Mr. Football Kash Daniel could have a future in the world of pro wrestling

Right next to the “John 3:16” written on athletic tape above Kash Daniel’s locker in the Paintsville High School fieldhouse is another, less familiar, reference.

It reads, “Austin 3:16,” the play-on-words slogan of former pro wrestling superstar Stone Cold Steve Austin that proclaimed he was going to “whoop” your backside.

Those who have spent any time at all with Daniel — one of UK’s top signees for the class of 2016 — wouldn’t have any trouble picturing him in a pro wrestling ring.

Daniel — an intense player on the football field and a sometimes brash interview once the game is finished — says he often hears from folks who think he could have a future in the world of sports entertainment.

The 6-foot-3, 230-pound linebacker certainly looks the part, and pro wrestling has a long history of turning one-time football players into superstars.

“Oh, yeah,” Daniel said. “They say, ‘Well, if you can’t make it in pro football, you can definitely make it in wrestling.’ I get intense sometimes when I’m doing those interviews. If it sounds like I’m cutting a promo for the WWE, it’s not on purpose. I just get carried away.”

The best case of that came after Daniel scored the game-winning two-point conversion to beat rival Pikeville this past season. Immediately after the game, he was interviewed by WYMT-TV, and it sounded like something straight out of Wrestlemania.

Daniel has been a fan of the genre for as long as he can remember. As a self-proclaimed “weight-room freak,” he identifies with the size, conditioning and athleticism of current-day pro wrestlers.

And then there’s the promos. “I like to talk a bunch of crap,” he said.

Does he think it’s a legitimate career path once his own football days are finished?

“I’m not going to lie to you,” he said, “that’d be pretty badass.”

This story was originally published February 2, 2016 at 5:23 PM with the headline "Mr. Football Kash Daniel could have a future in the world of pro wrestling."