All these advances weren't available to wrestlers of the past. Yet how is it possible that a number of the mat athletes of the 1960s and earlier could possess incredible strength and impressive physiques that, if they were wrestling today, would still generate positive buzz at a tournament and on social media?
It occurred to me that it was time to take a look at this topic, in light of responses to photos I've posted of past college mat greats (including Dan Hodge as an Oklahoma Sooner wrestler in the mid-1950s, in honor of his 84th birthday in mid-May) ... and in my recent tribute to Sherwyn Thorson, 1962 NCAA heavyweight champ for the Iowa Hawkeyes, who passed away this spring at age 75.
Thorson breaks open the weight room
The late Sherwyn Thorson owns a number of enduring distinctions in his amateur athletic career at Iowa. He was the Hawkeyes' first NCAA heavyweight wrestling champ. What's more, Thorson was the only U of Iowa athlete to earn All-American honors in both wrestling and football ... and perhaps the only athlete from any NCAA school in history to do both, according to the Iowa sports website BlackHeartsGoldPants.com. And ...Thorson was one of the first to be open about working out with weights.
Known affectionately by the nickname Thumper, Thorson was a physical specimen who was very agile for a big man, having grown from being a 138-pound wrestler as a high school freshman into a 235-pounder at Iowa. Yet the Fort Dodge, Iowa native apparently felt he was a bit undersized for both sports, so he hit the weight room.
Sherwyn ThorsonThat prof's accusation motivated Thorson to go all-out to be even more successful against larger opponents in wrestling and football ... and that plan included weightlifting. It apparently worked, as Thorson concluded his collegiate mat career by winning the heavyweight title at the 1962 NCAAs by pinning Wisconsin's Roger Pillath, the guy who put his shoulders to the mat at the Big Ten championship finals two weeks earlier. Thorson then went on to a successful career in professional football in Canada.
Weight room: once off-limits to wrestlers
During Thorson's time -- and long before that -- most wrestling coaches forbid their athletes from pumping iron. "It'll make you muscle-bound!" was the conventional wisdom of the time. However, the 1960s was a time of revolution and innovation in amateur wrestling, with wider use of foam-core mats (widely known by one brand name, Resilite), digital scoreboards, protective headgear, and specialized shoes designed specifically for wrestling (rather than simply wearing "sneakers"). Some wrestling coaches started to see how amateur athletes in other sports -- such as swimming, and track and field -- were gaining benefits of weight work, becoming faster, more agile, with greater endurance ... without becoming "muscle-bound."
So how did wrestlers who competed more than 50 years ago gain strength and muscle that still looks impressive to many of today's wrestlers and fans? In some cases, it's a matter of great genes. However, there are some common environmental issues that helped make some wrestlers known for their power and/or their powerful physiques.
InterMat has singled out some examples of accomplished wrestlers of the past who were also known for their strength and/or strong physiques. Some of these guys may have been blessed by choosing their parents carefully, so to speak. Others may have earned their muscles from hard work on the farm, in the oil fields, or other demanding physical labor. A couple overcame incredible physical challenges to build themselves into high-achieving mat champs.
Note: The focus of this article is on wrestlers who competed more than 60 years ago, in the era before weight-room workouts were the norm ... so you won't find Brock Lesnar, Kenny Monday, Kevin Randleman, Mark Johnson, Lee Kemp or other more recent wrestlers known for their muscular strength and/or muscularity in this InterMat Rewind feature.
And ... note that all the photos featured in this article are of these wrestlers in their uniforms of the time. Prior to today's singlets becoming the standard uniform about 45-50 years ago, many high school and college wrestlers competed in trunks and/or tights, with shirts optional. The NCAA started requiring all collegiate wrestlers to wear shirts in the mid-1960s.
Jack VanBebber
Looking at photos of Jack VanBebber in his wrestling prime, it's not obvious that he would belong in an article about wrestlers with impressive physiques and/or incredible strength. Yet this athlete overcame a near-fatal accident as a child to become one of the most accomplished wrestlers of the 1930s competing at Oklahoma State and on the international stage.
Jack VanBebberBeyond the Cowboys: VanBebber won a gold medal in freestyle at (weight class) at the 1932 Los Angeles Olympics, despite being punched by his Canadian opponent in one match. In the finals, the farm boy from north-central Oklahoma managed to beat a three-time Olympic medalist to claim gold of his own.
Overcoming a near-fatal injury: When he was six years old, Jack VanBebber fell off a wagon and was run over by one of the wheels, severely injuring his chest. Immediately after the accident, doctors didn't think he would survive ... or, at best, would be an invalid the rest of his life. However, as he slowly recovered, doctors encouraged him to get some exercise such as walking ... but forbade him from participating in sports.
That all changed in junior high school when a playground bully picked a fight with him. He and the bully were taken to the school's football/wrestling coach, who made the two boys put on boxing gloves and "settle their differences." VanBebber got knocked down, but the coach liked how VanBebber worked to defend himself, and encouraged him to consider going out for wrestling once he came to high school. The coach gave VanBebber a workout regime which included walking, jogging and doing more strenuous farm chores such as lifting hay bales. Over time, VanBebber became stronger and healthier; the coach finally allowed him to go out for wrestling, but only if he would join the football team too.
VanBebber's long-term workout regime prior to taking up sports -- along with participation in both football and wrestling in high school -- helped his wrestling career in college and beyond. While at Oklahoma State wrestling for the legendary coach Ed Gallagher, at times VanBebber needed to have one-on-one workouts with an assistant coach because his class schedule interfered with the regularly-scheduled team workouts.
A grueling schedule: In addition to wrestling practices and a demanding class schedule, VanBebber was forced to take up multiple part-time jobs to earn money for his education and expenses during the beginning of the Great Depression, which hit the state of Oklahoma particularly hard. It's almost exhausting to read about one of VanBebber's typical days in his memoir "A Distant Flame"; here's his schedule as a freshman: "My day began at 3:45 in the morning when I left for the dairy barn. That milk delivering turned out to be challenging track work ... The milk delivered, I legged it to my morning classes. (After lunch) from 1:00 p.m. until 4:00 I attended classes. From 4:00 to 5:00 I swept classrooms at Whitehurst Hall. I double-timed it to the gym for an hour of wrestling." After going back to where he lived for evening study, late at night VanBebber went to wash dishes and pots and pans at a local diner for a free meal.
These jobs not only helped build VanBebber's bank account; they also helped make the wrestler stronger physically and mentally ... which served him in his academic and athletic endeavors.
All that helped VanBebber develop a level of physical conditioning and stick-to-it-ness which was critical to his success at the 1932 Olympics. However, the former Cowboy almost didn't make it to one of his matches. He had been given the wrong schedule, and was taking a nap at the Olympic Village when he was told he needed to be at the arena -- which was miles away -- in one hour. Unable to find transportation, VanBebber started running ... and barely made it to the arena in time for his match. Thanks to his incredible conditioning -- and years of running going back to grade school -- he won his match, and the gold medal.
VanBebber's athletic accomplishments and inspiring life story of overcoming near-fatal injuries led Associated Press in 1950 to declare him one of the Top Ten athletes of the first half of the 20th century.
Stanley Henson
At age 98, Stanley Henson is not only one of the oldest NCAA wrestling champs still alive, but also arguably the most accomplished college mat star of the 1930s, despite battling ongoing issues with his shoulder throughout his athletic career. No less an expert than wrestling historian Mike Chapman said this of Henson: "All the old-timers I talk to consider him -- without exception -- one of the top four or five wrestlers of all time."
Oklahoma State wrestling record: Three-time NCAA champ (1937-39). Overall college record of 31-1 record, with 12 pins. Named Outstanding Wrestler at the 1937 NCAAs, the first sophomore to earn that honor.
