Roman Bravo-Young made Penn State wrestling fans pretty, darned happy when he recently announced he is coming back to State College for one more season.
Thanks to a big-time NIL deal he will reportedly have a little change in his pocket for his final go-round on campus. And it’s a deal that just might set him up nicely for his post-wrestling future.
That’s because, according to MMA journalist Ariel Helwani, Bravo-Young has inked an NIL pact with mixed martial arts manager Dave Martin. Helwani said Bravo-Young, a two-time national champion, has trained with UFC star Dominick Cruz and wrote that he “would be a huge (mixed martial arts) prospect,” if he continues to go that route.
And, if he does, he would be the latest MMA standout produced by the Nittany Lions.
It’s a list that just added Bo Nickal, who opened his pro career with a 30-second knockout win recently, as well as Bellator title contender Phil Davis and Ed Ruth.
Bravo-Young also reportedly had an NIL deal with Barstool Sports and, just last week, was promoting Kill Cliff’s energy drink on Twitter.
Bravo-Young is the two-time defending NCAA 133-pound wrestling champion. He was a gold medalist at the 2019 Junior Pan American Championships. He is also a two-time defending Big Ten champion with a silver finish in 2020.
