Rick SandersSanders earned NCAA University (larger-school), NCAA College (smaller-school) and NAIA (National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics) titles as a wrestler at Portland State in the 1960s ... along with two Olympic bronze medals in 1968 and 1972. Weeks after winning his second Olympic medal at the '72 Munich Games, Sanders was killed in a car accident in Yugoslavia.
Reed is considered by many wrestling historians to be the best U.S. wrestler of the early 20th century. He wrestled at Oregon State, then later coached there. Reed also claimed gold at the 1924 Olympics, pinning his way through the competition. Reed died in 1978 at age 78.
Reed and Sanders are the last two wrestlers still in contention of the five mat stars who were originally featured in the Round of 64 bracket. Brock Gutches, who won his fourth NAIA title for Southern Oregon University in March, lost his first-round matchup … while his uncle Les Gutches, two-time NCAA champ for Oregon State in the 1990s, fell in the Round of 32, as did Jess Lewis, twice an NCAA heavyweight titlist and 1968 Olympian for the Oregon State Beavers.
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