AMES — Iowa State special teams standout Ben Nikkel calls it “controlled chaos.”
It ensues the moment a football is kicked or punted and he and his teammates descend downfield like an avalanche, or herd of wild horses, or raptors zeroing in on their prey.
“It is crazy because you’re running full speed right into somebody else that’s trying to stop your momentum,” said Nikkel, a redshirt senior and former star at NAIA McPerson (Kan.) College. “So it is, it’s a lot of controlled chaos.”
That’s nothing compared to the commotion created Monday when Cyclone head coach Matt Campbell announced Nikkel would be placed on scholarship.
Teammates mobbed him, hooting and hollering, reveling in the moment as much as he did.
“I didn’t really know what was going on,” said Nikkel, a 6-1, 210-pound defensive back. “And then once it happened, you know, (and I could) break it down (for) my family, it was a moment I’ll never forget, for sure. Total surprise. No clue it was gonna happen.”
But there he was, smiling, laughing, as the center of attention in the meeting room — a position, Campbell said, Nikkel fully earned.
“Ben’s completely transformed,” Campbell said. “Another guy that’s put on 15 pounds. If you would say (defensive backs) in the first part of fall camp, a guy I don’t know if you were to say counting on him or not counting on him, and nodal of a sudden, it’s like, ‘Man, we’re gonna have to play this guy on defense. He’s demanding that he gets on the field.’ What he brings to our football team in a multitude of different ways is really special — and then how he goes about his process. I think if you asked our football team (about) guys that reflect the culture and what we want to stand for in this football program, I think every kid in our program would talk about who Ben is as much as what he does as a football player.”
That’s a guy who thrives amid the “controlled chaos.” A humble yet ambitious college graduate who’s now working on a master’s degree in entrepreneurship. A player long-buried on the depth chart who simply didn’t accept that former fate as a permanent state.
“It was a no brainer,” Campbell added. “And I think you saw even in the video that was released, the emotion of our kids for Ben. I think it tells you a lot about who he is and really what he’s about.”
Nikkel’s not just happy to be here. He’s yearning to do more. He said adding new special teams coordinator Jordan Langs to the staff has “made a pretty big impact” on him and his fellow cardinal and gold-clad agents of “controlled chaos.”
“Special teams is underrated,” Nikkel said. “It’s all about will and willpower, and if you’re willing to do it, it’s really, really fun.”
