Even after making cuts last Friday, WWE is always continuing to add young talent to the Performance Center, formally announcing four new would-be wrestlers on Wednesday as part of their latest rookie class.
One of those joining the fray is Zoe Hines, the niece of U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and his wife, actress Cheryl Hines (Curb Your Enthusiasm).
The fifth-ever WWE NIL class has three names with familiar bloodline ties among them.
Announced by WWE on Saturday following USA Today’s initial report, Brock Rechsteiner (son of Scott Steiner), Jacob Henry (son of Mark Henry), and TJ Bullard (son of Titus O’Neil) were part of the 12-member class listed below.
Rechsteiner, formerly a wide receiver for the Jacksonville State football team, was reportedly offered his deal in January with his brother Brandon confirming it in February during an interview.
Henry is currently a football player and amateur wrestler at Oklahoma University while Bullard plays football for the University of Central Florida.
A member of the inaugural WWE NIL class has won gold at the 2024 Summer Olympics.
24-year-old Masai Russell is competing at her first Olympics in Paris and took gold in the 100-meter hurdles in a photo finish on Sunday.
Triple H later congratulated Russell, writing “Huge congrats to inaugural #WWENIL class member Masai Russell on taking home Olympic gold in the 100m hurdles.”
Huge congrats to inaugural #WWENIL class member Masai Russell on taking home Olympic gold in the 100m hurdles. https://t.co/0Sa4Vx6oOM
This is not the first time one of Russell’s accomplishments elicited a response from WWE’s Chief Content Officer. In January 2023, Russell set a new NCAA record in the 60-meter hurdles. Triple H responded on social media, writing “Congratulations to #WWENIL athlete @masai_russell on setting a new @NCAA record in the 60m hurdles! An incredible achievement with undoubtedly more to come…”
In December 2021, Russell was announced as one of 15 college athletes to have signed NIL deals with WWE. The University of Kentucky standout is now listed as a coach on the school’s athletics page.
WWE has announced its fourth class of NIL recruits
Notable athletes joining the program include two-time All-American wrestler from Michigan, Lucas Davison. Former Big 12 wrestling champion Stephen Buchanan from Oklahoma has also signed on with the program.
Two-time National Champion in Acrobatics, Bayley Humphrey from Baylor is included in this class of recruits as well.
More than 60 athletes have taken part in the NIL program since its inception in December 2021. Seven of those athletes have signed full-time developmental deals with the company and train full-time at the WWE Performance Center in Orlando.
The third class of WWE NIL recruits has been revealed.
The company announced on Thursday that 15 new college athletes will be taking part in the Name, Image, and Likeness program.
The class includes two-time NCAA All-American wrestler from Penn State, Greg Kerkvliet. He is listed as 6’3″ and 250 lbs.
Also featured in the class is four-time NCAA National Champion thrower from Arizona State, Turner Washington. He is listed as 6′ 5″ and 290 lbs. Washington competes in shot put and discus.
LSU track star Alia Armstrong has also been signed to the program.
The full class of NIL recruits is as follows:
Abby Jacobs – Soccer – South Alabama – 5’ 7”
Alexandra Jaksec – Tennis – Mary Washington – 5′ 4″
Alia Armstrong – Track & Field – LSU – 5′ 4″
Cameron Jones – Football – Cincinnati – 6′ 8″ 320 lbs.
Dee Beckwith – Football – Kentucky – 6′ 5″ 235 lbs.
Greg Kerkvliet – Wrestling – Penn State – 6’ 3”, 250 lbs.
With a continued pursuit of recruiting college athletes into their developmental ranks, WWE announced their first-ever “Campus Rush” tour that begins on Wednesday.
Big E, Bianca Belair, Omos, Madcap Moss, and Raquel Rodriguez will all be part of the three month, eight-stop tour in order to “address student athletes at each tour stop and educate them about the global leader in sports entertainment.”
The goal of the events will be to inform student athletes about the company’s NIL program and what it can offer them. Each stop will also feature “student athletes facing off on the microphone to cut the best WWE-style promo.”
