A South Carolina Homecoming for WWE Superstar Trick Williams

Armed with his Lemon Pepper Stepper section of followers behind him, and with a fresh South Carolina Gamecock twist on his already iconic entrance, emerging WWE superstar Trick Williams returns to his hometown this week for Friday Night Smackdown at Colonial Life Arena.

Originally known in these parts as Matrick Belton — now known to the WWE universe as one of the hottest stars in sports entertainment — the Columbia native and Keenan graduate was greeted with nothing but love from his hometown.

In Columbia for much of the week, making appearances and recording content leading up to Friday night’s event, Williams did various TV interviews and stopped by his old stamping grounds at Gamecock football.

The tour also included a stop at the 107.5 The Game studios to sit down with host Tyler Head and the GamecockCentral crew.

“This is a home game,” Williams said. “Coming back, it’s just a beautiful thing. This city has given me so much to be proud of and I want to represent the city the right way. This is a beautiful day.”

As part of his return home, Williams was presented with a plaque signifying May 12 as “Trick Williams Day” in the Palmetto State, just another milestone in what has been a meteoric rise for the former Gamecock, who will perform in Columbia while on the main roster for the first time.

A former walk-on wide receiver, Williams caught 11 passes for 121 yards in his Carolina career. When a tryout for the Philadelphia Eagles did not result in a spot in the league, he turned his attention to professional wrestling.

“I get paid to talk trash and take off my shirt?” Williams quipped. “Where do I sign up?”

After a stint in NXT, WWE’s developmental brand, he took home the U.S. Championship with a win over Sami Zayn at Wrestlemania last month.

“Unbelievable. Just lightning in a bottle for everything to come to fruition the way that you wanted it to,” he said. “Wrestlemania is what the business is all about. It is the Super Bowl, the SEC championship, the national championship. That is the time to get the job done. For me to have my first Wrestlemania five months into the game on the main roster and to come home with the United States Championship is unbelievable.”

Williams and his championship belt will be at the Colonial Life Arena Friday night (broadcast on USA Network).

WWE has teased a celebration for his homecoming, while Williams has teased a heavy dose of Garnet and Black tradition in his now famous “Whoop that Trick” entrance.

“You gotta understand, I learned a good entrance from right here at the house. When that 2001 plays, it’s a very, very special thing. We pull out those white towels and that Sandstorm gets to rocking. I figured there’s only one way to do it, which is bringing those white towels out for the all white on with Trick Williams. We’re going to ‘Whoop that Trick’ and bring the Sandstorm to WWE.”

“We’ve got something a little special for everybody with WWE Smackdown. We’re going to show the WWE Universe how South Carolina does it.”

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