By Rick Assad
As with all endeavors, there are many steps before making it to the top rung.
Burbank High’s Jayden De La Rosa has been a standout on the wrestling team since its inception four years ago and recently competed at the prestigious state tournament.
While the 150-pounder didn’t place in the top three, he did well considering the immense talent there.
“The state tournament was a surreal moment. I went to the tournament with so many mixed emotions, but the end goal was to bring home a medal,” said De La Rosa, a senior who plans on attending college and wrestling. “Even though I barely fell short of my goal, I am still thankful and proud of how I performed and how I was able to make history for Burbank High.”
Jonathon O’Brien has been the Burbank head coach since the program’s beginning in 2022-2023 and has Romney De La Rosa, Jayden’s father, as an assistant coach on the team.
“It was a privilege to coach Jayden in his last tournament. He wrestled the best we’ve ever seen,” O’Brien said. “Not just in terms of technical proficiency, but his mental toughness and preparation were top notch.”
O’Brien knows that De La Rosa’s talent, determination and grit will be missed.
“In each of his losses he didn’t stop attacking until the final whistle, and that’s what we’re looking for at any level for Burbank wrestling, whether it be a beginner tournament or the state tournament,” he stated.
Everything considered, O’Brien is proud that De La Rosa was able to make this historic run to the state tourney.
“He was two matches away from placing, which means he finished in the top 16 in the state in his weight class,” he noted. “With 894 schools in California with wrestling, that puts him in the top 1.7 percent of wrestlers in his weight class. An incredible accomplishment that we may not see again for some time at Burbank High.”
The steps and levels that De La Rosa took were essential to his development.
“Winning CIF was just a stepping stone to greater things this postseason. I have worked hard all season to get to this point and it feels good to help put Burbank on the map for sports and wrestling,” he admitted. “We haven’t had a CIF champion since 1993 and it is a surreal experience to make history for the school with this first place finish for Burbank.”
De La Rosa’s overall record prior to the state tourney was 85-9 overall and 22-2 this season, and he’s satisfied knowing he did his best.
“There is only one goal in striving for which is to become a state champion. I didn’t dedicate my life to this sport not to reach my goal,” he pointed out. “My mindset going to the state meet is all business, go in, wrestle my butt off and bring home a medal for Burbank.”
What was De La Rosa’s mindset going into the state tournament?
“Every single meet, nothing changes. I take every match the same way even if it’s the state meet or a local tournament in Burbank,” he said. “I first get a good workout to make sure my weight is in order for weigh-ins. After I weigh in and I am waiting for my match, I’m listening to music and visualizing me winning the match. Then I warm up with some more music and get ready to wrestle.”
There are a number of factors that go into being an elite wrestler.
“What makes you excel in wrestling is sacrifice. I have sacrificed a lot of different things in my life to make it to where I am now,” De La Rosa admitted. “I skipped many school events like Burbank’s homecoming twice to make it to a national tournament. It’s all about sacrifice and hard work that will make you excel.”
There are gifts like strength and quickness that are needed to stand out according to De La Rosa, who was a three-time Rio Hondo League champion and was second in 2025 in the state junior freestyle and junior Greco.
“All those things like strength and speed can help but at the end of the day it’s the mental battles that people fail to grasp,” he said. “That’s what really makes a good wrestler, pushing past your limits.”
Knowing what you are capable of and doing what is necessary in competition is something that also elicits pressure to continue winning.
“I have pressure to win every match,” De La Rosa acknowledged. “I wrestle every match like it’s my last match ever. The way I go about handling the pressure is listening to music to help me lock in and remember I fear no man on that mat.”
Excelling on the mat is one thing but Burbank’s football team has been good for quite a while and De La Rosa even thought about playing on the gridiron.
“The opportunity to play football was brought up to me but ultimately wrestling is the type of sport you dedicate your life to, and I wasn’t going to give that up for another sport,” he noted.
Over four years wrestling, De La Rosa has been involved in countless matches and most have ended with him winning, whether it’s a league match or a CIF tussle, they are equal in the senior’s eyes.
“I don’t necessarily see any particular match to be memorable,” he said. “I always try to make my next match my most memorable.”
Navigating school studies, practice and meets are challenging. De La Rosa owes much of his success to several who have been there.
“Like I said my father has been with me side by side with every practice, every tournament, every weight cut,” he said. “Then there are of course my coaches like Coach O’Brien that have stuck with me all four years. But behind the scenes is my mother [Lucy] and my aunt [Lina Sarkissian] going to every single tournament, giving me the support I needed to keep going. I can’t thank every single person enough who has helped me to get to the point I am right now.”
De La Rosa will be off to college soon and his days as a high school wrestler will be over and knows how much his father has been every day.
“What I will miss most about my time here wrestling for Burbank is having my own father in my corner as a coach,” he said. “All my life every single match my dad has been in my corner and I am extremely blessed to have a father who supports me no matter what. It’s going to be a bitter pill to swallow after the season to realize my dad isn’t going to coach me anymore.”
