Student Athlete of the Week Maddox Brown

After years of racing motocross on a competitive level across the country, Maddox Brown landed at Niwot High School this past fall looking to experience a more normal senior year.

Brown had spent most of his first three high school years living in a camper with his mother in Texas, dedicating his time to motocross training while taking care of his academics online. However, injuries and a dwindling passion for the sport led Brown to re-route last winter.

"The chances of going pro in that sport are pretty tough, especially because I had a bunch of injuries," Brown said. "I wasn't into it, I was hurt, and we decided to focus on branching out my last year before I go off to college."

When he arrived at Niwot, Brown took measures to ensure his lone year of public high school wouldn't be wasted. He played football during the fall and is now finding success on the wrestling mat.

"I came back to (public) school this year, and I hadn't really got to do any school sports or anything like that," Brown said. "I played football this year, and I wasn't very good at football, but that was a cool experience. I came in, and I was like, 'I only have one opportunity to play these high school sports.' I wrestled a little bit in middle school, and I was like, 'Why not do wrestling?'"

Despite his lack of experience, the 157-pound senior has been one of Niwot's top wrestlers this winter. As of Jan. 27, Brown said he has won about 25 matches.

"Looking at my record and being able to place at a couple of tournaments, I'd say it's definitely been successful," Brown said. "It's been cool to get to wrestle before I graduate. It's been a great learning experience for life in general."

One of Brown's best performances came earlier this month at the Niwot Wrestling Invitational. Competing in his home gym, Brown won three matches en route to placing fifth in his division.

More recently, Brown reached the Granite Peaks League Tournament semifinals on Saturday, Jan. 25, before falling to eventual 157-pound winner Tyler Muir of Erie High School.

"I would have liked to place and finish a bit better, but it was pretty stiff competition looking at who I faced," Brown said. "I'm taking that one as is and getting a good look for the competition I'll see at regionals."

If all goes well at regionals, Brown would get the opportunity to wrestle in the state championships at Ball Arena in Denver.

"Making it to state would be super cool, and that's obviously a goal, but I'm just going out there and competing because it'll be probably my last time ever on a wrestling mat," Brown said.

Brown hopes to study either nutrition science or dietetics in college, likely outside of Colorado.

"As I got older, I started to see how fueling changes your performance and how beneficial it is to be properly fueling and paying attention to nutrition," Brown said. "It's a field that I'm super interested in based on my sports background."