Oklahoma State wrestling hoping to get ’10K in GIA’ for Missouri dual

STILLWATER — David Taylor isn’t the type to hide his goals.

One in particular that the first-year Oklahoma State wrestling coach has expressed is attendance — and the pursuit of bringing 10,000 fans to Gallagher-Iba Arena.

The Cowboys have surpassed 8,200 twice this year, and are well ahead of pace to break the program’s single-season average for attendance since the arena was expanded to its current capacity for the 2001 season.

But the third-ranked Cowboys have one last shot to hit Taylor’s 10,000 mark when they host No. 20 Missouri at 2 p.m. Sunday at GIA. They’ve labeled the goal as “10K in GIA” on social media promotions.

OSU’s season high attendance is 8,257, set a couple weeks ago in the 30-12 rout of West Virginia, and that brought the season average to 7,073.

Last year’s Cowboys set the known record for season average at 5,871. This year, the team has been over 6,000 for every dual. 

“It’s pretty awesome,” Taylor said after the West Virginia win. “When we sat down with guys, we were like, ‘Hey, these are our goals for the season.’ They said, ‘You guys aren’t gonna be able to do that unless you get Team X, Y and Z to come in here. I was like, why’s that? You don’t know.

“Oklahoma State wrestling, this is an important thing to people. So I think it’s awesome.”

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It’s possible that OSU has had a higher average attendance than whatever this year’s number ends up being. 

Before the major renovation for 2000-01, which brought the capacity to 13,611, the previous arena had seated 6,381 since 1986. It was in the 6,700 range for a few years before that. 

But the exact attendance numbers from anything before 2001 weren’t as closely tracked as they are today.

So maybe there was a season when the historically legendary program brought more fans through the GIA turnstiles. 

But this year remains historical regardless, and signals the excitement Taylor brought to OSU both with his reputation and the product he’s putting on the mat — an aggressive, enthralling style of wrestling that draws fans’ attention.

“I love the amount of fans that we have,” OSU 141-pound sophomore Tagen Jamison said. “Other programs, if you look at their videos, they’re not having the support system that we have here. It’s really awesome to see the amount of fans that we get to show up.

“I think it helps drive what we’re doing already.”

At a point in time when revenue is about to become a much more impactful term in college athletics — with the NCAA antitrust settlement expected to open the door for revenue sharing directly with athletes.

“We’re in a time in college athletics where that stuff matters,” Taylor said. “How many people that come to our matches matters. 

“I think we’re continuing to push the limits. It means a lot to our guys, our program, our university. It’s really cool to see that and be a part of a program that can show that type of support for wrestling.”

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And it’s been particularly inspiring for the newcomers from other programs that don’t draw the way OSU has this year to see the support Cowboy fans have brought. 

“I think it’s really exciting,” said OSU heavyweight Wyatt Hendrickson, who wrestled the last four years at Air Force. “Stillwater is a special place. The wrestlers that come here are all special guys. There’s a lot of good stuff going on here and it’s contagious when you’re in that environment and there’s so much passion toward a sport. 

“They’re all here to support the Cowboys and see some good wrestling, and we like to deliver that every single time.”

OSU vs. Missouri

2 p.m. Sunday at Gallagher-Iba Arena in Stillwater (ESPN+)