ESPN predicted the win-loss record for every Big Ten football ahead of the 2025 college football season. The network used its FPI metrics to determine the win-loss record.

The usual suspects are near the top of the Big Ten of course. But other than the big three this year, the conference could get random and maybe have some surprises!

Without further ado, let’s dive into ESPN’s FPI metrics to predict the win-loss record for every Big Ten team. We start with the defending national champions.

Ohio State has a 10.4 projection from ESPN’s FPI, which puts them at the top of the Big Ten. The biggest games of the year happen to be in Week 1 and then in November.

Could they go undefeated? Sure. But Texas and Penn Sate are certainly the toughest games on the schedule. Also Michigan because well, they’ve lost four in a row to the Wolverines. But the Buckeyes could be the favorite every week.

Penn State is only slightly behind Ohio State in the Big Ten with 10.2 projected wins per the FPI. The Buckeyes routinely have the Nittany Lions’ number so that could be a factor as well.

Penn State has to host Oregon and go to Ohio State this year. Not only that, there’s a tricky road game against Iowa so there are some landmines on this 2025 schedule.

Oregon is projected right at 10 wins, but at 2.4 losses compared to 2.2 for Penn State. After winning the Big Ten last year, it’ll be hard for the Ducks to repeat.

Make no mistake, they’re a contender for the conference and College Football Playoff. But they have to go to Penn State and Iowa. Some tricky spots, but Dan Lanning’s crew could be just as good.

Michigan is the first Big Ten team on this list that is not projected to get double digit wins. ESPN’s FPI is 8.4 projected wins, just ahead of USC.

The Wolverines have to go to Oklahoma, Nebraska, USC and rival Michigan State. Undefeated season? Good luck. The good news is Michigan does host Ohio State this season, looking for five wins in a row.

The pressure index on Lincoln Riley has to be high at this point right? He has to deliver on the investment. Good luck in this year’s Big Ten. However, the Trojans have the fifth best win-loss record projection in ESPN’s FPI.

USC has to go to Illinois, Notre Dame, Nebraska and Oregon for difficult road trips. Michigan also comes to town in a toss up game.

Matt Rhule can have Nebraska take the next step with a solid season. But ESPN’s FPI has the Huskers at 7.5 projected wins, not quite Big Ten championship material.

They have to host Michigan and hit the road against Penn State, among some other tough games. Heck, Iowa is still in that final week! But after an expected 3-0 start against non-conference opponents, perhaps Nebraska can surprise some people.

The Hoosiers are bound for a step back based on ESPN’s FPI projections. After nearly getting to the Big Ten Championship last year, Indiana is projected at 7.5 wins, the same as Nebraska.

They have to go to Iowa and Oregon in back to back games. Not to mention Maryland and Penn State both on the road. Sure, they’ll likely be favored over the Terrapins, but the schedule doesn’t do Indiana any favors. Oh yeah, Illinois comes to town too, although ESPN isn’t as high on them this year.

Washington’s 7-5 record is a little less stabilized in ESPN’s FPI with 7.1 projected wins. They’ll be a middle of the pack Big Ten team per the metric.

They’ll have to play rival Washington State on the road, host Ohio State, go to Michigan, host Illinois and host Oregon. There are some tough opponents on this schedule. Heck, even Rutgers might give them fits after the Huskies lost in Piscataway last season.

Minnesota is still bowl eligible based on the projected wins, coming in at 6.9. But it’s not quite seven wins, although that’s possible.

PJ Fleck and crew had to go to Cal for a non-conference game, so it’s a long trip. Plus, the Gophers go to Ohio State, Iowa and Oregon. The team should be competitive as usual, but it’ll be a difficult schedule in the Big Ten.

Illinois won 10 games last year, including the Citrus Bowl. Now, ESPN’s FPI only has them in the six-win range, which could be seven.

At 6.8 projected wins, it’s doable. The Illini have road games at Indiana, Washington and Wisconsin, but the schedule doesn’t seem too difficult. USC and Ohio State have to come to Bloomington, as well as Rutgers. Maybe eight or more wins are on the docket.

The Hawkeyes have a projected win total of 6.2 per the ESPN FPI. This a model Big Ten program in terms of competitive consistency, but that might be all that’s possible this year.

Iowa has to head to Rutgers, Wisconsin, USC and Nebraska this year. Not only that, Penn State and Oregon are coming to town!

Maryland is on the cusp of six wins, in terms of the projection, as ESPN’s FPI has them at 5.9. The Terrapins aren’t projected to do a ton in the Big Ten this year, but there’s always some surprises.

Mike Locksley and crew have to go to Wisconsin, Rutgers and Illinois, so the road trips aren’t insanely difficult. But, Nebraska, Indiana and Michigan come to town. Perhaps this team might be better off than the projections say throughout the Big Ten.

Rutgers practicality underachieved last year at 7-6, missing out on a few one-score games. The schedule sets up for a successful first half, maybe 5-1 or 6-0 if there’s some luck involved.

But this is the Big Ten and ESPN’s FPI struggles to find six automatic wins. The back half of the shield includes Oregon and Penn State at home, as well as road games with Illinois and Ohio State.

Wisconsin is slightly behind Rutgers with 5.8 projected wins, compared to 5.9 for the Scarlet Knights. The Badgers should get off to a good start but have to go to Tuscaloosa to face Alabama after getting waxed last year.

Wisconsin also has Big Ten opponents including Michigan, Ohio State and Oregon, with the Wolverines and Ducks being the host schools this year. It doesn’t get any easier for Luke Fickell in 2025.

Year 2 for DeShaun Foster is going to be tough with some of these teams on the schedule. At 5.4 projected wins, a bowl game might be more out of reach compared to a couple of other Big Ten teams.

UCLA hosts Utah to open the season and then will see conference games at home vs. Penn State, Nebraska and Washington at some point. Not only that, they have to go to Ohio State and rival USC.

Michigan State could see improvements in Year 2 with Jonathan Smith at the helm. But ESPN’s FPI has them at 5.2 projected wins.

The Big Ten schedule is difficult with road games at USC, Nebraska and Iowa, to name a few. The Spartans get to host rival Michigan though, which could help in the second half of the season.

David Braun pushed all of the right buttons in 2023 following a quick takeover for Pat Fitzgerald. Last year didn’t breed the same success though.

As far as ESPN’s FPI is concerned, the Wildcats are barely above four wins at 4.1 in their projection. The Wildcats have Big Ten road games at Penn State, Nebraska, USC and Illinois, mostly in the second half of the season.

Purdue will have the biggest rebuilding job in the Big Ten as Barry Odom tries to resurrect the Boilermakers. The FPI only has them at 3.2 projected wins, so this could be disastrous.

Purdue has to go to Notre Dame, Michigan and Washington, to name a few. They also have to host Ohio State, Rutgers, Illinois and USC and that’s not even including rival Indiana on November 28th!

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PHILADELPHIA – Welcome to University City! The University of Pennsylvania men’s soccer James C. Gentle Head Coach Brian Gill announced the addition of Adam Ambrus-Aikelin, Dylan Auffret, Max Bohemier, Becket Empson-Speiden, Kalani Kunimura, Lincoln Matuskiewicz, Theo Ottosson, and Phil Pak to the program on Monday morning.
 
“Our staff works incredibly hard to understand the areas that we feel need to be addressed within the team moving into the coming seasons,” said Gill. “I appreciate the efforts made by both Matt and Steve as we covered the ground together to evaluate and learn more about this talented incoming class.”
 
The Class of 2029 is made up of three defenders, three midfielders, a forward, and one goalkeeper.
 
“Certainly, with every year that comes and goes, we know that each departing senior class leaves a significant mark on the program as they graduate,” Gill went on. “While we are more than grateful for their contributions, we are equally as excited to see how the returning and incoming players will come together for this Fall.” 
 
Adam Ambrus-Aikelin
Midfield
San Diego, Calif.
Torrey Pines High School (San Diego Surf ECNL)
 
Club/Academy: Joined San Diego Surf ECNL in 2019 … Won the Surf Cup in 2021 and 2022 … Dallas Cup Champions in the 2021 season … Named ECNL Southwest First Team All-Conference in 2021 and 2022 … Played for the Bayer Leverkusen team while living in Germany … Called up to the Hungarian U16 Youth National Team during the 2022 and 2023 seasons … Won the ECNL National Championship in 2024 … Featured in Boys National Finals Best XI by TopDrawerSoccer.
High School: Played varsity soccer at Torrey Pines High School … Earned First Team All-Coastal League in 2024 and 2025.
Personal: Son of Agnes Mogyorosi and Geza Ambrus Aikelin … Will enroll in the College of Arts and Sciences.
Why Penn? “Penn has a superb reputation for everything I value, and after visiting the campus and meeting the coaches and the team, I knew it would be the perfect place for me to thrive.”
Coach Gill on Adam: “As a player, Adam comes to Philly with a solid foundation as he has had a chance to play for Bayer Leverkusen’s Academy when his family lived abroad, then with the San Diego Surf Academy upon his return, where he helped the team win the ECNL National Championship. We think he is a player that has the technical and tactical skill sets we like in attacking midfielders. We are excited to have Adam joining the program so that we can continue to learn and work more with him.”
 
