Gallagher, Edward C.
Wrestling
b. 1887, Perth, KS
d. Aug. 8, 1940
When Oklahoma A & M (now Oklahoma State) University became the major power in intercollegiate wrestling during the 1920s and 1930s, it was because of Gallagher, who had never wrestled.
Gallagher played football and participated in track as a student at the school. In 1916, he was hired to coach wrestling. Despite his lack of practical experience in the sport, Gallagher used his engineering background to teach athletes how to use leverage to their advantage.
The NCAA established wrestling as a championship sport in 1928 and Oklahoma State won titles from 1928 through 1931, in 1934 and 1935, and from 1937 through 1940. The school tied with Iowa State for the 1933 championship.
Gallagher died of pneumonia in 1940, but his legacy was such that Oklahoma State won five NCAA team championships in the seven years after his death. In his twenty-five years of coaching, he produced three Olympic gold medal winners as well as the winners of 32 AAU national championships and 37 NCAA individual titles.