Oklahoma State University Athletics
Cowboy Wrestling Heads To NCAA Championships
March 16, 2009 | Cowboy Wrestling
Next Up For Cowboy Wrestling
NCAA Championships
March 19-21, 2009 :: Scottrade Center (St. Louis, Mo.)
TV: ESPNU, ESPN2 and ESPN (All Friday and Saturday action televised live. Thursday action not televised)
Radio: 93.7 KSPI-FM and 780 KSPI-AM (All action on 93.7 FM except for Friday afternoon session, which is on 780 AM)
Live Audio Broadcast: okstate.com
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The Basics
The No. 12 Oklahoma State wrestling team (15-7 overall) has nine of its members included in the field for the 2009 NCAA Wrestling Championships at the Scottrade Center in St. Louis from March 19-21.
Event Schedule
Pigtails and first-round matches begin at 11:30 a.m. Thursday. Second-round matches, consolation matches, and wrestleback matches are set to start at 6:30 p.m. Thursday.
Friday's action kicks off at 11 a.m. with wrestlebacks and the championship quarterfinals. Wrestlebacks and championship semifinals are slated for begin at 6 p.m.
Saturday's action features wrestlebacks and third place through eighth-place matches beginning at 9:30 a.m. and title bouts beginning at 5:30 p.m.
On The Air
Thursday's action will not be televised, but all of the wrestling on Friday and Saturday will be televised live. The morning session Friday will be on ESPNU with the evening session on ESPN2. The morning session on Saturday will be televised live on ESPNU with the evening's championship bouts televised live on ESPN.
All the action will be broadcast live on 93.7 KSPI-FM radio in Stillwater, with the exception of the Friday morning session, which will be broadcast live on 780 KSPI-AM radio Stillwater. Rex Holt and Roger Moore call all of the action.
Fans outside of the Stillwater listening area can access the broadcast worldwide on the internet by visiting okstate.com.
Cowboys From A Distance
All nine of OSU's competitors at the NCAA Championships earned automatic berths by their performances at the Big 12 Championships. Junior 285-pounder Jared Rosholt placed fourth at the NCAA Championships last year, with senior 125-pounder Obenson Blanc and senior 165-pounder Brandon Mason earning All-America honors in 2007.
Making their first trips to the NCAA Championships are junior 133-pounder Chris Notte, freshman 141-pounder Jamal Parks, sophomore 157-pounder Neil Erisman, freshman 184-pounder Chris McNeil and sophomore 197-pounder Clayton Foster. Senior 174-pounder Newly McSpadden rounds out the list of Cowboys competing in this year's field.
Oklahoma State's NCAA Championships History
Cowboy wrestling has won 34 NCAA team championships, with OSU wrestlers combining to win 133 NCAA individual titles and earn 422 All-America honors. No other program even comes close to those gaudy numbers.
In the previous 78 years of the NCAA Championships, OSU never finished lower than seventh as a team and the Cowboys have never had fewer than two All-Americans. In fact, OSU has had three or more All-Americans in 75 of a possible 78 NCAA Championships.
Cowboys vs. the NCAA Field
As is always the case, Oklahoma State's wrestlers enter the NCAA Championships having already battled a full slate of opponents who they could see again in St. Louis.
The breakdown of how each Cowboy has fared against the competition they could potentially see at the NCAA Championships:
125: Obenson Blanc: 6-7 record
133: Chris Notte: 7-5 record (won 4 of last 6)
141: Jamal Parks: 4-8 record
157: Neil Erisman: 5-8 record (won 3 of last 4)
165: Brandon Mason: 7-9 record
174: Newly McSpadden: 7-7 record (won 4 of last 5)
184: Chris McNeil: 5-5 record
197: Clayton Foster: 9-5 record
285: Jared Rosholt: 15-4 record
OSU Coach John Smith From a Distance
John Smith stands firmly at or near the top of the list of greatest American wrestlers of all time, and his coaching achievements are putting him on the short list of great coaches as well.
In his 18th year leading his alma mater, Smith has guided the Cowboys to five NCAA team titles (1994, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006) and has coached 23 NCAA individual champions and 84 All-Americans. Additionally, he has coached the Pokes to 10 conference titles.
