The fourth-seeded Alabama Crimson Tide basketball team will face off with the top-seeded UConn Huskies in a Final Four matchup this weekend in Phoenix, Arizona.
UConn is favored in this game by 11.5 points, but the Crimson Tide is looking to embody the fighting spirit of World Wrestling Entertainment Hall of Famer Ultimate Warrior.
On Tuesday, sophomore guard Rylan Griffen compared the Huskies to “The Immortal” Hulk Hogan.
“Hulk Hogan is in the GOAT conversation for WWF, and UConn, they’re a really good team,” Griffen said, using WWE’s former name. “They’re like the Hulk Hogan of college basketball right now.”
Griffen also mentioned that Alabama upsetting UConn would be like when Ultimate Warrior pinned Hogan at WrestleMania VI to win his first WWF championship.
“I think Ultimate Warrior beat Hulk Hogan when Hulk Hogan was big dog,” Griffen said. “He was the highest, big-time dude going in WWF at the time, and Ultimate Warrior came in with a bunch of energy and beat him.”
Griffen is a huge WWE fan, but if he ever needs a tag team partner, he knows exactly who he wants to team with.
“I’m taking Latrell Wrightsell because we got that chemistry,” Griffen said. “As far as a wrestler, I got to go “Stone Cold” Steve Austin. We’re both from Texas. Stone Cold said so. That’s really why I have to go with him because Stone Cold said so.”
This is not the first time that Griffen has referenced pro wrestling this season.
After beating North Carolina in the Sweet 16, he said in a postgame interview that he felt like Brock Lesnar when Lesnar snapped The Undertaker’s 21-0 undefeated WrestleMania streak in 2014.
The Undertaker’s dominance on the grandest stage of them all spanned four different decades until Lesnar pinned him at WrestleMania XXX. Lesnar’s victory shocked the whole world, and the same can be said about Alabama’s 89-87 win over North Carolina.
Shortly after Alabama’s Elite Eight victory against Clemson, Griffen’s passion for wrestling was on full display in the locker room as he carried around a replica Undisputed WWE Universal Championship title belt gifted by the WWE.
“Thank you, WWE,” Griffen said. “Shoutout to y’all. I’ve been watching it since I was a kid. This is almost better than the trophy to me.”
The video of Griffen with the belt spread across social media and even caught the attention of WWE Chief Content Officer Paul “Triple H” Levesque. Levesque responded on X, formerly known as Twitter, by congratulating Griffen and dropping a Roll Tide.
Even head coach Nate Oats got in on the fun and took a photo holding the championship belt and regional trophy.
As the Final Four and WrestleMania XL quickly approach, the Alabama Crimson Tide and WWE superstar Cody Rhodes vow to finish their respective stories on the grandest stages of them all. Both will have to go through reigning champions. On Sunday, Rhodes will main event night 2 of WrestleMania by taking on the Undisputed WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns, and Alabama will face off with last season’s NCAA Tournament champion, UConn, on Saturday at 7:49 p.m. CT.
