2007-08 Wrestling Media Guide

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Head Coach15th Year at OklahomaRecord at OU: 184-83-11

Birthdate: July 20, 1952Hometown: Smithtown, N.Y.

High School: Smithton High School (N.Y.) College: Slippery Rock (B.S. in health and physical education, 1975), Baptist Bible Seminary (Master’s in theology and education, 1980)

1993-Present: Head Coach, Oklahoma1988-93: Head Coach, Cornell University

1973-77: Slippery Rock Four time Conference Champion 1973 NCAA National Champion 1974 NCAA Runner-Up

Wife: Barby SpatesChildren (4): Sons: Jeremy (28) and Justin (26) Daughters: Jessica (33) and Jenilyn (24)

Personal

Education

Coaching History

Wrestling Experience

Head CoaCH JaCk SpateS

Family

Jack Spates has seen and done it all as he enters his fifteenth season as Oklahoma’s head coach.

Spates has been recognized with numerous coaching awards including three Big 12 Coach of the Year awards and 2006 N.W.C.A. Coach of the Year. Spates has coached two Big 12 conference team titles, 49 All-Americans and six national champions. He has also led 25 Oklahoma wrestlers to individual Big 12 titles.

Most impressively, Coach Spates and the Sooners have accepted six team trophies at the NCAA Tournament in the past 10 seasons.

Last season, Spates helped lead four Sooners to the podium at the Big 12 Tournament. Sam Hazewinkel and Matt Storniolo both finished first, while Kyle Terry and Joel Flaggert finished third. Under the direction of Spates during the 2006-07 season, six Sooners advanced to the NCAA Championships.

In 2005-06, he led the Sooners to a third place finish at the NCAA Championships which marked their sixth top four finish in seven years. The Sooners also had five wrestlers earn All-America honors (Sam Hazewinkel, Teyon Ware, Matt Storniolo, Joel Flaggert, and Jake Hager). Spates was honored as the 2006 NWCA Coach of the Year, and was also the 2006 Co-Big 12 Coach of the year.

When Spates became the University of Oklahoma’s 12th head wrestling coach in 1993, he inherited a proud, but struggling program. OU’s average finish at the NCAA Championships was 23rd in the three years prior to Spates’ arrival. His Sooner teams have placed in the nation’s top four in six of the past eight seasons, including third-place finishes in 2002, 2003, 2005 and 2006. The 2004 season was especially impressive as the Sooners lost eight starters and wrestled six freshmen, yet still finished ninth at the NCAA Championships. During the 2004-05 season, the Sooners named four All-Americans and crowned 141-pound national champion Teyon Ware while finishing third as a team at the NCAA Championships. Spates’ teams have also won the Big 12 Championship two of the last nine years. Their 1999 title was the Sooners’ first in more than a decade (1985). They also were crowned champions in 2002. Both times, Spates was honored as Big 12 Coach of the Year.

Spates has continued to bring the nation’s top talent to Oklahoma. The Sooners’ recruiting classes perennially rank in the top 10 nationally.

During his tenure as Sooner head coach, Spates has developed 22 All-America wrestlers who have earned the prestigious honor a total of 49 times. Spates coached two national champions in 2003, freshman Teyon Ware and senior Robbie Waller, an assistant coach now on staff at OU. Also included on that list are four-time All-Americans and national champions John Kading and Michael Lightner.

Spates has also coached undefeated national champions in Lightner and Byron Tucker. Former OU assistant coach Rod-ney Jones and Shane Valdez were three-time All-Americans under Spates.

Perhaps Spates’ greatest challenge in developing young talent came during the 2000-01 campaign. Oklahoma lost six starters from the previous year and several key wrestlers to injury during the season. After losing starter Bo Maynes at 125 pounds, Spates inserted Matt Ridings into the lineup. Ridings won 17 consecutive matches and earned a fourth seed at the national championships despite having only five dual starts entering the season. Sophomores Witt Durden and Josh Lambrecht both struggled with confidence and injuries during 2001 but rallied to earn All-America honors. Redshirt freshman heavyweight Leonce Crump failed to win a state title as a high school senior and was pinned twice at high school nationals. Under Spates’ guidance, Crump claimed three Big 12 titles and placed third in 2004 and fourth in 2002 at the NCAA Championships.

Not only has Spates built programs into regional and na-tional powers, he has also served as a mentor to several Divi-sion I head coaches. Rob Koll, head coach at Cornell, served as an assistant to Spates for the Big Red as did Missouri head coach Brian Smith. Koll led Cornell to an 11th place finish at the NCAA Championships while Smith and the Tiger program finished the year third at the National Tournament.