Dylan Auffret
Goalkeeper
South Pasadena, Calif.
Laurel Spring School (LAFC Academy)
 
Club/Academy: Played for the San Diego Surf from 2016-18 … Won the Carlsbad Premier Cup in 2017 … Joined Albion SC San Diego in 2019 … Played for the LAFC Academy from 2020-25 … Won the Orlegi Cup with the LAFC Academy in 2022 … Called up to the USYBT training camps at the Olympic Training Center in 2022 … Made his professional debut with LAFC 2 in 2024 … 2024 MLS Next Cup semifinalist.
Personal: Son of Cherie and Ivan Auffret … Will enroll in the Wharton School of Business.
Why Penn? “Penn offers a great combination of high-level soccer and academics. I enjoyed all my interactions with the players and staff, and Penn feels like a place that is consistently investing in improving its soccer program.”
Coach Gill on Dylan: “Dylan is a mature goalkeeper who possesses a lot of qualities that we feel round out this position well. He is a very good shot-stopper but is also confident with his distribution and ability to organize players in front of him. Dylan has had a fairly accomplished youth soccer career to date. We are excited to see how he transitions into our program. He has been able to develop in a high-level environment at LAFC, where he has the opportunity to train and play with both their MLS NEXT and MLS NEXT Pro teams.” 
 
Max Bohemier
Midfield
Naples, Fla.
IMG Academy
 
Club/Academy: Played for Weston FC before joining the IMG Academy.
Personal: Son of Janelle and Joel Bohemier … Mom Janelle played soccer at the University of Manitoba … Father Joe played hockey and soccer at the University of Manitoba … Will enroll in the College of Art and Sciences.
Why Penn? “To further my academic and athletic career at a higher level.”
Coach Gill on Max: “While going through the projections for this class, we felt there was a need to provide balance in the center of the midfield, especially with some of the players graduating over the last couple of seasons. Max spent the last few years in different environments, but most recently at the IMG Academy, where he took positive steps in developing his game. He has an honest work rate and is able to use his physical presence along with his technical ability to be an important part of the lineup. We are interested to learn more about him and how he will continue to grow during his time here.”
 
Becket Empson-Speiden
Defense
Brooklyn, N.Y.
Saint Ann’s School (PDA MLS Next)
 
Club/Academy: Joined PDA MLS Next in 2021 … Started in all games with the PDA MLS Next from 2021-25 … TopDrawerSoccer U19 Player to Watch … Top goal scorer of 2024-25 season at wingback with 16 tallies … Attended Regional U.S. National Team Camps … Vice-captain of U19 PDA MLS team … Helped team qualify for MLS Next Cup in 2024 and 2025.
Personal: Son of Rachel Klauber-Speiden and Josh Empson … Grandfather George played football and ran track at Princeton … Will enroll in the Wharton School of Business.
Why Penn? “Penn offered me the opportunity to play for one of the best teams in the country, learn from a great coaching staff, and study at the premier undergraduate business school in the country.”
Coach Gill on Becket: “As a staff, we want to make sure that we have a good understanding of the personalities and talent in our general vicinity. Becket is a player that we have been able to see quite a bit over the last year and a half as a result of him being at PDA. During that time, we have learned about Becket’s mentality as he’s worked hard to come back from an injury to re-establish himself as a key member of his team. As a player, he has a good technical skillsets and a versatile game that we are interested in developing in the coming years.”
 
Kalani Kunimura
Defense
Huntington Beach, Calif.
Mater Dei High School (Pateadores ECNL)
 
Club/Academy: Joined the Pateadores ECNL in 2017 … Earned ECNL Secon Team All-Conference in 2021 … Played in the ECNL Selection game in 2022, earning ECNL First Team All-Conference … Won the Surf College Cup en route to ECNL First Team All-Conference in 2023 … Won the Porto International Cup for Portugal in 2023 … ECNL Conference Cup Invitee in 2024 … Helped team qualify for the 2024 and 2025 ECNL National Playoffs
High School: Played varsity soccer all four years at Mater Dei High School… Captain his junior and senior years … Won the CIF-Southern Section Open Division Championship and Trinity League Championship in 2024 … Trinity League First Team All-League honoree.
Personal: Son of Valerie and Shane Kunimura … Will enroll in the College of Arts and Sciences.
Why Penn? “I chose Penn for its prestigious academic reputation and the opportunity to be part of a top-tier collegiate soccer program. The unique combination of world-class academics and elite athletics allows me to grow both personally and athletically. I’m excited to contribute to the team’s future success and help win championships.”
Coach Gill on Kalani: “Kalani is another member of this class coming to Penn by way of the West Coast, who we learned a lot about when he attended one of our ID Camps over the last year. Right away, you were able to get a sense of both his motivation and competitive levels in both the training and game settings. As a player, he combines a handful of useful athletic qualities with his willingness to defend where needed and then flip the switch to become aggressive in his attacking moments as well. We are excited about the versatility that we have seen from him in both his Pateadores ECNL and Mater Dei High School Teams.”
 
