David Njoku's Brother Evidence Among Participants in WWE Tryout at WrestleMania 38

Evidence Njoku, the younger brother of Cleveland Browns tight end David Njoku, will be one of 45 current and former collegiate athletes taking part in a WWE tryout in Frisco, Texas, this week in conjunction with WrestleMania 38.

According to ESPN's Adam Rittenberg, the three-day tryout will include 53 athletes overall, all of whom are 25 years of age or younger.

Njoku began as a wide receiver at the University of Miami before transitioning to tight end. He transferred to UCLA in 2020 and Nevada in 2021, finishing with one reception for 11 yards during his collegiate career.

David Njoku starred collegiately at Miami before getting selected by the Browns with the No. 29 overall pick in the first round of the 2017 NFL draft.

The elder Njoku has registered 148 receptions for 1,754 yards and 15 touchdowns in five NFL seasons, and he received the franchise tag for 2022, which will pay him over $10.9 million.

Several other football players from notable college programs will be part of the tryout as well, including TCU offensive lineman Anthony McKinney, Washington State defensive lineman Dallas Hobbs and Kentucky defensive lineman Abule Abadi-Fitzgerald.

There will also be seven college basketball players at the tryout, including Lorenzo Edwards of St. Joseph's and Asia Royster of Florida A&M.

Rittenberg noted that there will be 29 men and 24 women at the tryout, which is being held at the Dallas Cowboys' headquarters.

WWE senior vice president for global talent strategy and development James Kimball discussed WWE's goal, saying:

"The long-term goal is to create a pathway in which the talent identification process is streamlined and then the talent development process is accelerated. We're able to identify talent at a much younger age, and we're able to develop them in an accelerated manner."

The tryout is an extension of WWE's new Next In Line program, which is WWE's way of capitalizing on the NCAA's revised name, image and likeness (NIL) rules for college athletes.

The NCAA now allows its athletes to profit off their names, images and likenesses, which opened the door for WWE to create a direct pathway from college sports to WWE.

The promotion's first signee via the NIL route was University of Minnesota wrestler Gable Steveson, who won a gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics last summer and recently won his second consecutive NCAA national championship.

WWE announced its first full Next In Line class in December, which included Fresno State basketball players Haley and Hanna Cavinder, LSU defensive lineman Glen Logan and Northwestern defensive lineman Joe Spivak, among others.

Members of the Next In Line class will be schooled in everything it takes to be a successful WWE Superstar, and some will be offered WWE contracts at the end of the program.

This week's tryout in Texas could yield more Next In Line signees, as well as athletes who are offered WWE developmental contracts straightaway.