He had been a good athlete from his early years, overcoming a spinal curvature problem and was offered a football scholarship to the University of Georgia.

It was during his time with the Falcons that he was approached by Georgia wrestler and promoter Ray Gunkel to wrestle during the football off-season.

The Falcons did not approve of his off-season wrestling, and as a result, he was traded to the then-Los Angeles Rams for whom he played for three seasons, before injuries ended his NFL career in 1971.

[5] He wrote the book CHOKEHOLD: Pro Wrestling's Real Mayhem Outside the Ring, which was released in 2003 in which he claimed he had been blackballed from the sport.

His father had been a decorated veteran of World War II and his mother's side traced its lineage back to the Mayflower.