WWE Vengeance 2011: Zack Ryder Has Earned a United States Championship Run

Zack Ryder, the Long Island Iced-Z, has spent the last 35 weeks producing a YouTube sensation called “Z! True Long Island Story.” The show usually lasts five or six minutes and regularly attracts 150,000 or more viewers.

It's been a slow but steady rise for Ryder, who developed a cult following thanks to “Z!” It's become so popular, however, that it appears the WWE has even started to utilize it to advance storylines it doesn't have time for on television.

Most recently, Ryder's real life friend and roommate Mike Chiappetta was “attacked” by an unseen individual on the show. All the evidence points to Dolph Ziggler, who has been “hacking” into the show in recent weeks saying Ryder will never become United States champion.

Ryder didn't receive a huge pop for quite some time after his YouTube show began, the reaction was mostly from diehard members of the Internet wrestling community. Over the past few months, that has changed, though.

Mainstream fans, especially the kids, are starting to take part in Ryder's “woo, woo, woo!” chant before delivering the Broski Boot. And his “are you serious, bro?” exhalation after an opponent kicks out even draws a smirk from the Long Island Iced-Z himself.

Not to mention, he's moving merchandise. When “Broski” shirts dropped to sale prices recently, medium and large sizes sold out in hours.

It should all add up to a well-deserved run with the United States Championship following Vengeance.

It's no secret that the WWE goes with what works, as evidenced by repeated title reigns for John Cena and Randy Orton. Ryder's bringing too much to the table right now to be ignored, and his push has finally matched that potential.

Since Ziggler and Jack Swagger are feuding with Air Boom (Kofi Kingston and Evan Bourne), there's a strong possibility a loss to Ryder wouldn't leave Ziggler strapless for long. It would also allow both of Vickie Guerrero's clients to remain relevant during the build up to Survivor Series.

As for Ryder, he's earned it.

Instead of waiting for the WWE to give him a push, he was proactive about the situation and gave fans a reason to get behind him. A mid-card title run will illustrate whether his gimmick has staying power to survive once his initial momentum dies down.

After the Long Island Iced-Z's success, you can bet more wrestlers will attempt similar stunts in the near future in hopes of attaining their own big results. Maybe there will be a new term added to wrestling lexicon called the "Ryder push."

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