High school wrestling: Marian Central David Silva stepping down, will leave Hurricanes as state power

Marian Central wrestler Dylan Connell describes Hurricanes coach David Silva as a second father to those on the team.

As someone who is always there, looking out for his guys, trying to make them be better people and wrestlers.

A job opportunity arose this year and Silva and his family will move to Nashville, Tennessee this summer. But he was not leaving until the work was done with the Hurricanes.

Silva, in his fifth year at Marian, was determined to see things through even in a year disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The Hurricanes are unable to chase the title they wanted at the IHSA Class 2A Dual Team State Championships, so they will go after the next-best thing, the Class 2A team title at the Illinois Wrestling Coaches and Officials Association State Championships.

Then, Silva will hand off one of the state’s top programs to his nephew, 24-year-old Fernie Silva, a state champion at Hononegah and an NCAA Division I wrestler at Indiana.

“He’s put so much time and effort into Marian,” Connell said. “The amount of personal work he dedicates to each and every one of us is insane. He’s family to all of us. Along with being there in the athletic world, he always tries to get us to do stuff together and have fun, go out and be a family together.”

Silva, his wife, Diana, and their daughters Paloma, Lola and Ramona will move to Nashville sometime after the IWCOA State Championships. David will work with Bob Contaldo, his father-in-law, in mergers and acquisitions.

The Hurricanes are 15-0 and have dominated their opponents this season. Silva’s teams are 107-13 in his five seasons. Eight of those losses came in 2017, Silva’s first season; three of them have come in the IHSA Dual Team State Tournament.

“The program was not what it is now,” said Silva, who was a standout wrestler at Dundee-Crown. “I have set the ground work and everything is in place for this program to continue on and accomplish great things. That’s what I’m most proud of.

“Now we have what we need to be successful, to be a state championship team. I wanted to turn Marian Central into a wrestling powerhouse. There’s no secret to it, it’s hard work, it’s dedication and these guys believe in themselves and come to practice. Through all the adversity, all the COVID, all the stuff they have had to deal with, they had blinders on and just kept coming forward. I’m proud of them for that.”

Connell came to Marian in Silva’s second season and won three individual state titles. But the Hurricanes were loaded with medal winners almost every year Silva has been coach. His 2019 team was 25-1, losing only in the Class 2A Team Dual semifinals, then taking third place.

“He’s just a great coach all-around,” junior Nik Jimenez said. “He’s always on us to get better. He’s always interested in us constantly improving. That’s what I like about him. He’s always pushing me, getting me better every day.

“I’m going to miss him a lot, but we have coach Fernie. It’ll be all good next year.”

Marian would have been a favorite to win the Class 2A Dual Team title this year with Connell and state medalists Scott Burke, Elon Rodriguez, Bryce Shelton and Niko Lopez returning.

Jimenez, a Class 1A runner-up from Harvard, and Chris Moore, a 2A state champion from Aurora Christian, both transferred to Marian.

Fernie Silva, in his first year with Marian, wrestled two years at D-II Notre Dame College, then two with Indiana and will take over this powerhouse his uncle built.

“We have a fun group of guys and my uncle already kind of set the table,” Fernie Silva said. “I look forward to stepping in and doing my best with these guys.

“The kids listen. They respect David and everyone goes in that room, that environment, pushing each other every day. We have a bunch of great leaders in that room who lead by example. We want to just keep it going. I’m excited. They’re excited. We have some young guys who want their chance too.”

David Silva and his wrestlers believe Fernie, even at his young age, is a great choice as successor.

“It’s going to be sad when he leaves, but he has other things he has to worry about in his life with his job and his family,” said Connell, who will wrestle at Illinois. “But with Fernie coming in, it’s going to be the same thing. Fernie’s the same level as coach David and we don’t see the team falling apart anytime soon.”