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10 AM
Wrestling
vs Tiger Style Invite
University of Oklahoma Athletics
school-bio_jack_spates
May 20, 2013 | Wrestling
Jack Spates enters his 18th season as the leader of one of the elite wrestling powerhouses in the nation. His success has not gone unnoticed as Spates has been recognized with numerous coaching honors including three Big 12 Coach of the Year awards and the 2006 National Coach of the Year. Spates has coached two Big 12 conference team titles, 53 All-Americans and six national champions at OU. He has also led 30 Oklahoma wrestlers to individual Big 12 titles. Most impressively, Spates and the Sooners have accepted six team trophies at the NCAA Tournament in the past nine seasons. He is also third among active head coaches for most All-Americans produced during his tenure (53). Last season, Spates helped lead four Sooners to All-America honors. Senior Eric Lapotsky and Tyler Caldwell placed fifth, Zack Bailey placed fourth and Kyle Terry earned third overall. Under the direction of Spates during the 2007-08 season, five Sooners advanced to the NCAA Championships. When Spates became the University of Oklahoma's 12th head wrestling coach in 1993, he inherited a proud, but struggling program. OU's average finish at the NCAA Championships was 23rd in the three years prior to Spates' arrival. Recently, his Sooner teams have placed in the nation's top four in six of the past nine seasons, including third-place finishes in 2002, 2003, 2005 and 2006. The 2004 season was especially impressive as the Sooners lost eight starters and wrestled six freshmen, yet still finished ninth at the NCAA Championships. During the 2004-05 season, the Sooners named four All-Americans and crowned 141-pound national champion Teyon Ware while finishing third as a team at the NCAA Championships. Spates' teams have also won the Big 12 Championship twice during his tenure. The 1999 title was the Sooners' first in more than a decade (1985) and they also were crowned champions in 2002. Both times, Spates was honored as Big 12 Coach of the Year. Spates has continued to bring the nation's top talent to Oklahoma. The Sooners' recruiting classes perennially rank in the top 10 nationally. During his tenure as Sooner head coach, Spates has developed 22 All-America wrestlers who have earned the prestigious honor a total of 49 times. Spates coached two national champions in 2003, freshman Teyon Ware and senior Robbie Waller, an assistant coach now on staff at OU. Also included on the list are four-time All-Americans and national champions John Kading and Michael Lightner, who now serves as the program's volunteer assistant coach. Spates has also coached undefeated national champions in Lightner and Byron Tucker. Former OU assistant coach Rodney Jones and Shane Valdez were three-time All-Americans under Spates, as was four-time All-American Sam Hazewinkel. In 2005-06, he led the Sooners to a third place finish at the NCAA Championships, their sixth top-four finish in seven years. The Sooners also had five wrestlers earn All-America honors (Sam Hazewinkel, Teyon Ware, Matt Storniolo, Joel Flaggert, and Jake Hager). Spates was honored as the 2006 NWCA Coach of the Year and was also the 2006 Co-Big 12 Coach of the year. Perhaps Spates' greatest challenge in developing young talent came during the 2000-01 campaign. Oklahoma lost six starters from the previous year and several key wrestlers to injury during the season. After losing starter Bo Maynes at 125 pounds, Spates inserted Matt Ridings into the lineup. Ridings won 17 consecutive matches and earned a fourth seed at the national championships despite having only five dual starts entering the season. Sophomores Witt Durden and Josh Lambrecht both struggled with confidence and injuries during 2001 but rallied to earn All-America honors. Redshirt freshman heavyweight Leonce Crump failed to win a state title as a high school senior and was pinned twice at high school nationals. Under Spates' guidance, Crump claimed three Big 12 titles and placed third in 2004 and fourth in 2002 at the NCAA Championships. Not only has Spates built programs into regional and national powers, he has also served as a mentor to several Division I head coaches. Rob Koll, head coach at Cornell, served as an assistant to Spates for the Big Red as did Missouri head coach Brian Smith. Koll led Cornell to an ninth place finish at the NCAA Championships while Smith and the Tiger program finished 11th at the national tournament. Clarion University coach Teague Moore coached with Spates, as did Nebraska coach Mark Manning. Also, Chuck Barbee will be entering his seventh season as the head coach at Army and Derek DelPorto is in his third year as the Eastern Michigan head mentor. As a wrestler in his youth, Spates won the New York State Championship and placed third in the nation, becoming a high school All-American after beginning to wrestle in the 10th grade. High school success led Spates to an opportunity to wrestle at Slippery Rock. In 1974 he was NCAA runner-up at 118 pounds. |
