Steve McMichael
Encyclopedia
World Wrestling Federation (1995)
After the end of his NFL career, he appeared at ringside in the WWFWorld Wrestling Entertainment
World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. is an American publicly traded, privately controlled entertainment company dealing primarily in professional wrestling, with major revenue sources also coming from film, music, product licensing, and direct product sales...
for Lawrence Taylor
Lawrence Taylor
Lawrence Julius Taylor , nicknamed "L.T.", is a Hall of Fame former American football player. Taylor played his entire professional career as a linebacker for the New York Giants in the National Football League...
at WrestleMania XI
WrestleMania XI
WrestleMania XI was the eleventh annual WrestleMania pay-per-view event held by the World Wrestling Federation at the Hartford Civic Center in Hartford, Connecticut on April 2, 1995...
on April 2, 1995 in Hartford, Connecticut
Hartford, Connecticut
Hartford is the capital of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The seat of Hartford County until Connecticut disbanded county government in 1960, it is the second most populous city on New England's largest river, the Connecticut River. As of the 2010 Census, Hartford's population was 124,775, making...
. Taylor was wrestling Bam Bam Bigelow and there were several football players at ringside to keep wrestlers from interfering in the match. At a previous RAW, McMichael did guest commentary with Vince McMahon
Vince McMahon
Vincent Kennedy "Vince" McMahon is an American professional wrestling promoter, announcer, commentator, film producer, actor and former occasional professional wrestler. McMahon is the current Chairman, CEO and Chairman of the Executive Committee of professional wrestling promotion WWE...
and would later brawl with Kama Mustafa
Charles Wright (wrestler)
Charles Wright is an American businessman and former professional wrestler. He is best known for his tenure with the World Wrestling Federation throughout the 1990s and early 2000s under the ring names Papa Shango, Kama, Kama Mustafa, The Godfather, and The Goodfather .After leaving the wrestling...
, one of Bigelow's comrades. The fight was all over the arena floor and almost into the stands, knocking over the broadcast table, soon being broken up by personnel. Taylor ended up winning the later match.
World Championship Wrestling (1995–1999)
Mongo then went to World Championship WrestlingWorld Championship Wrestling
World Championship Wrestling, Inc. was an American professional wrestling promotion which existed from 1988 to 2001. Based in Atlanta, Georgia, it began as a regional promotion affiliated with the National Wrestling Alliance , named Jim Crockett Promotions until November 1988, when Ted Turner and...
(WCW) as a commentator. He bickered with Bobby Heenan
Bobby Heenan
Raymond Louis "Ray" Heenan , better known as Bobby "The Brain" Heenan , is a former American professional wrestling manager and color commentator, best known for his time with the American Wrestling Association , World Championship Wrestling and the World Wrestling Federation...
during matches and brought his dog Pepe with him to the broadcast booth. In April 1996, Ric Flair
Ric Flair
Richard Morgan Fliehr is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Ric Flair. Also known as "The Nature Boy", Flair is one of the most well-known professional wrestlers in the world....
started hitting on his wife Debra
Debra Marshall
Debra Gale Marshall is an American actress and former professional wrestling manager and WWE Diva. Arguably best known by her ring name, Debra, she gained recognition for her appearances with the World Wrestling Federation between 1998 and 2002.She began her career in professional wrestling in...
, who would sit at ringside during WCW Monday Nitro
WCW Monday Nitro
WCW Monday Nitro was a weekly professional wrestling telecast produced by World Championship Wrestling, created by Ted Turner and Eric Bischoff. The show aired Monday nights on TNT, going head-to-head with the World Wrestling Federation's Monday Night Raw from September 4, 1995 to March 26, 2001...
. Mongo did not like this and challenged Flair and Arn Anderson
Arn Anderson
Martin Anthony Lunde better known by his ring name Arn Anderson, is a former American professional wrestler and author. His career has been highlighted by his alliances with Ric Flair and various members of the wrestling stable, The Four Horsemen, in the NWA/WCW...
to a match with his partner Kevin Greene
Kevin Greene
Kevin Darwin Greene is a former American football linebacker who played in the National Football League for 15 years and who retired after the 1999 NFL season...
