Roman Macek (born November 16, 2000) is an American

professional wrestler Professional wrestling is a form of theater that revolves around staged wrestling matches. The mock combat is performed in a ring similar to the kind used in boxing, and the dramatic aspects of pro wrestling may be performed both in the ring or ...

and former

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...

player. He is currently signed to

WWE World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., d/b/a as WWE, is an American professional wrestling promotion. A global integrated media and entertainment company, WWE has also branched out into other fields, including film, American football, and vario ...

, where he performs on the

NXT NXT may refer to: Professional wrestling * '' WWE NXT'', a professional wrestling television program produced by WWE that began in 2010 ** NXT (WWE brand), WWE's Florida-based brand and former developmental territory * '' NXT UK'', the British spi ...

brand A brand is a name, term, design, symbol or any other feature that distinguishes one seller's good or service from those of other sellers. Brands are used in business, marketing, and advertising for recognition and, importantly, to create an ...

under the

ring name A ring name is a type of stage name used by an athlete such as a professional wrestler, mixed martial artist, or boxer whose real name is considered unattractive, dull, difficult to pronounce or spell, amusing for the wrong reasons, or projecting ...

Luca Crusifino. He is a member of The D'Angelo Family stable.

Early life and football career

Macek was born in McKees Rocks, Pennsylvania. He attended

Montour High School Montour High School is a public high school in Robinson, Pennsylvania, United States. It is the only high school in the Montour School District and serves the suburban towns of Kennedy and Robinson Townships, and the boroughs of Ingram, Pennsb ...

in McKees Rocks, where he played

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

. He was a first team all-Northwest Nine Conference pick on both the offensive and defensive lines for two-straight years. He also participated as four-year letterman and three-year captain for the

wrestling Wrestling is a series of combat sports involving grappling-type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. Wrestling techniques have been incorporated into martial arts, combat ...

team. After graduating from high school, Macek went on to study at Duquesne University, majoring in sociology. While attending Duquesne, Macek played football for the

Duquesne Dukes The Duquesne Dukes are the athletic teams of Duquesne University of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The Dukes compete in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association as members of the Atlantic 10 Conference. Football and bowling, however ...

. As a freshman in 2017, he played

special teams In American football, the specific role that a player takes on the field is referred to as their "position". Under the modern rules of American football, both teams are allowed 11 players on the field at one time and have "unlimited free substitu ...

and

defense Defense or defence may refer to: Tactical, martial, and political acts or groups * Defense (military), forces primarily intended for warfare * Civil defense, the organizing of civilians to deal with emergencies or enemy attacks * Defense industr ...

; in 2018, he appeared in all 13 games for the Dukes; in 2019 he moved to offense as a

left guard In gridiron football, a guard (G), otherwise known as an offensive guard (OG), is a player who lines up between the center and the tackles on the offensive line of a football team on the line of scrimmage used primarily for blocking. Right g ...

; In 2020–2021 season, he started all five games at left guard for the Dukes in first season on the offensive line and played major role in success of Dukes’ offense. In 2021, he started all 10 games at left guard for the Dukes and was a part of an offensive front which paced the NEC and ranked 17th in the FCS in fewest sacks allowed per game (1.2). After graduating with a B.A. from Duquesne University, Macek continued his education at Duquesne, enrolling in the

law school A law school (also known as a law centre or college of law) is an institution specializing in legal education, usually involved as part of a process for becoming a lawyer within a given jurisdiction. Law degrees Argentina In Argentina, ...

. However, he took a leave of absence to pursue professional wrestling. Macek is still enrolled in law school at Duquesne.

Professional wrestling career

On April 6, 2022, it was reported that Macek had signed with WWE after undergoing a tryout at the

WWE Performance Center The WWE Performance Center is the official professional wrestling school system of the American professional wrestling promotion WWE. The promotion currently operates two Performance Center locations, which serve as training facilities for WWE wre ...

