His teams suffered only two defeats in his last six years and his last two squads were named unofficial national champions by Amateur Wrestling News.

Hugo Otopalik took over head coaching duties after serving as an assistant on Charles Mayser's staff for four years.

In 1932, Otopalik served as head coach of the U.S. Olympic squad, which captured the team title at the Los Angeles Games.

Nichols was named the successor to Hugo Otopalik in 1954 after serving as head coach at Arkansas State for five years.

Gibbons wrestled at ISU for Dr. Harold Nichols and earned All-America status three times, including the 1981 NCAA individual title at 134 pounds.

During his seven years as the Cyclone skipper, Gibbons’ squads claimed one Big Eight crown and captured the NCAA title in 1987.

A wrestling legend in his own right, Bobby Douglas was an NCAA runner-up at Oklahoma State and part of two Olympic teams as a competitor, finishing fourth at featherweight in the 1964 Tokyo Games.

Cael Sanderson, arguably the greatest collegiate wrestler of all time, took the reins of the Iowa State wrestling team at the start of the 2006–07 season.

After posting an undefeated record of 159–0 as a collegiate wrestler for ISU, Sanderson won an Olympic gold medal at the 2004 Summer Games in Athens, Greece.

The former four-time NCAA champion brought aboard the top recruiting class in 2005, ranked by both Intermat and Amateur Wrestling News.

Sanderson led the Cyclone grapplers to an NCAA runner-up finish in his first year at the helm and guided the Iowa State squad to three consecutive Big 12 Conference championships.

As a college wrestler, he attended LSU and earned All-America honors three times before the school dropped the sport.

[3] Jackson's last season for the Cyclones was a struggle, with a 1-12 dual meet record and scoring only one team point in the NCAA tournament.