Tramel's ScissorTales: Ed Gallagher the greatest coach in Oklahoma State athletics history

For 48 years, the name stood alone on the grand old coliseum. Gallagher Hall.

In 1987, a renovation and much history prompted a renaming. So OSU’s home for basketball and wrestling became Gallagher-Iba Arena. 

Over the years, as the place became more known for rocking in basketball as in the old wrestling days, some wondered why the Gallagher name persisted.

Wasn’t Henry Iba the patriarch of OSU sports? Wasn’t Henry Iba the most impactful person in Cowboy history?

Yes and yes.

But there’s a reason why the Gallagher name was originally up, and why the Gallagher name was retained 35 years ago, and why the Gallagher name still packs a punch today.

Edward Clark Gallagher, born Sept, 5, 1887, in Perth, Kansas, is the greatest coach in OSU history.

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Gallagher won 11 of the first 13 NCAA wrestling championships staged. His innovative techniques jettisoned the sport into much of what we see today. Gallagher’s wrestling success – and leadership as athletic director – was the impetus for the 1938 building of Gallagher Hall, which originally was named the 4-H Clubs and Student Activities Building but was called the Madison Square Garden of the Prairie.

It’s a difficult decision, picking OSU’s greatest coach ever. A few weeks ago, I did a similar project on OU. Current softball coach Patty Gasso was an easy choice. Much more difficult in Stillwater.

Iba remains an epic figure in Cowboy lore. Coach of two NCAA basketball champions. A hardwood technician who inspired generations of coaches. An athletic director himself who doggedly pursued OSU’s efforts to join the Big Seven Conference, which finally came to fruition in 1960.

Mike Holder is a strong candidate. He coached OSU golf for 32 years, won eight NCAA championships, persisted in his dream of a glorious golf club that resulted in Karsten Creek and then spent 16 years as athletic director, during which his fundraising transformed the athletic facilities. Any prioritizing towards more administration, and Holder might top the greatest-coaches list.

Many of the Sons of Gallagher – OSU's vaunted wrestling tradition – merit mention. Art Griffith followed Gallagher and won eight NCAA titles in 13 years. Myron Roderick followed Griffith and won seven in 13 years. John Smith, probably OSU’s most accomplished athlete ever, has coached the Cowboys to five wrestling titles in 31 years.

Modern coaches Eddie Sutton and Mike Gundy have performed virtual miracles. Sutton made basketball relevant again, rescued the athletic department financially and renewed pride in all things Cowboys. Gundy has turned Cowboy football into a national brand; plain and simple, OSU is a football school. Imagine that.

Gary Ward’s baseball run was remarkable and, more than a quarter century after his departure, still pays dividends. Sandy Fischer laid the groundwork for women’s sports success with repeated trips to the Women’s College World Series. Dave Smith has coached OSU men’s cross-country to three NCAA titles.

But the real debate comes down to Holder and the two guys whose names are on the building.

And I went with Gallagher.

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He came to Oklahoma A&M (OSU’s previous name) and was a standout athlete. Gallagher won the Southwest Conference 100-yard dash with a time of 9.8 seconds and scored a touchdown on a 99-yard run against Kansas State in 1908.

Gallagher received an electrical engineering degree, then became OSU’s track coach. He left Stillwater for Baker University in Kansas, where he coached all sports, including football.

Gallagher’s alma mater brought him back to Stillwater in 1915, as athletic director. It was the best hire in OSU athletics history.

Gallagher soon enough named himself wrestling coach. Some great hires occurred with Gallager in charge – notably Pappy Waldorf as football coach in 1929. But Gallagher’s best hire was himself.

Gallagher’s National Wrestling Hall of Fame biography says he “introduced scientific wrestling to gym glasses and put his first varsity team on the mat that year. He applied his engineering knowledge of leverage and stress to the development of more than 400 wrestling holds. He was the first to organize systematic practice situations, and he devoted close attention to diet and training methods.”

