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Finish Mode: Dylan Ross Sees Success in 2025-26 Season
2/11/2026 12:03:00 PM | Wrestling
DURHAM, N.C.-- In a match's final moments, Dylan Ross knows how to deliver. The redshirt freshman has been impressive in the 149-pound weight class for Duke this 2025-26 season, currently boasting a 14-8 overall record, 7-6 in dual matches, and 3-1 in the ACC. Ross snagged his third ACC win this past Friday, February 6, when he collected a takedown 32 seconds into sudden victory extra time during his exhilarating match against North Carolina's Nate Askew. His current commanding run shouldn't be a surprise, as Ross has proved that he knows how to finish when it matters the most throughout his wrestling career.
An Edgewater, New Jersey native, the sport of wrestling came into Ross' life at the ripe young age of five. His parents sought out an extracurricular for him to join after school while they were both still at work.
"Someone had told my dad that I should get into a sport. I look athletic when I run," said Ross. Â "Both my parents started looking at a recreational sports list of what was offered, and the only one I could actually go to was wrestling. I was five at the time. So, they signed me up for wrestling, and I fell in love with it right away and have stuck with it ever since."
Ross wrestled with Edgewater Recreational throughout his elementary and middle school years. While he didn't see many victories at first, his persistence eventually began to pay off.
"I went to probably five or six state qualifiers and lost the first match at every single one," Ross commented. "Eventually, one year in states, I won my qualifier and I actually ended up taking fourth. That was the year where – I think I was 12 – I thought okay, I could hang with these guys."
Chasing the highs of winning, Ross joined Bergen Area Dragons Wrestling, a local club team that he credits to elevating his performance on the mat.
"I would wrestle with top kids in the country and I would hang in there with them or even beat some of them at practice," said Ross. "That's what really brought me to the next level."
Come high school, the redshirt freshman desired to wrestle for Leonia High, his local public school. However, given the complications of the COVID-19 pandemic that 2020-21 school year, Leonia elected to entirely cancel its wrestling season despite public outcry and being the only high school in its county to do so. With his freshman wrestling season done before it could even start, Ross was faced with a decision.
"I decided that I wanted to wrestle that season," said Ross. "I transferred schools to Paramus Catholic, where I ended up staying for the rest of my four years, and wrestled there."
Ross' decision to transfer to Paramus Catholic proved to be the right one as he qualified for the New Jersey State Tournament as a freshman, placed eighth as a sophomore and junior, and completed his successful high school career with third place his senior season.
During that time, Ross began to set his sights on wrestling at the collegiate level. While his recruiting journey was unique in that he didn't wrestle year-round in club tournaments, Ross' high school accolades stood out to college coaches.
"I had a few schools reach out to me, and that's when I started to make some connections," reflected Ross. "I also decided I wanted to reach out to a few schools, so I talked to a bunch."
Yet none felt right to Ross until he got in touch with Duke. Our Blue Devil campus felt like home to the wrestler.
"While on campus, just seeing the culture - everyone's wearing Duke gear," said Ross. "They brought me to a Cameron game. The culture and atmosphere, the athletic environment, was just awesome to be at, and that's a big reason why I wanted to come here."
Ironically, Ross had a mutual Duke connection he didn't realize until he got in touch with Duke. Throughout high school, he privately trained with Valentin Kalika, a former wrestler from Ukraine who's now well known for his success coaching Team USA and Israel at the national and Olympic levels.
"He was actually the coach of Mitch Finesilver, Josh Finesilver and a bunch of the Finesilvers. I had no idea at the time that they went to Duke," admitted Ross. "I met them and I wrestled with them a few times, but I didn't make that connection until I really started reaching out to Duke and realized that those were Duke guys. So, I obviously saw some Duke success with just the people I was around."
Kalika's coaching was key in Ross' development, teaching him a unique style that wasn't common to American wrestling. Ross was intent to bring those skills to Durham and find his own success as a Blue Devil.
Upon arriving in Bull City, Ross and his fellow freshman teammates became great friends as they tackled their first year of college together. Most of his class, including Ross, elected to redshirt to focus on training during their rookie season.
"We got really close. Being on a sports team here builds bonds like no other," said Ross. "We got extremely close very fast because we were doing everything together, just spending all of our time together, because it's a big-time commitment - wrestling and eating dinner, practicing, homework, classes, rooming with each other."
