(177-184 lbs.) G.O.A.T. MATNESS: NCAA Champs
Final results:
🥇 - #1 Cael Sanderson '01 (ISU) 40-0 (18FALLS) [159-0]
🥈 - #3 Mark Schultz '82 (OU) 27-2 (6FALLS) [97-15]
🥉 - #2 Greg Jones '05 (WVU) 25-0 (5FALLS) [126-4]
Cael Sanderson (97%) over Mark Schultz
* Special Thanks to Jake Herbert, Greg Jones, Mitch Clark, and Chris Barnes for helping us raise votes from the Wrestle MATNESS community and beyond!
Finals matchup and Semifinals results:
#1 Cael Sanderson '01 (ISU) 40-0 (18FALLS) [159-0] VS. #3 Mark Schultz '82 (OU) 27-2 (6FALLS) [97-15]
Cael Sanderson (100%) over Ed Ruth
Mark Schultz (60%) over Greg Jones
Semifinals matchups and Quarterfinals results:
#1 Cael Sanderson '01 (ISU) 40-0 (18FALLS) [159-0] VS. #5 Ed Ruth '13 (PSU) 28-0 (9FALLS) [136-3]
#3 Mark Schultz '82 (OU) 27-2 (6FALLS) [97-15] VS. #2 Greg Jones '05 (WVU) 25-0 (5FALLS) [126-4]
Cael Sanderson (95%) over Les Gutches
Ed Ruth (60%) over Ed Banach
Mark Schultz (74%) over Jake Herbert
Greg Jones (70%) over Chris Campbell
Quarterfinals matchups and 2nd round results:
#1 Cael Sanderson '01 (ISU) 40-0 (18FALLS) [159-0] VS. #8 Les Gutches '96 (ORST) 36-0 [134-10]
#5 Ed Ruth '13 (PSU) 28-0 (9FALLS) [136-3] VS. #4 Ed Banach '81 (IOWA) 35-1 (16FALLS) [141-9-1]
#3 Mark Schultz '82 (OU) 27-2 (6FALLS) [97-15] VS. #6 Jake Herbert '09 (NW) 34-0 (14FALLS) [149-4]
#10 Chris Campbell '77 (IOWA) 33-0-1 [6FALLS][121-5-4] VS. #2 Greg Jones '05 (WVU) 25-0 (5FALLS) [126-4]
Cael Sanderson (100%) over Floyd “Shorty” Hitchcock
Les Gutches (75%) over Gabe Dean
Ed Ruth (82%) over Kevin Randleman
Ed Banach (55%) over Royce Alger
Mark Schultz (91%) over Marty Morgan
Jake Herbert (90%) over Mark Lieberman
Chris Campbell (74%) over Chris Barnes
Greg Jones (79%) over Parker Keckeisen
2nd round matchups and 1st round results:
#1 Cael Sanderson '01 (ISU) 40-0 (18FALLS) [159-0] VS. #17 Floyd Hitchcock '74 (BU) 34-0 (24FALLS) [84-7-2]
#9 Gabe Dean '16 (COR) 34-1 (10FALLS) [152-7] VS. #8 Les Gutches '96 (ORST) 36-0 [134-10]
#5 Ed Ruth '13 (PSU) 28-0 (9FALLS) [136-3] VS. #12 Kevin Randleman '92 (OHST) 42-0-3 (13FALLS) [108-7-3]
#13 Royce Alger '88 (IOWA) 42-0 (19FALLS) [131-11-2] VS. #4 Ed Banach '81 (IOWA) 35-1 (16FALLS) [141-9-1]
#3 Mark Schultz '82 (OU) 27-2 (6FALLS) [97-15] VS. #19 Marty Morgan '91 (MINN)39-0(15FALLS)[134-24-1]
#11 Mark Lieberman '79 (LEH) 21-0 (16FALLS) [85-6] VS. #6 Jake Herbert '09 (NW) 34-0 (14FALLS) [149-4]
#7 Chris Barnes '90 (OKST) 36-1 [120-27-3] VS. #10 Chris Campbell '77 (IOWA) 33-0-1 [6FALLS][121-5-4]
#18 Parker Keckeisen '24 (UNI)31-0[2FALLS][102-6] VS. #2 Greg Jones '05 (WVU) 25-0 (5FALLS) [126-4]
Cael Sanderson (100%) over Dean Morrison
Floyd “Shorty” Hitchcock (85%) over Chuck Jean
Gabe Dean (43%) over Mike Lieberman
Les Gutches (81%) over Rico Chiapparelli
Ed Ruth (98%) over Barry Weldon
Kevin Randleman (64%) over Mitch Clark
Royce Alger (96%) over Mike Pucillo
Ed Banach (94%) over Shane Webster
Mark Schultz (96%) over Jim Scherr
Marty Morgan (91%) over Geoff Baum
Mark Lieberman (70%) over Steve Bosak
Jake Herbert (91%) over Rob Rohn
Chris Barnes (62%) over Max Askren
Chris Campbell (98%) over Rich Binek
Parker Keckeisen (64%) Melvin Douglas III
Greg Jones (98%) over Drew Foster
