The Cal 100: No. 71 -- Nikolaos Papanikolaou
We count down the top 100 individuals associated with Cal athletics, based on their impact in sports or in the world at large – a wide-open category. See if you agree.
No. 71: Nikolaos Papanikolaou
Cal Sports Connection: Papanikolaou is a three-time Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Player of the Year while leading Cal to back-to-back NCAA water polo championships
Claim to Fame: He scored three of his seven goals in the final 6 minutes as the Bears completed a comeback from a four-goal deficit to beat USC 13-12 in the 2022 NCAA title game
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We’ll stop short of comparing Nikolaos Papanikolaou to a Greek god. But at 6-foot-3, 245 pounds, the 22-year-old from Athens, Greece looks like he could play the role of NFL tight end.
In fact, Papanikolaou is the most dominant player in college water polo, the centerpiece of a Cal team that has won the past two NCAA championships and will be a consensus favorite to make it three in a row next fall.
At No. 71, he is the first selection to The Cal 100 still in the midst of his college career with the Golden Bears.
For a program that has generated 16 NCAA titles — more than any school in the country — “Papa” is regarded as no less than the second-best player Cal has produced. Coach Kirk Everist said as much this past season, suggesting that only three-time Olympian Chris Humbert holds a spot above him.
So far.
Nikolaos Papanikolaou unleashes a shot.
Photo by Catharyn Hayne, KLC fotos
Humbert is also Cal’s career leader in goals scored with 296, accumulated from 1998-01. Papanikolaou has climbed to No. 5 on the Bears’ all-time list with 210 — moving past Everist — and the extra year of eligibility because of the COVID pandemic gives him a realistic chance to reach at least No. 2.
Papa has three times been named Player of the Year in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation — the nation’s premier water polo conference, also featuring Stanford, USC and UCLA. And he is a finalist — and favorite — to win his second straight Cutino Award as the nation’s best player. The award will be presented in ceremonies on Saturday in San Francisco.
Papanikolaou was never better than he was on Dec. 4 at Cal’s Spieker Aquatics Complex, where the Bears dueled USC in the national championship match.
Cal trailed the Trojans 12-8 with 6 minutes left in the fourth quarter when Papanikolaou came alive. He scored three goals in a span of 3 1/2 minutes, tying the score with 1:30 left before teammate Roberto Valera made the game-winner with 41 seconds to play with a 13-12 victory.
Papanikolaou finished with seven goals, giving him 62 for the season. “He’s a special kid. He’s a special player,” Everest said. “If I had to pick a team, I’d definitely pick him first.”
That’s because his combination of size, power, speed, skill and versatility allows him to make the teammates around him better.
“He’s able to get shots off very quickly. He’s efficient,” Everist said. “Papa is always looking to score. And he can score in tight windows. He is very athletic. He’s got great hands. He’s 245 pounds, depending on the day and lunch.
“And he’s probably one of our faster swimmers. And then he adds defense. That sets him apart from a lot of the centers I’ve seen in the past.”
He is such a focal point for opposing defenses that Papanikolaou is routinely fouled, drawing penalties known in the sport as exclusions, which send the offender to the side for 20 seconds to create a “power-play” opportunity. Papa drew 98 exclusions during the 2021 season, 80 this past season and once forced opposing players to the side 10 times in a single game.
Papanikolaou has represented Greece in international competition, including in 2018 when he was named Junior World MVP after leading his team to a gold medal at the Youth World Championships.
And he’s got one more season with the Golden Bears.
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Cover photo of Nikolaos Papanikolaou by Catharyn Hayne, KLC fotos
Follow Jeff Faraudo of Cal Sports Report on Twitter: @jefffaraudo