Those friendships were especially important when Ross suffered a partial tear to his UCL that November during practice. While acquainted with injuries, Ross' recovery still proved a challenge as he sat out most of his true freshman season.
"It was pretty tough mentally. It's hard to stay motivated when you're not actually doing the sport you love," Ross remarked. "My relationship with the sport obviously wasn't as good as it is now, and it took a little bit to get back into it."
The 149-pound wrestler took his recovery seriously, determined to return to the mat without seeming like he'd ever missed a beat. That summer, Ross trained with renewed vigor while also coaching local kids on the side.
"I've been coaching them for a while now, since maybe 2022, but this summer I did a lot more than I did in the past. I was doing privates with kids and running group practices myself," said Ross.
"It's just doing more of what I love," said Ross. "I think I'm pretty good at it and being in the wrestling atmosphere is fun for me."
Ross carried that good energy into this season, earning a starting slot in the 149-pound weight class early on. He attributes his development to his work on improving his conditioning and even more so, his mental game.
"My biggest thing is I think I mentally hold myself back more than physically. I think my wrestling skills are all there," Ross remarked. "I just need to put it together and be able to mentally grind and push through positions that are hard, do things that are hard on myself mentally, train my mind to be better prepared in matches and be willing to push through those positions that I may not want to."
When practice gets tough, Ross' fellow Blue Devils have always been there to remind him to keep going.
"Especially our team captains, they keep everyone motivated and wanting to come back the next day to work hard," said Ross.Â
Ross has also been working closely with his new assistant coach, Codi Russell, on adding to his skillset as a lightweight wrestler. Head coach Glen Lanham has been a catalyst for Ross' development too.
"Lanham has been pushing me mentally when it comes to cardio," said Ross. "Just in general, he's in the room making sure I'm pushing hard and keep me mentally in check throughout the whole season."
"He's super talented and got the ability. He's definitely doing a great job in claiming that weight," Lanham commented on Ross' performance this season. "That was a weight that had a lot of depth and he's stepped out and put himself out there in front. It'd be nice to get him to the NCAA Tournament. He's definitely capable, talent-wise."
Ross' hard work on and off the mat is paying off and may do just that, with Ross currently garnering ACC wins over Stanford, Virginia and North Carolina opponents. His steady growth thus far will surely see him peaking at the moment it matters the most – postseason.
You can catch Ross and the rest of the Blue Devils back in action against NC State this Friday, February 13, at 7 p.m., in historic Cameron Indoor Stadium.
To stay up to date with Blue Devils wrestling, follow the team on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook by searching "DukeWRES".
#GoDuke
Â
An Edgewater, New Jersey native, the sport of wrestling came into Ross' life at the ripe young age of five. His parents sought out an extracurricular for him to join after school while they were both still at work.
"Someone had told my dad that I should get into a sport. I look athletic when I run," said Ross. Â "Both my parents started looking at a recreational sports list of what was offered, and the only one I could actually go to was wrestling. I was five at the time. So, they signed me up for wrestling, and I fell in love with it right away and have stuck with it ever since."
Ross wrestled with Edgewater Recreational throughout his elementary and middle school years. While he didn't see many victories at first, his persistence eventually began to pay off.
"I went to probably five or six state qualifiers and lost the first match at every single one," Ross commented. "Eventually, one year in states, I won my qualifier and I actually ended up taking fourth. That was the year where – I think I was 12 – I thought okay, I could hang with these guys."
Chasing the highs of winning, Ross joined Bergen Area Dragons Wrestling, a local club team that he credits to elevating his performance on the mat.
"I would wrestle with top kids in the country and I would hang in there with them or even beat some of them at practice," said Ross. "That's what really brought me to the next level."
Come high school, the redshirt freshman desired to wrestle for Leonia High, his local public school. However, given the complications of the COVID-19 pandemic that 2020-21 school year, Leonia elected to entirely cancel its wrestling season despite public outcry and being the only high school in its county to do so. With his freshman wrestling season done before it could even start, Ross was faced with a decision.
"I decided that I wanted to wrestle that season," said Ross. "I transferred schools to Paramus Catholic, where I ended up staying for the rest of my four years, and wrestled there."
Ross' decision to transfer to Paramus Catholic proved to be the right one as he qualified for the New Jersey State Tournament as a freshman, placed eighth as a sophomore and junior, and completed his successful high school career with third place his senior season.
