In the golden era of wrestling at the University of Northern Iowa, William J. "Bill" Nelson played a major role as the Panthers scaled the heights of national prominence.

Three times he won the National Collegiate championship, and in 1947 became one of the very few ever to win it as a freshman. An untimely injury during the 1948 tournament thwarted his bid to become the NCAA's only four-time champion.

At the close of that sophomore season, he earned a place on the U.S. Olympic team, but an injury in his final qualifying bout in London knocked him out of the Games.

Nelson returned to the NCAA's king row in 1949 and '50, leading the Iowa Teachers to the team championship as a senior. He won National AAU Freestyle titles the same two years, and his Panthers captured team honors at both tournaments. In 1950, he was selected by a national magazine as the country's outstanding amateur wrestler.

He was a state high school champion at Eagle Grove, Iowa, and when he launched his coaching career, he returned to the high school ranks, first in Colorado, then Iowa, then Michigan. In 1963, he became coach at the University of Arizona, where he emerged as one of the most widely respected figures in collegiate wrestling.

He is a member of the state halls of fame in Iowa, Michigan and Arizona.

He served as president of the National Wrestling Coaches Association and was host director of the 1976 NCAA Championships at Tucson, the only time the tournament has been held in the Southwest.

In recognition of his spectacular achievements as a wrestler, and his long years of service to the sport, William J. Nelson is honored as a Distinguished Member of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame.