The road to Paris began – at least for Northern State alum Dakotah Popehn – with a rather unassuming freshman seminar. You know, the sort of large group setting where incoming freshmen are given tips for how to succeed as both a student and an athlete. Buried in that seminar was an anecdotal story of another Northern State legend, Matt Muelners. “At one of those meetings, they talked about the wrestler, Matt (Muellners), and how he went from being a walk-on to a full ride, and not just a full-ride, he was a national champion,” Popehn recounted. “I remember sitting there thinking, well, I’m a walk-on. He’s already done it. It’s already paved for me. If he can do it, I can do it.” Popehn, who arrived on campus as Dakotah Bullen, certainly took that message to heart, going from walk-on to multiple-time All-American. Then she took it one step further – to the Olympic Games themselves. Popehn was a member of the 2024 U.S. Olympic Team, and was the top America