I have to agree here. Jeff Boyle was absolutely incredible. A tremendous balance of speed, strength and technique. People who had to suit up against him indicated his grip was like being caught in a bench vise. He was reportedly benching well over 500 while at Wyoming. He wrestled more like a 155 pounder than 275 pounder. Always on the offensive. If he got in on a single leg you had two options, give him a takedown or have your leg ripped off - because he was not going to let go. Escaping from the bottom position was pretty much impossible. And trying to break his pinning combination, well 28 matches, 28 takedowns, 28 falls tells you all you need to know.

He was listed as the top recruit in the nation after his senior year by every major wrestling publication. He did not wrestle in HS Senior Nationals because the Dapper Dan extended him an invitation - and he became one of the few Kansans ever to win a match in that prestigous event.

College coaches were speculating that National Champion Stephen Neal of Cal-State Bakersfield was the only NCAA DI heavyweight that could beat him. The hype around Jeff Boyle was every bit as big as that experienced by Steven Mocco last year or Tommy Rowlands a couple of years ago.

Coach Westphal, with all due respect, had you seen him you would have known he was the real deal. Most of the coaches who did see him and had to wrestle against him sure felt he was that good - and keep in mind that some of these coaches (Gabel, Baker, Samuelson, Lippelman, ......) have been around the NWKL as wrestlers, coaches and fans for the past 30 - 40 years.

In my opinion, Jeff Boyle was without a doubt the best heavyweight in the state's illustrious history and I would also have to give him the nod as one of the state's best ever - at any weight class. He was that good.