Darlington Basketball Super Star Center Dan Nichols

The Darlington Indians went undefeated during the regular season in both 1969 and 1970, also winning their first and only Sectional in ’69, and certainly one of the players who helped them achieve that feat was Dan Nichols, their all-star center, who had transferred to DHS from New Ross to play for coach Dave Nicholson. Dan could do it all. Not only was he a proficient scorer, but he was an excellent rebounder and assist man. The run-and-gun fast break Indians depended on him to get things rolling after a defensive rebound. When Dan grabbed the ball, the fans knew what was going to happen next…a pass out to Don Threlkeld, Fred Warren, Rich Douglas, Jim Gable, or Gary Dale for an easy lay-up or chip shot at the other end…and no opponent could stop them!

Dan had the ability to know who was open, and he was able to deliver the ball to anyone on the court. But he also had the “soft touch,” averaging 18 points per game during his last two years, in addition to hauling in an average of 15 rebounds per game! In fact, during a game against Granville Wells, Dan scored 33 points and grabbed 30 rebounds…amazing! His most memorable game, however, was when the Indians defeated Speedway in the final game of the Sectional at Lebanon in 1969 to claim the championship…the greatest victory in Darlington basketball history…and no, they could not have done it without Dan Nichols. In 1970 he was voted as the team MVP, along with Rich Douglas, who was Darlington’s all-time leading scorer. Dan led the team his senior year in rebounds, assists, and field goal percentage, also being named to the All-County, All-Sectional, and All-Regional teams.

Many colleges had their eyes on Dan upon graduation, and he ventured south to play for the University of Evansville. During his freshman year, he started at forward and was the team’s leading rebounder. Because of knee surgery, Dan had to lay out his sophomore season. In his junior year, Dan tore a ligament in his ankle, and that unfortunately ended his playing career with the Purple Aces.

Dan taught and coached high school for a few years, and then entered the business world, working for Lithonia Lighting here in Crawfordsville before transferring to their facility in Georgia. Sadly, Dan had some health problems later in life, and he passed away in May of 2020 at the age of 67. Being a Darlington graduate myself, I compiled a book several years ago, which has all of the players listed, along with their accomplishments. And I can say this with no uncertainty, Dan “Dan-O” Nichols was the greatest center to ever play for the Darlington Indians. In 1971, Dan was named by voters in Montgomery County to the All-Time Modern team as one of the best to ever play the game.

John “Butch” Dale is a retired teacher and County Sheriff. He has also been the librarian at Darlington the past 32 years, and is a well-known artist and author of local history.