A Century of Cowboy Wrestling: 1980s

In the early part of the 1980s, Oklahoma State wrestling continued to produce dominant individuals on the mat.

In 1980, both Ricky Stewart and Lee Roy Smith won national championships after earning All-American status the year prior.

For Smith, the national championship capped off his collegiate career in which he posted a record of 113-14-4 and won four individual conference titles.

The following season, Stewart wrestled his way to another national championship – the second of his career. Stewart posted a collegiate record of 118-17, including 43 by fall – the fifth most in program history.

Stewart also earned All-America honors all four years he competed. He was just the second OSU wrestler ever to accomplish this feat at the time.

One of Stewart's teammates – Mike Sheets – also accomplished the feat two seasons later.

After finishing seventh and second during his first two NCAA Tournaments, Sheets went a perfect 29-0 in his junior season and was honored as the Outstanding Wrestler of the tournament that year after dominating the competition. He was also named as the NWCA College Wrestler of the Year – the first Cowboy to ever receive the award.

The following season, Sheets would again dominate the competition as he won his second-consecutive national championships and earned All-America honors for the fourth time.

During Sheets' final two seasons, OSU's success was very similar. In both 1983 and 1984, the Cowboys posted a perfect record in duals, won the Big Eight conference title and finished as the runner-up at the NCAA Tournament.

One of the major differences between the two though, was that the 1984 season was Chesbro's last as the coach at OSU.

In 15 seasons at the helm, Chesbro's 227 dual wins eclipsed the totals of all three of his predecessors. During his time, the Cowboys won the NCAA team championship in 1971 and placed among the top four teams a dozen more times.

Chesbro was honored as a Distinguished Member of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame in 1995.

To fill the void left behind by Chesbro, OSU hired Joe Seay.

Prior to coming to OSU, Seay was a national high school coach of the year at Bakersfield South High School. And while coaching at D-II Cal State-Bakersfield, Seay won seven national championships.

One of the wrestlers that helped ease the transition between the two coaches was John Smith.

Over a six-year span, which started while he was still a student at OSU, John Smith was the best wrestler in the world and he now is one of the names that emerges in any discussion of "the greatest American wrestler ever."

During his time at OSU, Smith was a three-time All-American, two-time national champion, three Big Eight conference titles, the Outstanding Wrestler of the 1987 NCAA Tournament and posted a career record of 152-8-2 – including a streak of 90 straight victories.

Smith's dominance on the collegiate mat has left his mark on the OSU record books.

Notable OSU records that Smith holds are most career wins (152), the most wins in a single season (47 in 1988), the two most single season bonus point wins (39 in both 1987 and '88) and most career bonus point wins (113).

On the international stage, Smith continued to dominate.

Smith won the first three of his six world championships during the 1980s, as well as his first Olympic gold medal at the 1988 Olympic Games in Seoul. Smith was one of two Cowboys to win Olympic gold at the 1988 games.

The other one was Kenny Monday.

Monday was a part of the early-1980s teams led by Chesbro. While at OSU, Monday dominated the competition and ran up a career record of 121-12-2.

Fifty-one of Monday's victories came by fall, which is a mark that still ranks as the second most in program history.

Monday was twice a runner-up at the NCAA Tournament, but finally captured the elusive title in 1984. His national championship wasn't the last time Monday found success on the mat though.

Monday posted wins at the U.S. National Championships on four separate occasions and also captured the 1989 U.S. Olympic Festival crown. His 1988 Olympic Games success earned Monday the USA Wrestling Athlete of the Year award, as well as the Amateur Wrestling News Man of the Year in 1989.

Monday was honored as a Distinguished Member of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2001.

The last 1980s-OSU wrestler to be honored in the hall of fame is Kendall Cross.

While at OSU, Cross was a three-time All-American and the 1989 NCAA champion. Cross also led the Cowboys to the NCAA team championship in 1989 – the program's first team title since 1971 - but his greatest successes on the mat came on the international level in the 1990s.

Cross was honored as a Distinguished Member of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2002.

In the 1980s, the Cowboys won a national championship, crowned 11 individual national champions and received All-America honors 57 times. OSU Wrestlers also won two Olympic gold medals, five Big Eight titles, which included 33 individual conference champions, and posted a dual record of 176-24-2.

After winning the first team national championship in 18 years, OSU looked to carry that momentum into the 1990s.

Oklahoma State University Athletics

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