Gable Steveson became an Olympic gold medalist at the 2020 games when he defeated Geno Petriashvili in the freestyle wrestling finals. Prior to his big win at the Olympics, the dynamic grappler found success as an NCAA athlete competing for the University of Minnesota’s wrestling program. In 2021, he signed an NIL deal with the WWE and, before ever having a match, was drafted to the WWE Raw brand. This past Friday night, before SmackDown hit the airwaves, Steveson picked up a victory over Cedric Alexander in a dark match.
In his latest “Coach’s Corner” social media video, University of Minnesota Wrestling Head Coach Brandon Eggum gave an update on Gable Steveson and his future.
“Also, a quick update on Gable Steveson,” he began. “Unfortunately, he will not be able to compete for us this season. He’s a great competitor. He’s always wanted to compete for the University of Minnesota, but ultimately, the WWE would prefer that he solely focus on his professional wrestling career at this time. So whenever he’s not at the WWE Performance Center down in Florida, he’s up here in our room working with our heavyweights, which is awesome.
“We just can’t thank him enough for the impact that he’s had on our program. We love following him and watching him compete on a mat. He’s amazing, and now we’re excited to watch him and his WWE career. So, thank you, Gable Steveson, from our program and all the Gopher fans across the country and the world. And we look forward to watching you and your career moving forward.”
Steveson competed in his first-ever televised WWE match against Baron Corbin at the NXT Great American Bash in July 2023. Despite Corbin going into the match as the heel, the fans chose to wildly cheer The Lone Wolf over the Olympic gold medalist. Some have attributed the jeers from the audience to Steveson’s inability to connect with the fans, while others have pointed to a sexual assault allegation against him in 2019. The charge was eventually dropped after a lack of evidence.
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