Over the last year, WWE has expanded their approach talent recruitment to target a new group of people — college athletes.
In December 2021, the company unveiled their NIL (Name, Image & Likeness) program, opening up a route for collegiate athletics to enter WWE. According to Chief Content Officer Paul “Triple H” Levesque the system will properly “ready the NCAA competitors for WWE once their collegiate careers come to a close.”
15 college athletes officially joined the inaugural class, including track & field athlete Masai Russell. Hailing from Potomac, Maryland, Russell competes out of the University of Kentucky, with some impressive accolades to her name.
In high school, Russell claimed the top ranking in the 300m hurdles, and proved herself as the Gatorade Athlete of the Year in Maryland in 2018. At the 2018 Pan American Junior Games, she also claimed a bronze medal in the 400m hurdles. Now, Russell has unlocked a new achievement.
Record-Breaking Performance
On Friday, January 20, Masai Russell competed at the TTU Red Raider Open. There, she made it to the finals of the Women’s 60m hurdles event, and effectively swept away her opponents.
Clocking in at a time of 7.75 seconds, Russell surpassed Grace Starks 7.78 time to take over the all-time NCAA record.
In response to her impressive feat, Triple H congratulated the NIL athlete via Twitter.
“Congratulations to #WWENIL athlete @masai_russell on setting a new
@NCAA record in the 60m hurdles! An incredible achievement with undoubtedly more to come…” he wrote.
Last fall, WWE introduced a new recruiting tactic: “WWE Campus Rush.”
Throughout October, November, and December 2022, the company explored multiple college campuses as a part of an athlete recruitment tour. Several current WWE Superstars aided in the “campus rush,” including Big E, Bianca Belair, Omos, Madcap Moss and Raquel Rodriguez. Now in 2023, the tour will continue with stops in the University of Florida, University of Michigan, Michigan State University, Texas A&M University, and more as WWE looks for the next generation of WWE Superstars.
