USA WRESTLI N G SUCCESS ST ORI E S


great coach. There’s a lot of things you grow up with and you just don’t notice because to you it’s just dad.”


humble. … He didn’t talk about being a great wrestler or a


“My dad was very —ROB KOLL, ON HIS DAD, BILL


A THE KOLL FAMILY


THREE GE


GENERATIION OF WRES SUCCES


SUCCESS ESTLING ONS by JESSI PIERCE


S THE CORNELL FRESHMAN MAKES HIS WAY to the center of the mat, there’s a familiar air about him. When his last name is an- nounced on the loudspeaker, it’s quick- ly recognized by many wrestling fans,


even those well beyond Ithaca, New York: Koll. Since the late William “Bill” Koll began


wrestling in the 1930s, the Koll name has been deeply embedded into the sport. From Bill to his son Rob, and now on to Rob’s son, Will, wrestling success has been a part of the Koll family bloodline.


PLANTING THE WRESTLING SEEDS Bill Koll, born in Fort Dodge, Iowa, didn’t have an auspicious start in the sport. As a high school sophomore, he lost every dual-meet match he competed in. But like many wrestlers, Bill had a never-give-up mentality. By his se- nior year, in 1941, he was undefeated and be- came state champion. “I did an awful lot of growing in a short peri- od of time,” he said to the Des Moines Register in 1985. “I think that was part of my problem. You know, it’s funny. I never thought of myself as being particularly strong. But I could chin myself with one hand, and I could walk upstairs on my hands.” After hustling to find a college where he could


wrestle, Koll landed at Iowa State Teachers Col- lege (now known as the University of Northern Iowa). After a promising freshman year, his ath- letic career was interrupted by World War II. He enlisted in the Army in 1943 and was among the first battalions to land at Omaha Beach on D-Day, earning a Bronze Star along the way.


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