Big Ten Wrestling Championships Summary

The Following is a summary of team points and titles won at the Big Ten Wrestling Tournaments by decade:

2010-2019 Decade

In the decade of the 2010s, Lincoln McIlravy, Kerry McCoy, Joe McFarland, Brandon Paulson, and Dave Curby were inducted into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame; numerous other former Big Ten wrestlers and coaches were also inducted by state associations.

4-Time Big Ten All-Americans, 2010-19

3-Time Big Ten All-Americans, 2010-19

2000-2009 Decade

In the 2000s, Pat Milkovich, Tom Brands, Don Behm, Jim Zalesky, Jim Keen, J Robinson, Chris Campbell, Terry Brands, and Barry Davis were inducted into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame; numerous other former Big Ten wrestlers and coaches began to be recognized by State Associations.

4-Time Big Ten All-Americans, 2000-09

3-Time Big Ten All-Americans, 2000-09

1990-1999 Decade

In the 1990s, Leroy Kemp, Ed Banach, Werner Holzer, Allie Morrison, Billy Thom, Lou Banach, Steve Fraser, Ken Kraft, Randy Lewis, and Mark Churella were inducted into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame.

4-Time Big Ten All-Americans, 1990-99

3-Time Big Ten All-Americans, 1990-99

Tom Brands was a Three-Time Big Ten and NCAA Champion who won the 1993 World Championship and 1996 Olympic Gold Medal; his twin brother, Terry, also won World Championships in 1993 and 1994 with a Bronze Medal in the 2000 Olympics after winning Three Big Ten Championships, and Two NCAA Titles. The Brands brothers now coach the Iowa Hawkeyes.

The Ultimate Fighting Championships began on November 12, 1993; it has held over 400 events through 2018, and secured revenues of over $700 million in 2017. Many amateur wrestlers have been drawn into the competition including many former Big Ten Wrestlers: Brock Lesnar, Mark Coleman, Ed Ruth, Rashad Evans, Bubba Jenkins, Cole Konrad, Kevin Randleman, Phil Davis, Logan Storley, Joe Warren, Gray Maynard, etc.

1980-1989 Decade

The Unlimited or Heavyweight class became a limit of 275 lbs. in 1987. Iowa won the NCAA Team Championship for 9 consecutive seasons, 1978-1986, and won 11 of 12 in the 1975-1986 stretch. Iowa hosted the NCAA Championships for the second time in 1986, and also in 1991 and 1995.

4-Time Big Ten All-Americans, 1980-89

3-Time Big Ten All-Americans, 1980-89

Mark Churella became Michigan's only Three-Time NCAA Champion, 1977-1979; he also won two Big Ten Titles, and was recognized as NCAA Most Outstanding Wrestler in 1979. Churella was Head Coach at UNLV, 1979-84, before returning to Ann Arbor to be a Wolverine Assistant Coach, 1985-87. He started the Las Vegas Colliegate Invitational which was renamed the Cliff Keen Invitational in 1993.

Chris Campbell of Iowa was a Two-Time NCAA Champion and Three-Time Big Ten Champion; he won a Gold Medal at the 1981 World Championships, Silver Medal at the 1990 World Championships, and a Bronze Medal at the 1992 Olympics

Mark Johnson of Michigan was a Two-Time Big Ten and NCAA Runner-Up, and earned a spot on the 1980 U.S. Greco-Roman Olympic Team; he became Head Coach at Illinois, 1992-2005, after coaching at Iowa and Oregon State.

When the National Wrestling Hall of Fame opened in 1976, Cliff Keen was in their inaugural class as initial inductees along with Fendley Collins and Dave McCuskey. Dan Gable was inducted in 1980, George Martin in 1982, Wally Johnson and Steve Combs in 1985, Grady Peninger in 1987, and Russ Hellickson in 1989.

1970-1979 Decade

4-Time Big Ten All-Americans, 1970-79

3-Time Big Ten All-Americans, 1970-79

Russ Hellickson was Big Ten Runner-Up in 1969 who worked his way to a Silver Medal at the 1976 Olympics; he coached as an Assistant at Wisconsin, and became Head Coach at Ohio State, 1985-2006, where he was Big Ten Coach of the Year in 1991 and 2002

Grady Peninger and Michigan State won 7 consecutive conference championships, 1966-1972. The Spartans proceeded to break the record in 1969 with 6 Titlists after also tieing the record in 1967; the Spartans also had 5 Titlists each season, 1970-1972. They have not won a team title since 1972.

