Mar 28, 2024 By Jonathan Guth 4 min read

Tonight in final Jeopardy, the answer is … They all competed in the Pittsburgh Wrestling Classic.

The question … What do Kurt Angle, Bo Nickal, Cael Sanderson, Dave Schultz and Kyle Snyder have in common with Andrew Binni, Bodie Morgan, Gaven Suica, Chris Vargo and Jorden Williams?

The event that started out as the Pittsburgh Press Old Newsboy Wrestling Classic will be celebrating its 50th anniversary Saturday at Peters Township High School’s AHN Arena.

This year’s Classic will feature a women’s dual meet for the first time, as Team Pennsylvania will face Team Ohio at 3 p.m., followed by the WPIAL All-Stars battling the New Jersey All-Stars. The main event, which is scheduled for 6 p.m., features the Pennsylvania All-Stars against the United States All-Stars.

“Our goal is to find the very best wrestlers across the United States to come face the team from Pennsylvania,” said Phil Mary, who is co-director of the Classic. “If you look at the NCAAs this year, 10 of the 20 finalists competed in the Classic.

“If we do our job right in getting the best kids from the United States, the kids from Pennsylvania will have their hands full.”

Mary, who competed in the 1983 event, said adding the women’s dual meet was something the committee had to do, and they are proud to put it on for the first time.

The origins of the Pittsburgh Wrestling Classic can be traced back to 1973 when Frank Vulcano Sr., who was the head wrestling coach at what was known as California State College (now PennWest California), and other coaches from the area organized an all-star event between Team Illinois and Team Pennsylvania, and the Pennsylvania team made the trip to Illinois for the “Wrestling Classic.”

The 1974 event was to bring the Illinois All-Stars to Pennsylvania, but it was canceled because of inclement weather.

The first 25 years of the Classic were under Gene Bowman’s leadership, and the event featured a Pennsylvania vs. USA dual meet.

“My dad was involved in wrestling coaching in high school, and he had friends in the wrestling community all over the country,” said Gene Bowman’s son, John. “He was just hanging out with Frank Vulcano Sr. and Elias George, who came in from Illinois, and they got to talking about who was the toughest state for wrestling and decided to put on the dual meet between the two states. My dad decided to take it a step further. He was a pioneer in the Classic, and I helped out as a committee member working to get meals and lodging for the wrestlers.”

John Bowman’s son, Zac, is also on the committee, which makes three generations of Bowmans who have worked to make the Classic a success.

The name of the event was changed in 1993 to the Dapper Dan Wrestling Classic. The event began running under its current name, Pittsburgh Wrestling Classic, in 2017 in partnership with the National Wrestling Coaches Association, which is a nationwide non-profit organization that has been in existence since 1928.

“I was fortunate to join the committee in 1986 as one of the new guys,” Classic co-director Kraig Nellis said. “Gene Bowman helped the event to not only survive, but thrive. We have had great relationships with the charities we have worked with over the years.”

The first 25 years of the Classic, the proceeds of the event were donated to the Free Care Fund at Children’s Hospital for families who couldn’t afford health care.

Proceeds over the last 24 years have funded youth wrestling programs in under-served communities, via the Boys and Girls Club of Western Pa. Each year, two kids from the B&G Club wrestle an exhibition match.