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Awards & Honors
- NCAA Championships Qualifier (2012)
- Academic All-Big Ten (2012)
- Nebraska Lifter of the Year (2011-12)
- Nebraska Scholar-Athlete Honor Roll (Fall 2011)
- NWCA All-Academic Team (2012)
- First-Team Academic All-Big 12 (2011)
- Big 12 Commissioner's Honor Roll (Fall 2009, 2010; Spring 2010, 2011)
2011-12 (Senior)
NCAA Championships
James Nakashima went 3-2 at the NCAA Championships during his senior campaign, winning his first three matches before dropping two straight. Nakashima's first win was by sudden victory in a play-in match against The Citadel's Kelby Smith.
After narrowly defeating Old Dominion's Joe Budi and Binghamton's Cody Reed, Nakashima lost a 5-4 decision to No. 5 seed Cayle Byers of Oklahoma State. In Nakashima's final match of his Husker career, he fell to Penn's Micah Burak by a 4-2 decision.
Big Ten Championships
Nakashima took seventh place at the Big Ten Championships, finishing with a 2-2 record. After a bye in the first round, Nakashima lost to No. 2 seed Matt Powless of Indiana by major decision, 10-2. In the loser's bracket, Nakashima defeated Iowa's Vinnie Wagner by a 6-4 decision.
Against Ohio State's Andrew Campolattano, Nakashima fell by a 10-2 major decision. In the seventh place match, Nakashima defeated No. 4 seed Matt Huntley by riding time in a 5-5 tie.
Regular Season
Nakashima went 22-11 in his final season as a Husker, recording a 15-4 record in duals. The Dwight, Ill., native opened the season with five straight wins before a riding time loss to Wyoming's Alfonso Hernandez in a 3-3 tie at the Nebraska-Kearney Holiday Inn Open. Nakashima placed third after winning the last two matches of the tournament.
Following the Nebraska-Kearney Holiday Inn Open, Nakashima went 1-2 at the Cliff Keen Invitational. Then he posted four straight wins before Big Ten season. Nakashima went 4-3 in Big Ten duals, which was highlighted by a four match win streak. He earned 50 dual points on the season.
Nakashima achieved success in the classroom, being named to the academic All-Big Ten team. He was also named to the Nebraska Scholar-Athlete Honor Roll during the fall semester.
2010-11 (Redshirt)
Regular Season
After seeing action in the Huskers' lineup as a junior, Nakashima used a redshirt season in 2010-11. Nakashima made the most of his year by collecting 28 victories and six top three finishes at open tournaments at 184 pounds. With a title at the Cowboy Open to begin the season, Nakashima reached the finals in three of his next four tournaments. Nakashima also competed in the Midlands Championships, where he went 4-3 with victories over NCAA qualifiers Max Thomusseit of Pitt and Illinois' Tony Dallago. Nakashima's 28 victories tied for fourth on the team. He also claimed 11 bonus-point victories.
2009-10 (Junior)
Big 12 Championships
Nakashima drew a pair of tough opponents at the Big 12 Championships and was eliminated after two matches. In the first round, he dropped a 5-0 decision to No. 15 Tyler Caldwell of Oklahoma before an 11-4 loss to No. 8 Alex Meade of Oklahoma State in the consolation.
Regular Season
Nakashima began his Division I career with a pin in 1:25 against Drae Cox of Lindenwood. The fall was the beginning of four wins at the Harold Nichols Open as he went on to a fourth-place finish.
The competition and pressure intensified from that point on, as Nakashima earned a starting role at 165 pounds and faced eight ranked opponents in his final 14 matches. He had major decision wins over Tanner Weiks of Northern Colorado and Weston Blasius of South Dakota State to finish the regular season with a 6-15 record.
Before Nebraska
Nakashima spent two seasons at Lincoln (Ill.) College and was crowned the 2009 NJCAA national champion at 174 pounds before committing to Nebraska.
At Dwight High School, Nakashima was a four-time letterwinner and twice qualified for the state meet. In 2007, he finished runner-up in Class 1A. Nakashima also lettered two seasons on the basketball court for the Trojans.
In the classroom at Lincoln College, Nakashima was the valedictorian of his Associates Class.
Personal
James is the son of John and Janet Nakashima and was born on Oct. 26, 1988, in Dwight, Ill. He is the youngest of three kids, as he has older siblings, Jennifer and Joey. James is a political science major at Nebraska.