DJ Trent wrestles for Jefferson Forest on a Liberty University mat during a tournament at Liberty Christian Academy last season.
Local wrestling recruit will add depth to Flames’ lineup in upper-middleweights
6/19/2025 11:59:00 AM | Men's Wrestling
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Reigning Virginia High School League Class 4A 175-pound state champion DJ Trent is familiar with the program having trained regularly with the FCA Wrestling club out of the Liberty Club Sports Complex facilities.
DJ Trent, who played middle linebacker and wrestled for nearby Jefferson Forest High School the past four seasons, is the third incoming recruit for Liberty University's men's wrestling team.
As a senior this past season, Trent became the first state champion for the Cavaliers since 2020 and was the only state champion from the Seminole District in 2025. In his fourth consecutive state tournament — after starting as a freshman at 145 pounds — he pinned his way through to the Class 4A 175-pound final before winning the championship bout by injury default.
Trent celebrated his 100th win at the start of the 2024-25 season and ended with 125.
Trent pinned 17 opponents throughout a 26-1 regular season and finished his prep career with a 125-26 record, also competing in the National High School Wrestling Coaches Association championships after his junior season, going 4-2 and just missing the consolation rounds.
"He's been in our (Greater Lynchburg FCA) Wrestling club off and on throughout the years, so we've known him, but he wasn't on our radar because he wasn't going to go to college," Flames Head Coach Jesse Castro said. "He has had a change of heart, so we are excited to get him. Coming right out of high school, he's going to be a big contributor. We're pretty log-jammed in the middle of our lineup, from 157-184 pounds, but if nothing else, he will add some really good depth."
Trent said his decision to continue his wrestling career at Liberty was not a complicated one.
"It was easy because I have always been around Liberty as a local my whole life," he said. "It is an amazing school, and it puts God first. I am excited to go on to the next level and wrestle new competition, and to learn. I look forward to continuing to make life-long friends through the sport, friends you carry with you, and having a good team atmosphere. I am excited about the chance to compete in the room (for a starting spot)."
Playing football at JF — as his dad, Damon Trent, did back in 1993 as a member of the Cavaliers' only state championship team — was beneficial for DJ in strengthening him as a wrestler.
"I was always better at wrestling than football, but football was a good complement, even though I had a lot of concussions and stingers from playing it," he said. "It definitely helped me more than it hurt me."
He considers his physical endurance his greatest asset as a wrestler.
"Toughness and having a good tank, not running out of strength or energy," Trent said, noting his favorite activity besides playing football and wrestling is working out. "I love to lift weights."
Castro concurred with Trent's self-assessment.
Trent celebrates a victory for Jefferson Forest wrestling in a tournament at LCA.
"He's got a good gas tank on him, for sure," he said. "He definitely has room for development, and is still a little raw, but he is a pretty hard-nosed kid, and I really like his style of wrestling."
Trent realizes he will have to adjust to a new coach after being trained by David Wimmer — who succeeded former Flames Assistant Coach Allen Hackman at the helm at JFHS last season — since he was 5. Castro is retiring after 20 years as Liberty's head coach and is actively involved in hiring his successor this summer.
"It's going to be something different, a new style," said Trent, who has worked with Castro and fellow Liberty Athletics Hall of Fame wrestler Warren Stewart through the FCA Wrestling Club that trains out of the Liberty Club Sports Complex.
Over the summer, he will meet up with some of his future teammates who are in town for offseason conditioning, and participate in the July 13-16 Liberty Wrestling Camp for the first time, now that he's no longer in football preseason training camp.
