1984 Assistant coach Jim Cox knew Dick Briggs was destined to leave his post at Washington. Briggs had resurrected the Washington program and he knew he would have a strong Warrior team returning in 1984. Jim convinced Dick to sit down and write a list of all the pluses and minuses of making the move. Cox was sure the time was right for “Briggsie” to lateral home, donning the blue and white again. Cox’s promise of a used lawnmower tipped the scale to the westside and Dick gladly made the return move. Seniors Dan Denlinger-132 and Jeff Knox-155 qualified for the state tournament but once there, neither could win a match and for the second year in a row no medals returned home with the J-Hawks. Yet, there was reason for optimism with an 8-3 dual record (best since 1975) and a sophomore team that won the MVC crown poised to return. Briggs would push off-season lifting, expand freestyle wrestling, and promote multiple-sport athletes as a new era of high expectations began.

1985 The message got through and the medal drought lifted in 1985. Briggs enjoyed his first Jefferson state finalist as senior Darrell Long (2nd at 167 lbs) and junior Scott Mihal (4th at 112 lbs) paced six Jeff qualifiers on the mats in Des Moines. Kelly Mihal-105, John Anderson-119, Richard Neese-126, and Brian Bos-155 all made the trip but fell short of medals. A dual record of 9-3 produced the MVC title as four wrestlers topped the elusive twenty-win mark. Fifteen varsity tournament champions were crowned in an era when the schedule only allowed for five Saturday competitions. Two side notes: The Mihal brothers are nephews of Rich Mihal and 1985 was the first year Jim Cox used a Mac computer (no typewriter) to produce the season statistics and reflection banquet booklet.

1986 A new concept called the “technical fall” was instituted in Iowa high school wrestling as the new season began. At Jefferson career-ending injuries to key seniors Scott Mihal and Dean Spicer led a parade of mishaps that produced a 6-6 dual season. Mihal separated his shoulder in the first meet of the year but returned for the J-Hawk Invitational to defeat the eventual state champion at his weight 12-5. He would later reinjure the shoulder and miss out on a return to Des Moines. Spicer, who missed his entire junior year with a broken leg, made a solid return and defeated the eventual state runner-up before being sidelined the week of the district tournament with blood poisoning. It was 155 lb senior Paul Arthurs who proved to be the consistent bright spot all season. He finished with a twenty-nine-win season and a fifth place medal from the state tournament. Senior Mark Hartman moved up from 189 to heavyweight to qualify for state, as did 126 lb junior Greg Garman.