. He trained with Randy Savage
Randy Savage
Randall Mario Poffo , better known by his ring name "Macho Man" Randy Savage, was an American professional wrestler, best known for his time with the World Wrestling Federation and World Championship Wrestling .Savage held twenty championships during his professional wrestling career and was a...
(In reality, he was trained by Terry Taylor
Terry Taylor
Terry Taylor , is an American retired professional wrestler best known for his time in the National Wrestling Alliance, World Championship Wrestling, and the World Wrestling Federation...
at the WCW Power Plant
WCW Power Plant
The WCW Power Plant was a professional wrestling school located in Atlanta, Georgia and owned and operated by World Championship Wrestling. The Power Plant, which was developed from a school operated by Jody Hamilton, was in operation throughout the 1990s...
.), while Flair and Arn got Heenan to be their "coach" for the match.
The match took place at The Great American Bash PPV
Pay-per-view
Pay-per-view provides a service by which a television audience can purchase events to view via private telecast. The broadcaster shows the event at the same time to everyone ordering it...
on June 16, 1996. During the match, Debra and Greene's wife were chased to the back by Woman
Nancy Daus
Nancy Elizabeth Benoit , more commonly known by her in-ring names Woman and Fallen Angel, was a professional wrestling valet and manager...
and Miss Elizabeth
Miss Elizabeth
Elizabeth Ann Hulette , best known as Miss Elizabeth, was an American professional wrestling manager. She gained international fame from the mid-1980s to the early 1990s in the World Wrestling Federation, and the mid-1990s in World Championship Wrestling in her role as the manager to the late...
. Debra came back with Woman and Elizabeth, and she had a briefcase full of money and a Four Horsemen
Four Horsemen (professional wrestling)
The Four Horsemen were a professional wrestling stable in the National Wrestling Alliance and later World Championship Wrestling that was disbanded in 1999. The original group featured Ric Flair, Arn and Ole Anderson, and Tully Blanchard...
t-shirt. Mongo accepted it and hit Greene in the head with the briefcase. Then they all pounded on Savage, and the Horsemen (along with Chris Benoit
Chris Benoit
Christopher Michael "Chris" Benoit was a Canadian professional wrestler whose career and life ended in a murder–suicide...
) were four strong again.
His first singles match was against Joe Gomez
Joe Gomez
Joe Gomez is an American professional wrestler who competes in Southeastern independent promotions including Florida Championship Wrestling, Maximum Pro Wrestling and the National Wrestling Alliance....
on the Bash at the Beach
Bash at the Beach (1996)
Bash at the Beach was the third annual Bash at the Beach professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Championship Wrestling . It took place on July 7, 1996 from the Ocean Center in Daytona Beach, Florida...
PPV on July 7, 1996. Mongo won with his signature move, the Mongo Spike, which is a reference to his football career having never being able to spike the ball in a game because of never personally scoring.
He went on to feud with the Dungeon of Doom
Dungeon of Doom
The Dungeon of Doom was the name of a professional wrestling stable in World Championship Wrestling that existed from 1995 to 1997.-Origin:...
with the other Horsemen, and he had problems with Jeff Jarrett
Jeff Jarrett
Jeffrey Leonard Jarrett is an American professional wrestler and wrestling promoter. He is currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , an organization he co-founded along with his father and in which he holds some stock but not total control...
over the affections of Debra in late 1996 through early 1997. Because of this, Woman would trash Debra, causing Mongo and Benoit to step in each time. The turning point in the Mongo-Jarrett issue was at SuperBrawl
SuperBrawl
SuperBrawl was an annual professional wrestling pay-per-view in World Championship Wrestling during the month of February from 1991 through 2001. Along with Starrcade, Bash at the Beach, The Great American Bash and Halloween Havoc, SuperBrawl was booked to be one of WCW's flagship pay-per-views....
on February 23, 1997. Mongo wrestled Jarrett; and if Jarrett won, he was an official Horsemen. Debra interfered for Jarrett, so he would win. Then, Mongo and Jarrett had to team, and they bickered at first but then became a solid team.