Okay, here we go! We here at Wrestle MATNESS found ourselves twiddling our thumbs, bored stiff with inactivity this off-season, so we dreamed up a way to get the MATNESS firing again. We’ve created a new “fantasy” event format in which our users will determine the outcome through their popular votes. And for our first fantasy event…., G.O.A.T. MATNESS!
Don’t we all love to debate who’s the best ever? For GOAT MATNESS, we’ve gone and seeded the top NCAA champions from 1970 to the present day, based on what we consider to be their prime year and weight of competition. The criteria used to determine seeding was, in this order of importance:
# of NCAA titles
# of outstanding wrestler and/or Hodge trophies
Additional finals appearances
Additional AA’s placed (highest to lowest)
Prime season record
Prime season number of FALLS
Career Record
It’s been absolutely exhilarating taking the deep-dive into the stats of the NCAA’s all-time greats, getting a 10,000ft view of the historical landscape of the sport we love. The first criteria is the years of eligibility. We settled on 1970-present, the post-Gable era, for a couple of reasons. This timespan allots for enough eligible champions to fill a 32 man bracket. Also, 1970 is the year the NCAA went to 10 weight classes that directly correlate with the present day weight classes that came to be in 1999. It’s a bit of a challenge finding accurate stats for some of the wrestlers from the 70’s, although the NCAA HoF website has been a godsend. Some schools keep better records than others and their sites help to fill in holes, but we quickly learned that some stats, like falls, were not officially kept by the NCAA in the 70’s, so accuracy is not guaranteed. In fact, through our research, we learned Gene Mills’s fall record is self-proclaimed and Wade Schalles is still the certified record holder at 106 career falls.
We noticed some other interesting trends through our research as well. Pins seemed to “fall” out of favor (get it?) in the late 80’s, through the 90’s and into the early 2000’s. However, during this same time period we see an uptick in overall bout totals in their career records.
Start thinking of your picks and be sure you Join the MATNESS to receive an email when G.O.A.T MATNESS is ready to go!
Here is the list of competitors and 1st round matchups:
—Seed/Wrestler’s Name/‘Year (College) Season Record (#FALLS)[Career Record]—
#1 Cael Sanderson '01 (ISU) 40-0 (18FALLS) [159-0] VS. #32 Dean Morrison '94 (WVU) 33-3 [103-32-3]
Dean Morrison improved at wrestling every year that he was on campus at West Virginia University. His time in Morgantown culminated with an NCAA title and over a 100 victories. With all due respect to Mr. Morrison, none of that will matter. Perhaps even David v. Goliath isn’t a fair comparison because David was facing a giant with a flaw. Cael Sanderson has none. This mythical god with an undeniable aura standing across the horizon is one that has never known defeat at the collegiate level. Armed with the nastiest ankle pick series, absolutely prefect positioning, stellar body control and a mental game stronger than David Goggins, there is NO path for victory against Sanderson. He will dictate the pace, find an ankle and score early. There was never a puncher’s chance. By the time he is up significantly on points, he already figured out the rest of your game. It’s just a matter of time. Who’s next?
