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Honker wrestling coach receives state honor...

A wrestling coach associated with the Honker and Sun Dawg programs in Kenmare, has been named as a state award recipient.

10/02/18 (Tue)

Coach of the Year... Honker assistant wrestling coach Nick Timm watches the action during a recent tournament. Timm, a Hettinger native, has been involved with the Honker and Sun Dawg programs in Kenmare the past seven years.

By Marvin Baker

A wrestling coach associated with the Honker and Sun Dawg programs in Kenmare, has been named as a state award recipient.

Nick Timm, who has been the assistant coach for the Kenmare-Bowbells-Burke Central Honkers, was named National Wrestling Coaches Association Assistant Coach of the Year for the state of North Dakota.

There are currently 55 high school wrestling programs in North Dakota.

Timm, who was a high school wrestler in Hettinger, has spent several years in the Kenmare program working with kids to improve their skills.

His former coach and current head coach for the Hettinger Black Devils, Randy Burwick, nominated Timm for the award.

Burwick said Timm has done three things that really stand out.

First, he has seven years of coaching experience, second, he coached the first heavyweight state placer in eight years in Burke Central’s Josh Baumann and he was one of three people who started the Sun Dawg children’s wrestling program.

“I look at what Nick has done and I look at how he’s done with the Sun Dawgs,” Burwick said. “He does a great job of recruiting and retaining, so what he’s done with the youth is amazing.”

Burwick, who has been a wrestling coach 35 years, said he has seen the Sun Dawgs program grow from about 15 to nearly 50 in the children’s wrestling program.

“It’s just unbelievable because I know how much work it takes,” he said. “Nick is very deserving of this award in helping programs in Kenmare stay on their feet. These are the reasons I nominated him.”

Burwick, who doubles as the state chairman of the National Wrestling Coaches Association, said he isn’t surprised Timm was chosen since he had the same kind of work ethic when he was wrestling with the Black Devils.

“Nick worked very hard for what he got which was sixth place as a senior,” Burwick said. “He was a good, hard-working kid who came to practice every day and wanted to learn about this sport called wrestling. He overcame a lot of obstacles, that’s what he did.”

One of those obstacles was wrestling heavyweight behind Josh Epperly, a Black Devil grappler who holds the team record of 36 pins in a season and was a state champion.

So after Epperly graduated, Timm moved up and promptly qualified for state and finished sixth.

Burwick said now he loves how Timm coaches.

“He was always passionate about the sport and now he’s paying it forward as a coach,” he said. “I always tell my wrestlers to pay it forward and that’s what Nick is doing now in Kenmare.”

Timm was caught off guard, as was Honker head coach Danny Mogren regarding his award. When Mogren was contacted, he wasn’t aware and wanted to do more checking to make sure it was legitimate. And Timm was completely unaware of the award when contacted for a comment.

“I would probably say it’s real,” Timm said. “I just wish they would have contacted me.”

On Sept. 11, The Kenmare News received an email from Nate Naasz of the National Wrestling Coaches Association, informing the staff of Timm’s award.

The news release wasn’t embargoed to a certain date so it was assumed Timm could be contacted.

Burwick apologized for informing the media before informing Timm himself. When Naasz was contacted, he said he had yet to send Timm’s certificate of award to Burwick and that the news release should have been held at least until Burwick received notification.

Timm assumed it was his old head coach who nominated him.

He said he started helping out in 2013 with the Honkers and he, his wife and Mogren got the Sun Dawgs program started and off the ground. He is now the president of the Sun Dawgs organization.

He also worked with Baumann to prep him for a state run at 220 pounds.

Baumann qualified as a junior, wrestling for Burke Central and his second year, Baumann joined the Honker program.

As a wrestler himself, Timm was a heavyweight who was an alternate on the 2000 and 2001 state championship Hettinger teams as a freshman and sophomore, qualified for state as a junior and placed sixth in Class B wrestling as a senior in 2004.

He plans to shift his focus toward the Sun Dawgs more than varsity this season.

“They took second as a team and third as individuals,” Timm said. “The Sun Dawgs are the biggest thing in Kenmare. We hold 40 kids and want to keep it going and get the kids more competitive.”

Mogren said Timm was certainly deserving of the award, because of his work with the Honker and Sun Dawgs programs.

Mogren was as caught off guard as Timm. He said he didn’t doubt the award was legitimate and that Timm was certainly deserving of it.

“Nick’s done a lot of work with this program,” Mogren said. “He takes time coming down here from Bowbells and he does a lot behind the scenes such as computer work. He’s certainly dedicated to wrestling. He has a passion for it.”

Timm took it all in stride, saying it isn’t about him so much as it is the kids in the program.

“I appreciate it, but I didn’t do this on my own,” he said. “I’m honored, but at the end of the day, it takes a village.”

Burwick intended to call Timm as soon as he received his certificate from the National Wrestling Coaches Association... Read EVERY WORD on EVERY PAGE of The Kenmare News by subscribing--online or in print!