Oklahoma State wraps up its home dual slate Sunday against Missouri and celebrates its Senior Day, leaving a bittersweet feeling for All-American Dustin Plott.

Plott has never taken wrestling in Gallagher-Iba Arena for granted.

For him, it’s home. He grew up less than two hours from Stillwater in Tuttle, attended home duals in Gallagher and said he wanted to be a Cowboy. 

For nearly five years, he was and still is a very successful one. Plott has earned All-America honors three times and is poised for another in his final season. With his final home dual approaching, mixed feelings are setting in. 

“I’d say a little bit bittersweet,” Plott said. “I feel like just yesterday was my freshman year here. Now that I'm about to wrestle my last match in Gallagher, I’m really grateful to have been a part of this program and to get to compete in Gallagher is definitely not something I’ve ever taken lightly. I’ve definitely tried to make the most out of every opportunity.”

While he may be wrapping up his college career, he won’t be going anywhere after graduation.

“I plan on sticking around and training at the RTC, chasing World and Olympic gold medals,” Plott said. “Wrestling is something that God has blessed me with. I’m gonna try and use up and give every ounce I have to the sport.”

OSU’s third-ranked heavyweight, Wyatt Hendrickson, said he will do the same as Plott for at least three years, owing gratitude to the Air Force Services Center, which allowed him to pursue his goal of being a 2028 Olympian and training at OSU for his last year of college eligibility. Although his time was short, Hendrickson said he will miss wrestling in GIA. 

“It feels like it was just yesterday when I first got here and — wow, since August, time has flown by,” said Hendrickson, who placed third at the NCAA Championships in each of his final two seasons at Air Force. “But time flies when you’re having fun (and) that just shows it's a fun time wrestling here. It’s kinda gonna be sad. I enjoyed the experience wrestling here at Oklahoma State for one year. It’s always gonna be a bittersweet moment. But it’s also not the last time I’m stepping out on the mat wearing Oklahoma State wrestling. We still got Big 12s, still got NCAAs, still looking forward to that.”

For Oklahoma State coach David Taylor, it’s his first Senior Day as the Cowboys’ head coach. While he hasn’t gone through the full cycle of recruiting, coaching, and graduating a student-athlete, his first class of seniors has left an impact on him and the staff. Taylor had high praise for this year’s senior class.

“It’s been a good class, they’re great kids, they’re great leaders,” Taylor said. “They’ve done a good job of adopting the mentality that we’re asking them to come to practice every single day [with] and it’s good for our younger guys to see that. I’m really proud of them. These guys are making an impact on us as a coaching staff.”

Cowboys Ready For ‘Whoever Suits Up’ 

The Missouri Tigers, along with college wrestling fans everywhere, received unfortunate news on Jan. 2 that a pair of All-Americans — 197-pounder Rocky Elam and top-ranked 174-pounder Keegan O’Toole — would miss significant time with injuries. Elam is out for the season, but O’Toole is slated for a February return, which means Oklahoma and Oklahoma State are on the clock. 

It is unclear if O’Toole will be healthy enough to go against third-ranked Dean Hamiti. Taylor said with how unpredictable the sport is, all Hamiti can do is be ready to wrestle whoever suits up. 

“We can’t predict what’s gonna happen in our sport,” Taylor said. “We just gotta show up and do our best. We’ll see what happens this weekend and then we’ll adjust moving forward. I know DJ’s excited every time he steps on the mat. That’s why he’s one of the most exciting guys to watch wrestle. He’s gonna go out and wrestle no matter who he’s got.”