football

Jim McMillen found success in many fields

Posted by Richard Vicek | Aug 1, 2024 | Classics, Interviews, The Sporting Connection

In the professional wrestling world of the 1930s, one of the biggest box office draws was the...

Mayes McLain was a gridiron legend turned wrestling star

Posted by Greg Oliver | Jun 21, 2024 | Classics, Hollywood Headlock, The Sporting Connection

Editor’s note: Problematic language may remain in vintage quotations and has been kept to...

Bob Bruggers, dead at 80, followed Wahoo into wrestling

Posted by Greg Oliver | May 13, 2024 | Obituaries, The Sporting Connection

Bob Bruggers, who died on Friday, May 10, owes his wrestling career to his roommate while he...

The night Greektown went A-R-R-G-O-O-S for A.J.

Posted by Greg Oliver | Mar 11, 2024 | Event Reports, Events, Interviews, Other House Shows, The Sporting Connection

TORONTO — It’s not often you see a Grey Cup ring used as a weapon. Or a surefire...

Wrestlers’ Court: KelceMania is running wild (or at least it should)

Posted by Jonathan Schwartz | Mar 5, 2024 | Opinion, The Sporting Connection, WrestleMania

I ended my last column with a flippant suggestion that WWE sign NFL players Jason and Travis Kelce...

AJ Francis finds a home in TNA, chasing Moose

Posted by Arin De Castro | Feb 22, 2024 | Interviews, The Sporting Connection

AJ Francis — formerly known as Top Dolla in WWE — has found a new home in Total Non...

‘Mongo’ McMichael inducted into Pro Football Hall of Fame

Posted by Greg Oliver | Feb 8, 2024 | News, The Sporting Connection

There are Four Horsemen in the WWE Hall of Fame — and now there is one in the Pro Football...

WWE tagging with Big 12 football

Posted by Bob Kapur | Nov 16, 2023 | News, The Sporting Connection

In a press released issued on Thursday, WWE and the Big 12 Conference announced a collaboration...

Russ Francis dies in plane crash

Posted by Greg Oliver | Oct 2, 2023 | Obituaries, The Sporting Connection

Russ Francis, who was both a Super Bowl-winning football player and a pro wrestler, has died in a...

Bronko Nagurski book super… for the football

Posted by Greg Oliver | Sep 7, 2023 | Gary Howard Memorial Library, The Sporting Connection

Just as Bronko Nagurski was a two sport star, in football and pro wrestling, I came away with two...

Jack Cartwheel one to flip over

Posted by Greg Oliver | Aug 3, 2023 | Interviews

There are two ways to get Jack Cartwheel talking — ask him about school or ask him about...

‘Droz’ Darren Drozdov dies

Posted by Greg Oliver | Jun 30, 2023 | News, Obituaries, The Sporting Connection

Darren Drozdov, a football player turned pro wrestler, who was paralyzed during a match in October...

Jeff Gaylord dead at 64

Posted by Greg Oliver | Mar 15, 2023 | News, Obituaries, The Sporting Connection

Jeff Gaylord, a football player turned pro wrestler, has died. He was 64. His brother, Joel...

Pat McAfee taking hiatus from WWE for ESPN role

Posted by Bob Kapur | Sep 7, 2022 | News

Pat McAfee announced that he will be taking time off from his responsibilities as WWE Smackdown...

Wife’s insights make Wahoo McDaniel bio even better

Posted by Greg "Count Grog" Mosorjak | Feb 21, 2022 | Gary Howard Memorial Library, The Sporting Connection

There have been a lot of books written about pro wrestlers, some by the wrestlers themselves, some...

WWE Legends part of the ‘mania’ of the SuperBowl

Posted by Bob Kapur | Feb 14, 2022 | Hollywood Headlock, News, The Sporting Connection

Full of glitz, glamour, celebrity, and spectacle – oh, and some sports action, too – WWE...

