Members selected for the Class of 2016 include Howard Johnston of Penn State University, Bill Hyman of Temple University, Troy Letters from Lehigh University and Troy Nickerson of Cornell University. The induction ceremony will take place on Sunday, March 6, 2016 at Princeton University's Jadwin Gymnasium, immediately preceding the finals of the annual EIWA tournament.
Committee Chairman Jamie Moffatt commented:
"The Committee is proud to announce the election of four outstanding wrestlers and individuals into the EIWA conference Hall of Fame: Howard Johnston, Bill Hyman, Troy Letters and Troy Nickerson. Each one of them distinguished himself on the wrestling mats as a multi-time EIWA champion and as a NCAA champion. In addition, all have made a significant contribution to the sport after their graduation from college. We welcome them into our Hall of Fame."
Dr. Howard K. Johnston, Penn State, Class of 1935
He was the first Penn State wrestler to win an NCAA wrestling championship.
Howard was born in 1913 in Newville, PA and graduated from State College High School in 1931. He wrestled for Penn State during the 1933, 1934 and 1935 seasons compiling a record of 29-5. Howard won the EIWA championships at 165 pounds in both 1934 and 1935. In the 1935 NCAAs held at Lehigh University, he advanced to the finals where he defeated the University of Oklahoma's Port Robertson by Time Advantage to win the 165 pound championship. His victory enabled Penn State to finish 5th in the team race.
After college, Howard initiated the wrestling program at State College High School. He was one of four referees who worked the first PIAA state tournament at Rec Hall in 1938. He was inducted into the Pennsylvania Wrestling Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 1984.
Howard was vice president of the Penn State class of 1935 when he received his BS degree in dairy husbandry. He continued on to earn a Master of Science and his Ph.D. in dairy science from Penn State. He worked in various technical and management positions in the field while living in North Carolina, South Dakota and then back in Pennsylvania from 1944 until he died. Howard retired in 1973.
Howard passed away in State College in 1990. He is survived by two daughters, Robin and Linda.
Bill Hyman, Temple University, Class of 1985
Wrestling for Saddle Brook High School in 1981, Bill won the New Jersey high school state championship. He went on to become, arguably, the most outstanding wrestler in the history of Temple University, twice winning the EIWA league championship and then winning the NCAA heavyweight championship as a senior in 1985.
In the EIWA tournaments, Bill finished fourth at heavyweight as a sophomore and won the tournament his junior and senior seasons, each time edging Syracuse's Andy Schwab by one point in the finals. Temple placed fourth out of sixteen teams each year. Bill received the prestigious Fletcher Award his senior year.
At the NCAA tournament Bill, while seeded 11th, placed 4th as a junior. The following year Bill was seeded 2nd, but ripped through all his opponents, including a 12-2 victory in the finals over Michigan's Kirk Trost, to win the heavyweight title. He became Temple's first two-time All-American.
Bill continued to wrestle for clubs for several years, including the Foxcatcher team that competed against an All-Star team from Bulgaria in 1986. He was a member of the USA wrestling team that competed in the 1985 Maccabean Games in Israel, earning a gold medal.
After college, Bill was a trader on Wall Street and later changed careers, going into the medical industry as a sales rep. For eight years he coached recreation wrestling in Ramsey, NJ; he now lives with his son and daughter in Upper Saddle River.
Troy Letters, Lehigh University, Class of 2006
Troy Letters is a 2001 graduate of Shaler High School, where he twice won the Pennsylvania high school wrestling championship. As a senior, he was ranked number one nationally at 160 pounds and was a first team High School All-American
Troy went on to study and wrestle at Lehigh University where he became a three-time EIWA champion, as well as a three-time All-American for the Mountain Hawks. He was the NCAA runner-up at 165 pounds in 2003 as a freshman. In 2004, Troy won the NCAA title at 165 by defeating the only wrestler to beat him during the regular season, Oklahoma State's Tyrone Lewis, 5-2, in the finals. Troy placed third at the 2005 NCAAs. He was named Lehigh's best overall athlete in 2005.
As a senior in 2006, Troy was slowed by a serious injury that kept him from gaining his fourth EIWA crown and All-America honors. During his college career, Troy built a 115-9 overall record including an outstanding 65-2 dual meet record. Prior to his injury-hampered senior year, he amassed a 97-4 win-loss record.
Upon graduation from Lehigh, Troy worked as an assistant coach at Princeton University and later at Penn State. From there he moved on to Clarion University where he was an assistant for the 2012 season and head coach during the 2013 and 2014 seasons. In 2011 Troy was inducted into the Pennsylvania Wrestling Coaches Association Hall of Fame.
Troy currently works in private industry in logistics and operations. He resides in Clarion with his wife and two daughters.
Troy Nickerson, Cornell University, Class of 2010
A product of Chenango Forks, NY, Troy Nickerson was one of the most highly regarded prep wrestlers in the country coming out of high school. He won five New York high school state championships and six national high school championships.
At Cornell from 2006-10, Troy compiled a remarkable collegiate career. He won the EIWA tournament three times, along with one runner-up finish. At the NCAA tournament, Troy finished first, second, third and fourth, winning the crown at 125 pounds his junior year defeating former champion Paul Donahoe in the finals. A chronic shoulder injury forced Troy to sit out the next season but he came back in 2010 to place 4th in the country.
Troy's career record at Cornell was 97-8 with 38 falls. That is the highest modern day pinning percentage in Cornell wrestling history.
Troy was the first male athlete in the history of the Ivy League, in any sport, to claim the Player and Rookie of the Year awards in the same season. He was the first Cornell or Ivy League wrestler to reach the NCAA finals as a freshman. He was named the Cornell Senior Athlete of the Year in 2010.
Troy graduated from Cornell with a bachelor's degree in biology & science and a minor in nutritional science. He currently is the head wrestling coach at Northern Colorado University and resides in Greeley, CO with his wife, Allie.
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