My strategy was to throw everything I could at him, keep him so busy he wouldnt be able to get into a rhythm in the match, Owings later said. That's what I thought. Despite leading Iowa to 15 team championships and cementing his legacy as one of the best leaders in the sport, he still thinks about Larry Owings. Grant won in '69 @ 145 and again in '70 @ 150. Owings watches the video as Perri lifts his arm and Gable staggers away. Owings was the first UW wrestler to win an NCAA title, but what mattered was that he had upset a man the Russians reverently called "The Machine," a man who had won 181 straight matches, 108 by pins. LARRY OWINGS AND DANGABLE, Kris Murray and Tony Perkins lead Iowa to its best road win of the year, The Iowa Hawkeyes and the Big Ten Tournament. The two met in the finals of the 1970 NCAA wrestling championship. He beat Gable in the finals of the 1970 NCAA Tournament, one of the most famous wrestling matches in history. In fact, Gable would emerge from the Owings match stronger, more determined. Owings went to work on top, forcing Gable into a passive position and generating a stall call against the Cyclone for a point. It is the subject of an old wrestling match from 44 years ago that has him go silent. It's full of great details like this in the aftermath of Gable's loss to Owings: With none of his family members in attendance that day, Owings remembers staggering around, trying to process what just happened. Gable was inducted into the USA Wrestling Hall . "He tired me out more than I thought he would," Gable told Tomashek. See, Larry Owings is the The Man Who Beat Dan Gable. One day his mother finally showed up at his door and when she saw Dan, she slapped him across the face, walked away, and made the one and a half hour drive back to Waterloo. Im emotional about it. Says Gable, "You could say that this was my first coaching moment. He would mow the lawn of his parents home in Waterloo, on a 100-degree Iowa summer day with double layers of jogging pants to burn calories. He went 64-0 at Waterloo (Iowa) West High School and 117-0 in three years at Iowa State (freshmen could not compete then) with NCAA titles at 130 and 137 pounds. f&6wZ> Now why on earth would they want that? Diane asked. The most dramatic moment came in the final 30 seconds, with Gable technically in the lead although the scoreboard showed otherwise, when Owings slipped underneath his arms for a brilliantly executed leg sweep that dropped Gable to the mat for the winning points. ", Owings and Gable, forever linked, met in the NCAA final for the 142-pound weight class. Leading 7-2, Owings continued to ride Gable before Gable notched a reversal and put himself back on track with a 7-4 score. Coached high school wrestling in Washington (Seattle) and Oregon (Clackamas CC, Oregon City, Molalla, Canby and Woodburn) for over 25 years. With none of his family members in attendance that day, Owings remembers staggering around, trying to process what just happened. The night before the weigh in, he had a fight with his wife, who was seven months pregnant and didnt want him to leave her and the baby behind and go to the Olympics. His senior year, he earned a spot on Wrestling USA magazine's 1967-68 High School All-American team. Where Are They Now: Catching up with Cubs legend Ernie Banks. Please also read our Privacy Notice and Terms of Use, which became effective December 20, 2019. "The American people like the underdog, but at the same time there was sadness. "I thought it would be a contest. We went at it tooth and nail.". Larry Owings. . "It's the biggest upset ever in the sport, and it's a fascinating story. What bothered him was how he was always introduced to the room, but now, it almost makes him proud, the words, Larry Owings. My nickname was Porky. Everyone called me that, even my teachers at school. He would drop down two weight classes, from 158 to 142, just to have a shot at Gable at the NCAAs. WATCH "Larry Owings Documentary (The Man Who Beat Dan . There was a time I wished it never happened, he says. Join Facebook to connect with Larry Owings and others you may know. Larry Owings Invitational - Wrestling Event - FloWrestling Larry Owings Invitational Larry Owings Invitational on Dec 21, 2013 in Canby, OR. The fans, said Roderick, "were in shock, as well as excited seeing history. But he was right. THIRD PERIOD: Both wrestlers anxiously waited for the whistle to start the third, leading the referee to caution the men. To say Owings was the underdog would be, well, an understatement. The pair had met two years earlier, at the 1968 Olympic Trials when Owings was a senior at Canby (Ore.) High and Gable was a sophomore at Iowa State. He went on to the sensational international and Olympic career that has already been described. Dan Gable was and is a god among men in the world of amateur wrestling. Gable was one of the few. And if he could use them to help somebody else, he should. It's all good. He won every college match before dropping his last match in a stunning 13-11 loss to Washington's Larry Owings in the 142-pound finals in 1970. I seem to remember hearing or reading once that Owings wrestled all season at another weight class, but bumped down to 142 just for the Big Dance. Larry Owings, Coach/Official, Canby, Oregon. Anything that I can do to help keep these kids away from the video games, and the drugs, the violence and the gangs, Im going to do it.. He was taking time out to do countless interviews, up until the very moment of his match: ABCs Wide World of Sports requested that he tape a spot for them on the mat just minutes before the final. After losing 20 pounds and growing