MYRON RODERICK
1934-2011
Inducted – 2004

A three-time NCAA wrestling champion and Olympic competitor, Myron Willis Roderick of Winfield was as fierce a competitor on the mat as he was in the coaching chair. Roderick won three NCAA championships at Oklahoma State, finished fourth at the 1956 Olympic Games in Melbourne, Australia, and at 23 years old, became the youngest coach, in any sport, to win an NCAA title when he coached Oklahoma State to the 1958 NCAA Wrestling title. Roderick coached the Cowboys to seven NCAA team championships in 13 years (1957-70) and compiled a dual record of 140-10-7, which included an 84-dual match winning streak. While at Oklahoma State, his wrestlers won 20 individual NCAA titles and four gold medals in the Olympics. He also coached his teams to two National AAU titles and was the United States coach in the 1963 World Games and an assistant coach in the 1964 Olympics. Following his coaching career, Roderick became the first executive director of the United States Wrestling Federation and helped create a national wrestling museum in Stillwater, Okla. He later served as president of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum, and was inducted in 1976. As a high school wrestler in Winfield, Roderick was a two-time state champion (1951 and ’52) when the state tournament had only one class. He attended Oklahoma State and finished with a 42-2 record and won three NCAA titles. Born September 15, 1934 – Attica, Kansas. Graduated Winfield High School, 1952; Oklahoma State University, 1956.