After the war, Bill returned to school and
picked up right where he left off. In three years he won nearly every wrestling honor possible. He became the first wrestler from an Iowa college to earn three NCAA championships, winning titles at 145-147 pounds in 1946, 1947, and 1948. His three titles came with an unbeaten record, ending his collegiate career at 72–0. He was twice named the NCAA Cham- pionship’s Outstanding Wrestler. And right af- ter college, he earned a roster spot on the U.S. Olympic wrestling team for the 1948 Summer Games in London, where he ended up placing fifth in his 147-pound weight class. Bill went on to become one of the most
iconic wrestling figures thanks in large part to his 14 seasons coaching at Penn State Univer- sity. From 1965 to 1978, Bill saw unprecedent- ed success with the Nittany Lions, amassing a 127-22-7 record that included five undefeated seasons and 20 NCAA All-Americans.
But
despite all this success, Bill would be the last one to talk about it. “My dad was very humble. I didn’t even
know he was in the war until I found his Bronze Star,” Rob says of his father, who passed at the age of 80 in 2003. “He didn’t talk about being a great wrestler or a 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.
GROWING UP IN THE GYM Thanks to his dad’s long history with the sport, Rob, now 48, says he has always felt most at home in a wrestling room. “My daycare center was the wrestling room at Penn State,” Rob says with a laugh of the gym that now bears his father’s name. “I was probably four or five years old and I was growing up there, rolling around. It was only natural that I aspired to be a wres- tler when I grew up—[Penn State wrestlers] John Fritz, Rick Lorenzo, and Andy Matter, those are the guys I grew up idolizing.” Even away from the gym, Rob continued to get an education lesson in wrestling, thanks in large part to being the youngest of six boys. “Watching my brothers wrestle and having them use me as guinea pig,” offered plenty of lessons, recalls Rob, whose older brothers Mike, Dave, and Chris wrestled at Penn State.
All that “brotherly love” paid off, however,
as Rob wrestled his way to a Pennsylvania high school state championship in 1984. By then, the Koll name had become a staple at Penn State. It seemed only natural that Rob would be fourth in line to wrestle for the prestigious program. But the youngest Koll forged his own path and instead chose to wrestle at the Universi- ty of North Carolina. Following a successful campaign at UNC, which included an NCAA championship in 1988, Rob became a coach at Cornell. He took his cues from his father and began raising his own son, Will, in the gym while he led his college team.
“I would always tote him along with me to tournaments and clinics,” Rob explains. “He was my drill partner, so he learned not unlike I did when I was a young boy. It was a great environment and it helped him develop athleticism.” For Will, growing up with the sport the same way his dad did has created a special bond through the generations. “I’ve been go- ing to (Cornell wrestling) practices since I was five,” Will notes. “My earliest memory of learning about my grandpa was around four. I knew I wanted to have a future in wrestling and continue to grow this legacy that has been built before me.”
(LEFT) BILL KOLL ESTABLISHED THE KOLL
NAME IN WRESTLING CIRCLES, THANKS TO HIS COACHING LEADERSHIP. (RIGHT) BILL’S SON, ROB, IS FOLLOWING IN HIS FATHER’S FOOTSTEPS AS HEAD COACH AT CORNELL.
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44