In the 2019 season, the University of Idaho football team recruited the 2018 Idaho 5A Player of the Year, running back Nick Romano.
Romano became a HERO Sports All-America honorable mention as a kick returner and was awarded the 2019 First Team All-Big Sky as a kick returner.
Romano played in all 12 games for the Vandals where he started in five. He had over 100 yards rushing twice, 200 all-purpose yards twice and became the fourth Vandal in school history to record 286 all-purpose yards in a single game. Romano also scored five touchdowns including a kick return touchdown while averaging 5.08 yards per rush.
Romano capped off his freshman year at UI and began to focus on his sophomore season as he expressed his thoughts of his first season.
“Eye opening is a good word I like to use,” Romano said. “Games are a lot faster than in high school but all in all, getting all these friendships and bonds really is going to lead to some good team chemistry for the next couple of years. I really look forward to where this is going to end up.”
Before coming to UI, Romano grew up in Meridian, Idaho where he attended Rocky Mountain High School (RMHS) as a two-sport athlete in baseball and football. In his sophomore season, Romano helped RMHS lift the 5A baseball state title, earning an all-conference award as an outfielder. However in the summer of his junior year, Romano had a tough decision to make. Baseball or football? He decided to focus on football going into his senior year.
“I figured it’d be a lot more beneficial to me to pick football over baseball and just hang up the cleats in baseball,” Romano said.
Romano’s decision would not backfire. In his senior season, he recorded 2,211 yards and 32 touchdowns, led his team to a state title, an undefeated season and received an assortment of awards for his performance.
Romano became the Idaho 5A Player of the Year, state’s leading rusher in all categories, averaged 9.1 yards per rush and didn’t fumble the ball once. In the state championship, Romano rushed for 309 yards and two touchdowns.
“The feeling was pretty hard to describe,” Romano said. “Just working your whole life up to that point, going into your senior season and going out on top. It’s an indescribable feeling but it’s definitely one of the top moments of my football career.”
Romano had been rated as a two star prospect by 24/7 Sports and decided to commit to UI.
“What brought me to UI was definitely the family culture,” Romano said. “Just how they welcomed me in. I love the town and it’s very accessible to home. Five and a half hours isn’t too bad but it’s also far enough to where you feel you’re grown up by yourself now and honestly the guys that I’m with. I love being with them and it made me feel like a family as soon as I stepped in.”
Romano now prepares for the spring season with his team as they prepare for practice on Sept. 14. Romano and the rest of the football team have been weight training, going through walkthroughs and settling in with Zoom meetings during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Armin Mesinovic can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @arminmesinovic