. He was later assigned the name Luca Crusifino and the

gimmick A gimmick is a novel device or idea designed primarily to attract attention or increase appeal, often with little intrinsic value. When applied to retail marketing, it is a unique or quirky feature designed to make a product or service "stand ou ...

of a

lawyer A lawyer is a person who practices law. The role of a lawyer varies greatly across different legal jurisdictions. A lawyer can be classified as an advocate, attorney, barrister, canon lawyer, civil law notary, counsel, counselor, solic ...

. In early 2023 before his debut, Crusifino made his own website calle
crusifinolaw.com
for his gimmick of a lawyer. The website includes “ongoing trials” in NXT, testimonials from The D'Angelo Family's Channing "Stacks" Lorenzo and an anonymous client, and a paragraph about himself and his “

Law firm A law firm is a business entity formed by one or more lawyers to engage in the practice of law. The primary service rendered by a law firm is to advise clients (individuals or corporations) about their legal rights and responsibilities, and to r ...

” and how to contact him, as well as “video evidence” about various

assault An assault is the act of committing physical harm or unwanted physical contact upon a person or, in some specific legal definitions, a threat or attempt to commit such an action. It is both a crime and a tort and, therefore, may result in crim ...

charges in NXT. Crusifino participated in the NXT men's breakout tournament, but was defeated by

Tavion Heights G'Angelo Hancock (born July 27, 1997) is an American Greco-Roman wrestler. He won one of the bronze medals in the 97 kg event at the 2021 World Wrestling Championships held in Oslo, Norway. At the 2020 Pan American Wrestling Championships held ...

in the first round. On February 27, Crusifino faced Dijak in a losing effort. After the match, Crusifino would hit Dijak with his own

crowbar A crowbar, also called a wrecking bar, pry bar or prybar, pinch-bar, or occasionally a prise bar or prisebar, colloquially, in Britain and Australia sometimes called a jemmy or jimmy (also called jemmy bar), gooseneck, or pig foot, is a tool ...

, setting up

Joe Gacy Joseph Ruby (born August 8, 1987) is an American professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the NXT brand under the ring name Joe Gacy. He is the leader of The Schism. Gacy is best known for his work in Combat Zon ...

to attack him, turning face in the process for the first time in his WWE career. Crusifino would then slip Dijak's crowbar behind the steel steps. Impressed by Crusifino’s match, Tony D’Angelo would tell Channing "Stacks" Lorenzo to “remember that” and “go get ‘em.” At ''NXT'': Roadblock on March 5, D'Angelo welcomed Crusifino as the new " consigliere" of The D'Angelo Family stable, cementing his face turn. The Family and

No Quarter Catch Crew The No Quarter Catch Crew (NQCC) is an American professional wrestling stable currently performing in WWE on the NXT brand, while also making appearances in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling and Pro Wrestling Noah. The group currently consists of le ...

faced in a

six-man tag team match Much like the singles match, tag team professional wrestling matches can and have taken many forms. Just about any singles or melee match type can be adapted to tag teams; for example, hardcore tag team matches are commonplace. Tag team ladder m ...

at Week 1 of '' Spring Breakin''', which was won by The D'Angelo Family. On the May 7 episode of ''NXT'', Dempsey and Borne faced Tyson DuPont and Tyrek Igwe in a tag team match. Before the match started, the match referee was declared "unavailable" and Stacks was announced as the special guest referee, costing Dempsey and Borne the match through a fast count. After the match, an irate Dempsey gave D'Angelo a title shot at the NXT Heritage Cup as payment due to the D'Angelo Family and invoked the Catch Clause. Later that night, D'Angelo and his Family kidnapped Kemp and Borne to nullify the Catch Clause.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Crusifino, Luca 2000 births Living people American male professional wrestlers Professional wrestlers from Pennsylvania 21st-century male professional wrestlers People from McKees Rocks, Pennsylvania Duquesne Dukes football players American football offensive guards Players of American football from Pennsylvania