#17 Floyd Hitchcock '74 (BU) 34-0 (24FALLS) [84-7-2] VS. #16 Chuck Jean '70 (ISU) 17-2-2 (8FALLS) [34-5-3]
One hails from one of the most dominant programs (late ‘60’s/early ‘70’s ISU Cyclones) in NCAA wrestling history, the other from a small Pennsylvania state school (Bloomsburg), but outside of that, statistically this looks like a dead heat. Chuck Jean was a teammate of Gable’s, who’s Iowa State squad won back to back national team titles, in which he contributed to with 2 individual titles of his own. Jean only wrestled 42 bouts in his career, but an 81% winning percentage isn’t too shabby. Floyd “Shorty” Hitchcock followed a similar path in his career. Competing in division II, Hitchcock raised his bout total and winning percentage, but in 1974 the Husky was at the pinnacle of NCAA wrestling. “Shorty” won a DII title before capturing the DI title a week later, and capping it all off with an Outstanding Wrestler award to boot. This match will be old school but don’t expect to see any streaking through the quad.
#9 Gabe Dean '16 (COR) 34-1 (10FALLS) [152-7] VS. #24 Mike Lieberman '75 (LEH) 27-2 (2FALLS) [66-17-1]
Mike Lieberman has the unfortunate designation as the “lesser” of the two Lehigh superstar wrestling siblings, but the good news is he wouldn’t have to go head-to-head against brother Mark until the GOAT MATNESS finals so…, anyways, don’t sleep on Mike. Not as dominant statistically as his younger bro, the Mountain Hawk was twice all-American and won a title by downing (🐐) Chris Campbell, depriving him of 3 straight titles. Any dreams of rekindling the sibling rivalry will need to be put on hold though until Lieberman can dispatch Gabe Dean. Dean, all he ever did was win the BIG matches for the Big Red of Cornell, landing in the NCAA finals 3 times, and winning it twice. A 4X all-American, Dean is in the rarified air of 150+ career wins to only 7 losses. Ed Ruth (🐐) only lost three times in college, one of those came by the hands of Gabriel Dean. It’s safe to say, “he’ll be a tough out.”
#25 Rico Chiapparelli '87 (IOWA) 26-1 (11FALLS) [111-21] VS. #8 Les Gutches '96 (ORST) 36-0 [134-10]
If you didn’t catch Rico Chiapparelli’s 1987 championship match in real-time, go watch it! The flurry in the closing seconds is 🔥, and if he doesn’t pull that Houdini act off he’s not in the discussion for G.O.A.T. MATNESS. But he did, so now this electrifying Iowa Hawkeye has a chance to make magic and advance deep into the most prestigious bracket yet. Good hips, balance, agility, all traits of a scrambler, The Baltimore Butcher could pin and score from any position, making him a dangerous adversary for anyone. But his opponent isn’t just “anyone”. He’s Les Gutches. The one immortalized in the iconic images of him launching a young Cael Sanderson (🐐), albeit a freestyle match, but nonetheless, maybe something no one else has put on tape. The ORST Beaver strung together back-to-back undefeated championship seasons in ‘95 and 96, adding a Hodge trophy to the ledger in the latter and senior season. If anyone can control Chiapparelli’s erratic behavior, it could be he.
#5 Ed Ruth '13 (PSU) 28-0 (9FALLS) [136-3] VS. #28 Barry Weldon '97 (ISU) 34-3 [104-37]
To “restore the roar” back into the Penn State wrestling program, the Nittany Lions put their faith in a handful of recruits with high potential. Ed Ruth is probably the most impactful of that bunch. Fans can find Ruth’s face on the Mt. Rushmore of PSU grapplers and that says all you need to know. With the “float like a butterfly…” style and ability to score a TON of points, Ed “The Truth” Ruth made it look easy. “The Sultan of Wrestling” is a 3X national champ w/ wins at the NCAA’s over Bosak (🐐) and Dean (🐐) and compiled a ridiculous 136-3 record. Unimpressed is Barry Weldon from Iowa St. Although shorter in stature, Weldon covers a lot of ground. HIs ability to change levels and move laterally creates shooting angles used to takedown (🐐) Mitch Clark mutiple times in their ‘97 final. Here we go guys, let it fly out there!
