Ryan Dilbert's 10-Count: WWE Must Elevate Younger Stars at WrestleMania 31

1. Don't Forget About the Young Guns

WrestleMania 31 can be a catalyst for the company to move into a new era. It can be a showcase of how bright WWE's future is, a coming-out party for Roman Reigns, Dean Ambrose, Bray Wyatt, Rusev and Seth Rollins. Either that, or it can be a show heavy on nostalgia, a celebration of part-timers.

That choice is up to WWE.

Monday's Raw foreshadowed that officials may lean toward highlighting established names rather than building new ones, at least in the case of the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal. In a mock Battle Royal, Kane and Mark Henry cleared the ring and collided with each other.

As the two behemoths battled, Michael Cole said, "This could break down like this at WrestleMania."

Let's hope not. This match is potentially a launching point for an up-and-comer in need of momentum. Letting it instead be yet another notch on Kane or Henry's belt is a waste.

WWE also looked to highlight Big Show's power Monday night. He demolished Erick Rowan before the bell rang. 

The World's Largest Athlete winning the Battle Royal isn't a palatable option either. The lack of reaction he has received of late should be a clear indication that fans are done with seeing him and Kane in prominent positions.

New blood will invigorate the audience.

That may not be how things unfold, though. WrestleMania could well feature John Cena celebrating another WrestleMania victory and Brock Lesnar refusing to let go of the WWE World Heavyweight Championship. Randy Orton, Big Show, The Undertaker and Triple H could all walk away with big wins.

The goal instead should be to leave fans talking about Wyatt's destructive ways, Rusev's might and Reigns' potential going forward. 

The old guard is slowing, growing gray while the next set of stars wait to set off their own sparks. That's what WWE needs to be thinking when crafting WrestleMania's narratives.

2. WrestleMania Debuts

Rusev awaits his first chance on a WrestleMania stage. So does Sting.

Recent history indicates that WWE doesn't exactly follow a pattern to how it presents newcomers on The Show of Shows. 

Wrestler(s)	Event	Opponent(s)	Result
Dolph Ziggler	WrestleMania 26	MITB Ladder match field	Loss
Bad News Barrett	WrestleMania 27	Kane, Kofi Kingston, Santino, Big Show	Loss
Daniel Bryan	WrestleMania 28	Sheamus	Loss
Ryback	WrestleMania 29	Mark Henry	Loss
The Shield	WrestleMania 29	Randy Orton, Sheamus, Big Show	Won
Fandango	WrestleMania 29	Chris Jericho	Won
Cesaro	WrestleMania 30	Battle Royal field	Won
Bray Wyatt	WrestleMania 30	John Cena	Loss

Rusev has to hope to be treated more like The Shield than Bray Wyatt. The Eater of Worlds continued to lose momentum as he lost to Cena several times over as that feud continued. It hurt Wyatt, making his talk of being a monster look hollow.

The U.S. champ already has a better win over Cena than Wyatt ever did. Knocking off Cena again puts Rusev in rare company. You simply don't see Superman fall twice in a row.

3. Throwback Video of the Week: Larry Zbyszko 

The Living Legend is headed to the Hall of Fame. WWE announced Monday that the former AWA world champ will be joining the 2015 class.

That has memories of his career rising to the surface of many fans' minds.

His promo skills were top-notch. Listen to him berate David Sammartino, bragging about how he took out his father Bruno.

This is a clinic in how to take a simple concept and turn it into an effective interview, one that gets fans pumped up about a match.

4. The Beast at His Best

Brock Lesnar is promising to do bad things to Roman Reigns at WrestleMania. That bout will be a career-defining one for the challenger, while it will likely be another addition to the champ's collection of greatest hits.

Looking back at Lesnar's best performances is a reminder of just how damn good he is. 

• Brock Lesnar vs. Undertaker—No Mercy 2002 (Hell in a Cell)
• Brock Lesnar vs. Kurt Angle—SmackDown, Sept. 18, 2003 (Iron Man)
• Brock Lesnar vs. Eddie Guerrero—No Way Out 2004
• Brock Lesnar vs. CM Punk—SummerSlam 2013
• Brock Lesnar vs. Seth Rollins vs. John Cena—Royal Rumble 2015

Watching all those clashes will surely get one excited to see what he will do against Reigns. Lesnar has thrived against a variety of opponents, from a mat technician in Angle to a big man like Undertaker.

Reigns would be wise to study Lesnar's work against Angle, Punk, Guerrero and others. They all flourished in close quarters with The Beast Incarnate.

