John Smith Pulls Big-Time Switch Moving Fix Up to 141, Pokes Beat Mizzou

No. 3-ranked Oklahoma State went to Columbia, Mo. with an unbeaten 11-0 record and with the Michigan upset over No. 2-Iowa 24-11 on Friday night a chance to move into second in the polls behind top-ranked Penn State. You can book it as the Cowboys toppled No. 5 Missouri on their mat 24-10.

Oklahoma State Athletics

Sam Smith accepts the forfeit.

There were plenty of highlights, but the best move of the afternoon may have been the coaching move by Oklahoma State’s all-time winningest in John Smith. Missouri did not weigh in a 133-pounder so they would forfeit that weight. Smith sent out his son Sam Smith as a freshman to accept the forfeit and run his career to 1-0 in dual matches. Smith then bumped up No. 3 at 133-pounds and three-time NCAA runner-up Daton Fix to 141 pounds where he went against Missouri’s No. 26-ranked Josh Edmond. 

Fix wrestles even lighter in his free style competition, so this was a chance for Smith to prove he could beat a bigger wrestler.

Fix came put against Missouri’s No. 26-ranked Josh Edmond and used an escape and then was awarded a stalling point as Edmond did his best to stay away from Fix’s ultra quick moves and Oklahoma got a 2-1 decision at 141. 

At 125-pounds Troy Spratley ran his record to 17-4 with a 4-1 win in sudden victory over No. 7 Noah Surtin. That win evens their record against each other at 1-1. Spratley had to get the escape in the third period to even the match and the take down in sudden victory got him the decision.

After the first three weights Oklahoma State led 12-0. Spratley’s win in overtime wasn’t the only one as at 174 pounds in what may have been the upset of the day Oklahoma State freshman Brayden Thompson was awesome. 

This time it was the Tigers wrestler in No. 5-ranked Peyton Mocco that needed the third period escape to get the match to sudden victory. That is where No. 25 Thompson got the upper position and in a scramble executed a seven-point move with freeing his leg to get the escape and put Mocco on his shoulders to the mat for a four-point near fall to go with it. A spectacular ending to the the 174-pound match. 

With Jordan Williams earning a decision at 149-pounds over Missouri’s Joel Mylin and the Pokes Teague Travis getting an upset at 157-pounds over Missouri’s No. 10-ranked Brock Mauller 4-2 the Cowboys led 18-0 at the break. Travis got the thrill of going back to Columbia where he grew up and where his father wrestled. Travis moved to Stillwater in high school, but winning in Columbia was a thrill for him.  

Missouri’s top-ranked Keegan O’Toole scoring a 5-1 decision over No. 3 Izzak Olejnik of the Cowboys, so then after the 174-pound match it was 21-3 in favor of the Cowboys and the dual nearly clinched.

Oklahoma State Athletics

Plott with another win. 

That would happen at 184 pounds as No. 2 Dustin Plott of the Pokes ran his record this season to 21-2 with an 8-2 decision over No. 14 Ckayton Whiting of Missouri. Plott started the match off right with an early takedown to lead 3-0 on the way to the win. The decision pushed the team score to a clinch with OSU leading 24-3.

At 197-pounds Luke Surber wasn’t ready to go after coming back and getting a win Friday night over Jacob Meissner of Arizona State. Smith sent out Kyle Haas and Missouri’s No. 8-ranked Rocky Elam won a 8-0 major decision to make the score 24-7 Oklahoma State.

At heavyweight, Missouri’s No. 5 Zach Elam stayed unbeaten at 18-0 as he rode out the second period on the Cowboys No. 9 Konner Doucet and used that for a 1-0 decision to get the dual to the 24-10 final score. 

Oklahoma State is 12-0 and 6-0 in the Big 12. The Cowboys now prepare for a home dual with Big 12 foe South Dakota State next Saturday at 6 p.m.

No. 3 Oklahoma State 24, No. 5 Missouri 10 

Feb. 4, 2024 | Hearnes Center | Columbia, Mo.                                                                      Attendance: 6,207