New Clarion University coach Teague Moore coached with Spates, as did Nebraska coach Mark Manning. Also, Chuck Barbee will be entering his sixth season as the head coach at Army and Derek DelPorto is in his second year as the Eastern Michigan head mentor.

Spates won the New York State Championship and placed third in the nation, becoming a high school All-American in the 10th grade. High school success led Spates to an oppor-tunity to wrestle at Slippery Rock. He claimed the collegiate national championship in 1973 and was an NCAA runner-up the following year at 118 pounds. Spates compiled a 118-8 career record at Slippery Rock, the second best win total in school history. For his achievements on the mat, Spates has been inducted into the Slippery Rock Athletic Hall of Fame.

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Head CoaCH JaCk SpateS

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Spates’ stellar coaching career began as the head assistant coach at Baptist Bible College in 1975. He quickly earned a reputation as a builder of programs when he helped lead the small private school to six conference championships. During Spates’ tenure, Baptist Bible College won more than 70 percent of its matches, despite competing predominately against larger colleges and universities. Spates helped develop more than 20 wrestlers who earned All-America status during his tenure. After leaving Baptist Bible College in 1981, Spates entered the business world before returning for one year as an assistant coach at the University of Pittsburgh where he helped direct the Panthers to their first winning season in five years.

After leaving Pittsburgh, Spates served as head assistant coach at the U.S. Military Academy. While Spates was at Army, the Black Knights attained their highest ever NCAA finish (13th). The team was ranked as high as No. 11 during the 1987 season. While at West Point, Spates recruited Army’s highest rated class, which was judged as seventh best in the nation. He was also named runner-up for national assistant-coach-of-the-year honors while at West Point.

His success at West Point led to a head coaching position at Cornell in Westchester, N.Y. During his five years with the Big Red, he became Cornell’s all-time winningest coach by percentage. Spates compiled a 74-14-1 record during his tenure and developed a program that offered no scholarships into an Eastern and national power. His last two Cornell teams dominated the Eastern Championships, crowning nine individual champions. Cornell also steadily improved at the NCAA Championships, rising from no national placing to finishes of 20th, 15th and 10th place. Spates’ commitment to the development of the athlete off of the mat was also evident when his Cornell teams earned the highest grade point average of any athletic teams on campus. For his accomplishments, Spates was named New York Collegiate Coach of the Year, Eastern Coach of the Year and New York State Wrestling Man of the Year.

Spates also wears many hats outside the world of wrestling. He graduated magna cum laude from graduate school and was awarded the Greek Award for Proficiency in the Koine Greek Language as well as the Literacy Award for Dissertation of Publishable Quality. Spates’ dedication to education is still evident today as his program regularly produces Aca-demic All-Big 12 and Academic All-America selections including Sam Hazewinkel, who was named to the 2007 ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America men’s at-large first team.

Author of the highly-acclaimed wrestling book Mat Snacks: Wrestling Stories to Feed the Spirit and Tickle the Funny Bone, Spates has developed a reputation as a motivational speaker for businesses, schools and civic clubs. Spates is also a songwriter who has written ballads for all five of his national champions.

The most important role of Spates’ life is that of father. He is the proud father of four children: Jessica, Jeremy, Justin and Jenilyn. Jessica currently teaches Spanish. Jeremy, a former Oklahoma high school state champion and All-American at the University of Missouri, has returned to Norman as an assistant coach for the Sooners. At MU, he was a three-time national qualifier and finished fifth at the 2004 NCAA Championships. Justin, a two-time high school state champion and the nation’s No. 1 rated 119-pounder as a senior, has hung up his wrestling shoes and spends his time as a home-builder in Long Island, N.Y. after starring in the award winning film Reversal. Jenilyn lives in Norman and works as a massage therapist. Spates and his wife, Barby, are proud to make Norman their home.

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Head CoaCH JaCk SpateS

Head coach Jack Spates stands with son and assistant, Jeremy Spates.

SPATES YEAR-BY-YEAR AT OKLAHOMA

Overall Conf.Year W L T W L T NCAA FINISH1993-94 5 5 0 1 4 0 Eighth1994-95 7 7 2 1 3 1 Seventh1995-96 15 4 0 4 1 0 17th1996-97 11 8 1 1 4 0 Seventh1997-98 16 5 0 3 3 0 15th1998-99 18 5 1 2 4 1 Sixth1999-00 17 4 1 3 3 1 Fourth2000-01 18 5 1 2 4 0 Fourth2001-02 19 5 0 4 2 0 Third2002-03 11 7 2 2 5 0 Third2003-04 14 8 0 0 6 0 Ninth2004-05 11 7 2 1 4 0 Third2005-06 11 6 1 1 4 0 Third2006-07 11 7 0 0 5 0 22ndTotal 184 83 11

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Jeremy Spates enters his fourth season as an assistant coach for the Sooners.

