By Kyle Klingman, W.I.N. Writer

He that wrestles with us strengthens our nerves and sharpens our skill. Our antagonist is our helper.
-Edmund Burke

The roots of the Bedlam series — an intense rivalry between Oklahoma State and Oklahoma — belong to wrestling. When a newspaper writer declared “It’s bedlam in there” after dual meet, the historic series began, and other sports at the universities followed. One could argue that the wrestling dual that traditionally takes place twice a season is not only the greatest rivalry in wrestling, but in sport.
The term bedlam means a scene or state of wild uproar and confusion. Given all the wild and wacky things that have gone on since the first dual meet took place in 1920, bedlam is a perfect definition.
“It was mayhem,” said Dan Hodge, an undefeated three-time NCAA champion for Oklahoma from 1955-‘57. “It was do or die.”
It is fairly easy to understand why the Bedlam Dual is important. Two schools from the same state that have combined for 41 NCAA team titles since 1928 (Oklahoma State, 34, and Oklahoma, 7) is a recipe for a good wrestling meet.
Historically it makes sense that this rivalry developed. Since cars weren’t as readily available in the 1920s and ‘30s, it is easy to understand why fans from either school were willing to attend the meet. This was especially important during the depression when money was tight and excess spending was at a minimum. Having two schools close in proximity was essential to the creation of Bedlam because the fan base from both schools made it to both meets every time.
The first dual meet took place in 1920, with Aggies (they weren’t known as the Cowboys until ?) winning 50-0. Oklahoma State currently holds a commanding 122-24-9 lead in the series. However, it should come as no surprise that Cowboy winning streaks of 84, 76, and 70 were ended by the Sooners.
“When you look at the series standing it looks lopsided but it doesn’t even begin to describe the competitive nature of the vast majority of the duals,” said long-time Oklahoma State radio commentator J Carl Guymon. “Most of them are close. It’s not like OU wasn’t any good at wrestling and OSU was always real good and bombed them all the time. Those numbers don’t in any way give a hint of how great the series has been.”
Ultimately, the significance of the Bedlam lies with the wrestlers and coaches involved. When Paul Keen took over for Leigh Wallace in 1928, Oklahoma had not come close to defeating legendary head coach E.C. Gallagher and his mighty Oklahoma A&M wrestling team.
Both Gallagher and Keen attended Oklahoma A&M and ran track, but neither wrestled competitively. Keen learned wrestling while working out with Gallagher’s teams in the 20s. That a former Aggie became head wrestling coach at Oklahoma was an important element to the rivalry during the primitive years.

