International Wrestling Institute and Museum

Glen Brand
Iowa Hall of Fame
Inductees
Class of 2002
Class of 2003
Class of 2004
Class of 2005
Class of 2006
Class of 2007
Class of 2008

Glen Brand Iowa Hall of Fame
Class of 2003
Twenty-one of the greatest wrestlers and coaches in college history were inducted into the Glen Brand Wrestling Hall of Fame of Iowa, Class of 2003. The inductions were held Saturday, April 12, 2004, at the International Wrestling Institute and Museum.

"I felt a little humbled being in that room with all those people," said Jim Steiert. "It was a very special day."

"It was absolutely a 'must' event for wrestling, in this time of wrestling's life," said Dan Gable. "We've had a lot of great people in our sport who deserve so much credit for what they do, and some of them have been a little bit forgotten. This was a coalition - the best coalition of wrestling I've ever seen in one room."

The Class of 2003 included all 13 wrestlers who have won three NCAA Division I titles for an Iowa college, and every Iowa coach who has led a team to an NCAA Division 1 team title. The two men inducted into the Special Contribution division were legendary high school coach Bob Siddens and United States Congressman Jim Leach.

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Special Contributor, Bob Siddens.
"It was a wonderful event, one of the finest I've ever attended," said Siddens. "I will be thinking about this day for years to come."

Congressman Leach, who won the Iowa state high school championship at 138 pounds for Davenport High in 1960, echoed those sentiments. He is in his 14th term in Congress and drew a standing ovation when introduced.

"It was an astounding group of individuals who were assembled there," said the Congressman afterwards. "They are the essence of what sports is all about. Everybody shared the fact that wrestling played a significant role in the way they approached their lives. I was honored and proud to be a part of it all."

Legendary Cornell Coach, Paul Scott.
Paul Scott, who led Cornell College to the NCAA team title in 1947, was on hand, as was Cornell's greatest star, three-time NCAA champion Lowell Lange, who came from Atlanta, Ga. for the festivities. Lange won the NCAA title as a pure freshman in 1947, and again in 1949 and 1950. A car accident caused him to miss the entire 1948 season, or he most likely would have become the sport's first four-time NCAA champ.

"This is a very special day," said Lange, who was a two-time state champion for West Waterloo High. "What a great gathering."

The legendary Bill Koll came from Pennsylvania and was accompanied by his son, Rob, the head coach at Cornell University, which finished tenth in this year's NCAA meet.

Teammates at Iowa State Teachers College (now UNI), Bill Koll (left) and Bill Nelson (right) were inducted.
A native of Fort Dodge, Bill Koll won three NCAA titles for Iowa State Teachers college in the late 1940s, after returning from World War II. He was not only the state's first three-time NCAA champion, but he was the first wrestler to win the Outstanding Wrestler award twice at the tournament.

Other 3-TIME champions on hand were Bill Nelson and Keith Young (ISTC), Larry Hayes (Iowa State), and Ed Banach, Jim Zalesky, Tom Brands and Joe Williams (all of Iowa).

"It was great and I had a marvelous time," said Hayes, a native of Des Moines. "It was wonderful to see all of those guys again, all in one place. And the museum is fabulous. My wife and I were really impressed with all that we saw."Williams, a four-time state champion from Illinois, said he was proud to be inducted as a three-time NCAA champion, but turned and looked at the list of Olympic and World champions. "I don't really feel like I belong here until I can get on that wall, too," he said.

Coaches who attended in addition to Paul Scott were Dan Gable, Jim Gibbons, Bobby Douglas and Jim Zalesky. Ruth Nichols, the widow of Dr. Harold Nichols, was also in attendance. Gable accepted Gary Kurdelmeier's coaching award, Bill Nelson accepted Dave McCuskey's and Robin Nichols accepted on behalf of the Nichols family.

Willie Gadson, former ISU All-American and coach, accepted Nate Carr's award, while Randy Lewis (class of 2002) accepted Barry Davis's award.

"Our first two classes were so large because we wanted to get the hall of fame off to a strong start, and make sure we covered four categories," said Mike Chapman, executive director.

"We wanted all Iowans who have won an Olympic gold medal and all four-time state champions in the class of 2002. In the Class of 2003 are all three-time NCAA Division 1 champions and all Division 1 coaches who have won NCAA titles.

"Now, the classes will be much smaller, probably no more than six each year."

At the conclusion of the day, Chapman was presented an award by Tom Brands and Kyle Klingman, associate museum director, for his vision in promoting and marketing the sport of wrestling for nearly 30 years. He has written nine books and over 700 stories and columns about the sport, and given hundreds of speeches around the nation. He is the founder of WIN magazine and the museum. Klingman said the award will be presented annually in Chapman's name to a person who has promoted the sport.

"I was truly surprised and had no idea it was coming," said Chapman, who credited his wife, Bev, with providing the support to do all he has done in wrestling. She is the office manager for the museum.

:: The Inductees ::

Class of 2003 Coaches

Paul Scott (Cornell)
Dave McCuskey (Iowa State Teachers College)
Dr. Harold Nichols (Iowa State University)
Gary Kurdelmeier (University of Iowa)
Dan Gable (University of Iowa)
Jim Gibbons (Iowa State University)
Bobby Douglas (Iowa State University and Arizona State)

Jim Zalesky (University of Iowa).
James Leach, United States Congressman
Bob Siddens, winner of 11 state team titles as a coach and long-time NCAA official and clinician.

Class of 2003 Wrestlers

Bill Koll, Bill Nelson and Keith Young (Iowa State Teachers College)
Lowell Lange (Cornell College)
Larry Hayes, Nate Carr and Cael Sanderson (Iowa State University)
Ed Banach, Jim Zalesky, Barry Davis, Tom Brands, Lincoln McIlravy, Joe Williams (University of Iowa)
Class of 2003 Special Contributors

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