 6-2 sudden victory over NCAA champion Dale Anderson of Michigan State.  Gable would move down to 130 lbs to win his first NCAA title, as Anderson won his second at 137. 

8. Matt Lackey Finally Avenges Losses to Joe Heskett 

First off, I'm a huge fan of Joe Heskett's. As a young kid in junior high and high school my Dad would often drive us up to Ames, Iowa for a Cyclone dual on a Sunday & Joe Heskett always made time to visit with myself and other fans.  With my handful of experiences in the wrestling media, I've experienced the "Who are you? What are you doing here?" snobbery that some can have in this sport.  I've also experienced those who have treated me like I belong & that have always been respectful & gracious.  Joe Heskett has always been one of those people to me. Kind, friendly & courteous.  He doesn't need to act like a tough guy off the mat, he's always let his performance do the talking for him.  I give this anecdote as testimony that what I'm about to say in on way, shape or form is a knock on Heskett. 

It's simply an illustration of how the Midlands provides an opportunity to extract revenge that we as wrestling fans wouldn't have gotten to see otherwise.  Throughout their collegiate careers, Heskett always seemed to have one up on Lackey. No matter what Lackey did, Heskett always seemed to have his number.  

I think Lackey needed this win. I think it was essential to him going on to win the NCAA title that season.  

Of note, Lackey defeated Troy Letters in this tournament 6-3. Ironically enough, the same score he'd defeat Letters by at the NCAA tournament. 

7. This Kid is For Real 

Cary Kolat won four Pennsylvania high school state championships.  1990, 1991, 1992 & 1993.  Do you know when he participated in his first Midlands tournament? 1989.  That is a stat, that will never not amaze me.  Every time I look at it, I have to triple check it because my mind refuses to believe that my eyes are telling it the truth.  

He loses first round 8-7 to Sam Geraci & then comes back through the consolation bracket to finish in third place. Along the way he defeats Bobby Crawford 6-3, who goes on to place seventh at that year's NCAA tournament. 

The next season as a sophomore he makes the Midlands semi-finals as three time All American & 1988 Olympian Ken Chertow barely squeezes by him in a 2-1 effort.  He then holds future four time All American Shawn Charles to three escapes in a 7-3 victory as he eventually takes fourth. 

Competing for Penn State & Lock Haven, Kolat went on to win three Midlands titles in 1993, 1994 & 1996, also becoming a two time NCAA champion. 

In the never ending, daily....may I call it hourly debate among Ohioans and Pennsylvanians over who produces the best wrestlers, be their heavier artillery than Kolat? 

6. Upset Prevents Long Awaited Rematch 

I'm not the first person to point this out. Mike Finn of AWN pointed it out years ago as well.  After Larry Owings pulled off the biggest upset in collegiate wrestling history with his 13-11 victory over Dan Gable, wrestling fans thought they would have the privilege of watching round two at Midlands. 

Unknown Clyde Smith, a hometown hero made a name for himself that day as he upset Owings 6-3 in the Quarter-finals, preventing the rematch from ever taking place.  Fans would have to wait until the 1972 Olympic trials, where Gable prevailed 7-1 over Owings.   Gable defeated Smith in the finals 14-2. 

What sticks out here is that this really is Smith's claim to fame.  A three time NCAA participant, he came within a match of All American status as a senior in 1972, but he never did make the award stand. He was however a two time BIG 10 runner-up. 

5. There's Life After College Even if You Weren't an All Star 

"Do it Now, or never do it" An antiquated, yet often repeated & worse yet believed quote in the sport of amateur wrestling.  We're not known for being patient with our wrestler's developments & we have a reputation for being unforgiving of those who aren't Gods right out of the gate. 

That's why I love looking back at the success Brian Keck had at the Midlands championships POST his collegiate career.  While at Bloomsburg, Keck was good, but nothing outstanding.  An EWL place-winner & NCAA qualifier, he never won a conference title & he never made All American status. 

He took a little longer to find himself as a wrestler.  To get to a point to where he could perform at a top level.  Long after graduation Keck was third, sixth, third, seventh at the Midlands championships, proving that success doesn't always come today.  For some, it comes tomorrow. 

4. North Carolina Wins the 1986 Team Title 

Basketball, basketball, basketball....seems anytime you mention Tarheel sports, that's all anyone ever wants to talk about.  Well, maybe UNC is a basketball school & maybe that's what the school will forever pride itself on.  Yet on a cold December day in 1986, North Carolina at least for one day, was a wrestling school.  

A tournament dominated primarily by the University of Iowa, this one belonged to the Heels.  

Led by Champions Al Palasio & Rob Koll,  Chip McArdie & Lenny Bernstein helped to bring home the team championship with strong fifth place finishes. 

The Tar Heels would go on to place seventh at the NCAA tournament with Palacio finishing in seventh, Koll finishing in third & Bernstein securing three falls in a row to a fourth place finish at a Gorriaran award.  McArdie finished one match shy of placing. 

3. Collegiate Careers last 4 Years  

If you haven't been able to tell by now, I'm very critical of this idea of giving up on guys too early. Keaton Anderson of Ohio State seemed destined for a career of greatness as a Buckeye but between injury and being at the wrong weight class, his first three years, things never seemed to work out for him. 

After finishing one match shy of All American in a tough loss to Iowa State's Billy Maldonado as a junior at 149 lbs, Anderson went to his head coach Russ Hellickson and said that he wasn't cutting weight in his final year as a Buckeye. He was going to wrestle his natural 157 lbs and see what happened. 

He kicked ass, is what happened. 

He defeated the returning NCAA champ Luke Becker of Minnesota twice during the season. Both times by significant scores. 

Where he showed his prowess most was at the Midlands championships defeating would be three time All American Gray Maynard 9-6 in the finals. 

Anderson would go on to severely injure his knee, yet still make All American status with a sixth place finish at the NCAA's.  I truly believe had he been able to stay 100% healthy, that he would have won the NCAA's that year.  A testimony that not everyone has to be a standout as a freshman in order to be a standout as a senior. 