5. Who Steps Up with Owens Out?

There is a void at the top of the NXT hierarchy, one that will last over a month.

Kevin Owens underwent a partial meniscectomy, putting the champ on the shelf for the time being. Wrestling Observer Radio (h/t WrestleZone.com) reports that Owens is expected to miss from four to six weeks of action.

That's means NXT's top heel and top talker is gone for now and that some hungry prospect has a major opportunity ahead of him while Owens heals.

Bull Dempsey has lost some momentum as of late but is fully capable of taking up the role of NXT's uncaged animal in the interim. He's good on the mic and a compelling storyteller in the ring. 

Given the chance, Dempsey will have people talking, putting his name next to NXT's biggest names.

This is potentially a chance for Baron Corbin to have some longer matches and prove he's ready to keep climbing the ladder.  

6. John Morrison's Travels in the Underground

Lucha Underground has been the change of scenery that many former WWE stars needed. Maxine is thriving as the seductive Catrina. Ezekiel Jackson is doing his best work to date as Big Ryck.

Morrison, working as Johnny Mundo, is the biggest success story of them all.

He has done some of his best ring of his career, including composing an excellent Triple Threat Ladder match and impressing in a Cage match against King Cuerno. How is he getting even better than he was at WWE?

In Mundo's mind, WWE "handcuffed" him, as he told Vampiro:

He also left WWE just as he was hitting his peak. Lucha Underground has made him a central piece of its programming, and he has responded in emphatic fashion.

7. Los Matadores at WrestleMania Time

If you're not thrilled about the prospect of Los Matadores challenging for the tag titles, it's not your fault. WWE has done nothing to build up the team since last year's event.

They have been on the bench for the majority of shows since WrestleMania 30.

• Extreme Rules 2014—In El Torito's corner
• Payback 2014—In El Torito's corner
• Money in the Bank 2014—No match
• Battleground 2014—No match
• SummerSlam 2014—No match
• Night of Champions 2014—No match
• Hell in a Cell 2014—No match
• Survivor Series 2014—Fatal 4-Way for Tag Team Championship
• TLC 2014—No match
• Royal Rumble 2015—No match
• Fastlane 2015—No match

The bullfighters have just popped up now that WWE needs to fill the WrestleMania card. They don't feel like contenders at all. Interest in them is minimal.

Credit: WWE.com

They are the houseplants that haven't been watered in months. Go ahead and douse them now, but it's no substitute for steady maintenance. 

Match information courtesy of TheHistoryofWWE.com.

8. Don't Count the Show Stolen Yet

The Intercontinental Championship Ladder match is a surefire thrill ride. It's many a fan's pick for the bout that will steal the show at WrestleMania.

Randy Orton and Seth Rollins aren't just going to let that happen, though. Their clash has more of a story behind it. It's filled with animosity, while the build for the IC title match hasn't been taken seriously enough.

Plus, Rollins has stepped up in big moments, maximizing the opportunities WWE has afforded him. He did that most recently at the Royal Rumble, being a key part to one of the best matches in a long time.

In his first singles match at WrestleMania, expect him to come through in similar fashion.

Credit: WWE.com

Having The Viper as his opponent will help. Orton is an accomplished, experienced, gifted wrestler who is often taken for granted because he has been in the spotlight so much. He and Rollins will be looking to grab the headlines away from the main event, away from the ladder-centric chaos that will decide the next IC champ.

9. UpsetMania 

Curtis Axel keeps losing. He dropped a match to Erick Rowan on Main Event to put his 2015 record at 2-35, per CageMatch.net.

There's a big moment to be had here with all of Axel's struggles. Play up how delusional he is as he continues to amass defeats. Then give him an upset no one will see coming.

Have him shock Sheamus after The Celtic Warrior runs off a number of wins. 

WWE could create the kind of drama fans saw when The 1-2-3 Kid upset Razor Ramon in 1993.

10. What Wrestling Is

Max Landis has produced a stunning, powerful, nutty, profane tribute to pro wrestling. The short Wrestling Isn't Wrestling sums up just why the art is so awesome through recounting Triple H's career.

Toward the end, Landis delivers a perfect quote about the medium.

He says (note: video contains lots of NSFW language), "From Long John Silver to Perseus to Neo to Walter White; we love watching people, grow, change, struggle. Good people, bad people; we don't care. We want to see it, man. We need entertainment and we need it now. And when you watch wrestling, that's what you get."

The next time someone says, "Why do you watch that wrestling stuff?" That's exactly what you can tell them.