Hall of Fame
Harrison, Nico
Nico Harrison
- Induction:
- 2015
It's easy to remember Nico Harrison for his style.
His dunks remain legendary, his passion for playing defense led to steals, and there were even rumors that he occasionally engaged in trash talk.
Those closest to the Bobcat Basketball program during Harrison's time at MSU, though, hold different memories. There was a lot of substance.
"Nico is the ultimate team guy," says Mick Durham, MSU's Hall of Fame Coach who led the Cats to the Big Sky title Harrison's senior season. "He always found a way to help the team."
Harrison transferred to MSU from West Point in 1992 ("I always thought it was because he didn't want to do push-ups," Durham said with a laugh) and it didn't take long for Bobcat coaches and players to begin whispering about the player who was redshirting. In 1993 Harrison moved seamlessly into the starting lineup, led the Big Sky in field goal percentage, and earned All-Big Sky honors.
That marked the first of three exceptional seasons for Harrison in the Blue and Gold. He earned All-Big Sky honors each season, becoming the 14th player in Big Sky history and the third Bobcat to that point in time to land all-league honors three times. He finished his career on Montana State's all-time field goal percentage and steals record lists.
Harrison's time at MSU coincided with one of the program's most successful three-year runs in history. The 1994-95 and 1995-96 Bobcats posted back-to-back winning seasons for the first time since the early 1950s, which was also the last time the Cats won as many as 58 games in three consecutive seasons.
But whenever Harrison's career is mentioned, it doesn't take long for the discussion to move to his achievements away from the floor. Harrison is one of the most academically decorated Bobcat student-athletes ever, landing Academic All-America honors as a senior. He was also a two-time Arthur Ashe Jr. Scholar-Athlete and earned an NCAA Post-Graduate Scholarship.
"When you look at everything he accomplished academically, Nico's career was really impressive," Durham said.
His dunks remain legendary, his passion for playing defense led to steals, and there were even rumors that he occasionally engaged in trash talk.
Those closest to the Bobcat Basketball program during Harrison's time at MSU, though, hold different memories. There was a lot of substance.
"Nico is the ultimate team guy," says Mick Durham, MSU's Hall of Fame Coach who led the Cats to the Big Sky title Harrison's senior season. "He always found a way to help the team."
Harrison transferred to MSU from West Point in 1992 ("I always thought it was because he didn't want to do push-ups," Durham said with a laugh) and it didn't take long for Bobcat coaches and players to begin whispering about the player who was redshirting. In 1993 Harrison moved seamlessly into the starting lineup, led the Big Sky in field goal percentage, and earned All-Big Sky honors.
That marked the first of three exceptional seasons for Harrison in the Blue and Gold. He earned All-Big Sky honors each season, becoming the 14th player in Big Sky history and the third Bobcat to that point in time to land all-league honors three times. He finished his career on Montana State's all-time field goal percentage and steals record lists.
Harrison's time at MSU coincided with one of the program's most successful three-year runs in history. The 1994-95 and 1995-96 Bobcats posted back-to-back winning seasons for the first time since the early 1950s, which was also the last time the Cats won as many as 58 games in three consecutive seasons.
But whenever Harrison's career is mentioned, it doesn't take long for the discussion to move to his achievements away from the floor. Harrison is one of the most academically decorated Bobcat student-athletes ever, landing Academic All-America honors as a senior. He was also a two-time Arthur Ashe Jr. Scholar-Athlete and earned an NCAA Post-Graduate Scholarship.
"When you look at everything he accomplished academically, Nico's career was really impressive," Durham said.
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