NFL great Marion Motley’s brief wrestling fling

Posted by Greg Oliver | Feb 13, 2022 | The Sporting Connection

In November 2021, I reviewed a book, The Forgotten First: Kenny Washington, Woody Strode, Marion...

Wrestling’s Woody Strode big part of ‘Forgotten First’ football book

Posted by Greg Oliver | Nov 25, 2021 | Gary Howard Memorial Library, The Sporting Connection

Sometimes you get a book and you just know that it is capital “I” Important....

Angelo Mosca dead at 84

Posted by Greg Oliver | Nov 6, 2021 | Canadian Hall of Fame, News, Obituaries, The Sporting Connection

Angelo “King Kong” Mosca, star of the gridiron and the ring, has died. He was 84, and...

Actor Matthew Willig has ‘Giant’ shoes to fill in ‘Young Rock’ role

Posted by Dave Hillhouse | Feb 16, 2021 | Hollywood Headlock, Hollywood Headlock Interviews, Interviews, The Sporting Connection

Dwayne Johnson has claimed the mantle of Hollywood movie star number one, and he was no slouch in...

Mat Matters: It’s football, so get the facts right on Reed

Posted by Greg Oliver | Feb 7, 2021 | Opinion, The Sporting Connection

This might be shocking to you but in professional wrestling facts are exaggerated. Wait, even that...

Finn Balor comes to aid of football club

Posted by John Powell | Jul 7, 2020 | News, The Sporting Connection

The Bray Wanderers F.C. asked for help and WWE superstar Finn Balor answered the call. Due to the...

Big John Quinn dead at 78

Posted by Greg Oliver | Apr 22, 2019 | Canadian Hall of Fame, Interviews, Obituaries

Big John Quinn, who died April 22, 2019, at age 78, from complications after an operation for a...

Lionel Conacher: Big Train on the mat

Posted by Andrew Calvert | Mar 23, 2019 | Canadian Hall of Fame, Interviews, The Sporting Connection

Lionel Conacher was voted Canada’s athlete of the half-century in 1950 and most biographies...

Josh Briggs has a big future

Posted by Bertrand Hébert | Feb 11, 2019 | Interviews

On Saturday, January 19, during EVOLVE 120 at La Boom in New York City, Josh Briggs scored a...

‘Vader’ Leon White dead at age 63

Posted by Steven Johnson | Jun 20, 2018 | Interviews, Obituaries

Leon White, the football star turned professional wrestler known as Vader and Big Van Vader, has...

NXT experience paid off for Dak Draper

Posted by BRIAN HOOPS | Nov 12, 2017 | Interviews

A career-defining moment came for Sam Udell on July 31, 2014. That was the day he lost his WWE...

Tom Drake was greatest of all wrestlers turned politicians

Posted by Greg Oliver | Feb 2, 2017 | Interviews, Obituaries

There are wrestlers who toy with politics and don’t succeed; there are wrestlers who do...

Former Hawkeye Big E humbled by visit to Tragos/Thesz Hall of Fame

Posted by Kari Williams | Aug 1, 2016 | Interviews, Tragos/Thesz HOF

The George Tragos/Lou Thesz Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame weekend served as a homecoming of...

How the Dublin Destroyer broke into acting

Posted by Blaine Van Der Griend | Jul 16, 2016 | Hollywood Headlock Interviews, Interviews

Brian Donahue made a living for himself by taking bumps inside the wrestling ring, usually as the...

Blackjack Mulligan dead at 73

Posted by Steven Johnson | Apr 7, 2016 | Interviews, Obituaries

By GREG OLIVER & STEVE JOHNSON – SlamWrestling Blackjack Mulligan, who died today at the...

Mat Matters: NFL trumps WWE, always

Posted by Greg Oliver | Jan 22, 2016 | Opinion

Whomever plans the dates for WWE pay-per-views needs to be fired. Who, in their right mind, puts...

