Gable Steveson Interested in playing Gopher Football

I agree that it comes across as a publicity stunt. No need for a distraction if this team wants to win 9+ games.

For now it is. But he's an athletic freak. If he wanted to work for a year with a trainer.....who knows what he could do. Faalele only played....what?....a year of high school football before starting for the Gophers in 2019?
 


Is backflipping over the line in order to sack the QB a penalty?
Is backflipping over the line to score a game winning touchdown over Shitsconsin a penalty?
Should count as 2 touchdowns.
 

UFC would be a good choice, IF he can learn to box, and IF he can take a punch. One of Lesnar's weaknesses (in addition to the fact he got deathly sick) is that he didn't like to get hit in the face. Not that anyone does of course, but you have to take it in MMA.

Not sure about WWE these days. They're releasing talent left and right with the rumor that the company will be sold. It would take him a few years of training to get to the point he'd be on TV.
 

UFC would be a good choice, IF he can learn to box, and IF he can take a punch. One of Lesnar's weaknesses (in addition to the fact he got deathly sick) is that he didn't like to get hit in the face. Not that anyone does of course, but you have to take it in MMA.

Not sure about WWE these days. They're releasing talent left and right with the rumor that the company will be sold. It would take him a few years of training to get to the point he'd be on TV.
WWE under Vince McMahon has been known to screw over wrestlers.
 


UFC would be a good choice, IF he can learn to box, and IF he can take a punch. One of Lesnar's weaknesses (in addition to the fact he got deathly sick) is that he didn't like to get hit in the face. Not that anyone does of course, but you have to take it in MMA.

Not sure about WWE these days. They're releasing talent left and right with the rumor that the company will be sold. It would take him a few years of training to get to the point he'd be on TV.
Boy that’s a tough way to make a living. Getting your head bashed in or choked out. People worry about brain trauma with football but getting punched, elbowed, kicked, or choked into unconsciousness doesn’t sound good either. I thought I heard that those guys still don’t make that much money?
 

From STrib notes today:

Rossi raved about Steveson's accomplishments in Tokyo but wasn't holding out hope he'd play for the Gophers. "I think that dream has sailed, so to speak,'' Rossi said. "If he wants to come, we have a defensive tackle position where I think he would do really well in the run game, and I think he'd do really well rushing the passer. His frame, his skill set — that Aaron Donald guy, I think they have similar strength and twitch and short-area burst.''

Steveson, a 6-1, 260-pounder, said on the McAfee show, "Whoever's gonna put the best on the table for Gable is going to get Gable at his best.''



The Gophers can't really "offer" much, in that sense. At best they can say something like "gain a year of experience here, a chance to show what you can do, and increase the NFL appetite for you".
 

If he joined the team and took resources and coaching away from Jack Kern (for example) I think we'd be fine.
You want him to not practice with the team to get better at football?
I’d imagine the coaches would want him you know...WITH THE TEAM.

Kern is a walk-on that doesn't play. Highly doubt he takes up much coaching resources. That's your comparison for how the Gophers defensive staff would treat Steveson? Well, that's silly.


These are the guys who are going to play ball for us, on the interior DL this year, and try to help us win games:
Pinckney
Carter
Val Martin
MDT
Cheney Jr
(maybe?) Richter

also some very interesting true freshmen (but probably won't have to play much this year) in:
Deven Eastern
Jacob Schuster


That's already a plenty full plate for any DL coach. Oh and don't forget, he has the "regular" D Ends to worry about as well (the Oto guys ... not the "rush end" guys who are really a hybrid of a 3-4 OLB type position and have their own coach in Wegner).



Then in comes Gable Steveson, superstar Olympian. To have any kind of chance of doing anything helpful on the field this year, he's going to need intensive, 1-on-1 coaching for a solid amount of time, just to get his fundamentals (stance, drive out of stance, footwork, hand placement, punch, shedding blocks, start to work on some pass-rush moves) in place. Let alone learning the playbook and where to line-up on a given defensive scheme and for a given look that the offense is showing.


You're really clueless about the reality of the situation, if you don't understand this.
 
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I'm torn on this. Steveson is an incredible athlete. Football and UFC are probably the most lucrative options while he's young. Does anyone watch WWE anymore? However, the transition to both the UFC and NFL is steep.