#21 Mitch Clark '98 (OHST) 39-1 [119-27] VS. #12 Kevin Randleman '92 (OHST) 42-0-3 (13FALLS) [108-7-3]
Kevin Randleman, of THE Ohio State, is the proverbial “brick wall” when it comes to trying to score on him. That impenetrable defense and super-human strength allowed the Buckeye to dominate the weight class in the early ‘90’s, making the finals thrice, two of those landing on the top step of the podium. Stay away from his upper body locks and lifts, foot sweeps and inside trips or you could catch a flight you never intended to take. Eyeing Randleman up from the other side of the gymnasium is an opponent who’s well aware of his exploits. There’s even a chance Randleman took his 1st round opponent around campus on his recruiting trip. Mitch Clark matured into a two-time finalist himself, keeping the OHST dominance of the 177 lbs. weight class rolling well into the ‘90’s. Clark made a promise to himself to not be the “bridesmaid” again after his finals loss of ‘97, culminating in the first-ever national championship bout in history to be won by technical FALL. “Hey Kevin, might wanna watch out for that figure 4 leg ride!” 😉
#13 Royce Alger '88 (IOWA) 42-0 (19FALLS) [131-11-2] VS. #20 Mike Pucillo '08 (OHST) 34-1 (6FALLS) [107-17]
Iowa is always submitting viable candidates and even taking the GOAT title in our MATNESS brackets (Spencer Lee - 118-125 lbs.). In this (177-184 lbs.) bracket, the Hawkeyes have 4 entries, but one is a real “wildcard”. Royce Alger is cut from a different cloth, reaching the pinnacle of the sport his own way (…well, maybe with a little help from legendary Coach Gable), winning 2 NCAA titles in ‘87 and ‘88. He compiled a 78 consecutive win-streak over the tail end of his college career, totaling 49 FALLS when all said and done. His opponent, the unsuspecting, but always “in it til the end”, Ohio State’s Mike Pucillo. Always in sound position and with ice in his veins, the Buckeye earned his way into the finals twice, beating Jake Varner in a tight OT rideout match in ‘08 and then losing to (🐐) Jake Herbert in ‘09. Not sure if it will be possible to stay cool, calm, and collected w/ Alger across from ya though.
#29 Shane Webster '06 (ORGN) 30-1 [99-24] VS. #4 Ed Banach '81 (IOWA) 35-1 (16FALLS) [141-9-1]
Shane Webster was Oregon’s last great wrestler (2nd ever national champ), before the following season when the school dropped the program. Webster took them out with a bang however, orchestrating a near-flawless season (37-1), capping it off with a national title to his name. Can he keep the storybook ending to a fleeting wrestling culture ALIVE as he goes up against an athlete hailing from a bedrock wrestling program and whose last name is of folklore? Ed Banach, along with his twin brother Lou (HWT 🐐), was a major contributor to the vaunted Iowa dynasty that won 9 team titles in a 10 year span. As a 4X all-American/finalist and 3X champion, it’s hard to picture this “tall-tale” grappler not bestowing the semifinals with his presence, and if Webster has any hopes of an upset, he’ll need to shy away from Banach’s upper body ties and attack from space. Hope you packed a lunch Shane.