Lincoln Matuskiewicz
Defense
Malibu, Calif.
International School of Los Angeles (FC Cincinnati Academy)
 
Club/Academy: Joined FC Cincinnati Academy UPSL/MLS Next in 2023 … Named UPSL Weekly Standout … UPSL Midwest Ohio Champions … Member of FC Cincinnati leadership committee … Invited to Trail with TSG 1899 Hoffenheim U19 in Germany … MLS Next Pro Eastern Conference Champions … Appeared in multiple professional matches with FC Cincinnati 2 … Selected for FC Cincinnati 2 preseason trips in 2024 and 2025.
High School: Played varsity soccer at International School of Los Angeles … Won the CIF Divisional Championship for the first time in school history.
Personal: Son of Peggi Jewell and Gregory Matuskiewicz … Mother Peggi played basketball at Georgetown … Will enroll in the Wharton School of Business.
Why Penn? “Penn provides the perfect academic and athletic environment for me to grow as both a player and a person. With a strong support system, high standards, and a competitive culture, I look forward to the challenge of a place that will push me to be my best.”
Coach Gill on Lincoln: “Lincoln has a lot of the qualities that we like in a center back here at Penn. His physical profile is one that lends itself well to the position, but he also offers a good deal in both his technical ability and tactical understanding of the game. Over the last two years, he made the move to Ohio in order to be a part of the FC Cincinnati organization and has had the chance to grow his game at varying levels within their setup. His calm yet competitive demeanor is one that we think will be important for this class and the program.”
 
 
Theo Ottosson
Forward
Los Angeles, Calif.
Harvard-Westlake School (LA Surf MLS Next)
 
Club/Academy: Played for LA Breakers ECNL from 2021-23, earning ECNL First Team All-Conference … Joined LA Surf MLS Next in 2023.
High School: Played three years of varsity soccer at Harvard-Westlake School … Won the State Regional and Section Championships … Earned League Champion twice during his three years on the team … Named Mission League Offensive Player of the Year during 2022-23 season … Landed Mission League Player of the Year twice in 2023 and 2024 … Named 2024 CIF Player of the Year.
Personal: Son of Karen Han and Paul Ottosson … Enrolled in the College of Arts and Sciences.
Why Penn? “I chose Penn because it perfectly combines an elite soccer program and a world-class education. I am excited to maximize my potential under amazing coaches and professors.”
Coach Gill on Theo: “Throughout this recruiting cycle, we’ve been able to learn a fair amount about Theo by seeing him with his former LA Breakers ECNL and now current LA Surf Club MLS Next teams, as well as having the chance to work with him in various camp settings. Theo is a versatile, attacking-minded player who has both the physical and technical qualities to be effective at this level. We are excited to add him to our attacking group to see what more he can add and how he develops within our program.”
 
 
Phil Pak
Midfield
Denver, Colo.
Regis Jesuit High School (Colorado Rapids Academy)
 
Club/Academy: Joined Colorado Rapids Academy in 2017 … Team captain of U17 and U18 teams … Won the 2023 and 2025 Frontier Divisions … Tallied over 100 starts in Pro-Pathway competition … Top-150 Class Ranking … Team qualified for 2024 MLS Cup playoffs … Helped team to reach the finals of the 2025 MLS Next Generation Adidas Cup … Was named to the MLS Next Generation Adias Cup U18 Best XI in 2025.
Personal: Son of Angela and Peter Pak … Sister Sara plays soccer at Davidson … Enrolled in the College of Arts and Sciences.
Why Penn? “I felt Penn provided me with the opportunity to pursue a world-class education while developing as a player in an elite program. I really connected with the culture and the people, and I knew Penn soccer was something I wanted to be a part of from day one of the process.”
Coach Gill on Phil: “Over the years, it has been important for us to identify central midfielders in our recruiting who we feel possess both the technical quality on the ball as well as the natural positioning instincts to connect the team from back to front. Phil has played a key role in the Colorado Rapids Academy setup over the last several years and has emerged as a key leader in his teams. He recently captained his team on an impressive run to the MLS Generation Adidas Cup Final. We hope that Phil’s combination of ability and experience will be useful qualities for the team during his time at Penn.” 
 
 

#FightOnPenn

If Morganne Dee isn’t busy, she isn’t productive.

So what keeps the Arcadia student-athlete busy? Try playing three collegiate sports — field hockey, ice hockey and lacrosse — while maintaining a near-perfect GPA, working a 20-hour-a-week internship and balancing friendships with over 85 teammates.

The Lancaster, New York, native had a childhood filled with competitive dance, softball, soccer, swimming and, eventually, the three sports that would define her college career.

Her mother, Erin, played club rugby, and her father, David, played and coached collegiate hockey. For Morganne and her brothers, Brendan and Cooper, sports were encouraged.

“We always taught her we really didn’t care what accolades she got or how well she did. It was whether she worked as hard as she could and had fun with it,” David said. “She kind of took that and ran with it.”

By the time she finished high school, Dee said she was not ready to give up any of her three favorite sports. She could at least try to play all three, right? 