I love the UFC, so my first reaction is that would be great option. However, his strength in wrestling is his lightning quick single leg takedown that slower heavyweights can't match. I'm not sure that translates to the UFC where a single leg attempt can lead to a knee to the head or upper cut knockout. Heavyweight fights almost always end by knockout - those guys punch HARD. Can Gable box? Regardless, I'm hoping he goes UFC. He could be dominant if he learns to box and kick. Wrestlers are naturals in learning the jiu-jitsu submission piece.

NFL level defensive linemen are freaks of nature athletically. Gable fits that requirement though most NFL linemen are much taller. Could he put on enough natural weight to play the nose guard position? It takes years to develop the instant acuity required to recognize offenses and keep your head from getting knocked off or knees taken out from blockers coming from weird angles. Regardless, I'd LOVE to see him give it a try with the Gophs. That would be incredible.
 




Who is Gabe Steveson?

Is he named after the wrestling coach Dan Gabe?
 

UFC would be a good choice, IF he can learn to box, and IF he can take a punch. One of Lesnar's weaknesses (in addition to the fact he got deathly sick) is that he didn't like to get hit in the face. Not that anyone does of course, but you have to take it in MMA.

Not sure about WWE these days. They're releasing talent left and right with the rumor that the company will be sold. It would take him a few years of training to get to the point he'd be on TV.
While this is true, he was remarkably successful and it only helped to increase his brand. He is a legitimate bad ass and he held all of the bargaining power with the WWE and made a boatload.

I think the WWE is doing well. One of their biggest problems over the last few years is having too much talent to properly build story lines around them. They have been known to keep talent (and pay them) so that they do not work at other promotions. I think they will constantly be releasing people (and signing them).
 

my thought would be the opposite. Gabe has years of muscle memory to grab/hold to gain an advantage. wouldn't it be difficult to overcome?

came across a photo of gabe standing next to Brock, both shirtless. I was shocked by how much smaller gabe appeared to be. a bit like Tyson standing next to Foreman
For the love of pete, can you guys get his name correct for once? Hate to nitpik, but it gets so annoying reading "Gabe" instead of "Gable"!!!
 



I'm torn on this. Steveson is an incredible athlete. Football and UFC are probably the most lucrative options while he's young. Does anyone watch WWE anymore? However, the transition to both the UFC and NFL is steep.

I love the UFC, so my first reaction is that would be great option. However, his strength in wrestling is his lightning quick single leg takedown that slower heavyweights can't match. I'm not sure that translates to the UFC where a single leg attempt can lead to a knee to the head or upper cut knockout. Heavyweight fights almost always end by knockout - those guys punch HARD. Can Gable box? Regardless, I'm hoping he goes UFC. He could be dominant if he learns to box and kick. Wrestlers are naturals in learning the jiu-jitsu submission piece.

NFL level defensive linemen are freaks of nature athletically. Gable fits that requirement though most NFL linemen are much taller. Could he put on enough natural weight to play the nose guard position? It takes years to develop the instant acuity required to recognize offenses and keep your head from getting knocked off or knees taken out from blockers coming from weird angles. Regardless, I'd LOVE to see him give it a try with the Gophs. That would be incredible.
Good take. I think there's two chances he ever plays competitive football... slim and none.

This is a gimmick to keep his name in the news.
 

In that image, Steveson is probably ~240 and Lesnar is probably closer to ~270. I'd be interesting to see them both if Steveson didn't have a weight limit.
Brock is likely closer to 300 lbs. When he was in the UFC, he had to cut to hit their limit 265. They also have USADA in MMA, I believe he said he got himself a bit leaner and then cut (water weight) to 265.

I also think Steveson was weighed at the Olympics and came in at 260. I don't think he cuts to it though.
 

STrib notes today said Steveson is 6-1 260
 


Good take. I think there's two chances he ever plays competitive football... slim and none.

This is a gimmick to keep his name in the news.
I don't think it is a gimmick. He is probably legitimately curious if football would be an option for him and might want to try it out before deciding on what route to go with his future.

Said before, it is a no lose situation for the Gophers. If he comes in and doesn't work out it doesn't hurt us since he wasn't part of the plans anyway.
 

Who is Gabe Steveson?

Is he named after the wrestling coach Dan Gabe?
which is a bit funny since its actually _Danny_ Mack Gable. that said, if steveson doesn't want the slightly shorter nickname, happy to oblige.
 

I would think a decision would be coming very soon one way or another. Wonder if they'll work him behind the scenes a bit to see how quickly he adapts as to the hand moves etc. Seems to be the type of guy that catches on pretty fast and easily coach-able.
 