2. NAIA Wrestling Earns Respect 

Getting wrestling fans to recognize & respect NAIA wrestling is pulling teeth.  No matter how many examples you give them, it's always unfair & unsubstantiated remarks of subpar wrestling & easier academics.  

Take the subjectivity out of it, success speaks for itself.  When NAIA goes head to head with NCAA DI there is no opinion.  Either it gets the job done or it doesn't.  

In the particular case of Emmett Wilson of Montana State Northern, it spoke for itself.   After finishes of sixth & fourth among the nation's best, Wilson upended an assortment of Division I talent in route to a title of his own in 2003.   

The NAIA doesn't get much respect or recognition amongst fans, but in that moment it sure did. 

1. Donald Lockett Knocks off Travis Lee

If I had to pick my all time favorite NCAA Division II wrestler, it'd have to be Donald Lockett of San Francisco State.  We as a wrestling community are obsessed with NCAA Division I wrestling.  Trust me, I realize I'm as much to blame here as is anyone.  We have this idea that if it ain't DI, it ain't worth our time.  We forget sometimes that there are a million reasons why guys don't go DI. It isn't always because they're not good enough either.  

Guys like Donald Lockett help to remind us of that. 

Travis Lee of Cornell was the returning NCAA champion.  DII Donald Lockett shocked the wrestling world with a second round 6-5 upset.  Eventually Lockett finished in sixth place that season & then came back even stronger the next season finishing in third place. 

------

And there you have it!  My top 10 favorite memories of the Midlands championships!  

Do I have more?  Oh, you bet!  

Tom Noto winning a title his senior season with sudden victories over both Matt Valenti & Luke Eustice. 

Any time a post grad entered and did well, especially if it was someone who's collegiate career didn't go as well as one hoped.   

So many great memories. 

What are your's? 

Conferences & Qualifications in DI Wrestling Had No Team Ever Dropped

 In a recent post, I came up with an extra 159 NCAA Division I wrestling programs that we would have on top of the 79 that we currently have (2020-2021 season) for a total of 238 programs, if no team had ever dropped their wrestling program.   

That's a lot of wrestling teams in NCAA Division I wrestling.   Can you imagine 238 teams?   What would that look like?  

Could we get away with only qualifying 32 or 33 wrestlers for the NCAA championships?   As of right now 33/79 is about 42%.  33/238 is about 14%.   In recent times out of the 79 teams we have, most qualify at least one wrestler every three years.   Sacred Heart & Davidson being the exceptions as of recent years.  

With 238 teams & only 33 qualifiers, there is going to be a much larger number of schools without qualifiers.  


I've came up with a few ideas.  None of them perfect. 

Right now we have 7 Conferences/Qualifiers in NCAA wrestling.  If you have each conference have 32 teams, that accounts for 145 teams, leaving 14 teams unaccounted for.   A 32 man bracket for each of the 7 conferences would make things simpler, but in this case you'd have to add two extra teams, so each conference would have 34 teams.  

That's if we kept things as they are. 

If you took the top eight qualifiers from each conference, that's 56 wrestlers per weight qualified, with 8 open Wildcard slots per weight.  

That'd make a 64 man bracket for the NCAA's.  Adding at least one if not two days to the tournament. 

I don't think anyone, coach, wrestlers, fans, would go for that. 

So Now what? 

7 Conferences/Qualifiers x 34 teams allots for all 238 teams that we would have. 

8 Qualifiers per conference ='s 56 Qualifiers per weight + 8 Wildcards per weight 

I would think we'd almost have to have another qualifier.   Like how some states for high school wrestling have sectionals & then Districts before state or some have Regionals & then sectionals before state?  Hell, some even have more than two.  

Two Regionals?  

Shame there isn't a eighth Conference/Qualifier.  That'd certainly make it easier.   If there were eight instead of seven, that'd make it a more workable number. 

You could take the top eight qualifiers in four of the Conferences/qualifiers for one regional. 

Problem is the other would only have three conferences/qualifiers left over. 

So we're looking at a 32 man bracket for one regional Vs a 24 man bracket for the other.  The only way to solve this problem it seems would be to take the eight Wildcards & put them into the other Regional, to make it a 32 man bracket.   Seems good on paper, until you factor in geography & costs.  

I said my idea had flaws in it & it does.  Still thinking out loud. 

What I have so far....

238 teams

7 Conferences/Qualifiers.  Each has 34 teams.   Each qualifies top 8 wrestlers for Regionals.  

That leaves 56 wrestlers qualified per weight with 8 wildcards selected per weight. 

Regional I  has 32 wrestlers from four Conferences per bracket 

Regional II has 24 wrestlers from three Conferences per bracket + 8 wildcards to make the 32 

Regional I & Regional II both qualify the top 8 for the NCAA tournament. 

And now would this be a problem?  

Before We ran into the problem of 64 Qualifies & adding a day or two being something coaches, wrestlers, fans & may I add administrators/athletic directors NOT going for.    

BUT...would 16 NCAA qualifiers be as much of a problem?  It potentially takes away a day.   Thus cutting costs?  I think some would be happy about this, but with only 16 NCAA qualifiers out of 238 teams, I can only imagine the negative backlash.  

So there you have two of my ideas & neither is perfect.  In fact, both are far from perfect but they're what I've came up with. 

Now where do you put the extra 159 teams? 

Well I've done it a couple of different ways & no matter how I do it, there are teams in conferences that make no sense.  Sort of how Little Rock in the PAC-12 at the time being, Geographically makes little sense.  

I think I did an ok job with exception to the BIG 12.   I cover the whole country, West to East, North to South & I know that would never fly for a qualifier.   So I don't know.

