wrestling / Columns
Just S’pose 11.15.06
In my personal life, nothing happened. So, you know what that means, right?
In football, Brooke’s season is done after losing in the first round of the West Vriginia Class AAA playoffs to Martinsburg, 49-7. What caused a loss this big? I blame whoever decided, after Brooke won the coin toss, to defer to the second half. They kicked off, Martinsburg returned it for a touchdown, and things went downhill from there. Still, it was the Bruins best season in a decade, and just sets them up to go further next year.
Pitt, meanwhile, has decided that winning is overrated. They lost to Connecticut, 46-45, in double overtime. There are now two games left, Thursday against West Virginia in the Backyard Brawl, and 11/25 against Louisville. Both games are at Heinz Field, but that probably won’t help as much as one would like.
While talking about Pitt, when they hired Dave Wannstedt almost two years ago, people saw it as a connection to the past (Wannstedt played for Pitt from 1970-3), as well as getting a coach who had success in the NFL. Me, I saw it as getting a guy who was run out of Chicago and Miami for a reason.
So, I have decided to start my own search for a new coach, to take over after Wannstedt is fired next year (I can only hope…). It needs to be someone who once played for Pitt. Someone who grew up in the ‘Burgh. Someone who has had success as a head coach. Someone who has perfect hair. Someone who has been out of coaching for a few years, but remembers how to do it, and can motivate a team just by showing up. Someone like…
I know it will be tough to get him to return to coaching, especially since he decided not to run for the US Senate because of business interests. But if anyone can turn this team around and get Pitt back to national prominence, Iron Mike can. So, here’s what I’m willing to do. I know he was recruited by the Illinois Republican party to run against Barack Obama in 2004, and describes himself as an “ultra-ultra-ultra conservative.” If Mike Ditka will come back home and rescue his alma mater, I will… will… man, this is tough to say.
I will say something nice about George W. Bush every week in this column.
Does that show you exactly how serious I am about this? I am willing to say nice things about the man I believe is ruining the US just to get a winning football team! So, come on, Ditka! You know the Superfans would go nuts to see you back on the sidelines, and I myself would grab some ribs and polish sausage and join them at the table. After all, I’ve had no heart attacks yet, but I am due for some kind of heart-related trauma.
One last college-football related note: If you’ve seen the latest BCS rankings, there are two conferences with three teams in the top ten. One is the Big Ten, with Ohio State (1), Michigan (2), and Wisconsin (9). The other conference? The Big East, with Rutgers (6), West Virginia (8), and Louisville (10). You remember the Big East Conference, right? The conference that lost Miami, Virginia Tech, and Boston College two years ago to the ACC? The conference that was considered “unworthy” to be part of the BCS last year? That conference?
Take that, ya haters.
As for Da Stillers, they beat New Orleans, 38-31, but the defense allowed over 500 yards of offense. However, no turnovers!
Meanwhile, while most people here in central Ohio are going bonkers about Ohio State/Michigan this weekend, I know the real action will be in northeast Ohio on Sunday. Stillers/Brownies, people! Cleveland sucks, Cleveland sucks, Cleveland sucks, Cleveland sucks…
HEAVEN DIDN’T NEED A CHAMPION
He flopped back in his seat, weary after a long trip. This was his first trip in what he hoped was meant to be an introduction to the Japanese fans. The next time he came, if all went right, he would have some company on the trip: his wife and ten pounds of gold.
He fastened his seat belt, closed his eyes, and thought of home. He knew he would wake up somewhere over the Pacific Ocean, but that was alright. Sometime soon, he would win the NWA World title in front of his family and fans in Texas. Yup, everything was coming up golden for David Von Erich.
In the reality we know, David Von Erich died in a hotel room in Tokyo on February 7, 1984. Just one month earlier, he lost the Missouri State Heavyweight title to Harley Race. David was reportedly scheduled to win the NWA World title later that year. Instead, on May 6, 1984, Ric Flair lost the NWA World title to Kerry Von Erich in Irving, Texas, at the “David Von Erich Memorial Parade of Champions.” Kerry lost the title back to Flair in Yokosuka City, Japan, on May 24. But, Just S’pose David Von Erich didn’t die. What might have happened?
David continued to wrestle both in Texas for his father’s World Class organization, and in Missouri for legendary promoter Sam Mucnick. He regained the Missouri State title from Racein March, and was part of the World Class Six-Man Tag Team champions with brothers Kevin and Kerry.
Then, Fritz got the news he had been waiting for. The NWA title reign for David had been formally approved by the NWA Board of Directors. On June 11 in Texas Stadium, in front of 37,398 fans, David Von Erich pinned Ric Flair to win the NWA World title. The crowd cheered louder than ever, and every Von Erich family member and ally came to the ring to celebrate.
David defended the title the next night in St. Louis against Harley Race, and kept it by winning a two-of-three-falls match in about 40 minutes. He also defended the title that week in Kansas City, Virginia Beach, Raleigh, St. Petersburg, Atlanta, New Orleans, and Houston, to try to spread the word that there was a new world champion. Television shows in every NWA territory and throughout Japan showed footage of Von Erich’s win the next weekend, so it would be known Ric Flair was no longer champion. World Class television had a sixty-minute retrospective of David’s career, showing some of his best matches in his short career.
