Jack Brisco

As an amateur for Oklahoma State, Brisco was two-time All-American and won the NCAA Division I national championship.

"[6] In the late 1970s, the Brisco brothers discovered Terry Bollea, the future wrestling legend best known as Hulk Hogan, whom they introduced to Hiro Matsuda for training.

His first title there was the NWA Florida Southern Heavyweight Championship, which he won on February 11, 1969, by defeating The Missouri Mauler.

[13] Two weeks later, he won the first of an eventual ten NWA Florida Tag Team Championships, with Ciclon Negro.

[14] Although he and Negro dropped the tag team belts the following month, Brisco held the Southern Heavyweight Title until November 1969, when he left the area to wrestle in Japan and Australia.

[14] That month, Brisco also beat Terry Funk in a singles match to win the NWA Florida Television Championship again.

[15] Brisco's next major success was regaining the Southern Heavyweight Championship from Dick Murdoch on June 8, 1971.

While there, he won the NWA Eastern States Heavyweight Championship twice by defeating The Missouri Mauler and Rip Hawk.

[14] Brisco's first NWA World Heavyweight Championship win was scheduled to be over Dory Funk Jr., capping off a multi-year feud.

[18] He defended the championship in NWA-affiliated promotions across the world facing top names like Johnny Valentine, Stan Stasiak, Abdullah The Butcher, Gene Kiniski, The Sheik and Bobby Shane until losing to Giant Baba on December 4, 1974.

[7] During his initial reign as champion, Brisco toured Australia where he successfully defended his title against local favorite, Spiros Arion.

He won the Memphis version of the NWA Southern Heavyweight Championship on August 10, 1976, by defeating local favorite Jerry Lawler.

[14] While holding these belts, they also won the NWA Florida United States Tag Team Championship on February 21, from Mike Graham and Steve Keirn.

[22] They were defeated for the United States title by Killer Karl Kox and Bobby Duncum, and were again successful in regaining it in a rematch.

[22] The same thing happened when the Briscos faced Mr. Saito and Mr. Sato that year: they lost the belts and quickly won them back.

[14] The following year, another victory over Saito and Sato earned the Briscos their final United States Tag Team Championship reign.

[23] Later that year, Brisco became the first NWA National Heavyweight Champion by defeating Terry Funk in a tournament final.

He and his brother won a tournament to win their first title, defeating Assassin #1 and Bobby Jaggers in the finals.

[30] On December 28, 1984, the Briscos challenged the North-South Connection (Adrian Adonis and Dick Murdoch) for the WWF Tag Team Championship in Madison Square Garden.

Jack left the business entirely in February 1985, at the age of 43, after becoming disillusioned with the direction of the sport, citing a lack of amateur wrestlers in the professional ranks and the growing reliance on soap opera storylines.

[33] Brisco is considered one of the great legendary wrestlers of the 1970s and has often been cited as such by Ric Flair during his emotional promos.

Brisco (left) in June 1973
Brisco, c. 1982
Brisco (left) with his brother Gerald during their WWE Hall of Fame induction ceremony on March 29, 2008