Here's what I came up with 


BIG 10 
Iowa
Penn State 
Michigan
Michigan State
Purdue
Indiana 
Minnesota
Rutgers
Maryland
Illinois
Northwestern
Nebraska
Ohio State
Wisconsin 
Indiana State
Ball State
Notre Dame
Drake
Nebraska-Omaha
UW-Milwaukee
Marquette 
Dayton
Youngstown State
Duquesne
Villanova
Saint Francis
Lafayette
Delaware
Delaware State
Stony Brook
Marist 
Farleigh Dickinson
Monmouth
Seton Hall 

ACC
North Carolina
North Carolina State
Virginia Tech
Virginia
Pittsburgh
Duke
Florida
Central Florida
Florida International
Florida A&M
Miami (Florida)
Stetson
South Florida
North Florida
Florida State
East Carolina
Elon
North Carolina A&T
Clemson
South Carolina State
Howard
William & Mary
Norfolk State
Villanova
James Madison
Liberty
Old Dominion
Hampton
Richmond
Virginia Commonwealth
George Washington
Georgetown
Syracuse
Wagner 

EIWA
American
Binghamton
Brown
Bucknell
Columbia
Cornell
Drexel
Franklin & Marshall
Harvard
Hofstra
Lehigh
Long Island 
Pennsylvania
Princeton
Sacred Heart
Army
Navy
Yale
Connecticut
Central Connecticut
Temple
Maine
Towson
Coppin State
Morgan State
Maryland Eastern Shore
Massachusetts
Boston U
Boston College
Dartmouth
Slippery Rock
Rhode Island U 
Colgate
New Hampshire

 
MAC 
Bloomsburg
Buffalo
Clarion
Central Michigan
Clarion
Edinboro
George Mason
Kent State
Lock Haven
Missouri
Northern Illinois
Ohio 
Rider
Southern Illinois-Edwardsville
Illinois State
Bradley
Southern Illinois-Carbondale
Western Illinois
Eastern Illinois
Illinois-Chicago
Chicago State
Little Rock
Western Michigan
Eastern Michigan
Miami (Ohio) 
Toledo
Akron
Bowling Green
Cincinnati 
Oakland
Missouri State
St Louis
Southeast Missouri State 
Wichita State 


PAC-12
Arizona State
Cal Poly
Cal State Bakersfield
Oregon State
Stanford
California Baptist
Grand Canyon 
Arizona
California
UCLA
USC
CSU-Fullerton
UC Davis
Northern Arizona
Portland State
Santa Clara
U of Pacific
UC Riverside
San Diego State
San Jose State
UC Santa Barbara
Cal Poly Pomona
CSU-Los Angeles
Long Beach State
CSU-Sacramento
CSU-Northridge
Boise State
Washington
Washington State
Nevada Reno
UNLV
Idaho
Idaho State
Oregon

SOUTHERN CONFERENCE 
Appalachian State
Campbell
Citadel
Davidson
Gardner Webb
Presbyterian
Chattanooga
VMI
Bellarmine 
Arkansas State
Alabama
Auburn
Troy State
Kennesaw State
Georgia
Georgia State
Georgia Tech
Kentucky
Eastern Kentucky
Louisiana State
Louisiana Monroe
Louisiana Lafayette
Tulane
Wake Forest
UNC-Greensboro
Texas
Texas A&M
Texas El Paso 
Memphis
Middle Tennessee State
Vanderbilt
Tennessee 
UT-Martin
Furman

BIG 12
Fresno State
Iowa State
North Dakota State
Northern Iowa
Northern Colorado
Oklahoma
Oklahoma State
South Dakota State
Air Force
Utah Valley
West Virginia
Wyoming
Colorado
Colorado State
Kansas
Kansas State
Denver
North Dakota
Montana 
Montana State
South Dakota
Marshall
Utah
Utah State
Southern Utah
Brigham Young
Weber State
Tulsa
Eastern Washington
Gonzaga
New Mexico
New Mexico State
Fordham
Canisius 

What Division I Wrestling Would Look like Today Had No Teams Dropped

 As of today 10-17-2020,  NCAA Division I wrestling if COVID-19 doesn't prevent it from taking place, will have 79 teams in the 2020-2021 season.  Only 79 teams & two of them Stanford & Fresno State might not be around come the 2021-2022 season. 

What would NCAA Division I wrestling look like today if every team that ever discontinued wrestling had never dropped their wrestling program?  How many teams would NCAA Division I wrestling have? 

Lets Find out 

ARIZONA today has Arizona State, yet over the years Arizona, Northern Arizona & Grand Canyon have all dropped teams.  That's 4. 

ARKANSAS today has Little Rock, at one time Arkansas State had a team.  That's 2. 

ALASKA has 0 & would have 0 

ALABAMA doesn't have any DI teams today in wrestling, but at one time they had Alabama & Auburn & today Troy State is also DI.  That's 3. 

CALIFORNIA, this is where things get fun.  In a short amount of time we could be down to only Cal Poly, Cal State Bakersfield & California Baptist.  You want to know who all dropped?  Fresno State, Stanford, Santa Clara, U of Pacific, UC Riverside, San Diego State, San Jose State, Cal, UCLA, USC, UC Santa Barbara, Cal Poly Pomona, Cal State Los Angeles, Cal State Fullerton, UC Davis, Long Beach State, Cal State Sacramento, Cal State Northridge.   That's 21 teams. Large enough to where if they still all had wrestling, California could have their own Regional qualifier. 

CONNECTICUT today has Sacred Heart.  Has lost Connecticut, Central Connecticut State & Yale in DI.  That's 4. 

COLORADO is Air Force and Northern Colorado today.  Would also be Denver, Colorado & Colorado State for 5. 

DELAWARE is 0, but would be Delaware and Delaware State for 2. 

FLORIDA may surprise you.  It is 0 today, but believe it or not, had no teams ever dropped their would be 8 or 9 DI teams today.  Florida, Central Florida, Florida International, Florida A&M, Miami, Stetson, South Florida and North Florida.  I'm not 100% positive if the 1962-1963 through 1965-1966 Florida State team you find in various tournaments was officially varsity or not.  

GEORGIA is 0, but would be 4.  Kennesaw State, Georgia, Georgia State & Georgia Tech all had teams. 

IDAHO is 0 as well, but would be 3.   Idaho, Idaho State & Boise State all had teams. 

ILLINOIS may shock you a bit.  Southern Illinois-Edwardsville, Illinois, Northern Illinois & Northwestern still have teams today.  Illinois State, Southern Illinois-Carbondale, Bradley, Western Illinois, Eastern Illinois, Chicago State & U of I Chicago all used to have teams too.  That would make for a total of 11. 

