All-Around Champion: Devon O'Farrell, Sioux Falls Washington

by Kolbe Nelson
February 27, 2012 6:30 PM


At the state 'A' wrestling tournament in Aberdeen this past weekend, Sioux Falls Washington's Devon O'Farrell got some pretty simple advice from his coach before his 220 pound championship match.

"You just tell somebody like that, 'Get it done, get after it, finish it.'" Washington Head Coach Marc Murren said.

And that's exactly what he did.

O'Farrell picked up a 6-4 victory over Huron's Matt Halter, earning the title he'd wanted for years.

"It's crazy man," O'Farrell said, "It's everything I've worked for. Ever since I was three years old and started off wrestling, the big dream is to come to the state tournament and win that title and it's nice to be able to do that at the end of my senior year."

In O'Farrell's mind there was never really a doubt.

"There was nobody here that wanted it more than me," O'Farrell said, "I promise you. Nobody."

O'Farrell has been the rock behind the Washington wrestling program for quite a while.

"I can't say enough about what he's done for our team and for our kids and for our school," Murren said, "Devon's just an all-around champion, he's not just a wrestling champion. He's just a good kid, the kind of kid that you'd like to have represent your school and he's just done an outstanding job."

Next fall he'll move on and represent the USD Coyotes on the football field after a standout high school career as a linebacker. With O'Farrell going to USD only to play football, he admits it will be a little strange not doing the sport he's loved for so long.

"It's weird." O'Farrell said, "Even going from a black and orange jersey to a red and white jersey, and going to no singlet at all? It's weird to think about. I've been in this sport since I was three years old and it's going to be hard to leave behind, but I'll still keep up to date with it and watch the Warriors wrestle."

And the Warriors will surely be keeping an eye on the Coyote linebacking corp as O'Farrell works to get it done on the gridiron.

Follow KDLT Sports at @KDLTSports and KDLT Weekend Sports Anchor Kolbe Nelson at @KolbeNelson for opinions, links, and updates on Twitter. And don't forget to check out the KDLT Sports Facebook Page