No matter the sport, Nate Wickersham has always stood out.

And not just because of his physical size.

The reason the Tamaqua athlete is usually noticed is because he never does things at half-speed. He gives his all and his competitive drive seems to always be pedal-to-the metal.

Perhaps that is why scouts were so impressed with his wrestling talents. Whatever the score or how much time was left, he kept battling until the final buzzer.

So when West Virginia offered Wickersham a scholarship to continue his athletic and academic career, he never hesitated.

While the chance to wrestle in college is exciting, the opportunity to pursue a future as a civil engineer is a dream come true. For Wickersham, the academic side of becoming a Mountaineer is the bottom line and a way to reach his career goal.

“They have a really good engineering school, and that’s first and foremost,” said Wickersham, who has also looked into chemical engineering. “I plan on sitting out a year. We have a great wrestler coming back in Noah Adams at 197 (pounds), who is an All-American, so I can learn a lot from him.”

Wickersham will be wrestling for one of the top-flight coaches in the collegiate ranks. Tim Flynn is a former Penn State All-American who built Edinboro into a wrestling powerhouse in his 21 years as head coach there. Flynn has been at West Virginia since 2018.

With the pandemic wreaking havoc on the sporting world, Wickersham said it was a tough year to impress college coaching staffs at big-time schools.

“I had my work cut out in terms of getting my name out there,” said Wickersham at his official signing last Thursday in the Tamaqua High School library.

But once the Mountaineers honed in on him, he knew it was the right place. It also helped that his mother attended the college.

“I didn’t get a lot of visits in (because of COVID) but I did visit (Morgantown, WV) and I knew it was the right fit.”

Tamaqua wrestling coach Jim McCabe not only spoke highly about Wickersham, but also credited him for the work he did in the classroom.

“He’s a very talented wrestler, who works very hard and has what it takes to wrestle at the next level,” said McCabe. “You know he wrestled a lot of kids with state qualifying credentials. That had a big impact on his chances of Division I.

“We try and preach to the kids wrestling only goes so far, but academics is where it is at. Nate has the potential to do well. He will redshirt his first year and I’m excited for him. But I’m more excited that his academics got him there more so than one thinks.”

Wickersham, who won a regional title and placed third at states, posted a 24-3 record his senior year and finished his career with a 114-46 mark. The Times News Wrestler of the Year this past season also received interest from Bucknell, Buffalo and Millersville.

The Tamaqua senior wasn’t just a one-sport star, either. He also excelled in football, proving himself as a hard-hitting player from his linebacker position, while also taking on the quarterback role. He ran for 662 yards and threw for 421. This spring, he played baseball and hit .328 with a team-leading 21 hits and 14 RBIs. And when the team needed a pitcher, he took the mound and ended up throwing a club-high 31 innings.

He did all this, remember, in one of the toughest years for a high school athlete.

“I had a lot of fun this year even with COVID and (dealing) with the masks this year,” Wickersham said. “Making it down to Hershey the past three years … it’s awesome to be able to perform at the big stage.”

Now it’s on to West Virginia in the Big 12 Conference at the Division 1 level.

For Nate Wickersham, it doesn’t get any bigger than this.