Minnesota Golden Gophers wrestling | |
---|---|
University | University of Minnesota |
Head Coach | Brandon Eggum (7th season) |
Conference | Big Ten |
Location | Minneapolis, MN |
Arena | Maturi Pavilion (Capacity: 5,700) |
Nickname | Gophers |
Colors | Maroon and gold [1] |
Team national championships | |
3 | |
National championship years | |
2001, 2002, 2007 | |
NCAA individual champions | |
23 (by 18 athletes) | |
All-Americans | |
195 (by 100 athletes) | |
Conference championships | |
94 (by 61 athletes) | |
Conference Tournament championships | |
1910, 1912, 1913, 1941, 1957, 1959, 1999, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2006, 2007 |
The Minnesota Golden Gophers wrestling program is an intercollegiate varsity sport at the University of Minnesota. They are a member of the Big Ten Conference and NCAA. Wrestling began at Minnesota in 1910, but the first formal dual meet was not until 1921 when coach Frank Gilman led the team to a victory over Wisconsin. The Gophers have won the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships team title three times, in 2001, 2002, and 2007.
J Robinson served as head coach for the team for thirty years, leading the Golden Gophers to three national championships during his tenure, until he was fired in 2016 over his handling of a prescription drug scandal involving his wrestlers. [2] Following Robinson's departure, three-time Golden Gopher wrestling All-American Brandon Eggum was named as head coach. [3]
Home meets are held in the 5,700-seat Maturi Pavilion in Minneapolis. When large crowds are expected, meets are held in Williams Arena, capacity 14,321. This often happens for matches against archrivals Iowa and Oklahoma State. Several home matches each year are televised by the Big Ten Network. The school has also used Target Center in downtown Minneapolis for some matches.
The 2001 team has two unique distinctions: All ten wrestlers in each weight class earned All-American (top eight) status and the school won the national team championship despite not having a single finalist.
The Gophers have had eighteen NCAA individual champions. Five of those were two-time champions.
The Dan Hodge Trophy is awarded each year to the United States of America’s best college wrestler. The trophy is presented at the end of the season by WIN magazine and Culture House. It is the collegiate wrestling equivalent to the Heisman Trophy in college football. Its high school wrestling equivalent is the Junior Hodge Trophy, which has been awarded annually since 1998.
Danny Mack Gable is an American former folkstyle and freestyle wrestler and coach. Considered to be one of the greatest wrestlers of all time, Gable is a two-time NCAA Division I national champion, a world gold medalist, and an Olympic gold medalist. Gable was only the third wrestler to be inducted into the United World Wrestling's Hall of Fame in the Legend category. In 2014, Gable was inducted into the International Sports Hall of Fame and awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2020.
Greco-Roman, Graeco-Roman, or classic wrestling is a style of wrestling that is practiced worldwide. Greco-Roman wrestling was included in the first modern Olympic Games in 1896 and has been in every edition of the summer Olympics held since 1904. This style of wrestling forbids holds below the waist, which is the main feature that differentiates it from freestyle wrestling. This restriction results in an emphasis on throws, because a wrestler cannot use trips to bring an opponent to the ground or hook/grab the opponent's leg to avoid being thrown.
Steve Mocco is an American former amateur wrestler, judoka and mixed martial artist. As a collegiate wrestler, he was a two-time NCAA national champion, four-time finalist, and was awarded the Dan Hodge Trophy. In freestyle, he represented the US at the Olympics and was a three-time Pan American Champion. As an MMA fighter, he most notably competed at the WSOF. He is currently a coach at both combat sports, being one of the main coaches at MMA powerhouse American Top Team and an assistant wrestling coach at Lehigh University.
Bradley Bert Rheingans is an American former Greco-Roman wrestler and professional wrestler. He was a member of the United States' Greco-Roman wrestling teams for the 1976 and 1980 Summer Olympics, as well as winning two gold medals in the 1975 and 1979 Pan American Games and a bronze medal in the 1979 World Wrestling Championships.
Dustin Schlatter is an American former wrestler. He won the 2006 NCAA wrestling title and was a three-time NCAA All-American at 149 pounds for the University of Minnesota. As a high school wrestler, Schlatter was a NHSCA Senior national title, USA Wrestling Junior and Cadet national titles in freestyle and Greco-Roman wrestling, and was a four-time Ohio high school state champion. He represented the United States in freestyle wrestling at the 2009 World Championships at 74 kg.