MoscaMania runs wild again

Posted by Greg Oliver | Aug 27, 2015 | Canadian Hall of Fame, Events, Interviews, The Sporting Connection

HAMILTON – Back in 1986 and 1987, football and pro wrestling great Angelo Mosca turned...

It’s damn hard being Ron Simmons

Posted by Pat Laprade | Jul 3, 2015 | Interviews, The Sporting Connection

It’s damn hard being Ron Simmons. “I can’t go to an airport without a little...

Don Manoukian lived a full, fun life

Posted by Greg Oliver | Sep 24, 2014 | Interviews, Obituaries

Don Manoukian, the original Oakland Raider who turned to pro wrestling, died Tuesday in Reno,...

Chris Nowinski’s impact continues to grow

Posted by Caleb Smith | Sep 10, 2014 | Interviews

He might be the most influential person in sport today. When he first came to prominence on North...

Looking back at Alzado’s Learning The Ropes

Posted by Greg Oliver | Aug 11, 2014 | Hollywood Headlock, Interviews, The Sporting Connection

Learning The Ropes came and went without much of a ripple back in the fall of 1988, but it remains...

Moose Ojinnaka brings NFL experience to ROH rings

Posted by Matthew Asher | Jul 14, 2014 | Interviews, The Sporting Connection

Last month at Ring of Honor’s Best in the World pay-per-view, Quinn “Moose”...

Kongo Kong inspires awe

Posted by Caleb Smith | Feb 12, 2014 | Interviews

In wrestling there are many stereotypes, especially for a black performer. You could be the...

Football was Roman Reigns’ first love

Posted by Matthew Byer | Oct 10, 2013 | Interviews, The Sporting Connection

Roman Reigns is at the apex of the professional wrestling industry as a member of The Shield and...

Entertaining to a fault: Snitsky continues to tackle challenges

Posted by JAMES DE MEDEIROS | Oct 9, 2013 | Interviews

If you went to a WWE wrestling show between September 2004 and December 2008 and weren’t in...

Don Joyce was famed defensive end, part-time wrestler

Posted by Greg Oliver | Dec 26, 2012 | Interviews, Obituaries, The Sporting Connection

Looking back at the names that were lost from the world of pro wrestling in 2012, most lists omit...

Ex-CFLer Nick Hannah tackles squared circle

Posted by Andy McNamara | Oct 5, 2012 | Interviews, The Sporting Connection

What do Ernie Ladd, Angelo Mosca, and The Rock all have in common? Each of these superstars got...

The remarkable strengths of Doug Furnas

Posted by Greg Oliver | Mar 30, 2012 | Interviews, Obituaries, The Sporting Connection

In the end, our lives are really just a collection of memories. When a life ends, as it did for...

Bagwell goes back to school

Posted by Matthew Asher | Feb 26, 2012 | Interviews

MARIETTA, GA. — Wrestlers working in a high school gym is nothing new. But last Saturday,...

Kenny King plenty tough enough for ROH

Posted by Greg Oliver | May 5, 2011 | Interviews

Kenny King walked onto the second season of WWE Tough Enough with zero experience in professional...

A personal remembrance: Mike Shaw loved sports and family

Posted by MATT JOHNSON | Sep 12, 2010 | Obituaries, Opinion

Mike Shaw loved his family and would do anything for them. That is how the man should be...

Kinji Shibuya dead at 88

Posted by Greg Oliver | May 8, 2010 | Interviews, Obituaries

Kinji Shibuya, who died Monday at the age of 88, once described his move from wrestling to acting...

Gene Kiniski dead at 81

Posted by Greg Oliver | Apr 14, 2010 | Canadian Hall of Fame, Interviews, Obituaries

Gene Kiniski was so media savvy that he instructed this writer on what to write when the...

‘Dr. Death’ Steve Williams dead at 49

Posted by Chris Schramm | Dec 30, 2009 | Obituaries

“God has a plan for me,” Steve Williams wrote friends after entering the hospital to...

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