Spates compiled a 118-8 career record at Slippery Rock, the second best win total in school history. For his achievements on the mat, Spates has been inducted into the Slippery Rock Athletic Hall of Fame. At the conclusion of his wrestling career, Spates began coaching as the head assistant at Baptist Bible College in 1975. He quickly earned a reputation as a builder of programs when he helped lead the small private school to six conference championships. During Spates' tenure, Baptist Bible College won more than 70 percent of its matches, despite competing predominantly against larger colleges and universities. Spates developed more than 20 wrestlers who earned All-America status during his tenure. After leaving Baptist Bible College in 1981, Spates entered the business world before returning for one year as an assistant coach at the University of Pittsburgh where he helped direct the Panthers to their first winning season in five years. After leaving Pittsburgh, Spates served as head assistant coach at the U.S. Military Academy. While Spates was at Army, the Black Knights attained their highest ever NCAA finish (13th) and was ranked as high as 11th during the 1987 season. While at West Point, Spates recruited Army's highest rated class, which was judged as seventh-best in the nation. He was also named runner-up for national assistant-coach-of-the-year honors at the school. His success at West Point led to a head coaching position at Cornell in Westchester, N.Y. During his five years with the Big Red, he became Cornell's all-time winningest coach by percentage. Spates compiled a 74-14-1 record during his tenure and developed a program that offered no scholarships into an Eastern and national power. His last two Cornell teams dominated the Eastern Championships, crowning nine individual champions. Cornell also steadily improved at the NCAA Championships, rising from no national placing to finishes of 20th, 15th and 10th place. Spates' commitment to the development of the athlete off of the mat was also evident when his Cornell teams earned the highest grade point average of any athletic teams on campus. For his accomplishments, Spates was named New York Collegiate Coach of the Year, Eastern Coach of the Year and New York State Wrestling Man of the Year. Spates also wears many hats outside the world of wrestling. He graduated magna cum laude from graduate school and was awarded the Greek Award for Proficiency in the Koine Greek Language as well as the Literacy Award for Dissertation of Publishable Quality. Spates' dedication to education is still evident today as his program regularly produces Academic All-Big 12 and Academic All-America selections. Author of the highly-acclaimed wrestling book Mat Snacks: Wrestling Stories to Feed the Spirit and Tickle the Funny Bone, Spates has developed a reputation as a motivational speaker for businesses, schools and civic clubs. Spates is also a songwriter who has written ballads for all six of his national champions.The most important role of Spates' life is that of father. He is the proud father of four children: Jessica, Jeremy, Justin and Jenilyn. Jessica currently is a teacher specializing in Spanish. Jeremy, a former Oklahoma high school state champion and All-American at the University of Missouri, has returned to Norman as an assistant coach for the Sooners. At MU, he was a three-time national qualifier and finished fifth at the 2004 NCAA Championships. Justin, a two-time high school state champion and the nation's No. 1 rated 119-pounder as a senior, has hung up his wrestling shoes and spends his time as a home-builder in Long Island, N.Y., after starring in the award winning film Reversal. Jenilyn lives in Norman and works as a massage therapist. Spates and his wife, Barby, are proud to call Norman their home. |
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WR Highlights: Big 12 Championships (Day Two)
Sunday, March 09
WR Highlights: Big 12 Championships (Day One)
Saturday, March 08
WR Highlights: OU 32, Arizona State 6
Sunday, February 16
WR Highlights: OU 23, Missouri 13
Saturday, February 01
