Gable Steveson has tackled college wrestling, the Olympics, World Wrestling Entertainment and the NFL. Sometimes even heavyweights get sacked.
Steveson, an amateur wrestling behemoth who returned to the sport after trying to catch on with the Buffalo Bills in training camp, suffered a stunning loss in the 285-pound final of the NCAA wrestling championships on Saturday.
The two-time Division I champion at the University of Minnesota took a 73-match winning streak into the championship. Steveson led Oklahoma State’s Wyatt Hendrickson with 20 seconds remaining. Hendrickson scored a shocking takedown, the only takedown Steveson allowed all season, to defeat Steveson 5-4 for the title.
“The biggest upset in the history of the NCAA!” yelled ESPN analyst Daniel Cormier on the broadcast.
Steveson hadn’t lost a college match in six years.
Need a break? Play the USA TODAY Daily Crossword Puzzle.
The Olympic gold medalist signed a rookie contract with Buffalo in May 2024 to pursue football as a defensive tackle. He was an underdog to make the Bills. Steveson, 24, had never played football or put on a pair of cleats in his life before his Buffalo tryout.
Bills coach Sean McDermott was a two-time National Prep School Champion in high school and has credited the sport with shaping his life.
Steveson’s first game at any level was in the preseason opener and he recorded a tackle and a quarterback pressure in 14 snaps. Steveson finished the preseason with three tackles. He was released during final roster cuts.
“Von Miller had to help me put on my pads and strap them because I had no clue how to put them on my first day of camp,” Steveson said on The Pat McAfee Show on Monday.
Steveson told McAfee he’s received a few calls from NFL teams since his championship loss. He left the door open to return to football.
“It’s a one-on-one battle with the guy across from you. Just growing up wrestling, you look at a guy across from you, it’s just like you go out there and you want to kill,” he said. “It’s going to be hard. it’s going to be desperation to get to the quarterback. Or it’s to be desperation to not let the D-line get to the quarterback. Whatever position I can get in at, I’ll be grateful. I’ll be thankful.”
The 6-foot-1, 265-pounder put his NFL dreams on hold and went back to school, taking advantage of an extra year of eligibility due to the COVID-19 pandemic, to seek a third NCAA national championship. He became the first four-time Big Ten heavyweight champion and a five-time All-American. Steveson was the No. 1 seed and favorite heading in the NCAA championships.
Hendrickson, who is a second lieutenant in the United States Air Force, raised his arms in celebration, fell to his back and was mauled by his coaches. Hendrickson saluted President Donald Trump, who was in attendance at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, and shook the president’s hand.
Steveson won NCAA titles in the heavyweight division in 2021 and 2022. He retired after his second straight national championship, leaving his shoes in the center of the mat to signal the end of his amateur wrestling career.
Steveson, who hits a signature backflip after big victories, is a two-time recipient of the Dan Hodge Trophy, given to the country’s best college wrestler. Hilton graduate Yianni Diakomihalis, a four-time national champion at Cornell University, finished second to Steveson for the award in 2022.
Steveson won gold for the United States in freestyle wrestling at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021. He was losing 8-5 three-time reigning world champion Geno Petriashvili of Georgia in the championship. Steveson registered two takedowns in the final 10 seconds to win 10-8 and capture the gold medal.
He signed with the Bills after a stint with WWE.
Steveson said he’s been boxing and taking jiu-jitsu classes to prepare for a mixed martial arts career. He has been working out with UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones.
