UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa.-- Nick Mock was recruited to Penn State for his expertise on pommel horse, but in just his second year in Happy Valley, the sophomore has contributed in ways that head coach Randy Jepson didn't quite expect.
In his freshman season, Mock completed 12 routines on pommel horse while competing in 11 meets, including the Big Ten and the NCAA Championships. The Arizona native concluded his impressive freshman campaign with five top-five finishes, including two in the top three.
"I wasn't surprised at his early impact at all," Jepson said. "We knew he could come in and swing right away for us. It takes time for guys to get their feet wet and understand what the college level is all about, but he adjusted to that really well."
Jepson will be first to admit, however, that while he wasn't necessarily surprised about his recruit's immediate impact, he certainly wasn't expecting Mock to be placing high on parallel bars in just his second year with the program.
"When we went to recruit Nick for his pommel horse, we also saw him go over to the parallel bars after, and he didn't do very well," Jepson said. "In fact, he had some crashes, and I was just saying to myself 'I really hope we don't have to have him do that at Penn State.'"
Well, things change, and records are broken, as two-time national champion Stephen Nedoroscik illustrated when he earned the best pommel horse score in the nation in over five years in a win over Air Force.
"I think Stephen and I really feed off of each other's energy," Mock said. "We get each other going and he's a really great teammate."
Mock is still very much praised for his ability on the pommel horse event. However, since the Nittany Lions are thin in a few areas this season, coupled with the fact that Nedoroscik has been historically superb, Mock was challenged by his coaching staff to develop in other aspects of competition, and he has done just that so far.
Not only did Mock finish right behind the record-setting Nedoroscik on pommel horse against Air Force, but he also was runner up on parallel bars as well.
"If he's doing a handstand dismount on pommel horse, the swing stuff looks great because he's so long," Jepson said. "But when you have to raise that body to a handstand position to dismount after a really long routine, that's challenging."
Mock's unique ability to often compete and succeed in more than one exhausting event speaks volumes to the development of his strength and technique, which has not only transpired during his time at Penn State, but also throughout the years in high school and prior.
Mock trained at Aspire Jr. Sun Devils Club for 13 years and attended Basha High School, where he helped his teams win a number of state titles. To this day, Mock attributes a lot of his early collegiate success to his previous training experiences.
"The environment wasn't exactly the same, but I think it definitely prepared me for the college level," Mock said. "We pretty much trained like college athletes do."
Mock's work ethic has also most definitely translated to the next level as well.
Mock, along with Nedoroscik and all of the other pommel horse specialists, work with Jepson during distinctive morning workouts in which they all have pushed each other to hone their own respective skills.
But, aside from how it has consolidated the group's technique, it's the memories that are created and the laughs that are shared that are most valuable to Jepson.
"They're a really great group of guys," Jepson said. "We have some of the best conservations and best banter. The pommel horse is a really fun place to go in our gym and it's one of the reasons that it's really fun to come to work every day."