Beyond the Cowboys: Henson barely missed out on qualifying to wrestle for the U.S. at the 1936 Berlin Olympics. He was an odds-on favorite to earn a gold medal at the 1940 Olympics, which never took place because of the threat of World War II. During the war, Henson served in the Navy on the USS San Francisco in the Pacific. After five years as a physical instructor and wrestling assistant at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Henson attended medical school in Maryland and trained at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota for four years before moving to Fort Collins, Colorado to work as a surgeon, becoming the first doctor to perform open-heart surgery at the local hospital. In addition, he was a pioneer in the field of sports medicine. Henson was welcomed into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame in 1978.
A rugged wrestling work ethic: As a self-described "skinny little kid," Henson first went out for wrestling in junior high in Tulsa, Oklahoma without much success ... and, in fact, quit. At Tulsa Central High, legendary coach Art Griffith encouraged him to participate in the sport. Henson learned the value of hard work, vowing never to leave the wrestling room as long as a teammate remained who needed a workout partner. He even worked out with guys much larger and more experienced, but believed he was learning skills and gaining valuable experience. Henson also learned of a wrestler who ran four miles a day ... so he did that, twice a day. It all led to three Oklahoma high school state titles, and interest from a number of college wrestling programs, including the top program at the time, Oklahoma State.
Hard at work at home on the farm ... Henson grew up on a farm, so daily chores were a fact of life, including a cow that needed to be milked twice a day. "My dad made it clear that the cow came first, and wrestling came second," Henson wrote. "I didn't realize at the time, but I was developing strong hands and forearms that were also a real asset to me in wrestling."
... and in the oil fields: Henson's father was a general contractor in the Oklahoma oil fields ... and Stanley and his brother worked on his dad's crews during summers off from high school and college. Being a rig builder was hard work, and dangerous, too. "We dug cellars, ran concrete, and set pumping units," said Henson. "It was hard work, but not as dangerous as rig building ... I didn't mind because I was building muscle and endurance which would pay off during the next wrestling season."
"We didn't lift weights in those days, but we spent all that summer (1938) swinging a 16-pound sledge, driving stakes into the ground for a rod line that ran several pumping units. After that summer, Joe (McDonald, Oklahoma State teammate) said he felt so strong that he thought he could 'crush' his opponents with his hands."
Stanley HensonA photo-ready physique: In 1939, Stanley Henson was featured prominently in a three-page photo spread for Life magazine on the Oklahoma State wrestling program. Henson was one of the Cowboys picked to demonstrate various holds.
A competing coach weighs in: Charlie Mayser, legendary coach at Iowa State in the 1930s, said, "(Henson) is positively the greatest wrestler to come along in generations, and I've seen some of the best." The Cyclone coach later said, "That Henson -- he's just not human!"
Dan Hodge
Dan Allen Hodge is one old-school wrestler who is well-known and respected even among today's wrestlers of all ages. After all, the now 84-year-old mat legend has been seen on NCAA telecasts demonstrating his strength by crushing apples on live TV, makes appearances at major youth tournaments, and lends his name to the Hodge Trophy, presented each year to the top college wrestler in America. Sixty years ago, Hodge was THE most admired and feared college wrestler in the country largely for his pinning prowess. The Oklahoma Sooner mat champ earned nicknames like "Dangerous Dan" and "Homicide Hodge." Even as a youngster, Hodge could walk across a football field on his hands, and even do a one-hand stand for long periods of time ... demonstrating incredible strength and balance.
University of Oklahoma wrestling accomplishments: Three-time Big Seven champ (1955-57); three-time NCAA champ (same years), all at 177 pounds. Twice named Outstanding Wrestler at the NCAAs (1956, 1957). Undefeated in college, with a 46-0 record, with 36 pins, giving him a 78% pin percentage that still ranks among the highest ever in college wrestling.
