Hailing from Chantilly, Virginia, Nels was inspired growing up to become a sports broadcaster and pursue a career in sports journalism from watching/listening to the likes of the great Doc Emrick, Joe Beninati, Mike Tirico, Al Michaels, and Jim Nantz. Now, as a senior at Virginia Tech studying Sports Media Analytics, Nels looks to make a name for himself in the sports media industry, and hopes that someday, someone will look up to him and be inspired like he was.