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Oklahoma Wrestling Coach Lou Rosselli Resigns, Coaching Search to Begin Immediately

The Sooners' head wrestling coach has announced his resignation after spending the last seven years in Norman.
Ross Lovelace|
Oklahoma Wrestling Coach Lou Rosselli Resigns, Coaching Search to Begin Immediately
Oklahoma Wrestling Coach Lou Rosselli Resigns, Coaching Search to Begin Immediately

By OU Media Relations

NORMAN — University of Oklahoma Vice President and Athletics Director Joe Castiglione announced Wednesday afternoon that head wrestling coach Lou Rosselli has resigned.

Rosselli, who was hired at OU in 2016, led the Sooners to a 56-49 dual record in his seven seasons. His wrestlers earned 48 NCAA qualifications and four All-America honors. His 2020-21 team won the program's first Big 12 title since 2002 and finished 24th at the NCAA Championships, the best performance of his tenure.

In addition to the athletics accolades his wrestlers amassed, they also earned 40 Academic All-Big 12 honors.

"Lou has invested a great deal into our wrestling program these past seven years, and we're so grateful for the impact he's made on our student-athletes," said Castiglione. "We sincerely appreciate his service to the university and wish him all the best. As we move forward, we will continue to position our wrestling program to compete at the highest level."

A native of Middleport, N.Y., Rosselli came to OU from Ohio State, where he spent 10 seasons as an assistant coach and then associate head coach, and helped the Buckeyes to the 2015 national title.

"Today I'm stepping down as the head wrestling coach here at OU," said Rosselli. "I'm grateful for the opportunity I had from Joe C. to lead this program. While I had hoped to have accomplished more, I'm optimistic about the future of Oklahoma wrestling. I'm thankful to my current and former student-athletes, our coaching staff, and our fans for their support throughout the years."

Castiglione said the search for a new head coach will begin immediately.

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Ross Lovelace
ROSS LOVELACE

Ross has covered the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Oklahoma Sooners since 2018. He's made guest appearances on various radio stations and the Sooners On SI podcast. Ross enjoys public speaking and has done so at multiple churches and high schools across the OKC metro area. In addition to writing, Ross has been the Play-by-Play announcer for Crossings’ basketball and football programs since 2020. In high school, Ross started with Thunder Digest, where he discovered his passion for writing. From there, he worked for the OU Daily as a women's basketball reporter and worked for Sooners On SI and Thunder On SI. Ross holds a bachelor's degree in Public Relations and a minor in Communication from the University of Oklahoma. Born and raised in Oklahoma City, Ross played basketball and wrote for his own Thunder blog at Crossings High School in OKC. He enjoys reading, New York Jets football and a week at the beach. Ross and his wife live in New Orleans, where he is a Marketing and Volunteer Coordinator at the Greater New Orleans Sports Foundation and the New Orleans Super Bowl Host Committee. His Twitter handle is @Rosslovelace.

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