Oklahoma State University Athletics
Pokes Travel To UCM Open
November 12, 2009 | Cowboy Wrestling
Nov. 12, 2009
Cowboy Wrestling This Week
At Central Missouri Open (Warrensburg, Mo.)
Nov. 14, 2009 :: All Day
TV: None
Radio: None
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The Basics
The Oklahoma State wrestling team takes the mat for the Central Missouri Open Saturday in Warrensburg, Mo.
Cowboys in the Rankings
Oklahoma State is No. 5 in the NWCA/USA Today Preseason Coaches Poll and No. 6 in the preseason Intermat rankings.
For the purposes of these notes, the Amateur Wrestling News individual rankings will be used. That said, 125-pounder Chris Notte is No. 10 at his weight class, 141-pounder Jamal Parks is No. 11, 157-pounder Neil Erisman is No. 9, 184-pounder Clayton Foster is No. 11 and heavyweight Jared Rosholt is No. 3. The Amateur Wrestling News does not rank newcomers in its preseason individual rankings.
OSU At Last Year's Central Missouri Open
125: Obenson Blanc (1st), Jordan Oliver (2nd), Drew Partain (5th), Andre Taylor (6th), Kyle Torkleson (Did not place)
133: Tyler Shinn (1st), Chris Notte (2nd), Ricky Dellagatta (Did not place)
141: Jamal Parks (1st), Luke Ashmore (3rd)
149: Luke Silver (2nd), Quinten Fuentes (5th), Jake Peck (Did not place)
157: Newly McSpadden (2nd), Neil Erisman (3rd)
165: Brandon Mason (1st), Alex Meade (3rd), Ace Adamson (Did not place)
174: Kyle Griffin (1st), Cody Hill (2nd), Kevin Wainscott (5th)
184: Jared Shelton (1st), Chris McNeil (4th)
197: Clayton Foster (1st), Adam Rosholt (Did not place), Tyson Yoder (Did not place), Elliott Hellwege (Did not place)
285: Jared Rosholt (1st)
Last Time Out: OCU Open
Competing unattached, members of the Oklahoma State wrestling team dominated at the Oklahoma City Open Nov. 8, as Cowboy wrestlers won championships at nine of a possible 10 weight classes. Leading the way were redshirt freshman 133-pounder Jordan Oliver and sophomore 197-pounder Alan Gelogaev, who both pinned everyone they faced on the way to their respective weight class championships.
Rosholt Nears The Century Mark
Senior heavyweight Jared Rosholt, already a Big 12 champion and two-time All-American, continues to etch his name into the OSU record books.
Entering the Central Missouri Open, Rosholt has 93 career victories. A total of 32 Cowboys have hit the 100-win mark for their careers, with coach John Smith's 152 victories from 1984-88 topping the list.
Winning Is The Family Business
Jared Rosholt would become the second member of his family to hit the 100 career win mark at OSU, as older brother Jake was 104-21 from 2003-06.
The only other set of brothers to win 100 for the Cowboys were the Smiths. John's 152-8-2 record from 1984-88 leads all OSU wrestlers, with brother Pat going 122-4-2 from 1990-94 and Lee Roy going 114-13-4 from 1977-80.
Speaking Of Family...
John Smith is coaching a pair of his nephews this year in true freshmen Chris Perry and Zach White. Perry is the son of John's sister, Cathy and White is the son of Smith's sister Mary Ann.
Both Perry and White are expected to redshirt this season.
Trading Spaces
While some returning starters are in the lineup for the Cowboys this year, it should be noted that three of them are suiting up at new weight classes, with Chris Notte moving from 133 pounds to 125 pounds, Chris McNeil moving from 184 pounds to 174 pounds and Clayton Foster moving from 197 pounds to 184 pounds.
All three were NCAA qualifiers last year, but are cutting down this year as a result of the increased talent in the OSU wrestling room.
Red, White and OSU
A quartet of Cowboys represented the United States on the international scene during the summer of 2009, with John Smith coaching the USA senior freestyle team at the FILA World Championships in Herning, Denmark, head assistant coach Eric Guerrero serving as head coach for Team USA at the FILA junior freestyle world championships in Ankara, Turkey and Jordan Oliver and Chris Perry both suiting up for Team USA at the FILA junior freestyle world championships.
Oliver won bronze in the 60-kilogram bracket and Perry placed sixth in the 84-kilogram bracket at junior worlds.
Foster Has Team USA Experience As Well
Though he did not suit up in the Stars and Stripes this past summer, 184-pounder Clayton Foster represented the USA at the 2008 FILA junior world freestyle championships and had a nice showing, winning the bronze medal at the event.
Call Him “Z”
One of the most talked-about wrestlers in the country during the preseason was Oklahoma State 197-pounder Alan Gelogaev.
Born in Chechenya, Gelogaev claims Moscow, Russia as his hometown. Prior to enrolling at OSU, he trained for five years under Russian wrestling legend and nine-time world champion Buvaisar Saitiev in Siberia.
During his training in Siberia, he connected with former Cowboy Olympian Daniel Cormier and followed Cormier to Stillwater, where he is now mentored by six-time world champion John Smith.
His nickname, “Z” is derived from his middle name, Zelim.
Fargo Champions Everywhere
The 2009-10 Oklahoma State roster includes a staggering eight different Fargo junior freestyle national champions. The list:
Luke Ashmore 2006
Clayton Foster 2006
Albert White 2006
Mike Benefiel 2007
Jon Morrison 2007
Jordan Oliver 2007
Jamal Parks 2007
Chris Perry 2008
Benefiel To Suit Up At Start Of Spring Semester
Sophomore 174-pounder Mike Benefiel will not be eligible to compete for the Cowboys until the spring, 2010 semester begins at OSU, meaning that the Aurora, Ill., native won't be able to suit up for the Cowboys until the Jan. 16 dual at Iowa.
Benefiel redshirted as a true freshman at Northwestern in 2007-08 before transferring to St. Louis CC in Meramec, Mo. Benefiel enrolled at Northern Oklahoma College for summer school in 2009 before coming to OSU in time for the fall, 2009 semester.
Local Flavor
When Oklahoma State has been at its best, it has won with strong contributions from in-state wrestlers. If the current crop of freshmen in the Cowboy program is any indication, OSU is getting primed for another big run.
A trio of four-time Oklahoma state high school champions dots the roster in 125-pounder Ladd Rupp (Perry HS), 165-pounder Dallas Bailey (Catoosa HS) and 184-pounder Chris Perry (Stillwater HS).
All three suited up for the Oklahoma team at the 2009 Dream Team Classic that was the first state squad ever to beat the national all-star team at that event.