She narrowed her path to the Division III level, so when the ice hockey coach at Arcadia reached out, Dee contacted the field hockey and lacrosse coaches, too. All three eagerly welcomed her.

Reflecting back, Dee knows she chose the right school for her. “Coaches, teammates, all three sports, it all ended up being perfect. It sounds like too much, but it really was the best fit for me.” Dee began each school year with field hockey, which led into ice hockey season, finishing the year with lacrosse. Though she missed preseason practices and the first few games of ice hockey and lacrosse, her ability to shift from sport to sport elevated her game. 

“My field hockey coaches would say I didn’t play like a typical field hockey player. I play like an ice hockey player, which has its advantages because you can see the field better, you can make smarter decisions because you always have to have your head up.”

Kelsey Koelzer, Arcadia’s women’s ice hockey coach, agreed.

“You would think switching from sport to sport would require an adjustment period, but for Morganne, her endurance and speed that she built during her other two seasons allowed her to hit the ice and step right into the lineup.”

Dee said playing three sports gave her a mental edge to adapt, manage pressure and stay focused in high-pressure situations. “It made me a better-rounded player and person,” she said. “You’re constantly learning, adjusting and growing.”

But playing three college sports didn’t come without challenges.

“I went in headstrong and thought I was invincible,” Dee admitted. “But it got to me. I realized I couldn’t push through everything and expect it to be OK.”

One day, Arcadia’s head athletic trainer, Danielle Duffy, noticed something was off.

Field hockey was in full swing, ice hockey had started and lacrosse was in its fall ball season. While only participating in field hockey, Duffy said Dee felt like she needed to be present at multiple events per day to show her commitment to each program.

“In my head, all I could envision was a Gumby toy being stretched, fully and in so many different directions,” Duffy said.

She remembers pulling Dee into her office, reminding her that her door and ears were always open. When Dee opened up about her struggles, Duffy put things into perspective.

“In that talk, and many after, I told her that nobody — to my knowledge — was doing what she was doing in playing three sports and at such a high level in each. I reminded her that if it was easy, more folks would do it,” Duffy said. “She’s a beast and just because she carries it well does not mean it’s not all heavy as heck.”

For Dee, that conversation changed everything.

“It transformed me as a person, but also in my game, not thinking you can do everything on your own. I learned to lean on my support system.”

Dee also built her support system within the unique cultures on each of her teams. Field hockey was her “girls’ girls” team — nail appointments, board game nights and pasta cook-offs. Lacrosse was the karaoke team, belting out songs even on two- to three-hour bus rides. Ice hockey, where she was part of Arcadia’s inaugural class, felt like a sisterhood, with the team often sitting and talking for hours.

“Each team had its own vibe, and I loved that,” Dee said.

For Dee, the combination of three sports, rigorous academics and strong friendships proved to be a winning combo. By the end of her senior year, she had earned multiple All-Middle Atlantic Conference first-team and Offensive Player of the Year honors in both field hockey and ice hockey, while maintaining a starting position and scoring 142 career goals on her lacrosse team. Her 3.92 GPA in business administration led her to earn the 2024 MAC Field Hockey Senior Scholar-Athlete award.

For Koelzer, Dee is the measuring stick for what a Division III student-athlete can accomplish.

“She is one of the most elite athletes I’ve worked with, all while maintaining one of the highest GPAs on our team,” the ice hockey coach said. “Every single coach couldn’t wait to get her back for the portion of their season that she was eligible to play.”

To anyone considering playing three sports in college, Dee would encourage giving it a try.

“Don’t give it up. It’s hard, but it’s worth it. You’ll be a better player, and person, for it.”

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PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Messing Family Head Coach for Brown Varsity Women’s Soccer Kia McNeill, has announced the program’s 2025 schedule. The 16-game slate features seven games at Stevenson-Pincince Field.

The Bears open their season on the road at New Haven on Aug. 22, before its home opener against Rhode Island (Aug. 25). After traveling to UConn on Aug. 28, Brown heads home to host Minnesota (Sept. 1). Last season, Brown earned a 1-1 draw at Minnesota on a goal in the 86th minute from Naya Cardoza. The Bears will then welcome Northeastern (Sept. 4), Brown scored a season-high six goals at Northeastern last season.

Brown will hit the road to take on Wake Forest on Sept. 7 before returning to Stevenson-Pincince Field to welcome Hofstra (Sept. 11). The Bears will then hit the road for four-straight contests beginning at Central Connecticut State (Sept. 14) and Providence (Sept. 17). Brown will then open Ivy League action at Yale (Sept. 21) and Columbia (Sept. 27).

Brown’s first Ivy League home game will be against Penn on Oct. 4, before welcoming Dartmouth (Oct. 11). The Bears will then hit the road for two-straight Ivy League games at Harvard (Oct. 18) and Cornell (Oct. 25). 

The Bears will conclude the 2025 regular season at home against Princeton in a 2024 Ivy League Tournament Championship Game rematch on Nov. 1.