INDIANA has Indiana and Purdue, would have also Indiana State, Notre Dame & Ball State for a total of 5. 

IOWA has three with Iowa State, Iowa, & Northern Iowa.  Add in Drake for what would be 4. 

KANSAS has nothing today but would have Kansas, Kansas State & Wichita State for 3. 

KENTUCKY has Bellarmine & would also have Kentucky and Eastern Kentucky for 3. 

LOUISIANA believe it or not would have 4.  I kid you not.  Louisiana State, Louisiana Monroe, Louisiana Lafayette & Tulane all had teams at one time. 

MAINE has 0 and would have 1 with Maine. 

MARYLAND has Maryland and Navy.  Would have Towson, Coppin State, Morgan State & Maryland Eastern Shore if none had dropped for 6. 

MASSACHUSETTS has HARVARD.  Would also have Massachusetts, Boston, Boston College & Massachusetts-Lowell for 5

MICHIGAN has Central Michigan, Michigan & Michigan State.  Would add Western Michigan, Eastern Michigan & Oakland for 6. 

MINNESOTA has changed a bit.  Had Minnesota & still has Minnesota

MISSISSIPPI also hasn't changed.  Not a single collegiate program in Mississippi DI or other wise has ever had wrestling. 

MISSOURI  has Missouri.  Would also have Missouri State, St Louis & Southeast Missouri State 

MONTANA has zero but would have two with Montana and Montana State 

NEBRASKA has one with Nebraska & would have two with Nebraska-Omaha 

NEVADA would have two with Nevada-Reno & UNLV 

NEW HAMPSHIRE would also have two with New Hampshire and Dartmouth 

NEW JERSEY is at three with Princeton, Rider & Rutgers.  Would be at 6 with Seton Hall, Farleigh Dickinson & Monmouth 

NEW MEXICO would be at 2 with New Mexico and New Mexico State 

NEW YORK is also a surprising state.  Binghamton, Buffalo, Columbia, Cornell, Hofstra, Long Island & Army give the state 7 but Canisius, Colgate, Fordham, Marist, Stony Brook, Syracuse & Wagner would give the state a total of 14. 

NORTH CAROLINA has Appalachian State, Campbell, Davidson, Duke, Gardner Webb, North Carolina & North Carolina State.  Add in East Carolina, Elon, North Carolina A&T, UNC-Greensboro & Wake Forest for a total of 12. 

NORTH DAKOTA has NORTH DAKOTA STATE & would have 2 with North Dakota. 

OHIO is one that gets me.  Ohio, Ohio State, Cleveland State & Kent State make for 4 teams.  Would be 11 if you add in Toledo, Akron, Bowling Green, Miami, Cincinnati, Dayton and Youngstown State. 

OKLAHOMA is Oklahoma and Oklahoma State, would add in Tulsa for 3. 

OREGON is Oregon State today. Would also be Oregon & Portland State for 3. 

PENNSYLVANIA believe it or not could be 16 DI teams today.  As of now it is 11 with Bloomsburg, Bucknell, Clarion, Drexel, Edinboro, Franklin & Marshall, Lehigh, Lock Haven, Pennsylvania, Penn State & Pittsburgh.   Would also include Lafayette, Saint Francis, Temple, Villanova & Duquesne had they never dropped.  

RHODE ISLAND is Brown.  Would also be U of Rhode Island for 2. 

SOUTH CAROLINA has Presbyterian and Citadel.  Would also have Furman, Clemson and South Carolina State for 5. 

SOUTH DAKOTA has South Dakota State & would also have South Dakota for 2. 

TENNESSEE has Chattanooga but would also have Middle Tennessee State, Tennessee, UT-Martin, Vanderbilt & Memphis State.  (George McIntyre told me Tenn Tech had a program, but I've found absolutely nothing on it.)  6 

TEXAS believe it or not would have three.  Texas, Texas A&M & Texas El Paso.   There's slight chance that Texas Christian may have had a varsity program at one time too.  Southern Methodist did state once that if other southern schools would commit to adding wrestling, they would too.  It never happened though. 

UTAH has Utah Valley.  Would also have Utah, Utah State, Brigham Young, Weber State & Southern Utah.  6 

VIRGINIA has George Mason, Virginia, VMI & Virginia Tech.  Would also have William & Mary, Norfolk State, Virginia Commonwealth, James Madison, Liberty, Old Dominion, Hampton & Richmond.  12 

WASHINGTON has 0 now, but would have 4.  Eastern Washington, Gonzaga, Washington & Washington State 

WEST VIRGINIA has West Virginia & would also have Marshall for 2. 

WISCONSIN has Wisconsin & would also have Milwaukee & Marquette for 3. 

WYOMING has Wyoming & that's the only DI school in the state. 1 

D.C. has American & would also have George Washington, Howard & Georgetown.  4. 


So there you have it. 

79 is what we have in 2020-2021.  77 maybe what we're left with in 2021-2022. 

What we would have had no team ever dropped wrestling? 

237 is the number I came up with. 

237 

Meaning that 158 teams that are currently Division I status today had wrestling programs at one time and don't today.  More teams have dropped wrestling than currently have it at the DI status. 

What would wrestling look like with 237 DI teams? 


 

Gone, Lost & Forgotten: The final post?

 On September 12th, 2020 I posted all of the teams that I had came up with so far that had discontinued wrestling.  At that time I was at 365 teams.  A far cry away from the 670 that we have allegedly lost.  In the past month I've discovered & written about eleven more teams.

  McGill & British Columbia in Canada. 

Claremont Mudd Scripps & San Bernardino Valley (As if I really needed to add any teams to California) 

Hampden-Sydney & Eastern Mennonite in Virginia 

Southwestern Oklahoma State 

Pomona-Pitzer (Sheesh, does it ever end in California?) 

Bismark State in North Dakota

Concordia (Illinois)

And I'm embarrassed to say that I had completely forgotten to write about Boise State even though I've had it prepared to write for the past 10 months. 