several inches, nobody believed he couldn't be a wrestler anymore. His voice cracks, his eyes flicker, and suddenly, he goes silent, grasping for words. Gable loves telling the story of how he once had a freshman wrestler on his team who faded at the end of matches; to build up the wrestlers mental toughness, Gable drove would drive the wrestler 10 miles out of town a several times a week after practices, and had the freshman run all the way back to campus as Gable followed him in his car. A stalemate brought the wrestlers back to the center, but, within seconds, the match was over. More than any other sport, wrestling is rooted in self-belief and desire: being big, strong, fast and talented can take you only so far; in the end, it is about endurance, stamina, conviction. Gables success was always due in large part of his ability to live in a bubble -- no distractions ever got in his way. Hes not. %PDF-1.4 Larry Owings Fall 6:12 Leandro Torres 4-3 Bruce Burnett 11-7 Paul Brodmerkel 6-2 Bob Bergen 15-6 Rob Brown 6-4 Larry Owings Fall 1:36 Leandro Torres 4-3 Bob Bergen 3-2 Larry Owings 17-2 Leandro Torres 4-1 Darrell Keller 16-12 142 Weight Class Larry Owings 5-2 Clay Jester, Massachusetts James Guizzotti, Ashland [7] Doug Moses, Iowa State Bye 13-11. Owings grew up in the Ninety-One School district, the youngest of five brothers who were all high school wrestling state champions. After retiring as the virtually undisputed greatest wrestler in the history of the sport, he decided to go ahead and become its greatest coach. Gable remembers the moment the seed of doubt was planted entering the 1970 national championships at Northwestern Universitys McGaw Hall. Gable calls his loss to Larry Owings of Washington his greatest loss. Wrestling was already fading in his life when he met Diane, the woman who would become his second wife. '@$6. However, Owings turned things around, becoming a two-time Oregon high school state champ, winning the 136-pound crown as a junior in 1967, and the 138 title in 1968 (pinning all his opponents at state). Before the match, Gable had recorded a promo for ABC saying, Hi, Im Dan Gable. Looking at the photo now, Gable says, I felt -- I feel -- like I let everyone down. After Gable received his second place trophy, there was a loud ovation in the hall that stretched on for minutes, until one of Gables teammates approached him and said, Gable, lift up your head. He may have been the only opponent Gable had faced in years who saw him as anything other than invincible. Larry Owings Invitational detail view. Owings had won. That wouldn't happen in 1970. During the conversation, neither mentioned the match. The only defeat that Gable suffered during his. And then I got greedy. Gable had pinned an astonishing 70 percent of his opponents entering the final, and now he determined to pin Owings to close out his collegiate career. Gable finished the scramble on top and ended the second period in the opposite manner of the first, this time holding the momentum and the power and the clock reset with two more minutes on the clock for the final period. Gable was told Owings' comment and said he didn't realize the infamous leg sweep was not a practiced move. His teams won 21 Big Ten championships and 15 NCAA Division I titles. FIRST PERIOD: The legend took the first shot, moving in on Owings right leg before squaring up a then fending off an attack from Owings. Is that so? World Champion", "Trump honors legendary Iowa wrestler Gable at White House", "Dan Gable among speakers discussing victims' rights", "Himself the victim of a violent tragedy, Gable says loss can result in some good", "Bio: Dan Gable 15 National Championships. National Wrestling Hall of Fame Dan Gable Museum, Dave Schultz High School Excellence Award, Tricia Saunders High School Excellence Award. If there was one code Owings lived by then, it was a desire to have a second chance against anyone who had beaten him. SECOND PERIOD: Gable chose top to start the second period with the goal of looking for a turn against Owings for back points, but, instead, Owings, escapes and takes a shot for another two-point takedown, extending his lead to 6-2. It also dominated him. Terms at draftkings.com/sportsbook. Each wore white headgear and white kneepads. From 1967 to 1970, Gable attended Iowa State University, where he competed in folkstyle wrestling. BURROWS Beverley. While at Iowa State, Gable continued his winning ways by capturing three Big Eight Championships, earning All-American honors all three years. While the result of the match against Owings was unusual, in comparison with Gable's previous results, his effort is undeniable. Both wrestlers advanced through the tournament by pinning each of their opponents. And that was it, he says. He noticed that the UW wrestler was making "all kinds of mistakes but still ended up pinning his opponent." Owings at that moment pulled off a move that hed never done in a match: a leg sweep that caught Gable by surprise and dropped him down to the mat -- as Gable fell, he felt like he was going down in slow motion. However, Gable had to deal with more distractions than Owings. He would sprint from class to class on the campus at Ames, clutching course books and wearing weights tied to his ankles. 