He attended Miami Central High School in West Little River, Florida where he played football and ran track.

[1] In football, Nichols recorded 105 tackles, 12 interceptions and two forced fumbles in four years as the Rockets won state championships in his freshman, junior, and senior seasons.

As a junior, he led the Bulls with four interceptions and seven pass breakups and made 49 tackles (2.0 for loss) and was named second-team All-AAC.

[18] Nichols recorded 24 tackles (three for loss), with a sack, six passes defended and a league leading three interceptions before the 2020 XFL season was cancelled following growing concerns about the COVID-19 virus.

[26] He had a stellar first season with the defending Grey Cup champion Bombers, as a newcomer on the team, he helped a secondary and defence that led the league with lowest yards and points allowed.

Nichols great play continued into the post-season as the Bombers defended their title at the 108th Grey Cup in Hamilton against the hometown Tiger-Cats.

As Winnipeg trailed 22-10 in the fourth quarter, the team rallied and the defence stood tall as they would go on to repeat as champions in overtime winning 33-25.