That brings the number up to to 376 teams.   Still a far cry from 670 but closer than it was before.  

How about those teams that I know had wrestling, but I was unable to find anything about their wrestlers?  Believe it or not there are quite a few teams that make that list.  

Here they are

TUFTS (Medford/Somerville, Massachusetts) 

Winners of the 1932 & 1935 New England Intercollegiate Wrestling Association, the Jumbos had wrestling for quite a long period of time.  I believe it began in the 1920's and lasted through the early to mid 1970's. 

SAMPSON (New York) 

Sampson was a short lived college that only lasted from 1946-1947 through 1948-1949.   They had wrestling every season & posted dual records for each. 

VANDERBILT (Nashville, Tennessee)

From what I have been able to find, the Commodores had wrestling for a short period of time post World War II

EMORY (Atlanta, Georgia) 

The Eagles were quite competitive during their time on the mat.  They produced a number of top three Southeastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association (SEIWA) place-winners & they finished runner-up to Swede Umbach's Auburn a number of times as a team as well.  From what I've been able to gather wrestling lasted from 1950-1951 through 1965-1966. 

SANTA CLARA (Santa Clara, California) 

Throughout the history of both the Pacific Coast Conference & the Western Regional you'll find results for Santa Clara. 

WAKE FOREST (Winston-Salem, North Carolina) 

A little tricky here on the history of Demon-Deacon wrestling.  There was a time when they didn't field a wrestling program, but one of their football players entered and won a ACC title anyway.  I do believe they actually fielded a varsity team for a short time too. 

KENYON (Gambier, Ohio) 

Per records I have found of school athletics, Lords wrestling lasted from 1957-1958 through 1969-1970

ANTELOPE VALLEY  (Lancaster, California) 

You know there are almost as many discontinued wrestling programs in the state of California as their are total number of current Division I teams?  I've found Antelope Valley in dual records for other CCCAA teams. 

BIRMINGHAM SOUTHERN (Birmingham, Alabama) 

Records for Panther wrestling exist throughout various SEIWA tournaments in the late 60's & early 70's. 

PARSONS (Fairfield, Iowa)

I grew up a little less than an hour from where Parsons College used to be.  A half day in the local library going through old year books led me to a conclusion that wrestling was started in 1959-1960 and lasted through 1967-1968.  No idea why it was discontinued. The school shut down in 1973. 

RICKS aka BRIGHAM YOUNG-IDAHO (Rexburg, Idaho)

I get asked about this one a lot.  You'd think that being the home of Rulon Gardner, the two time Olympic medalist who upended the unstoppable, unbeatable Karelin would have information on their wrestling team.  Maybe it is out there somewhere, but I've been unsuccessful in tracking it down.   

Hell I can remember when Cael Sanderson won his fourth NCAA title looking up into the stands and seeing a guy wearing a Ricks College Wrestling sweatshirt.  Yet other than coming across the fact that Brett Bingham of Boise State started his career off there, Gardner is all I can find. 

DIXIE STATE (St. George, Utah) 

Results in NJCAA history show that the Trailblazers at one time had wrestling

UTAH STATE-EASTERN (Price, Utah) 

If you ever run across Carbon College, same thing. 

PACIFIC COLLEGE (Costa Mesa, California) 

For the longest time whenever I ran across Pacific in my studies I always assumed that it meant Pacific as in Forest Grove, Oregon, which still has a wrestling team.  It wasn't until I ran across a dual meet actually held in Costa Mesa that I realized it was something different. 

FLORIDA STATE (Tallahassee, Florida) 

Now this one I'm still unsure about.  From the 1961-1962 through the 1964-1965 season you can find Florida State competing at both the SEIWA tournament and the Chattanooga invitational.  However, I've never seen any results for duals & I've never seen any results from Qualifiers for the NCAA tournament.  Even with photographs I've found of Florida State wrestling, I'm still not sold on the fact that this was ever a varsity team.  I think it may have been club status only.  I'd love to know more about this history here, but that's what I've found thus far. 

CHARLESTON (Charleston, West Virginia) 

At one time the school was known as Morris Harvey.  During that time (or at least at some time during that time) the Golden Eagles had wrestling. 

EMERSON (Boston, Massachusetts) 

Famed coach Jim Peckham has listed among his many accomplishments that he started a wrestling program here. 

COVENANT (Lookout Mountain, Georgia)

UT-Chattanooga had something to do with the school trying out wrestling for a while

BRYAN (Dayton, Tennessee)

I believe UT-Chattanooga had something to do with Bryan also trying out wrestling for a while

BRANDEIS (Waltham, Massachusetts) 

The judges competed in many NEIWA tournaments 

GEORGE FOX (Newburg, Oregon) 

Frank Furtado who coached at Seattle-Pacific also coached here for a short while 

GONZAGA (Spokane, Washington)

You can find results of Bulldog wrestling from Pacific Coast Conference tournaments 

TROY STATE (Troy, Alabama) 

Competed in SEIWA tournaments, as well as the Chattanooga Invitational.  George McIntyre has promised to provide information he has on the team, but as busy as he is with telling the world how much he hates Donald Trump on an hourly basis, he has yet to find the time. 

SOUTHWESTERN (Georgetown, Texas) 

I wrote about Southwestern (California) earlier in "Gone, Lost & Forgotten" but based on the Chattanooga Invitational & a tournament based in Texas, I believe what I have found is referring to the Pirates. 

SOUTH FLORIDA (Tampa, Florida) 

One can find South Florida in dual results vs Florida, Central Florida & Miami-Dade. 

BROWARD (Fort Lauderdale, Florida) 

In Dual records Vs Miami-Dade 

UC-RIVERSIDE (Riverside, California) 

Can find in various tournaments throughout California through the years

CAIRN (Langhorne Manor, Pennsylvania) 

Both Donald Hawk & James Hertzler who were both baseball & soccer stars while at Cairn have that they were also members of the wrestling team while there. 

CALVIN (Grand Rapids, Michigan) 

Have found Calvin in dual records against other Michigan colleges/universities

RICHARD DALEY (Chicago, Illinois) 

Have found "Mayor Daley" in results throughout various opens in Illinois.  I think this is what it is referring to. 

