Chris Bono, who built the South Dakota State University wrestling program to national prominence, stepped down Saturday to accept the head coaching position at the University of Wisconsin.
“First of all, I want to thank (SDSU Director of Athletics) Justin Sell. He brought me back to coaching and gave us everything we needed to be successful. For what he did I will be forever grateful,” Bono said. “I also want to thank the fans for all their support. SDSU and the community of Brookings is a very special place.”
In his six seasons at SDSU, Bono coached 24 NCAA qualifiers and five All-Americans. He also led the Jackrabbits to a 64-41 dual record that included four consecutive winning seasons and a 22-3 mark against Big 12 Conference foes since joining the league at the start of the 2015-16 season. SDSU was a fixture in the national rankings each of the last three seasons, rising to as high as No. 12 this past season.