Iowa State wrestling coach Kevin Jackson stepping down at the end of the season

AMES - Amid a disappointing 1-9 dual season and speculation about his job status, Iowa State wrestling coach Kevin Jackson will step down at the end of the season, the school announced Tuesday.

Jackson is expected to assume an administrative role with the ISU athletics department, per a release. At the end of this season, Jackson will have completed eight years as the Cyclones coach with a 68-54 dual record.

'As for the future of the program, it's time for someone else to take the reins,” Jackson said in a release. 'When I came back to Iowa State as head coach, I had very high goals for the program and we simply haven't achieved those goals.

'I'm very grateful for the opportunities that Iowa State has provided me as both a student-athlete and as the head coach for the last eight years.”

Jackson's coaching contract has one year left on it, and ISU athletics director Jamie Pollard told Jackson 'he will explore potential roles on campus or in the athletics department beyond his current contract's end,” per the release.

'Kevin has worked tirelessly at Iowa State to develop a first-rate program on and off the mat and we are appreciative of those efforts,” Pollard said in the release. 'He is a man of great integrity, a terrific ambassador for the Cyclones and a talented coach but we agreed that our program isn't performing at the level we expect.

'I truly appreciate the way Kevin has handled this situation by putting his student-athletes and Iowa State University first. His decision to step away from coaching at the end of the season is a great example of his selfless leadership.”

Iowa State is fresh off a 34-3 loss to No. 1 Oklahoma State - the largest margin of defeat in a home dual in ISU wrestling history. The Cyclones also have losses to North Dakota State, South Dakota State and Northern Iowa, with their lone win coming at Northern Colorado, 19-16 on Nov. 26.

Two weeks ago on the ISU sports call-in show, Pollard was asked about the state of the wrestling program and said, 'We need to get better, and it hasn't been where we like it to be. The coaches know that and the wrestlers know that. In the end, if that doesn't change, then we'll have to get somebody else another shot at it.”

Days after the loss to Northern Iowa, Jackson said in a news conference he recognized, 'Jamie's got a job to do.”

Jackson coached four NCAA champions, but two in the last seven years - Jon Reader (2011) and Kyven Gadson (2015). His first ISU team finished third at the NCAA Championships, but never higher than 11th in the last seven years. Jackson also coached 14 All-Americans and nine Big 12 champions during his tenure.

Jackson was an NCAA runner-up at Iowa State in 1987, and was part of the last ISU wrestling national championship team. He is a former Olympic Gold Medalist (1992) and World Champion (1991 and 1995). He is also a member of the ISU Athletics Hall of Fame and was a National Freestyle Coach for USA Wrestling (2001-08).

'Iowa State has a great wrestling tradition and everyone involved with the program has very high expectations,” Jackson said in the release. 'We have not consistently met those expectations recently which has been disappointing to me, my staff, our current and former wrestlers, the wrestling donors and our fans.

'I feel that a number of wrestlers on our team have the potential for strong tournament runs and making this announcement now relieves some pressures and uncertainties for our current student-athletes as well as for incoming recruits.”