Gallagher’s teams became the gold standard in the sport. He coached 23 seasons; 19 of his teams went undefeated. His dual-meet record was 138-5-4. In 1928, the first year the NCAA staged a wrestling championship, Gallagher’s Cowboys won four of the seven individual weight classes. In 13 NCAA meets under Gallagher, OSU won 11 team titles and 37 individual titles. Gallagher’s Cowboys also combined for 32 national Amateur Athletic Union championships and three Olympic gold medals.

“He was a pioneer, not only of wrestling techniques but also of wrestling tradition,” the Wrestling Hall of Fame touts. “From Oklahoma State University, where his coaching achievements were unparalleled, Ed Gallagher's influence spread across the nation. Long after his death in 1940, the torch was carried onward by Gallagher's pupils, who became great coaches in their own right.”

That’s why I have Gallagher No. 1.

The rest of my top 10? I’d go Iba No. 2, Holder No. 3, Gundy No. 4, Sutton No. 5, Roderick No. 6, Ward No. 7, Griffith No. 8, John Smith No. 9 and Dave Smith No. 10.

John Smith, for one, hasn’t forgotten what Ed Gallagher means to the sport and to the university.

The Oklahoma Hall of Fame – not the sports hall of fame – recently announced its inductees, and Smith, a member of the Oklahoma Hall of Fame, came through Gallagher-Iba Arena, asking what OSU needed to do to get Gallagher inducted.

I don’t know. That’s out of my league. But OSU history is not, and I say Ed Gallagher is the greatest coach in Cowboy history.

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Give the Warriors their due

It’s time to credit the Golden State Warriors, which is not the favorite vocation of Oklahomans.

The Warriors were rather likeable back in 2015, when they burst into elite status. Steph Curry was an admirable superstar, Klay Thompson was his appealing sidekick and Draymond Green seemed kooky but harmless enough.

Nothing like a playoff series to end such charades, of course, and by the end of the 2016 Western Conference Finals, Curry seemed cocky, Draymond was public enemy No. 1 and arrogance emitted from everyone west of Reno.

Then Kevin Durant became Darth Vader, and the Warriors had all the charm of the Romulans.

We’re still waiting for time to wound all heels, but the passing years have lessened the venom towards Golden State. Oklahomans still wouldn’t invite the Warriors in from a thunder storm, but life is short. Venom isn’t good for the soul.

So while few Oklahomans were hoping Golden State prevailed in the NBA Finals, we have to acknowledge greatness, and the Warriors are great. Historically great.

They beat the Celtics 103-90 Thursday night to win the Finals in six games, Golden State’s fourth title in the last eight seasons.

Golden State has a bunch of fresh faces and young talent, but at the core remains the trio that splashed its way to the championship seven years ago. Curry was his usual sensational self, with 34 points on 12-of-21 shooting. Draymond played a wonderful Game 6, doing all the little things he’s done for a decade that help teams win basketball games. And Thompson, while not the sharpshooter or player he was in his prime, remains a steadying force.

The Warriors’ four-in-eight title run has officially entered them into the dynasty club. Which frankly is what the NBA is all about.

The championships of Toronto in 2019 and Milwaukee in 2021 gave us hope that egalitarianism was about to break out in the NBA, but no. Dynasties remain the NBA’s calling card.

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Golden State four titles in eight seasons, 2015-22.

The Lakers five in 11 (2000-10), the Kobe Bryant era.

The Spurs five in 16 (1999-2014) or, if that’s too long a stretch for your tastebuds, four in nine (1999-07). Tim Duncan was part of them all.

The Bulls six in eight (1992-99), Michael Jordan.

The Lakers five in nine (1980-88), Magic Johnson.

The Celtics 11 in 13 (1957-69), Bill Russell.

The Lakers five in six (1949-54), George Mikan, the most underrated NBA player of them all.

Using the Spurs’ shorter version, that’s 40 NBA titles concentrated into a 56-year period. The NBA has only 20 other seasons.

The dynastic tenor of the NBA is easily explained. Five men on the court. Fifteen players on a roster. Elite talent stands out. In football and baseball, sometimes overmatched teams can make it up in volume. Not so much in basketball. The best players tend to keep winning.

