Herschel Walker signs on with Strikeforce

Continuing the trend of former football players entering the world of MMA, former Heisman Trophy winner and NFL player Herschel Walker has signed a contract with Strikeforce for a fight at an unspecified date.

Walker might be the biggest name to sign a legit MMA contract from the world of football and continues a trend started by this season’s Ultimate Fighter reality show which features four former NFL players.

The signing of the 47-year-old Walker is a bit curious for Strikeforce which is starving for more quality depth now that it’s signed a contract with CBS to show its fights on network television. But it doesn’t hurt to have as many big name fighters on the roster as possible, and some believe that Walker could be competitive.

Despite his age, he’s always been a freak physical specimen and one of the hardest workers in football, and he proved himself further as an athlete by also competing in Olympic bobsledding.

Walker said he used to practice martial arts and compete in tournaments on Sundays after playing in college football games on Saturdays, and has long been a fan of MMA and the UFC, having attended UFC 103 in Dallas this past Saturday.

Age-wise, everyone knows about the Randy Couture comparison, and Couture is 46 years old and still one of the best fighters in the UFC betting.

But Couture’s longevity is mainly the result of his wrestling-first style that enables him to shorten fights and outlast his opponents using the clinch and top control games while avoiding as many big shots as possible.

Compare that with Walker, who played one of the toughest positions in the NFL, running back, and retired from football in 1997 after an injury-plagued career, and it would seem as though many of the odds are stacked against Walker being successful.

Walker will have the benefit of a great training group behind him as he will begin working with American Kickboxing Academy in San Jose California alongside top MMA fighters like Mike Swick, Josh Koscheck, and Jon Fitch.

That kind of training can only help Walker, but it’s fair to wonder whether or not he’ll have enough time to tighten up his game to become a true MMA pro before Father Time catches up to him.

It’ll be interesting to see though, that’s for sure, and it’ll be even more interesting to see if more and more top athletes decide to give MMA a shot.

It’s only a matter of time before a true sports superstar like perhaps a Shaquille O’Neal or a Ray Lewis enters the world of MMA, and something like that will only increase the exposure of what is already perhaps the world’s fastest-growing sport.