Mongo wrestled two football players in 1997. He beat Reggie White
Reggie White
Reginald Howard "Reggie" White was a professional American football player. He played 15 seasons as a defensive end in the National Football League for the Philadelphia Eagles, Green Bay Packers and Carolina Panthers, becoming one of the most decorated players in NFL history...
at Slamboree on May 18, 1997 and lost to Kevin Greene at the Great American Bash on June 15, 1997, which saw Mongo slapped by Greene's mother at ringside.
In July 1997, Jarrett was kicked out of the Horsemen, and Debra soon left Mongo for Jarrett. Mongo got his revenge when he defeated Jarrett for his WCW United States Title
WWE United States Championship
The WWE United States Championship is a professional wrestling championship in WWE. It was originally a National Wrestling Alliance and World Championship Wrestling championship, and is currently the secondary championship of the Raw brand....
at the Clash of the Champions
Clash of the Champions
The Clash of the Champions were a series of professional wrestling television specials aired by World Championship Wrestling. The specials were supercards intended to feature pay-per-view caliber matches, similar to World Wrestling Federation's Saturday Night's Main Event.The first Clash of the...
on August 21, 1997. Just weeks earlier, Arn Anderson had been forced to retire due to an injury, and Curt Hennig
Curt Hennig
Curtis Michael "Curt" Hennig , also known by the ring name Mr. Perfect, was an American professional wrestler, manager and color commentator who worked for, among other promotions, Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , the American Wrestling Association , World Championship Wrestling and the World...
took his place in the Horsemen. At Fall Brawl on September 14, 1997, Hennig turned on the Horsemen and joined the nWo
New World Order (professional wrestling)
The New World Order was a professional wrestling stable that originally wrestled for World Championship Wrestling . The group later appeared in the World Wrestling Federation after the purchase of WCW by the WWF...
. The next night on Nitro, Hennig defeated Mongo for the United States Title, and Flair disbanded the Horsemen.
Mongo went after Debra's stable of wrestlers that included Jarrett, Eddie Guerrero
Eddie Guerrero
Eduardo Gory "Eddie" Guerrero was a Mexican-American professional wrestler born into the Guerrero wrestling family. He wrestled in Mexico and Japan for several major professional wrestling promotions...
, and Alex Wright
Alex Wright
Alex Wright is a German-British former professional wrestler. He wrestled professionally in Germany and Japan before signing with World Championship Wrestling in 1994...
. Debra hired Bill Goldberg
Bill Goldberg
Goldberg earned a scholarship to play for the University of Georgia Bulldogs football team where he served as a defensive tackle. He was taken in the 11th round, with the 302nd overall selection, in the 1990 NFL Draft....
to get Mongo, and he became one of Goldberg's first victims in November 1997.
He briefly helped Benoit feud with Raven
Scott Levy
Scott Anthony Levy , better known by his ring name Raven, is an American professional wrestler, wrestling producer, wrestling writer, and occasional author and actor currently working for Juggalo Championship Wrestling , where he is co-holder of the JCW Tag Team Championship, as well as other...
's Flock
Raven's Nest
Raven's Nest was a professional wrestling stable led by Raven that was present in Extreme Championship Wrestling between 1995 and 1997.Later, Raven created other incarnations of the group in World Championship Wrestling and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling .-Raven's Nest:Raven's Nest was a large...
in January 1998 and then got into a feud with Davey Boy Smith
Davey Boy Smith
Davey Boy Smith was a British professional wrestler, better known as "The British Bulldog" Davey Boy Smith, who was born in Golborne in North West England, United Kingdom. Smith is known for his appearances with Stampede Wrestling, the World Wrestling Federation and World Championship Wrestling...
