Are you a washed up football player? Can't begin to think of how you're going to make a living in the sport ever again. Got knees that are brittle from years of cut blocks, to the point that one more snap in the NFL might cause your sockets to fall out of place? Are you tired of the paralysis causing hits, to the point that you can't take the pressure of the sport anymore?
Well, it's really simple; just come to wrestling. So many other washed up players have. For some reason, football and wrestling have this feedback loop, in which they interact by sending some of their greats to each other. Football had Brock Lesnar for, I dunno, six months. Meanwhile, former football players who just couldn't hack it anymore found fame and fortune in the rasslin' business. Names like Luger, Simmons and the like all have made their name in football before moving on to the world of wrestling. Shit, we still have it now, what with Titus O' Neil trying to make it a win in football, and in wrestling. Hell, the biggest name on the roster spent a good couple of years playing college ball for some no name school out in Bumblefuck. Wrestling and Football seem to go hand in hand, for some reason. The question is simple; Who was the best football player turned to a wrestler?
I mean, it's not like there's an outright winner that everyone's going to jump to...
....Yeah, guys, look. I know there's going to be a majority of posters who turn into here if I don't include this: I want the best combined wrestler and football player. If you're going to pick the Rock, you better be ready to explain why he was also Warren Sapp's backup. I'm aware, Warren Sapp is probably the greatest Defensive Tackle of his generation, but the fact is, Dwayne Johnson was made to look good by the fact that college teams needed to double, sometimes triple team Warren Sapp, because he was the unstoppable monster on that front line. Hell, there are times in which Rocky got to the quarterback untouched, because people were so focused on his teammates. Sure, he won a national title, but he never really did anything for the team. If you're going to argue The Rock, you better be able to explain his lackings on the football field.
Whcih brings me to my answer.... Brian Pillman.
Look, the man was 220 pounds, and playing Defensive Tackle on the Miami Redskins squad. It might seem as though it was a small guy playing on a bad squad, until you realized that Brian Pillman was named an All-American at the spot. Mind you, he wasn't just named once, but twice to the team. He was not just a one hit wonder of blurring speed, but rather someone that put up consistent numbers facing off against guys easily 60-70 pounds heavier than him, at the least. At the time, I'm not sure they kepta record for Sacks, but he held the record for tackles for loss in the NCAA. Again, let me reiterate that for you; a 220 pound kid was pushing around men nearly 300 pounds, and doing so at an All American level. That kind of ability is absolutely unheard of. Which made it pretty much common knowledge he wouldn't be drafted, because his size wouldn't warrant it. Still, he tried, and played for the Bengals and Bills, before trying out his abilities in the wrestling ring. The results would lead to the influence of a lightheavyweight division in American wrestling, which changed the face of the sport as we know it. I don't typically give enough credit to Pillman on these forums, but it was probably his match with Jushin Liger that made us all realize that lightheavyweight wrestling could bhe exciting. He was really a man way before his time, and truly a pioneer in the sport of wrestling, in changing how one feels about Cruiserweights. His in ring work was second to none for so long, to the point that his wrestling skills typically are underrated because of his Loose Cannon gimmick. He is, to me, the best combination of a football player turned wrestler, but that's just for me. Who, to you, was the ebst football player turned wrestler?
Well, it's really simple; just come to wrestling. So many other washed up players have. For some reason, football and wrestling have this feedback loop, in which they interact by sending some of their greats to each other. Football had Brock Lesnar for, I dunno, six months. Meanwhile, former football players who just couldn't hack it anymore found fame and fortune in the rasslin' business. Names like Luger, Simmons and the like all have made their name in football before moving on to the world of wrestling. Shit, we still have it now, what with Titus O' Neil trying to make it a win in football, and in wrestling. Hell, the biggest name on the roster spent a good couple of years playing college ball for some no name school out in Bumblefuck. Wrestling and Football seem to go hand in hand, for some reason. The question is simple; Who was the best football player turned to a wrestler?
I mean, it's not like there's an outright winner that everyone's going to jump to...
[YOUTUBE]dmR5IZt-hTo[/YOUTUBE]
....Yeah, guys, look. I know there's going to be a majority of posters who turn into here if I don't include this: I want the best combined wrestler and football player. If you're going to pick the Rock, you better be ready to explain why he was also Warren Sapp's backup. I'm aware, Warren Sapp is probably the greatest Defensive Tackle of his generation, but the fact is, Dwayne Johnson was made to look good by the fact that college teams needed to double, sometimes triple team Warren Sapp, because he was the unstoppable monster on that front line. Hell, there are times in which Rocky got to the quarterback untouched, because people were so focused on his teammates. Sure, he won a national title, but he never really did anything for the team. If you're going to argue The Rock, you better be able to explain his lackings on the football field.
Whcih brings me to my answer.... Brian Pillman.
Look, the man was 220 pounds, and playing Defensive Tackle on the Miami Redskins squad. It might seem as though it was a small guy playing on a bad squad, until you realized that Brian Pillman was named an All-American at the spot. Mind you, he wasn't just named once, but twice to the team. He was not just a one hit wonder of blurring speed, but rather someone that put up consistent numbers facing off against guys easily 60-70 pounds heavier than him, at the least. At the time, I'm not sure they kepta record for Sacks, but he held the record for tackles for loss in the NCAA. Again, let me reiterate that for you; a 220 pound kid was pushing around men nearly 300 pounds, and doing so at an All American level. That kind of ability is absolutely unheard of. Which made it pretty much common knowledge he wouldn't be drafted, because his size wouldn't warrant it. Still, he tried, and played for the Bengals and Bills, before trying out his abilities in the wrestling ring. The results would lead to the influence of a lightheavyweight division in American wrestling, which changed the face of the sport as we know it. I don't typically give enough credit to Pillman on these forums, but it was probably his match with Jushin Liger that made us all realize that lightheavyweight wrestling could bhe exciting. He was really a man way before his time, and truly a pioneer in the sport of wrestling, in changing how one feels about Cruiserweights. His in ring work was second to none for so long, to the point that his wrestling skills typically are underrated because of his Loose Cannon gimmick. He is, to me, the best combination of a football player turned wrestler, but that's just for me. Who, to you, was the ebst football player turned wrestler?
The Rock because of his success in the ring, I didn't really watch football when he was in college. I'd play it, I just never watched it until the Steelers got cheated in Superbowl XXX. Going from your argument of stats I would say 