Current Cowboys NCAA Championships History
125: Obe Blanc - 2005 (DNP), 2006 (DNP), 2007 (6th)
133: Chris Notte - First appearance
141: Jamal Parks - First appearance
157: Neil Erisman - First appearance
165: Brandon Mason - 2006 (DNP), 2007 (5th), 2008 (DNP)
174: Newly McSpadden - 2007 (DNP), 2008 (DNP)
184: Chris McNeil - First appearance
197: Clayton Foster - First appearance
285: Jared Rosholt - 2007 (DNP), 2008 (4th)
OSU at Last Year's NCAA Championships
Team Finish: Tied for fifth with Iowa State
125: Tyler Shinn - Did not place (1-2 record)
133: Coleman Scott - NCAA champion (5-0 record)
141: Nathan Morgan - Fourth place (4-2 record)
157: Newly McSpadden - Did not place (2-2 record)
165: Jake Dieffenbach - Did not place (1-2 record)
174: Brandon Mason - Did not place (3-2 record)
184: Jack Jensen - Seventh place (5-2 record)
285: Jared Rosholt - Fourth place (4-2 record)
Recapping the 2009 Big 12 Championships
The Cowboys placed fourth at the 2009 Big 12 Championships at the NU Coliseum in Lincoln, Neb., on March 7. OSU was led by junior Chris Notte, who finished second at 133 pounds.
Senior 125-pounder Obenson Blanc, freshman 141-pounder Jamal Parks, sophomore 157-pounder Neil Erisman and senior 174-pounder Newly McSpadden all placed third in their respective weight classes.
Catching Up With The Redshirts
Of the wrestlers pegged to redshirt this season, 125/133-pounder Jordan Oliver and 165-pounder Alex Meade rose to the top.
Oliver went 19-1 with nine wins by fall, two by major decision and five by technical fall.
Meade sported a 19-2 overall record that included two wins by fall, nine by major decision and two wins by technical fall.
Meade and Oliver combined for five open tournament titles this year (three for Oliver, two for Meade) and neither of the two Cowboy freshmen placed any lower than third in an open tournament this year.
A Peek Ahead
Next year's Oklahoma State roster will include at least seven wrestlers who won junior freestyle national championships in Fargo, N.D., during their prep careers.
Jamal Parks, Luke Ashmore, Albert White and Clayton Foster were all Fargo champions in 2006, with Jordan Oliver and Jon Morrison winning Fargo titles in 2007 and Chris Perry securing a championship in 2008. That number could increase this year, as multiple members of the incoming recruiting class have a legitimate chance of winning titles at the junior national championships.
Top-Notch Recruiting Class On The Way
Oklahoma State wrestling coach John Smith announced the signing of eight student-athletes to National Letters of Intent during the early signing period. The incoming class of signees is regarded as one of the nation's top recruiting classes and is heavy on in-state recruits.
The incoming class is highlighted by Chris Perry (Stillwater, Okla./Stillwater), Jon Morrison (Orland Park, Ill./Carl Sandburg), Dallas Bailey (Catoosa, Okla./Catoosa) and Albert White (Lynwood, Ill./Northern Iowa Area Community College), all of whom are considered blue chip national recruits. Both Perry and Morrison are ranked by major national publications as the No. 1 wrestlers in their respective weight classes going into their senior year, with Bailey ranked as the preseason No. 2 prep in the nation in his weight class. White is a 2008 junior college national champion who was 200-4 during his prep career at St. Rita HS in Chicago and has a Fargo national title on his resume.
Perry (No. 3), Bailey (No. 6) and Morrison (No. 9) are all ranked among revwrestling.com's top 10 recruits in the nation, regardless of weight class. No other school in the country has more than one wrestler from that list signed as part of this year's class.
This year's group of prep wrestlers in the state of Oklahoma is considered to be one of the best in recent memory, and the Cowboys succeeded in keeping the homegrown talent in-state, with Perry, Bailey, Blake Rosholt (Ponca City HS), Ladd Rupp (Perry HS), Stephen Swan (Perry HS) and Zach White (Woodward HS) all signing on to continue their wrestling careers at Oklahoma State.