Dan HodgeA tough life for a kid: Dan Hodge grew up on a farm outside Perry, Oklahoma in the 1930s and 40s -- tough times, thanks to the tail end of the Dust Bowl drought and the Great Depression. As a farm boy, he picked cotton, dragging 40-50-pound bags of the cotton across the fields. Hodge also helped harvest wheat, and milked cows.
Life beyond the field and barn was rugged for Hodge, too. His father left the family; their farm house burned to the ground, causing serious injuries physically and psychologically to his mother. Hodge was sent to live with his grandfather who beat him regularly. He ran away from the abuse, where he found refuge -- and a home, and some extra income -- living at the Perry fire station, keeping the fire trucks and station clean. He also worked at a local gas station. He also found refuge as a wrestler at the storied Perry High School wrestling program.
Sports Illustrated weighs in: Dan Hodge owns the distinction of being the only amateur wrestler to be featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated magazine as an amateur wrestler in the magazine's more than 60-year history. In their April 1, 1957 cover story, the magazine describes in great detail his Bedlam Series bout with Jimmy Harding of Oklahoma State. Hodge managed to bring the Cowboy to the mat, applying a double grapevine.
"Now Harding was powerless from the waist down and on his back," SI reported. "The double arm bar was easy: both of Harding's arms were up over his head in agonizing parallel, squeezed and held vice-like -- not the 'punishment' hold of pro wrestling but a preliminary in Dan's book for the pin. Then Dan increased the grapevine pressure. The muscles where shoulders make a V at the base of the neck bunched. His legs stiffened and he pushed down, down, down. All his strength was focused on the man beneath him, striving for the moment when a wordless surrender passes from his opponent -- when resistance is gone and muscles relax ... It was all over and Dan Hodge was standing in the middle of the mat, his arm raised in victory. It had taken 50 seconds."
Video: Dan Hodge pins a college opponent in less than a minute
Doug Blubaugh
Douglas Morlan Blubaugh grew up on a farm outside Tonkawa, Oklahoma ... and, even late in life, described himself as a "farm boy." Yet this lifelong farmer achieved greatness as a wrestler in high school, in college and at the Olympics. Like fellow Oklahoma farm boy Dan Hodge, Blubaugh was another mat champ of the past who was recognized and beloved by younger wrestlers because he was still participating in wrestling instructional camps right up until his tragic death when his motorcycle was struck by a pickup truck in his hometown in May 2011.
Oklahoma State wrestling accomplishments: Three-time NCAA All-American (1955-57); 1957 NCAA champ at 157. Overall record of 27-3-1, with 2 pins.
Beyond the Cowboys: Blubaugh earned a place on the freestyle team for the 1960 Olympics in a rugged series of a dozen bouts with fellow Oklahoma State wrestler Phil Kinyon. In Rome, Blubaugh made headlines by pinning defending World champion Emam Ali Habibi of Iran. In addition, Blubaugh was named Outstanding Wrestler of the year for his Olympic achievements.
Doug BlubaughWayne Baughman, a three-time Olympian, NCAA champ for the Oklahoma Sooners, and, for nearly three decades head coach at the U.S. Air Force Academy, said, "The first time I remember seeing Doug was when he came to OU to train for the '60 Olympic team. He looked like he was chiseled from a block of granite. He had muscles everywhere, even on his fingers."
A muscular work ethic from the farm: In a 2010 interview with InterMat for a feature on the 1960 Olympics, Doug Blubaugh said, "Thank God I grew up on a wheat farm in Oklahoma that didn't have electricity or running water 'til during World War II. Doing farm chores built a work ethic. It was hard work. I never lifted weights -- couldn't afford them -- but hefted bales of hay. Strength from working on a farm is different; you get 'endurance strength' from farm work."
Pre-Olympic strength vs. U.S. Olympic Trials rival Phil Kinyon: One prime example of Doug Blubaugh's toughness: his series of freestyle matches with Phil Kinyon, a U.S. Navy veteran who was enrolled at Oklahoma State at the time. (More about Kinyon later.) The two Cowboys of different eras (mid 1950s for Blubaugh; early '60s for Kinyon) were on a collision course to see who would wrestle for the U.S. at the 1960 Olympics.