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Welcome guys, gals, and gender non-binary pals, to Ask 411 . . . the last surviving weekly column on 411 Wrestling.

I am your party host, Ryan Byers, and I am here to answer some of your burning inquiries about professional wrestling. If you have one of those queries searing a hole in your brain, feel free to send it along to me at [email protected]. Don’t be shy about shooting those over – the more, the merrier.

Hey, ya wanna banner?

Night Wolf the Wise is renewing old rivalries:

I read that the Rock and Stone Cold wrestled against each other 10 times. Stone Cold has 7 victories over the Rock. Rock only has 1 win over Stone Cold. The other 2 are no contest. Has any other wrestler in wrestling history won only 1 match in that rivalry? Keep in mind when I say rivalry, I mean they wrestled multiple times like Rock and Austin did. Also tag team matches, fatal 4 ways, etc don’t count. Only one on ones.

With those numbers and with the Rock only beating Austin once, that tells me you’re only counting televised matches, because if you add in house shows and dark matches, the Rock has more victories over Steve Austin than just the one.

If we are only accounting for TV bouts, then I was able to locate one definite example of a feud in which a wrestler only won one of the matches.

Bret Hart versus Owen Hart.

If you look at the televised record between the brothers, Owen’s victory at Wrestlemania X is the only one that he ever picked up the win, though he did also have a non-televised victory in the quarterfinals of the 1996 Kuwaiti Cup tournament.

I am sure that if you reviewed every feud in the modern history of wrestling you could find several more examples, but that is one that came to me offhand.

We’ve given Tyler from Winnipeg the book:

Three part question. Did you read Hardcore Holly’s book? Becky’s? Your top 3 wrestling books?

No.

No.

Mick Foley’s first two books and Chris Jericho’s first book.

Those aren’t exactly unique answers, but sometimes the consensus picks are the best picks.

Big Al has a new body:

While watching Wrestlemania the other day, one of my in-laws mentioned how John Cena definitely took steroids. However I don’t ever remember hearing about him getting involved in those. That got me thinking, while it’s impossible to know with 100% certainty, who are the most successful wrestlers that we can say most likely did NOT use PED’s? When I say successful, I am thinking multiple time world champions or a years-long push. Just WWF(E) and WCW to narrow it down.

Lance Storm. Given the prevalence of PEDs in wrestling for decades, Storm is about the only person who ever operated in the WWF or WCW that I am 99% confident never did anything. That’s not to say there haven’t been others who were clean, but I just don’t know who they are, and my default assumption is that a wrestler from the 1980s on has at least dabbled in something at some point unless there’s strong evidence to the contrary.

Have you heard the one about Craig?

Has there ever been a main event on a weekly live TV show in which one of the competitors gets seriously injured and unable to finish the match? I remember Triple H got injured at the end of a tag match but let’s say there is a singles match in which a wrestlers are given 15 minutes to wrestle and one wrestler gets injured a few minutes into it and unable to continue. How would the show fill in the rest of the time slot with no wrestling?

I’m not aware of that situation having ever occurred, but the answer to the second half of the question is that there are any number of ways that you could fill out the remaining TV time, depending on the context – perhaps most importantly how much time is remaining.

The first thing you can do, which works if the remaining television time is relatively short, is just pad it out with replays of the injury and footage of the injured wrestler being removed from the ring, and perhaps an interview with the other wrestler who was in the match about what exactly happened.

The second thing to do, which would be an option if you have more time left in the show, would be to just have somebody else on the card cut an impromptu promo or have a couple of other guys on the card wrestle an impromptu match. Wrestling doesn’t have to be planned all that much in advance. True pros can get in there and improvise a promo or call a match in the ring. Granted, those skills may be falling by the wayside given how new wrestlers are getting trained these days, but grapplers with sufficient seasoning should still be able to do it.

GRT is menacingly stroking his briefcase:

Has any title reign started by a Money in the Bank cash in ever been ended by a Money in the Bank cash in? Or is Tiffany Stratton the only current time this could occur?

No, this has never happened before.

If MNMNB‘s friends jumped off a cliff, so would he:

Just learned there was someone named Roger “Nature Boy” Kirby.

How many wrestlers can you find that used the Nature Boy name?

Well, let’s count them:

1. Buddy Rogers: This is the original Nature Boy. I think I’ve told this story in the column before, but the name originates with a popular song that Nat King Cole first recorded in 1948. It has been covered many times since then.

2. Al Oeming: This fellow is an interesting yet sometimes forgotten footnote in wrestling history. He served in the Canadian Navy in World War II and, when he came home from the war, he was broken into wrestling by his childhood friend Stu Hart. This means he would have adopted the nickname “The Nature Boy” around the same time Buddy Rogers did, though it’s not clear to me who used it first. Eventually, Al got into promoting and co-founded Stampede Wrestling with Hart. He also became a noted zoologist and conservationist, wit the CBC making a docuseries about that part of his life in 1980.