This is WWE’s first-such awareness tour for their NIL program that launched in December 2021. As noted in their release, they also hosted more than 100 athletes for tryouts this year with more than 50 being signed. 25 athletes are currently under an NIL partnership agreement.
Here’s the current schedule with dates for the University of Florida, University of Michigan, Michigan State University, University of North Carolina, Texas A&M University, University of Oklahoma, Auburn University, University of Illinois, and Northwestern University set for 2023.
University of Mississippi: Wednesday, October 12th
The class consists of 15 college athletes from 14 different universities, seven NCAA conferences, and seven sports. WWE touts that the class includes its first Next in Line athletes from cheer and dance, gymnastics, volleyball, men’s basketball, and representation from an HBCU program.
The 15 athletes who are part of the class are:
Ali Mattox of Ole Miss, a 5-foot-7 cheer & dance athlete from Little Rock, Ark.
Case Hatch of Arizona State, a 6-foot-1, 230-pound football player from Gilbert, Ariz.
Chandler Hayden of Tennessee, a 5-foot-11 track & field athlete from Pittsfield, Ill.
Cohlton Schultz of Arizona State, a 6-foot-2, 285-pound wrestler from Parker, Colo.
Derrian Gobourne of Auburn, a 5-foot-4 gymnast from Sarasota, Fla.
Ericka Link of Elon, a 5-foot-6 volleyball player from Hedgesville, W.Va.
Keshaun Moore of Hampton, a 6-foot-3, 270-pound football player from Suffolk, Va.
Luke Ford of Illinois, a 6-foot-6, 260-pound football player from Carterville, Ill.
Maliq Carr of Michigan State, a 6-foot-5, 245-pound football and basketball player from Inkster, Mich.
Mikala Hall of Central Michigan, a 5-foot-5 basketball player from Danville, Ill.
Rachel Glenn of South Carolina, a 6-foot track & field athlete from Long Beach, Calif.
Ruben Banks of Arkansas, a 6-foot-4, 270-pound track & field athlete from Binfield, England
Thunder Keck of Stanford, a 6-foot-3, 245-pound football player from Northfield, N.H.
Tyanna Omazic of Miami, a 6-foot-2 volleyball player from Kansas City, Mo.
Zachary Knighton-Ward of Hofstra, a 6-foot-2, 285-pound wrestler from Rosedale, N.Y.
The Next in Line program was started by WWE after the NCAA began allowing athletes to profit off of their name, image, and likeness while still in college. Athletes who sign NIL deals with WWE receive access to the WWE Performance Center, along with resources in brand building, media training, communications, live event promotion, creative writing, and community relations. Upon completion of the program, select athletes may be offered a WWE contract.
Olympic gold medalist Gable Steveson was the first-ever WWE NIL signing. WWE then announced its inaugural class of NIL recruits last December.
WWE’s second class of “Next In Line” program recruits is set to be unveiled next month.
WWE has announced that the new class of Next In Line recruits will be unveiled at the inaugural NIL Summit on Monday, June 13. The class will consist of 15 college athletes.
The NIL Summit is being held at the College Football Hall of Fame in Atlanta.
“WWE will join Meta, Wasserman and Invesco QQQ and others as founding Partners of the inaugural NIL Summit and will also serve as the exclusive Presenting Partner for the Breakthrough Athlete of the Year Award. Additionally, WWE is nominated for the Brand of the Year Award which recognizes creative excellence by a brand or organization for collaboration with a student-athlete,” WWE wrote.
“Four of the 16 initial members of WWE’s ‘Next In Line’ program are nominated for awards including Olympic gold medalist Gable Steveson (University of Minnesota) for Male Athlete of the Year, Haley & Hanna Cavinder (University of Miami) for Female Athlete of the Year and Jon Seaton (Elon University) for the Hustle Award.”
“We are excited to unveil our next class of NIL athletes at the inaugural NIL Summit which brings together the brightest minds across this emerging industry for the first time,” Paul “Triple H” Levesque said. “WWE’s ‘Next In Line’ program has already proven to be transformational for our talent pipeline. We have forged many incredible partnerships with student athletes during the first six months of the program and look forward to ushering in the next wave of talent.”
