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World Champion Swagger Climbing WWE Ladder

Posted: May 2nd 2010 By: CMBurnham

Jack Swagger is no stranger to success.

At the University of Oklahoma, which boasts such notable mat alumni as the great Danny Hodge and the late ?Dr. Death? Steve Williams, Swagger made his own unique mark. In 2006, as a collegiate All-American wrestler, he set the single-season record for most pins at 30.

He never dreamed that only four years later, at the tender age of 28, he?d be holding the world heavyweight title in the professional ranks.

?It?s been unbelievable,? says the self-proclaimed ?All-American American,? who won the WWE world title from Chris Jericho at a Smackdown taping on March 30. ?It?s such an incredible honor. I don?t think it?s completely sunk in yet. This last month or so has been so surreal. I?ve tried to enjoy it a much as I can.?

Swagger, who won the Money in the Bank ladder match at Wrestlemania 25 to set up the title shot, will be part of a Smackdown television taping Tuesday night at the North Charleston Coliseum.

Swagger says his first wrestling-related trip to Charleston occurred while he was still in developmental. He was a member of the WWE security team used during a pull-apart between John Cena and the late Umaga.

?I love South Carolina and the fans there ... especially Charleston. It?s such a beautiful city.?

Swagger, who in September 2006 made his pro debut with Deep South Wrestling, at the time a developmental territory for WWE, has rapidly climbed the ladder of success in WWE.

In August 2007 he was reassigned to Florida Championship Wrestling where he became the inaugural FCW heavyweight champ six months later by virtue of a victory over Ted DiBiase. Less than a year later, Swagger would not only be a full-time performer on the main roster, but he would win the ECW heavyweight title from Matt Hardy.

Now Swagger can lay claim to one of the biggest titles in the pro wrestling business.

?It was very fast,? Swagger says of his track to the top. ?Hopefully it says something about the confidence WWE has in me. I intend to prove to WWE and the fans that I am a champion, I am credible and I?m going to be here for awhile.?

Swagger says he knew he had the tools if he got the opportunity.

?I wasn?t surprised. I knew quite a while ago what I was capable of. I knew I could make it to the top and that I could be a player in the business. It certainly happened faster than I expected, out of nowhere, but it?s time to shine.?

The native Oklahoman, who grew up only two blocks from the legendary Dan Hodge in the small town of Perry, seemed destined for success from an early age.

?I?ve been wrestling since I was 5 years old,? he says. ?Oklahoma truly is a hotbed ... one of the best high school programs in the nation. If you grow up in Oklahoma, chances are you?re a wrestling fan of some sort.?

The type of wrestling didn?t matter to Swagger. He just knew he liked it.

?I?m a fan of all forms of wrestling ... Olympic style, collegiate, professional. Just the larger-than-life atmosphere that comes across on TV is really what drew me in. I was in the fifth or sixth grade, and I really got hooked on the Monday Night Wars. It was really good television.?

Swagger, whose real name is Jake Hager, was recruited to the University of Oklahoma as a two-sport athlete. He also played football and was the second-string defensive tackle behind current NFL players Tommie Harris and Dusty Dvoracek.

But his background in wrestling prompted coaches to ask him to join the wrestling team in his sophomore year as a heavyweight, and he switched over full-time.

It was during his junior year that Jim Ross, who was then WWE?s talent relations head, encouraged the young wrestler to contact him after graduating. Ross advised Swagger to get a degree and weigh his options.

Swagger earrned his degree in finance, lined up a job with a firm in Dallas and got a WWE contract in the mail the same day he was scheduled to start work.

Wrestling won that match.

?I lost sight of what the business was doing for a little bit,? says Swagger. ?Jerry (Brisco) and Jim (Ross) really opened up my eyes to the incredible opportunity they present for young professionals who can handle themselves under the spotlight.?

At the time, he jokes, a lot of successful business types poked fun at his interest in a pro wrestling career. Swagger just took it all in stride.

?I did a lot of research. You make fun of the spandex and baby oil all you want, but it is a global phenomenon. It?s a great show, and I?m so happy I chose to do it.?

Up until recently, Swagger has played the role of a cocky heel, beating his chest, flashing a wide, disingenuous grin and doing pushups during his ring entrance. He?s dropped them for now, taking on a more serious approach, one more becoming of a world champion.

