David Taylor Did Something Critically Important, He Kissed the Ring, Embraced Tradition

STILLWATER – The question kind of fell flat, but it did get an affirmative. Earlier this week after the news kind of snuck out to the sports world on Monday night, a night with storms rolling across the state eliminating all 10 p.m. sportscasts on local television affiliates, a wrestling website (MatScouts) put this old photo out on Twitter/X. It shows a young David Taylor posed on the Oklahoma State wrestling mats while rolled up. Taylor smiling next to “wrestling Pete”.

So, did Taylor remember taking the picture?

“Probably, yeah,” Taylor confirmed.

It’s what he said about that trip and then about the man he is taking over for in Oklahoma State wrestling legend, two-time Olympic Gold Medal winner and six-time World Champion, as well as coach of five NCAA team champions, John Smith.

“You know Coach Smith, a complete legend,” Taylor started. “I can’t even call him John Smith. He’s coach and even though he never coached me before that is the kind of aura that he has. To be conisdered, it is an honor to be considered in this situation to follow somebody like John Smith and what he has accomplished in 33 years. He is the great American wrestler we have ever seen.”

Then Taylor directed his next message to Smith, sitting on the right-hand side of the team room on the aisle about six rows up.

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Taylor did the “must do” he kissed the ring and spoke directly to John Smith.

“Coach, thank you for everything that you’ve done for the wrestling community. Thank you for the impact that you had on me on my life through wrestling, coaching, and I’m very excited about this opportunity. I just want to say thank you.”

He then paused long enough to give the crowd the idea he wanted them to have of giving John Smith another salute with a standing ovation.

In that little soliloquy, Taylor did so much to calm the attitudes that have built since the decision to go outside the Oklahoma State family to find the next leader of Cowboy wrestling. 

Taylor spoke of his childhood as his mom and dad drove him around the country to youth wrestling tournaments. Taylor talked of how he was looking for the best competition and that meant as an eight-year-old he needed to come to Oklahoma. While in Tulsa, his family made the side trip to Stillwater. He got to see the wrestling room on one trip. He even met with Daniel Cormier and Chris Pendleton.

“Pendleton took the time to show me a move and explain it,” Taylor said adding he didn’t have to do that. “I used the move to pin my way through the tournament.”

There was very little talk of Penn State. The school that currently rules college wrestling with a massive margin of 100 points in Kansas City in March at the NCAA Wrestling Championships. That record margin was the distance between the Nittany Lions and second place Cornell. Oklahoma State was further back in tenth, 116.5 points behind Penn State.

Taylor was very smart to honor the past because he is about to change the future and it will be the Penn State game plan, approach, and attitude that he will use to do it. 

The next really smart thing I heard from Taylor was this simple phrase and question. It is something we all should ask ourselves on occasion.

“What are you still chasing?”

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Taylor and Weiberg at the news conference.

Taylor has his answer and Oklahoma State helped him with it.

His freestyle and international wrestling career is over. He said he has accomplished everything he wanted to an more. He knew that after this Olympic season he would retire from that arena. Aaron Brooks ended it for him earlier than he wanted it to end. 

He was at a crossroads and needed tofind out what he was still chasing. Oklahoma State athletic director Chad Weiberg called and like he told the audience there to welcome him to OSU on Friday. Taylor knew it was a call he had to take.