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A special night in Ames
By Jason Bryant
jbryant@intermatwrestle.com
Ames, Iowa – Very few college wrestling programs have the history that Iowa State University has.
At Friday night’s Golden Legacy Dinner at The Gateway Center in Ames, the Cyclone Wrestling Club honored Glen Brand, Ben Peterson, Dan Gable, Kevin Jackson and Cael Sanderson on the eve of the USA Wrestling World Team Trials.
Brand won the gold at the 1948 games in London, Peterson and Gable both won golds in 1972 at the Munich Games, Jackson won gold in 1992 in Barcelona and Sanderson won the gold last August in Athens.
The event wasn’t completely black tie, there was plenty of red in the room and of course – plenty of gold.
Wrestling fans and the sports’ most influential people milled around at the pre-banquet social, taking with Gable, Iowa State coach Bobby Douglas and Jackson, among others.
“What we are celebrating tonight brings great pride to Iowa State University,” said Dr. Tahira K. Hira, the Assistant to the President on External Affairs.
“This is an extraordinary event in the history of Iowa State athletics,” Hira continued.
Standing ovations were the norm during the course of the four-hour event.
Nearly every breath, there was a name being recognized in the audience. One moving ovation was at the recognition of Ruth Nichols, the widow of the late Dr. Harold Nichols, the former Iowa State wrestling coach that made Cyclone wrestling a national power.
Lee Roy Smith, Director for the National Wrestling Hall of Fame also paid tribute to the five men honored and the program that produced them.
“When you consider the impact of Iowa State and its alumni on the sport of wrestling, it’s remarkable,” Smith said.
“Nine wrestlers and coaches are distinguished members of the Hall of Fame,” Smith said. “(The men here) are synonymous with not only Iowa State, but with the sport of wrestling.”
Douglas also felt the event was moving from the history standpoint.
“I think it will be very difficult to get five gold medalists again in one room,” Douglas said.
“It is a golden legacy,” Douglas continued. “You are my heroes and you are the heroes of wrestling.”
Brand was the first to speak, delivering a slow, pronounced history lesson of what brought him to Iowa State and all ears paid close attention.
“I’d rather be wrestling than standing up here,” Brand said.
Brand talked about his acceptance into Iowa State and 12 days later, he was wrestling heavyweight against the University of Nebraska.
Not quite the household name to many current wrestling fans, Brand’s presence commanded respect. He got another laugh discussing his past wrestling a Turkish wrestler at the London Games.
Gable, who built a legacy of his own as the head coach of the rival University of Iowa, spoke of his grandsons (with emphasis on “son”) and poked fun at the intensity that is Iowa collegiate wrestling.
“If there’s a good way of looking at it – me joining the other side – is that I created a rivalry,” Gable said.
He spoke highly of his tenure at Iowa State.
“What I took away was leadership skills and independence,” Gable said. “Coach Nichols was perfect for me. He wasn’t for everybody, but he was perfect for me.”
Peterson, a teammate with Gable at Iowa State and the 1972 Olympic team, is one of four men to make three U.S. Olympic teams, 1972, 1972 and the boycotted games of 1980.
“I still grin every time I show this,” Peterson said of his gold medal.
Jackson spent the least amount of time in Ames, transferring in for his last season of eligibility after his program was dropped at Louisiana State.
“I wanted to beat Iowa,” Jackson said. “That was a main reason I came here.”
“(In 1987) the team won, but I got beat – by an Iowa kid. How did that happen?” Jackson joked.
Jackson also paid tribute to both Gable and Sanderson.
“Wrestling is my passion,” Jackson said. “It’s his (Gable) obsession.”
Jackson also pleaded with Sanderson to compete again
“Please come back! I need you.”
The event came to completion with the most recent medalist, Sanderson, who traditionally shies away from the spotlight.
“It’s a great honor to have them on the wall,” Sanderson said of his fellow gold medalists. “It’s great to have that tradition.”
Sanderson also felt compelled to take a shot at the Hawkeye faithful.
“We didn’t beat Iowa – and that stinks,” Sanderson joked.
Always humble and down to earth, Sanderson used the opportunity to thank his family and coaches, as well as the Cyclone Wrestling Club members that packed The Gateway Center.
He even stuck in a joke or two.
On brother Cody Sanderson, head coach at Utah Valley State: “You’ve got to get those Wolverines carrying something. They don’t have a torch yet, maybe we could give them a match or something.”
The event featured a silent and live auction for Cyclone memorabilia and other collectibles, prompting emcee Scott Casber of Takedown Radio to heed his warning, “I don’t want to see any of these items on eBay in the coming weeks.”
The event concluded with an announcement that the large banner to the left of the podium would be unveiled next season and hung from the rafters at the Hilton Coliseum.
And who better to unveil it against, than those Hawkeyes in the team’s annual dual.
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