Even though he's gone, Dawson Hogan will leave a legacy on the Salina Central wrestling team.
Hogan died March 14 in a multicar collision on Interstate 70 on his way home to Salina from school at Fort Hays State Tech in Goodland. He will be missed by wrestling teammates, and opponents alike.
Assistant coach Richard Brake said Hogan's death has surfaced memories of the good that came from him.
"You know the old saying, you don't really know what you have till it's gone," Brake said, "and once we found out he was gone, we would start reflecting on these things."
According to his obituary on Koons-Russell Funeral Home, Hogan was on his way home to spend spring break with his family, parents Dana Bonilla Hogan and Steve Hogan, and siblings Sidney Hogan, Jasmine and Selena Merrell; Dakota and Chance Hogan; and Braxton and Kenzie Talley.
A leader, a friend and a brother to his teammates
With 105 victories, Hogan ranks 13th overall in Mustang wrestling wins. Even with this success, his teammates and coaches will remember him for his quiet leadership.
"He was a great person," said Abram Owings, a junior at Central. "I loved him. He took me under his wing, and I was kind of like a little brother to him."
Owings was wrestling partners with Hogan, meaning the two spent a lot of time training together during practice and were about as close as teammates could be.
"Now that he's gone, it's just heartbreaking," Owings said.
Tyrus Young, a senior at Central, said he started getting getting to know Hogan more after about a year being on the team.
"My sophomore year, he was a senior and I got close with him, and we started hanging out outside of wrestling," Young said. "He was just a great person all around. Anybody could come up and talk to him."
Hogan was a captain his senior year on the wrestling team, and Brake said his leadership was different than some.
"He was what I would call a quiet leader," Brake said. "A lot of his leadership came from example. He was there to talk to and I just admired his mental toughness. I honestly think that's what helped him to the next level."
Brake said even though there may have been people and wrestlers with more talent than Hogan, this mentality led him succeed beyond high school, taking his talents and joining the Fort Hays State Tech wrestling team in Goodland.
"He was about to graduate tech school and going to be an electrician," Young said.
According to a Facebook post from Fort Hays State Tech Northwest, Hogan was nominated for the National Technical Honor Society and was on track to get his journeyman license, graduate and join the electrical industry later this year.