1960-1969 Decade

4-Time Big Ten All-Americans, 1960-69

None

3-Time Big Ten All-Americans, 1960-69

1950-1959 Decade

4-Time Big Ten All-American, 1950-59

3-Time Big Ten All-Americans, 1950-59

1940-1949 Decade

3-Time Big Ten All-Americans, 1940-49

Harland Danner was a Big Ten Champion in 1938 and 1940; he started Danmar, Inc. with Wolverine 1956-57 Big Ten Champion, John Marchello, in 1967 after working for several decades with the FBI and Department of Justice

Robert Antonacci of Indiana won the 1940 NCAA Championship; he was a Two-Time Big Ten Runner-Up

Amateur wrestling really couldn't begin to grow until states and high schools adopted wrestling as a varsity sport, and begin to participate in state wrestling championships. Oklahoma and Iowa were the two first states to adopt and develop high school wrestling with pioneers like Ed Gallagher and Charlie Mayser laying the foundation in Oklahoma and Iowa. The first "wrestling belt" was identified by B.F. Wiggins in 1936 as Oklahoma, Nebraska and Iowa; Orion Stuteville organized the first National Scholastic Wrestling Championships in 1929 and 1930 at Northwestern University with Art Griffith's Tulsa Central defeating Fred Cooper's Fort Dodge squad. Another Oklahoma A&M wrestler, Buell Patterson, coached at Kansas State, and helped organize Kansas scholastic wrestling. By 1933, there were 600 high schools identified with varsity wrestling programs with the states with the most were: New York-120, Pennsylvania-75, Wisconsin-50, Oklahoma-45, Iowa-40, Utah-30, Kansas-28, Michigan-18, Illinois-16, and Ohio-15. Jack Reynolds helped Indiana organize in 1922, but it wasn't officially adopted until 1933. Hek Kenney helped Illinois organize their high school championships in 1933, Cliff Keen and Fenley Collins did so in Michigan in 1939, but it wasn't officially adopted until 1948. Billy Sheridan of Lehigh organized the National Prep Championships in 1935. George Martin helped Wisconsin organize in 1940. The National Federation of State High School Associations was founded in 1920; by 1969, there were nearly 7,000 schools and over 226,000 wrestlers participating in high schools across America, and it was the fifth largest scholastic sport in the United States behind football, basketball, track, and baseball. There were no scholarships awarded for intercollegiate wrestling, coaches could only help their wrestlers by perhaps helping them to land a job on campus to help pay for their tuition, books, room&board plus other expenses while attending college.

1934-1939 Decade

3-Time Big Ten All-Americans, 1930-39

Big Ten Wrestling Record Book

Big Ten Wrestling Brackets

Ernest Gustav "Dad" Schroeder; he also coached gymnastics and tennis

The Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association began competition in 1905; it was the first amateur wrestling conference in America. The Big Ten began as the Western Conference in 1895, and added wrestling in 1911 with Minnesota, Northwestern, and Indiana competing although none of the wrestling squads had earned varsity status except Indiana. It was referred to as the Big Nine in 1899 with the addition of Iowa and Indiana to original members that included Michigan, Chicago, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Northwestern, and Purdue. Nebraska petitioned to join the conference in 1900 and 1911, but was denied admission until 2011. Indiana began wrestling in 1909 with Education Professor Elmer E. Jones who wrestled at Columbia; Illinois began wrestling in 1910 with R. N. Fargo as its initial coach, and Iowa began wrestling in 1911 with Ernest Gustav "Dad" Schroeder as coach. Fred Schlatter began Wisconsin wrestling in 1914. Spyros Vorres, National AAU Champion, 1914-15 and 1918, became University of Chicago Maroon Wrestling Coach in 1924 after it was started by Ross DeWitt Netherton in 1916. Professor Elmer Jones also began wrestling at Northwestern in 1917. Professional wrestler, Al Haft, started Ohio State wrestling in 1921, and Fielding Yost hired Clifford Thorne. Minnesota didn't elevate their wrestling program to varsity status until 1926.

University of Chicago Wrestling in 1916

Lewis Reinmann of the University of Michigan claimed he won the Big Ten Wrestling Championship in 1915 although he is not officially listed in the Big Ten Record Book; he was an All-Big Ten Football Tackle for the Wolverines, 1914-15

National AAU Champions, 1889-1982