March 31, 2008

EVANSTON, Ill. -- Senior heavyweight Dustin Fox was one of seven finalists for the 2008 Dan Hodge Trophy. Fox finished the season with a 29-1 record and collected two pins, three technical falls and eight major decisions. The senior capped off the 2007-08 campaign by winning his first NCAA heavyweight title.

The Dan Hodge Trophy is presented annually to the nation's most dominant college wrestler. It is named for the undefeated, three-time NCAA champion from Oklahoma University in the mid 1950s. The only wrestler to ever appear on the cover of Sports Illustrated (April 1, 19576), Hodge has the highest pinning percentage in collegiate history, and was known for his dominating style of wrestling.

"The purpose of the award, initiated in 1995, is to reward excellence in college wrestling and, particularly, a dominating style of wrestling," said Mike Chapman, founder of the trophy.

"The way a wrestler competes is what we look for. Going undefeated is very important, but equally important is going all-out on the mat - winning through domination, the way Dan Hodge did. We think a dominating style of wrestling is a key element to the sport's popularity and we want to reward that style of wrestling."

This year's award went to Brent Metcalf of Iowa who won the 149-pound title and was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Wrestler. At the Big Ten Championships, Fox scored more points for his team than any other wrestler except for Metcalf. Both of Fox's pins and two of his technical falls came at the Big Ten and NCAA Championships.

The list of finalists appears below.

Name, School (Record, Pins, TF, MD)
Phil Davis, Penn State (26-1, 8, 3, 6)
Angel Escobedo, Indiana (34-1, 8, 1, 8)
Tervel Dlagnev, UNK (Div. II) (38-0, 16, 5, 5)
Dustin Fox, Northwestern (29-1, 2, 3, 8)
Keith Gavin, Pittsburgh (27-0, 5, 2, 5)
Brent Metcalf, Iowa (39-1, 12, 7, 9)
Mike Pucillo, Ohio State (34-1, 6, 6, 8)