Steve McMichael

Steven Douglas McMichael (October 17, 1957) is an American former Football defensive tackle who played for the New England Patriots, Chicago Bears, and the Green Bay Packers of the NFL. He was also a professional wrestler for four years in World Championship Wrestling (WCW).
==NFL career==
Steve "Mongo" McMichael was drafted out of Texas in 1980 by the New England Patriots. He was acquired by the Chicago Bears as a free agent in 1981. He would become one of their starting defensive tackles and help lead them to a Super Bowl win in 1985. He had a streak of 101 games started until 1990, when his playing time was reduced. He led the Bears with 11 1/2 sacks in 1988. He had 108 tackles in 1989. McMichael was named to the NFC's Pro Bowl teams for the 1986 and 1987 seasons. He played with the Green Bay Packers in 1994 before retiring.
==Professional wrestling career==
===World Wrestling Federation (1995)===
After the end of his NFL career, he appeared at ringside in the WWF for Lawrence Taylor at WrestleMania XI on April 2, 1995 in Hartford, Connecticut. 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 and would later brawl with Kama Mustafa, one of Bigelow's comrades. The fight was all over the arena floor and almost into the stands, soon being broken up by personnel. Taylor ended up winning the later match. For unknown reasons, McMichael was not seen again on WWF television.
===World Championship Wrestling (1995-1999)===
Mongo then went to World Championship Wrestling (WCW) as a commentator. He bickered with Bobby Heenan during matches and brought his dog Pepe with him to the broadcast booth. In April 1996, Ric Flair started hitting on his wife Debra, who would sit at ringside during WCW Monday Nitro. Mongo did not like this and challenged Flair and Arn Anderson to a match with his partner Kevin Greene. He trained with Randy Savage (In reality, he was trained by Terry Taylor at the WCW Power Plant.), while Flair and Arn got Heenan to be their "coach" for the match.
The match took place at the Great American Bash PPV on June 16, 1996. During the match, Debra & Greene's wife were chased to the back by Woman and Miss Elizabeth. Debra came back with Woman and Elizabeth, and she had a briefcase full of money and a Four Horsemen 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) were four strong again.
His first singles match was against Joe Gomez on the Bash at the Beach 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 with the other Horsemen, and he had problems with Jeff Jarrett 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 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 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 the WCW United States Heavyweight Championship at the Clash of the Champions on August 21, 1997. Just weeks earlier, Arn Anderson had been forced to retire due to an injury, and Curt Hennig took his place in the Horsemen. At Fall Brawl on September 14, 1997, Hennig turned on the Horsemen and joined the nWo. 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, and Alex Wright. Debra hired Bill Goldberg to get Mongo, and he became one of Goldberg's first victims in November 1997.
He briefly helped Benoit feud with Raven's Flock in January 1998 and then got into a feud with Davey Boy Smith, 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 and finally helped to reform the Four Horsemen in October with Flair, Benoit, Malenko, 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 superstar Stone Cold Steve Austin, prompting McMichael to do an interview with The National Enquirer 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. McMichael was a guest singer for Take Me Out to the Ball Game at a game between the Chicago Cubs and Colorado Rockies in August 2001. After home plate umpire Angel Hernandez called Ron Coomer 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. McMichael was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame on February 8, 2024.
===Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (2008)===
McMichael returned to professional wrestling for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling's flagship pay-per-view, Bound For Glory, where he refereed the Monster's Ball Match. This match was notable for McMichael's extremely slow cadence for a three count.
== In wrestling ==
* Finishing moves
** Tombstone Piledriver
* Signature moves
** Camel Clutch
** Swinging Neckbreaker
== Championships and accomplishments ==
*World Championship Wrestling
**WCW United States Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
==External links==
*Steve McMichael Profile at CAGEMATCH
*Steve McMichael Profile at Online World of Wrestling
Category:American wrestlers
Category:Male wrestlers
Category:Commentators
Category:Former football players
Category:1957 births
Category:1995 debuts
Category:1999 retirements
Category:Total Nonstop Action Wrestling alumni
Category:World Championship Wrestling alumni
Category:World Wrestling Entertainment alumni
Category:WCW United States Champions
Category:Living people