Editor’s Note: Dan Gable, the legendary wrestler at Iowa State and head coach who won 15 NCAA titles at Iowa between 1978 and 1997, recently offered his opinions to WIN editor, Mike Finn, about national wrestling events that have recently occurred in the sport.

            WIN: The Iowa-Iowa State dual recently set an NCAA record for attendance; making it more of an event and not just a wrestling meet. What did you take out of that night?

            GABLE:  We should look at the positives, but we should also look at the value of the product and rate the product above winning and losing. Both sides have room for improvement. Over the years, I think there was a better product in front of 12,000 fans that was more outstanding than this product. I don’t think either coach is going to let up on his product so it’s a good start. It was a good attendance figure, but there could have been better wrestling.

            WIN: There has been some criticism about the way the Big Ten Network failed to air the event live and did not take the event serious. Was that simply ignorance by the network or disrespect?

            GABLE: Ignorance is disrespect. They are in a position to create interest. Even if they didn’t want to disrespect wrestling because of ignorance, why are these people in this position? These people need some education. Lack of knowledge gets people in trouble.

            WIN: Was the event the “perfect storm” to bring in that many fans? Was it simply because it was No. 1 vs. No. 2?

            GABLE: I think there was more to it. (Such an event) has been away for a while. There are people who have been hungry for this. I just had a fan tell me the other day that he had not been going to Nationals for the past couple years.

            WIN: For what are fans hungry?

            GABLE: They are hungry for a great product between two programs, especially in the state of Iowa. This is where loyalty comes. There are (coaches) Brands and Sanderson, and I mean plural with both names since there are multiple brothers in both camps. There is a lot at stake. When you put families together like what is taking place at both Iowa and Iowa State, the interest gets stronger. You have double the vision.

            WIN: Are fans hungry for drama?

            GABLE: Fans don’t want to miss something that is going to be historic. I don’t think this dual was as historic as the dual two years ago, which was the first dual between Brands and Sanderson and the incident that took place between the coaches on the mat. People are still buying photos of (them in 2006) fighting for their kids (as memorabilia). You can see it on TV, but it’s not like being there.

            WIN: Does that fan hunger live outside the state of Iowa?

            GABLE: The closest one from a college point of view would be Oklahoma, but I don’t remember the last time Oklahoma and/or Oklahoma State were No. 1 and 2. Since it hasn’t happened for a while, it may not be easy to get those numbers. There are people who would flow to it with a similar situation even if they don’t have a similar history. It depends on what state you are from and that state’s tradition, especially at the high school level.

            WIN: With that in mind in a state like Pennsylvania with great high school wrestling, would the same thing happen if Penn State and/or Lehigh are ranked one and two in the country?

            GABLE: If they are ranked No. 1 and 2, they will draw 16,000, but they never ranked that high.

            They might not draw immediately. You can’t just throw them into those positions and expect everyone to show up. The Iowa-Iowa State dual had too good of a background not to take advantage of it.

            WIN: How do programs outside the state of Iowa take this event and duplicate it?

            GABLE: You have to have people like Brands and Sanderson. You have to have good administrators. There aren’t too many places that have people who make it as easy as they do at Iowa. It’s going to take a pretty big effort to get that mentality.

            WIN: Do you think programs outside the state of Iowa care if they draw nearly 16,000 fans?

            GABLE: I think they care, but can’t picture it. You’ve got to create that culture. I think the National Wrestling Coaches Association is doing some good things in coming out with a new coaching manual, which is going to talk about some of this stuff. But there must be leadership in the proper places to get this done. That’s why you have to go back and give a guy like (former Iowa coach) Gary Kurdelmeier credit. They called him the architect. He defined roles and put people in those roles that they were good at. He didn’t care who did it as long as it was getting done.

            There were other good people like J Robinson, who out of chance, just came here. What I lacked, he had. I may have had the big picture, but I may not have understood it. Gary Kurdelmeier understood the big picture.

            WIN: Let’s move to another topic. There are wrestlers like Ohio State’s J Jaggers and Iowa’s Joe Slaton, who ranked among the best wrestlers at their weights last year, but are struggling this year. Why didn’t they use that success to continue this year?

            GABLE: It’s human nature to celebrate too much and hard to keep that edge as a top guy. Most people who are at or near the top figure it will happen again. I don’t know Jaggers situation but I do know Slaton’s. He definitely did not go about it in the best manner to keep that edge.

            WIN: Is it the coach’s job or the wrestler’s job to keep that edge?

            GABLE: It’s both. If it is the coach’s job to make the kid independent, but he knows the kid will not be independent, then it’s the coach’s job to put the kid back on track. Ideally, I liked the wrestlers to take responsibility for what they are doing so that I didn’t have to worry about them.

            WIN: In an individual sport, how do you get wrestlers to follow a master plan?

            GABLE: There is a master plan, but you have to touch all the right buttons. You have all these ingredients. Make sure they are on track.

            WIN: Does the coach have to learn more about the athlete?

            GABLE: The coach already knows, but it’s difficult to control every movement.

            WIN: What are some examples in your past as a coach, where you had to push the right buttons?

            GABLE: Let’s look at the Barry Davis situation. (The current Wisconsin coach wrestled for Gable at Iowa where he earned three NCAA championships and four All-American honors, 1981-85.) Let’s take the time that Barry was going to run off and not make weight before the Big Tens his sophomore year. Because we had a great relationship, all it took was me finding him. He told me, “Don’t look for me because you will never find me.”

            I felt a good system provided me the opportunity to find him. I was organized to a point where I had an idea where he was. I went into (a grocery story) and that’s where he was. The real key thing was that as soon as he saw me and I saw him, it was over. He needed some reinforcement and eye contact with someone he had built a relationship. The first words out of his mouth were, “I haven’t had anything, yet.” We just got in the car and went to the tournament.

            When we went to the Nationals that year in Ames, it was the night before weigh-ins and I went into his room to see where he was. There were two beds in his room and he asked me if I would sleep in the room with him. That’s where I slept that night.

            WIN: Are you saying the coach has to go the extra mile to get the athlete to go the extra mile?

            GABLE: Absolutely. You have to go the extra mile so that he will develop a good relationship with you so that he not only wants to win for himself, but the program.

            WIN: Speaking of overcoming tough times, this country may be going through some tough economic times. As the master motivator, what would you tell people right now as they go through this time?

            GABLE: You have to put priorities down. It’s about what decisions do you make? Do people simply take less money and accept that? That’s the wrong way because they are going to limit themselves. They have more in themselves. They need to set off things that otherwise inhibit them. Everyone has something to give, but they have to have the motivation to even try it.

            I look at my wall in my computer room at home. There is a picture there that my grandkids love. It’s basically a hawk’s head with beady eyes. It’s a pretty fantastic picture and I know about that picture, which is an inspiration to me. One of my grandchildren couldn’t quite comprehend it. I told him the picture was painted by a guy, who painted it by holding the brush in his mouth.

            They asked me why did he do that. I said because he was in a wheelchair without the use of his legs and arms. He was limited, physically, but he didn’t let those limitations stop him from creating a masterpiece.