DENNIS FLYNN, DEVILS LAKE

JORDAN SHEARER, WEST FARGO

Coach Dennis Flynn spent over half of his life coaching wrestling and football, first for 12 years at Bishop Ryan, then for 2 years at Center, and finally for 18 years at Devils Lake. As the head wrestling coach at Devils Lake High School for 18 years, Denny was named the Regional Coach of the Year Twice and served as the President of the Class "A" Wrestling Coaches for five years. His teams finished in the top ten at state six times, despite being one of the smallest schools in Class A. He coached 55 individual state placers and 10 state champions. Special highlights for Denny were coaching his son, Brendon to two state titles and having his daughter Kenzie as the team’s statistician. His son, Brendon, has carried on his dad’s legacy as the current head coach of Devils Lake. Dennis was an integral part of the Devils Lake community, not only as the head wrestling coach, but also as a middle school teacher, assistant football coach and driver’s ed teacher. Coach Flynn believed that champions were not measured in gold or by wins or losses. He believed champions were defined by their character on and off the mat. He didn’t care how talented a wrestler was or how many matches he had won, he only cared about pushing his wrestlers to reach their full potential, and he wouldn’t accept anything less. He taught all his wrestlers what a true champion is, and he led by example. He dedicated his life to the sport of wrestling and being a man of honor. Dennis passed away unexpectedly in the spring of 2007. He is survived by his wife Bette, daughter Makenzie, and son Brendon. Dennis is being inducted into the Hall of Fame by his close friend, and fellow Hall of Famer, Derrick Dixon.

Jordan Shearer became the first (and to this point) only wrestler in North Dakota history to win six individual state wrestling championships. Competing for West Fargo High School, Jordan won the 103 pound title in 2010 as a 7th grader. He won the 103 title again the next season and followed that with titles at 113, 126, 132 and 145. He finished his high school career with 259 wins and 169 pins. Jordan also helped lead the Packers to four state dual titles and two state individual team titles. He was the Class A East Region Senior Athlete of the Year and the state’s Mr. Wrestler in 2015. Jordan was a 2X Rumble on the Red Champion and placed 3rd at the 2013 Sophomore Nationals. Jordan was a 7X North Dakota Triple Crown Winner and represented Team North Dakota three times at the USA Wrestling Junior Duals. He earned All-American honors at the both USA Wrestling Cadet Nationals and the USA Wrestling Junior Nationals. Jordan also won a National Championship at the Junior Greco Nationals and was named a 1st team All-American in 2015. He finished with a 4.0 GPA throughout his high school career. Jordan continued his wrestling career at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln where he was three-time letterman and named to the Big Ten All-Academic Team three times, finishing with a 3.98 GPA. He was a four-team Nebraska Scholar-Athlete and earned the school’s Outstanding Scholar award in 2019. Jordan has been a guest clinician at numerous high school camps across North Dakota, Minnesota and Nebraska along with being a volunteer assistant coach. Currently he is in medical school at the University of North Dakota where he plans to specialize in orthopedic surgery and graduate this year. He is being inducted by his high school coaches and fellow Hall of Famers, Kayle Dangerud and Ryan Kringlie.

SHON HORGAN, WALHALLA (PCN)

JUSTIN JENSEN, CARRINGTON

Shon Horgan was a state champion for Walhalla High School before becoming a very successful coach for his alma mater. He was a four-time Region 2 champion in high school and a four-time state placer, finishing 5th twice, and a state runner-up once, along with his state title at 119 pounds in 1990. His high school wrestling career record was 131-11. Shon is also the center of three generations of wrestling champions in his family. His dad, Dan Horgan won a state title in 1973 and Shon’s son Bradyn, won state titles in 2014 and 2016. Shon wrestled at Valley City State University where he was a NAIA National Qualifier in 1993. His coaching career began at VCSU as a student assistant coach in 1995. In 1997, he helped start the varsity wrestling program at Des Lacs-Burlington. In 1998, he became the head wrestling coach at his alma mater, Wahalla, which later became Pembina County North and he continued in that role for the next 23 years. Over his career, Shon accumulated 275 dual wins and 50 regular season individual tournament championships. He coached a total of 91 individual state placers, 16 state finalists, and 6 individual state champions. His dual teams qualified for the State B Duals 8 times, highlighted by a third place finish in 2014. His Grizzlies were the state runner-up in the Individual Team Tournament in 2016. Shon was a 7-time Region 2 Coach of the Year and the 2012 Class B State Coach of the Year. He also coached football and golf at Walhalla/North Border and was the manager of the elementary wrestling program in Walhalla. Shon also served on the Wrestling Advisory Committee, coached Team North Dakota at National Middle School Duals, and coached at three Fellowship of Christian Athletes Wrestling Camps.

