The chest-beating, body-slamming, over-the-top antics of professional
wrestling don’t usually bring academics to mind. There are a fair few
unwarranted stereotypes associated with the wrestling world and its fans,
but many pro wrestlers have proved that their brains are just as well honed
as their biceps. Don’t let the spandex and baby oil fool you – they managed
to find the time to hit the books as well as the ring, earning degrees in fields
as diverse as industrial engineering, political science, and criminology. Read
on to discover 10 professional wrestlers you’d never guess had college
degrees....

Enjoy the ride...

10.Matthew Korklan, better known by his stage name Evan Bourne (on the right
in the image above), was passionate about wrestling when he was growing
up in Missouri. Still, he wasn’t sure if he could make enough money as a
wrestler and enrolled at Missouri University in 2001. Korklan took classes on
Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays, and spent the rest of the week traveling
to compete in wrestling matches. He graduated in 2005 with a bachelor’s
degree in Marketing.
Eventually, he became the vice president of marketing and sales at a St.
Louis mailbox company – but he still loved wrestling. Korklan continued to
compete in his free time and even toured around Japan. In 2008, he caught
the eye of World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE), then became a regular
feature on Monday Night Raw . However, in March 2012 Korklan was injured
in a car crash, and only returned to action a year later, on March 28, 2013.
When his wrestling career is over, Korklan plans to go back to school.

In 1998, current WWE Champion John Cena graduated from Springfield
College in Massachusetts with a degree in Exercise Physiology. Although his
degree could have helped his bid for stardom in the WWE, Cena, who was a
college All-American football player, says his education helped him in other
ways as well. “As a student athlete, you not only have the burden of trying to
perform,” Cena said on a visit to Springfield. “But at the end of the day you
have to hit the books and get a good education as well. That’s two full-time
jobs, at once. And now, of course, with what I do, it’s a full-time job, but I’m
able to handle that because I was able to prioritize my life here at Springfield
College, between being a full-time student and a full-time athlete.” Cena,
who has also starred in several movies, has won the WWE Championship a
record-breaking 11 times.

cena

EVE TORRES

Eve Torres, pictured on the right, is a model, dancer, actress, women’s self-
defense instructor and ex-WWE Divas champion. However, Torres is more
than just a pretty face, and won a full tuition scholarship to the University of
Southern California. As if that’s not impressive enough, she graduated with
honors in 2006, earning a degree in Industrial and Systems Engineering. “My
goal was to always get my degree,” says Torres. “Once I did that, I thought I
could pursue any other passion because I had something to fall back on if I
needed it.” She left WWE in 2013 to concentrate on her self-defense career.
She adds, “It’s constantly about pushing yourself into things that might sound
impossible in your mind. That’s what my career is about.”