Mount Vernon's Danial Osburn routinely wrestles opponents 50 pounds heavier than him

Making adjustments is Danial Osburn’s game.

Like last January, when the Mount Vernon junior came out of the stands to wrestle a Lynnwood opponent he wasn’t scheduled to face. Osburn stripped off his clothes right near the mat, borrowed a singlet, headgear and wrestling shoes before getting a first-round pin against his opponent, whom Lynnwood had moved from the 215-pound weight class to Osburn’s heavyweight class.

“We originally had a JV kid go out there to get some experience,” recalls Osburn, now a senior. “But after the switch, I came down and changed. For a while, I was standing there in my underwear.”

After going on to place seventh at the Class 3A Mat Classic XIX last year, Osburn will once again be tested in the 285-pound weight class this year — a class in which he sees some of the largest high school athletes in the state.

Unlike lower- or middle-weight classes, heavyweights see a little of everything. Opponents vary from 220 pounds on the low side up to about 285 pounds, so Osburn could be staring down either side of that range during any given match.

To counter the size of many of his opponents, the senior uses strength and quickness. At 230 pounds, Osburn said he thinks it’s better to be a little lighter than his competition on the mat.

“With the lower classes, guys are pretty much equal (in size),” Osburn said. “With me, I see big guys who try to sit on me.”

Although Osburn faces athletes who are sometimes stronger and oftentimes larger than him (the two aren’t necessarily the same), coach Rex Febus said he simply hates to lose. His toughness and dedication to the mat make the senior a difficult matchup for any rival heavyweight.

“He’s facing guys that are 55 pounds bigger than him sometimes. What it takes, he’s got,” Febus said.

Last season, Osburn came into wrestling season with a dislocated thumb, but that didn’t stop him from collecting 23 pins en route to his state appearance.

His toughness spills into other areas of his life, too. The senior also works on the railroads when he’s not pinning opponents.

“Some kids are raised with a Nintendo controller,” Febus said. “Danial was raised moving railroad ties.”

Always being one of the heavier wrestlers since he began the sport in the seventh grade, Osburn uses his skills on both the mat and the football field. The All-Conference defensive lineman for the Bulldogs’ football team said the two sports have a lot in common.

“Being a lineman and being a heavyweight wrestler are basically the same,” Osburn said. “Both sports are just pushing each other into different positions.”

Osburn has had success in both sports throughout his career. During the fall he helped the Bulldogs win five of their last seven games. During two close losses to an undefeated Ferndale squad, the Mount Vernon defense limited Ferndale to only 27 total points. The team made the Class 3A state tournament, only to be eliminated in the first round by the Golden Eagles.

In wrestling, Osburn has only lost two matches this season. He had three pins during a triple dual meet against Squalicum JV, Meridian and Lynden Dec. 28 and won the heavyweight division at the Mount Vernon’s annual Paul Reiman Tournament Dec. 15.

On Friday, Osburn got a pin shortly after his match began against Squalicum. The match highlighted Osburn’s more technical style, unlike last year when he was more of a brawler, Febus said.

“He wrestled like a state champ (against Squalicum),” Febus said. “He had correct technique and just did basic stuff, but to win at the high levels you have to do the basic stuff well.”

Osburn said he’s aiming for a state title this season after getting a taste of what the tournament was like last year. After being pinned in his first state match against Eastmont’s Nick Gale — who finished third at state — Osburn climbed up through the consolation bracket, winning an 11-1 decision against Port Angeles’ John Camp and pinning Mount Spokane’s Joe Lindsey before losing to Auburn’s Sean Harvey.

Five of the six competitors who placed higher than Osburn were seniors. Now in his senior year himself, Osburn said he knows what to expect once he gets back.

“It was one of the best experiences of my life last year,” Osburn said. “During my first match I was shaking. They had 32 mats set up in the (Tacoma Dome) and everybody was watching.

“You get winded really quick, but after your first couple of matches, it doesn’t bother you.”