Cole Konrad is an American retired mixed martial arts fighter. Konrad won a gold medal at the 2005 Pan-American Championships. He won the NCAA wrestling championships in 2006 and 2007 at 285 pounds and finished third at the 2006 World University Championships at 120 kilograms. He was the first Bellator Heavyweight World Champion.
The University of Iowa men's wrestling program is one of the most successful NCAA Division I athletic programs. The Hawkeyes are 37 time Big Ten Conference champions and second in NCAA history with 24 National Championships.
The Oklahoma State Cowboys wrestling team is the most successful NCAA Division I athletic program of all time in any sport. As of 2021–2022, Oklahoma State wrestling has won 34 team national championships, 143 individual NCAA championships, and 485 All-American honors.
Jacob Deitchler is an American former wrestler who competed for the United States Greco-Roman wrestling team at the 2008 Summer Olympics. Deitchler, from Ramsey, Minnesota, is a former University of Minnesota wrestler and became the third wrestler in American history to go directly from high school and earn a spot on an Olympic Team.
The Iowa State Cyclones wrestling team represents Iowa State University (ISU) and competes in the Big 12 Conference of NCAA Division I. The Cyclones are 8 time National Champions, 17 time National Runners-Up, and have 45 Trophy Finishes. The team is coached by Kevin Dresser. The Cyclones host their home meets at Hilton Coliseum on Iowa State's campus. Iowa State became the second collegiate wrestling program to reach 1,100 dual wins on January 23, 2022.
The Penn State Nittany Lions wrestling program is an intercollegiate varsity sport at Pennsylvania State University. The wrestling team is a competing member of the Big Ten Conference and the National Collegiate Athletic Association. The Nittany Lions compete at Rec Hall in State College, Pennsylvania, on the campus of Pennsylvania State University. The Nittany Lions have claimed 13 team National Championship titles and 55 individual NCAA National Championship titles.
The Ohio State Buckeyes wrestling team represents the Ohio State University and competes in the Big Ten Conference of the NCAA Division I level. The Buckeyes host their home meets at the Covelli Center on Ohio State's campus.
The Nebraska Cornhuskers wrestling team represents the University of Nebraska–Lincoln in the Big Ten Conference of NCAA Division I. Since its inception in 1910, the program has an all-time record of 773–576–29 with seven conference tournament titles and eleven individual NCAA champions. The team has been coached by Mark Manning since 2000.
The Michigan Wolverines wrestling team is an NCAA Division I Wrestling team competing as members of the Big Ten Conference. The team is coached by Sean Bormet, a two-time All-American at Michigan.
Spencer Richard Lee (born October 14, 1998) is an American freestyle and former folkstyle wrestler who competes at 57 kilograms. In freestyle, he is qualified for the 2024 Summer Olympics, and has been a Pan American champion, a two-time US National champion, and a three-time age-group World champion, once in the U17 level and twice in the U20 level.
Gable Dan Steveson is an American professional football player who is a defensive end for the Buffalo Bills of the National Football League (NFL). He is an Olympic gold medalist freestyle wrestler and 2 time gold medalist folkstyle wrestler and also had a brief stint in professional wrestling where he was signed to WWE from 2021 to 2024.
The 2020 United States Olympic Team Trials for wrestling were held at the Dickies Arena of Fort Worth, Texas, on April 2–3, 2021. This event determined the representative of the United States of America for the 2020 Summer Olympics at each Olympic weight class. Originally scheduled to take place at the Bryce Jordan Center in University Park, Pennsylvania and on April 4–5, 2020, this event was postponed by the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee and USA Wrestling on March 13, 2020, along with the 2020 Summer Olympics due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Mason Parris is an American freestyle and folkstyle wrestler who competes at 125 kilograms. In freestyle, he claimed the 2019 World Junior Wrestling Championships gold medal. As a folkstyle wrestler, he was the 2023 NCAA Division I national champion and Big Ten Conference champion at 285 pounds for the Michigan Wolverines, and the Dan Hodge Trophy winner.