10 Things You Didn't Know About Jack Swagger
6. He Wrestled For DSW, OVW, And FCW
WWE's developmental situation was in a state of flux in the mid 2000s, and that's evident in the fact that, in the two years prior to his call-up, Swagger worked in three developmental territories.
Swagger started out in Deep South Wrestling in early 2006, where he competed in matches against MVP and Vladimir Kozlov. His tenure in DSW was short-lived, however, and he was soon shifted over to Ohio Valley Wrestling. In OVW, he feuded with future Smackdown superstar K.C. James, leading to a series of tag matches pitting James and Cassidy O'Reilly against Swagger and a host of different partners.
Finally, he was shunted to Florida Championship Wrestling in August 2007 following DSW's closure. FCW was the precursor to NXT, and it was there that Swagger found his greatest success up to that point - he amassed an impressive undefeated streak and eventually captured the FCW Heavyweight Championship.
He eventually suffered losses to William Regal and D'Lo Brown in main roster dark matches - but those signalled that he was ready for a call-up.