Slayer_X
03-19-2015, 11:09 PM
By Bay Area News Group
In honor of WrestleMania 31 coming to Levi's Stadium on March 29, the 49ers Museum has opened a special display honoring the team's rasslin' past.
That past included tight end Russ Francis being one of the final four grapplers left standing at WrestleMania 2, the Twenty Man Battle Royal, in 1986.
But no 49er has been connected to wrestling more than Leo Nomellini, a 10-time Pro Bowl lineman who also held several wrestling title belts with his signature move "The Flying Tackle."
Nomellini took wrestling seriously. Former 49ers quarterback Bob Waters once recalled to Sports Illustrated a rookie offensive lineman approaching Nomellini during camp one year and saying: "Hey, Leo, that rasslin' is all a big fake, isn't it."
"I guess you can imagine what kind of practice that kid had playing opposite Leo Nomellini that afternoon," Waters said. "I don't believe we ever saw him again."
In honor of WrestleMania 31 coming to Levi's Stadium on March 29, the 49ers Museum has opened a special display honoring the team's rasslin' past.
That past included tight end Russ Francis being one of the final four grapplers left standing at WrestleMania 2, the Twenty Man Battle Royal, in 1986.
But no 49er has been connected to wrestling more than Leo Nomellini, a 10-time Pro Bowl lineman who also held several wrestling title belts with his signature move "The Flying Tackle."
Nomellini took wrestling seriously. Former 49ers quarterback Bob Waters once recalled to Sports Illustrated a rookie offensive lineman approaching Nomellini during camp one year and saying: "Hey, Leo, that rasslin' is all a big fake, isn't it."
"I guess you can imagine what kind of practice that kid had playing opposite Leo Nomellini that afternoon," Waters said. "I don't believe we ever saw him again."