Russ Camilleri, San Jose State mat alum who earned a place on the 1960 Olympic team, said of the Blubaugh-Kinyon matches: "Both were compact, muscular and strong ... They had wrestled each other so often, they knew each other well. Despite the matches ending in draws without a score, they were NOT boring matches. Plenty of tough action."
In his 2011 tribute to Blubaugh for Amateur Wrestling News, Oklahoma's Baughman shared his memories of the Blubaugh/Kinyon battles: "After having battled to numerous draws in previous matches, a winner/U.S. team member had to be determined. The mat was placed under the biggest shade tree on campus, removed from the entire athletic complex. The battle was waged. It was not pretty, or a disappointment to anyone in attendance, except Kinyon and (Myron) Roderick [Oklahoma State head coach]; and they certainly had nothing to be ashamed of. It was like two raging rams charging directly into each other over and over. At the end of the match, Doug was bleeding profusely from his face and forehead and Kinyon's eye was swollen shut. Doug won but it could have gone either way."
Pre-Olympic strength in workouts: Baughman shared his memories of practice sessions helping Blubaugh prepare for the 1960 Olympics: "I thought I'd been sentenced to death when Port Robertson [Oklahoma wrestling coach] made me Doug's primary workout partner even though I weighed 180 compared to Doug's 160. Doug's style was extremely aggressive. He had the hardest head literally, and somewhat figuratively, of anyone I've ever wrestled; and, because of his poor vision, he kept in right in your face. I walked off the mat after every workout feeling as if I'd been the beat up with a jackhammer. I had continuous scrapes, cuts and bruises. He also had the toughest bottom defense I have ever encountered. He was like trying to turn or move a fireplug."
Olympic strength in "The Epic Struggle": At the 1960 Olympics, Doug Blubaugh faced Iran's Emam Ali Habibi, multi-time World champion and 1956 Olympic gold medalist known as "The Tiger of Mazandaran" (his hometown). Here's Blubaugh's account: "At the start of my match with Habibi, he comes right after me and knocks me on my butt. I get out of it, get up and boom, he does it again. Once more, I get out of it but am now behind by five points. I tell myself he can't do that to me a third time, so when he comes after me again, I flip him onto his back, hold him tightly while he is vainly bridging, and pin him."
Respected wrestling historian Dan Sayenga added a bit more detail to the match captured in posters titled "The Epic Struggle": "(Blubaugh) drew from every reserve of strength, balance, willpower, and technique in his body. Suddenly the audience gasped in amazement. Doug reversed out of the bridge, and the Iranian was on his own back!"
"'I knew the bout wouldn't go 12 minutes,' he said later. "One of us had to get pinned."
"He clamped with all his might against Habibi's high-arch bridge. The fall was signaled in less than three minutes."
Blubaugh called on his "endurance strength" gained from toiling on the farm to pin Habibi at 2:37 of the bout ... then went on to win two more matches that day to earn his gold medal.
Video: Doug Blubaugh pins Habibi at the 1960 Olympics
Les Anderson
Starting in the early 1950s, Leslie A. Anderson established an enduring career in wrestling that spanned decades which included on-the-mat success in high school and at Iowa State, a long-time coaching career at his college alma, and as creator of instructional books and videos, establishing TheWrestlingSite.com ... despite doctors' orders to give up the sport when he was in high school.
Iowa State wrestling accomplishments: Two-time Big Eight champ. Three-time NCAA All-American, winning the 130-pound title at the 1958 NCAAs, and the championship at 137 at the 1960 NCAAs. Overall record of 50-3-1.
