Brad Penrith
Brad Penrith was a three-time NCAA finalist for the University of Iowa at 126 pounds and captured the 126-pound championship in 1986. He also won three Big Ten titles and won a silver medal at the World Championships in 1991, as well as gold medals at two Pan-American Games. In 1992 he…
Carl Adams
Carl Adams won two NCAA championships at 158 pounds for Dr. Harold Nichols at Iowa State , and was a three-time All-American. He also finished second in the Pan-American Games of 1975 and fifth in the World Championships at 163 pounds. Adams has authored several books and invented the Adam Takedown Machine…
Chris Taylor
Chris Taylor‘s impact on the national scene was huge, in several respects. At 6-5 and 450 pounds, he was one of the largest athletes ever to compete in college. After transferring to Iowa State from a junior college, Taylor won two NCAA titles at heavyweight, posting a record of 87-0-1. He was…
Dale Anderson
Dale Anderson won NCAA titles at 137 pounds for Michigan State in 1967 and 1968, and was a sparkplug on the Spartan team that won the NCAA team title in 1967. He was a three-time Big Ten champion and three-time All-American. As an attorney, he was one of the leaders in the…
Dave Natvig
Dave Natvig excelled at every level of wrestling. He was a two-time state champion for New Hampton and then placed second and third in the NCAAs for Iowa Teachers College at 118 pounds, in 1937 and ’38. He earned his greatest fame as a coach, leading East Waterloo to seven state team…
Gerald Leeman
Gerald Leeman was NCAA champion and the meet’s O.W. for Iowa State Teachers College in 1946 and won a silver medal in the London Olympics at 125.5 pounds in 1948. He won the national AAU title as a senior at Osage High School . He coached at Lehigh for 18 years, posting a…
Jim Miller
Jim Miller was NCAA Division II champion at 134 pounds for the University of Northern Iowa in 1974 and ’75 and placed second and fourth in Division I those same years.
After coaching at the high school level, Miller returned to UNI as the top assistant coach from 1983-91 when he became head…
Mark Ironside
Mark Ironside captured two NCAA titles and four Big Ten titles for the University of Iowa , and was also a four-time All-American for the Hawkeyes. In 1998, he won the Dan Hodge Trophy, wrestling’s equivalent to the Heisman Trophy, as the nation’s top collegiate wrestler. Mark does commentary for Iowa wrestling…
Ron Gray
Ron Gray won NCAA crowns for Iowa State at 147 pounds in both 1958 and ’59, and placed second as a sophomore. He was the O.W. at the NCAAs in 1959 and also won three Big Eight titles. He compiled a record of 65-1-1 in college. He was also Iowa ‘s first…