Last season, despite coaching a team plagued with injuries, Spates saw two OU wrestlers finish on the first-place podium at the Big 12 Championships in Sam Hazewinkel and Matt Storniolo.

Spates has helped Oklahoma to two top-three finishes in the last three years as an assistant.

In his second season, Spates helped lead the Sooners to a third-place finish at the NCAA Championships and five All-Americans. Spates’ first season with the Sooners was an impressive one. He helped coach a team that produced four All-Americans and crowned 141-pound national champion Teyon Ware, while finishing third as a team at the NCAA Championships.

“To have someone who is as passionate, talented and hard working as Jeremy, is a tremendous asset to our program,” head coach Jack Spates said.

“He is a great technician, he has a heart beat for young men and a great desire to see them succeed on the mat and be successful in life.

“Having my son coaching alongside me, it doesn’t get any better than this,” the elder Spates said.

After completing a successful collegiate career at the University of Missouri, Spates joined the Oklahoma staff as an interim assistant coach for the 2004-05 season. Prior to the 2005-06 season Spates was promoted to assistant coach with the Sooners.

This collegiate All-American finished his wrestling career at Missouri with a record of 106-38. He made three consecu-tive appearances in the NCAA Championships and placed fifth in the NCAA in his senior year. He was one of four Big 12

aSSiStant CoaCH Jeremy SpateS

Wrestling Experience

Coaching History

Education

Personal

Assistant CoachFourth Season at Oklahoma

Birthdate: Dec. 8, 1978Hometown: Norman, Okla.

High School: Norman High School (Okla.) College: University of Missouri (B.S. in Business)

2003-Present: Assistant Coach, Oklahoma

1999-2003: University of Missouri All-American (2003)

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Conference wrestlers invited to compete at the National Wrestling Coaches Association All-Star Classic in 2004 where he defeated Cornell All-American Dustin Manotti. As a senior, he became the 10th Tiger in MU history to reach 100 wins. Spates also became the first three-time team captain at MU.

During the 2001-02 season, Spates took fifth at the Missouri Open, second at the Reno Tournament of Champions and finished second at the University Nationals and fifth at the University World Championships.

As a true freshman, he recorded a 32-13 record and earned titles at the Great Plains Open, the Central Missouri State Open and the Lindenwood Open as well as a NCAA berth. His dual record was 15-7, and he led the team in takedowns with 68.

Spates’ arrival in Norman marks his return home. A 1999 Norman High School graduate, Spates was a high school All-American, a three-time Junior All-American and an Oklahoma state champion while wrestling for the Tigers.

aSSiStant CoaCH robbie Waller

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Wrestling Experience

Coaching History

Education

Personal

Assistant Coach

Third Season at Oklahoma

Birthdate: March 29, 1979Hometown: Latrobe, Pa.

High School: Mt. Pleasant High School (Pa.) College: University of Oklahoma (B.A. in English, 2003)

2005-Present: Assistant Coach, Oklahoma2004-05: Assistant Coach, Missouri2003-04: Graduate Assistant, Missouri

1999-03: University of Oklahoma 2003 NCAA National Champion Two-time All-American (2002-03)

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Robbie Waller enters his third season as an assistant coach with the Oklahoma wrestling program.

With the assistance of Waller last season, Oklahoma sent two Sooners to the podium at the Big 12 Championships. First-place finishers Sam Hazewinkel and Matt Storniolo became the first pair of Sooners to collect multiple titles in the same season since 2004.

In Waller’s first season with the Sooners, he helped lead the program to its fourth top-three finish at the NCAA Championships in the last five years. He also helped coach five All-Americans. The University of Oklahoma wrestling program brought an experienced champion back to Norman when it hired Waller in the summer of 2005. He was the 2003 174-pound NCAA Champion and a two-time NCAA All-American (2002, 2003) for the Sooners.

“It’s a tremendous joy to have one of my wrestlers, a former national champion, come back and help other student-ath-letes in their quest to succeed in the sport and in life,” head coach Jack Spates said.

“Robbie is very supportive, loyal and a very hard worker.

“Our team benefits greatly by having Coach Waller on our staff,” Spates said.