LUZERNE (Nanticoke, Pennsylvania) 

Found against other Northeastern NJCAA teams in dual records

SANTA FE (Gainesville, Florida) 

In dual results for Miami-Dade 

RICHMOND (Richmond, Virginia) 

You can find results of Richmond competing in the Southern Conference 

SOUTHERN POLYTECHNIC STATE (Marietta, Georgia) 

Can find results of Southern Tech in SEIWA tournaments as well as the Chattanooga Invitational 

HAMPDEN-SYDNEY (Hampden-Sydney, Virginia) 

Results from MEAC tournaments 

BENEDICTINE (Lisle, Illinois) 

The Benedictine in Kansas still has a wrestling team but considering where I've found Benedictine (in tournaments featuring all other Illinois teams) I believe they're referring to this school 

NAVARRO (Corsicanna, Texas) 

Richland Community College at one time had an official NJCAA team & they wrestled Navarro in duals during some of this time.  Was Navarro NJCAA or just a club? Not 100% positive. 

HAWAII (Manoa, Hawaii) 

Throughout the 1930's through the 1950's you can find dual results as well as various tournaments on the West Coast that Hawaii participated in.   They disappear again up until the 70's.  Then you can find dual results & Hawaii competing in the PAC-12.  They always finished in last place & usually with 0 points, although sometimes they'd score a couple.  Into the late 70's you can find them at the Western Regional.  Most years where there are dual results, it was never more than 5 per year.  

TEXAS CHRISTIAN (Fort Worth, Texas) 

Here's another one like Florida State I'm not sure if they were ever officially varsity or not.   In Texas every year throughout a period in the 70's there was a tournament held.  Many of these programs were club or intramural like North Texas, Texas Tech, Stephen F Austin & West Texas.  However a few like Richland & Texas-El Paso had varsity programs.  What makes me question TCU is that like Texas-El Paso they had duals for two of these seasons, against varsity programs.   I've never seen TCU at a qualifier, but that doesn't always mean anything either. 

It can get rather confusing at times.   I've found Southern California competing at the PAC-12 tournament, including having a champion at HWT.  Yet the champion did NOT compete at the NCAA tournament & the 2nd & 3rd place wrestlers did.  Love to know the story on htat. 

MEMPHIS STATE (Memphis, Tennessee) 

Found Memphis State in results Vs Chattanooga.  Another one of those that George McIntyre has promised to provide information on & probably will once he finds time in his schedule aside from chastising people on facebook for not being exactly like him. 

GEORGETOWN (Georgetown, Kentucky) 

I've always thought every time I ran across Georgetown in old wrestling results it was referring to the Hoyas in Washington D.C.   However seeing them in SEIWA tournaments, I thought to myself why in the Hell would they go all the way down their to wrestle?  I then through further research discovered that it was actually referring to the Tigers.   Georgetown Hoyas for the record, DID have a wrestling team at one time too. 

SOUTH CAROLINA STATE (Orangeburg, South Carolina) 

Here's the thing. I think when SCSU had a wrestling team, I'm pretty sure that they were pretty good.  Matter of fact, I know that they won the MEAC title in 1979, 1980, 1981 & 1982.  Yet there is NOTHING on their website that I've been able to find about the wrestlers or the team. 

KENNESAW STATE (Kennesaw, Georgia) 

Can be found in SEIWA tournaments 

HARTWICK (Oneonta, New York) 

Listed in Dual results 

MARIST (Poughkeepsie, New York) 

Listed in Dual results

EMPORIA STATE (Emporia, Kansas) 

Found in MIAA tournaments 

LOUISANA-MONROE (Monroe, Louisiana) 

Found in the 1972-1973 school year to have duals against both Louisiana-Lafayette & Louisiana State 

HUSSON (Bangor, Maine) 

Found in tournaments 

CANISIUS (Buffalo, New York) 

Found in dual records of Buffalo State 

DREW (Madison, New Jersey) 

Found Vs various other teams in Jersey 

FORDHAM (Bronx, New York) 

Found in various tournaments/duals throughout New York 


So with these teams added I'm now up to 427.   

Closer to that # of 670.  


UPDATE:  Since writing this, I got up to 462 discontinued wrestling programs that are a part of "Gone, Lost & Forgotten."  Sad to report that I've even added more as of 9-6-2024.   Some get there own write up, but some unfortunately don't.  There just isn't enough information.  

UNIVERSITY OF HEALTH SCIENCES AND PHARMACY

I felt this program was doomed from the beginning. A university with very specific and unique degrees, was going to have a difficult time fielding a full roster wrestling team. As time would tell, they had a difficult time getting more than a few wrestlers on their team. I appreciated the effort & thought it was cool that such a small school would even try wrestling. It just wasn't meant to be, I guess. 

ARKANSAS BAPTIST

I thought I'd be able to gather some information, but I was unable to find much.  


Count is now at 478  

Gone, Lost & Forgotten: Their Best = Boise State

 When the Broncos of Boise State dropped their wrestling program in 2017, they dropped one of the most successful athletic programs that the University has ever had.   In fact with 16 Conference Titles (Ten in the BIG SKY & Six in the PAC-12) the wrestling team was only a hair behind Football with 18 conference titles.  As to number of All Americans? Again, only second behind Football.   At the time Boise State had produced a total of five NCAA champions.  Two of which wrestling had given them.  

Jake Swartz

A Washington state champion for Auburn High school,  Swartz won three PAC-12 titles during his time as a Bronco, earning All American honors his senior season with a seventh place finish in 2014.  In addition to these honors he also placed three times at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational (CKLV) with two fourths & a sixth place finish.  His brother Kurt also won a PAC-12 title & his father Brad won two PAC-12 titles for Oregon State. 

J.T. Felix 

Salutatorian for Centennial High School where he helped lead the football team to a state title & where he finished as the California state runner-up, Felix had a notable career at Boise State.   After two runner-up finishes at the PAC-12 championships in his freshman & junior seasons, Felix was able to capture the title as a senior in 2014.   

