Save the ruby slippers, but the fact remains — there’s no place like home.
When Aurora’s Dylan Fishback graduated high school in 2022, he left for NC State ready to take a huge leap in college wrestling.
Armed with a national title, state championship, Ironman crown and top 10 pound-for-pound ranking, Fishback was ready.
He had great success with the Wolfpack as a two-time ACC runner-up and national qualifier.
But something kept calling home.
It culminated last May when the 23-year-old entered the transfer portal and landed at Ohio State.
Why Dylan Fishback transferred to Ohio State
“I was just reflecting on it, and it was, like, I almost wish I had more time with the team here,” Fishback said. “It’s building relationships with people on the team. Next year, I definitely I think it’s going to be a little different team. A couple of older leaders are going to be gone. Hopefully, I’ll be able to step in more of a leadership role next year. I think it could be really cool to grow new relationships with guys on the team.”
The redshirt junior has gained fans with every match he wrestles.
As fate would have it, Fishback is running into some of the same wrestlers he faced in high school with drill partners like Luke Geog of St. Edward and Seth Shumate of Dublin Coffman.
Add wrestlers like two-time national champion Jesse Mendez in the room and the atmosphere in the Covelli Center is always on point whether it’s practice or a match.
“Having home duals in Ohio is really cool because it’s like there’s a big community here,” Fishback said. “Having people from my hometown come to watch me wrestle and being able to go back home whenever I want, it makes you realize how much you take it for granted.”
The chance to come home to Cleveland draws Dylan Fishback
Fishback enters the Big Ten Championships on March 7-8 with a record of 15-6 at 184 pounds.
Four of those losses came in overtime and another came against top-ranked Rocco Welsh of Penn State after Fishback had the lead with 15 seconds left before losing 7-6.
“Dylan has been an absolute blessing to have in our program,” Ohio State coach Tom Ryan said. “He has a great work ethic. He loves the sport and is a proud Buckeye. I would not trade him for anybody. He is the type of man that we want wearing scarlet and grey. We’re grateful that he believed in our staff and came home.”
Fishback will truly come home March 19-21 at the NCAA Championships in Cleveland if all goes as planned.
Last season, the NCAA allocated eight spots at 184 to the Big Ten, and that would put Fishback securely in the mix to head to Rocket Arena in a month.
The third time is the charm, and Fishback is more than ready to show out in front of those who have backed him since his days as a youth wrestler.
“I’m excited for this last five- to six-week stretch,” he said. “Obviously for me, being from the area is really cool, but I think being a part of Ohio State and knowing that it’s in state and we’re going to have a huge fan base is great. I think our team — I wouldn’t say is going to surprise people because we’ve put ourselves on the map — is definitely going to make some noise in Cleveland.”
Brad Bournival can be reached by email at bbournival@usatodayco.com and is on X at @bbournival.
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Wrestler Dylan Fishback finds success and a homecoming at Ohio State
Reporting by Brad Bournival, Akron Beacon Journal / Akron Beacon Journal
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
