Family Support & Hard Work on ‘Hundred Acre’ Homestead led to Troy’s success
By Mike Finn, W.I.N. Editor
Wrestling opponents of Troy Nickerson may never confuse him with Winnie the Pooh but there is something similar – even magical – between the star wrestler and the child’s literary character.
Actually it’s where both lived.
For while the imaginary Pooh bear lived in the Hundred Acre Woods, which also came out of the creativity of Pooh’s creator Christopher Robin Milne in 1921, Nickerson grew up on an old 100-acre farm in western New York state near Chenango Forks, which is about an hour north of Binghampton, N.Y. and the Pennsylvania line.
And for the past 18 years, there has been something magical about this homestead, which is full of trees and success for Nickerson, especially on the wrestling mat. In the past 12 months alone, the youngest child of Bob and Karen Nickerson won both the freestyle and Greco-Roman championships at the Junior Nationals in Fargo last summer, became the first five-time state champion in the state of New York and recently won the National High School Coaches Association High School Nationals in Cleveland.
And for those great moments, which saw the 125-pound senior pin 29 of his 41 victims during an undefeated high school season, Nickerson was awarded the 2005 Junior Dan Hodge Trophy, which is given to the nation’s best high school wrestler by the Amateur Athletic Union and Wrestling International Newsmagazine.
“Troy Nickerson has epitomized what we look for in our Junior Dan Hodge Trophy winner,” said W.I.N. Publisher Bryan Van Kley. “He has completely dominated his opponents the entire year while really looking for the pin.”
Nickerson, who only failed to pin or tech two opponents all year, was so dominant this year that many wonder if he got enough work, considering only one of his opponents ” before the High School Nationals ” lasted until the third period before Nickerson either pinned them or scored a technical fall.
“I just wanted to work on my pinning,” said the top-ranked Nickerson, who ended his high school career with a 217-6 record after winning four matches in Cleveland; three by technical fall and a 6-4 victory over No. 2 Jayson Ness in the 125-pound final, April 3.
It was the pins and that extreme domination that separated Nickerson from fellow Junior Dan Hodge finalists Brent Metcalf of Davison, Mich., Dustin Schlatter of Massillon, Ohio, and Cyler Sanderson of Heber City, Utah.
Metcalf and Schlatter were both four-time state champions, the most recent titles coming at 145 pounds this winter. Metcalf was 232-0 in his high school career (56-0 this season) before heading to the High School Nationals in Cleveland, where he lost a 4-3 decision to Schlatter in the finals. That victory for Schlatter helped him avenge an earlier-season loss to Metcalf, which was one of just four losses suffered by Schlatter in 154 high school matches. Schlatter also was 40-2 as a senior.
Sanderson, the youngest brother of 2004 Olympic gold medalist and the NCAA’s only unbeaten four-time Division I champion Cael Sanderson, finished his senior season at 140 pounds with a 53-0 mark, which included 22 pins, 17 tech falls and eight major decisions. He also capped off a prep campaign with a 176-8 career record and most recently a NHSCA national championship in Cleveland.
But unlike these three great wrestlers, who came from either strong wrestling programs or families, Nickerson’s lineage of success was not as impressive. His half-brother, Brett, 27 years older than Troy used to wrestle, which also introduced his father, Bob, to the sport, who then introduced Troy to wrestling at the age of five.
“I knew the kid was an athlete at five he would be skateboarding all over here,” said Bob, who retired from banking in 1989, two years after the birth of Troy. “He had no fear. So I wondered what he would do in wrestling.”
So the elder Nickerson went down to the local Boys’ and Girls’ Club on Feb. 28, 1993, and entered his son into a tournament.
Troy’s first opponent was a girl named Tabitha “¦ who pinned him.
“Troy was ready to quit the sport right there,” recalled Bob. “But I told him he had other matches that day and he had wrestle them.”
That childhood memory provides plenty of laughs for the Nickersons and their friends, especially considering the success that Troy later developed.
“I think it was about the time Troy was in seventh grade, when he really started taking this sport seriously,” said Bob. “In the state of New York, seventh graders can wrestle for high school teams and he just came short of qualifying for state.”
“I still think about that loss,” said Troy, who actually had to gain weight to qualify for the 96-pound weight class that season. “I just came back and worked my butt off. I trained all summer and dedicated myself to wrestling.”
In addition to working in the wrestling room, the younger Nickerson spent plenty of hours chopping wood at his home.
“We had a wood burning stove, so he
did a lot of cutting for us and friends,” recalled Bob. “Chopping wood proved to be a great workout for Troy.”
And five years later, Troy literally grew up and won championships at 96 pounds as an eighth grader, 103 in ninth grade, 112 as a sophomore, 119 in 11th grade and 125 this winter.
“I’ve never believed in cutting weight,” said Troy, who expects to wrestle first at 125 pounds and later at 133 when he wrestles collegiately at Cornell in Ithaca, N.Y., which is 45 minutes from his home.
Troy’s success amazes his father, who laughs at some of the suggestions on Internet chat rooms, which suggested that, “he was from another planet.”
Bob has no idea how Troy developed his work ethic only that it was “God’s will” and through working hard.
“When I’ve looked at other successful people, they appear to be people who live a little bit on the edge and who once they discover something they like, they go at it with all they got,” said Bob, who added that his son took the same approach to his education.
“He wants to go into medicine,” said Bob. “He’s working with a new program called, ‘New Vision.’ He spends a half day at the hospital and shadows doctors. He’s been in on baby deliveries and all kinds of stuff. He just loves it.”
Troy’s academic drive was one reason why he chose to attend Cornell.
“He had started looking at Iowa and Minnesota, which was his childhood dream going to one of the big-name schools,” Bob said. “But he learned that Ivy League education will get him a long way.”
Troy credits his parents for developing a strong work ethic.
“They taught us to work hard and excel,” said Troy, who calls his father his “hero.”
For Troy isn’t the only Nickerson child living at home who has succeeded. The same can be said of his fraternal twin, Tara, whose interest in dance has allowed her to perform on Broadway in New York and at Disney World in Florida.
But unlike some twins, who spend their childhoods fighting, the Nickerson duo grew close together.
“They’ve always had a great relationship,” their father said. “They can read each other pretty well. Troy has been concerned about her college plans and she’s concerned about his.”
On the wrestling mat, Troy does not have that many concerns. He will enter Cornell with plenty of confidence. Nickerson admitted that he started to understand his potential last summer when he won both titles at Junior Nationals.
“Last year at Fargo was great,” he said. “I realized the potential that I have. It just made me want to work harder.”
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