Gene Mills (16-13) Joe Gonzalez - 1979 NCAA 118lb Finals : Speakers & Interviews

How I love wrestling. I was a college wrestler in 79 (freshman) and if I remember correctly the periods were 2-3-3. I remember being gassed in that third period. I was OK, nothing like yesterdays or today's studs. Love this sport to death....

Yeah I totally caught that as well..i'm thinking, why the hell is mills on bottom now in the third period?

"But in a match today, Nick Simmons would pin "Mean" Gene Mills."

Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha
Still laughing. You have NO IDEA what you're talking about. Go watch a few more Mills matches, especially against elite international competition, and you'll see just how stupid that comment is. There have been very few wrestlers in the history of the sport as tough on top as Mills.

hey! its great wrestling its worth the wait! Great technition in Gonzalez! Funky as heck in Gene Mills! Great wrestling!!!!

118lbs! Cute!

i dont understand why this video is taking so long to load. its been about 10 minutes and it still isnt halfway.,\ what is the problem?

This is why a hate Flowrestling. I would love to watch this match. Problem is I've waited 10 minutes now, and its still not halfway loaded. I'm on DSL and can download videos everywhere else but this site.

GREAT MATCH! AND NON-STOP ACTION! BOTH CLASSY GUY'S JUST LIKE CALDWELL! PUTTING ON BARN-BURNER'S FOR US ALL!

As I recall, in 1979 they still used the old method of choosing top and bottom. In the 2nd period the winner of the coin flip chose either top or bottom. In the third period the positions were reversed.

So Gene chose top in the 2nd knowing he would have bottom in the 3rd.
I don't feel bad for Gonzalez. Mills outwrestled him. period.

Gene should not have won. How could Gene choose top in the second period......in the third the ref gave Gene bottom. No way would Gonzalez pick top in the third and just let him up. Instead, he would have choose neutral. I feel bad for Gonzalez. Does anyone else agree?

sorry that's Gray Simons.

Gray Simmons could hang with any wrestler at any time. What you got on him cliffy

you also forgot Mark Schultz.

Wow...an amazing guy..better yet an amazing role model.. =)

forgot one... Dan Gable

I am so sick of hearing about these old school wrestlers who would get destroyed in wrestling today. That is crap. Here is a list of wrestlers who would own right now:

John Smith
Bruce Baumgardner
Dave Schultz
Kenny Monday
Arsen Fadzaev
Sergei Beloglazov

I was at a camp with Gene a few years ago, and he was just as psychotic back in the old days as he is now...Gene is the real deal...no faking.

This was college wrestlings golden age, when offense and lungs were everything today we have mostly pushing and shoving I could watch matches like this all day long. These guys would be even better today... they would adapt. Gene Mills was relentless and Gonzales was superior on his feet.

that was a good match

i could
lol just kidding

How many of todays wrestlers could go 9 minutes at that pace?

Back than you had to start one period on top and one on Bottom. You could not choose nuetral. Only the first period started in nuetral. The periods were 3-3-3. At end of 1st pwriod they flip a coin. Winner gets choice of top or bottom. 3rd period there was no choice as you had to start in the opposite position than you started in the 2nd.

If a Match was tied they wrestle 3 more periods of 1-1-1.

these guys show some real class. unlike some wrestlers today (brent metcalf)

better than Caldwell / Metcalf match!!

Not sure neutral was an option back in the day. I believe, you have only top or bottom to choose from in the 2nd and 3rd.

Why does Gonz choose top in the 3rd period only to cut Mills? Wouldn't you choose neutral?

Randy beat a guy who never qualified in 3 tries for D2 nationals, and a small school 1x state champ who can't make varsity at a D3 school. He got killed by a 2x D1 AA. Wasn't in the match for a second. I know this was to be expected, I mean, Lewis is 49! I'm glad he showed up and competed. What a former champion and class act! However, his poor technique was exposed against Moza.

are they ever going to add the 118 wieght class back b/c that would be a stacked weight.

Thats Jim Lampley of HBO boxing doing the play by play.

Both of them were class acts too they won like champs and lost like champs but they hugged a little too long too...