This is Europe of centuries ago. An enterprise dominated by dynasties. Good work if you can get it.

And that’s why you credit the Warriors. They sealed their dynasty by getting Durant in summer 2016, ending all drama and competitive balance. Only the plagues of Egypt in 2019 kept Golden State from winning three straight with Durant.

But winning without Durant in 2022 reminds us of how great Golden State was before KD. Injuries have compounded and sent the Warriors to derelict seasons in 2020 and 2021, but that was a solid tradeoff for the 2022 renaissance.

How long can Golden State keep it up? You wouldn’t think long.

Curry is 34. Draymond and Thompson are 32. Curry’s skills don’t wither, so he’s going to keep breaking hearts for a long while, though his constant running around the court eventually will slow.

Draymond and Thompson aren’t likely to be so fortunate. Their games have fallen. Draymond woke up the echoes with a fabulous Game 6, and Thompson had a couple of excellent Finals games. But going forward, this will be the Curry Show.

Maybe Golden State retains Andrew Wiggins, a wonderful player who has been cursed by being the overall No. 1 pick.

Golden State has had three lottery picks the last two years. None played much at all in the playoffs. Can James Wiseman, Jonathan Kuminga or Moses Moody turn into valuable hands? Who knows? It’s a first-world problem.

Jordan Poole was an excellent scorer off the bench who remains under contract.

Golden State’s free agents were valuable role players but not irreplaceable. Kevon Looney, Gary Payton II and Otto Porter Jr.

The Warriors, a year older, will run it back in 2022-23 and attempt to make it five titles in nine years, in a league in which dynasties thrive.

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Why LIV golf can hurt the game

The battle between Greg Norman’s Saudi-backed LIV golf and the PGA Tour has trended onto political and personal ground. Which is fine.

But regardless of who is backing LIV golf and who might have ended up on either side, a competing tour is not good for the game.

Which seems counter-intuitive, right? The more golf, the better, for golf fans. The more competition, the better.

Except in professional sports, warring factions have not been healthy:

► Look to auto racing. In 1996, Tony George, whose family owned the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, broke away from CART (Championship Auto Racing Teams) and formed the Indy Racing League.

For 12 years, Indy-car racing was split into two factions. Most of the traditionally-strong teams stayed with CART, but the Indy Racing League had the Indianapolis 500, and eventually the big names moved over to the IRL. By 2008, IRL was solo at the top of open-wheel racing.

But at quite the cost. Indy-car racing once was bigger than NASCAR. But stock-car racing was rising in the 1990s, and it boomed after the Indy-car split.

Indy-car racing has declined in most every metric. The Indy 500 itself has fallen in status. The golden goose had been killed.

► Tennis operated separately for decades, with the traditional major tournaments claiming to be amateur events, though the top names were receiving exorbitant appearance fees. A professional circuit operated – Pancho Gonzales was its greatest star, but the likes of Rod Laver and Ken Rosewall also dipped into the pro game – until 1968, when tennis dropped the façade, and professed professionals were allowed in the U.S. Open, Wimbledon, French Open and Australian Open.

That’s when tennis took off. Its most popular decades were the 1970s and 1980s.

► We look back romantically at the American Football League of the 1960s. The AFL was a success story by any measure, getting a network television contract and producing stars like Joe Namath, Lance Alworth and Willie Brown.

The AFL even got its desired goal – all 10 of its franchises were merged into the National Football League. But only after the merger did the NFL take off as America’s pastime. When the leagues were feuding, baseball still reigned.

As far as the PGA Tour/LIV conflict, sure, it’s about politics and taking Saudi blood money. And it’s about greed – older stars cashing in big while their names still pack a punch and younger players getting a chance at big money against much-smaller fields.

But at the core, the PGA Tour/LIV battle is about the viability of the established tour. They both might survive for decades. One might struggle financially, and I don’t know which – the PGA Tour has solid contracts and tradition and the backing of most golf people, but LIV has Saudi billions.

