Old School Observations and Questions, 2024

[Big Papa Paegan]

A clean cut Olympian in a locker room full of druggies and a promoter who is asking you for loans instead of paying you 500K a year. I think he'd quit and join a speaker's circuit or something. Maybe become a Hoss Bodyguard for hire.

Sounds like a great way to annoy him into quitting, and given that Vince and Heyman had a business relationship...

 

[Valeyard]

Because he got hurt and was over shadowed by a ton of guys for all of the boom period. They sure could have used him to break up the Taker/Austin/Kane/Manking doldrums after a while but.... was he really ready push or not? I guess I have to go see how his matches with Rock and Vader look from the era. It'd be hard to put him in that mix before Shamrock/Rock/HHH in 98. Then Angle/Eddy/Benoit in 2000.

Had we gotten Ron Simmons/Henry instead of 2 Cold/Simmons and the Acolytes.... maybe his star would shine quicker if they had been in the tag team mix. Or they'd be overshadowed by the NOA, Dudleys, etc

You have an entire midcard and he just remained a henchman when he wasn't feuding with Chyna or fucking Mae Young. He has more worth in his willingness to not complain and willingness to try to improve to fit anywhere in a due-paying position. He wasn't as injured as I think people want to believe in 1998-99, at least not enough to keep him from being on TV. Most of that absense was developmental and their developmental was kinda garbage and he would've gotten more out of five minute epics in the middle of Raw than going to fat camp.

 

[Cackling Co Pilot Kamala]

TIL thread crossover/stuff that is going to piss off any 80 year old that is here.

Sputnik Monroe was a white guy. I always assumed he was a black dude cause he came up in the context of the civil rights movement in pro wrestling. Pro wrestling's original and greatest ally!

Also apparently I'd never seen a photo of Sputnik Monroe before today.

 

[Valeyard]

I mean...he was an evil Russian named Sputnik...

 

[Cackling Co Pilot Kamala]

Monroe isn’t a Russian surname. I thought his nickname was Sputnik cause he was out of sight or something.

 

[Valeyard]

Monroe is very clearly the Americanized Moscow. I'm sure there are Ellis Island records.

 

[alkeiper]

TIL thread crossover/stuff that is going to piss off any 80 year old that is here.

Sputnik Monroe was a white guy. I always assumed he was a black dude cause he came up in the context of the civil rights movement in pro wrestling. Pro wrestling's original and greatest ally!

Also apparently I'd never seen a photo of Sputnik Monroe before today.

Without a picture you also miss out on Sputnik’s most prominent feature, the shock of white hair on top.

I’ve always been a little suspicious of the Monroe story. It just sounds like one of those wrestling tall tales that gets built up and Monroe gets HOF momentum based off of that. I feel like I need more proof of the whole thing and context.

 

[BruiserBrody]

2 Racists will tell you the truth.

 

[BruiserBrody]

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1771953349543207298

 

[Cackling Co Pilot Kamala]

Fact that Jake is back together with Cheryl Roberts makes it all the much sweeter, Brother Brodi.

 

[JN News]

Tell me a little bit about the amateur wrestling career of WWE Hall of Famer, Bob Backlund. Like, which college or university did he go to begin his time as an amateur wrestler?

 

[Cackling Co Pilot Kamala]

He wrestled for North Dakota State, which was a Division II program at the time. He finished fifth in the 1972 DII Nationals. By elite level amateur standards, he was decent to good but not great. I can’t remember if it was Greg Gagne or Ken Patera who said that when Backlund trained with the US National team, he was basically used as a practice dummy.

 

[Valeyard]

He was all state in high school when he was still in Mayberry before moving to Wisconsin, where he focused more on interactions with his friends Ralph, Potsie, and Fonzie.

 

[BruiserBrody]

Tell me a little bit about the amateur wrestling career of WWE Hall of Famer, Bob Backlund. Like, which college or university did he go to begin his time as an amateur wrestler?

Wiki:
Backlund was born in Princeton, Minnesota, in 1949.[3] He is a graduate of Princeton High School, where he was a state finalist in wrestling. During his freshman year while at Waldorf College in Forest City, Iowa, Backlund was an All-American in both football and wrestling (191 lb [87 kg], finishing third). During his sophomore campaign, Backlund focused on wrestling and once again earned All-American honors (190 lb [86 kg] and national runner-up). Backlund was an amateur wrestler at North Dakota State University, winning the Division II NCAA Championship at 190 pounds in 1971. In 1972 Backlund moved up to the heavyweight class and finished fifth at the NCAA DII Nationals.[1] He graduated from North Dakota State University with a degree in physical education.

Bob Backlund (1983) - Bison Athletic Hall of Fame - NDSU

Bob Backlund, Class: 1983 Induction: 1983 Sport(s): Football, Wrestling - Two-year starter at defensive tackle for Ron Erhardt's 1970 and 1971 Bison teams that combined

gobison.com

Two-year starter at defensive tackle for Ron Erhardt's 1970 and 1971 Bison teams that combined for a 16-2-1 record including a victory over Montana in the 1970 Camellia Bowl. Backlund's greatest claim to fame, however, is on the wrestling mat, where he became the second NDSU wrestler ever to win a NCAA Division II national championship when he took the 190-pound crown in 1971 before the home fans in Fargo. He compiled a two-year dual meet record of 16-4-1 at NDSU and closed out his career with a fifth-place finish at heavyweight in the 1972 NCAA championships. Placed second and third in the NCC over those two years. Continued on with his wrestling fame after leaving NDSU as he joined the world of professional wrestling, holding the World Wrestling Federation title from 1978-83.

