Since May, wrestling fans have been on their toes to watch some action, and their wishes have been listened to as the NCAA season has kicked off with a bang. Out of many teams, Oklahoma has started its wrestling campaign strong, spearheaded by their new head coach, David Taylor. The Olympic champion had a ton of expectations from fans, and his wrestlers didn’t disappoint with their dominance.

While it was a great way to start things for the 2024-25 season, many came to watch the domination of Oklahoma, and it included people who Taylor had known since his early days of wrestling. This made the head coach sentimental, getting filled up with many emotions after being reunited with people who shaped his career.

An emotional David Taylor during the season opener

Plenty of eyes were locked on the performance of Oklahoma, as they featured not only top-tier junior athletes but also experienced coaching staff, who were led by David Taylor. The Olympic champion had a ton of expectations on his shoulders, and the training he gave to his wrestlers paid off with the way they performed. However, for Taylor, this is the first time he has taken such a big responsibility, and being able to live up to the hype that too at a place where he has seen himself develop into the person he is, which left him quite emotional.

After the events, the head coach of Oklahoma sat down with FloWrestling for an interview, where he opened up, stating, “Yeah, I think so, I mean, I didn’t get a chance to see everybody, um, but, I got a chance to see a lot of people. You know, my very first club was you know the Red Devils that’s where I first started wrestling I was five.” As Oklahoma’s season opener was at Utah Valley, it gave Taylor a chance to recall his past. When he was a kid, he kicked off his wrestling career in the state’s club, which is something he is still grateful for.

“So just, um, it was somewhat sentimental, obviously like it being our first match and you know being in a place where I spent a lot of time,” said Oklahoma’s head coach. For Taylor, the place was special as it made him recall his coach, who supported his career during its early stages. Furthermore, due to being present in Utah, he got an opportunity to meet his coach and the Evanson Elite Little Kids Club.

All of these people are like family to the wrestler, as they helped him to become the person he is currently. Overall, it was a great day for Taylor, and to add a cherry on top to these overflowing emotions, his wrestlers obliterated the opponents, establishing early dominance. 

Oklahoma dominating from the get-go

David Taylor played for Penn State during his NCAA days, and his move to Oklahoma surprised everyone. While he did make this huge move, with him he brought Jimmy Kennedy and Thomas Gilman to his coaching roster. Furthermore, Oklahoma’s line-up looked way dominant prior to the official season, and they did stick to the statistics that predicted an early domination for the squad.

The No. 3 Cowboys secured a commanding 38-6 victory against the Utah Valley at the opponent’s home ground. Out of the ten bouts, Oklahoma was able to win eight of them, and their new head coach Taylor couldn’t be more proud of his wrestlers, stating, “Utah Valley provided a really good wrestling environment, and our guys got challenged in some unique ways. It’s good to get challenged early so we can figure out how to make some adjustments. I was really happy with the way the guys wrestled.”

There’s a long NCAA season that awaits Taylor and his squad of dominant wrestlers, and with a great season opener, they would want to continue the campaign at the same pace.