Justin Jensen was a two-time state champion for Carrington High School for coach Kelly Hagel. After placing placing third at 103 pounds in 1992, Justin placed third at 119 in 1993, and then went on to win state titles state at 130 in 1994 and at 145 in 1995. He was a key part of three state championship teams for the Cardinals in 1992, 1994, and 1995. Jensen was awarded the Class B Mr. Wrestler award in 1995 and earned two triple crowns (for winning state titles in folkstyle, freestyle and Greco-Roman) during his high school career. Jensen finished his high school career with a 127-17 record with 68 career pins. Justin claimed a total six freestyle, and four Greco-Roman state titles in Cadet and Junior divisions. He was a member of the 1995 Junior National dual team champions and the 1995 Greco-Roman National dual runner-up team. Justin wrestled for the University of North Dakota and then Valley City State University. At VCSU, he earned All-American honors at 150 when he finished 8th at the national tournament. After college, he became a coach for hometown where he has helped Carrington High School win two individual and two dual team championships, while helping coach 21 individual state champions throughout his career. Justin currently resides in Carrington, running the family farm. He enjoys Bison football, camping and trying to ice fish when wrestling permits.

ROD JOHNSRUD, WATFORD CITY

COREY ULMER, SOUTH BORDER

Rod Johnsrud was a three-time state champion for Watford City High School in 1973, 1974, and 1975 under the guidance of Hall of Fame coach, Frank Fish, who seemed to cultivate the potential in everyone. As a freshman in 1972, Rod placed third at the state tournament. He had a 27-10 with 5 of those losses coming from the eventual state champion. In 1973, Rod finished the season with a 29-2 record and won his first individual state title. He followed that with undefeated seasons in 1974 and 1975 on his way to his second and third state titles. Rod set 11 school records and one state record during his career and was a Scholastic Wrestling News Hall of Fame “Honorable Mention” in 1975. As a four-year varsity starter for the Watford City Wolves, Rod had the privilege of being a part of three state championship winning teams in 1972, 1973, and 1974. The Wolves were also the state runner-ups during his senior season in 1975 and during his high school career, Watford City had a 42-1 dual meet record. Rod believes that the high caliber of his motivated and talented teammates was integral to his own success on the mat. Following his graduation from college, Rod returned to Watford City and helped coach the local Pee Wee wrestling team, which included his own sons. His son Andy, was a state placer and his son Austin, was a four-time placer who won two state championships for the Wolves. Rod continues to regularly attend matches and support the Watford City program. Rod has been a master electrician since 1982 and is active in his church. He has been married to his sweetheart, Brenda, for 42 years and along with their two sons, they have four grandchildren, Tate, Emma, Henry and Owen.

Corey Ulmer was a two-time state champion for Ashley-Wishek under coaches Josh Hoffman and Dwight Schilling. As a four-time state qualifier and three-time region 1 champion, Corey won state titles in 2005 and 2006 and at one point won 92 consecutive matches. He was also a state runner-up in 2007. Corey finished his high school career with a record of 135-8 and was named Class B’s Mr. Wrestler in 2007. Corey went on to wrestle at Minnesota State University Moorhead for coach Keenan Spiess from 2007-2009 and coach Kris Nelson from 2009-2012. He was a three-time NCAA Division II National Qualifier and an All-American for the Dragons at 125 lbs. His All-American season came in 2011 when he took 7th place at the Division II National Tournament. In 2012 he won the Super Region 3 Tournament and spent most of that season ranked #1 in the country. Corey recorded 87 wins in his college career and earned All-NSIC honors twice. He was a two-time Dragon Open Champion and the 2012 MSUM Male Athlete of the Year. Upon graduating from MSUM with a bachelor's degree, Corey continued to put his knowledge of wrestling to use as he became involved in mixed martial arts. For the next four years Corey trained at the Academy of Combat Arts in Fargo under coach Dylan Spicer. He also traveled to different gyms in various parts of the world and got to train alongside multiple UFC and Bellator champions and hall of famers. Corey finished his MMA career with a 6-2 record and was ranked as a top 100 flyweight in the world. He is a Blue Belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and still to this day competes in grappling tournaments. Corey currently resides in Ashley, North Dakota with his wife, Jasmyne and their three girls, Riley, Blake, and Kensley. He is the Nursing Home Administrator at the Ashley Medical Center and is in the process of becoming the facility’s CFO. Corey is very involved with the community of Ashley. He is the chairman of the Ashley Medical Center Foundation, a board member of the Job Development Authority and a coach for the youth wrestling program.