Star Potential for the Nexus and Corrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrre

Gabriel - the Next Megastar?
Photo Credit: WWE.com

The Corrrrrrrrre and the Nexus are both amalgamations of young talent, many of them seeming like they have high ceilings in the WWE. There was another group full of blue-chippers in WWE that came up as a collective and terrorized RAW, albeit in a different way. They were the Spirit Squad. Five guys came up from OVW and into WWE with big hype and impeccable pedigrees. All of them succeeded, right? Well no, only Kenny and Nicky got significant roster time after the breakup of the group, and of those two, only Nicky - better known as Dolph Ziggler - is still with the company today. So yeah, big groups of young guys don't always pan out. Still, will these two groups produce more than just one wrestler with staying power? I'm gonna rank them from least likely to most likely to stick around. Just as a note, I'm taking all the members of Nexus and Corrrrrre excepting Daniel Bryan, who was a member of Nexus for one night and has made a nice name for himself, and CM Punk, who's obviously made it. Here you go:

Darren Young - Darren Young's fate already seems sealed. Even though he's improved tons in the ring and has gotten a knack of how to play the crowd, he seems to be stuck in Superstars purgatory, a place reserved for the Curt Hawkinses and Primo Colons of the world. Once you're there, it's hard to get out of it. I could be wrong, but at the same time, Young didn't have as much to work with to me. They missed a golden opportunity for him to get over by not having him positioned as Juan Cena, and to me, that's the kind of opportunity that comes but once in awhile. I'll be the most surprised if Young becomes a bigtime star in WWE out of this group.

Heath Slater - I postulated once that Slater's hair whip was the only thing he had going for him. Outside of doing the ZigZag better than Ziggler seems to, he's been proving me right for the last nine months. What does Slater bring to the ring that guys like Zack Ryder, Hawkins, Primo, Yoshi Tatsu and Chris Masters don't? The answer is actually that he brings less in my view. Other people seem to like him, but I don't think he's long for the company after Nexus/Corrrrrre dissolves.

Husky Harris - I personally like Harris, but I think he's got the body type working against him. Yeah, the WWE is way harder on females for being fat, but it's not like fat guys have gotten it good in the fed either. I mean, the last guy who wasn't Samoan or a bodybuilder to get a big run in the company was Mick Foley, and before him? Probably Dusty Rhodes. Harris is also way too sloppy in the ring at times, so one false move against the wrong guy and it's back on the streets.

David Otunga - For a guy who was shoved down everyone's throats as having "It", he certainly didn't project that into overness. In fact, he wasn't really over until he started playing the snively, conniving Starscream role in the original Nexus. He plays that role well, mind you, and it could translate into a long, WWE career. He probably tops out at Mark Henry, which isn't bad, but is it really a "star"? I mean, I'd rather be Henry and have a decade-long career with the WWE rather than bounce back and forth between indies and TNA. Still, I'll be surprised if he wins a World-level Championship.

Ezekiel Jackson - Jackson has the biggest head start of any of the Nexus/Corre guys in that he's been around as THE Brian Kendrick's bodyguard as recently as 2008. He's got nominal mic skills and is a pretty good big man worker. However, when was the last time a big, steroid fetish guy gotten over without having some kind of mic skills behind him? Batista is the only guy I can remember, and he got a full faith push where he was able to outsmart Triple H at every turn. Will Jackson get that kind of push? That'll depend on how Vince feels on a certain day. So he can get there, but it'll take help.

Mason Ryan - Why do I have Welsh-tista over Black-tista? Well, maybe it's the devil that I don't know over the devil that I do. In limited exposure to him, I thought Ryan showed some decent charisma. I don't know. All the same things I said about Jackson apply here.

Michael Tarver - I like Tarver a lot. I think he's got great mic skills, and he projects meanness and tenacity like a boss. However, it just doesn't seem like the WWE thinks he's a star player. I mean, if they did, then they'd insert him back into this Nexus scene instead of having him appear randomly backstage. I don't know, maybe they do have things planned for him, but something tells me he's going to end up being forgotten. Which would suck, by the way.

Michael McGillicutty - Y'know, I haven't soured as much on El Hijo del Perfecto as much as some of the other fellow members of the IWC and blogosphere have. I see his NXT 2 finale disaster as a good kid having a bad night. That being said, like his father, he may not have the upward mobility to break into the echelon of mega World Champion. Then again, if his father were coming along in today's game rather than yesterday, maybe he'd be a multiple-time WWE/World Champion. So there's hope for McGillicutty. He has the tools, even if he's limited, and in the right scenario, I can see him catching fire.

Skip Sheffield - YIP YIP YIP WHUT IT DO shooooooot. I don't need to tell you how much I think Sheffield is awesome, but he is, really. I think he can play heel or face well, and everything about his look telling you that he should suck, he can bring everything to the table - mic skills, charisma, wrestling ability. He's the ultimate "don't judge a book by its cover" wrestler, and Vince McMahon agrees, since he's rumored to be so high on Skip that he envisions him as the #2 babyface in WWE behind John Cena, eventually. That's high praise.

Wade Barrett - Barrett has main evented PPVs before, but has he really arrived? I mean, you could argue that he's a main eventer, but the way he was jobbed out at the end of TLC I think set him back a bit. Still, there's no doubt that the WWE sees a lot in him, and for good reason. He's got size, charisma and the dude can talk. Barrett looks to be on the scene for awhile barring unforeseen circumstances.

Justin Gabriel - Boyish good looks. Exciting finishing move. Agility and wow factor. Bumping ability. Working ability. If Justin Gabriel learns to cut at least a decent promo, he will be the biggest star of this group. He's got all the tools and can appeal to both kids and adults. Once he finally goes face, he'll be huge.

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