TexasWrestling
Bo Nickal is Wrestlingtexas Wrestler of the Year
Never in the history of Texas Wrestling has a wrestler who has attended all 4 years of high school in the state achieved what Nickal has achieved at this point in his career. Oh Texas has had better High School career wrestlers like Nick Herrmann and Nick Cobb who were 4x state champs plus others with better or same high school records and of course Brandon Slay an Olympic Champion. But no one has went on to achieve what Nickal has done at the college level being a 4x finalist and 3x national champ with a Hodge Trophy to cap it off.
So how did it all start?
Bo Nickal was born in Rifle Colorado where his parents Jason and Sandy Nickal met while coaching. Nickal started wrestling around the age of 5-6 in Wyoming, then moved to Rio Rancho New Mexico in the 5th grade. Nickal’s 8th grade year he made the varsity high school team for Rio Rancho where he placed 2nd in state that year as an 8th grader.
Nickal started his freshman year in Allen Texas in 2011 where he was apart of the now 10 in a row Texas State Championship team. Bo Nickal has never place less then 2nd place in 9 consecutive finals matches going back to 8th grade at any State Championship Tournament or College National Championship Tournament. Also Nickal hasn’t been on a team that has lost a dual in 8 years through College or High School
CREDENTIALS
2019 Hodge Trophy Winner
4x NCAA finalist
3x NCAA Champion
4x College Team National Champ
4th 3x NCAA Champion “for Penn State”
3rd 4x NCAA Finalist “for Penn State”
2018 MOW @ NCAA Championships
2019 Most Dominant Wrestler in the NCAA (averaging 5.2 team points out of a possible 6 points per match.)
120-3 win/loss college record (60 of those wins by fall)
4 year undefeated in College team dual meets
4x High School State Finalist
3x High School State Champion
4x High School State Team Champ
7th 3x State Champion “State Wide”
4 year undefeated in High School team dual meets
2014 National Wrestling Hall of Fame (DSHSEA)
With a high school 183-7 record, including 131 pins with only 2 losses coming from Texas in his freshman year the other 5 coming in national competition …Competed in the Dapper Dan Classic, as well as the 2014 USA Dream Team dual, winning at both events…Won numerous national and international freestyle titles including a 3X USA Triple Crown Winner. Fargo Junior National Champion and Outstanding Wrester. Cadet World Team Member placing 5th. In 2017 NCAA Bo was awarded the Gorriarian Award for most pins in the least amount of time along with the AWN (Amateur Wrestling News) Hammer Award (The award is presented annually to the wrestler who wins the national title in what AWN’s collection of writers feel is the most competitive weight class at the NCAA championships.)