P..............lease.

Great match, a real whirling dervish.

mills is a great coach an funny guy haha

Gene Mills and Gonzales match was great. I had my son who will be wrestling in college next year watch the entire match. What a great match. Did you see how Joe completed his takedown without every hitting his knees and how Mill continue to wrestle to get reverses and thosse arm drag were great. Wrestle is wrestling. The cream always rise to the top.

Randy Lewis is 49 years old and he beat Reynolds in a freestyle match earlier today. Wrestling is wrestling. Gene Mills would dominate today just as much as he did in the seventies and eighties. Very few people could beat him right now in the practice room. Babe Ruth would figure out very quickly how to dominate and hit home runs today.

lj - it appears you are between the ages of 12 and 15 to be saying that nickerson would be slapping around gene mills. it's very obious you watched little of this video before you past judgement and are new to the sport. i like nickerson but mills would have torn him up and he might be able to do it today with a recustructured wrist. watch mills in other videos against russians, there was no lead safe that gene couldn't over come. the man is flat out great. as i said, you know so little about this man and was probably running that mouth while half assedly watching the video. there is so much to learn from gene mills, john smith, dave schultz, and many others but not you.YOU ALREADY KNOW TOO MUCH.

Mann vs Banach 1983 put all of their matches up next week. 190lbs wrestling like 118lbs.

Mean Jean had a mean uni-brow.

that was so dope

Darn TJX - you must have posted about the same time as me because yours was not there when I composed mine. I was also going to make the comparison to MLB where longer careers tend to validate the point. Star players still hit homers off pitchers after 20 years in the league. Nolan Ryan was still blowing fastballs past hitters well into his 40's. Athletes adapt - especially the elite athletes. Nobody is gonna convince me that Gable, Kemp, Campbell, Smith and others would not be elite wrestlers in this era if they were 22 years old again. BS!! BTW - Babe Ruth was a "hard body" in his younger years. Great pitcher, fielder and even a good base stealer at about 6'2" and 200 pounds. Definitely not the same caliber of today's athletes, but very imposing at that time. Very strong to be able to drive the baseball the distances he did with what would now be considered a dead ball (not to be confused with "dead ball" era - just a different quality of ball) Same with Jack Nicklaus and the equipment available to him. He far outdrove the field off the tee - but less than 300 yards.

great match

I agree, it is the age old argument, would fat slob Babe Ruth had been a good player today? This is an argument that cannot be rationally defended. The fact is these guys were at the top of their respective sport in their era and let's just enjoy this fabulous match. By the way, in my opinion, Gene Mills would have knocked the daylights out of Nick Simmons, Donahoe, and Nickerson even in a tag team match, Mills against all 3!

It's a little ridiculous to compare athletes of different generations and then conclude they would get pinned in a match with today's wrestlers. Great athletes adapt to the situations. They would learn new techniques, use the same nutrition and training plans - and evolve to be just as good as the top wrestlers of the current generation. They dominated at their time, but a couple of posts below assume that if these athletes could magically transcend time, they would not have been smart enough to evolve with the sport. It's an argument that cannot be won - so why even compare a gap of 30 years as if they would walk off that mat onto one today and be the same kind of wrestler? It's not logical, but the comparison in techniques is a valid comparison.

Regarding the topic of comparison: You simply cannot take this match from the 70s and compare it to the matches today side by side because you are skipping over 3+ decades of progress, rule changes, and steroid use in between. A rational way of comparing this would be to say that these guys (Mills and Gonzalez) were the premier wrestlers of their time with the tools they had to work with, period. Trust me, those of you who gush over Brent Metcalf and Nick Simmons will hear the next generation of wrestlers who look 3+ decades back on his matches someday and laugh at his style while you vehemently defend him. This is human nature but it is the wrong to look at things. Remember folks, without guys like these and thousands before them who paved the way and built the foundation of collegiate wrestling in the United States, there would be no Metcalfs or Sandersons today. Wrestling has changed very little, great conditioning, great confidence, great defense, and great leg attacks have always been successful and I surmise that will always be the case. You cannot rule out steroid and performance enhancer use as changing the face of wresling more than anything else these last few decades just as we have seen in the NFL and MLB now. By the way, I saw Barry Davis who wrestled many many years ago tearing apart his Wisconsin wrestlers in the room last Fall so there goes the argument that basic fundamental wrestling has no place in today's wrestling. And go talk to guys like Jimmy Heffernan and Brad Penrith about how Dan Gable in the late 80s, many years after his career ended, used to tear them to pieces in that Iowa room using many of the same tecniques you see in this video. Go ask Doug Blubaugh to apply his front headlock to any of you naysayers and come talk to us afterwards about old timers and wrestling.

