Gable Steveson, an Olympic Gold Medalist and former Minnesota wrestling national champion received interest from multiple NFL teams, according to ESPN’s Marc Raimondi.
Following his collegiate wrestling career coming to a close in 2022, when he stepped away from the sport, Steveson took his talents to the WWE. However, he was recently released from the promotion.
But now, all options are on the table, including the NFL.
“Gable Steveson, the former heavyweight Olympic gold medalist in wrestling, has interest from multiple NFL teams, a source confirmed with ESPN,” Raimondi wrote on Twitter. “Steveson has also been training in MMA at Kill Cliff FC in Florida. He has a year of eligibility left for college wrestling, as well. Steveson, 23, was recently released after spending three years in WWE’s developmental program. Ariel Helwani was the first to report.”
This would compare to fellow Minnesota legend Brock Lesnar, whom Steveson trained with. Lesnar won an NCAA Wrestling title and tried his hand at football with the Minnesota Vikings.
While he didn’t make final cut, Lesnar pivoted to MMA and the WWE. He is the former UFC heavyweight champion and had a long and established career in professional wrestling.
Steveson initially retired from the sport after the 2022 NCAA Wrestling Championships, after he won his second national title. The initial tease of a collegiate return came amid his victory at Final X where he earned the United State World Team spot at 125 KG.
At the college level, Steveson finished with 86-2 over the course of four seasons at Minnesota. The 2020 campaign ended prematurely due to the COVID-19 pandemic and he finished third at the 2019 NCAA Tournament.
“The itch and fire will never go away,” Steveson said last June regarding wrestling. “And I feel like if you ask any competitor, old or young, I think it’s always there.
“But some people just don’t have the bodies to do it because they’re a little older. But I think me just turning 23, I still had that extra fire and I want to see what I could do. I wanted to test my limits. And so I stayed ready just in case the time came where I could come back.”
The interesting tidbit from Raimondi is the fact Steveson actually has another year of eligibility. If he chose to come back, Minnesota would likely be more than happy to welcome him back in a Gopher singlet.
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