Thomas was one of the most successful collegiate wrestling coaches. Thomas’ OSU wrestling squads won 616 dual meets and twenty-two conference titles in thrity-four years. Thomas was the NCAA coach of the year in 1961 and 1970
The 1959 Wrestling Court was created as a promotional stunt by then OSC Wrestling coach Dale Thomas. The court members posed for a series of publicity photographs taken by Hise Studio in Corvallis. Some of the photos, such as this one, were picked up by national news organizations including the Associated Press. Another of the photographs appeared in Life magazine.
John Witte was Oregon State's first All-American wrestler, finishing second in the heavyweight division at the 1952 NCAA Championships as a freshman. He also played football, garnering All-American honors twice, and led the Beavers to the 1957 Rose Bowl game.
At far right is coach James Arbuthnot. In Arbuthnot’s first year as coach, the team competed in one meet at the University of Washington, and were defeated by the Huskies. Arbuthnot’s later teams met with considerable success, going undefeated in 1917 and 1920. His dog, seated in front, was the team’s unofficial mascot. Arbuthnot also served as OAC’s athletic director from 1906 to 1918. He later coached wrestling and tennis at the University of Washington.
Bielenberg (left) wrestled at Oregon State from 1974 through 1977, and was an All-American each of those years. He won the heavyweight national title in 1975 and is second on the school's all-time list of wins at 165.