I like the quote of us standing on the shoulders, and what-not. That is very true. However, this style of wrestling wouldn't work today. Blame it on the refs, blame it on genetics, blame it on training, blame it on the rules.. Whatever you want to use as your crutch, I accept it. But in a match today, Nick Simmons would pin "Mean" Gene Mills, probably no later than 10 minutes after pinning Mr Gonzalez. Maybe not back then, with those rules, but today, that's probably how it'd go down. Do I wish for action like that in a match today? Oh heck yes! It'd help the sport AND the shrinking fan base. Sure was fun to watch and get a little chuckle out of. I hope wrestling evolves for the better 20 years from now and when people watch matches from my era, they do the same thing!

Wow...I loved the commentators, not boring like today's guys. Great match.

My Bad -jim Lampley is the young announcer. i agree with the escape calls are a little goofy, but it might have been the way back then.

Gene, keeps putting his hands on his hips like a girl but man was he tough.

Gene, You didn't seem to mean, But what a great match. Gables H.S. coach is the referee, who caught J robinson walking across in the backgroung and Jim Nance is the annoucer. what a classic. Mill's eating grin at the end is priceless.

I'm confused about the escapes and takedown calls instead of rewarding reversals, but this style of wrestling brings me back to when I started. It's difficult to say the technique sucked, because today's wrestlers would stall out of matches with a 1970's ref. Remember, jackass LJ, you only wrestler who you do with what you know. Why don't you watch an old Gable match and rag on it?

Umm, to all you haters, probably the best college wrestler out there right now, Brent Metcalf, uses the same old school technique these dudes use, so STFU. You're ed. Don't bag on Gene Mills because I guarantee you JV sh i t-talkers wouldn't last past the first period if you wrestled him.

Let's be honest, LJ is a bit over-the-top, but pretty much spot-on. I am impressed with the conditioning of these athletes, but the sloppy technique and set-ups just wouldn't work today...in fact, the majority of the technique is extremely laughable at this point in the game. Mills would go for the left-handed over-hook and take a low-level shot (after he walked into a tie-up with both hands on his hips) and he wouldn't get scored upon immediately? I could go on and on about the sophmoric technique that would get you anhilated today, but I won't...out of respect alone. Please respect these guys for what they were, but let's not pretend that an incredible amount of this stuff just wouldn't fly today. I am honestly loving this for what it represents -- awesome levels of hard work and conditioning that transcends time.

Let's be honest, LJ is a bit over-the-top, but pretty much spot-on. I am impressed with the conditioning of these athletes, but the sloppy technique and set-ups just wouldn't work today...in fact, the majority of the technique is extremely laughable at this point in the game. Mills would go for the left-handed over-hook (af and take a low-level shot...after he walked into a tie-up with both hands on his hips) and he wouldn't get scored upon immediately? I could go on and on about the sopric technique that wouldn't get you anhilated back in the day, but I won't...out of respect alone. Please respect these guys for what they were, but let's not pretend that an incredible amount of this stuff just wouldn't fly today. I am honestly loving this for what it represents -- awesome levels of hard work and conditioning that transcends time.

Do you realize we stand on the shoulders of those that came before us?

Mills and Gonzalez would get slapped around by Nickerson, Simmons, probably even Donahoe. You're hanging on too tight if you think these guys and their laughable technique would work today. Maybe in some high schools, but that's about it. Shots without setups, bar and half nelson turns, all stuff that doesn't work today. Increase the pace however you want, this stuff isn't effective any longer.

