HERMISTON — The Larson family is synonymous with Hermiston wrestling. While Jeremy, Kyle and Randy Larson helped build the foundation of the program more than 20 years ago, the second generation of Larson wrestlers is keeping the legacy alive.

Jeremy’s sons Ben and Hayden, and Kyle’s son Aidan have all punched their ticket to the 3A state wrestling tournament that starts Friday, Feb. 16, at the Tacoma Dome.

“It’s awesome,” said Hermiston coach Kyle Larson, who was hired in 2015 to coach his alma mater. “Just to be able to coach my nephews — Ben for four years, and Hayden for two — is special. It’s even more special to coach my own son. One of my goals when Aidan got to high school was we were good enough to win and he could be successful.”

Adding to the legacy is Harry Larson, who was an assistant coach at Hermiston when his sons Jeremy, Kyle and Randy wrestled. Now, he enjoys watching his grandsons on the mat.

“It’s awesome they are following through with the Larson legacy,” Harry said of his grandsons. “We have been a wrestling family since they were little. We decided that was what we were going to do. The reason why the grandkids are successful is because their dads are successful. It’s a humbling sport.”

The youth movement

Ben, a senior, is headed to his third state tournament. His sophomore year, he made it to the semifinals before losing to the eventual state champion. He finished fifth at 160 pounds.

Last year, he bumped up to 170, where he reached the quarterfinals before losing to the eventual state champion. He finished fifth once again.

This year, Ben will wrestle at 165, and has a bye into the second round. He has a 35-7 record heading into state.

“State wrestling is always tough,” he said. “There are always good guys out there — that’s what makes it great.”

Kyle said Ben’s years of hard work and honing his skills has paid off.

“Ben started in club wrestling and is one of the guys who has put in a ton of time,” coach Larson said. “His dad hauled him around the state for tournaments, to middle school state, and he’s been to Fargo (North Dakota). He’s been at it for a very long time. He has a very high mat IQ. The guys we have surrounded him with the past 10 years have paid off.”

Ben knows the legacy he is contributing to, and appreciates the work of those who have come before him.

“It’s fun to understand the history, add your own history, and hope people look back like they did for those teams before us,” Ben said. “Dad does a good job helping me out, but Kyle does most of the work.”

While Ben has been accepted to Oregon State University, he does not plan to wrestle at the college level. He plans to major in bio-health sciences, and would like to be an orthopedic surgeon, or a dentist like his dad.

Hayden, a sophomore, was a state alternate last year. He soaked up everything he could last year as a spectator, and is ready to step on the mat this year. He will wrestle at 150 pounds.

“When I was little, I didn’t like wrestling very much,” Hayden said. “In middle school, things started to click and become more fun. I’m looking forward to going to the tournament and hanging out with the team. We’ll see what we can do there.”

Aidan is just a freshman, but might be the old soul of the group. He has been on the mat since he was four years old, and wearing the purple and gold of Bulldogs is something he has been looking forward to.

Aiden will wrestle at 120 at state. He has an impressive 28-2 record, and has a favorable draw in his half of the bracket.

“It feels good,” Aiden said of qualifying for state. “I want to do well and make my dad proud. He has been there for me my whole life.”

Like Hayden, Aiden wasn’t the biggest fan of wrestling when he started, but now he’s a chip off the old block. He won the 3A Mid-Columbia Conference district title and the 3A Region 4 title.

“Wrestling in the WIAA makes us better as wrestlers and people,” Aidan said. “If I wrestle good, eat right and do everything right, I could hopefully win it.”

From meager beginnings

Curt Berger was the Hermiston coach when the first round of Larsons graced the wrestling mat.

Harry Larson, who had worked with the club and middle school programs, joined the high school staff and remained until Randy graduated in 2008.

“Curt Berger had great teams, but what my dad brought was the offseason stuff,” Kyle said.

Harry wrestled at Madison High School in Rexburg, Idaho. He admits he was nowhere near as good as his sons or grandsons. He did it because he thought it was fun.

“I was more fond of rodeo,” he said. “I didn’t didn’t excel in wrestling, I just loved the sport and what it taught you about work ethic. I quit team roping and training horses when the boys were little and took them to wrestling tournaments.”

It paid off, and then some.

The Bulldogs won their first state 4A team title in 2001. Jeremy won the 152-pound title and Kyle was third at 130. That would be the only team title for Jeremy and Kyle, but they continued to win individual titles.

Jeremy won the 160-pound title as a senior in 2002, and went undefeated. He then took his talents to Oregon State University, where he was a Pac-12 champion.

Kyle, a 2003 graduate, won state his freshman (112), junior (145) and senior (152) years. At the time, he was one of just 69 wrestlers in Oregon high school history to win three state championships since the state tournament began in the 1920s.

Kyle also wrestled at OSU. Wrestling at 141 and 144 pounds, Larson tied for the Beavers’ lead in pins with eight in 2007, and (as of 2015) was 44th all-time in pins with 17. In 2006 at 141 pounds, he posted the best Beavers record at 26-7.

“It was a lot more fun to win as a team back then,” Kyle said. “It’s fun to win with others.”

Randy, a 2008 Hermiston graduate, had big shoes to fill following his older brothers, but he made his own path. He was part of the Bulldogs’ state team titles in 2007-08, and won the 171-pound 5A state title his senior year. He was third as a junior. He went on to wrestle at Boise State University.

Randy’s two sons, Wyatt and Easton, do not wrestle. They play baseball, which Harry doesn’t mind one bit.

“I just wish there was a way to educate people with what’s going on in the world, that sports, not just wrestling, helps keep them out of trouble,” Harry said. “It teaches you so many life lessons. Back then, we were trying to get them to graduate, get them into college and be better people.”

Looking toward the future

The Bulldogs won 10 state team titles in Oregon (2001, 2007-11, and 2013-16) before joining the Mid-Columbia Conference in Washington in 2018.

Since the move, Hermiston has placed second at state the past two years in the team standings, and have had two state champions — Jaxson Gribskov and Sam Cadenas.

“That is why Hermiston appreciates wrestling so much,” Kyle said. “It’s not just the Larsons, but every kid in our youth club who puts in the work. The hard work pays off.”