Randall Thornton (born December 23, 1964) is an American former football player and

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 o ...

. He is also known for his stint in

World Championship Wrestling World Championship Wrestling, Inc. (WCW) was an American professional wrestling promotion founded by Ted Turner in 1988, after Turner Broadcasting System, through a subsidiary named Universal Wrestling Corporation, purchased the assets of Nati ...

under the ring name Swoll.

Football career

Thornton attended the

University of Houston The University of Houston (UH) is a public research university in Houston, Texas. Founded in 1927, UH is a member of the University of Houston System and the university in Texas with over 47,000 students. Its campus, which is primarily in s ...

, where he played for the Houston Cougars as a defensive back and free safety between 1984 and 1987. From 1988 to 1990, he played for the

Denver Broncos The Denver Broncos are a professional American football franchise based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The team is headquar ...

as a

linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and the defensive linemen. They are the "middle ground" of defenders, ...

. In 1990, he was sidelined with a knee injury. In 1990, he was courted by the New York Giants. He left the Broncos in the same year. In the

1993 CFL season The 1993 CFL season is considered to be the 40th season in modern-day Canadian football, although it is officially the 36th Canadian Football League season. CFL news in 1993 On February 23, the Sacramento Gold Miners were announced as the CFL's ...

, he played for the

Sacramento Gold Miners The Sacramento Gold Miners were a Canadian football team based in Sacramento, California. The franchise was the first American team in the Canadian Football League. The Gold Miners inherited a home stadium, front office staff and much of the rost ...

as a

defensive end Defensive end (DE) is a defensive position in the sport of gridiron football. This position has designated the players at each end of the defensive line, but changes in formations over the years have substantially changed how the position is ...

Professional wrestling career

Early career

Thornton trained as a wrestler under

Brad Rheingans Brad Rheingans (born December 13, 1953) is an American former Greco-Roman wrestler and professional wrestler. He was a member of the United States' Greco-Roman wrestling teams for the 1976 and 1980 Summer Olympics, as well as winning two gold med ...

. On May 3, 1991, he debuted in the American Wrestling Association, where he lost to

Frank Andersson Frank Öivind Stefan Andersson (9 May 1956 – 9 September 2018) was a Swedish amateur wrestler and entertainer. He started in amateur wrestling, winning several world championship gold medals as well as a bronze medal at the 1984 Summer Olympic ...

. That same month, he toured

New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) is a Puroresu, Japanese professional wrestling Professional wrestling promotion, promotion based in Nakano, Tokyo. Founded on January 13, 1972, by Antonio Inoki, the promotion was sold to Yuke's, who later sold it to Bushiroad in 2012. TV ...

and fought in a "Different Style Fight" against

Shinya Hashimoto was a Japanese professional wrestler, promoter and actor. Along with Masahiro Chono and Keiji Mutoh, Hashimoto was dubbed one of the "Three Musketeers" that began competing in New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) in the mid-1980s and dominated the pr ...

, which he lost in the second round. He would lose another Different Style Fight to Masashi Aoyagi in October 1991.

World Championship Wrestling (1999)

In 1999, Thornton, under the ring name Swoll, debuted in

as a member of

Master P Percy Robert Miller Sr. (born April 29, 1967), known by his stage name Master P, is an American rapper, record executive, record producer, actor, and entrepreneur. He is the founder of the record label No Limit Records, which was relaunched as ...

's No Limit Soldiers. The Soldiers immediately began a feud with The West Texas Rednecks due to the Rednecks' hatred of rap music. On June 13, 1999 at

The Great American Bash The Great American Bash is a professional wrestling event currently produced by WWE, a professional wrestling promotion based in Connecticut. Created by Dusty Rhodes, the event was established in 1985 and was originally produced by the National Wr ...