, in which he broke his hand during a match at Super Brawl in February.
Mongo returned in June 1998 and had a feud with Stevie Ray
Lane Huffman
Lane Steven Huffman is a retired American professional wrestler who is better known as Stevie Ray. He is best known as being part of the tag team Harlem Heat with his younger brother Booker T...
and finally helped to reform the Four Horsemen in October with Flair, Benoit, Dean Malenko
Dean Malenko
Dean Simon is a retired professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Dean Malenko. He is currently signed to WWE working as a road agent. He is best known for his time with Extreme Championship Wrestling , New Japan Pro Wrestling and World Championship Wrestling...
, and manager Arn Anderson.
They feuded with the nWo, and, in early 1999, Mongo left WCW for good. He was divorced from Debra around this time. She was already dating World Wrestling Federation
World Wrestling Entertainment
World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. is an American publicly traded, privately controlled entertainment company dealing primarily in professional wrestling, with major revenue sources also coming from film, music, product licensing, and direct product sales...
superstar Stone Cold Steve Austin
Stone Cold Steve Austin
Steve Austin , better known by his ring name "Stone Cold" Steve Austin, is an American film and television actor and retired professional wrestler...
, prompting McMichael to do an interview with The National Enquirer
The National Enquirer
The National Enquirer is an American supermarket tabloid now published by American Media Inc . Founded in 1926, the tabloid has gone through a variety of changes over the years....
entitled "Stone Cold Stole My Wife!"
After Wrestling
McMichael co-hosts a Bear pre-game show with Carmen DeFalco on ESPN 1000 in Chicago, and is the head coach of the Chicago Slaughter of the Continental Indoor Football League. Mongo also hosts a Monday Night Football party every Monday at a gentlemans club outside of Chicago. Steve also hosts a weekly Game Day party at Fanatics Bar & Grill in Onarga IL every Sunday.McMichael was a guest singer for "Take Me Out to the Ball Game
Take Me Out to the Ball Game
"Take Me Out to the Ball Game" is a 1908 Tin Pan Alley song by Jack Norworth and Albert Von Tilzer which has become the unofficial anthem of baseball, although neither of its authors had attended a game prior to writing the song. The song is traditionally sung during the seventh-inning stretch of...
" at a game between the Chicago Cubs
Chicago Cubs
The Chicago Cubs are a professional baseball team located in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the Central Division of Major League Baseball's National League. They are one of two Major League clubs based in Chicago . The Cubs are also one of the two remaining charter members of the National...
and Colorado Rockies
Colorado Rockies
The Colorado Rockies are a Major League Baseball team based in Denver, Colorado. Established in 1991, they started play in 1993 and are in the West Division of the National League. The team is named after the Rocky Mountains...
in August 2001. After home plate umpire Angel Hernandez
Angel Hernandez (umpire)
Ángel Hernández is an umpire in Major League Baseball. He has worked in the National League from 1991 to 1999, and throughout both major leagues since 2000. He has umpired in the World Series in 2002 and 2005, as well as the 1999 All-Star Game...
called Ron Coomer
Ron Coomer
Ronald "Coom Dawg" Coomer is a former first baseman and third baseman in Major League Baseball who had a 9-year career from to . He played for the Minnesota Twins, New York Yankees, Chicago Cubs and Los Angeles Dodgers...
out at the plate on a controversial call, McMichael questioned Hernandez's call and said that he'd be waiting for him after the game. Hernandez ejected McMichael after he sang.
Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (2008)
McMichael returned to professional wrestling for Total Nonstop Action WrestlingTotal Nonstop Action Wrestling
Total Nonstop Action Wrestling is a privately held professional wrestling promotion founded by Jeff Jarrett and Jerry Jarrett. The company broadcasts its events on television and the Internet fifty two weeks a year with over a million weekly viewers on its primary television program, Impact...