By all means he should have been an All American, but in one of the worst calls I have ever personally witnessed at the NCAA championships, Felix lost out & had to settle for one match shy instead.   Despite not making All American status he still won the Gorriaran Award for the most amount of falls at the tournament.   Other highlights of his career were placing third as a junior & runner-up as a senior at CKLV.  

Jesse Brock 

MMA competitor Jesse Brock was a standout for the Broncos winning PAC-12 titles in 2002 & 2004. 

Ben Cherrington 

Sometimes it takes a few tries before you get it right.  Cherrington a two time PAC-12 champion had came close to All American honors in previous seasons, but he kept finishing a hair away of the achievement.  Come his senior season of 2006, he put it altogether.  Not only did he make All American status, he did so by capturing the NCAA title & doing so with an undefeated record.  Post his collegiate career he got into coaching, including a head position at Northern Colorado. 

Rusty Cook 

A native of New Mexico, Rusty Cook won two PAC-12 titles for the Broncos, including a fourth place finish at the 2001 NCAA championships. 

Jason Chamberlain 

A four time Utah State champion with a 191-2 high school record for Springville High school, Jason Chamberlain narrowly missed out on winning four PAC-12 titles for the Broncos.  Winning titles in his freshman, junior & senior seasons, he finished third as a sophomore.   Along with these notable accomplishments, Chamberlain finished in third place as a junior & as the NCAA runner-up as a senior securing two All American finishes.  

Post his successful collegiate career, Chamberlain went on to success internationally claiming a gold medal at the 2015 PAN-American Championships.   He then got into coaching.  

Brent Chriswell

A two time Washington state champion for South Kitsap high school, Chriswell began his career at Arizona State before transferring to Boise State.  While competing for the Broncos he won two PAC-12 titles & finished in sixth place at the 2009 NCAA championships. 

Adam Hall 

Hall is another example of a wrestler who got it done on the mat and in the classroom.  A two time PAC-12 champion, Hall had NCAA All American finishes of third and fifth during his illustrious career.  Graduating with a 3.5 GPA,  he got into coaching including stints at North Carolina State & Columbia. 

Andrew Hochstrasser 

Boise State provided a home for another four time Utah State champion, this one from Tooele High school, when Andrew Hochstrasser showed up to wrestle for the Broncos.  Finishing one match shy of All American status as a freshman in 2005, Hochstrasser went on a mission trip & when he came back, he came back to wrestle.   Winning two PAC-12 titles,  Hochstrasser finished fourth in 2009 & capped off his career as an NCAA runner-up in 2011. 

Scott Jorgensen 

If you're ever in a discussion with anyone over the best wrestlers to never make All American, you can't go wrong if you bring up the name Scott Jorgensen.  The MMA superstar had an assortment of quality victories during his career & in three PAC-12 championships, he was untouchable at the tournament.   A four time high school state finalist for Eagle High School, Jorgensen enjoys fame as a UFC competitor. 

Nate Lee

Lee won PAC-12 titles in 2008 & 2009, finishing as a runner-up in 2010.  

Larry Quisel 

The late Larry Quisel who we lost in 2018 in an Elk hunting accident is one of the most memorable wrestlers to ever grace the blue & orange.  A two time State champion for Park high school in Montana, Quisel won back to back PAC-12 titles in 1999 & 2000.   Earning a Gorriaran award & a third place finish at the NCAA's in 1999, he did himself one better in 2000 by finishing as the NCAA runner-up.  

Tyler Sherfey 

During his senior season of 2009, Sherfey perfected a strong ride to earn both a PAC-12 title & NCAA All American honors with an eighth place finish. 

Kirk Smith

Kirk Smith had immediate success as a Bronco when he upset the returning NCAA finalist Roger Kish of Minnesota to earn his first All American honor as a freshman in 2008 with an eighth place finish.  He'd go on to win PAC-12 titles in 2009 & 2010, making the NCAA finals in 2010.  As a senior injuries kept him from winning a third PAC-12 title & eventually from even being able to compete at the NCAA championships. Had it not been for a nasty ankle injury, Smith may have been the third wrestler to win an NCAA title for the Broncos. 

Ben Vombaur 

Vombaur never knew defeat in high school going 102-0 winning four Washington state championships.  Competing for the Broncos,  he had a standout career winning PAC-12 titles in 2001 & 2003, earning All American honors in 2002 & 2003.  As a junior in 2002 he finished in fourth place & as a senior in 2003 he finished in sixth place.  

He later coached at the collegiate level for a while, before turning his focus to youth wrestling running the Bear Cave wrestling club. 

Kirk White 

Kirk White made history during his sophomore season when he became the first Bronco wrestler to win a NCAA title.  He'd go on to capture two more All American honors with a fifth place finish in 2000 & a sixth place finish in 2001, making him the first three time All American in Boise State history.  

Graduating with a career record of 114-21, White when on to success on the international level, capturing back to back silver medals at the 2003 & 2004 PAN-American championships. 

Tracy Yeates 

Yeates won a California state title as a junior & finished in fourth place as a senior before coming to Boise State.  While competing for the Broncos he won BIG SKY titles in 1983 and 1984. 

Dave Chandler 

Dave Chandler made history when he became the first Bronco wrestler to win four BIG SKY conference titles in 1972, 73', 74' & 75'.  In addition to winning four conference titles, he capped off his career with a fifth place finish at the NCAA championships. 

Bill Braseth

Braseth won three BIG SKY titles for the Broncos in 1979, 80' & 81'. 

Scott Barrett 

Going 115-25 during his career, Barrett became the second Bronco to win four BIG SKY conference titles.  To cap off his distinguished career, Barrett made the NCAA finals as a senior in 1982. 

Ben Coronado 

Coronado won BIG SKY conference titles in 1983, 86' & 87' 

Stan Armstrong 

Armstrong got it done on the mat and in the classroom.  Along with winning BIG SKY conference titles in 1984, 85' & 86', he was also named All-BIG SKY Academic in those seasons as well. 

Charles Burton 

While a notable career of 101-32 as a Bronco that includes a 1996 All American finish of third at the NCAA championships, it is what Burton did as a wrestler post his collegiate career that really make him stick out. 