After leaving the Sooners in 2003, Waller served as the graduate assistant for wrestling at the University of Missouri for the 2003-04 season while pursuing his master’s degree in English education. He was then promoted to head assistant for the 2004-05 season. He helped the Tigers crown three All-Americans and finish No. 11 in the country, their best fin-ish in 20 years. While coaching at Mizzou, Waller guided six Tigers to All-America status and three wrestlers to individual Big 12 Conference Championships.

A four-time NCAA qualifier and two-time Big 12 Conference finalist, Waller graduated from OU with a bachelor’s degree in English. He compiled a 103-30 record in four years of competition for the Sooners.

As a senior in 2003, Waller was named to the National Wres-tling Coaches Association (NWCA) All-Academic first team and he was selected to the Big 12 Commissioner’s Honor Roll in each of his four years at OU. Waller was also an Academic All-Big 12 selection three times (2001, 2002, and 2003).

Waller captured a Pennsylvania state high school title at 160 pounds in 1998, and advanced to the finals in 1996 and 1997 at 152 pounds. He placed sixth at the Junior National freestyle championships in 1997 and captured a Junior National Freestyle title in the summer of 1998. He was also a runner-up at the 1998 NHSCA Senior Nationals Champion-ships in Pittsburgh, Pa. During his high school career, Waller compiled a career record of 128-3.

Waller has served as a featured clinician at camps and clinics all around the country, including the Pennsylvania All-American Camps in Latrobe, Pa. and Virginia Beach, Va; Florida Pride Camp in Tampa, Fla.; All-American wrestling camp in Santa Fe, N.M.; and All-American Summer Wrestling Camp in Dallas, Texas.

Waller’s talents have also extended off the mat as well. He has written and sold a feature film screenplay, Ten Miles from Nowhere.

aSSiStant CoaCH robbie Waller

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2007-08 Wrestling mediA guide

Tim Overman’s goals are to improve performance and help each athlete become the best wrestler he can be. He’s also dedicated to the overall wellness of each student-athlete as he stresses the importance of a bal-anced diet.

That kind of commitment earned him a spot on head strength coordinator Jerry Schmidt’s staff that trains OU’s national powerhouse football program. In 2002, Overman was directly responsible for implement-ing strength training, speed, agility and conditioning programs for OU’s baseball and wrestling teams. Three of the four programs Overman coached that season advanced to postseason action including the national championship gymnastics team and the NCAA third-place wrestling team. In 2003, he added women’s basektball to his résumé and continued working with baseball and wrestling, two programs he has worked with since his arrival.

Prior to OU, Overman was a volunteer assistant strength coach for the University of Iowa football program in 2001, where he gained a variety of experience.

Overman served an internship at Athlete’s Performance in Tempe, Ariz., in 2000 which allowed him to work directly with professional athletes. He was heavily in-volved in improving athletes’ sports specific needs such as flexibility, speed training, weight training, nutrition and physical recovery techniques.

As an undergraduate at Creighton University, Overman had the opportunity to develop workout, testing, reha-bilitation and maintenance programs for the Bluejay athletes. He also served as a student trainer for CU.

The Mt. Vernon, Iowa, native is a certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist and personal trainer. Overman belongs to the National Strength and Conditioning and the Strength & Conditioning Coaches Associations.

SUpport Staff

Tim OvermanStrength and Conditioning

Danny DavisFacilities

Scott MatthewsGraphic Designer

Annette MoranAcademic Advisor

Elison DantasStudent Manager

Lindy RobertsEvent Management

Brad CampEquipment

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Jeff FoustVolunteer Assistant Coach

Meredith NoonanGraduate Assistant

Jeff Foust is entering his second year as the volunteer assistant coach for the Oklahoma Sooner wrestling team.

Foust assists with travel duties and recruiting as well as day- to-day office tasks associated with the team. He also helps oversee the annual golf tourmant held each fall for alumni.

Prior to coming to OU, he wrestled at Missouri from 2001-06. He was a Big 12 Champion at 197 pounds in 2004 and was a two-time NCAA qualifier. He was also a two-time freestyle All-American during his stint at Missouri. He graduated with a degree in nutrition and fitness.

Foust was recruited from Blue Springs High School in Kansas City, Mo., where he was an undefeated state champion.

Chris WatsonAthletic Trainer

Chris Watson enters this season as the program’s first full-time athletic trainer. Watson is a graduate of Sterling College in Kansas where he received two undergrduate degrees in health and exercise science and athletic training. Watson recieved his master’s at OU in human relations.

Meredith Noonan, from Plano, Texas, is in her first year as a graduate assistant. She graduated summa cum laude from OU in 2007, and is currently pursuing her master’s in intercollegiate athletic administration.

A.L. HaizlipPA Announcer