?Right now I think what you see is the respect I have for the championship. It?s the top of the game and there?s nothing bigger. I need to carry myself in such a way of a world champion because it is such an honor. Other than that I wouldn?t read too much into the character. I?m just portraying a champion.?

Swagger may have been too young to take advantage of the Mid-South era under Cowboy Bill Watts, but it didn?t take him long to find out about the stars who paved the way for today?s product.

?One of the first things I did once I signed with WWE was learn about every Oklahoman in the business. Whether it was Cowboy Bill Watts, J.R., Danny Hodge, the late ?Dr. Death? Steve Williams, who was a great friend of mine ... all of those guys were instrumental in making UWF (Universal Wrestling Federation) as great as it was. I got to meet Cowboy Bill Watts for the first time at Wrestlemania 25. What a conversation that was. He?s quite a character.?

As for Hodge, well, what else can be said that hasn?t already been said about the ?Pride of Perry??

?Danny Hodge is a living legend,? says Swagger. ?He?s a very good friend of mine. He still lives two blocks from my parents? house. I kid you not. What a nice guy.?

?I grew up with his grandson,? adds Swagger. ?We?re the same age and we wrestled throughout high school together. Every year for the past three years Danny and I have been on the same ball team for the Oklahoma wrestling team?s fundraiser. So we get together at least once a year and talk shop.?

Thus far the professional wrestling business has exceeded Swagger?s expectations.

?I?m excited about every stepping stone along the way. Last year was awesome. I was on 11 pay-per-views and got to wrestle some of the top names in the business. What?s going to happen next year? I like to think about that.?

WWE came up with the name ?Jack Swagger,? but he says there?s not too much difference between Jake Hager and the character Jack Swagger. Fans can tell, he says, if they feel a wrestler isn?t projecting a realistic image.

?I think they?re very similar. Our fans are a more sophisticated audience. If they don?t think you?re being real, they?re going to tell you. They?re not going to watch. They?re not going to buy into it. A large part of it is my personality, along with a little bit of television production.?

Swagger notes that he?s enjoying every moment of his time in WWE because he realizes such opportunities don?t come around every day.

?I?m very happy so far. A lot of people will win such a monumental championship and not enjoy it. I think some of the best advice I?ve gotten from people is to enjoy the moment and run with it.?

Swagger already has gone up against a heady list of performers during his relatively short career, but doesn?t have to think twice about what his dream matchup might look like.

?A dual program with The Undertaker, who I think is the greatest wrestler ever, and Rey Mysterio,? says Swagger. ?It would be Jack Swagger vs. Rey Mysterio vs. The Undertaker for the world heavyweight title. That would be great.?

Swagger also would like to take his character further and explore the possibilities.

?One of the things that I think we?ve haven?t got to is the ?All-American American.? It?s a great name that you can do so many things with. They sky?s the limit. I?m very excited.?

For now, says Swagger, he?s just enjoying the ride.

?There are so many things I love about it (working for WWE). I come from a small town in Oklahoma, so the traveling, getting to go to Europe, Japan, Australia and South America, to see these places while working in front of thousands of fans. That really is what gets it for me.?

Forget the grueling traveling schedule and other minor inconveniences. Swagger?s having too much fun living the life.

?Sure it?s tough, sure a volcano erupts and messes things up, but you have to sit back and say, ?Look, man, we?re in Zurich, Switzerland, this is really cool.? That?s one of my favorite things.?

Swagger may have a degree in finance, but getting a chance to rub elbows with some of the power players in the wrestling industry has turned out to be an education in itself.

?Just being able to meet guys like Shawn Michaels, Vince McMahon, Undertaker, those guys who have carried this industry and turned it into what is today. And to have those guys give you advice. You can take that advice and apply it to any walk of life. Not just wrestling. Any business. Any schooling. Those guys are highly successfully. Hopefully that will rub off on Jack Swagger.?

-- Swagger will defend his world heavyweight title against South Carolina?s own Big Show at Tuesday night?s event.

Tags: Jack Swagger, Danny Hodge, Steve Williams, WWE, Jim Ross, Jerry Brisco, Bill Watts, UWF