Also, the only thing I found more horrific than the setups was the reffing! Did they not wear wristbands then? The ref often looked like a surfing monkey, as he would try to shuffle his feet in those sweet Asics wrestling shoes to the front of the action. No distance, no posture, I think he even awarded points to both wrestlers with the same hand somehow.. Disgusting.

Lil O- Wow, that's one of the dumbest things I've seen written!...Both Mills on Gonzales won NCAA titles,then both went on to stellar International careers for the US, both Olympians...Both have done more wrestling, then you'll dream of...BTW, this match is always considered one of the top 5 NCAA matches of all time...How about the Mark Schultz vs Banach finals for the next throwback Thurs??...Also, supposed to be one of the top 5 NCAA matches.

keep the throwbacks comin, this is awesome

Thanks......the college rules are always changing.

Sorry it was 2, 3, 3 periods for 8 minutes

They did not wrestle 9 minutes...it was still 3, 2, 2 periods back then.

Mills was way better, Gonzalez gave up, and quitters never win.
Mills can go for longer and harder than Gonzaez,and thats why he won.

I completely disagree. Did Gonzalez have the better shot? Definately! But He could not finish it consistantly. Watch from 4:05 to 4:25, Joe had Gene dead to rights at least twice and if they had not gone out, Gene would have scored the takedown on the double leg.

Gonzalez's strength was on his feet and Mills did a great job of defending on his feet. Mills strength was on the mat, and Gonzalez did a great job of not getting turned, but he gave up a lot of riding time.
As for the better athlete? look at 6:40 to 7:00. At the end of two, Mills takes one deep breath and looks as fresh as when the match started. Gonzalez still has not caought his breath when the third starts and immeadiatlely lets Mills to his feet.

The better athlete doesnt always win...Mills had way more intensity and drive...he wanted that title bad!!!!!!!!!!!

back then, if you had the choice, you controlled both the second and third period. You are right, there was not a neutral choice. One had to choose top or bottom in the second and positions were reversed for the third. Choosing top in the second gauranteed you bottom in the third.

This is a great example of the better wrestler losing. Gonzalez is clearly a better athlete. He dominated on his feet. If Gonzalez wrestled for Gable, he would have won by 15 points.....

I GIVIDDAAA TENNNNN.... A TENNNN....A FUKCIN TENNNNN!!!

Mills had a half nelson that could turn anyone.

Mills was as good as anyone that has ever wrestled from the top position

joe gonzalez really does look like grajales

This is cool. Non stop action.

Awesome.....Martin u da mannnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn!

A guess nautral was not a choice...both picked top.

dang

whoever said Mills looks like a highschool 112 is an idiot considering his height over Gonzales. Besides, looks dont matter in wrestling, only mindset.

I GIVE IT A 9.5!!!!!!!!!!! WAY SICK

This is cool! Keep them coming this is a great idea, throwbacks, nice.

this throwback thursday thing.

one of the best matches i have ever seen here on flowrestling.

Joe Gonzales was known as Surfer Joe and wrestled in the World Cup championships held in Toledo, Ohio. I believe he won a world championship when the Soviets dominated the sport.

gonzalez should have rode mills for a while before cutting him to ween the riding time down...he was dominating mills on his feet...but you have to give it to both of them they really went at it...that one call with the ref awarding an escape and a takedown was also a little hokey...whats up with that? anyone have any thoughts on that?

mean gene the pining machine your my hero

the sucker drag at 9:40 was sick.

Looks like the 125lb NCAA finals match from this year.

yea man totally wrestling will never be the same with out those socks. its all about looking good not wrestling good ( its hard to show sarcasum on a computer)

i dont thank mills was the best wrestler in that match! gonzales should of put some what of a ride on mills. gonzales DOMINATED on his feet.

Kudos to Flowrestling for Throwback Thursdays. Keep em coming. You gotta love watching these epic, old school battles with the legends of the sport. Guys like Gene Mills, Lee Kemp, Dan Gable, the Schultz's, John Smith, the Brands, the Steiners and many more were larger than life heroes and they inspired me when I was young.

