Fort Hays State’s Craig Nicholson on comeback trail after horrific injury

Mark Johnson wasn’t prepared for what he saw Jan. 15 at Gross Coliseum in Hays.

As he approached his star player, Fort Hays State point guard Craig Nicholson, crumpled in a heap under the basket, he heard the screams. He saw the looks the on the other players’ faces.

Then he saw Nicholson’s left leg.

“To put it in a way some people might understand, it was a Joe Theismann-type injury,” said Johnson, who is in his 15th season at Fort Hays State. “The leg was just hanging to the side … it was something where we knew he was going to be done for the season right away.

“Then we start to wonder if he is ever going to be able to come back and play again.”

Nicholson’s fractured fibula, which required a six-inch plate to be inserted in the leg, was devastating to both player and program, as no one has come to define Fort Hays State’s program more over the last decade than the 5-foot-8 Wichita Northwest product.

Fort Hays State struggled down the stretch without Nicholson and finished 16-13 and 9-10 in MIAA play.

Nicholson, the MIAA Freshman of the Year in 2012-13 and an honorable mention NCAA Division II All-American in 2013-14, was leading the Tigers with 14.9 points, 6 assists and 1.4 steals when he went down against Central Oklahoma.

And after eight months of grueling rehab, he’s back and ready to lead the Tigers again, who are picked sixth in the MIAA’s preseason poll with 10 freshmen and sophomores on the roster.

“When he went down, we didn’t have another true point guard and Craig was only sitting out like 3-4 minutes every game,” Johnson said. “Our team battled, but late in the game and in close games we didn’t have a go-to player. There was no guy to make that big shot or big play to get somebody else the shot.”

It was the first major injury for Nicholson, who set the single-season school record by averaging 7.4 assists two seasons ago … breaking the record of 6.4 assists he set as a freshman.

“I’ve never been hurt like this before,” Nicholson said. “Just going down, right away I knew something was really wrong because I couldn’t move and I couldn’t stand up … it was a pretty scary feeling. And it was a home game, so my parents and grandma were there … I think it was pretty tough for everybody to see.”

After the injury, Nicholson’s family and friends saw a different side of him. Normally stoic and reserved – “He doesn’t show a lot of emotion, ever,” said Nicholson’s younger brother and Fort Hays State freshman guard Aaron Nicholson – they saw frustration for the first time.

“I think he was a little angry, like you could tell he didn’t really want to be around anyone for awhile,” Aaron Nicholson said. “But that didn’t last long. Pretty soon I saw him out on the court and he was sitting on a chair, form-shooting, even though he couldn’t walk yet.”

Nicholson threw himself into his rehab and was cleared by trainers before the Tigers began practicing.

“I think being hurt helped me, at some point, become a better student of the game,” Nicholson said. “Just watching as a fan instead of being in the middle of everything all the time.”

Like any major injury, the mental aspect has been the toughest part of the recovery. Nicholson has to get the confidence back to take the ball to the hoop -- his specialty -- and put himself in the same position he was in when he got hurt last season.

“There’s a little hesitancy there, but it’s getting better every day,” Johnson said.

“Once you’re cleared, the mental part of it is a lot tougher to deal with,” Nicholson said. “In the back of your mind, you wonder if you’ll hurt it again ... but you have to get past that. The more times I take the ball to the hoop, the more confidence I get back. It’s kind of like starting from scratch, so I go one day at a time and try to get better every time out, every time I step on the court.”

This story was originally published November 7, 2015 at 7:37 AM with the headline "Fort Hays State’s Craig Nicholson on comeback trail after horrific injury."