Down Goes the #1! - Part 9

 Today we take a look at all of the times at the NCAA DI tournament between 1984 & 1986 when the #1 seed went down before the finals. 

1984 118 - #8 Bob Hallman Northern Iowa Upsets #1 Charlie Heard Chattanooga 7-6 in QF

A graduate of West Des Moines Dowling Catholic, Bob Hallman had thus far never been an All American during his collegiate career. He was now a senior & this was his last opportunity. Low & behold he made it to the quarter-finals where he had to face two time All American (8th in 1982 & 2nd in 1983) & #1 seed Charlie Heard of UT-Chattanooga. Hallman pulled off the upset with a stunning 7-6 victory.  As Hallman would win again eventually earning runner-up status, Heard worked his way back to a 7th place finish. Heard's final win put him at 113 victories against only 10 losses. 

1984 134 - #5 Scott Lynch Penn State Upsets #1 Clar Anderson 11-8 in Semi-Finals 

Representing the Auburn Tigers, you earn All American status as a sophomore at the 1981 NCAA Championships with a 6th place finish. Athletic Director/Football Coach Pat Dye walks into the wrestling room one day. No "thank you for your efforts." No "We appreciate what you did for the school."  *A simple look around the wrestling room as he mutters, "hmm..this would make a good training room."* A while later you're informed that you can no longer represent your school because they will be dropping wrestling. That's what happened to Clar Anderson. No bother. He took the 1982 season off to redshirt & now representing Oklahoma State, he won the NCAA title in 1983. It looked as if he were going to win another NCAA title in 1984, but then he ran into Scott Lynch of Penn State, a fellow senior who was also a two time All American (6th in 82', 4th' in 83).  Lynch upset Anderson 11-8, as he'd go on to win the NCAA title. Anderson came back to finish 5th.  Post their illustrious collegiate careers Lynch became a team doctor for the Penn State football team as Anderson turned his attention to coaching. 

* - This story was told to me by a former Auburn Tiger who was on the wrestling team when it was discontinued. So it is alleged, take his word for it or don't. * 

1985 118 - #8 Matt Egeland Iowa Upsets #1 Mark Perry Oklahoma State in QF

If you got but one shot, you might as well make the most of it right? This was the case for Iowa's Matt Egeland a state champion out of West Des Moines Dowling Catholic. He had recently earned runner-up status as the BIG 10 tournament & figured he might as well make the NCAA finals too. Scoring a 9-8 victory over #1 Mark Perry of Oklahoma State, he made the finals as Perry, who had been 6th in 1984, worked his way back to a 5th place finish. Perry who also won two BIG 12 titles as well as two CKLV titles, graduated with a career record of 102-22. He later coached at Nebraska. Son Mark Jr was a standout at Iowa, while his other son Chris was a standout at Oklahoma State. 

1985 167 - U.S. John Monaco Montclair State Upsets #1 Kevin Jackson Louisiana State 6-5 in R1

We've talked before in this series of small school wrestlers coming in and showing they belong on the mat with big school wrestlers. This time it was NCAA DIII champion John Monaco of Montclair State who pulled off the biggest round one upset of the 1985 DI tournament when he squeaked past Kevin Jackson of Louisiana State 6-5. Monaco would end up in 4th place as Jackson showed great tenacity working his way back to a 7th place finish.  The junior who had finished 3rd in his freshman & sophomore seasons was disappointed with his performance to say the least. To add to his disappointment he came back to the LSU campus only to discover that the Tigers were no longer going to field a wrestling program. He now had to find a new home.  Taking 1986 off to redshirt, Jackson wound up at Iowa State where he made the 1987 NCAA finals. Later he would have tremendous success on the international level  winning Gold medals at the PAN-AMERICAN championships, the World Championships & the Olympics.  As to Monaco he never did find the magic he had at the 1985 NCAA DI tournament, but he was an absolute force to be reckoned with at the DIII level. He'd win two more DIII titles in 1986 & 1987. 