Les AndersonA life in coaching: Les Anderson's professional life was centered on wrestling. After graduating from Iowa State in 1960, he launched his coaching career at Blue Earth High School in Minnesota, making it one of the top ten programs in the state. In 1964, Anderson returned to Iowa State to serve as assistant coach to Harold Nichols for a decade before becoming head coach at University of Washington until that program was eliminated. Anderson came back to ISU in 1977, where he continued to assist Nichols until his retirement ... then worked with Jim Gibbons after he was named head coach. During Anderson's time on the coaching staff, the Cyclones were five-time NCAA team titlewinners, placing second six times, and coming in third four times.
A diagnosis that nearly ended a career: At Clarion High School in north-central Iowa, Anderson crafted a near-perfect career for coach Dale Brand. Anderson's only loss in high school was in the 119-pound finals at the 1955 state championships, having won the title at 103 in 1954.
Anderson's mat career nearly ended in high school, having been diagnosed with polio, an acute viral infectious disease spread from person-to-person that causes inflammation of the spinal cord and brain, sometimes causing paralysis in limbs and muscles used in breathing. Anderson spent time in an iron lung as part of his therapy to overcome the potential ravages of polio which hit him between his junior and senior years of high school. In fact, his doctors had urged Anderson to give up wrestling, but he persevered, finding great success at Iowa State.
An Iowa farm boy: Les Anderson grew up on a farm outside Clarion. Included among the photos as part of a 2007 roast to honor the former Iowa State wrestler/coach are images of a young Les out on the farm, driving a tractor, riding his horse Trigger, and wrestling in the front yard with one of his two brothers.
Anderson was a key contributor to keeping the family farm running smoothly ... and, in fact, this became an issue more than once. When Les was first asked to go out for wrestling in high school by coach Brand, the coach came out to the farm for supper to reassure the family that their son would make it home from wrestling practice in time to keep up with his chores. Les Anderson's parents were also concerned about their son leaving the farm to go to Iowa State. In fact, Anderson left college for a year to return home to help out with running the farm.
Phil Kinyon
Phil Kinyon had a long, successful amateur wrestling career that spanned more than a decade, taking him from Stillwater High School in the early 1950s to Oklahoma State in the early 60s ... with stops along the way wrestling freestyle for the U.S. Navy (being featured in a full-page photo in Life magazine tussling with a Russian wrestler in 1958), and even a year on the wrestling team at UCLA before completing his college career back home with the Cowboys.
Phil KinyonIron sharpens iron into gold x 2: We've already read how Phil Kinyon battled Doug Blubaugh in a series of a dozen matches to determine spot on freestyle team for 1960 Olympics. Kinyon, gracious in defeat, turned his attention to help another Oklahoma State mat alum and eventual gold medalist, Shelby Wilson, prepare for the Games. As Wilson said in a 2007 interview with InterMat, "That summer, I linked up with Phil Kinyon. I owe him a lot. We went at each other every day. We worked out, ran, worked his farm, then would wrestle two twelve-minute matches. That's where I perfected my moves."
"Phil was a very important part of my Olympic victory and without him, I'm not sure what would have happened."
With that, Kinyon was instrumental in helping two of the three U.S. gold medalists -- Doug Blubaugh, and Shelby Wilson -- achieve greatness at the Rome Olympics. (The third who earned gold in 1960 was Terry McCann, a Chicago native and University of Iowa mat champ.)
Before college: At Stillwater High School, Phillip Kinyon must have been considered to be a "big man on campus" -- one of those guys who participated in a wide range of activities. As a wrestler, Kinyon earned back-to-back Oklahoma high school state titles in 1953 and '54, played football, was senior class vice-president, sang in Glee Club, and a member of the Future Farmers of America.
"Best Physique" in high school ... and beyond: Phil Kinyon was named "Best Physique" at Stillwater High School at least twice, according to the Pioneer yearbook. Back then, Stillwater wrestlers competed shirtless ... and from the photos, it was easy to see that Kinyon was put together, even as a teenager.
Throughout his wrestling career, Kinyon was compact, muscular, and strong. One of this writer's favorite photos that shows off Kinyon's strength and ripped physique features the Cowboy carrying Oregon State's Fritz Fivian high over his head on the way to the 157-pound title at the 1961 NCAAs in Fivian's home gym.