's flagship pay-per-view, Bound For Glory
Bound for Glory IV
Bound for Glory IV was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , which took place on October 12, 2008 at the Sears Centre in Hoffman Estates, Illinois. It was the fourth annual Bound for Glory event and the first to be referred to in roman numerals...
, where he refereed the Monster's Ball Match. This match was notable for McMichael's extremely slow cadence for a three count.
Mongo, in 2010, opened Mongo's on Main a restaurant in Sandwich Il close to the lake community Lake Holiday IL. Unfortunately, Mongo's on Main has been closed down.
Personal life
In 1985, McMichael married Debra MarshallDebra Marshall
Debra Gale Marshall is an American actress and former professional wrestling manager and WWE Diva. Arguably best known by her ring name, Debra, she gained recognition for her appearances with the World Wrestling Federation between 1998 and 2002.She began her career in professional wrestling in...
, former professional wrestling manager and WWE Diva. They divorced on October 12, 1998.
On August 3, 2007, McMichael appeared as a guest on the Waddle & Silvy Show on Chicago ESPN Radio 1000 and announced he is going to be a father with his wife, Misty. Their daughter Macy Dale McMichael was born at 4:12pm on January 22, 2008.
On July 17, 2010, McMichael was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame
College Football Hall of Fame
The College Football Hall of Fame is a hall of fame and museum devoted to college football. Located in South Bend, Indiana, it is connected to a convention center and situated in the city's renovated downtown district, two miles south of the University of Notre Dame campus. It is slated to move...
.
In wrestling
- Finishing moves
- Mongo Spike (Tombstone piledriver)
- Signature moves
- Backbreaker
- Back body drop
- DropkickDropkickA dropkick is an attacking maneuver in professional wrestling. It is defined as an attack where the wrestler jumps up and kicks the opponent with the soles of both feet; this sees the wrestler twist as he or she jumps so that when the feet connect with the opponent one foot is raised higher than...
- Figure four leglock
- Inverted atomic drop
- Lariat
- Sidewalk slam
- Shoulder block
- Shoulder neckbreaker
- Spinebuster
- Three-point stance into either a clotheline or a football tackleTackle (football move)Most forms of football have a move known as a tackle. The primary purposes of tackling is to disposses an opponent of the ball, to stop the player from gaining ground towards goal or to stop them from carrying out what they intend....
- Entrance themesMusic in professional wrestlingMusic in professional wrestling serves a variety of purposes. The most common uses of music in professional wrestling is that of the entrance theme, a song or piece of instrumental music which plays as a performer approaches the ring...
- "Unledded" (WCW) 1996–1998
- "Coast" (WCW) 1996–1997 (used while part of the horsemen)
- "Four Horsemen theme" (WCW) 1998–1999 (used while part of the horsemen)
- "Red Remix" by Toxic (TNA)
American football
- National Football LeagueNational Football LeagueThe National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
- NFLNational Football LeagueThe National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
Pro BowlPro BowlIn professional American football, the Pro Bowl is the all-star game of the National Football League . Since the merger with the rival American Football League in 1970, it has been officially called the AFC–NFC Pro Bowl, matching the top players in the American Football Conference against those...
er (1986, 1987) - Member of 1985 World Champion Chicago BearsChicago BearsThe Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
- Member of the National Football Foundation College Football Hall of Fame
- NFL
Professional wrestling
- World Championship WrestlingWorld Championship WrestlingWorld Championship Wrestling, Inc. was an American professional wrestling promotion which existed from 1988 to 2001. Based in Atlanta, Georgia, it began as a regional promotion affiliated with the National Wrestling Alliance , named Jim Crockett Promotions until November 1988, when Ted Turner and...
- WCW United States Heavyweight ChampionshipWWE United States ChampionshipThe WWE United States Championship is a professional wrestling championship in WWE. It was originally a National Wrestling Alliance and World Championship Wrestling championship, and is currently the secondary championship of the Raw brand....
(1 time)
- WCW United States Heavyweight Championship
- Wrestling Observer Newsletter awards
- Worst Television Announcer (1996)