Provided

Provided headshot of Colter Nicolarsen

The decision for Big Sky’s Colter Nicolarsen to play football at the college level didn’t come easy. 

For years, Nicolarsen  excelled at football and baseball, forcing him to weigh his passion and talent for both sports to play beyond high school. But this latest football season led him to continue his athletic and academic career at College of Idaho for football.

For as long as he remembers, Nicolarsen always thought that baseball was his sport. According to Colter, he always enjoyed football, but he knew he was just a little better at baseball, though he thought that was because of a size thing. 

“I’m only 5 ’10”, 175 pounds, so I’m not like a huge person for football, but I always enjoyed playing football,” Nicolarsen explained. 

Baseball was always his focus, and it felt like he could play in college. This was still true to Nicolarsen until this past football season. His senior season showed him that he could succeed playing football at the college level, too. 

According to Nicolarsen, he thinks he succeeded in football this past season because when it came to baseball, he put a lot of pressure on himself, but when it came to football, he was able to play free.

“It really helped shape me as an athlete as I put a lot of pressure on myself when it came to baseball, but when I went back to football, I was able to play loose and free and have more fun in general,” Nicolarsen said. 

This free play style showed on the football field. Nicolarsen was second team all state at the outside linebacker position. He recorded 44 solo tackles and 90 total tackles over the 2025 football season. 

“I succeeded in both sports but in different ways,” Nicolarsen said.”But how I was able to feel no pressure and play loose in football definitely played into my decision to commit to College of Idaho.”

When making his decision, Nicolarsen leaned on his parents very heavily. Colter’s dad really wanted him to play college baseball, so it was tough to be able to have that conversation with him. According to Nicolarsen, when he initially told his parents about the chance to play football at the college level, they were a bit shocked. 

But after being able to go on the visit to College of Idaho, he and his parents knew that it was the best option for him to go forward with. 

What stood out to Nicolarsen about the program on this visit is how competitive it is in NAIA football. 

“I’ve always been competitive. My non-negotiable for a college was that I needed somewhere where I wanted to compete and the people around me wanted to compete,” Nicolarson said when talking about the College of Idaho program.

According to Nicolarsen, everyone from the top down in the program is super friendly but has the competitive edge that he loves. Not only are they competitive, but the winning culture that has been established was a game changer for Nicolarsen, who knows what winning is like through winning two state titles with the Missoula Mavericks legion baseball team.

The recruiting process of football was overall just easier for Nicolarsen. When it came to baseball, he felt as if it was a lot more taxing and stressful. He would email schools about playing for their baseball team and at times wouldn’t get a response. 

So when College of Idaho offered and made the process as easy as it gets, Nicolarsen didn’t have to second guess if he made the wrong decision or not.

When asked about the type of player Nicolarsen is, Big Sky head football coach Matt Johnson said, “Colter’s work ethic was nothing short of impressive, he would come to our workouts in the mornings and have baseball later that day. Very excited to see his journey at College of Idaho and in life.”

Nicolarsen’s defensive coordinator and position coach at Big Sky, Ryan Flink, echoed Johnson’s sentiments. 

“Nico was always solid and easy going to coach, really made my job easier at times. Never once was he too tense to execute a play and I think that’s why he was such a great kid to coach,” Flink said. 

Nicolarsen’s opportunity is nothing short of an accomplishment for himself. It’s been a dream of his since he was a little kid to play a college sport, and to really enjoy and find what he wanted to play in college feels as cool as it gets. 

Nicolarsen’s father, who swam NCAA Division I  in college for BYU, and his mom, who’s always been supportive of his journey, are just extremely proud and super happy to see him pursue his passion. 

“They are just super happy to see me succeed, especially after all the hard work they’ve seen me put in over the years. I can’t thank both of them enough for the support they’ve provided me over the years,” Nicolarsen stated. 

Nicolarsen is just happy to be able to compete at the collegiate level and knows it’s a huge accomplishment, no matter what level you go to.

“I think I would sum it up with just being as grateful as it gets,” Nicolarsen said. “I’ve done a lot of work to get to this place, but I think the work is just beginning, which puts a smile on my face.”