Why weren't they both stepping on the line at the start of the match ???

watch at the 7:50 mark Gozo clasps

Mills got spanked on his feet. Credit due he won the match, but he clearly was not the better wrestler

I love how they use to wrestle in the late 70's through the 80's. Mostly because they 'wrestled' wide open and attacking. 9 minutes was brutal when you had two guys really attacking. Great video.

Thanks!

i agree, the ref blew that call and it really effected the match

so announcers sucked back then as well. Thanks for letting us know how scoring works like we are not watching wrestling for the 5 millionth time. Fin moron announcers.

why there should be a 118 lb weight class today

he was giving up alot of size too
gene mills looks like a high school 112

He awards an escape before there is an true loss of control.

awesome, and thanks for answering. He looks familiar, but by his record I should know all about him. wow, he won the russian nationals . . . that says a lot about him. And that many takedowns in a season. I'm going to have to learn more about him . . .

why cant all college wrestling be like that?these guys moved good. reminded me of humphries vs. gonzales

That is correct, Cal State Bakersfield was D2 at the time.

I watched Gene Mille all of that year. He showed up at the eaterns 20 pounds over. He made the weight at the last minute. This is one of the greatest NCAA finals matches ever

GREAT MATCH!! MEAN GENE IS THE BEST!

David- Joe Gonzales won the NCAA's the next year, still holds the NCAA record for most takedowns in a season, something like 448, and also set the record for most wins in a single season 55-448 td's in 55 matches-wow!...3X World Cup Champ, Olympian, one of like 7-8(?) Americans to win the Tbilisi (Russian Nationals), multi freestyle Nationals Champion.

if anyone can answer post #5

He looks like eric grajales

Is that Jim Lampley announcing?

I'm telling you Mean Gene is the truth. He wrestled with my Dad in college and the dude's a BEAST!!!

Can anyone give me any info on Joe Gonzales?

If I could only get my guys to drag out with that authority. Mills was a pitbull.

JC,
I think back then one person started on top in one period and then they switched the next.

Mills felt best on top. He knew he could get back points on anyone and was not that great on his feet. Go to his website and watch him wrestle Bobby Weaver under his "genetube" section. He gets taken down 2 or 3 times at beginning and it appears Weaver is going to dominate. Then Mills gets rolling on top and ends up winning very easily. Half nelson's, tilts, etc. you name it, he turned people with it!

Mills just scrapped

Anonymous, that for sure is Lamps, look how dang young he is!!! Lamps has done other NCAA matches, most notably the NCAA when Iowa was going for 10 in a row (Penrith got pinned in that wicked spladle and Heffernan got ripped off against Krieger and of course Rico Chippiarelli defeated Darryl Popey in a last second flurry). I love Lamps and man is he young in this video!

that match was great one of the best ive ever seen. Gene Mills is a great guy.

Just plain exciting! The kind of match anyone could watch and enjoy not just die hard wrestling fans.

Is that Bob Siddens officiating?

why the heck did mills take top in the 2nd period...gonzalez got out on him quick in the first and he did it again in the 2nd

I just kinda did this out of the blue. I'm sure Joe and Martin could drum something up.

how bout having something like funky friday and you get some funk technique?

They need to bring those socks back

THAT WAS SWEET!

Wasnt Cal state Bakersfiled DII at that time? Did gonzo have to win DII Nationals to wrestle DI nationals?

IS THAT JIM LAMPLEY GIVING THE CALL? I CAN'T DTAND HIM IN BOXING MATCHES BUT HE DID PRETTY GOOD WITH MATCH

For all of the young wrestlers out there, focus on where the wrestlers start when on their feet. They are on the old outer marker of the center circle. And yes, we used to feather our hair and wear those zebra stripes socks up high too. But wrestling is still wrestling, great defense and great leg attacks will win in ANY era! Priceless video!

Anybody who tells me that the wrestling is better today than in "the old days" never saw this video!

This match is incredible! How did they wrestle at such a high pace for 9 minutes? Move after move the whole time. It looked like a straight reversal to me for Mills at the end of the second instead of 1 and 2. Maybe that situation was scored a little differently then. That probably would have put the match into OT because Gonzalez wouldn't have been flailing so much to get out.