Phil KinyonA wrestling historian weighs in: The late wrestling historian Jay Hammond told this writer that Kinyon was so feared in college, some would-be opponents would drop down a weight or move up just to avoid him. Hammond also considered Kinyon's loss as defending champ to unseeded, unheralded Jack Flasche of Northern Colorado in the 157 finals at the 1962 NCAAs to be among the three biggest upsets in NCAA finals history, right behind Dan Gable losing to Larry Owings at the 1970 NCAAs, and Darrion Caldwell upsetting defending champ Brent Metcalf at the 2009 NCAA finals.
A second historian weighs in: Wrestling writer and historian Mike Chapman shared memories of the first time he saw two Cowboys described in this article: Joe James (more about him later) and Phil Kinyon. "My first impression of great wresting strength came as a senior in high school in Waterloo, Iowa, way back in 1962. I saw Oklahoma State for the first time, and was awestruck by the presence of two Cowboys in particular. At 157 was Phil Kinyon, a marvelous physical specimen. Phil won the NCAA title at 157 pounds as a sophomore in 1961, and was runner-up the next two years. At 191 that year, was the sensational Joe James, sporting a physique that almost defies description. Both Kinyon and James were lean and rippling with muscle. Like anatomy charts. It wasn't until year later that I learned that both Kinyon and James could do ONE-HAND CHINS. Pure one-hand chins, with one arm firmly behind the back ..."
Joe James
Joe James, the first African-American to step onto the mat for the storied Oklahoma State wrestling program (coming to Stillwater in 1960), was an accomplished mat champ who is better known for his incredible physique and physical strength. Words like "Adonis", "physical specimen" and "carved from granite" were used by sportswriters and fans to describe James.
Joe JamesBefore college: As a student at what was then called Tilden Tech High School in Chicago, James placed third at the 1960 Illinois state championships. Dennis McCabe, 1963 Midlands champ who made it to state as a suburban Chicago high school wrestler at the time, said, "He had the Chicago city heavyweight title, and, even in high school, he was 6' 3" and 220 pounds. As soon as he took off his jacket, the crowd went 'ooh.' They were blown away by his incredible physique. Most had never seen anything like it."
One Cowboy teammate weighs in: Jack Brisco -- a 1965 NCAA champ at 191 who went on to a pro wrestling career -- shared his memories of his Oklahoma State teammate in Mike Chapman's book "Wrestling Tough": "Joe had the widest shoulders and smallest waist of any athlete I have ever seen ... He was about as cut as anyone who ever stepped on to the mat. The most amazing thing about Joe was that he was all-natural; he never lifted a weight in his life, back then."
Another Cowboy teammate weighs in: Bill Harlow -- 1966 NCAA champ at 191, and just inducted into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame as a Distinguished Member of the Class of 2016 -- recalled Joe James in a 2009 WrestlingReport.com interview: "The first day I went into the varsity room I got there about 45 minutes early. The room had a pull-up bar around the corner and someone just kept doing pull ups. Eventually the person stopped and began doing a ridiculous number of pushups. I was just standing there taking in the atmosphere of being in the room when the person said "Hey, are you a wrestler?" I remember thinking he can't be talking to me. He was about 6'3" tall and 220 pounds of 7% body fat ... Joe begins walking towards me and I nod my head indicating that I was a wrestler. I was thinking, "Oh geez, he is going to kill me."
"Joe just wanted someone to drill with," Harlow continued. "He was incredibly patient with me and had a phenomenal grasp of wrestling technique. He was the best teacher I ever had. I was at practice early for the rest of the year. Joe was one of the reasons I progressed so fast."
A TV network weighs in: Joe James won the heavyweight title at the 1964 NCAAs at Cornell University. It was only the second championships to be nationally televised. The story goes that ABC-TV told winning wrestlers to be sure to put on their robes or warm-ups for their post-match interviews ... all except James, who was reportedly told to stay in uniform so viewers could see his musculature.
