The Rise, Fall, And Resurgence Of Iowa High School Wrestling – FloWrestling

by Andy Hamilton and Kyle Klingman

To totally comprehend the peak of Iowa’s energy as a wrestling state, it’s vital to look again at three astounding information and figures. 

On the 1982 NCAA Championships, 14 Iowa natives reached the rostrum as Division I All-People, together with three nationwide finalists from the identical public highschool. 

In 1987, 4 of the ten Division I nationwide champions have been Iowa highschool merchandise. 

And in 1991, six Iowa former preps — all of whom got here from Class 2A excessive colleges — wrestled within the NCAA finals. 

For a state that ranked thirtieth in inhabitants at the moment, Iowa was unquestionably the nationwide chief within the manufacturing of high-level wrestlers. However the remainder of the nation caught as much as Iowa’s technological edge, the Hawkeye State fell behind on the rapidly-changing membership scene, the state’s highschool journey restrictions restricted publicity to prime competitors, and the state went via a gradual however startling three-decade decline. 

In every of the previous two years, just one native Iowan — Iowa State’s Gannon Gremmel (fifth) in 2021 and Marcus Coleman (seventh) in 2022 — earned Division I All-America honors on the NCAA Championships. 

It’s a stark distinction from 40 years in the past when one Iowa highschool — Cedar Rapids Prairie — had three NCAA finalists and 11 different in-state merchandise earned All-America honors.  

“These are laborious numbers to swallow as a coach from this period,” mentioned Iowa USA Wrestling chapter chair Jason Christenson, who stepped down in 2020 as the pinnacle coach at Iowa highschool energy Southeast Polk after main the Rams to 9 state championships. 

Iowa’s Rise To Nationwide Wrestling Supremacy

Iowans have a love affair with wrestling, however constructing a practice took time. One clarification for the state’s rise is that Iowans labored with their palms and that wrestling was a pure outlet for the farming neighborhood. 

Mike Van Arsdale — a Waterloo native who gained an NCAA title for Iowa State in 1988 — says the reply is straightforward. Massive Swedish and German settlements arrived in Iowa in the course of the Nineteen Twenties and introduced combating programs to a state that had a pure inclination for hand-to-hand fight. 

“So as to add extra range you had African-People transferring into Waterloo from Mississippi, Tennessee, and Kentucky,” Van Arsdale mentioned. “These have been robust, hard-nosed individuals who labored within the coal mines or out within the fields. When their children settled they have been from mother and father who have been robust.”

The Boys & Women Membership in Waterloo mixed inner-city children and farm children that yielded a number of the finest leads to the state on the time. One identify from Waterloo would change the course of wrestling historical past: Dan Gable.

Gable turned considerably of a legendary determine throughout his unprecedented run via highschool and school. He compiled a mixed 181-1 report at Waterloo West Excessive Faculty and Iowa State and didn’t lose till his closing school match as a Cyclone. 

Previous to Gable’s rise, Iowa had produced 4 Division I NCAA championship groups: Iowa State in 1933 and 1965, Cornell School in 1947, and Iowa State Academics School (now referred to as Northern Iowa) in 1950. 

Gable’s magical run at Iowa State and his dominant show on the 1972 Olympics in Munich, the place he gained gold with out surrendering a degree, turned a turning level for the state. Iowans have been captivated when one among their very own took the world by storm, sparking an explosion in curiosity throughout the state that was later fueled when Gable constructed a university dynasty as the pinnacle coach at Iowa. 

Many wrestlers, although, level to the 1972 Olympics as a watershed second since lots of the matches have been televised. 

“I feel the rise of Iowa highschool wrestling began within the Nineteen Seventies and Nineteen Eighties,” mentioned Cedar Rapids native Barry Davis, a three-time NCAA champion for the College of Iowa. “Iowa gained its first (NCAA crew) title in 1975 and I feel issues actually began to choose up at the moment. Iowa State gained a number of nationwide championships with (head coach Harold Nichols) earlier than that. There’s little doubt about it. I feel the 1972 Olympic Video games, Iowa State’s success, and Iowa’s success made highschool wrestling a mainstay.”

Iowa Public Tv was additionally on the chopping fringe of this pattern. IPTV broadcasted the highschool state finals starting in 1972 with choose school duals starting in 1977.

That pattern continued till 2002 when the state event was faraway from public tv whereas school duals continued via the top of the last decade. Iowa Public Tv was a groundbreaking revelation to a state that was on fireplace for the game. 

