Dan Glenn

2026 Iowa Wrestling Hall of Fame Inductee

Dan Glenn, a native of Fairfield, Iowa, built an elite wrestling career that spanned high school and collegiate competition while demonstrating sustained commitment to the sport through coaching and service. During his high school career, Glenn earned three state tournament placements at the Iowa high school wrestling championships: fifth place at 98 pounds in 1974, second place at 98 pounds in 1975, and fifth place at 112 pounds in 1976. He also secured freestyle titles, winning the 1975 USWF Junior National Championship at 105.5 pounds, the 1976 USWF Junior National Championship at 114.5 pounds, and the 1976 USWF Central States Junior Championship at 114.5 pounds.

Glenn continued his wrestling career at the University of Iowa, while earning a B.A. in General Science in 1981. Competing primarily at 118 pounds, he achieved three Big Ten Conference championships in 1978, 1979, and 1980 while placing third in 1977. He earned 3rd place at the NCAA Championships in both 1978 and 1979, and finished as the National Runner-up in 1980, earning three NCAA All-American honors. Additional collegiate accomplishments included fourth place at the 1976 and 1978 Midlands Tournament, second place in 1979 and 1981, and was the Midlands Tournament champion in 1980 at 118 pounds. In 1980 he received the distinguished Big Ten Medal of Honor. Internationally, Glenn won the 1981 New Zealand Summer Games Championship at 57kg, the 1981 Canada Cup, and placed second at the 1981 AAU Senior Nationals at 52kg.

Following graduation, Glenn was commissioned in the United States Navy in 1982. From 1985 to 1988, he served as a Lieutenant in the Dental Corps at the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, where he also served as an assistant wrestling coach for the Midshipmen. Glenn was also an assistant coach at Iowa City Regina Junior High School from 1983 to 1984 and at Iowa City Regina High School from 1984 to 1985. Later in his career, he returned to coaching as an assistant at Simley High School in Inver Grove Heights, Minnesota, from 2006 to 2012.

Glenn pursued a career in dentistry alongside his athletic and coaching endeavors. He earned a Doctor of Dental Surgery degree from the University of Iowa College of Dentistry in 1985. He then completed a Master of Science in Pediatric Dentistry and a Certificate of Specialty in Pediatric Dentistry at Ohio State University College of Dentistry in 1990. From 1990 to 2022, he served as President and Pediatric Dentist at Dakota Children’s Dentistry in Inver Grove Heights, Minnesota. He maintained professional staff privileges at Children’s Hospital in St. Paul, Minnesota, from 1991 to 2022 and contributed to the Cleft Palate Team at that hospital from 2000 to 2016.

Dan Glenn was inducted into the 2026 Iowa Wrestling Hall of Fame with Jon McGovern, Matt McDonough, Phil Henning and Mike Finn.