Kern is a walk-on that doesn't play. Highly doubt he takes up much coaching resources. That's your comparison for how the Gophers defensive staff would treat Steveson? Well, that's silly.


These are the guys who are going to play ball for us, on the interior DL this year, and try to help us win games:
Pinckney
Carter
Val Martin
MDT
Cheney Jr
(maybe?) Richter

also some very interesting true freshmen (but probably won't have to play much this year) in:
Deven Eastern
Jacob Schuster


That's already a plenty full plate for any DL coach. Oh and don't forget, he has the "regular" D Ends to worry about as well (the Oto guys ... not the "rush end" guys who are really a hybrid of a 3-4 OLB type position and have their own coach in Wegner).



Then in comes Gable Steveson, superstar Olympian. To have any kind of chance of doing anything helpful on the field this year, he's going to need intensive, 1-on-1 coaching for a solid amount of time, just to get his fundamentals (stance, drive out of stance, footwork, hand placement, punch, shedding blocks, start to work on some pass-rush moves) in place. Let alone learning the playbook and where to line-up on a given defensive scheme and for a given look that the offense is showing.


You're really clueless about the reality of the situation, if you don't understand this.
I totally get what you're saying here, but Fleck & Co wouldn't waste anyone's time. We're likely talking about Gable going through position drills and then a GA taking him off the the side for individual work during team stuff. He won't be taking reps from any contributors for many weeks. Could a GA instead be coaching up Schuster? Sure, but Schuster would probably learn just as much by watching the team stuff. But again, I get your point...I just think the risk/reward slants HEAVILY towards giving Steveson a shot.
 


Brock is likely closer to 300 lbs. When he was in the UFC, he had to cut to hit their limit 265. They also have USADA in MMA, I believe he said he got himself a bit leaner and then cut (water weight) to 265.

I also think Steveson was weighed at the Olympics and came in at 260. I don't think he cuts to it though.
Didn't Brock fail a drug test and forfeit his purse after his last UFC fight?
 

Boy that’s a tough way to make a living. Getting your head bashed in or choked out. People worry about brain trauma with football but getting punched, elbowed, kicked, or choked into unconsciousness doesn’t sound good either. I thought I heard that those guys still don’t make that much money?
It is a tough way to make a living. The average pay for the UFC is $147,000. Only 38% of fighters made six figures. The top dogs do quite well. Khabib, the last year before he retired, made $6 million not including PPV bonuses.

WWE isn't really doing that well, and I think when their current TV deals with USA and Fox expire, they could be in for a rude awakening. I could see Steveson actually going to AEW if he wanted to pursue Pro Wrestling. The Khan family has unlimited money, and they're paying guys quite a lot of money these days. They'd open the pocketbook for him.
 

WWE isn't really doing that well, and I think when their current TV deals with USA and Fox expire, they could be in for a rude awakening. I could see Steveson actually going to AEW if he wanted to pursue Pro Wrestling. The Khan family has unlimited money, and they're paying guys quite a lot of money these days. They'd open the pocketbook for him.
I didn't know that, interesting. How bad is it getting? Like 7 years ago or so I'd head down to the local bar on Monday night and watch with a handful of people, but Wrestlemania was still getting sold out I think.
 

I totally get what you're saying here, but Fleck & Co wouldn't waste anyone's time. We're likely talking about Gable going through position drills and then a GA taking him off the the side for individual work during team stuff. He won't be taking reps from any contributors for many weeks. Could a GA instead be coaching up Schuster? Sure, but Schuster would probably learn just as much by watching the team stuff. But again, I get your point...I just think the risk/reward slants HEAVILY towards giving Steveson a shot.
GA? [Jim Mora voice]GA????? a GA????? you wanna talk about a GA???? coaching a hometown superstar Olympian who is already being billed by Rossi in the STrib as a potential Aaron Donald????? You kiddin' me???[/]

No, you have a fair point.

But who? What GA are you talking about? *IF* the Gophers happen to have a guy who played interior DL at P5 school .... then I think what you say is fair. Do they?
 


I'm not sure he needs to be in the NFL to have a lucrative career.
With that NIL stuff, he's going to have a rather lucrative career even if he comes back to the Gophers to wrestle... or explore what seems to be his football dreams.
 

Sasquatch Steveson to the Gophers! He can bring the pain to Ertz.

 
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