Gable Steveson Loses in Massive National Championship Upset

There are few Minnesota Gophers legends that rival the level of buzz that Gable Steveson has generated. He returned to The U this season with an eye on extending his otherwise prolific wrestling career.

The Minnesota Gophers have had plenty of talented wrestlers come through the storied program. Few have won an Olympic gold medal, been involved with the NFL, and taken the ring for WWE fans like Steveson.

Gable Steveson did not need to return for the Minnesota Gophers, but he did looking to advance his legacy. On Saturday night the unexplainable happened.

Shocking upset dethrones Minnesota Gophers Gable Steveson

Gable Steveson wrestled as a senior during the 2021-22 season. He then took time off to pursue an insane amount of different avenues. Steveson surfaced with the Miami Dolphins, and signed with the Buffalo Bills. He worked for Triple-H. He then came back to where it all started.

This season Steveson went 18-0 for Minnesota, but it all fell apart at the most crucial moment. With a national championship title on the line, Steveson went down.

Wyatt Hendrickson with the takedown in the 3rd to pull off the upset and defeat Gable Steveson to win the heavyweight title #NCAAWrestling #wrestling pic.twitter.com/YxrltBqq4u

— Danielle Hobeika (@DanielleHobeika) March 23, 2025

Oklahoma State’s Wyatt Hendrickson took Gable Steveson down in the third to pull off an insane upset. The Gophers superstar was -1300 to win the match (Hendrickson +900), and even current US president Donald Trump was front row to see it happen.

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This is the sort of upset that movies get written about. Think Miracle, Cool Runnings, even Rocky. Steveson is not only a Gophers legend, but he has compiled a career of accolades we are unlikely to ever see repeated again in collegiate sports.

It’s an unfortunate way for Steveson to leave the collegiate ranks. Still, he has a pair of national championships to his credit, and it’s likely he’ll add another Olympic medal to his resume at some point as well. March Madness upsets were supposed to dominate the weekend, but this was the one every Gophers fan is talking about.