, Swoll assisted fellow Soldiers

Konnan Charles Ashenoff (born Carlos Santiago Espada Moises; January 6, 1964),''Wrestling Observer Newsletter'', Dave Meltzer, ed., May 10, 2010, issue.Sims, Steve"Pro Wrestling Hall of Fame/Founded by Dave Meltzer - Konnan". Accessed August 1, 2016. O ...

and

Rey Misterio Jr. Óscar Gutiérrez (born December 11, 1974), better known by his ring name Rey Mysterio, is an American professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the SmackDown brand. Widely regarded as one of the greatest profe ...

in defeating the Rednecks'

Curt Hennig Curtis Michael Hennig (March 28, 1958 – February 10, 2003) was an American professional wrestler. He performed under his real name for promotions including the American Wrestling Association (AWA), the World Wrestling Federation (WWF; now WWE) ...

and

Bobby Duncum Jr. Bobby Edward Duncum Jr. (August 26, 1965 – January 24, 2000) was an American Professional wrestling, professional wrestler. He was best known for his stint in World Championship Wrestling as a member of The West Texas Rednecks. Professional ...

On the June 24 episode of ''

Thunder Thunder is the sound caused by lightning. Depending upon the distance from and nature of the lightning, it can range from a long, low rumble to a sudden, loud crack. The sudden increase in temperature and hence pressure caused by the lightning pr ...

'', Swoll made his in-ring debut as he and

B.A. Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four yea ...

defeated Disorderly Conduct (Mean Mike and Tough Tom). At Bash at the Beach, the Soldiers (Swoll, Konnan, B.A. and Misterio Jr.) defeated the Rednecks (Hennig, Duncum Jr.

Barry Windham Barry Clinton Windham (born July 4, 1960) is an American retired professional wrestler. The son of wrestler Blackjack Mulligan, he is best known for his appearances with the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) and World Championship Wrestling (WCW ...

and

Kendall Windham Kendall Wayne Windham (born December 15, 1967) is an American retired professional wrestler. He is the son of Blackjack Mulligan and the brother of Barry Windham. He is best known for his appearances with World Championship Wrestling. Professi ...

) in an

elimination 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 ...

. After defeating a few other teams over the next few weeks, Swoll and B.A. lost to the Windhams on the August 3 episode of '' Saturday Night'', thus ending both Swoll's undefeated streak and the feud between the Soldiers and the Rednecks. On the August 17 episode of ''Saturday Night'', Swoll competed in his final match for WCW as he and B.A. defeated

Hugh Morrus William Charles DeMott II (born November 10, 1966) is an American retired professional wrestler and road agent and trainer. He is best known for his appearances with World Championship Wrestling (WCW) as Hugh Morrus and World Wrestling Federatio ...

and

Jerry Flynn William Brenneman (born November 21, 1959) is an American retired professional wrestler and mixed martial artist, better known by his ring name Jerry Flynn. Flynn is best known for his appearances with World Championship Wrestling between 1996 an ...

via disqualification. Thornton retired from professional wrestling immediately afterwards.

Retirement

After retiring from wrestling, Thornton began working for the American Center For Character and Cultural Education. He is a

born again Christian Born again, or to experience the new birth, is a phrase, particularly in evangelicalism, that refers to a "spiritual rebirth", or a regeneration of the human spirit. In contrast to one's physical birth, being "born again" is distinctly and sep ...

and also speaks for the

Fellowship of Christian Athletes The Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA) is an international non-profit Christian sports ministry founded in 1954 and based in Kansas City, Missouri. It has staff offices located throughout the United States and abroad. History FCA was foun ...

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Thornton, Randy 1964 births African-American male professional wrestlers American evangelicals American male professional wrestlers Denver Broncos players Houston Cougars football players Living people American players of Canadian football Players of American football from New Orleans Players of Canadian football from New Orleans Professional wrestlers from Louisiana Sacramento Gold Miners players Sacramento Surge players University of Houston alumni 21st-century African-American people 20th-century African-American sportspeople