On February 27, 1932, Oklahoma emerged victorious over Oklahoma A&M for the first time after 15 consecutive losses. Ties in 1933 and 1937 were as close as the Sooners would get to a win until the 1950s rolled around. Oklahoma posted 9-7-3 record during the decade which helped generate more interest in the meet. As the two teams became more competitive, interest grew.
Overflow crowds started forming during this era. Lines to get into the meet often wrapped around the building and at one point in the 60s the fire marshal had to cap attendance at 8,000 because of the crowds got too big.
“You couldn’t get in,” said Hodge. “There was no standing room.”
Diversity in coaching philosophies between Oklahoma State’s Art Griffith and Oklahoma’s Port Robertson added to the rivalry during the 50s as well. Each coach brought a unique approach to the sport that created distaste for the other team’s style.
“The styles were diametrically opposed,” said Wayne Baughman, an NCAA champion for Oklahoma in 1962. “First of all, the rivalry started very early and because a lot of the personalities were all involved or associated with one of the two schools. Port Robertson was the one that got it going with Griffith because he didn’t agree with Griffith of take ‘em down let ‘em up of wrestling.
“Oklahoma was kind of an aggressive, pinning style while Oklahoma State had more of a takedown, edge-of-the-mat philosophy. I think all those things attributed to each fan base aligning with their school and the rivalry kind of grew from there.
“Griffith was really the one that started the style and Roderick really kind of inherited it from Griffith. He then improved on it and perfected it to a greater extent. Griffith still had some kids that could wrestle on the mat and Roderick didn’t. When Roderick took over, if one of his guys was trying to ride you, he didn’t want his kids just cutting you; he wanted them to push you away.”
Current Minnesota head coach and former Oklahoma State wrestler J Robinson agreed with Baughman’s assessment of “Cowboy-style” wrestling under Roderick.
“Roderick didn’t teach a whole lot of different kinds of technique,” said Robinson. “The deal was if you could take a guy down and get away from him you could beat anyone in the country. You didn’t need to ride him or pin him. I don’t think we ever spent any time on pinning ever.”
After Tommy Chesbro took over for Roderick in 1970 and Stan Abel took over for Tommy Evans in 1973, the rivalry became its most eventful. Like the coaches that preceded them, Chesbro and Abel had personalities that helped elevate the series to new heights.
“Tommy Chesbro was so cool, calm, and collected,” said Kenny Monday, an NCAA champion for Oklahoma State in 1984. “But before every Bedlam dual we would be down in the locker room warming up and all of a sudden you’d here someone puking and here comes Chesbro coming out of the bathroom.
“I remember my freshman year I was trying to stay calm against the number one guy in the country (Andre Metzger). Here I was a true freshman wrestling in the Bedlam and didn’t quite know the impact of the meet but when my coach was in there throwing up I knew it was going to be a wild night. He’d come out, wipe his mouth and he’d be ready to go.”
On the opposite end of the spectrum was Stan Abel, an extremely vocal coach and the man Cowboy fans loved to hate. Known for getting out of his chair and arguing with referees, Abel was often greeted in Stillwater with a huge sign down the entire side of Gallagher-Iba arena that read “Sit Down Stan.”
“It’s the biggest dual for either school in the state,” said Abel. “It was such a heated rivalry between me and Chesbro.
“The results were watched by everyone in the United States. To my amazement, I’ve had people come up to me and say they were at a particular Bedlam Dual. People would fly in from New York, Iowa, or Pennsylvania just to see this dual match between the two. It was so heralded at one time because the matches would come down to heavyweight. It was not only for state pride but a lot of time national pride.”
During the Chesbro/Abel era strange happenings were the norm rather than the exception. In 1974, heavyweights Jimmy Jackson (Oklahoma State) and Bill Kalkbrenner (Oklahoma) got in a fight that nearly turned into a riot. To this day, it remains one of the most talked-about events of Bedlam.
“The match was unbelievable,” said Guymon. “The skirmish that broke out during their bout came close to being a full-fledged crowd fight. I can’t remember what started it but Kalkbrenner’s brother flew out of the stands, jumping on the press table and vaulting out onto the mat. I thought mama Kalkbrenner was going to get into it too. Then several fans followed and a there was a big crowd on the mat before they settled down.”
There was also the time when Oklahoma State’s Mike Sheets and Oklahoma’s Melvin Douglas were wrestling and the lights went out in Gallagher-Iba Arena, not once, but twice. Douglas, who never defeated Sheets in college, got a sizable lead off a big move early in the match and hoped to use the extra rest to his advantage. Abel tried to buy some time of his own by arguing with the referee. The plan didn’t quite come together and Sheets came back and won the match.
“It didn’t matter how much rest I got,” said Douglas. “Sheets was going to beat me.”
The greatest villain that Bedlam produced was Oklahoma heavyweight Steve Williams, a former four-time All-American wrestler who also played football for the Sooners. Appropriately, his nickname was Dr. Death. Williams later became a top pro wrestler in what was then known as the WWF.
It was fitting that a wrestler with a nickname like Dr. Death was involved in two of the most shocking dual meets ever.
On Feb. 9, 1980, in Stillwater, Williams entered his match against David Hille as a huge favorite. Hille joined the team midway through the season after senior Lee Roy Smith spotted him at an intramural meet. The Cowboys were in desperate need of a heavyweight at the time so Hille walked on to the team.
Entering the final match, Oklahoma State led Oklahoma 16-13 and a Sooner victory was inevitable. Everyone in the arena knew that Williams would dominate Hille.
The story of what happened varies depending on who you ask, but basically, Hille bit Williams after applying a cross face and Williams took exception. Both wrestlers were disqualified and Oklahoma State was victorious, 16-13.
Then, on Feb. 19, 1982, Oklahoma held a 17-14 lead when Williams faced off against 400-pound Mitch Shelton. Once again, Williams was favored in the match but was eventually pinned by the massive Shelton. Hundreds of Cowboy fans mobbed the mat in celebration.
“It was a pro wrestling match,” said Williams. “That’s exactly what Bedlam was. It’s like going and being in a pro wrestling match. The people hated me every time I stepped out on the mat at Oklahoma State.
“I enjoyed it because it was a big rivalry to wrestle Oklahoma State. After that match against Dave Hille the fans sent a bag of dog poop to Stan Abel and told him to feed it to his heavyweight. It was fantastic, man.
“After they disqualified me, the whole place rushed the mat like it was going to be a gang fight. The cops surrounded me and pushed me right out into the locker room. It was amazing. That was the only way Oklahoma State could win the match was to disqualify me. I went into the locker room and tore their locker room to shreds. I tore the lockers down and ripped the chalkboard into pieces. I was mad man. It was great though.”
“When I got pinned by Mitch Shelton, I was riding him and I just slid out to the front and he just rolled over me like a bulldozer. All you could see was one foot and one hand.”
Interest in the Bedlam Dual has waned in recent years. Crowds are smaller and the fans have toned down a bit. But things can still get heated. Oklahoma State head coach John Smith and Oklahoma head coach Jack Spates will often meet at center mat for a verbal sparring session or to “discuss” a call with the referee. However, voices from the past still emerge.
“Still to this day when I get up from the bench, which I’m prone to do, I’ll hear someone from the crowd yell, ‘Sit down Stan,’ ” said Spates. “I don’t think there are too many more heated rivalries or historic rivalries than Bedlam.”