It reached all corners of the state and lined a 50-mile radius past the borders. It crossed all socioeconomic boundaries since anybody may entry the station and, get this: there have been no commercials. There was nothing to disrupt the stream of watching wrestling and the motion that surrounded it. 

“It was the one wrestling on tv on the time,” Iowa coach Tom Manufacturers mentioned. “Iowa Public Tv was stay wrestling and it was the most effective collegiate wrestling within the nation — and it was proper in your lounge once you solely had 4 stations.” 

Northern Iowa coach Doug Schwab of Osage watched his older brothers, Mike and Mark, together with quite a few different wrestling stars in the course of the golden period of Iowa wrestling. This was elementary to his growth earlier than turning into an NCAA champion at Iowa in 1999 and an Olympian in 2008. 

“I watched Iowa Public Tv and I bear in mind considering, ‘I wish to wrestle like that,’ Schwab mentioned. “We took that with no consideration. We had it and children obtained to look at that rising up. Do I feel that was a bonus for our youngsters and our athletes? Completely, I feel it was. Children grew up seeing it and desirous to be that.”

Causes For ‘The Downfall’

Doug Schwab’s closing school match got here on the large stage on the NCAA Championships in 2001 — a time when wrestling was combating for tv desk scraps. At the moment, leaders within the sport have been prepared to maneuver the nationwide finals to a non-traditional afternoon begin time simply to get the marquee occasion on nationwide TV. 

Twenty-one years afterward a sizzling day in June, Schwab sits inside his SUV in a southeast Iowa car parking zone, watching his sons compete at a youth event 1,200 miles away in Utah. 

“I can punch up anyone within the nation and anyone on the earth,” he mentioned. “I’ve entry to every thing.”

So does everybody else. Iowa’s distinctive benefit of wrestling on stay tv has been changed by streaming companies and unprecedented protection. Previous to the broadcasting increase, protection of the NCAA Championships was restricted to chopped-up snippets that have been launched weeks after the occasion. However now, each spherical of the event is proven stay. 

That’s not misplaced on Christenson when he ponders Iowa’s place on the scholastic pecking order. There’s the truth that the remainder of the nation merely caught up when the technological taking part in discipline was leveled. 

“I feel everyone seems to be getting good all over the place,” Christenson mentioned. “These children immediately have entry to the most effective strategy of anyone within the nation, anyone on the earth on the click on of a button. Children can step up out of highschool and be aggressive proper out of highschool and into school. That studying curve isn’t close to as steep because it was once. The quantity of expertise and mat time these children are getting in highschool — all around the nation — it’s not simply in these dynasty states that have been for therefore lengthy, with Iowa being one among them.”

The technological piece is a giant half of a bigger puzzle, although. Placing the total image collectively takes a complete and all-encompassing method. 

Was Iowa on an unsustainable tempo and due for a market correction? Did Iowans achieve a false sense of safety? Had been they too gradual to evolve?

“What’s the downfall of Iowa highschool wrestling?” Davis mentioned. “I feel individuals thought Iowa was so good on the time that we don’t want to coach since we’re Iowa. (There was an angle of) ‘I wrestle for the state of Iowa, so I’m good simply because I’m from Iowa.’ It doesn’t matter the place you’re from — you continue to have to coach and do issues proper. It’s a must to change issues up. We’re not as dominant as we was once due to that.”

Bettendorf head coach Dan Knight, an undefeated four-time state champion for Clinton (1984-87) who positioned fourth on the NCAA Championships for Iowa State in 1990, has seen Iowa lag behind on a number of the sport’s technical and tactical developments.

“When all of the funk occurred, I don’t assume we have been on the forefront of that,” mentioned Knight, who additionally coaches at Sebolt Wrestling Academy in Jefferson. “I don’t know if we’re proof against it, however again within the day we may preserve our Iowa children and you can win along with your Iowa children. Iowa applications had all Iowa children. I don’t know if you are able to do that (nowadays).

“Have a look at the College of Iowa. They’ve quite a lot of Pennsylvania boys on their crew and so they’re doing fairly nicely. It’s unfold out. The youngsters are good all over the place.”

One downside for Iowa: The state’s finest wrestlers have been restricted of their quest to compete alongside a number of the nation’s prime highschool expertise. Iowa highschool groups are solely allowed to compete in contiguous states and Kansas, and people are the one states allowed to wrestle inside Iowa borders throughout the highschool season, in line with Iowa Excessive Faculty Athletic Affiliation pointers. 

