The Oklahoma State Cowboys wrestling team, currently ranked No. 4 in the nation, will travel west for two dual meets this weekend. The Cowboys are set to compete against Air Force on Friday, November 21 at 8:30 p.m. CT and then face Arizona State on Sunday, November 23 at 2 p.m. CT.
Oklahoma State enters the weekend with four ranked wins so far this season, including its highest-ranked victory since 2012 following last weekend’s National Duals Invitational. All ten starters for the Cowboys appear in the latest Intermat rankings, with Troy Spratley, Sergio Vega, Landon Robideau, Dee Lockett, Zack Ryder, Cody Merrill and Konner Doucet all ranked within the top ten of their respective weight classes.
Fans can watch the Air Force dual via FloWrestling and catch the Arizona State match on ESPN+. Radio coverage will be provided by Rex Holt on 93.7 KSPI-FM. Live stats and results are available through @CowboyWrestling on X and statbroadcast.com.
Historically, Oklahoma State has dominated both upcoming opponents. The Cowboys lead their series with Air Force 6-0 and have never allowed more than six points in any meeting; last season they defeated Air Force 43-6 in Stillwater and hold a perfect record when facing them in Colorado Springs. Against Arizona State, Oklahoma State leads the series 42-4 and has won 21 consecutive matches over the Sun Devils—the last loss dating back to 1993.
Head coach David Taylor is leading his second season after guiding Oklahoma State to a third-place finish at last year’s NCAA Championships with two individual champions. Six NCAA qualifiers return to the lineup alongside three transfers: Richard Figueroa II, Casey Swiderski and Alex Facundo. Despite losing NCAA champions Wyatt Hendrickson and Dean Hamiti Jr., expectations remain high for another strong postseason run.
Troy Spratley returns as a national finalist at 125 pounds and is currently ranked second nationally entering this season. Newcomers include transfer Richard Figueroa II (2024 national champion), All-American Casey Swiderski, Alex Facundo and Zack Ryder—all expected to make immediate impacts. At heavyweight, Konner Doucet resumes starting duties after backing up Hendrickson last year; he started this season with a technical fall win.
Coach Taylor’s first freshman class features LaDarion “Dee” Lockett (165 pounds), Landon Robideau (Minnesota native), Sergio Vega (Arizona product) and potentially Ronnie Ramirez from California. Lockett, Robideau and Vega each won their opening bouts as Cowboys—Lockett and Robideau defeating All-Americans—and together are undefeated at 15-0 early in their careers.
Sophomore Cody Merrill began his campaign ranked tenth at 197 pounds after going 12-2 last year; he is now off to a 4-1 start this season with a win over an All-American opponent.
In Coach Taylor’s debut season last year, Oklahoma State went 13-1 in dual meets—including seven home victories—and claimed ten wins over ranked teams such as Oregon State, Arizona State and Missouri en route to securing its first Big 12 title since 2021. Two wrestlers were crowned national champions during that run—the program’s first multiple-champion performance since 2016—with Taylor’s squad remaining inside the top three of national rankings throughout the year.
On November 1st at the NWCA All-Star Classic event, Zack Ryder secured a major decision victory over Maryland’s Jaxon Smith while Casey Swiderski earned a win against Michigan’s Lachlan McNeil; these performances elevated both wrestlers’ standings in national polls.
Coach Taylor recruited what is considered one of the nation’s best incoming classes—ranked second overall—with eight signees listed among FloWrestling’s Top 100 Big Board prospects.
Konner Doucet returns to heavyweight action after previously serving as backup; he is now ranked ninth nationally following several bonus-point victories early this season—a notable improvement compared to previous years where such wins were rare for him.
Oklahoma State also added key transfers including Richard Figueroa II (national champion), Casey Swiderski (All-American), Alex Facundo, Zack Ryder and Gary Steen—all expected to contribute significantly based on recent success from previous transfer athletes who achieved All-America status or won national titles under Coach Taylor’s leadership.
True freshmen Landon Robideau and Dee Lockett made successful debuts against Stanford opponents who were All-Americans themselves; along with Sergio Vega they contributed twelve points out of thirty-three scored by true freshmen during OSU’s opener—they remain undefeated individually so far this season while holding No.2 rankings nationally within their weights.
Through twenty-five matches contested by Cowboy wrestlers this year across all competitions so far—thirteen have resulted in bonus-point outcomes including one pinfall victory alongside multiple technical falls or major decisions recorded by various team members.
Gallagher-Iba Arena remains central to Oklahoma State wrestling tradition since its opening in 1939—hosting more than ninety percent home-win rate across decades along with historic unbeaten streaks spanning dozens of consecutive dual meets ([source](https://okstate.com/sports/2015/3/17/GEN_2014010165.aspx)). In February of 2022 OSU celebrated its five-hundredth victory inside Gallagher-Iba Arena ([source](https://okstate.com/news/2022/2/4/wrestling-no-10-cowboys-defeat-south-dakota-state-in-gallagher-iba-arena-for-programs-500th-home-victory.aspx)) .
Nationally recognized as one of college wrestling’s most successful programs ([source](https://www.ncaa.com/history/wrestling/d1)), Oklahoma State leads all schools with thirty-four NCAA team championships ,145 individual champions ,and nearly five hundred All-America honors . Its Olympic legacy includes forty-one appearances by Cowboy wrestlers resulting in eleven gold medals .
The upcoming road tests against Air Force and Arizona State present new challenges but continue long-standing traditions for one of collegiate wrestling’s most decorated programs.