10 Things You Didn't Know About Goldberg
The dirt on 'Da Man'!
At WWE Fastlane, Goldberg completed his successful return to the ring by defeating Kevin Owens for the Universal Championship. Now, the former star of WCW currently reigns as the top titleholder on the Raw brand.
It's been a pretty implausible half-year for Goldberg, who left WWE in 2004 with a sour taste in his mouth, retiring from wrestling and promising that he would never work with Vince McMahon again. First, he agreed to take on Brock Lesnar at the Survivor Series - a bout that was spurred on by the promotion for a video game - marking his first match in over 12 years. When the former WCW World Heavyweight Champion agreed to work an extended program rather just just come in for the single match, he ended up squashing Lesnar in under a minute and a half.
Since then, "Da Man" has once again become the talk of the wrestling world. Though he hasn't racked up too much time in the ring, he holds a rare distinction - he's a top-level babyface in WWE who has been consistently booked strong and whom fans like.
We know all about Goldberg's wrestling exploits, but there are plenty of other things that remain a mystery...
10. A Torn Abdominal Muscle Ended His Football Career
Before ever setting foot in a wrestling ring, Bill Goldberg was an accomplished football player. His prowess in high school earned him a scholarship to the University of Georgia, where he was a defensive tackle for the Bulldogs.
Goldberg was selected by the Los Angeles Rams in the 1990 NFL Draft, and played a season with the team. After that, he spent a bit of time in the Canadian Football League (playing for the CFL's first American team, the Sacramento Gold Miners) before signing with the Atlanta Falcons. He spent two seasons with the Falcons, then was cut and signed by the brand-new Carolina Panthers in 1995. He was given the ax before playing a game, though, making him the first player ever cut by the team.
After that, Goldberg would never play in the NFL again. He suffered a torn abdominal muscle (which Mick Foley did, too, and described in his book as the most painful injury of his career) and had to go through the grueling process of rehab. While he did get better, his previous lack of gridiron success meant that he was not considered an attractive prospect for another team.