971K views, 7.2K likes, 334 loves, 948 comments, 4.9K shares, Facebook Watch Videos from NCAA Wrestling: Only one man stopped Dan Gable in his college career: Larry Owings. Larry Owings is a wrestling legend. Check out the highlights. Gable would go for five mile runs, then get inside a car and, with the windows rolled up all the way, turn the heater on full blast so he would return to his ideal wrestling weight at the end of the day. I remember asking him what he did in Colorado. Gable said he learned not to take an opponent lightly, to eliminate distractions and accentuate an aura of invincibility and intimidation toward an opponent, just as Owings had done to him. Just a thought. Smith would rather have Owings wrestle at 150 pounds. An inspiring legend in his home state and as well as the country due to his work ethic and drive to succeed in wrestling, Gable won national titles in 1968 and 1969 at 130 and 137 pounds. That loss is a key part of the creation story for the Dan Gable myth. Just sitting here, talking about it it hurts. Gable's teams compiled a dual meet record of 355215. He wrestled Gable one more time, in the 1972 Olympic Trials, losing 7-1. The message was that his talent at wrestling, and his improbable victory over Dan Gable, had happened for a reason. Minn. Owings was wrestling best at 136.5 . The article didn't mention the fact that Caldwell had pinned Metcalf the previous season. There had never been a day like March 28, 1970 in the world of wrestling, and there has never been one since. Dan Gable will tell you that eighty percent of wrestling matches are decided before the first whistle blows. "GABLE FALLS!" screamed the banner headline in the next day's Des Moines Register. Here's what you may have missed. This is where Gable thought he had the match won. Larry Owings - Washington (1969 - 1972) 1-time NCAA Champion High School: Canby, Oregon I wasn't that surprised the night Caldwell beat Metcalf. Perri had given Owings two points for the takedown and two for a near-fall, as Gable's shoulders were briefly exposed to the mat. Just sitting here, talking about it it hurts. The teasing was merciless and nearly crushed him, but it also fueled him to drop the weight and spend extra hours in the gym, and by his senior year he was the best wrestler in the state, competing in national tournaments and Olympic trials. Is the hardest S.O.B. Iowa State had won the national team championship, but Gable's loss dominated the headlines. "I was almost embarrassed to have won," he says. View the profiles of people named Larry Owings. The move was so fast that Perri stopped the match and walked to the scorers table to ensure that the proper points were awarded. Larry Owings's wrestling career was different from Gable's. Growing up with 5 wrestling champs, Larry was told by his siblings he would never be a wrestler even being nicknamed "Porky." Owing wanted to prove them wrong. His conditioning was so legendary that the Russians whom he would face in an international career that included two world championships and a gold medal at the 1972 Olympics in Munich nicknamed him The Machine.. I told him he had to get out there." Jean was due to wrestle in the night's final match, and the PA announcer called for the match wrestlers: Jean had three minutes to get to the mat. Come watch me next week as I finish my career 182-0." Not, like he-was-on-a-Wheaties-box-one-time famous (though he was). The way Owings sees it, there was his life before the match and his life after: before 1970 he was a nobody hungry to make a name for himself in the sport, though also an introvert completely unequipped for the attention that would come. There were some things I could have done We just thought you were invincible., Anderson was dying of cancer, and as Gable says, It was like he was unloading a lifelong burden., Where are They Now: Former UConn star Doron Sheffer. The night before the start of the tournament, a teammate asked if hed seen the front page of the Chicago Tribune sports section. But Owings honestly believed he could beat him. In 1991, Gable was awarded with the Art Abrams Lifetime Achievement Award by Cauliflower Alley Club. He won 117 college wrestling matches with impressive dominance, setting a tone and a pace that few could match. Owings has not talked to Gable since 1980, and that was a brief conversation to ask him to consider looking at a wrestler in his district. It had a tremendous impact on my entire coaching career.". "There was probably not 10 people in that crowd of 9,000 or so who would have bet on Owings," Oklahoma State Coach Myron Roderick said. Then lost in '70 @ 142 when Owings beat him 13-11. "Owings was very squirmy and hard to control.. I gave it everything I had.. After defeating Gable, Owings left the crowd at Northwestern stunned having witnessed wrestling history. They are not your average antique shop. Highlights of his career include gold medals at the 1971 Tbilisi Tournament, the 1971 world championships, and the 1972 Olympic Games. With a score of 8-6, Gable again worked for back points before a scramble ensued. Smith, a man not quite 5 feet tall, ran over and bear-hugged and hoisted his champion. Gable won @ 130 in '68. Gable calls his loss to Larry Owings of Washington his greatest loss. He went in for Gables leg and picked up a clutch third-period takedown, almost catching the Cyclone off guard as time ticked down. He could't believe he was the one affected by his opponent's reputation. As a college sophomore, he defeated Dan Gable in one of the biggest upsets of NCAA finals history,. In a corner of the room theres a photo of Gable on the podium after the Owings match, a close black and white shot of his face with tears in his eyes. NCAA Champion and Outstanding Wrestler. They said Id never be a wrestler because I was too fat, he recalled, much later. From 117-0 to 117-1. in the state of Iowa really going to lose it right now? See, Larry Owings is the The Man Who Beat Dan Gable.
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