Sammie Cyrus, a senior at Dubois High School, is an exceptional wrestler. He won his hundredth match at the end of January, and he is preparing for his final attempts to win Wyoming’s regional and state championships.
What makes him even more exceptional is that he’s done it as a double amputee. Cyrus lost the lower halves of his legs as a child, but his talent, determination and sportsmanship make him as tall in stature as any other high school athlete.
“When I was in sixth grade, I went a whole year without winning a match,” Cyrus told Cowboy State Daily. “But when I put my mind to it every day, worked hard, and came into the practice room with a good attitude, I eventually started winning matches. That's what brought me to where I am now.”
Finding Strengths
When Cyrus was 11 months old, he contracted a rare form of meningitis that led to the loss of his right leg. That loss caused complications that led to the amputation of his left leg when he was eight years old.
Despite these setbacks, Cyrus wanted to be an athlete, so he made a deal with his mother.
“I told her I wanted to do football, and she said I could only do football if I wrestled,” he said. “I agreed, and now wrestling’s the only thing I do.”
Cyrus has been on the Dubois Rams varsity wrestling team for two years. Coach Brock Baker has been working with him for most of that time.
“It's been phenomenal coaching Sammie over the last few years,” he said. “I think anybody that’s coached Sammie would agree that he’s a fun wrestler to coach.”
Baker said he and Cyrus have worked to find and augment his strengths on the mat, making his training uniquely challenging and rewarding.
“Missing that portion of both of his legs makes Sammie incapable of running some moves, and it puts his body in bad positions at times,” he said. “Sammie knows these things as well as anybody, so we've learned that we just got to get out of that mindset. We've got to wrestle our match to our abilities and to what our advantages are.”
Sammie’s strengths include added strength, a long arm reach, and a bigger build for his weight class. Plus, he doesn’t have to be too concerned about one of the greatest physical hurdles most wrestlers face.
“A lot of wrestling is having good head and hip position,” Baker said. “Sammie’s hips are already low, so we don’t have to tell him to keep his hips low. That’s become an advantage to him in a lot of ways.”
Sammie Cyrus, a senior at Dubois High School, has won over 100 matches and become an experienced wrestler despite losing the lower halves of both his legs as a child. (Courtesy: Sammie Cyrus)
The Raised Hand
Cyrus trains hard. He competes in the 106-lb. division, facing off against other wrestlers in duels and tournaments.
“Tournaments are the fun part because you get to go through the whole bracket,” he said. “With wrestling, it’s just you and one other person out there on the mat while your team's cheering you on. Having to go one-on-one for six minutes is a huge challenge.”
Baker has watched Cyrus succeed in wrestling in ways that wouldn’t be as possible in any other high school sport. Rather than being benched in football, he’s constantly progressing and excelling as a wrestler.
“It’d be hard to get him onto the football field, but we don’t have any issues on the mat,” he said. “Coaches across the state have come to know him as a very good wrestler and a class act. They usually comment on how they love to watch him wrestle, and the questions they ask make them love him all the more.”
For Cyrus, nothing’s more rewarding than earning the final move – a raised hand signifying the end of a victorious match.
“Getting your hand raised at the end of that six minutes is a really proud moment,” he said. “That drives me to keep going – getting my hand raised after working all week.”
"Dubois High School senior Sammie Cyrus competing in a 106-pound division a wrestling matching." (Courtesy: Sammie Cyrus) 
Dubois High School senior Sammie Cyrus competing in a 106-pound division a wrestling matching. (Courtesy: Sammy Cyrus) 
Dubois High School senior Sammie Cyrus competing in a 106-pound division a wrestling matching. (Courtesy: Sammy Cyrus)
Onward And Upward
Cyrus is currently training for the regional meet on Feb. 21 and 22. The 2025 Wyoming State Wrestling Championships will be held in Casper from Feb. 27 to March 1.
His last match was the annual Ron Thon Wrestling Tournament at Riverton High School. Baker was impressed by how Cyrus overcame an early disappointment after his first match through observation and coaching and applied what he learned to the rest of the competition.
“Sammie’s an eager learner,” he said. “At the Ron Thon last week, we had a poor first match. But we watch videos together after our matches, look at exactly what we need to do, fix it, and go into our next match. If Sammy doesn't have what it takes, he's capable of gaining what it would take.”
Cyrus will face quality wrestlers at the regional and state tournaments. That’s why he’s giving everything he can to his training, eager to culminate his high school wrestling career with victories in Wyoming.
“Winning regional and state championships is my short term,” he said.
Cyrus hopes to continue wrestling on a college team. He’s already explored the programs at the University of Wyoming, Northwest College in Powell, and Muskingum University in New Concord, Ohio.
“My long-term goals are competing in college, placing at national championships for wrestling, and getting a degree in graphic design,” he said. “I’m either going to do that close to home or all the way in Ohio.”
Attitude And Mentality
Less than a month remains until the big Wyoming tournaments. Cyrus is pushing himself hard in anticipation, and Baker is ensuring he keeps his focus on a match-by-match basis.
“Everybody's beatable,” Baker said. “Sammie has some excellent competition ahead, but one cool thing about wrestling is that everybody is beatable. We just got to figure out what it takes to beat them.”
No one can deny that Cyrus has the mentality and life experience that builds the best athletes. He’s spent his entire life recognizing and overcoming his disadvantages and learning to maximize his advantage in every situation.
“For my life in general, separated from wrestling, there’s been a lot of things in my life that I thought I couldn’t do,” he said. “When I put my mind to accomplishing something and come at it with a good attitude, I end up with a better outcome. That's something that helped me with wrestling and a whole lot in my life. It’s all about your attitude and mentality.”
Andrew Rossi can be reached at arossi@cowboystatedaily.com.