I have no idea who will win or if there will be a winner.

But I suspect the big loser will be golf. Competing tours will not enhance the sport. Each will be watered down.

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The List: Big 12/SEC Challenge

The Big 12 announced the pairings for the Big 12/SEC Challenge, which will be staged January 28, 2023. The 10-year basketball series matches teams from the Big 12 and SEC, which take a break from conference play.

The 2023 version of the challenge offers some quite intriguing matchups. Here’s how the 10 games rank:

1. Arkansas at Baylor: Both figure to be preseason top-10 teams next season. It wasn’t like that when Eddie Sutton and Nolan Richardson brought high-riding Razorback teams to Heart O’ Texas Coliseum in the old Southwest Conference days.

2. Kansas at Kentucky: The great staple of the Big 12/SEC Challenge.

3. Texas at Tennessee: The Rick Barnes connection never gets old. Doing for the Volunteers what he did as the Longhorns’ coach.

4. Auburn at West Virginia: The Tigers figure to be top-20 caliber; a game in Morgantown should be fun.

5. Texas Tech at Louisiana State: The Tigers figure to be down, but you never know. The Red Raiders could find trouble in Baton Rouge.

6. Alabama at Oklahoma: This has become a decent rivalry. Trae Young vs. Collin Sexton a few years ago. That OU upset of Bama when Austin Reaves was sidelined with COIVD two years ago.

7. Iowa State at Missouri: Only interesting thing is the Big Eight rivalry ties.

8. Ole Miss at Oklahoma State: Nothing about the Rebels gets me excited.

9. Texas Christian at Mississippi State: Most pundits are high on the Horned Frogs.

10. Florida at Kansas State: Looks like a long year in Manhattan.

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Mailbag: Big 12 success

The Big 12 has had quite the successful run of championships this academic calendar, and people have noticed.

Steve: “Just was looking at some of the results on the field by the Big 12 this year. In what was by some standards the most tumultuous in Big 12 history (thanks to OU/Texas), you can't deny the results on the field. While I haven't done the research to prove this, I think it would be hard pressed for any conference to have put up as impressive of a year as did the Big 12 in the 2021-2022 season.

“Football: New Year’s 6 wins by No. 9 Oklahoma State over No. 5 Notre Dame and by No. 6 Baylor over No. 8 Ole Miss.

“Men’s basketball: Kansas national champion; back-to-back Big 12 national champion (Baylor prior year). Six teams in NCAA Tournament.

“Women’s basketball: Six teams in NCAA Tournament.

“Baseball: (in progress), two teams (OU, Texas) in the College World Series.

“Softball: OU national champion; OU, OSU, Texas make up three of the final four teams in the WCWS.

“Men’s golf: Texas national champion; four teams in the final eight.

“Women's tennis: “Texas national champion.

“Women’s rowing: “Texas national champion.

“Women’s gymnastics: OU national champion.

“Equestrian: OSU national champion.”

Tramel: Great year for the Big 12. But let’s not get too provincial. The Pac-12 racks up NCAA titles in bunches every year. The Pac-12 has won seven national championships already this year, with the potential for more. The Pac-12 has won women’s golf (Stanford), beach volleyball (Southern Cal), women’s water polo (Stanford), men’s gymnastics (Stanford), men’s swimming (California), skiing (Utah) and men’s water polo (Cal).

The Pac-12 didn’t fare too well in the marquee sports of football and basketball.

But the Pac-12 won 11 national titles in 2020-21. It won 13 in 2018-19. Twelve the year before that. Thirteen the year before that.

And if you go back far enough to when the Pac was winning big in football and basketball, the Pac still was producing championships in all those other sports, too.

Berry Tramel: Berry can be reached at 405-760-8080 or at btramel@oklahoman.com. He can be heard Monday through Friday from 4:40-5:20 p.m. on The Sports Animal radio network, including FM-98.1. Support his work and that of other Oklahoman journalists by purchasing a digital subscription today. 

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Ed Gallagher greatest coach in Oklahoma State Cowboys history