Oklahoma State heavyweight Wyatt Hendrickson is no stranger to Cowboy wrestling history. 

He was an Oklahoma State wrestling fan growing up — and that was a contributing factor in his decision to join the Cowboys for his final season in college wrestling. 

But nothing could have prepared Hendrickson for the hostility of the Bedlam rivalry. 

“I didn't really think too much of it — I actually didn’t understand what it was, either,” said Hendrickson, a two-time All-American who transferred from Air Force. “Now I see it’s a pretty big deal. At Air Force, we had rivalries. I think this is something a little different, it seems to have more weight to it. In a state like Oklahoma, they eat, sleep and breathe wrestling. There’s a big competition between OU and OSU, so being a part of that, it feels pretty good. I’m excited to finally be in it.”

An added perk for Hendrickson: He will not only wrestle in Bedlam, but for the foreseeable future, he could be wrestling alongside another transfer who joined the program this year and happens to be his friend and roommate — Caleb Fish. 

Fish transferred in from Michigan State with more than 120 matches to his credit. He was on the cusp of the All-American podium at 165 pounds each of his last two years with the Spartans. Last year, he finished one win away from the blood round and dropped his blood round match in 2023. 

The initial plan was for Fish to redshirt this season and become a key contributor on next year’s squad, which would potentially have to fill six starting vacancies due to graduation. That was disappointing news to Hendrickson, the nation’s third-ranked heavyweight, who wanted to wrestle alongside his new roommate. 

“I remember when we talked about Caleb redshirting, it kinda broke my heart,” Hendrickson said. “I was like ‘Ugh, I want (you) to travel.’ He’s one of my good friends on the team — Caleb and I have that special connection. We’re both transfers coming in and we both just hit off right off the bat.”

Now, a burned redshirt later, Fish looks primed to take the reins at 157 pounds after a third-place finish at the Cliff Keen Invitational in Las Vegas.  

Hearing Fish burned his redshirt made Hendrickson elated. But he was also seemingly the last one to know. It was a comical moment of miscommunication between two close teammates. “This is funny, I didn’t hear that he was redshirting until we were getting close to competition (against Utah Valley),” Hendrickson said. “I was like, ‘Hey, what’s going on?’ He was like, ‘Oh I’m redshirting.’ And, I didn’t know they pulled his redshirt, either.”

Until the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational.

“The week we were leaving for Las Vegas, he was talking about some logistics, like as if I already knew,” Hendrickson said. “I said, ‘Wait a second, you’re doing what again?’ He was like, ‘Yeah, I’m going.’ That’s exciting, I get to be at the NCAA Tournament with him. I was kinda bummed out because if you redshirt you don’t get to travel and do all the fun stuff. But now, he’s part of the journey to NCAAs.”

Hendrickson alluded to Fish’s excitement to wrestle this year and he wasn’t the only one who took notice. Oklahoma State head coach, David Taylor, said he could sense the excitement in Fish as he was going into the tournament in Vegas. 

“He had a smile on his face and he was ready to go take guys out,” Taylor said. “A couple of forfeits toward the end and he really wanted to wrestle his matches and that’s really good to see from a coach’s standpoint.”

Fish, who shot up to #14 in the 157-pound rankings after being unranked, will get his first dual in an orange singlet on Friday when Oklahoma State takes on Oklahoma in Norman. For some starters on the team, it will be their first taste of the historic Bedlam rivalry. It’s also Taylor’s first taste of the rivalry. 

Taylor’s perspective on the rivalry is unique. It’s a stark contrast from one legendary head coach and wrestler, John Smith, who emphasized to his team: “We don’t lose to Sooners.”

“I just think it’s another match,” Taylor said. “You don’t do anything different just because there’s a different name associated with the dual, we just are consistent. I think things get sideways when you start changing what you do. There’s gonna be a lot of external things this week, we just gotta focus and do what we do and go out and wrestle.”