#3 Mark Schultz '82 (OU) 27-2 (6FALLS) [97-15] VS. #30 Jim Scherr '84 (NEB) 34-2-1 [109-25-4]
If you never heard of Mark Schultz or his story, you have a lot of catching up to do. How about we just focus on his incredible college wrestling career for now? Oklahoma’s Schultz earned the #3 seed ahead of (🐐) Ed Banach in our bracket when he won the EPIC 1982 NCAA final between the two. Mark “Sooner BOOM-er” Schultz is a 3X NCAA Champion during an era when winning once would have warranted the label of legend. My best advice to an opponent of Schultz, “DON’T GO UPPERBODY WITH HIM!” Jim Scherr has entered the chat. Scherr is one of the most important and impactful people in wrestling as a whole, and as a wrestler he was gritty, solid in his stance, and mastered the fundamentals. This could be a style that Schultz struggles with, perhaps forcing the action while Scherr looks to lull Schultz to sleep. The Cornhusker won his NCAA title in ‘84, near the same time as Schultz and I learned these two were on many national teams together. If only we could have been a fly on the wall of those practices.
#19 Marty Morgan '91 (MINN)39-0(15FALLS)[134-24-1] VS. #14 Geoff Baum '71 (OKST) 26-2 (5FALLS) [58-7-1]
Marty Morgan embodies the quintessential “ascension to greatness” template often seen throughout a wrestler’s career. Morgan, a name associated with Minnesota state wrestling (…and boxing) royalty, began his collegiate career at DII powerhouse North Dakota St., whereas a freshman he won the DII national title, but didn’t manage to place at the DI tournament. He then took a year off as he transferred to Minnesota, where he began climbing rungs, placing 6th as a sophomore, made the finals as a junior, but fell to Chris Barnes (🐐), and finally won the title as a senior. His championship season was perfect, finishing 39-0 with 15 FALLS. See, hard work and determination does pay off. He faces a 2X champion in Geoff Baum. The Oklahoma State Cowboy was also a 3X All-American, placing 6th as a sophomore in ‘69, won it all at the higher weight class (190lbs) as a junior, then dropped to 177lbs as a senior to win his second in ‘71. These two combatants look almost identical on paper, guess we’ll see who’s more popular.
#11 Mark Lieberman '79 (LEH) 21-0 (16FALLS) [85-6] VS. #22 Steve Bosak '12 (COR) 33-4 (13FALLS) [126-29]
By most accounts, Mark Lieberman is the 🐐 of Lehigh wrestling. The Mountain Hawk put together back-to-back undefeated seasons on way to winning his two titles in ‘78 and ‘79, after a finals loss in ‘77. He’s a prolific pinner and scorer with the majority of his bouts resulting in bonus points for the team. Question is, “Is he the WrestleMATNESS 🐐? Well, Steve Bosak might have a rebuttal to that question. The Big Red wrestler is top 10 for several categories within the pages of the Cornell wrestling record book, notably for career wins, FALLS, and bonus point wins. He brewed all that success into a title that he won from defending champion at the time, Quentin Wright (🐐). Lieberman has the lengthier résumé but this is a matchup of carbon copy styles, and Bosak’s beaten higher seeds before.
#27 Rob Rohn '02 (LEH) 30-5 (6FALLS) [106-31] VS. #6 Jake Herbert '09 (NW) 34-0 (14FALLS) [149-4]
This is an EAST vs. WEST (PA state) matchup here! Rob Rohn stayed close to home (20 min. drive), adorning the campus of Lehigh University where the Mountain Hawk put together an improbable senior run to the top step of the podium with a FALL in the final. Winning a national title is nothing to shake a stick at, but this first round matchup might be even greater odds. Jake Herbert took his talents out of state to become a Wildcat for Northwestern. Herbert quickly acclimated to the college scene, wrestling back through the consolations to take 3rd as a freshman. It was three straight finals appearances (minus an Olympic redshirt in ‘08) after that for Herbert, who won titles in both ‘07 and ‘09 as well as a Hodge Trophy to crown his final season. When asked what his strategy will be when squaring off against Rohn in the opening round, he replied, “…I just need to watch out for the cement mixer.”
