WEBSTER CITY – At 6-foot-1 and anywhere from 220 to 235 pounds depending on the day, big No. 35 Gavin Dinsdale is a Mack truck in shoulder pads, a freight train in a wrestling singlet.

His frame – chiseled.

His demeanor – intense.

His talent – immense.

On a football field, or on a wrestling mat, or even on a track, the Webster City talent has proven that he can more than hold his own. And with one more year to fine tune his abilities, the sky is indeed the limit going forward.

“My junior year was phenomenal,” Dinsdale, who is just a few weeks away from beginning his senior year, said. “It was just a whole lot of fun.”

His talents and his achievements bolstered his resume and, in the end, it was convincing enough to earn Dinsdale the distinction of being named the 2015 Daily Freeman-Journal Male Athlete of the Year.

“It’s very cool to win this award and I was really surprised I won,” Dinsdale said. “I remember growing up watching athletes win awards like this and I said that’s what I wanted to do. So I’ve pushed myself hard.”

Dinsdale claimed the award over five other finalists – Webster City senior Cal Zahn and juniors Alec and Avery Fuhs, as well as Northeast Hamilton senior Nick Jeffers and South Hamilton senior JD Rader. It’s a talented group that boasts four-sport status (Jeffers), a team state championship in golf (the Fuhs twins), an individual state crown in the high jump (Zahn), and the distinction of being his school’s only four-time state wrestling medal winner (Rader).

What swung the trophy in Dinsdale’s favor? Simply put, it was his dominance.

Just ask Carroll head football coach Dennis McCartan if he remembers Dinsdale. McCartan called Dinsdale a beast after he piled up a single-game school record 369 yards rushing and four touchdowns against Carroll last September.

It wasn’t just Dinsdale’s jaw-dropping power that turned him into one of the state’s premier running backs. As it turns out, the big kid has wheels too, which he proved by breaking off touchdown runs of 66 and 73 yards at the expense of the Tigers.

“I really didn’t think I’d make as many long plays as I did,” Dinsdale said. “I thought it would be more of a ‘hey, we need to get five yards, give it Gavin’ type of thing.”

Oh yeah, he’s not too shabby at defensive end either. That’s where he was named second-team all-state by the Iowa Newspaper Association.

“He exceeded our expectations and he showed speed that we didn’t know he had,” WCHS head coach Bob Howard said of Dinsdale’s fall that included 1,665 yards rushing and 26 touchdowns – totals that placed him third all-time in the Lynx record book. “It’s fun to have tough kids and Gavin is a tough kid. It’s been neat for me as a coach to watch him mature and become a leader.”

His durability and versatility on the gridiron could very well pay for his college education, too. It didn’t take long for schools like Iowa, Iowa State, UNI and North Dakota State to hear about his talent.

“I figured I’d get more attention for my wrestling, but I was really happy when colleges started talking to me about football and started sending me letters,” Dinsdale said. “It’s exciting.

“I love Iowa and I love Kinnick Stadium. UNI is a great school, too. But I’m going to take my college visits and I’m not going to make any decisions until after football is over.”

There’s plenty to love about what Dinsdale accomplished on the wrestling mat as well. Try a single-season school record 46 wins on for size against just four losses. He joined the school’s 100-win club – he was just the 11th Lynx grappler to get there – at the state tournament in February where he eventually placed fifth in Class 2A at heavyweight despite giving up sometimes as much at 35 to 40 pounds.

The records and state medal were great, there’s no doubt. But knocking off top-ranked Mario Pena of Hampton-Dumont not once, but twice, ranks right up there for Dinsdale. One of those wins came during the district tournament in Webster City.

“Definitely beating Mario for the first time was memorable, and the second time (at districts) was bigger,” Dinsdale said. “The atmosphere and everybody chanting, that’s the loudest I’ve ever felt that gym. That was huge.”

But rather than take a break and begin preparations for the 2015 football season, Dinsdale returned to the WCHS track and field team in the spring after a year hiatus.

That speed he showed in a helmet? Not a fluke.

As one of the Lynx leaders in the sprints, he helped WCHS qualify its 4×100-meter relay for the state meet and the quartet eventually advanced to the state finals on the blue oval inside Drake Stadium in Des Moines.

“I basically went out for track to stay in shape,” Dinsdale said. “I know colleges like multiple-sport athletes and I knew running would hep me with football.”

And that takes us back full circle with a startling revelation. If Dinsdale could accomplish all of this as a junior, what is his senior year going to look like now that he’s even bigger and faster than before?

“We’re sure excited about what it’s going to be like in his senior season,” Howard said. “He never misses strength training or speed training, and he’s become a leader in that area. Besides his genetic makeup, he adds to it. He is making the most of what he has genetically.”

A 2,000-yard rushing season this fall doesn’t seem that far-fetched if he stays healthy, as he will attempt to lead WCHS to its first district title in nearly 20 years. Tackling him wasn’t exactly a picnic when he was still settling into the backfield for the first time in 2014. Now that he’s comfortable and confident with the pigskin in his arms? Look the heck out.

Dinsdale has already said he’ll spend his final wrestling season at 220 pounds and there’s no doubt he’ll begin that chapter as one of the highly ranked contenders for state gold – something WCHS hasn’t corralled in this century.

Don’t be surprised to see him sprinting towards the front of races next spring either.

The possibilities truly are endless. But one thing’s for sure – watching it all unfold over the next 10 months is going to be a whole lot of fun.