Former Rutgers athlete wants to put on a show for his 5 million followers at major wrestling show

VanBrill believes his social media presence helped him make the connection with RAF founder Chad Bronstein. VanBrill said he continues to post five to seven times a day on social media.

“You might not see that content,” said VanBrill. “It goes to what’s now called trial reels. It goes to people who are non-followers. It’s tech that’s super advanced and targets people you’re trying to reach. It was a skill set I developed working in Boise. It starts with getting really comfortable on camera and taking videos of yourself doing cool stuff. I started jumping off cliffs, got really good footage. When I was third in the Big Ten, I was jumping off cliffs all over the country, crazy heights. All of that was a driver in the brand and getting stuff out there.

“I continued to grow after college and continued to post. A lot of people hated on it. Why are you still posting on wrestling? This is why. Now you get opportunities you wouldn’t otherwise think you would get. This is an opportunity I earned.”

VanBrill said he had remained in touch with Bronstein after originally connecting with him through Instagram. When he lived in Idaho, VanBrill was going to compete on a card out West, but it never came together.

But once he moved back to the Northeast - he lives five minutes from the Liacouras Center in Philadelphia - Bronstein reached out to him to see if he could compete on Saturday’s card.

“I get a text from Chad late at night and I’m on a ski trip in North Jersey with my fiancee,” said VanBrill. “He said Jordan Oliver, Philadelphia, April 18. You in? No hesitation, I’m in. After that he said, sounds good, 145 (pounds). I was like ‘OK, cool.’ I wrestled 149 and 157 at Rutgers, but now I’m walking around 165-168. So five minutes later, I literally put on my ski jacket and ski clothes and went running 6-7 miles and didn’t get back until 1 in the morning.”

VanBrill heads back up to Rutgers three to four days a week and trains with the wrestlers at the Scarlet Knight Wrestling Club. He also has some South Jersey training partners who meet him at Clearview’s youth wrestling facility and he’s jumped into the room at Penn, where the Pennsylvania Regional Training Center is housed.

“I’ve been staying pretty active,” said VanBrill. “I knew RAF was something I definitely wanted to compete in, and I’ve had my eyes on this the last six months.”

Originally, VanBrill thought he might be paired against Beau Bartlett - who he has two wins over in his career. The match ended up being against Oliver, who is a huge name in the sport. Oliver is a two-time NCAA champion and two-time U.S. Open champion who won the World Team Trials tournament in 2021.

“I’ve watched his career and what he’s done on the senior level,” said VanBrill. “You get to a certain level, anybody can win at any moment. You look at Nate Jackson and Carter Starocci. You expect something to happen, and it doesn’t.

“I believe I’ll win this match. A lot of people think I’m the underdog. But I’m going to be aggressive, high-flying. This might be among the best I’ve ever felt. I’m super refreshed and have a good mindset.”

A win over Oliver would certainly move him ahead in his career and also advance the brand he is building along with it.

“I’ve developed a really good talent in the social media aspect that’s bringing attention to the sport of wrestling,” said VanBrill. “That’s why I can be a star in the sport. I’m bringing all three together.

“I’m not just a wrestler-influencer going in to get an easy matchup. I’m in there with Jordan Oliver. I’ve been third in the Big Ten, been in with the best in the nation. I fit all those categories as someone who has a following. someone who is a really good wrestler but also somebody who can talk and back it up. I knew I wanted (wrestling) to be a part of my life in some form. RAF got so big, so fast and now I’m wrestling on national television with a huge lineup with UFC fighters, Olympic gold medalists. I swear, it’s a perfect scenario, and I’m just really grateful for it.”

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