Last December, WWE announced that it was launching the Next In Line program as a way to create a “clear pathway” from college athletics to WWE. Athletes who sign NIL deals with WWE receive access to the WWE Performance Center, along with resources in brand building, media training, communications, live event promotion, creative writing, and community relations. Upon completion of the program, select athletes may be offered a WWE contract.
Olympic gold medalist Gable Steveson was the first person to sign an NIL deal with WWE. The company then unveiled its first class of Next In Line recruits last December. Thirteen universities, seven NCAA conferences, and four sports were represented in the 15-person class.
NIL deals allow athletes to profit off of their name, image, and likeness while still in college.
To say WWE’s strategy for their developmental system has changed is an understatement given the last few years of sweeping talent cuts in addition to quotes made from management on what they are looking for with new recruits in the years ahead.
In an interview for ESPN.com focusing on their Next In Line (NIL) program and specifically college football players, WWE senior vice president of global talent strategy and development James Kimball talked about how they are focusing on young talent to sign, especially in athletics, and gave interesting insights into what they are looking for.
“We would like that (age) number to come down, especially on the developmental standpoint. The second you enter our developmental program and then potentially end up on NXT TV and then onto SmackDown or Raw, you want that number to be 25, not 30 or 35.” he said.
After introducing their first NIL class that included Olympic gold medalist Gable Steveson and others, WWE will announce a new 15-person class this June. In the article, it was noted that more than 50 male and female college athletes will try out this week for those spots at the Dallas Cowboys’ practice facility in Frisco, Texas.
Later talking about supporting athletes who are looking to achieve their college goals before coming to WWE, Kimball said, “Even if you come to WWE when you’re 23, 24, 25, that’s a significant improvement over what has historically been the case with some of our developmental talent.”
Kimball also talked about the ability to fast track some athletes through the program if they see their potential.
“We’re able to develop them in an accelerated manner. Get them to WrestleMania or Raw, do media training, do community events. All those initial exposures to the business, those have been done while you’re still in school. And then you come down to Orlando and off you go,” he said.
He also said the company’s wishlist for future NIL signees falls into two categories: “physical (look, size, athleticism, strength) and personality (public speaking, charisma, character range, willingness to be coached).”
Kimball said they are hoping to eliminate chance from the recruitment and signing equation as has been the case in the past.
“The story typically is that you knew someone who knew someone, you had a chance opportunity, you got ahold of an individual who had a line to the company. Our goal here is to eliminate chance from the equation and just improve the likelihood of college athletes having an opportunity.”
WWE has announced a new partnership that will expand the scope and scale of the company’s NIL (Next in Line) program.
It was announced on Tuesday that WWE and brand-building/NIL business management app INFLCR have entered into a multi-year partnership. INFLCR is a product from Teamworks and is the “industry leading brand building, content and name, image and likeness (NIL) business management platform for college athletes.“
Last September, it was announced that Olympic gold medalist Gable Steveson had joined WWE as the company’s first-ever NIL signee. NIL deals allow athletes to profit off of their name, image, and likeness while still in college.
WWE officially announced the launch of its Next in Line program last December. The inaugural class of NIL signees consists of 15 college athletes.
WWE will “leverage INFLCR’s technology and alliances with more than 200 NCAA Division 1 colleges and universities to reach thousands of INFLCR student-athletes looking to monetize their name, image and likeness. Together, WWE and INFLCR will innovate how student-athletes engage with the WWE brand while maintaining their NCAA eligibility.”
“We are excited about the opportunities that this partnership with INFLCR will create as we continue to expand our Next In Line program and identify student-athletes with an interest in becoming WWE Superstars,” Paul “Triple H” Levesque said in a press release. “The Next In Line program is a unique opportunity that creates a clear pathway into WWE and partnering with INFLCR will help to bolster our efforts and resources in the NIL space.”
“INFLCR’s partnership with WWE opens a new door for the way student-athletes interact with companies looking to provide monetization opportunities,” said INFLCR founder Jim Cavale. “The technology offers a seamless experience for both WWE and student-athletes in a safe and compliant environment.”