During that time, Ross began to set his sights on wrestling at the collegiate level. While his recruiting journey was unique in that he didn't wrestle year-round in club tournaments, Ross' high school accolades stood out to college coaches.
"I had a few schools reach out to me, and that's when I started to make some connections," reflected Ross. "I also decided I wanted to reach out to a few schools, so I talked to a bunch."
Yet none felt right to Ross until he got in touch with Duke. Our Blue Devil campus felt like home to the wrestler.
"While on campus, just seeing the culture - everyone's wearing Duke gear," said Ross. "They brought me to a Cameron game. The culture and atmosphere, the athletic environment, was just awesome to be at, and that's a big reason why I wanted to come here."
Ironically, Ross had a mutual Duke connection he didn't realize until he got in touch with Duke. Throughout high school, he privately trained with Valentin Kalika, a former wrestler from Ukraine who's now well known for his success coaching Team USA and Israel at the national and Olympic levels.
"He was actually the coach of Mitch Finesilver, Josh Finesilver and a bunch of the Finesilvers. I had no idea at the time that they went to Duke," admitted Ross. "I met them and I wrestled with them a few times, but I didn't make that connection until I really started reaching out to Duke and realized that those were Duke guys. So, I obviously saw some Duke success with just the people I was around."
Kalika's coaching was key in Ross' development, teaching him a unique style that wasn't common to American wrestling. Ross was intent to bring those skills to Durham and find his own success as a Blue Devil.
Upon arriving in Bull City, Ross and his fellow freshman teammates became great friends as they tackled their first year of college together. Most of his class, including Ross, elected to redshirt to focus on training during their rookie season.
"We got really close. Being on a sports team here builds bonds like no other," said Ross. "We got extremely close very fast because we were doing everything together, just spending all of our time together, because it's a big-time commitment - wrestling and eating dinner, practicing, homework, classes, rooming with each other."
Those friendships were especially important when Ross suffered a partial tear to his UCL that November during practice. While acquainted with injuries, Ross' recovery still proved a challenge as he sat out most of his true freshman season.
"It was pretty tough mentally. It's hard to stay motivated when you're not actually doing the sport you love," Ross remarked. "My relationship with the sport obviously wasn't as good as it is now, and it took a little bit to get back into it."
The 149-pound wrestler took his recovery seriously, determined to return to the mat without seeming like he'd ever missed a beat. That summer, Ross trained with renewed vigor while also coaching local kids on the side.
"I've been coaching them for a while now, since maybe 2022, but this summer I did a lot more than I did in the past. I was doing privates with kids and running group practices myself," said Ross.
"It's just doing more of what I love," said Ross. "I think I'm pretty good at it and being in the wrestling atmosphere is fun for me."
Ross carried that good energy into this season, earning a starting slot in the 149-pound weight class early on. He attributes his development to his work on improving his conditioning and even more so, his mental game.
"My biggest thing is I think I mentally hold myself back more than physically. I think my wrestling skills are all there," Ross remarked. "I just need to put it together and be able to mentally grind and push through positions that are hard, do things that are hard on myself mentally, train my mind to be better prepared in matches and be willing to push through those positions that I may not want to."
When practice gets tough, Ross' fellow Blue Devils have always been there to remind him to keep going.
"Especially our team captains, they keep everyone motivated and wanting to come back the next day to work hard," said Ross.Â
Ross has also been working closely with his new assistant coach, Codi Russell, on adding to his skillset as a lightweight wrestler. Head coach Glen Lanham has been a catalyst for Ross' development too.
"Lanham has been pushing me mentally when it comes to cardio," said Ross. "Just in general, he's in the room making sure I'm pushing hard and keep me mentally in check throughout the whole season."
"He's super talented and got the ability. He's definitely doing a great job in claiming that weight," Lanham commented on Ross' performance this season. "That was a weight that had a lot of depth and he's stepped out and put himself out there in front. It'd be nice to get him to the NCAA Tournament. He's definitely capable, talent-wise."
Ross' hard work on and off the mat is paying off and may do just that, with Ross currently garnering ACC wins over Stanford, Virginia and North Carolina opponents. His steady growth thus far will surely see him peaking at the moment it matters the most – postseason.
You can catch Ross and the rest of the Blue Devils back in action against NC State this Friday, February 13, at 7 p.m., in historic Cameron Indoor Stadium.
To stay up to date with Blue Devils wrestling, follow the team on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook by searching "DukeWRES".
#GoDuke
Â
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