#7 Chris Barnes '90 (OKST) 36-1 [120-27-3] VS. #26 Max Askren '10 (MIZZ) 20-2 (2FALLS) [104-16]
Maybe thanks to the slick early ‘90’s style highlight video he has up on YouTube, we here at MATNESS, have learned Chris Barnes is the “Big Cat”. Agile, FAST, and smothering, this Cowboy is the total package. Wrestling for a deep and storied program like OKST and still making the school’s record book in the top 10 for career victories and consecutive win streak, as well as securing 3 All-American bids, 2 national titles, and an Outstanding Wrestler award solidifies his prowess. That said, it’s going to be difficult to just pounce and play with this 1st round opponent. Max Asken followed his brother Ben (🐐) to Mizzou where he became a Tiger too. It wasn’t until his 2010 senior season, after coming down from the 197lb weight class where he was a 2X All-American, did he finally stand on the top step at NCAA’s. He’s always had one of the best workout partners you could ask for, and he’ll need it to simulate the skill and athleticism he’s about to face.
#23 Rich Binek '73 (ISU) 16-2-1 [5FALLS][77-16-2] VS. #10 Chris Campbell '77 (IOWA) 33-0-1 [6FALLS][121-5-4]
Wrestle MATNESS would like to congratulate Mr. Rich Binek on his recent induction into the Iowa St. Sports Hall of Fame. Binek was a member of some great Cyclone teams from the 70’s where winning NCAA titles seemed to be contagious. Binek went to the same grade school as his college teammate (🐐) Dan Gable and credits the legendary coach of IOWA for his success. Binek says that Gable, “Taught me every move I ever used.” The other wrestler in this matchup Chris Campbell, could be found somewhere in the gymnasium meditating and eating Tofu Stroganoff. The former Hawkeye nicknamed “Grandpa” is an interesting character. He practices Zen, dabbles in poetry, and leg presses 700 lbs. Everything about that statement is frightening. He’s a 2X NCAA Champion and 3X finalist, his finals loss was to (🐐) Mike Lieberman in 1975. Still not impressed? Chris Campbell is the oldest American wrestler (just shy of 38 yrs.) to win an Olympic medal.
#15 Melvin Douglas '86 (OU)18-0-1[4FALLS][109-19-4] VS. #18 Parker Keckeisen '24 (UNI)31-0[2FALLS][102-6]
“He (M. Douglas) is the toughest wrestler I ever faced.” - Kevin Jackson (🐐). That’s high praise and well deserved. Melvin Douglas is a 4X All-American and a 2X NCAA Champ. MD3 wrestled for the Sooners, he was stocky and strong like an ox. He could explode at any second, he was fierce and had the confidence to beat anyone, anywhere. Douglas could scrap, no doubt but if there is a wrestler that defines the trait “scrappy”, it’s Parker Keckeisen. “Keck” dominates 90% of the competition. The work ethic is clearly displayed and his creativity could be traced back to his AWA (Askren Wrestling Academy) days. Parker is still active and hasn’t placed lower than 3rd in his 4 attempts at the NCAA’s, winning it all this past year. I have to admit, this matchup may be the hardest to pick of this bracket.
#31 Drew Foster '19 (UNI) 27-5 (2FALLS) [95-35] VS. #2 Greg Jones '05 (WVU) 25-0 (5FALLS) [126-4]
For myself, this matchup is nostalgic for multiple reasons but that conversation is for another day. The focus MUST be on these two champions, who stylistically present a juicy and intriguing tangling of horns between 🐐’s. Believe it or not, Drew Foster never won a high school (Iowa) state championship and finished his freshman campaign at UNI with a losing record. Now, he’s a NCAA Champion, a 2X All-American and UNI is known as “184 lbs. U”. Foster likes to shoot low-singles w/ head-inside crackdowns to finish. Then, he suffocates opponents with a SOLID top game. All of that and much more will be needed to upset the uber-athletic, always-stoic, favorite wrestler of Jordan Burroughs and myself… Greg Jones. At all levels, this man has won everything. Jones is a 3X NCAA Champ and the all-time leader of wins for the Mountaineers. Greg moves around the mat like a boxer and looks the part too. His blast double is absolutely lethal, so explosive that sometimes there’s not enough Resilite to finish on. If anyone can upset Cael in this bracket, Greg Jones is the best bet.