1985 UNL - #8 Kirk Trost Michigan Upsets #1 Rich Peterson Lock Haven 10-8 in QF

With finishes of 2nd & 3rd at the Illinois High School State tournament, Michigan's Kirk Trost never won a title during his prep years. Entering the 1985 NCAA championships as a junior, he pulled off a huge quarterfinal upset over Rich Peterson of Lock Haven in route to finish as the NCAA runner-up.  Peterson who had been one match shy of placing in 1984 as a junior, would again finish one match shy of a medal. Although he never did earn All American status, he graduated with an impressive 120-31 record.  Trost would come back in 1986 to win the national title, later earning a bronze medal at the
 1993 World's. 

1986 126 - #9 Dennis Semmel Army  Upsets #1 Alan Grammer SIUE 11-11, 11-2 in Quarter-Finals

During high school at Lehighton High, Dennis Semmel with finishes of 3rd & 4th never made the state finals. A two time EIWA champion, he had never made All American status. In his final attempt, he made the most of the situation knocking off #1 seed Alan Grammer of Southern Illinois-Edwardsville in the quarters.  As Semmel finished 2nd, Grammer would end up in 5th. Semmel graduated with a record of 102-20.  Grammer himself was quite the story as well. A native of Evansville Reitz high school, he never won an Indiana state title. He'd more than make up for it winning back to back NCAA DII titles in 1985 & 1986.  Taking 3rd at the 1985 NCAA DI tournament he was also 3rd at the 1984 NCAA DII tournament. 

1986 150 - #9 Scott Turner North Carolina State Upsets #1 Tim Krieger Iowa State in QF

The sport of wrestling has so many inspirational stories & as far as I'm concerned from all perspectives this is one of the best.  Iowa State legend Tim Krieger who won three state titles for Mason City High School only lost three times in total during his entire collegiate career. One of those losses was to Scott Turner of North Carolina State in the 1986 quarterfinals.  Turner would end up in 3rd place as Krieger took 5th. It was far from the last time that the two would meet on the mat.  Krieger who was only a freshman at the time would win the NCAA title in 1987. Turner, a junior, missed out on the 1987 season due to injury.  That was supposed to be it for Turner. An unfortunate end seemed to be the fate handed to the leader of the Wolfpack. Yet when Turner petitioned for a medical hardship, he was granted an extra year of eligibility. In 1988 he entered his final NCAA tournament with three losses on the season. Who were those three losses to? None other than Tim Krieger of Iowa State. Becoming the first Medical Hardship NCAA Champion in history, Turner would again upset Krieger, this time in the NCAA finals.  Krieger who dealt with a knee injury, came back stronger than ever in 1989 winning his second NCAA title. 

1986 UNL - #4 John Heropoulos Iowa State Upsets #1 Tom Erikson Oklahoma State 

They say sometimes coaching can make all the difference in the world & I think it may be fair to say that is the case with both Iowa State's John Heropoulos & Oklahoma State's Tom Erikson. Heropoulos was already a standout for the Cyclones, but when Ed Banach a three time NCAA champion from Iowa began training with him let's just say he went from gold to platinum. The Ohio native had a great 1986 season making the finals with a stunning 3-2 upset over the #1 seed.  Erikson who finished 4th & then took 3rd in 1987 was quite the story himself. We have all sorts of stories of great wrestlers who never won state titles. Great wrestlers who never made the state finals. Even great wrestlers who never placed at the state tournament. How about great wrestlers who never even qualified? That's Tom Erikson. He never made the state tournament, yet by the end of his freshman season at Triton, he was an NJCAA champion. He'd win another as a sophomore before transferring to Oklahoma State.  A 1992 World Cup Gold medalist he'd coach at various colleges including Purdue, Lyon & Duke. 

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Part 10 will include the late 80's, 87', 88' & 89'.