Whitefish Bay star looks to repeat
Dajun Johnson has never lacked the quick feet, the strength, the instincts or the natural ability that have all helped shape him into an elite wrestler.
But you don't get to where the Whitefish Bay senior is, being a defending state champion, the state's top-ranked grappler at 170 pounds and No. 9 in the nation, on talent alone.
“One of Dajun's strengths is his mental preparation,” head coach Neil Pope said. “He will set a goal in his mind, lock in on that and, when he gets it, he moves on to the next thing and then that's what motivates him.”
His freshman year at state, he made what he dubs “a silly mistake” in his first match. After gaining an early lead, he cut his opponent to lose two points and later rolled to his back while in a half nelson to set up an easy pin.
“After that, I was like, ‘I'm not going to go back there and make another mistake,'” Johnson said. “So I started working harder.”
The next year, he followed through and placed third. That's when his father, Demitree, locked it in Dajun's mind that he could win a state title as a junior.
Johnson did just that, not losing a match all year, and earned a national ranking in the process.
Now a senior, Johnson doesn't want to lose that status as one of the nation's best. That's on his mind as the WIAA individual state tournament begins Thursday.
“Ever since sixth grade, I wanted to be one of the best in the country,” Johnson said. “So now that I achieved it, I don't want to lose.”
A knack for wrestling
Johnson, relatively speaking, got a late start in wrestling.
He started playing football, his first love, at the age of six and was a shifty, natural athlete at running back. In sixth grade, one of his gym teachers at Glen Hills Middle School took notice of Johnson's athleticism.
That teacher was Gus Kaufman, also the varsity wrestling head coach for Nicolet.
“He was telling me, ‘Dude, you're a good athlete, try out wrestling, you might be good,'” Johnson said.
Turns out Kaufman was actually selling his ability short.
Johnson qualified for the state meets in both sixth and seventh grade, but the other wrestlers at that level had the advantage of multiple-year head starts in the sport. After that, he started honing in on wrestling by training at Askren Wrestling Academy with well-established coaches Ben and Max Askren.
“I was a big football guy, but then I started to fall in love with it, because it was a sport where there's no one else you can put the blame on if you mess up,” Johnson said. “Then with Askren, that really got me to where I am now.”
Wrestling with confidence
Johnson's personality comes out when he takes the mat, with both his contagious energy and overarching confidence visible to anyone watching.
“He wrestles with a swagger that is definitely reflective of who he is,” Pope said. “He has a personality that says, ‘I'm confident and I don't mind people knowing that.' And at the same time he has a lot of fun out there. That's pretty much exactly the way he is when he's not wrestling, too.”
Johnson's passion was on display following last year's state semifinal, which he won, 4-3, on a last-second take down. After time expired, Johnson was visibly holding himself back from fully celebrating on the mat, as to avoid any possible unsportsmanlike penalties. The very moment he got done shaking hands, though, he bolted toward the Kohl Center tunnels, gleefully hollering the whole way.
“That was one of the best, most exciting moments of my life and I just had to hold back the emotions for like ten seconds,” Johnson said with a laugh.
One of Johnson's primary focuses when he's wrestling is to be the aggressor.
“I get myself to the same point when I'm warming up every time so that I can be aggressive,” Johnson said. “I've been really taking a more aggressive role in coming at guys and shooting and trying to be on offense.”
Keeping up with that type of pace and physicality for six full minutes is a challenge none in the state have matched for nearly two years.
“On the athletic side, he's ready for this, these high school boys at this point,” Pope said.
It takes consistent mental fortitude to win nearly 80 consecutive matches, but Johnson is able to maintain that laser focus without getting worked up.
“A feather in his cap is that he doesn't stress out over these big matches,” Pope said. “If anything, he relishes them. Whereas some wrestlers can get psyched out or let the moment become bigger than them, he hasn't shown that he's susceptible to that. He steps up to the big stage.”