3. Tommy Phelps: Phelps was another contemporary of Rogers, wrestling at the same time he did, though Rogers definitely had the gimmick first. After wrestling, Phelps became an evangelist and released a spoken word record about his conversion from grappler to man of god.

4. Chief Lone Eagle: Not to be confused with the little person wrestler who was also called Chief Lone Eagle, this guy wrestled for promoter Jack Pfeffer in Chicago and Ohio in the 1950s and 1960s. Though Lone Eagle was his most commonly used ring name, for some of his bouts he was dubbed the “Indian Nature Boy.”

5. Roger Kirby: The man who inspired this question. Kirby began wrestling in the 1960s and was dubbed “The Nature Boy” due to his physical resemblance to Buddy Rogers, who he was actually friendly with. Kirby wrestled for almost every major promotion during the territorial era of wrestling, and when his career was winding down in the 1980s, he had matches for the WWF, the AWA, and All Japan Pro Wrestling.

6. Ric Flair: When you talk to 90% of people who recognize the “Nature Boy” name these days, they’ll no doubt tie it first and foremost to Ric Flair.

7. JJ Dillon: It didn’t last long, but when the future manager of Ric Flair was wrestling In and around Hallifax, Nova Scotia between 1973 and 1975, he was known as Nature Boy Dillon.

8. Adrian Street: American fans will remember Street using the nickname “Exotic,” but when he started wrestling in his native England, he used the “Nature Boy” moniker in large part because he had been a fan of Buddy Rogers, who his flamboyant character was based upon.

9. Nature Boy: This is a true oddity. In David McLane’s all women’s promotion GLOW, one of the wrestlers who only had a handful of matches was called Jungle Woman, doing a Tarzan-esque gimmick. She had a male valet who wore a loincloth and was lead to the ring on a leash. He was called “Nature Boy,” with no other name given. In reality, Nature Boy was portrayed by Tony Cimber, and this is an example of somebody behind the scenes being given an on camera role. Tony Cimber is listed as an associate director in GLOW’s credits, and his brother Matt Cimber is listed as a director and a producer. In more trivia, the Cimber brothers are children of Hollywood legend Jayne Mansfield, which makes them half-brothers of Law and Order star Mariska Hargitay. So, David McLane is one degree of separation away from Mariska Hargitay.

10. Ricky Fuji: This one is also going to be a bit of a story. Fuji is a long-time Japanese indy wrestler, starting in 1990 and continuing through today. His most notworthy run was with FMW in the mid-to-late 1990s. He was a huge Rock n’ Roll Express fan and patterned a lot of his style on them. Another Japanese indy wrestler, Men’s Teioh (who had a cup of tea in the WWF as part of Kaientai), was known early in his career as Terry Boy because of his extreme Terry Funk fandom. For a couple of tag matches in 2011, Teioh reverted to his Terry Boy persona, while wrestler Great Kojika joined him as Dory Boy (based on Dory Funk), and Fuji rounded out the trio as Nature Boy (based on Ric Flair). It wasn’t his full-time gimmick or anything, but he did use the name.

11. Lance Idol: This journeyman wrestler debuted in 1978 and his career ended when he died of a heart attack in 1991. He had a ton of ring names during his career. He never used “Nature Boy” with the name Lance Idol to my knowledge, but he wrestled as Nature Boy Austin for a time. Interestingly, he was also Steve Austin for a time – before he would’ve known about the wrestler who ultimately became Stone Cold – so he has shared names with two of wrestling’s greatest.

12. Buddy Landel: Probably the third most notable Nature Boy on this list behind Rogers and Flair, most fans reading this will know that he overlapped with Slick Ric in the gimmick and feuded with him over the rights to the name for a time – including while he was managed by JJ Dillon, another Nature Boy from this list.

13. Tito Senza: Another 1970s and 1980s journeyman. I’ve listed him as Tito Senza because that was his most widely known ring name – including the name he did some WWF enhancement work under – but he was never “Nature Boy” Tito Senza. Instead, his alternate ring name was Nature Boy Nelson, which he used from the mid-70s through the early 80s in Nova Scotia.

14. Verne Siebert: This is another example of a journeyman wrestler having many names. Siebert is his most recognizable one, but he was also Nature Boy Sweetan when he wrestled in the late 80s in . . . Nova Scotia? Why was this gimmick so popular in eastern Canada? (Yeah, yeah, I’m the guy that answers the questions . . . I shouldn’t be asking them . . .)

15. Paul Lee: In the late 1980s and early 1990s, Paul Lee did what was essentially a Ric Flair tribute act on southern independents, and he was respected enough that he was brought in as an enhancement wrestler on shows for Jim Crockett Promotions, WCW, and, later on, Smoky Mountain Wrestling. He’s also had several matches in the 2020s, including one in 2023 against Joey Janela.

