Takedown Report

Bo Nickal wins 2019 Dan Hodge Trophy

By Bryan Van Kley, WIN Magazine Publisher
NEWTON, Iowa — Penn State’s Bo Nickal has won the 2019 WIN Magazine/Culture House Dan Hodge Trophy, presented by ASICS.
The Nittany Lion won his third NCAA championship on March 23, defeating Kollin Moore of Ohio State. The 5-1 finals victory at 197 pounds was Nickal’s 30th of an undefeated senior campaign that included 18 pins, three tech falls and six major decisions. In a year that featured four outstanding finalists for the award, known as “wrestling’s Heisman Trophy,” Nickal won the honor over a senior teammate Jason Nolf, also a three-time NCAA champ who had very similar stats as Nickal. The other two Hodge finalists were Rutgers’ senior Anthony Ashnault and Cornell sophomore two-time champ Yianni Diakomihalis, who won NCAA championships at 149 and 141 pounds, respectively. “It’s something I’ve wanted since I was in high school and I first found out about the award,” Nickal said. “I’ve tried to go out and do what the Hodge symbolizes, going for the pin and scoring as many points as I can.

“It’s a validation for my hard work. I tried to make the most out of every second on the mat.” The Allen, Texas, native did just that this year, dominating opponents in college wrestling’s second heaviest class. Nickal finished with a 68-match winning streak and a reputation as a wrestler who could pin an opponent from any position. His most memorable fall came against 2016 champ Myles Martin of Ohio State at the 2018 NCAAs. With 30 seconds left in the first period of the 184-pound final, Nickal dramatically flipped Martin over and pinned him with an elevator series shortly after the Buckeye put Nickal on his back. The pin sealed the team title for the Lions over Ohio State in Cleveland last March. Of the 51 total ballots, Nickal finished with 37 first-place votes from the Hodge Trophy Voting Committee. Nolf was second in Hodge voting with 10 votes from the committee made up of each past Hodge winner, national media, retired college coaches from each region and a representative of each national wrestling organization. Rest of the story at https://www.win-magazine.com/2019/04/bo-nickal-wins-2019-dan-hodge-trophy/?mc_cid=d3221c4d42&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

April 20, 2019 - Posted by The TakeDown Report | Uncategorized