Doug Schwab

IRVING, Tex. — Northern Iowa head wrestling coach Doug Schwab has been named the Big 12 Conference Wrestling Coach of the Year, as announced by the league office on Friday.

Schwab, who last week was named the National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA) National Coach of the Week, earns the honor for the second time in his career after previously being recognized in 2020.

UNI posted a 14-1 record in dual meets this season, its most wins since the 1990-91 season with six wins over ranked opponents in South Dakota State (twice), Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma, West Virginia and Iowa State. The Panthers were also ranked fourth in the nation at one point, their highest mark since 1988.

Northern Iowa crowned three Big 12 Conference champions in Cael Happel (141 pounds), Parker Keckeisen (184) and Wyatt Voelker (197), coaching the Panthers to a second-place team finish, tying the program’s highest ever conference tournament finish since joining the league in 2017-18 and coming just four points shy of a team title.

For the first time since 1986, the Panthers qualified for the NCAA Championships in all 10 weight classes with nine automatic qualifiers and one at-large selection. Both Happel and Keckeisen earned All-American honors with Happel finishing in fifth place and Keckeisen as national runner-up, extending the program’s streak of having at least one All-American to ten consecutive seasons and having multiple contested All-Americans for the first time since 2017.