WWE is holding a multi-day talent tryout in Texas during WrestleMania week. The tryout, which is an invite-only event, is exclusively for college athletes and recently graduated college athletes. More than 50 athletes will attend the tryout.
WWE has unveiled its inaugural class of NIL recruits.
The class consists of 15 college athletes who have signed NIL deals with WWE. NIL deals allow athletes to profit off of their name, image, and likeness while still in college.
WWE is calling its NIL program “Next in Line.” The athletes who partner with WWE as part of the program will receive access to the WWE Performance Center, along with resources in brand building, media training, communications, live event promotion, creative writing, and community relations. Select athletes may be offered a WWE contract upon completion of the program.
Olympic gold medalist wrestler Gable Steveson was the first-ever athlete to sign an NIL deal with WWE. He signed with WWE this September and is finishing his senior season at the University of Minnesota. Steveson was drafted to the Raw roster in October.
In some of his first public comments since undergoing surgery following a cardiac event, WWE’s executive vice president of global talent strategy and development Paul “Triple H ” Levesque spoke about WWE’s new NIL recruiting program.
In an interview with Fast Company, Triple H touted the NIL program as an “amazing recruiting tool.”
“We immediately saw it as an amazing recruiting tool for us because it allows us to show athletes a path to WWE, and engage with them in a way where they can learn more about it, we can learn more about them, all while working together, and finding out if it’s a good fit before they’re even finished college, and before they need to make any decisions about what they’re going to do in that next stage of their life,” Triple H told Fast Company.
“We’ve put a lot of effort into recruiting athletes and finding athletes to let them know WWE is a potentially lucrative opportunity for them if they’re interested and passionate about it.”
The NCAA’s NIL rules changed in June 2021, allowing college athletes to legally earn money from their name, image and likeness for the first time. The rule change allowed WWE to sign Olympic gold medalist Gable Steveson to a contract while he finishes his senior year at the University of Minnesota.
Triple H said that Steveson was an exception to the types of contracts that WWE may offer due to his Olympic pedigree.
“The deals might range from the lower end, which would still help them make ends meet while at school,” he said. “Of course, if you’re bringing an Olympic gold medal to the table, it’s a different conversation.”
“It opens us up to a whole world of athletes that we’ve never been able to connect with in this way,” Triple H said. “For us, the next generation of superstars will come out of this program.”
WWE announced on September 8 that Triple H had undergone surgery the previous week following a cardiac episode caused by a genetic heart issue.
WWE has announced the launch of a new program to create a “clear pathway” from college athletics to WWE.
It was announced today that WWE has established an NIL program for college athletes. NIL deals allow athletes to profit off of their name, image, and likeness while still in college. The first NIL deal in WWE history was announced this September, with Olympic gold medalist wrestler Gable Steveson signing with the company.
The name of WWE’s program is “Next in Line.”
“Following a historic new policy by the NCAA effective July 1, 2021, which ushered in the NIL era allowing college athletes the ability to monetize their name, image and likeness, WWE has constructed a comprehensive program to recruit and develop potential future Superstars,” WWE wrote. “Dubbed ‘Next In Line,’ the NIL program aims to enhance the talent development process through collaborative partnerships with college athletes from diverse athletic backgrounds.”
WWE’s press release included a quote about the program from Paul “Triple H” Levesque. It’s one of the first public comments Levesque has issued since it was announced in September that he had undergone a successful procedure following a cardiac event. Levesque posted a tweet later that month saying that he was recovering, doing well, and was grateful for the support he had received.
“The WWE NIL program has the potential to be transformational to our business,” said Levesque. “By creating partnerships with elite athletes at all levels across a wide variety of college sports, we will dramatically expand our pool of talent and create a system that readies NCAA competitors for WWE once their collegiate careers come to a close.”
WWE noted that its first class of NIL partnerships will be unveiled in the coming weeks. Athletes who partner with WWE will receive access to the WWE Performance Center, along with resources in brand building, media training, communications, live event promotion, creative writing, and community relations. Select athletes may be offered a WWE contract upon completion of the program.
