More than a wrestler, Deshon Alexander is like a coach to his Overbrook teammates

More than his skill or hulking size, Deshon Alexander’s passion stands out.

During dual meets, Alexander is in teammates' faces, hyping them up before bouts.

He’s the first to put his arm around someone after a loss. And he doesn’t offer just empty words. He’s breaking down the match, telling them how to win the next one, how they can elevate themselves as wrestlers. He’s speaking from experience.

Alexander takes pride in his Overbrook wrestling team, and, like a coach, he takes a bit of ownership for the team’s well-being and success.

“Losing — I take that personally,” Alexander said. Yes, Alexander does have a certain natural ability that has placed him among the top heavyweight wrestlers in New Jersey.

But the senior’s rise, which has been steady since his high school career started, is likely owed even more to his mindset and his passion for winning.

“I push myself. I push others around me. I know that it just takes dedication,” said Alexander, who was 23-0 this season, heading into a match against Collingswood on Wednesday night. His victories include a big win over fellow highly touted heavyweight, Jeff Jordan of Audubon, on Jan. 23.

Alexander entered this season on the heels of his first-ever state tournament appearance as a junior.

By all estimations, his junior season was a success. It was the culmination of years of work. Alexander didn’t start his high school career as a highly touted wrestler and wasn’t even on most radars until last year, when he finished 28-9.

But Alexander doesn’t sound satisfied. And the fact that he was undefeated through 20 matches didn’t shock him.

“I worked for this,” he said. “This is where I wanted to be. This is my last year. I’m giving it my all.”

He’s also carrying with him some valuable lessons from last year’s trip to Atlantic City, where he dropped both bouts he wrestled.

“You have to be prepared for the fact that there’s going to be people out there better than you. It’s going to happen,” Alexander said. “Some people might be be stronger than you. But you can’t let them outwork you. As long as you push yourself to new limits and you pass those limits, there should be nothing stopping you.”

Alexander has been wrestling only since seventh grade, and he still has a few vivid memories from that season.

“Honestly,” he said, “I lost every match that season.”

Losing is initially what made him go even harder in the sport. He hated it so much that it made him work harder. And somewhere along the way, he fell in love with wrestling. He also plays football in the fall and track and field in the spring, but there’s something about the wrestling — being on the mat, with all eyes on him — that drew him in.

“There’s nothing like it,” he said.

His passion fuels a work ethic that coach Mark Maloney said has been huge for his team.

“He cares about this team. He’s all about the team. That’s one of the things I love most about him,” Maloney said. “He’s determined. His confidence is way up. He has the experience, and the sky is the limit for him.”

One of the wrestlers Alexander is mentoring this year is his own brother, Alijah, a freshman wrestling at 220 pounds for Overbrook.

Alexander laughs when he talks about the way he “kind of forced” his brother to first take up wrestling. But Alijah appears to have caught the bug himself and is already wrestling varsity matches.

Deshon Alexander said it’s a source of pride to watch his younger brother makes strides as a wrestler. And he’s happy to mentor him, to offer those same words of wisdom he’ll be leaning on as he tries to take his own career to new heights in his final high school season.

“You have to hate losing,” he said. “And just don’t give up. Like never, ever give up. Even when you think you can’t give anymore, you have to believe that you still have more to give.”