Curley Culp
Mention the name Curley Culp to most Americans, and they think of a NFL Pro Football Hall of Fame honoree with an enduring career on the gridiron in high school, college and the pros that spanned from the early 1960s into the early 80s. However, Culp was also a major force in amateur wrestling because of his agility -- and muscular strength and physique -- on the mat, too, at Yuma High School where he won back-to-back Arizona state titles at heavyweight in 1963 and 1964, then at Arizona State.
Curley CulpBeyond the mat: Culp played defensive tackle at Arizona State, then in the NFL with a career that spanned 14 seasons and 179 games. Culp played for the Kansas City Chiefs from 1968-74, then for the Houston Oilers from 1974-80, concluding his career with one season for the Detroit Lions (1980-81). Among his NFL career highlights: a six-time Pro Bowl selection, 1975 Defensive Player of the Year honors, and a participant in Super Bowl IV. Culp was welcomed into the NFL Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio in August 2013.
Farm boy strength: Born on a farm outside Yuma, Curley Culp gained his strength doing farm chores which served him well as a defensive lineman for his high school football team ... and as a wrestler, where he won back-to-back state heavyweight titles in 1963 and 1964.
"Many athletes nowadays gain size and strength through weightlifting. Not Curley. He attained physical strength through physical labor -- namely, helping his dad in Yuma, Ariz. with work on the farm," according to an article in a 1967 Arizona State football program. "His father raised pigs and contracted for garbage with many firms in Yuma. Many are the 50-gallon barrels of garbage toted by Curley. He also has pitched watermelons and worked at an ice plant which accounts for his 18" neck and biceps to match."
His high school wrestling coach weighs in: "(Culp) had a body build that was just unbelievable," said Pat Patterson, Culp's mat coach at Yuma High. "He had muscles on top of muscles on top of muscles ..."
His hometown paper weighs in: In an article prior to Curley Culp being welcomed into the Canton Hall of Fame, the Yuma Sun newspaper wrote, "Once Culp, a heavyweight, shed his robe, the opposing crowd would voice a collective gasp that resonated throughout the gymnasium."
"Football coach Al Alvarez confirmed that description, saying, 'When it was his turn to wrestle, he'd take his robe off and everybody stood in awe at his physique and how big he was and how he went about his business.'"
An NCAA opponent weighs in: Frank Paquin, Lehigh heavyweight who battled Curley Culp at the 1967 NCAAs -- and the only one not to be pinned -- described the eventual champ in a 2013 interview with the Canton Repository, saying, "His arms were literally the size of legs, and believe me, they were all muscle ... I have to say that I never experienced human strength to the level of Curley Culp. It wasn't that he was a great technical wrestler. His strategy was just to get his hands on his opponent and destroy him with his strength."
On-the-field show of strength: In both wrestling and football, Culp was well-regarded for his incredible strength ... and physical toughness. The story goes that he was so strong, he broke the helmets of three Sun Devil teammates during football practice.
Strength ... with character: In both high school and college, Curley Culp was a well-rounded, well-liked student-athlete. At Yuma High, Culp was an A student, National Honor Society member, and elected president of his school's Future Farmers of America. In addition, Culp was a Who's Who Among Student Leaders in High Schools of America honoree, American Legion Student of the Year, and a delegate to Arizona Boys' State in 1964.
Little wonder that Culp was highly recruited by a number of colleges. He chose Arizona State because he could play football and wrestle. Judging from the Arizona State yearbooks which featured Culp prominently in photo and text, he truly was a "Big Man on Campus" beyond his 6' 2", 265-pound physique. As a senior, he was voted Homecoming King ... and named "Boy With The Best Smile."
Hope you've enjoyed this look at some of the strong men of college wrestling of the past who got that way without lifting weights or other modern-day developments. If you think we missed anyone, let us know.
Recommended Comments
There are no comments to display.
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now