Oklahoma State wrestling won its 21st straight Bedlam and shut out OU for the first time since 1992, but newcomer Jax Forrest was the story of the day.
STILLWATER — The electronic beats of “Funkytown” by Lipps Inc. vibrated through the speakers and the 1980s-themed neon graphics flashed on the video board, lighting up an otherwise dark Gallagher-Iba Arena.
But all that mattered to the sellout crowd of 12,549 were the three letters at the bottom of the screen.
JAX.
World champion Jax Forrest made his highly anticipated Oklahoma State wrestling debut on Sunday, and the roar that welcomed him to the mat lasted almost as long as the match itself.
Forrest pinned his OU opponent in 47 seconds, and a few matches later, the fifth-ranked Cowboys closed out a 37-0 shutout of the Sooners — the Pokes’ first Bedlam shutout since 1992, and 21st straight win in the rivalry.
But Forrest’s arrival brought a buzz that not even the shutout could overcome.
A few months removed from winning the U23 world championship in Serbia and a few months ahead of when he should be graduating Bishop McCort High School in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, Forrest was the center of attention in one of college wrestling’s most storied arenas.
“It was surreal,” Forrest said. “It’s something I’ve gone back and forth, a lot of thinking, a lot of talk with coaches about what the plan is for me. Honestly, it couldn’t have gone any better, going out there, working on the things I’ve been practicing on. A sold-out crowd, over 12,000 people, it couldn’t have gone any better for me.”
Taking on OU’s Carter Schmidt at 133 pounds, Forrest went to work quickly, getting two takedowns, and working Schmidt to his back on the second.
The official slapped the mat to signal the pin and the crowd erupted even louder than before. Forrest raised his finger guns into the air, led the fans in an O-S-U and headed to celebrate with his coaches.
“You get in that flow state and everything’s going right,” Forrest said. “That’s how I felt today. Obviously, nerves, but I have such great coaches and teammates that were keeping me calm with the sold-out crowd, with it being my first time wrestling.”
But as they watched, his teammates were equally in awe of the magnitude of the event.
“It was crazy — just a crazy experience,” Alex Facundo said. “It didn’t even seem like a wrestling match. It just seemed like a welcome party to him, and that was awesome to see.”
Earlier in the week, OSU coach David Taylor spoke in generalities about Forrest’s arrival and potential involvement in the lineup, citing the five events a wrestler can participate in while still maintaining redshirt status.
Taylor wouldn't commit to Forrest even participating in Bedlam, which added to the anticipatory energy of Sunday's pre-match reveal.
But asked when he had decided Forrest would wrestle for the Cowboys on Sunday, Taylor was a bit more open, though maybe a little sarcastic.
“June,” he said with a smile. “I think it was a fun opportunity for him tonight to go wrestle. He’s got a lot of things going on. We gotta try to slow it down for him. Give him the best chance to be successful. We believed that this year, his best path to successful was being here second semester, getting this opportunity, getting the opportunity to be around this team.
“This is what we’re building. We’re building something special here. We have a lot of really good, young kids.”
Forrest was the biggest story, but not the only story.
OSU got wins over opponents ranked 11th or better with Alex Facundo at 174 pounds, Zack Ryder at 184 and Cody Merrill at 197.
“Those three guys, they’ve been in some scraps this year,” Taylor said. “They’ve been on the right side of it, and they’ve been on the losing side of those things. The messaging with those guys was, like, you get to control it. You’re a takedown away from a different result in a lot of your results.
“You gotta remember how young our team is and how much they’re improving every single week, and that’s an exciting thing.”
The sellout crowd was the largest for a dual in the Taylor era by more than 2,000 people, but it’s going to be the standard.
“What we did tonight was special,” Taylor said. “We’ve been talking about selling this place out. That’s an awesome thing. Our guys are excited to compete. They’re working hard to score to the end. I think people are gonna start recognizing that and realizing this is a special place to come and watch.
“And it’s good practice for us, because we plan to have this type of crowd many, many times moving forward. Many, many times. So it’s great practice for our guys for what it’s like to have that type of energy supporting you. It was fun tonight.”
Scott Wright covers Oklahoma State athletics for The Oklahoman. Have a story idea for Scott? He can be reached at [email protected] or on X at @ScottWrightOK. Sign up for the Oklahoma State Cowboys newsletter to access more OSU coverage. Support Scott’s work and that of other Oklahoman journalists by purchasing a digital subscription today at subscribe.oklahoman.com or by using the link at the top of this page.
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Jax Forrest's electric debut helps OSU wrestling to Bedlam shutout
Category: General Sports
