Shenandoah’s Allred has faced adversity, but is ready to shine at Nebraska
ANDERSON, Ind. (BVM) — Silas Allred is an elite wrestler who has dominated the high school wrestling scene in Indiana the past four years. Only losing two matches his entire prep career – and going on a 74-match win streak that included two state championships – Allred is viewed as one of the best wrestlers in the country at the 195-pound weight class. But the 18-year-old has faced adversity in his life, perhaps none greater than what he and his family have dealt with over the past year.
Allred began with the sport of wrestling at age 6 after falling in love with John Cena and the WWE. He quickly realized that the wrestling he was doing was a bit different than what he was watching on TV, but being determined to get better and buying into the sport, Allred’s youth career took off.
The 18-year-old won his first state wrestling tournament in second grade, and it is one of the fondest memories he holds from his youth career, thanks to an incentive given to him by his mom.
“That year I wrestled the same kid over and over and I kept losing to him,” Allred said. “But at the state finals, my mom said, ‘Silas, if you beat him this time I will buy you a slushie.’ I went out there, and I just put it on him and went on to win it all.”
By middle school, Allred began committing more and more time to wrestling, and competed in the USA Junior Nationals for the first time. After losing his first match, Allred came back to win nine straight matches and impressively finished in second place in his weight class.
Up until that summer before eighth grade, Allred was also an avid baseball player. The Shenandoah grad was following in the footsteps of his father, Eric Allred, who was a star baseball player in his own right when he was younger.
Eric was also a basketball player, but excelled on the diamond as a pitcher, with a 95 mph fastball and a nasty curveball. He received college baseball offers from numerous Division I programs and would even get minor league contract offers from the Minnesota Twins and Kansas City Royals.
But with everything going for him, Eric unfortunately squandered his opportunity. Anger issues blew his chance to play DI baseball, but he still played at the junior college level. After receiving the minor league contract offers, things again looked up. But two weeks before he was set to go meet with those teams, Eric would get in a bar fight resulting in jail time.
Getting involved in other trouble throughout his younger life, Eric would again get in a bar fight years later where he was shot five times. Unfortunately continuing some of the same bad habits, the father was stabbed during one of Silas’ fifth grade basketball games. Obviously, it was a tough moment to see for Silas.
“I’m a fifth grader in the middle of my basketball game and all the sudden I see my dad walking around holding his side and bleeding,” Silas said. “I’m just standing in the middle of the court shocked and wondering what just happened.”
But as he matured and found his faith, Eric turned his life around, and now shares his story and the mistakes he made in the past with others in hopes that they don’t do the same.
Meanwhile, Silas continued to grow on the wrestling mat, and had an outstanding career at Shenandoah High School. The 18-year-old went an incredible 146-2, including an undefeated 35-0 junior season where he won his first state title – also the first individual wrestling title by anyone from Shenandoah.
Silas followed up that season with an incredible senior year as well, finishing 39-0 with 39 pins. Again, his season would culminate with a state title, and a No. 4 ranking nationally among wrestlers in the 195-pound weight class. Proud of his accomplishments, the best part for Silas may be putting Shenandoah on the map.
“I’m very proud of what I accomplished at Shenandoah,” Silas said. “I think I’ve helped bring a lot of recognition to the community and helped build it up and that’s what I’m most proud of.”
Part of what makes this wrestler so impressive though is the drive he has, and it was put on full display after his first state title win.
“I remember being up on the podium feeling that sense of accomplishment and being proud but in my head I was saying ‘what next?’” Silas said. “I came to the realization that this is something all great athletes have. If every athlete got content after they won, guys like Michael Jordan would just have one ring and be done. Every great competitor always pushes for more and that’s where I was in that moment.”
During his high school years, Silas has also competed in many notable national tournaments which has helped him gain valuable experience. Last year, the wrestler accomplished a goal he had set back in seventh grade, making Team USA.
The list of accomplishments and accolades could go on and on for the 18-year-old. But perhaps the two that he is most proud of are winning the Dave Schultz Excellence Award and the USA Today Indiana Wrestler of the Year. Both have proven to Silas that the hard work he has put in is paying off.
“The Dave Schultz award really validates all the hard work I put in even outside of wrestling,” Silas said. “Obviously you have to be a good wrestler to win the award but it’s also about being a good person. I want to be recognized as a great person and someone who was willing to do anything for anybody at any time. The USA Today award is also an incredibly tremendous honor.”
But in the midst of what was a truly spectacular senior wrestling season, Silas faced some serious adversity. About eight months ago, Eric was diagnosed with ALS, which has progressed rapidly in recent months. He is still able to talk but has declined physically to this point. Not knowing what could happen at any time to his father is a challenge, but Silas uses his faith to help keep him focused and get his family through the difficult time.
“It’s difficult of course and everyday brings new challenges,” Silas said. “But our family’s foundation is faith and we get through and manage. I could never express how grateful I am for my dad and everything he’s done for me. I just want to honor those traits he has instilled in me: putting 100% effort into everything that you do, always put faith first and keep family as a close second, and stay focused on your goals to always better yourself. I know that’s what my dad wants me to do.”
Silas also doesn’t want the situation to be a deterrent to his wrestling career, but instead a motivation.
“I say all the time I have every excuse in the world to fail and to fall short through all these circumstances,” Silas said. “But you have a choice to let the situation motivate you and to push you and better you while inspiring others and that’s what I choose to do. No matter what happens, someone out there has had it worse and there is always light at the end of the tunnel.”
In August, Silas will leave the state of Indiana for the University of Nebraska, where he will wrestle for the Cornhuskers. Predictably, the 18-year-old had numerous offers, and believes he has had interest from over 40 college programs since recruiting began. But there was just something about Nebraska that made Silas feel like he was home.
“I went out to Nebraska and I just fell in love,” Silas said. “Honestly it just felt like home to me. It wasn’t even just the wrestling facility but it was the campus as a whole. When I was there I just knew it and it felt right. This is where I want to chase my goals.”
Silas will redshirt this coming season, with high expectations for his final four years as a Cornhusker. But ultimately he hopes to be able to use his platform to share his story and inspire others through his success.
As excited as he is to get started in Lincoln, Neb., it will be tough to leave his father back home while he is ailing.
“Leaving him is obviously going to be pretty difficult,” Silas said. “My family leans on me in a lot of ways and I am always there for all of them. But I’d be doing a disservice to myself and to God if I didn’t go to Nebraska. Obviously I’m fearful but I can’t change what’s happening. It’s not going to be easy but I trust that they’re going to be OK and taken care of and if they need me I’m just a phone call away.”
Silas is an incredible athlete and wrestler. But his past has turned him into a special person. While it is tough to see what Eric is suffering through, Silas has a bright future ahead of him as he continues on his journey. His situation is one which most of us hope to not have to endure, but the impressive 18-year-old has faced it head on, and hopes others in a similar spot can use their faith to get through it as he does.
“Life is difficult and it’s not meant to be easy,” Silas said. “You can’t always control the circumstances that you find yourself in. But what you can control is your outlook and how you choose to respond and deal with problems. For me, I have always chosen to respond in a positive way and to use everything as motivation to be better. Chase everything in life with 100% effort and never let anything hold you back. Never give up because you don’t know who you can inspire.”
