With all of the recent media coverage of Caitlin Clark in Women's Basketball and what she's done during her tenure at Iowa despite never winning an NCAA Championship, I am curious if the same kind of conversations can be held in wrestling even if they rarely are. As a Hawkeye, Caitlin Clark has been a three-time NCAA season scoring leader, named player of the year twice by three different publications, a Sullivan Award winner, Big Ten player of the year three times, first-team All-Big Ten four times, a three-time unanimous first-team All-American, and the NCAA Division I all-time leading scorer among other accolades. Despite her elite résumé, she is a two-time national runner-up. Now, I understand basketball is a team sport, but take a career like Daton Fix's into consideration; he is a five-time Big 12 champion, a four-time NCAA runner-up, a U.S. Open champion, Pan Am and Pan Am Games champion, and UWW world silver medalist while part of the Cowboys. Is he considered to be in GOAT/All-Time Great talks the same way athletes from other sports are, or is it negated due to his lack of NCAA championships? For a hypothetical, let's say a wrestler in the Big Ten won everything imaginable minus the Hodge and NCAA title (ex.: Fix), could he still be in contention with a résumé like this?
Fictional Career (For Post)
131-4 career record
Four-time NCAA Finalist
Four-time Big Ten Champion
Three-time Most Dominant Wrestler
Three-time Gorriaran Award
NCAA season takedowns leader
NCAA season escapes leader
NCAA Division I all-time takedowns leader
Three-time Big Ten Wrestler of the Year
Big Ten Freshman of the Year
NWCA All-Rookie Team