16. Charles Robinson: Robinson, the referee who refuses to age, was involved in an angle in late 1990s WCW in which he was a Ric Flair fanboy and was dubbed “The Little Nature Boy” or “Little Naitch” for short. Though he’s a referee and not a wrestler, the Little Naitch run did see him have a couple of matches, including an infamous bout in which Randy Savage caved his chest in with a flying elbow.

17. Rik Ratchet: A New Jersey indy fixture from 1994 through 2022, Ratchet didn’t do much of interest that I could find, but his final match was a singles bout against Jerry Lawler, which is a great note to go out on.

18. Kevin White: Trained by Bill Dundee, Mr. White was referred to as the “New Nature Boy” and made numerous appearances on the Tennessee independents from the early 2000s through 2015.

19. Barry Ace: Based out of Massachusetts, Barry Ace is a 20+ year indy veteran who also has quite a few small film roles to his credit. Though he currently calls himself “The Mill City Samurai,” at an earlier phase of his career he was the “New Age Nature Boy.” He’s still active, and you can see his website here.

20. Scoot Andrews: Scoot was a northeastern indy wrestler who competed from 1994 through 2022 with his greatest exposure coming in early Ring of Honor during its Feinstein era. He was actually known as the “Black Nature Boy” because, well, he was Black. It probably says something that we had to specify he was a “Black” Nature Boy when the entire origin of the Nature Boy gimmick was with a song recorded and popularized by a Black performer.

21. Gary Gold: This fellow is a Massachusetts-based independent wrestler who began wrestling in 1981 and continued through 2017. In an interesting side note, if you poke around on YouTube, you can find several episodes of a public access talk show about professional wrestling that he hosted during the 2020s.

22. Dylan Eaton: His career was pretty short in the grand scheme of things, lasting only three years in the 2000s, but Dylan Eaton came into the sport with quite the pedigree. He was the grandson of Bill Dundee and the son of Bobby Eaton, who was married to Dundee’s daughter. Interestingly, despite being related to two other wrestling legends, Dylan was a “Nature Boy” in tribute to Flair for a time as opposed to being a “Superstar” or “Beautiful.”

23. Ricky Landell: Trained by Steve Corino and debuting in the early 2000s, Rick Landell’s early career largely consisted of following Corino around wherever he was going and acting almost as a “young boy” in the Japanese tradition. When Ricky was allowed to start showing some personality of his own, he did take up the “Nature Boy” mantle for a time.

24. Chic Canyon: No, not Chris Kanyon. Active in the late 2000s through the early 2010s on the indy circuit in Kentucky and deep southern Illinois, Canyon referred to himself as the “Strong Style Nature Boy.”

25. Johnny Dynamo: Still wrestling in Michigan today after a career that has lasted over 20 years, Mr. Dynamo took up the mantle of the “New Nature Boy.”

26. Reid Flair: We all remember the tragic tale of Ric Flair’s younger son, who had a sold amateur career and seemed likely to follow in his father’s footsteps, even touring with All Japan Pro Wrestling in 2013. During his unfortunately brief career, he was called “The Third Nature Boy,” with the first two presumably being Rogers and his father . . . though many more were obviously disregarded.

27. Kyle Brooks: This Canadian independent wrestler is still active, mostly around Ontario, after having debuted in 2019. Though he used the Nature Boy for a period of time, more recently he has adopted the moniker “Brother Earth” and started doing an environmentalist gimmick. Go buy his t-shirt if you’re so inclined.

28 & 29. The Nature Boyz: This entry is a little bit different, as it’s a tag team. In 2022 and 2023, trainees Jonny Lyons and Dylan Fliehr were put together as a tag team called “The Nature Boyz” in Booker T’s Reality of Wrestling promotion.

And there you have it. I was able to count 29 Nature Boys.

I would be remiss if I didn’t mention that there are also two “Nature Girls” that I became aware of in my research. One his Charlotte Flair, for obvious reasons, though it’s not a moniker that really stuck with her on the main roster of WWE.

The other is a more interesting case. Adela Antone was a lady wrestler in promoter Billy Wolfe’s troupe for less than a year between 1951 and 1952, where she used the nickname “Nature Girl.” That’s not the interesting part, though. The interesting part is that, according to a 1995 newspaper clipping unearthed by When It Was Cool, Antone was once asked to be involved in a murder plot. A man named Harry Washburn was accused of killing a woman named Helen Weaver with a car bomb. According to Antone, Washburn also once offered her $10,000.00 to kill Harry Weaver, the husband of Helen Weaver.

I don’t believe that had anything to do with her being a Nature Girl, though.

We’ll return in seven-ish days, and, as always, you can contribute your questions by emailing [email protected]. You can also leave questions in the comments below, but please note that I do not monitor the comments as closely as I do the email account, so emailing is the better way to get things answered.