Bob Backlund – The Guillotine

Bob Backlund arrived at Waldorf College following a three-sport career at Princeton High School in Princeton, Minn. During his high school career, Backlund was

theguillotine.com

As a freshman, he started as a linebacker and offensive guard on Waldorf’s football team that went 5-3. The following year, Backlund started as a defensive end and offensive guard while leading the Warriors to an 8-0 record and a No. 9 ranking in the final national poll. He led a defense that ranked seventh nationally in yards allowed, third in passing yards allowed and ninth in rushing yards allowed. Waldorf scored 207 points on the year and allowed only 17. Backlund earned All-American recognition and averaged 14 tackles per game.

During his freshman wrestling season, he competed at 191 pounds and compiled a 17-2 record, including 12 wins against heavyweights. Backlund wrapped up his freshman year with a state title and earned All-American honors with a third-place finish in the national tournament. He repeated as an All-American during his sophomore year and defeated the top-ranked wrestler in the nation on his way to a runner-up performance in the national tournament.
Backlund concluded his collegiate career at North Dakota State University where he continued to play football and wrestle. On the gridiron, Backlund was a two-year starter as a defensive tackle. As a junior, he helped the Bison post a 9-0-1 record and capture the NCAA College Division Western Division championship with their Camellia Bowl win over Montana. In this showing, Backlund recorded 22 tackles and two fumble recoveries. During Backlund’s senior season, North Dakota State posted a 7-2 record while he added 11.8 tackles per game, along with a forced fumble and fumble recovery.

On the mat, Backlund became North Dakota State’s second national champion in school history. In 1971, he claimed the NCAA Division II crown in the 190-pound division. He wrestled as a heavyweight his senior year and placed fifth at nationals.

 

[BruiserBrody]

1972 NCAA Wrestling tourney

https://www.wrestlingstats.com/ncaa/pdf/brackets/NCAA1972.pdf

Future AWA trainee Chris Taylor is there. Future WWA champ The Great Wojo as well. Maybe more.

 

[Cackling Co Pilot Kamala]

https://www.facebook.com/100066533002030/posts/774372728123820

 

[snuffbox]

1972 NCAA Wrestling tourney

https://www.wrestlingstats.com/ncaa/pdf/brackets/NCAA1972.pdf

Future AWA trainee Chris Taylor is there. Future WWA champ The Great Wojo as well. Maybe more.

Laurent Soucie is another one. 177, lost 3-2 in his first round match.

 

[Fall of Epic]

When did the WCW Power Plant go under? Was it around until the very end?

 

[Big Papa Paegan]

Yep. It closed once the sale to Vince was finalized, as it was a WCW asset and wouldn't be needed with the WWF running OVW as an official farm league.

 

[BruiserBrody]

I googled before posting to confirm but in Feb 2000 the Power Plant was home to a skit w/Heenan.
I was thinking it was later in the death spiral but then I recalled Sean Stasiak's cameo and the Brain putting him over.

--
I just recently posted a blurb about how the UWF (Watts) training camp stayed open and name unchanged for WCCW after the JCP buyout. I can't recall if that was tied right into Chris Adams' training school or if they were 2 separate beasts.

It would be interesting to figure out who ran the last hard nosed camp that was more torture than training at first.
I'm also curious why Verne seemingly stopped his camps despite making so many talents in the 3 or 4 years they ran. (Lack of $ kickback? Lack of stars sticking around??)
I'm not sure how/why the Nasties boys and who ever were trained in 84/85 as I don't know of any camps for the decade in between.

I'll post that on the Stick to Wrestling FB page, they are very good at answering this crap.
--
I've speculated in the past that Hiro Matsuda may have ruined his golden years by hurting Hogan first. I wonder if he would have been on the gravy train or if Hogan held resentment (despite going back to train with him anyway)

 

[Cackling Co Pilot Kamala]

M
It would be interesting to figure out who ran the last hard nosed camp that was more torture than training at first.

Idk if it was physically grueling but it seemed like Bill DeMott at Deep South Wrestling in the late ‘00s and Performance Center in early-mid 2010s was mentally and probably sexually abusive.

What would ol’ Verne have thought of one of his students squashing a jelly donut on another student’s face with their bare ass?

 

[Cackling Co Pilot Kamala]

https://www.facebook.com/100066450524245/posts/765644715660539

A better, more just universe.

 

[Valeyard]

Hammer/Hogan would've ruled.

 

[Cackling Co Pilot Kamala]

I have good news for you.

 

[JHawk]

Supposedly Valentine was supposed to win the Backlund rematch and eventually drop it to David Sammartino.

 

[Cackling Co Pilot Kamala]

Then they realized David Sammartino was a lump?

 

[JHawk]

Probably? They weren't even using David at the time so it's never made sense to me but multiple people have said that was the plan

 

[Valeyard]

Better off dropping it to Bruno.

Man, that's a fun world. Vince forgoes Hogan to put the belt on Bruno because he was the man before and dammit can bring in a new era.

 

[Cackling Co Pilot Kamala]

Verne had the AWA World title when he was 5-7 years older than Bruno was in ‘84. Idk if Bruno is on top of list of guys Vince would have chosen if Hogan wasn’t available in ‘83/‘84 (Brian Solomon says Vince told him Dusty was the backup choice when he interviewed him in the ‘00s) but he had to be in the top 5-10.

Bruno could be the Charles Bronson/Clint Eastwood of pro wrestling.

 

[Valeyard]

Dusty would've been interesting but I don't know if he'd translate like they want. Like he's still Dusty but he isn't exactly the kind of image I'd see changing the business like that. Bruno wouldn't either, not at all, but it's fun to imagine. Bruno being the Bronson is a fun idea.

I'm still not convinced business is much better if they put Snuka in Backlund's place.