“If I may pinpoint a few issues that helped us achieve success at Southeast Polk, it’s that our administration and our college board allowed us to exit of state,” Christenson mentioned. “The Cheesehead (in Wisconsin) is the hardest event (we may) journey to (underneath Iowa guidelines) and we began going there in 2012 and swiftly we began profitable. I feel that has performed an enormous function.”

So, too, has the explosive development of membership wrestling, which has helped Iowa’s elite achieve entry to high-level coaching companions and nationwide competitors. 

The membership scene is flourishing throughout the nation with former school stars lending their experience. Iowa might have fallen behind this pattern however is rapidly catching up. 

A decade in the past, gifted younger wrestlers have been unfold out at completely different areas throughout Iowa, however they not often practiced towards one another in an organized setting. Prime wrestlers going through one another was the inspiration of Iowa’s development throughout its highschool heyday. 

“There have been so many individuals which have tried to begin golf equipment within the state of Iowa,” mentioned Dylan Carew, who owns and operates the North Liberty-based Massive Sport Wrestling Membership, which not too long ago added a web site within the Quad Cities. 

“It’s simpler to reply why it’s completely different proper this second. For me, that’s simple. There are extra guys sticking it out. There are three or 4 golf equipment which are doing a very good job which have massive numbers of excellent children. Ten years in the past, there have been most likely too many golf equipment. After I identify the golf equipment from 10 years in the past, I’m not speaking concerning the 15-20 guys who tried to begin a membership. I’m speaking concerning the guys who made it via that point interval.” 

Causes For Optimism

Carew and T.J. Sebolt, architects of Iowa’s two strongest golf equipment, sat within the nook in June in Tulsa as a number of of their prime pupils helped the state sweep the Greco-Roman and freestyle titles on the Junior Nationwide Duals. 

The Greco title — the primary in state historical past — set the stage for a mauling of the freestyle discipline. Iowa gained its eight freestyle duals by a mean of 42 factors per outing and throttled a robust Ohio squad 47-14 within the championship. 

In July, Iowa’s Junior freestyle crew placed on a historic efficiency in Fargo, working away with the crew title with 4 champions, 5 finalists and 13 All-People. The Iowans racked up 214 factors to complete 98 forward of second-place Pennsylvania. The 4 champions — Nate Jesuroga, Ryder Block, Aiden Riggins and Bradley Hill — have been probably the most for Iowa since 1983. It was additionally Iowa’s highest All-American rely in Junior freestyle since 1978. 

The state resurgence has been fueled by scintillating particular person performances. Southeast Polk’s Jesuroga claimed a Cadet World bronze final summer season in Budapest. Fort Dodge’s Drake Ayala captured his third Fargo freestyle title final July. Each Sebolt-trained wrestlers additionally notched wins at Who’s #1 and gained Tremendous 32 belts.

Iowa Metropolis West’s Hunter Garvin, who trains underneath Carew’s watch at Massive Sport, joined Jesuroga final fall on the Who’s #1 card. 

Ben Kueter, an undefeated three-time state champion for Iowa Metropolis Excessive who trains with Sebolt, made the Junior World Workforce. 

“A part of what you want, in my view, is you want children that prepare collectively,” Carew mentioned. “You don’t want a thousand completely different little splinter cells. I feel we had good golf equipment 10 years in the past. Do I feel we had nice golf equipment? Most likely not. Should you have a look at us and T.J., you’re speaking about two of the most effective golf equipment in the US proper now. 

“I’d put our two golf equipment within the prime seven or eight golf equipment in the US, no matter age. That is distinctive to have two golf equipment from one state — particularly in a state like Iowa.” 

The College of Iowa’s current recruiting haul is stuffed with prime in-state expertise, which is a mirrored image of a attainable resurgence. 

“If you rise — except you simply proceed to rise — you’re going to fall,” Gable mentioned. “If there’s a advantage of falling is that it wakes individuals up a little bit and it makes them a little bit extra targeted. It provides them a little bit extra route. Iowans — after we don’t do nicely in wrestling, it doesn’t matter what degree, they’re going to perk up their ears. 

“When individuals do nicely and are recognized for issues which are constructive, it labels you and it provides you extra discover — and folks want extra discover. This state wants extra discover.”