A teenager once wrestled through the kind of winters that don’t make the highlight reels at a gym somewhere in Clovis, California. No lights in the arena. No noise from the crowd. Just weight loss, early mornings, and a quiet, unyielding refusal to fit in. Josh Hokit was that teenager, and if you watch him fight now—he was undefeated in ten professional fights and ranked fifth in the UFC heavyweight division as of April 2026—you can’t help but think of those high school days at Clovis High School.
Hokit was not originally from Clovis. Before his family moved, he was raised in Wasco, and the decision proved to be significant. Clovis High had better football facilities, a stronger wrestling program, and the kind of competitive atmosphere that can either sharpen or break a child. It greatly sharpened Hokit. He was ranked third in the country for wrestling by his senior year, which sounds good until you consider that he also had a football season in which he rushed for 820 yards and eight touchdowns while recording 125 tackles as a linebacker. the same year. identical body. same individual.
In particular, that football performance merits a second look. It’s possible that people are unaware of how uncommon it is for a high school player to have that level of dual statistical weight in a single season. At the same time, he was an offensive weapon and linebacker, putting up numbers that would make a committed specialist proud. Even at that time, Hokit seemed to be functioning differently from his contemporaries, not only in terms of his athletic abilities but also in terms of his perspective on competition.
However, it appeared that something more profound was taking place in wrestling. It was more than just a trophy moment to win the 182-pound weight class at the 2016 CIF State Tournament. It was his third medal at that point, putting him in a category of athletes that Clovis High doesn’t regularly produce. His wrestling coach at the time described Hokit as a “fierce competitor” built for high-pressure situations, demonstrating that coaches recognize patterns. When a coach uses such language, it usually indicates that the child doesn’t fold when it becomes uncomfortable.
The decision that followed the high school chapter is what makes it truly fascinating. Hokit had been awarded a full scholarship to Drexel University for wrestling. He agreed to it. Then he learned that Drexel had no football team, and apparently that was sufficient. He declined guaranteed compensation, joined the football team at Fresno State, and basically made a fresh start by placing bets on his ability to excel in both sports at the same time. Although the outcome has made it appear instinctive, it’s still unclear whether that choice appeared courageous or reckless to those around him at the time.
Every aspect of those Clovis years, including the tackle totals, state medals, and scholarship rejection, has a quality that seems more like appetite than ambition. Instead of accumulating accomplishments, Hokit was constantly putting himself to the test against the most difficult obstacles. He had his first real arena for that in high school, and he made full use of it. As it happens, the octagon was always going to come next.
