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Here’s why Penn State’s Bo Nickal won the Hodge Trophy, the ‘Heisman of college wrestling’

After a senior season in which he put up bonus points in 90 percent of his matches — including 18 pins — it came as no surprise Monday afternoon when Penn State’s Bo Nickal won this year’s WIN Magazine/Culture House Dan Hodge Trophy, better known as the “Heisman of college wrestling.”

Named for the Oklahoma three-time national champ who never gave up a single takedown and pinned 36 of his 46 opponents, the trophy is presented each year to the wrestler who best embodies Hodge’s dominance on the mat.

As the 2019 Most Dominant Wrestler, with three technical falls and six major decisions, Nickal had a strong case.