For high school athletes, it is difficult to get a scholarship to play at the collegiate level. Furthermore, it is even more difficult to get a college scholarship after sustaining a serious injury. Nick Shebish, however, overcame a gruesome knee injury and is the next college football star in years to come. 

Nick, a 2020 graduate, transferred to Bishop Noll at the beginning of the second semester during his sophomore year from De La Salle in Chicago.

“I left due to the fact that I lost my grandfather and wanted a fresh start somewhere else,” said Nick. “It was the best decision I’ve ever made.”

For his junior season, the football team lacked numbers and was forced to play a mixed schedule of both JV and Varsity games, which took many potential scholarship opportunities away. Nick, however, looked adversity in the eye and helped a young, developing team during the rebuilding process. He showed much promise entering his senior year.

Senior year was much of the same thing for Nick at the beginning of the season. He was named team captain for the second year in a row and dominated at middle linebacker for the first two games. During the third play in the 1st quarter against Lake Station, Nick tore his ACL making a routine tackle he had done a thousand times before. His season was over. “When I got injured I completely shut down, I thought my football career was over,” said Nick.

Nick had to go through a long recovery process for this injury. “It was the hardest 10 months of my life. I couldn’t workout for 6 months and I had to sleep with a machine that constantly kept my leg moving,” said Nick. “The hardest part, though, was seeing my brothers go to war without me.”

Despite having a shortened season and being unable to stay in the gym, Coach Racine made sure that he kept Nick on college’s radar. In the spring of 2020, Nick officially committed to play football at Trine University.

Even though he got the opportunity to play in college, adjusting to the pace and speed of the game is difficult, especially off an injury.

“High school ball is an entirely different environment,” said Nick. “In high school, you’re playing for your hometown and in front of your friends whereas in college you are playing in front of thousands of fans.”

Through all of the adversity of lack of varsity experience and being injured, Nick has been in the weight room getting stronger, in the classroom getting smarter, and on the field becoming the next Trine football superstar.