After a bronze medal at the 1997 PAN-American championships & a silver medal in 2000, Burton became the first Bronco to ever make an Olympic team when he won the team trials in 2000.  Finishing just shy of an Olympic medal, he'd go on to win bronze medals at the World Cup in both 2001 & 2003. 

Cash Edwards 

Edwards was a two time All American for the Broncos, finishing in seventh place in 2000 and in sixth place in 2001. 

Collin Robertson

Robertson put it altogether for a standout senior season in 2003 which included a PAC-12 title & a sixth place finish at the NCAA championships. 

Boe Rushton 

A two time state runner-up for Wood River high school, Rushton was one of those wrestlers that flew under the radar & came out of nowhere for an outstanding final NCAA tournament his senior season in 2003.   He dominated through the tournament only losing one match in route to a very impressive third place finish.  His career record 59-25. 

Post his collegiate career Rushton has coached high school wrestling while teaching history and government.  


-------

As you can see Boise State wrestling was very successful during its run on the mat.  Not only that but Boise State provided a home for West coast wrestlers.  Especially those from Idaho & Washington where wrestling opportunities are scarce & Division I opportunities are non-existent.  Bronco wrestling was one of the most successful athletics at Boise State at the time of discontinuation.  A quick study only a few years later would most likely conclude that it still is. 

Gone, Lost & Forgotten: Their Best = Pomona Pitzer

 I hate to keep adding to the long list of discontinued wrestling programs in the state of California, but Pomona Pitzer makes yet another school that used to have wrestling that no longer does. 

Axel Borg 

Known as one of the most knowledgeable individuals on Wine & Food in the entire country,  Axel Borg a Bibliographer & librarian wrestled & played football at Pomona-Pitzer. 

Sean Tavitigian 

Tavitigian had an outstanding career while at Pomona-Pitzer makign the SCIAC finals as a freshman, winning titles as a sophomore & junior, placing third as a senior. 

Gone, Lost & Forgotten: Their Best = Southwestern Oklahoma State

 When it comes to collegiate wrestling the state of Oklahoma with the domination of the Oklahoma State Cowboys & the Oklahoma Sooners at NCAA Division I & the competitiveness of Central Oklahoma at NCAA Division II, it more than holds its place as a "wrestling state."  Had the Bulldogs of Southwestern Oklahoma State never dropped their wrestling program, they too would be in the discussion. 

An hour and a half from Norman & two hours from Stillwater, the Bulldogs used to dual the both the Sooners & and Cowboys on regular occasions.  

Arnold "Swede" Umbach 

One of the most prolific names in the sport of wrestling,  Arnold "Swede" Umbach wrestled collegiately for Southwestern Oklahoma State.  During his time as a Bulldog he won four conference titles.  He then coached wrestling at the high school level for a while, before taking over the program at Auburn.  He led the Tigers to an impressive dual record of 249-28, winning twenty five of twenty six Southeastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association (SEIWA) titles & producing 128 individual SEIWA champions.  

He was also the brain-child behind the SEC (Southeastern Conference) deciding to officially sponsor wrestling, which they did from 1969-1970 through 1980-1981.  In many ways Swede Umbach was the father of growing wrestling in the south as during his time many colleges & universities took up wrestling.  

Unfortunately & some will blame Title IX as others like myself will blame greedy football coaches like Charlie Pell & Pat Dye, much of the work Umbach did was erased through the discontinuations of many of these wrestling programs.   Nearly every team that competed in the SEIWA tournaments & every team that competed in the SEC, no longer has wrestling.   

Nevertheless there was a time when the schools in the south DID have wrestling programs & coach Umbach had a lot to do with why. 

Ralph Teague

A three time conference champion, Teague went 50-3 during his career at Southwestern Oklahoma State.  He earned a spot on the 1936 Olympic team, but was unable to compete due to a knee injury. 

Arthur Sweet

Arthur Sweet got the job done regardless of the location.  In the classroom Sweet recorded the highest GPA of any student that had ever attended Southwestern Oklahoma State when he graduated.  On the football field he helped the Bulldogs to a 1933 conference championship.  As a wrestler, he won PAN-American gold.  He later stated the wrestling program at Northern Oklahoma College. (Unfortunately it too has since been dropped). 

Ernie Stout 

Stout won the 1937 NCAA wrestling championship & later became heavily involved in the Los Angeles Athletic Club's wrestling team before going into a life of teaching & eventually taking on the role of Superintendent. 

Foy Stout

Foy Stout earned two NCAA All American honors during his time as a Bulldog.  After taking runner-up honors in 1933, he finished third in 1934. 

He would then spend the next 38 years at Sulphur High school where he taught science & industrial arts while coaching football, wrestling & baseball. 

M.L. Sims 

M.L. Sims was a force to be reckoned with on both the gridiron and the wrestling mat.  Named All-Conference in Football, he won a conference title in wrestling in 1939.  Post college he served our country as a member of the Navy in World War II.  He later became Principal at  Roosevelt High School. 

Orville Long 

Long spent three years in the Navy During World War II before enrolling at Southwestern Oklahoma State on the G.I. Bill.   Taking up football, wrestling & baseball, he excelled at all three.  On the football field, he once caught a 95 yard pass & scored a touch down in a victory over Central Oklahoma. A record that stood long after it happened.   As a wrestler he won a conference title.  

He then taught & coached at Cordell High school, where he reinstated the wrestling program that had laid dormant for over twenty years.   We sadly lost Long in 1995. 

Steve England 

Another standout athlete for Southwestern Oklahoma State was Steve England who stood out as much on the mat as he did on the gridiron.  As a football player, he was named All-Conference in 1932, 1933 & 1934.  He helped lead his team to conference titles in 1932 & 1933.  He was so good that the Detroit Lions offered him a contract immediately after his senior season was complete, but England turned it down because he had his heart sat on teaching and coaching instead. 

As a wrestler he won four conference titles & earned NCAA All American honors twice.  In 1934 as a junior he finished in third place, making the NCAA finals as a senior in 1935.  The next year he was a member of the Olympic Team.