Todd Steidley pins his opponent in the 1987 national championship bout to help Central win its fourth consecutive team national championship. [UCO Photo Services]

Wrestling 10/2/2020 9:00:00 AM Mike Kirk

Friday Feature: Four In A Row

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EDMOND – Only one All-American was back from Central Oklahoma's national championship wrestling team of the season before and he was lost to a knee injury in February. The 34-man roster was dominated by 16 freshmen, with at least four expected to start during the 1986-87 campaign.

And still the Bronchos did what was quickly becoming commonplace – capture the NAIA national championship. It was UCO's fourth straight title and the seventh in nine years.

This championship was probably more surprising than the first six, given the many unfamiliar and unproven individuals fifth-year head coach David James had in the practice room when the season started.

"This squad realizes that we are a new team with new faces," James told the Vista in its season preview. "When you have a young group like we do, the guys seem to work harder, they're more hungry. We know we can't live in the past."

The Bronchos were looking for a trio of key transfers – senior Darren Peaster and juniors Jerry Goss and Todd Steidley – along with talented youngsters Brett Beams, Shawn Fleming and Johnny Nimmo to lead a championship charge. And that's exactly what happened.

A rugged dual schedule led to a 2-5 start, though those losses were close setbacks to ranked Division I teams Oklahoma State (26-18), Oklahoma (20-11) and Weber State (23-19) and Division II powers Nebraska-Omaha (20-17) and Southern Illinois-Edwardsville (21-17).

Central finished with a flourish, rolling off 10 straight wins in overwhelming fashion. The Bronchos outscored those 10 opponents a combined 385-87, including shutouts of 49-0 and 50-0.

Six tournaments were also sprinkled in the schedule with five open meets and the Southwest Missouri Invitational, where UCO was runner-up as Nimmo and Steidley claimed titles.

All that tough competition prepared the Bronchos for the NAIA National Championships on March 5-7 in Wheeling, W. Va., where the Bronchos won their initial national crown in 1979. It was also expected to be the final NAIA appearance for Central, which was set to transition to NCAA Division II in 1987-88 before that was eventually pushed back two more years.

"I have to give these guys credit," James told the Vista in its tournament preview. "They have adapted and jelled by working hard. In a sport like wrestling that is so physically and mentally demanding, change happens. They deserve credit.

"The key is the first and second rounds. Those matches get out the jitters and start to give you some momentum."

UCO was ranked No. 1 entering the tournament after starting the season No. 4 and seven of its nine qualifiers got past those crucial first two rounds in quickly putting the Bronchos in control.

All seven of those who made the quarterfinals ended up as All-Americans, led by Steidley's championship effort at 142 pounds and Nimmo's title run at 150. Beams (167) was runner-up, Goss (134) and Peaster (158) finished fifth, Bill Ogilvie (190) sixth and Fleming (118) seventh.

Central ended up with 92.5 points, a comfortable 21 ahead of second-place Alaska Pacific.

"I'm proud of the nine guys who went to nationals and the rest of the team members too," James said in the Vista's tournament wrap-up. "We lost some All-Americans from last year, had some true freshmen in our lineup, and molded into a great team. We are leaving the NAIA in style and on top."

Steidley, a junior who came to UCO after stints at Utah State and Rogers State Junior College, went 5-0 after entering as the No. 2 seed. The current Broncho head coach wasn't tested in making the finals and then pinned Minnesota-Duluth's Jeff Davis late in the first period to take the gold medal, capping a sensational 43-6-1 season that ended with a 30-match winning streak.

Nimmo wrestled most of the season at 158 before moving down to 150 in mid-February after returning All-American Stoney Wright was lost to injury. The second-seeded rookie had two falls and two decisions in making the finals, then upended top seed and defending champion Ed Sernoski of Simon Fraser 6-4 for the title.

Nimmo, who won his last 20 matches to end the season 38-9 with 14 falls, was named the tournament's Outstanding Wrestler. Twice a runner-up but never a state champion in high school, it was the first of four national titles for the future UCO and NAIA Hall of Famer.

Beams, also seeded second, had wild wins of 13-8, 12-10, 14-9 and 10-6 in moving into the title bout. He dropped a heartbreaker there, falling to No. 1 seed Chuck Pipher of Colorado State-Pueblo 7-6 on a last-second takedown to end a 26-7 freshman season.

Goss entered as the 10^th seed and had two easy wins in making the quarterfinals before losing. He won his first two consolation matches, lost again and then clinched the team title with a 6-2 triumph over the No. 3 seed in the fifth-place match.

Peaster, in his only season with the Bronchos, was the No. 1 seed and opened with two major decisions before being upset. He came back with two easy consolation wins, lost again and then earned a default to take fifth.

Ogilvie, a qualifier on the 1986 championship team, was seeded sixth and ended up there after going 3-3 in the tournament.

Fleming was UCO's third freshman placer, finishing as he was seeded in seventh. He went 4-2 with three bonus wins, including an 18-5 rout in his seventh-place match.

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