Nov. 18, 2010
- Iowa Football Game Day Central
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IOWA CITY, Iowa – Former University of Iowa Wrestling Coach Dan Gable has been named honorary captain for Saturday’s game against Ohio State. The Hawkeyes face the Buckeyes in a nationally televised game on ABC with kickoff set for 2:33 p.m., in Kinnick Stadium. The game is sold out, which means Iowa has sold out 49 of its last 51 home games.
Gable is the University of Iowa’s all-time winningest wrestling coach, having served as head coach from 1977 to 1997. He compiled a career record of 355-21-5. He coached 152 all-Americans, 45 national champions, 106 Big Ten Champions and 10 Olympians, including four gold, one silver and three bronze medalists.
The Hawkeyes won 25 consecutive Big Ten championships, 21 under Gable as head coach and four while he was an assistant coach and administrator. He had a winning percentage of .932 and captured nine consecutive (1978-86) NCAA Championships. On only five occasions did a Gable-coached team lose more than one dual meet in a season. During his tenure, the Hawkeyes averaged over 17 wins and just one loss per season and posted an amazing 95-1 record in Carver-Hawkeye Arena.
In 1972, he won a gold medal at the Summer Olympics without surrendering a point to any of his opponents. Gable was named to the USA Wrestling Hall of Fame in 1980, the U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame in 1985, and the University of Iowa Varsity Club Athletics Hall of Fame as a coach in 2003.
Since his retirement from coaching, Gable has served as a special assistant to Iowa Athletics Director Gary Barta. He will officially be retired from the University of Iowa at the end of this calendar year. But, total retirement from his involvement with University of Iowa and USA wrestling is something that will probably never happen.
Gable will accompany the Iowa captains to the center of the field for the pre-game coin flip. He will also be with the Hawkeyes in the locker room before and after the game and on the sidelines during the contest.