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Photo by John Wagner

FAIRBANKS — Eielson’s Rick Nelson got the best of two worlds on Monday afternoon.

When the all-Greatland Conference running back and outside linebacker signed his National Letter of Intent with the University of Minnesota-Crookston, he was able to combine his love for the outdoors with a love for the gridiron.

“I was looking for a school in Minnesota because I have a lot of relatives there and Crookston had the degree I wanted,” said Nelson, who plans to major in wildlife management. “They are highly accredited in the Midwest in that field.”

Eielson coach David DeVaughn said he was impressed Nelson put his educational goals ahead of his football goals.

“I’m very impressed that he made his choice based on the educational level of the school and not just football,” DeVaughn said. “He was looking for a school in that area, and the big bonus was their wildlife management program.”

Another thing that attracted the Salcha resident to Crookston was the small-town atmosphere.

Crookston is a town of about 13,000 people, and there are about 2,000 students in the NCAA Division II school that competes in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference.

“I didn’t want it to be too much of a culture shock,” he said.

Crookston is located on the western border of Minnesota, about 20 miles from Grand Forks, N.D. It’s about 50 miles from Mayville, N.D., where several Alaskans are playing college football at Mayville State.

“I have a lot of friends that go to Mayville, so I’ll be close to them as well,” Nelson said. “It’s still a lot more urbanized than Alaska. I’ll get a chance to see what’s in the Lower 48.”

Nelson visited the Crookston campus during spring break in March.

“I met up with the coach and we talked about the football program,” Nelson said. “I liked the program, and I think it’s going to be a good fit for me.”

Nelson said he’ll probably play on the defensive side of the ball as either a strong safety or outside linebacker.

Those are two positions that Nelson is suited for, DeVaughn said.

“Ricky is a hard-nosed, old-school throwback player, so those are pretty good positions for him,” DeVaughn said. “When he sets his mind to things, he gets them done.”

The Golden Eagles are in a rebuilding process after posting a 2-9 season last year. Ironically, one of those wins was against Mayville State.

Earlier this year, Crookston announced that 32 recruits had signed on for the 2009 season.

“It’s possible I’ll see some playing time as a freshman, but I’ll know more once we get through training camp,” Nelson said. “If I don’t think I’d be getting much playing time, I would consider redshirting.”

In addition to football, Nelson was a cross-country skier his freshman year and tried a year of basketball before settling on playing football.

Now the 5-foot-10, 200-pounder, is concentrating on getting ready for his college career.

“They gave me a workout program that I’ve been following, Nelson said. “I’ve definitely seen improvement in my lifting and gaining size.”

DeVaughn said Nelson should have a good career ahead of him.

“Since he made his decision on the educational side of things, that will help him stay in football,” DeVaughn said.

“He chose a school where he’ll be successful.”