David Taylor’s first press conference as the Cowboys coach was a statement of intent: “We want to stay and win gold medals at Oklahoma State.” Inexperienced in coaching, sure, but the Olympic Champion had conviction. And he has shown how adept he is at being a coach in the one year since he was hired last May. The Cowboys program has been going from strength to strength, setting attendance records at the Gallagher Ibn Arena, improving on their NCAA championships performance from dead last in 2024 to third in 2025. The David Taylor connection has come in handy for a budding Japanese wrestler, too.

The Japanese connection with Oklahoma State goes back decades. From NCAA Champion Tadaaki Hatta in the 1960s to Olympic Champion Yojiro Uetake, Japanese grapplers have adorned the Oklahoma legacy. And walking in their footsteps, a young Rin Sakamoto hopes he can emulate these legends. To be honest, OSU’s spring recruit has been off to a good start, but it just got better after he won the Meiji Cup.

Jon Kozak dropped the big news on X on June 22: “Oklahoma State’s Rin Sakamoto won the Meiji Cup and will be Japan’s 57kg rep at Senior Worlds in September.” The Cowboys freshman just beat Kento Yumiya in the final to win the Meiji Cup All-Japan Championships in Tokyo. In the semi-finals, Sakamoto had defeated Rikuto Nagai, 7-4.

To qualify for the 2025 World Wrestling Championships in Zagreb, one had to cross 2 domestic hurdles. The Meiji Cup was the second one. Sakamoto had already won the Emperor’s Cup All-Japan Championships in December 2024. Now, with 2 National titles to his name, Sakamoto will hope to add a senior World Championship gold to his medal tally.

Sakamoto also has dreams in the USA. “One goal is to become an NCAA champion,” the 19-year-old had said to United World Wrestling after his Emperor’s Cup win. He certainly has role models to look up to, witnessing Wyatt Hendrickson and Dean Hamiti Jr. giving Oklahoma State 2 NCAA titles while the team finished 3rd in the NCAA Championships.

Moreover, Rin Sakamoto still has his most important guide, David Taylor. The 2020 Olympics Gold Medalist has turned the Cowboys wrestlers into winners in such a short time. And like Sakamoto, many of them are going to the Senior World Championships.

The David Taylor effect as Cowboys wrestlers dominate everywhere

From the NCAA Championships, the scene changed to the 2025 US Open in Las Vegas. Wyatt Hendrickson again kept his run going by winning in the 125 Kg weight class. Joining him were Zahid Valencia and Joey McKenna, who won in the 86 Kg and 65 Kg weight classes, respectively.

Valencia scored the biggest upset of the tournament by beating 4-time Champion Kyle Dake 8-4. In fact, the Cowboys wrestler would again overcome the Dake challenge in a best-of-3 match-up in the Final X. Valencia won the 1st match by a 5-3 decision. And the second one also went in his favor, 4-1. Hendrickson, too, punched his way to the World Team by winning the first 2 games against Trent Hillger. Unfortunately, McKenna fell to Real Woods.

But one more name can join Team USA in the Senior category. Jax Forrest’s duel with Vito Arujau was postponed to July 14 at the request of Arujau, who is a bronze medalist at the 2024 Senior World Wrestling Championships in Tirana. But that’s not all. The 26-year-old is a gold medalist at the 2023 Senior World Wrestling Championships in Belgrade. So, the work is cut out for Forrest.

But underestimate David Taylor’s men at your own peril. He brings his rich experience as a World Champion wrestler to help his students become successful competitors. So, all eyes will be on the Forrest-Arujao match next match.