A Look Back at ODU Wrestling's All-Americans

The Old Dominion wrestling program has had 23 different wrestlers earn the honor of being named an All-American, from Carl Ragland back in 1966 to Larry Early, who received the status just last year. Of those 23 wrestlers, six have stepped onto the NCAA Championship podium twice and one earned the honor three times. 
 
Below, you can find a description of each season where a Monarch stamped their name in history as an All-American. 
 
2019: Larry Early places eighth at 157 pounds, becoming the 23rd and latest Monarch wrestler to be named an All-American. 
 
2017: Kevin Beazley ends his tenure at ODU in style, earning two wins by fall and capturing eighth place at 197 pounds for his All-American honor.
 
2016: Chris Mecate places fifth at 141 pounds, taking home his second-consecutive All-American award, the first Monarch to earn the honor in back-to-back seasons in 40 years.
 
2015: Chris Mecate finishes in sixth at 141 pounds and Alexander "Lenny" Richardson places seventh at 149 pounds to become the first pair of Monarchs to earn All-American status in the same season in 24 years.
 
2014: Jack Dechow earns a spot on the podium, placing fourth at 184 pounds. Dechow also was the first Monarch to earn a Mid-American Conference (MAC) Championship in ODU's first season in the conference.
 
2011: James Nicholson finishes his ODU Hall of Fame career earning his 138th win at the 2011 NCAA Championships, tied for the most wins in program history, and a spot on the podium, placing eighth at 125 pounds to cap off his second All-American season.
 
2010: Chris Brown, who reached 138 wins the season before Nicholson to sit atop the ODU career wins list, did so at the NCAA Championships on his way to an eighth-place finish at 165 pounds and an All-American award.
 
2009: Ryan Williams becomes the first Monarch to reach the National Championship Final since 1994, finishing in second place at 141 pounds to earn All-American Status and finishing his career with a then-record 137 wins as a Monarch.
 
2008: James Nicholson breaks ODU's 13-year All-American drought and earns his first of two All-American honors, placing eighth at 125 pounds. Nicholson was the first All-American wrestler under head coach Steve Martin, who has coached eight All-American wrestlers in his time at Old Dominion. 
 
1995: Nick Hall becomes ODU's heaviest All-American, placing fifth in the heavyweight division after a season that saw him earn a Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) Championship.
 
1994: 126-pounder Jody Staylor becomes the first Monarch wrestler in program history to reach the Division I NCAA Championship Final, finishing in second in the nation.
 
1991: Peter Horst and Nick Garone each placed sixth in their weight classes, 134 pounds and 150 pounds, respectively, to be the first set of Monarch teammates in 17 seasons to earn All-American honors in the same year.
 
1984: Ben Ward places seventh in the 150-pound weight class, going 3-2 at the NCAA Championships.
 
1982: 134-pounder Buddy Lee wraps up his second All-American run with a seventh-place finish, capping off his Monarch career with a then-record 122 wins.
 
1981: Roger Randall becomes the 10th All-American in ODU wrestling history, placing seventh at 150 pounds.
 
1980: Buddy Lee ends the 1980 season on the podium for his first of two All-American finishes, placing fourth at 134 pounds.
 
1976: Mike McCarthy becomes the last Monarch to earn All-American status in Division II, earning his second All-American honor in as many years, placing fourth at 126 pounds.
 
1975: Mike McCarthy finishes in fifth place at 126 pounds to earn his first All-American honor. 
 
1974: Terry Perdew is crowned NCAA Division II Champion at 118 pounds, while Ray Pond finishes in third place at 142 pounds. It is the only time in ODU wrestling history that two Monarchs finish in the top-three in their weight class at the NCAA Wrestling Championships.
 
1970: Wayne Bright becomes the second Monarch to become an NCAA College Division Champion at 142 pounds, while Lou Curra finishes in fourth place at 115 pounds, earning his third-straight All-American season, the only wrestler in ODU history to wrestle his way to the podium three different times.
 
1969:Three Monarchs earn All-American status, the most in ODU wrestling history in one season, highlighted by Carl Ragland who becomes the first National Champion in program history, coming out on top in the 152-pound bracket. Wayne Bright and Lou Curra, wrestling at 137 and 115 pounds, respectively, each finished in fifth place to earn a spot on the podium.
 
1968: Lou Curra starts his run of three-straight All-Americans with a fourth-place finish at 115 pounds, while David Todd places sixth, marking the first year the Monarchs finish the season with multiple All-American wrestlers.
 
1967: David Lindjhem's fourth-place finish in the 145-pound weight class earns him a spot on the podium.
 
1966: Carl Ragland etches his name in ODU lore as the first Monarch wrestler to be named an All-American with a runner-up finish at 130 pounds at the 1966 NCAA College Division Wrestling Championships.