Keller twins doubled Oklahoma State's pleasures in '60s
One of the highest honors a wrestler can receive is recognition as the best in a highly-regarded category. Perhaps Wade Schalles was the greatest pinner to grace a college wrestling mat. Maybe it was one of those Dan guys, Gable or Hodge. Gene Mills has to be somewhere at the top and Ed Banach’s pinning record certainly stands alongside the best.
Based on the criteria, any these wrestlers could be considered the best pinner in college history.
When it comes to ranking the greatest twin brother combinations, it can get a tad messy. Now you have two people — who often times look exactly alike — to factor into the equation. Scherr, Steiner, Banach and Brands are a few of the last names that get mentioned as great twin brother acts.
However, it might be an unlikely brother combination that hailed from the state of Washington that trumps them all. The Kel
ler twins — Dwayne and Darrell — finished with college wrestling careers that are amongst the finest. A combined record of 92-4, four NCAA titles, five appearances in the finals, and two outstanding wrestler trophies place this set of identical twins near the top of the list.What makes the Keller story different from most is that the two brothers didn’t start out wrestling together in college. Dwayne was first noticed by Oklahoma State head coach Myron Roderick at the 1965 AAU nationals when he took second at the 114.5-pound weight class as a junior in high school. As a senior, Dwayne took second again at the same tournament and Roderick offered him a scholarship for the following year.
Missing from both AAU tournaments was Darrell, who chose not to compete because the incomparable Rick Sanders, who had beaten him twice before, was in his weight class. Due to lack of exposure Darrell attended junior college at Columbia Basin instead. As a freshman, he went undefeated at 123 pounds, winning a JUCO national title with a 22-0 victory in the finals. Now every team in the country wanted him.
Unaware that the two were twins, Roderick came back from the junior college national tournament impressed with Darrell’s performance. When Roderick told Dwayne about another Keller from Washington he found out for the first time they were twin brothers. The former Oklahoma State coach wanted them both to be Cowboys.
Freshmen were ineligible to compete in 1967 so Dwayne’s first year as a varsity wrestler was in 1968 as a sophomore. Since Darrell transferred from junior college he had to sit the entire season before he could wrestle.
The sophomore year Dwayne compiled was staggering. His season consisted of a Big Eight title, an NCAA title and a perfect 23-0 record. He was also named the outstanding wrestler at the NCAA tournament and was named sophomore of the year, outdistancing Dan Gable for the honor. Yet, it was his upset over Rick Sanders that sent shock waves through the wrestling world.
When Sanders met Keller in finals of the NCAA tournament at 123 pounds he was one of the best wrestlers in the nation and the world. The Portland State senior owned a near-perfect 103-1 college record and was a two-time NCAA champion at the Division I and II level. He had also placed third and second in the previous two World Championships.
In the match, Sanders took an early 2-0 lead on a takedown with five seconds remaining in the first period. In the second period, Keller took the top position and scored a two-point nearfall to tie the score, 2-2.
“The match fell just right so I got on top in the second period so I could ride him,” said Dwayne. “Once I got on top nobody got away. I just wore him out that second period. He would try to get away and I kept leaching on to him and sucking him back down. In the third period he was on top and he rode my riding time off but with 45 seconds left I reversed him and I won it 4-2.”
The following season an off-campus incident almost cost the Kellers their wrestling careers. The twins broke into a clothing store in Norman. When the police arrived on the scene Dwayne was shot in the ankle after they fled.
“We were in a place that we weren’t supposed to be and it was one of those things where college students get mixed up and go in the wrong direction,” said Darrell. “It could have been the best thing that ever happened to me because it woke me up. Myron Roderick stood right behind us. They weren’t going to let us back into school but he fought for us.”
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