Von Erich continued traveling from territory to territory for the rest of 1984 and part of 1985. In April, he took a short break from traveling to help his brothers, Kevin, Kerry, and Mike, fight off the Fabulous Freebirds. David, Kevin, and Kerry beat the Freebirds in a brutal six-man cage match in Dallas the last night of his two-week home stand.
In May 1985, he took his first trip to Japan as world champion, defending the title all over the country for a month. He also took trips to Australia, New Zealand, and Samoa before defending the title in Hawaii, the first NWA World title defense there in almost two years. He then returned to the continental US with defenses all over the west coast, from Alaska to Tijuana.
In August, he was forced to cancel a week of defenses after his brother, Mike, contracted Toxic Shock Syndrome through complications from shoulder surgery. His first match after Mike’s surgery was a title defense against Terry Gordy in Houston.
His reign came to an end on November 28, 1985, in Greensboro, NC, when he lost to Ric Flair during Starrcade ’85. Von Erich had a couple rematches, and then returned to Texas to help sagging attendance in World Class.
In 1986, while at the NWA Directors meeting, Fritz asked about a second title reign for his son. The board discussed it, then decided to stay with Flair as champion for the time being. When he returned to Dallas, he talked with the WCCW Board of Directors, and they voted to secede from the NWA. The next week, Fritz announced the change on WCCW television.
One member of the family, however, didn’t agree with the decision. Kevin, Kerry, and Mike stayed with the new company, but David relocated in Florida. However, with no backing from any of the promoters in the NWA, he could not get the votes of confidence he needed to get a second title reign. It’s not that he wasn’t a successful champion; business was incredible everywhere he went while champion. The problem was, when he was chosen to be champion, his father held an incredible amount of influence. Every promoter had their choice to be the standard bearer fo the entire company, and while everyone wanted to advertise “Former NWA Champion David Von Erich,” no one was willing to make him “Current NWA Champion David Von Erich.”
In June 1987, he rejoined the family business, running in to break up a three-on-one attack on brother Mike. While they had television all over the country and in Israel, they had not had success promoting shows outside Texas and Oklahoma. Now, with the oil business collapsing, they needed to find new markets quickly, or else the company would go under.
Without David, WCCW was seen around the country as a one-trick pony; if there wasn’t a Von Erich vs. Freebirds match of some kind on the card, ticket sales flopped. With David, they had a marquee name who was also a former world champion. Now, they just needed someone to match against him, who could counter his talent and draw big money.
Rick Rude jumped David during a televised match against Chris Adams, and together, Rude and Adams made him bleed. The next week at the Dallas Sportatorium, David and Rude went to a double disqualification. After the match, Rude wrapped a cord around David’s neck and hung him over the top rope. Others came out to help him, and he was taken from the ring on a stretcher.
The next week, WCCW promoted a card at Los Angeles’ Olympic Auditorium. Los Angeles hadn’t had a regular promoter since Mike LaBell went out of business in the 1970’s, but thanks to WCCW television, the show was sold out. In the main event, David and Rude had another double disqualification, and in homage to former Los Angeles star Freddie Blassie, David bit Rude’s forehead until it was bloody. It was the first of twelve consecutive sellouts of the Olympic for WCCW.
Business suddenly grew throughout the southwest, from Dallas to Los Angeles and north to Denver, which was formerly AWA territory. Occasionally, WCCW would still make trips to Boston and other New England cities, but for the most part, fans in other parts of the country had to keep up with the group through the television show, now nationally on ESPN.
Throughout 1987 and 1988, David traded the WCCW title, which had not officially attained World title recognition status, with Rick Rude, Jeff Jarrett, and Al Perez. While champion, he even gave his brother Kevin a shot at the title, and the two went to a sixty-minute draw in San Antonio. The next month, David and Kevin went ninety minutes with no winner, and shook hands afterward.
In 1988, Fritz Von Erich was approached by Verne Gagne to co-promote a pay-per-view, in an attempt to gain business from the WWF and NWA. It was decided to run the show in San Francisco, a good city for both territories, in February 1989. In the main event of SuperClash III, World Class champion David Von Erich and AWA World champion Curt Hennig would unite the titles. After 37 minutes of hard, fast action, Von Erich slapped the clawhold on Hennig, but Henning fell out of the ring, taking his opponent with him. When it seemed like the referee would count both men out, he stopped the count and yelled for both to enter the ring. Ten minutes later, David Von Erich became the first man to ever hold both the NWA and AWA World titles.
Von Erich defended the AWA title in both territories, making him the only recognized World champion in the western half of the United States. As an added bonus, his AWA title reign gave WCCW recognition in Canada and Japan, which made him a world traveler again. Now, though, instead of having no one with him on a regular basis, Kevin, Kerry, and Chris (Mike committed suicide in 1988) joined him. Chris was not large enough to become a wrestler, so he became the family’s manager standing ringside in case someone tried to interfere.
In 1991, David Von Erich dropped the AWA World title to Eddie Gilbert, lost several rematches, and went into semi-retirement, so he could spend time with his wife and children.
COMING ATTRACTIONS
Next week, I promise you nothing. Enjoy your turkey and football on Thanksgiving, unless you’re not in Americ, in which case, enjoy whatever you normally do on Thursday. As for the week after that, I’ll give you an update on the end of Pitt’s football season, Da Stillers wins over the Cleve Brownies and the Balto Birdies (thanks, Myron Cope!), and I may even sneak in some Penguins hockey.
As for story time, I’ll have one of those, too.
Ron
