Top WWE NXT star and TNA International Champion Stacks appeared on “Casual Conversations with The Wrestling Classic” to discuss various topics, including how he got his start in the professional wrestling business.
Stacks said, “I was in college and I was like — you know, I was an athlete my whole life, but I kind of decided… my dad was a professional boxer. And I actually remember, he was training me for a bit. And he’s like, ‘Yeah, how about you hit the books, kid?’ And not that [I was bad at it], but boxing is — you know, part of the brain stuff. My dad got a brain injury and stuff. So it’s just something that he didn’t want to see me doing. So I ended up going to college for engineering. That’s why I can set up all these lights, dude. I’m a pretty smart guy. That’s why [Grace] likes me too, I got some brains. So I basically, my first year of college I actually got really lucky. I entered this contest for WWE. And it was the Totino’s ‘Show Us Your Superstar’ contest. And it was 2014, and I made this character. I was ‘Mama’s Boy’ Jake Tucker, I was living on my mom’s front lawn in a popup trailer.”
On winning the contest:
“But I submit this video. I end up beating everybody who’s in the contest and stuff. So they sent me out to the Performance Center to train. And so I was training at the Performance Center, learning how to bump. Recording this video series with like Billy Gun, Road Dog. It was supposed to be with Dusty Rhodes too, but it was Bill DeMott. And dude, I debuted at Full Sale, I posted this recently. I debuted at Full Sail out of a microwave with little pizza rolls that came out with me. And I ended up doing something at SummerSlam, too. I was on the pre-show panel at SummerSlam with like Ric Flair, Booker T.”
On being hooked at that point:
“That moment — like, no matter what I did in my life from then on out. I did engineering. I was going to go to medical school, believe it or not. She doesn’t believe me. But I was I was gonna. I tried all these things, and it always kept going back to like that one moment. I couldn’t match that feeling that I got when I went out in front of the fans. And I was hooked right away.”
On training with Tom Prichard:
“Right after I graduated college, I started training with Dr. Tom at Kane’s school out in Knoxville, Tennessee. Dr. Tom’s the man. Yeah. The man. He used to head up the — you know, he was the Performance Center before the Performance Center. I mean, this guy trained everybody. And he trained me so hard to the point where I was in his warehouse in Knoxville eight hours a day 2019, throughout the pandemic. And he’s why I’m here where I am, too. Him and Natty and TJ. They’re my team that took me to where I’m at. And yeah, [I] ended up getting signed and having the same tryout together [with Grace], and we both signed together.”
You can check out the complete podcast in the video below.
(H/T to 411Mania.com for transcribing the above quotes)
