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WWE AIMING YOUNGER FOR DEVELOPMENTAL TALENTS, SEEKING TO REMOVE 'CHANCE' FROM THE HIRING EQUATION & MORE - WWE SVP JAMES KIMBALL DISCUSSES COMPANY'S NIL PROGRAM

ESPN.com featured an article looking at WWE's Next in Line Program with comments from WWE Senior Vice President for Global Talent Strategy and Development James Kimball. 

Some highlights from Kimball:

Recruiting athletes in their 20's as everyone taking part in the upcoming tryout in Dallas is under 25: "We would like that [age] number to come down, especially on the developmental standpoint. The second you enter our developmental program and then potentially end up on NXT TV and then onto Smackdown or Raw, you want that number to be 25, not 30 or 35."

Fast tracking NIL recruits' development by bringing them to big Live Events: "We're able to develop them in an accelerated manner. Get them to WrestleMania or Raw, do media training, do community events. All those initial exposures to the business, those have been done while you're still in school. And then you come down to Orlando and off you go."

Kimball noted that WWE's wish list for NIL targets falls into two distinct categories - physical (look, size, athleticism, strength) and personality (public speaking, charisma, character range, willingness to be coached)

"Ideally, you'd like to find a nice blend. It's understanding how to transfer true athleticism from a given sport to a 20-by-20 ring, understanding spatial awareness and timing. And then it's the ability to express themselves on a microphone. That becomes a requirement over time, whether you're a heel or a face, or you're heavy on promo or even light, at some point you need to be able to tell a story."

WWE remaining committed to NIL recruits completing goals in their primary sport before moving to WWE: "Even if you come to WWE when you're 23, 24, 25, that's a significant improvement over what has historically been the case with some of our developmental talent. We fully support every athlete pursuing their dreams in their given sport. The idea is that we have that opportunity in college to evaluate them as a potential talent, and for them to evaluate us."

Eliminating 'chance opportunity' from recruiting: "The story typically is that you knew someone who knew someone, you had a chance opportunity, you got ahold of an individual who had a line to the company. Our goal here is to eliminate chance from the equation and just improve the likelihood of college athletes having an opportunity."

The article also has comments from WWE NIL recruit Joe Spivak, who will be participating in pro day at Northern Illinois University on Wednesday with possibly another workout next month at Chicago Bears headquarters. 

"[Football] was my first love. That was my first dream. And I need to see that through so that when I get to [WWE], I can be absolutely firing on all cylinders, I have no regrets, I'm all-in. I'm gonna ride this NFL dream until the freakin' wheels fall off, and then I am sprinting to Orlando."

Another NIL recruit Glen Logan is also preparing for pro day at LSU on April 6th. 

The article noted that WWE will announce a new 15-person NIL class in June. 

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